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Engine Works

Under the hood of Alteryx: tips, tricks and how-tos.
KatieH
Alteryx Alumni (Retired)

Happy Monday!

 

I don't know about you, but I had a great time at Inspire a few weeks ago! It is always literally inspiring for us Alteryx employees to get so many opportunities to talk with creative customers like you and to hear about the ways you're using Alteryx products to execute analytics in your organizations. These encounters are always invaluable for me, and I know the developers on the Reporting team feel the same. We've had some great conversations since we've been back and we are excited to continue delivering ease of use and value to you through additional updates to the Reporting Suite.

 

What a rush it was to have the opportunity to show off the team's most recent work with you during the Product Keynote! We have packed in a lot of new features to the Visual Layout tool and there are also some great additions coming up. We are looking forward to your feedback on the new tool.

 

Now, to the point here!

You might be asking yourself…. Where can I get my hands on the new Visual Layout tool? What is the deal with releasing it as a Laboratory tool? What expectations should I have for Lab tools? Where should I submit feedback once I get a chance to use it? What kinds of resources are available for me to learn about the Reporting Suite if I'm just getting started?

 

Great questions! Here's the scoop:

 

The Visual Layout tool will be released in the Laboratory category in Alteryx 11.3, which comes out tonight (be on the look-out for a release announcement). If you have no idea what I'm talking about with the Lab, check your Tool Palette configuration and make sure the Laboratory category is selected. The Laboratory is a place we put tools that aren't quite production ready, but that we need your feedback on so we can ensure we're pointed in the right direction and make adjustments before we officially release the tools. We've decided to release the Visual Layout in the Lab this round because we believe the tool provides tremendous value and we want to get it into your hands to start collecting feedback, but we also know there are some improvements we need to make to get the tool into shape so it can provide a full-featured experience.

 

Lab category.jpg

 

Keep in mind, this means that the first ship of the Visual Layout tool in 11.3 will not be officially supported! Rest assured, the Client Services team has put together a handy reference guide to help you understand and work through the limitations we are aware of. I'll add the link here as soon as that article is posted!

 

The plan is to move the Visual Layout tool out of the Laboratory category and into the Reporting category once we've completed some additional key features in the tool that we believe are essential to providing a consistent experience for you.

 

Visual Layout tool Beta site

In the mean-time, we need your feedback! Once you get your hands on 11.3 and begin using the Visual Layout tool, please help us by adding your thoughts into our Visual Layout tool Beta site here: https://betaprogram.alteryx.com/key/VisualLayout

 

As we build in additional features, such as in-line element resizing, I will update the beta build on this site to include the new features so we can proactively get your feedback on these newer features we're developing.

 

As you're posting feedback, please take a quick look at what has already been submitted to make sure you're not posting a duplicate. That will help me a lot as I'm looking through the responses!

 

Reporting Resources

 

Keynote Workflow - I've had a few folks ask, so as promised, I've attached to this post the Medicare workflow that I used for the Keynote demo. Hopefully it'll help you get an idea of ways you can build out reporting elements and lay them into a report using the new Visual Layout tool. Keep in mind, this workflow won't work until you are able to upgrade to 11.3. Also, please note - I made this report with a demo in mind; while the data is accurate and scenario is legitimate, there may be some details that need tweaking if you're wanting to use this for a production use-case. 

 

Now, maybe you're brand new with Alteryx Reporting Suite and aren't sure how to get started… here's a list of some resources that can help you get started.

(Note - some listed resources will be newly available in 11.3:

 

One Tool Samples - We've added in One-Tool Samples for the Table, Image, Report Map and Report Text tools. These can be accessed by clicking on the tool in the tool palette…

 

One tool samples.jpg

 

…or by navigating through the Reporting Sample Workflows…

 

Sample WF.jpg

 

Sample Workflows - We've additionally added a sample workflow that describes the difference in how to use the existing Layout tool vs. using the new Visual Layout tool in the Create a report layout sample workflow:

 

Sample WF2.jpg

 

Some previously existing sample workflows can also help highlight ways to use the reporting tools:

  • Create a report with a chart and a table:

Sample WF3.jpg

 

  • Create a report with a thematic map:

Sample WF4.jpg

 

  • Create summary tables with a report:

Sample WF5.jpg

 

  • These additional sample workflows will help you understand the report batching capabilities in Alteryx (Note: you will need the Spatial Data Install for these to see these).

Sample WF6.jpg

 

 

Reporting Resources on Community

 

The Tool Mastery Series is a compilation of Knowledge Base contributions designed to introduce diverse working examples of Designer Tools.  You can find a bunch of articles for assistance with the Reporting Tools:

 

Here are some additional links to resources on the Community that you may find useful as you're working to build out specific things in your report.

 

Happy Reporting! We hope that you enjoy the new tool and we are looking forward to your feedback. If you have trouble getting access to the beta site, please send me a message and I'll help figure out how to resolve.

Katie Haralson
Sr. Manager, Product Management

I joined the Alteryx team in 2015 and have been having a great time with the Product Management team ever since. I currently lead a team of Product Managers who are focused on creating the vision for our Core Designer and Visualytics strategies. It is a pleasure to work on the Alteryx platform with such smart and motivated individuals, and I love hearing all the ways our products are making a difference in your work.

I joined the Alteryx team in 2015 and have been having a great time with the Product Management team ever since. I currently lead a team of Product Managers who are focused on creating the vision for our Core Designer and Visualytics strategies. It is a pleasure to work on the Alteryx platform with such smart and motivated individuals, and I love hearing all the ways our products are making a difference in your work.