Annex #1 - Looker Studio - Report interface explanation
Interface Looker Studio
Report interface in Looker Studio
Looker Studio is an excellent tool for creating dashboards. But to allow most of the visualization, it can be hard to apprehend in the first place.
But keep cool and read this tutorial. We will explain how things work area by area:
The Canvas #1
The canvas is where you will place charts, titles, and buttons… this is what your viewer will see. You can add charts with the chart menu or drag dimensions and metrics in the canvas.
The Data Source List #2
This is the list of data sources added to the report. Click on it, and it will show the list of fields available. Each field has a small icon that gives you a quick view (ABC → dimensions, 123 → Metrics, x|v → Booléen, 📅 → Datetime, 🌎 → Map).
The properties panel #3
It is blank if you do not select a component. Once you choose one, you will have access to the configurations panels. There are two, Set-up and Style. The first one set-up which data source to use in your component, which metrics and/or dimensions display, how you order/filter data… The second one will be about Style: which color was used, applied border on the component, compacts large number, show pagination in a table, define color background…
Shortcut bar #4
The shortcut: this is the bar that contains all quick actions. In order, from right to left :
Undo (or CTRL+Z / CMD+Z)
Redo (or CTRL+MAJ+Z / CMD+MAJ+Z)
Zoom in or out (or CTRL+scroll wheel)
Add a new page to the report.
Add a new data source to the report.
Add a chart in the canvas.
Add a community chart (component made by the community, not by Google).
Add a contrôl field like a date range selector, a select dropdown, an input box…
Embed a webpage in the report thanks to its URL.
Add a picture to the report.
Add a text box in the report.
Draw a line, arrow, or elbow and curve line.
Draw a square or a circle.
Access Theme and Layout configuration.
Menu list #5
The menu: the list of all actions doable in the report, organized by theme:
File: Share your report, access Theme and Layout, access the report settings and the version history, create a new report, copy the current report, download it or get an iframe to embed it.
Editing: This is a classic command for editing → Undo and redo, cut, copy, paste and paste special (paste style only), delete and duplicate. Select all and select none.
View: The view options for your canvas → Enable and disable the grid to place elements in the canvas. Define the grid size, padding, horizontal/vertical offset and reset the canvas.
Insert: contain all types of charts accessible, and they are the same as in the shortcut.
Page configuration: add a new page, duplicate one or remove one. Show the current page settings, hide the current page in view mode and manage your page. And the options to navigate: next page, previous page, first page and last page.
Arrange: options to place your element easily → Order to manage frontwards element and backward, vertical and horizontal alignment to align all the components with themself. Distribute to distribute evenly to three or more components. Page and report level component options and group and ungroup components options.
Resource: This menu lets you manage and create resources added to the report. You can check on the list of data sources, create blended data sources, manage segments, manage filters, manage colors dimensions values, report URL parameters and community visualizations.
Help: Find help, go to the documentation of Looker Studio, the community forum, check on the release note, request features and access tutorials.
More Options #6
The Reset button to reset dynamic filters, date range selector and parameters.
The Share button defines who can access the report, editors or viewers. You can choose to limit the access to authorized users only (through Google email) or to let it be accessible to everyone that has the URL. You can also schedule to send a pdf version of the report to an email.
The View button to go to the view mode. Clicks on this once in a while to check how the viewer will see your report.
Three dots options: the Refresh data button is handy as it only allows you to refresh data in the canvas without resetting the dynamics filter, date range selector… And the Make a Copy option to create an identical copy of the report.
Mastering REGEXP_EXTRACT Function in Looker Studio: A Comprehensive Guide for Effective Data Extraction and Manipulation
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