Hey guys! Ready to dive into the world of data analytics? Today, we're going to explore Qlik Sense, a powerful tool that helps you make sense of your data. This tutorial is designed for beginners, so don't worry if you're completely new to this. We'll start from the very basics and work our way up. Let's get started!

What is Qlik Sense?

Qlik Sense is a data visualization and analytics platform that allows users to explore data, discover insights, and make data-driven decisions. Unlike traditional Business Intelligence (BI) tools that rely on pre-defined reports, Qlik Sense offers a more interactive and intuitive experience. It allows you to ask questions of your data and get answers in real-time. Qlik Sense is known for its associative engine, which maintains the relationships between all data points, regardless of whether they are directly connected. This enables you to uncover hidden insights and see the whole story in your data. With its drag-and-drop interface, smart visualizations, and self-service capabilities, Qlik Sense empowers users of all skill levels to explore data and make informed decisions.

Qlik Sense stands out in the crowded field of data analytics tools due to its unique associative engine, which allows users to explore data in a free-form, non-linear manner. This contrasts with traditional BI tools that rely on pre-defined queries and reports. Qlik Sense's associative engine maintains the relationships between all data points, regardless of whether they are directly connected. This means that when you select a particular data point, Qlik Sense highlights all related data points and dims the unrelated ones, allowing you to quickly see the connections and patterns in your data. This makes it easier to uncover hidden insights and discover the whole story in your data. Additionally, Qlik Sense offers a range of smart visualizations that automatically adapt to the data being analyzed, making it easier to understand complex data sets. The platform also offers self-service capabilities, allowing users to create their own dashboards and reports without the need for IT support. These features, combined with its user-friendly interface, make Qlik Sense a powerful tool for data exploration and decision-making.

Qlik Sense's key features include its associative engine, smart visualizations, and self-service capabilities. The associative engine allows users to explore data in a free-form, non-linear manner, uncovering hidden insights and discovering the whole story in their data. Smart visualizations automatically adapt to the data being analyzed, making it easier to understand complex data sets. Self-service capabilities empower users to create their own dashboards and reports without the need for IT support. Qlik Sense also offers a range of other features, such as data integration, data preparation, and data governance. Data integration allows you to connect to a variety of data sources, including databases, spreadsheets, and cloud services. Data preparation allows you to clean, transform, and enrich your data before analyzing it. Data governance ensures that your data is accurate, consistent, and secure. These features, combined with its user-friendly interface, make Qlik Sense a comprehensive platform for data analytics.

Installing Qlik Sense Desktop

Okay, first things first, let's get Qlik Sense Desktop installed. It's free for personal use, which is perfect for learning! Here’s how:

1. Go to the Qlik Website: Head over to the Qlik website and look for the Qlik Sense Desktop download page.
2. Create an Account: You’ll need to create a Qlik account if you don’t already have one. It’s a simple process.
3. Download the Software: Once you’re logged in, you should find the download link for Qlik Sense Desktop. Click it and save the installer to your computer.
4. Run the Installer: Find the downloaded file and double-click it to start the installation process. Follow the on-screen instructions. It’s usually a pretty straightforward process.
5. Launch Qlik Sense: Once installed, you should be able to find Qlik Sense Desktop in your start menu or on your desktop. Launch it, and you’re ready to go!

Understanding the Qlik Sense Interface

Alright, now that you've got Qlik Sense up and running, let's take a quick tour of the interface. Knowing your way around will make things much smoother as we move forward. When you first open Qlik Sense, you’ll see the Qlik Sense Hub. This is your central control panel.

• The Hub: This is where all your apps live. Think of an app as a Qlik Sense project. You'll see any apps you've already created here, and this is also where you can create new ones.
• Create New App Button: Located usually in the top right corner, this button allows you to start a new Qlik Sense project. Click it, give your app a name, and you're ready to start loading data and building visualizations.
• Navigation Bar: Typically found on the left side, the navigation bar gives you access to different sections like the Hub, your profile, and help resources. It’s your main way to get around Qlik Sense.
• Global Search: Located at the top, the global search bar allows you to search across all your apps and data. This is super handy when you have a lot of apps and need to find something quickly.
• Settings: Usually accessible from your profile, the settings menu allows you to configure various aspects of Qlik Sense, like language preferences, notification settings, and more.

Once you open an app, you'll see a different set of tools and options. Here's what to expect inside an app:

• Sheets: Sheets are where you create your visualizations and dashboards. An app can have multiple sheets, allowing you to organize your analysis.
• Edit Mode: This is where you'll spend most of your time building and modifying your visualizations. You can drag and drop fields, select chart types, and customize the appearance of your charts.
• Data Load Editor: This is where you load and transform your data. You'll use Qlik Sense's scripting language to connect to data sources, clean your data, and prepare it for analysis.
• Data Model Viewer: This tool allows you to see how your data tables are connected. It's useful for understanding the relationships between your data and troubleshooting data issues.
• Properties Panel: When you select a visualization or other object, the properties panel shows you all the settings and options for that object. This is where you can customize the appearance, behavior, and data of your visualizations.

Loading Data into Qlik Sense

Now that we're familiar with the interface, let's load some data! Qlik Sense can connect to a wide variety of data sources. For this tutorial, let's use a simple Excel file. Here's how:

1. Create a New App: From the Hub, click the "Create new app" button. Give your app a name and click "Create."
2. Open the App: Click on the newly created app to open it.
3. Data Load Editor: Once the app is open you can see options to add data, select "Data Load Editor".
4. Select your Data: Qlik Sense will prompt you to select the data source. Choose "Excel file".
5. Browse and Select: Browse to the location of your Excel file and select it. Qlik Sense will then show you a preview of the data in the file.
6. Adjust the Script: Qlik Sense automatically generates a script to load the data. You can adjust this script if needed, but for simple Excel files, the default script usually works fine.
7. Load Data: Click the "Load data" button. Qlik Sense will load the data into the app.

Creating Your First Visualization

Okay, with the data loaded, let’s create our first visualization! Visualizations are the heart of Qlik Sense, allowing you to explore and understand your data visually.

1. Open a Sheet: After loading the data, open a sheet in your app. If you don't have any sheet create it.
2. Enter Edit Mode: Make sure you're in edit mode. This is usually toggled with an "Edit" button in the top right corner.
3. Drag and Drop: From the assets panel (usually on the left), drag a chart type onto the sheet. For example, let's drag a "Bar chart" onto the sheet.
4. Add Dimensions and Measures: Now, drag fields from your data onto the chart. Dimensions are categorical fields (like product names or regions), and measures are numerical fields (like sales or quantities). Drag a dimension to the "Dimension" area and a measure to the "Measure" area.
5. Customize: Use the properties panel (usually on the right) to customize the appearance of your chart. You can change colors, labels, titles, and more.

Exploring Data with Selections

One of the coolest things about Qlik Sense is its ability to make selections and see how they affect the rest of your data. This is how you uncover insights and answer questions. Selections in Qlik Sense work associatively. When you select a value in one chart, Qlik Sense highlights the related values in all other charts. This makes it easy to see how different parts of your data are connected. To make a selection, simply click on a value in a chart or a filter pane. Qlik Sense will then update all other charts to show only the data that is associated with your selection. You can make multiple selections to narrow down your focus. To clear your selections, click the "Clear selections" button in the toolbar. Selections are a powerful way to explore your data and uncover insights. By making selections and seeing how they affect the rest of your data, you can quickly identify patterns, trends, and outliers. This can help you make better decisions and improve your business outcomes.

For example, if you select a particular product in a bar chart, all other charts on the sheet will update to show only the data for that product. This allows you to quickly see how that product is performing in terms of sales, profit, and other metrics. You can also make selections in filter panes, which are lists of values that you can use to filter your data. For example, you might have a filter pane for regions, which allows you to select one or more regions to focus on. When you make a selection in a filter pane, all other charts on the sheet will update to show only the data for the selected regions.

Experiment with making different selections and see how they affect your visualizations. This is the best way to learn how to use selections effectively. The associative selection model of Qlik Sense helps to quickly pinpoint relevant data and filter out what’s not important, making it much easier to identify key trends and outliers.

Saving and Sharing Your Work

Once you’ve created your app and visualizations, you’ll want to save your work and potentially share it with others. Here’s how:

• Saving: Qlik Sense automatically saves your work as you go, so you don’t have to worry about manually saving every change. However, it’s a good idea to periodically close and reopen your app to ensure everything is saved correctly.
• Sharing: To share your app with others, you need to publish it to a Qlik Sense Enterprise server. This requires a Qlik Sense Enterprise license. Once the app is published, you can share it with other users who have access to the server.

Conclusion

Alright, we've covered the basics of Qlik Sense! You've learned how to install Qlik Sense Desktop, navigate the interface, load data, create visualizations, and explore data with selections. This is just the beginning, but you now have a solid foundation to build upon. Keep experimenting, exploring, and asking questions of your data. The more you use Qlik Sense, the more you'll discover its power and flexibility. Happy analyzing!