Chapter 1, Getting Started with Qlik Sense, will focus on getting started with Qlik Sense with the Qlik Sense Desktop application and the Qlik Sense Cloud web-based application. We'll take a quick overview of the high-level features of Qlik Sense so it's clear how the Qlik Sense platform can be leveraged for individuals and enterprises, then we will jump right into using Qlik Sense.
Chapter 2, Loading Data in Qlik Sense, will cover a series of tasks to load data from several sources, such as text files and Excel spreadsheets. We will find data quality issues (such as null values in a field) with data profiling and create a data model, associating the data source using key fields to link tables.
Chapter 3, Implementing Data Modeling Techniques, will help you learn about various data modeling techniques along with the best data modeling practices for Qlik Sense. It will also cover topics such as joins, concatenation, filtering, and the use of Qlikview Data (QVD) files, which will help you to build the perfect data model. You will also learn how to handle dates using canonical date, how to handle accumulations and rolling averages in script using As-Of Table, and how to handle multiple fact tables in data models using link tables. Finally, we will focus on improving script performance using optimization techniques.
Chapter 4, Working with Application Structure, will explore the key concepts of a Qlik Sense application design. Along with this, we will look at the principles of building a Qlik Sense app using the Dashboard, Analysis, Reporting (DAR) methodology, learn how to use the visualization objects that are available to the user, and see how to create and use master items to reuse dimensions and metrics across visualizations. Finally, we will learn how to use the Qlik Sense user interface and look at the basics of calculation expressions.
Chapter 5, Creating a Sales Analysis App Using Qlik Sense, is where we will create a sales analysis application to explore and analyze the data model that we created in Chapter 2, Loading Data in Qlik Sense. During the development of the application, we will apply the use of the DAR methodology explained in Chapter 4, Working with Application Structure.
Chapter 6, Interacting with Advanced Expressions, will teach you about the power of the calculation engine. After reading this, you will know how to create a calculation with conditions, as well as how to use aggregation scope, inter-record functions, and advanced aggregation with AGGR. Finally, you will learn how to use set analysis to create a calculation with very specific data selection.
Chapter 7, Creating Data Stories, will look at an effective way to communicate insights using a Qlik Sense application called storytelling. The whole idea of storytelling in BI is to take an idea or an insight and turn it into an appealing story to show what we think about it. The story makes our insight more interesting. This also happens in everyday life; stories have always been the go-to method to grab someone's attraction.
Chapter 8, Engaging On-Demand App Generation, will explore how to create a summarized application, which is a regular Qlik Sense app where the fact table is aggregated. This application is capable of analyzing a database containing the data of a million bike trips without sacrificing too much RAM. By integrating a template, we give the user the capability to dig into detailed information. When the user needs to see detailed data in Qlik Sense, we will use the template to generate another application with the detailed data that the user has requested.
Chapter 9, Creating Maps Using GeoAnalytics, looks at GeoAnalytics, which is an add-on to Qlik Sense and Qlikview. This product has mapping capabilities that leverage Qlik Sense to analyze data that has geospatial naming conventions, exposing geographic relationships between data points. We are going to use those capabilities to analyze vehicular collisions that have occurred in New York City.
Chapter 10, Working with Self-Service Analytics, is where you will discover how to explore the self-service analytics features provided by Qlik Sense Enterprise and Qlik Sense Cloud Business. When using Qlik Sense Enterprise, you will learn how to build new sheets and create new visualizations using the master items library. You will also learn how to share insights with other users, creating community sheets and approving an analysis sheet to act as a baseline for developers. In Qlik Sense Cloud Business, you will learn how to co-create apps with other users in the same workspace.
Chapter 11, Data Forecasting Using Advanced Analytics, is where we will work together to enable Qlik Sense applications to predict how business Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will perform in the future. This is not is about using technology to predict business behavior, but is instead a matter of using technologies from data science such as machine learning (ML).
Chapter 12, Deploying Qlik Sense Apps for Mobile/Tablets, will show you how to deploy the sales analysis application we will have built for use in mobile devices and tablets. This enables us to freely access information wherever we are, even if we don't have a network connection. You will learn how to craft your dashboard so that it can be visualized on a small screen. We will discuss what we need in order to enable an application to be downloaded to a device and used offline. These activities are important for creating a great experience for users when they interact with the application from a small device.
