Data sources in Tableau are a definition of the connection(s). In addition to storing information about the connection (such as database server name, database, and/or file names), the data source also contains information about all the fields available (such as field name, data type, default format, comments, aliases, and so on). Often, this data about the data is referred to as metadata.
Right-clicking on a field in the data pane reveals a menu of metadata options. Some of these options will be demonstrated in the following exercise, others will be explained throughout the book. The following are some of the options available via right-click:
Rename the field
Hide the field
Change aliases for values of a dimension (other than date fields)
Create calculated fields, groups, or sets
Split the field
Change the default use of a date or numeric field to either discrete or continuous
Redefine the field as a dimension or a measure
Change the data type of the field
Assign a geographic...