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+#+title: Data Visualization: Mapping Omaha Crime Data with Tableau
+#+date: 2024-01-27
+#+description: Learn how to utilize Tableau Public to build a dashboard to map crimes across Omaha.
+#+filetags: :data:
+
+In this project, I am going to show you how to use Tableau Public for
+free to create simple dashboards.
+
+I will be creating simple visuals from an Omaha crime data set and
+combining them to create the dashboard below. You can view this
+dashboard interactively online here:
+[[https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/c.c7042/viz/OmahaCrimeData2015-2023/OmahaCrimeData2015-2023#1][Omaha
+Crime Data (2015 - 2023)]].
+
+#+caption: Tableau Dashboard
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/dashboard.png]]
+
+* Gather the Data
+You can download incident data from the Omaha Police Department on their
+[[https://police.cityofomaha.org/crime-information/incident-data-download][Incident
+Data Download]] page. They currently have files for the years 2015
+through 2023.
+
+Each file will be downloaded as a CSV file, approximately 3 MB - 8 MB.
+
+* Clean and Transform the Data
+I have used Python to combine the files into a single CSV file, as well
+as adding a custom =datetime= column. You could do this step in any
+software you prefer, but I prefer Python as its free, easy to use, and
+has a plethora of support resources online.
+
+Start by opening a terminal, navigating to your Downloads directory, and
+creating a python script.
+
+#+begin_src sh
+cd ~/Downloads
+nano data_processing.py
+#+end_src
+
+Within the Python script, paste the following:
+
+#+begin_src python
+# Import modules
+import pandas as pd
+import glob
+import os
+
+# Import the data
+path = r"~/Downloads/*.csv"
+files = glob.glob(path)
+
+list = []
+
+for file in files:
+    df_tmp = pd.read_csv(file)
+    li.append(df_tmp)
+
+df = pd.concat(list, axis=0, ignore_index=True)
+
+# Create a combined datetime column
+df["datetime"] = pd.to_datetime(
+    df["date"] + " " + df["time"],
+    format="%m/%d/%Y %H:%M:%S"
+)
+df.head()
+
+# Export the combined data
+df.to_csv(r"~/Downloads/combined_incidents.csv")
+#+end_src
+
+Once pasted, save and close the file. You can execute the file like so:
+
+#+begin_src sh
+python3 data_processing.py
+#+end_src
+
+After this, you should have a combined data file that contains all
+incidents between 2015 and 2023. Mine was approximately 55 MB.
+
+* Tableau Public
+[[https://public.tableau.com/][Tableau Public]] is a free-to-use web
+application that allows you to create visualizations by uploading data
+sources. Note that there's no way to keep the data and visualizations
+private, so don't upload anything private.
+
+After creating an account, you can click the =Create= > =Web Authoring=
+link to create your first visualization.
+
+#+caption: Create Button
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/create_button.png]]
+
+** Upload the Data
+Once you've opened your first project, Tableau will ask you to connect
+to your data. For this project, click the =Upload from computer= button
+and select the CSV file previously combined in the step above.
+
+#+caption: Connect Data
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/connect_data.png]]
+
+Once connected, you can refresh the preview of the data with the
+=Refresh Data Source= button in the toolbar.
+
+#+caption: Data Preview
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/data_preview.png]]
+
+If you need to edit any of the data types, column names, etc., you can
+do so now. Once complete, generate an extract so that you can start
+creating visualizations.
+
+** Create Visualizations
+To start, create a worksheet in the toolbar at the bottom of the screen.
+
+Within this screen, select a column from the =Data= side bar on the left
+and drag it into the =Columns= or =Rows= area of the canvas.
+
+See below for the map visualization. You can recreate this by adding the
+following fields:
+
+- =Columns=: Lon
+- =Rows=: Lat
+- =Marks=:
+  - Description
+  - Datetime
+- =Filters=: Datetime
+
+#+caption: Worksheet Editing
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/worksheet_edit.png]]
+
+You can repeat this process for each visualization you want to create.
+Explore your options by dragging data fields to different areas and by
+opening the field options to explore what operations can be performed on
+different data types (e.g., average, count, etc.).
+
+** Create Dashboard
+To create a dashboard, click the button on the toolbar at the bottom of
+the screen. Within the dashboard, drag each sheet from the left side bar
+onto the dashboard canvas.
+
+#+caption: Dashboard Editing
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/dashboard_edit.png]]
+
+** Formatting
+You can explore a ton of different formatting options throughout the
+worksheets and dashboard. Specifically for maps, you can alter the map
+layers, background, and visible features through the =Map= menu in the
+top file menu of the editing screen.
+
+In the finished dashboard below, I opted for a dark mode with a map that
+showed county lines and city names.
+
+There's a ton of other options available to be used in a dashboard like
+this, but this project shows a quick preview of what you can do in
+Tableau Public.
+
+#+caption: Tableau Dashboard
+[[https://img.cleberg.net/blog/20240127-tableau-dashboard/dashboard.png]]