Search data to create an Answer

Start visualizing your data in Explore by selecting Search data in the Insights workspace, editing an Answer created by Spotter, or opening an existing Answer. Choose data sources and use keywords to create a search with the help of search suggestions. Explore automatically creates the type of chart or table that makes the most sense for the data, but you can edit it to fit your needs.


Example search data page

Important: If you're viewing an existing answer, a lock next to the title means you only have View access. You can still edit the search, but you can't save changes. Select the lock to request edit access from the owner.

Types of data sources

The Search data page includes access to all the data sources available to you. Models and tables are two types of data sources that you may see in the data list.
  • Models turn data from the database into a business-friendly resource that everyone can use. They are the most powerful and commonly used data sources for searching. A model is a collection of related tables, table joins, source connections, and column filtering optimized for searching. Models are similar to the standard concept of a data source view.
  • Tables are the raw data sources from Data Studio. Tables include the unfiltered column names and data types for each table item.
Explore organizes models and tables into lines-of-business categories to help you choose data sources matching your needs. You can see which categories a model or table is in by looking at its tags in Explore. The default tags are:
  • Base
  • Claims
  • Guidewire
  • Loss Financials (LFITD)
  • Underwriting
  • EFRPolicy

For more about specific sources, see Pre-configured content and Data dictionaries for Explore models.

Step 1: Choose data sources

On the Search Data page, you must select one or more data sources before using them in your search query. Next to the search bar, you can select models and tables that you have access to.


Opening the data sources selector.

The columns from your chosen data sources are listed in the panel on the left side of the screen. To learn more about a specific column, select it to open the Column information panel. Information is provided if it's available, such as the data type, description, and sample values.

Step 2: Create a search

Use the search bar to query your data sources. Instead of typing in complete sentences or SQL, use keywords. For example, "sum Open Activity Count Activity Assigned User sort by Open Activity Count descending" creates a chart listing the number of open activities for each user, in descending order.


Explore Search Data query details

You can:
  • Type column names or values from columns.
  • Add columns from the panel on the left side of the screen. To filter values, select Add as filter next to the column.
  • Type special keywords such as begins with, next month, sort by, <=, and many more. See Keyword reference in the ThoughtSpot documentation.
You don't need to be familiar with all of the data or keywords because Explore provides search suggestions as you type.

To see the SQL that Explore is using for the search, select Query details on the right side of the screen.

Step 3: (Optional) Add formulas, parameters, and sets

You can add formulas, parameters, and sets in addition to your search keywords. On the left side of the screen, select the Category or A to Z view, then select + Add.

Formulas
Formulas are useful for mathematical functions, replacing null values, and using conditional logic. See Formulas in the ThoughtSpot documentation. You can also mask data mask data to hide the value of a column from certain groups.
Parameters
Parameters help you quickly run different search scenarios. A parameter is a container for adjustable values. Instead of using a constant value in your search, you can use a parameter that defines a variety of allowed values. When you save your search as an Answer, other people can change the parameter value to change what they see in the chart or table. See Create parameters in the ThoughtSpot documentation.
Sets
Sets are defined groups of values that you can reuse across many Answers. For example, you can create a set to categorize products, group a range of numbers, or define a seasonal time period. Once you share an Answer with a set, other people can use the set in their own Answers. There are two types of sets:
  • Column sets: You select a group of values from within one column.
  • Query sets: You can do additional filtering and aggregation before selecting values. You define a query using multiple columns, then select values from one of the columns in the query result.
See Column sets and Query sets in the ThoughtSpot documentation.

What to do next