Creating data groups

You can organize the column data into custom groups so that the data is easier to read and analyze.

For example, in the Employee code column, you can group employees into ranges, such as 0-100, 101-200, 200+. In the Manager column, you can group managers according to their rank, such as First line manager, Senior manager, and so on.

About this task

Depending on the column data type, you can create data groups by using the following styles:

Numeric style.
Each data group includes a range of values. By default, this style is available for columns with numeric data types. However, while you create the data group, you can switch to the text style, and continue switching between the two styles until you save the group.
Text style.
Each data group includes individual values. By default, this style is available for columns with text data types. For columns with numeric data types, you can switch to this style when you create a data group.

Note: When working with columns that contain large numbers of items, it might be more efficient to define conditional groups manually by using the expression editor.

Procedure

In the data module tree, right-click the column where you want to group data, and click Create data group.
If you selected a numeric column, set the groups in the following way:
1. In the Name field, specify a name for the grouped column.
2. From the Groups menu, select the number of groups that you want to create. Each group is automatically assigned an equal number of values. When you change the number of groups, the values are dynamically redistributed and the range values are set.
3. In the Group names column, replace the automatically generated labels with meaningful names. However, if you change the number of groups, the custom labels are cleared, and the automatically-generated labels are restored for each group.
4. If needed, manually lock the Range border values for each group. The Higher and Lower range border values can be changed to numeric inputs. To return to the equal distribution of values, click the Reset distribution icon.
5. Optional: To create a group for NULL values, select the Group NULL values as check box, and type a name for the group.
6. If you want to switch to the text style, click Create a data group (text style) and proceed to step 3. You can continue switching between the Create a data group (numeric style) and Create a data group (text style) dialog boxes until you click Create.
7. Click Create.
The grouped column appears at the top of the list of columns in the table. However, if you selected the Replace the existing column check box, the grouped column replaces the original column in the table.
If you selected a text column, set the groups in the following way:
1. In the Name field, specify a name for the grouped column.
2. In the Groups box, click New group, and type a group name.
3. In the Remaining items in column box, control-select the values to include in the group, and click the Add to group icon . The values are moved to the Group items box.
  
  Note: The maximum number of items that can be preloaded in the Remaining items in column box is 32000. You can select from these items to add them to the groups that you define.
4. Repeat steps b to c to create more groups.
5. Optional: To create a group that contains all of the values that aren't already included in any group, select the Group remaining and future values in check box, and type a name for the group.
6. Optional: To replace the original column in the table with the grouped column, select the Replace the existing column check box.
7. Click OK.
The grouped column appears at the top of the list of columns in the table. However, if you selected the Replace the existing column check box, the grouped column replaces the original column in the table.

What to do next

To edit the grouped column, right-click the column, and select Edit data group.

You can't change the data group style for columns with numeric data types by editing the data group.