Tableau Software has announced the launch of the newest edition of its flagship business intelligence and data analytics software, Tableau 2020.3. The latest version lets users output and update external databases directly from Tableau Prep Builder. The new tool will also prove helpful for Tableau administrators to improve the distribution of product licenses. The idea to release a new version came when the Tableau’s May 2020.2 version reached its peak, which saw the introduction of a new data model and KPI monitoring metrics.

“The new capabilities in Tableau 2020.3 continue to extend the breadth and depth of the entire Tableau platform, helping customers to easily scale their analytics further than ever before,” said Francois Ajenstat, Chief Product Officer at Tableau Software. “By introducing the ability to write to an external database, Tableau Prep can now be used for analytics use cases outside of the Tableau platform, from data science to data governance.”

With respect to enterprise business intelligence and analytics, Tableau offers a comprehensive visual platform. The analytic software portfolio of Tableau is available through three main channels: Tableau Desktop, Tableau Server, and Tableau Online. The presence of Tableau in the cloud makes it more feasible to connect hundreds of data sources. The vendor also provides embedded analytics capabilities, and users can visualize and share data with Tableau Public.

With the addition of a new feature ‘Write to Database’ in Tableau Prep, it has become more flexible for customers to make their data preparation process more governed and scalable, and more deeply integrated with the rest of the IT infrastructure. The platform makes use of a drag-and-drop visual interface that makes it convenient to publish a data flow to one’s database without using coding or third-party tools. New tools for administrators also provide improved monitoring of mobile devices. Updated mobile applications are available for iOS, Blackberry, and Android devices.

Performing complex analysis, such as predictions or spatial joins, has now become easier for Tableau users through Tableau 2020.3. The table calculation method introduces new predictive modeling features so customers can construct and upgrade the models without leaving the platform. A new calculation “IN” operator further simplifies the task of comparing a vast number of values, checking whether a given value exists within a fixed, comma-separated list, or combined fields. Analyzing spatial data with the new spatial file union has also become easier for the users.

Table 2020.3 further expands the Tableau platform’s compatibility by adding Connectors to the Tableau Extension Gallery, a new collection of partner-built integrations, which enable customers to access data sources in addition to those that are natively supported by Tableau.  With an addition to the third-party connectors in the gallery, 2020.3 also adds an improved native connector to SAP HANA (System, Applications, and Products – High-Performance Analytic Appliance) that includes the ability to connect to HANA Table Functions.