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Power Pivot and Power Bi: The Excel User's Guide to Dax, Power Query, Power Bi & Power Pivot in Excel 2010-2016
Microsoft PowerPivot is a free add-on to Excel from Microsoft that allows users to produce new kinds of reports and analyses that were simply impossible before, and this book is the first to tackle DAX formulas, the core capability of PowerPivot, from the perspective of the Excel audience. Written by the world's foremost PowerPivot blogger and practitioner, the book's concepts and approach are introduced in a simple, step-by-step manner tailored to the learning style of Excel users everywhere. The techniques presented allow users to produce, in hours or even minutes, results that formerly would have taken entire teams weeks or months to produce. It includes lessons on the difference between calculated columns and measures; how formulas can be reused across reports of completely different shapes; how to merge disjointed sets of data into unified reports; how to make certain columns in a pivot behave as if the pivot were filtered while other columns do not; and how to create time-intelligent calculations in pivot tables such as "Year over Year" and "Moving Averages" whether they use a standard, fiscal, or a complete custom calendar. The "pattern-like" techniques and best practices contained in this book have been developed and refined over two years of onsite training with Excel users around the world, and the key lessons from those seminars costing thousands of dollars per day are now available to within the pages of this easy-to-follow guide. This updated second edition covers new features introduced with Office 2015.
271 pages, ebook
Published January 1, 2016
264 people are currently reading
217 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 16, 2019
Deeply, rabidly evangelical for the course of the first chapter (?). Afterwards, I sort of got used to it.
Q:
On the Microsoft download websites, 32-bit is labeled “x86” and 64-bit is labeled “AMD64.” You know, just to make things interesting. (c)
Q:
if you have a choice, go with 64-bit – it offers more capacity and more stability. (c)
Q:
On the Microsoft download websites, 32-bit is labeled “x86” and 64-bit is labeled “AMD64.” You know, just to make things interesting. (c)
Q:
if you have a choice, go with 64-bit – it offers more capacity and more stability. (c)
January 26, 2021
Great book! I want to give it five stars but I can't for the following reasons:
- I wanted to learn about Power BI but there was next to no attention to it. The book is almost exclusively about Power Pivot.
- The authors are very good at explaining including in their interactive manner - the latter adds value to the reading experience because the material is way too dry and boring so it keeps the reader engaged, but at times it is too much.
- It may sound contradictory to what I just wrote but some of the authors' explanations are hard to follow and could have been better with added details to the screenshots.
- I wanted to learn about Power BI but there was next to no attention to it. The book is almost exclusively about Power Pivot.
- The authors are very good at explaining including in their interactive manner - the latter adds value to the reading experience because the material is way too dry and boring so it keeps the reader engaged, but at times it is too much.
- It may sound contradictory to what I just wrote but some of the authors' explanations are hard to follow and could have been better with added details to the screenshots.
January 25, 2019
A great starting point to supercharge your excel skills
I am guilty of complacency...as a user of Excel for 20+ years I thought that there was little more to learn. Using older versions in corporate environments was also a deterrent...no matter what bells and whistles were added I couldn’t use them at work.
A recent change of jobs has prompted me to revisit this, and this book was the right catalyst. The opening chapters are pitched correctly to get users to focus on what they already know and use it as a stepping stone to acquiring new skills.
The examples are progressive and are all independently usable... you don’t have to get very far in the book to acquire new and useful skills.
Being able to pivot separate tables is a game changer and is well covered... the progression out to Power BI visualisation and Power Query is well handled but other books are required for deeper dives. The volume of data that can be handled in power pivot is awesome...and the book guides you to elegant and efficient functions and measures.
The authors clearly have been in the trenches with practitioners for whom excel is the often the only hammer to hit a problem, regardless of its nail-like properties...and their insights are very valuable to avoid catching thumbs...well done.
I am guilty of complacency...as a user of Excel for 20+ years I thought that there was little more to learn. Using older versions in corporate environments was also a deterrent...no matter what bells and whistles were added I couldn’t use them at work.
A recent change of jobs has prompted me to revisit this, and this book was the right catalyst. The opening chapters are pitched correctly to get users to focus on what they already know and use it as a stepping stone to acquiring new skills.
The examples are progressive and are all independently usable... you don’t have to get very far in the book to acquire new and useful skills.
Being able to pivot separate tables is a game changer and is well covered... the progression out to Power BI visualisation and Power Query is well handled but other books are required for deeper dives. The volume of data that can be handled in power pivot is awesome...and the book guides you to elegant and efficient functions and measures.
The authors clearly have been in the trenches with practitioners for whom excel is the often the only hammer to hit a problem, regardless of its nail-like properties...and their insights are very valuable to avoid catching thumbs...well done.
November 11, 2016
Realistically I am never going to "finish" this book - it lives on my desk at work and is rapidly becoming tatty and dog-eared from use as I wrestle with the transition from Excel to "grownup" BI - but I'm calling it done. An excellent, highly readable resource for Excel users wanting to branch into advanced analytics using the new Microsoft "Power" suite. Do not allow Microsoft's online help to drive you to despair - buy this book!
December 18, 2019
I’m a marketing specialist, so chances are less than a winning lottery ticket that I would ever read this! But my husband recommends this one as a great reference resource through the library that can save the retail purchase price of 80 bucks for anyone who wants to learn DAX programming. And he’s right….since it was added to our collection a year ago, it’s been constantly checked out, so reserve it asap!
August 29, 2017
Fantastic
Having a basic understanding of formula syntax is really all you need to dive in here. The book progresses I an a way that makes sense, and is easy to follow. The concepts are laid out in a way that builds upon the previous chapter, and even if you don't understand the "why" behind the formulas they still work. Practice with the concepts will lead to it "clicking"
Having a basic understanding of formula syntax is really all you need to dive in here. The book progresses I an a way that makes sense, and is easy to follow. The concepts are laid out in a way that builds upon the previous chapter, and even if you don't understand the "why" behind the formulas they still work. Practice with the concepts will lead to it "clicking"
September 26, 2020
Thorough but approachable
Loved this book!
Was very thorough and all of the examples listed with each concept were very helpful in speeding my understanding.
Even though it covers so many concepts, from beginner to advanced, it was very approachable and I didn’t find myself getting lost or confused because it built on itself all the way through.
Loved this book!
Was very thorough and all of the examples listed with each concept were very helpful in speeding my understanding.
Even though it covers so many concepts, from beginner to advanced, it was very approachable and I didn’t find myself getting lost or confused because it built on itself all the way through.
February 20, 2022
A bit outdated, but provides a great foundation to understand the mechanisms behind Power Pivot. It gives a solid understanding of measures, not sufficient though. If you are looking to learn Power BI and to have a deep practical understanding of it, this is not the book, yet, you won't regret reading it.
August 29, 2017
Really clear and well put together book walking through the basics of the power family and the fundamentals of the Dax language.
Great use of examples and a clear progression through the features and formulas.
Great use of examples and a clear progression through the features and formulas.
March 3, 2021
It took a while to finish this book because I started implementing what I have learnt while still reading. I will continue to keep this close as a reference. If you use Excel not matter your experience you should read this book!
May 21, 2017
The definitive guide to using Power Pivot and creating DAX measures
November 27, 2017
New excel horizons
This book completely changed my perspective on excel capabilities and I can hardly wait to put some of the examples described into real life.
This book completely changed my perspective on excel capabilities and I can hardly wait to put some of the examples described into real life.
July 25, 2018
Great book !!!
This book has helled me understand much more about Dax. Thank you Rob and I look forward to your nexg book.
This book has helled me understand much more about Dax. Thank you Rob and I look forward to your nexg book.
August 28, 2019
Great read
Awesome info and examples. The authors strike a great balance of foundational knowledge and intermediate concepts. My productivity will climb.
Awesome info and examples. The authors strike a great balance of foundational knowledge and intermediate concepts. My productivity will climb.
April 2, 2020
If you are starting the BI career, this is best starter.
June 29, 2020
Marking as read since I just need to dip in and out of this when necessary
April 16, 2024
Outdated
December 20, 2016
Excellent book. If you use Excel and want to extend the power of Excel, have a crack at Power Pivot (providing you have Excel Standalone or ProPlus, as it isn't provided in Excel Home Subscription). If starting or even experienced, then this book is a must-have on your shelf. I like how Rob clearly steps through what you would likely see as a result (i.e. not correct) until all steps are considered and applied accordingly (example: Sum at the bottom doesn't equal the Sum value in your Pivot Table).
May 4, 2018
Forget Excel and learn this
Amazing book, didactic, funny and inspirational. If your job is all about Excel, this book will change your life. I started in Power Pivot watching YouTube tutorials, but I realized that I was in front of such a huge, indispensable and important tool, that I decided to buy this book based on the reviews and I don't regret. In fact, I had not written any review in Amazon upon this purchase
Amazing book, didactic, funny and inspirational. If your job is all about Excel, this book will change your life. I started in Power Pivot watching YouTube tutorials, but I realized that I was in front of such a huge, indispensable and important tool, that I decided to buy this book based on the reviews and I don't regret. In fact, I had not written any review in Amazon upon this purchase
March 10, 2016
Early days, but it seems an excellent resource with a blog for problem solving.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews