Continuous (green) fields have values that flow from first to last as a continuum. Numeric and date fields are often (though not always) used as continuous fields in the view. The values of these fields have an order that it would make little sense to change.
When used on Rows or Columns, a continuous field defines an axis:
When used for color, a continuous field defines a gradient:
It is very important to note that continuous and discrete are different concepts from Measure and Dimension. While most dimensions are discrete by default, and most measures are continuous by default, it is possible to use any measure as a discrete field and some dimensions as continuous fields in the view.
To change how a field is used in the view, right-click the field in the view and select Discrete or Continuous. Alternatively, you can drag and drop the fields between Dimensions and Measures in the data pane.
In general, you can think of the differences between the types of fields as follows:
- Choosing between dimension and measure tells Tableau how to slice or aggregate the data
- Choosing between discrete and continuous tells Tableau how to display the data with a header or an axis and defines individual colors or a gradient.
As you work through the examples in this book, pay attention to the fields you are using to create the visualizations, whether they are dimensions or measures, and whether they are discrete or continuous. Experiment with changing fields in the view from continuous to discrete, and vice versa, to gain an understanding of the differences in the visualization.