Today was my first day learning and using Alteryx after years of using Python and it is like a breath of fresh air.

If I was to describe Alteryx, it would be Python… but easier. It has the click and drag aspects of Tableau but provides (from what I can see) a lot of the Data Science methods you would need, with minimal effort and coding knowledge required.

So what did I learn today?

• Well there is no more

     ‘import pandas as pd

     df = pd.read_csv(‘dataset.csv’)’

     instead you simply left click and hold the file, then drag it into the Alteryx canvas.

• In Python, if you want to change a column datatype, name or even drop a column, you would need 3 different functions/methods. In Alteryx, you can do all this with a single block. The 'Select' block.
• When filtering in Python using a single function/method, it only gives you the data points which provide a ‘True’ result. In order to get the ‘False’ results as well, you would need to build a second function/ method and include the complement operator. In Alteryx, a single block gives both results, which you can then use separately however you like.
• and many more..

Simple right? As this is only my third day at the Data School, I feel like I still have a lot to learn, and yet already I can see the benefits of a more user-friendly, code-free software.