Querying

Task Module - Home

The Task Module is the main place where you will interact with/leverage the AutoQL app in Microsoft Teams. 

From the Task Module, users can do the following things: 

1. Type natural language queries in the query input bar and receive data responses. 
2. Find out what queries they can ask using the Explore Queries feature. 
3. Return to a previous query you’ve asked in your current session (by clicking the the “back” arrow) 
4. Exit/close the Task Module (by clicking the X in the top right corner)

Once a query has been asked and the user has received a data response, additional features also become available. All of these features/functionalities are noted below and, where applicable, are covered in detail in subsequent testing steps of this document: 

• • Go back (via back arrow) beside the query input bar to the home of Task Module. 
  • Users can interact with data responses using a variety of built-in features and functionality (including drill downs and visualizations) within the Task Module. 
  • Report a problem to notify the app host (Chata) of any issues you may experience. 
  • Share data responses back to the channel (as images and as “interactive responses”/adaptive cards)

Query Input Bar

The Query Input Bar is where users can type natural language questions about their data. 

1. To receive an answer to your data-related question, navigate to the “Query Input Bar”in the Task Module. 
2. Next, simply type a question or a natural language statement in the query input bar. Click “enter” to execute/run the query. 
3. After entering your query, the data you have requested will be returned in just seconds. “Answers”, or “Data Responses” appear beneath the query input bar and new features/functionality become visible in both the top right and left corners of your Data Response. 

To clear a query and its accompanying data response and return to the “home” screen of the Task Module, click on the X beside the query input bar. 

Receive Data Responses

When a user enters a query. AutoQL receives the query, understands what the user is asking for, and automatically translates the natural language query to a language that the corresponding database can understand. The relevant data response is then retrieved directly from the source (the database) and returned to the user in real-time. 

Once the user receives a data response, they can easily change the visualization, click to drill down into a particular data point, share a data response to the channel, or ask another query. 

Explore Queries

The Explore Queries view is designed to facilitate seamless, self-service user onboarding and help users get ideas/inspiration by providing an easy-to-navigate, searchable catalogue of natural language queries. 

Similar to a Google Search, users simply type in a topic or theme they are interested in querying and AutoQL automatically returns a list of queries they can ask that contains that input. 

To access the “Explore Queries” feature: 

1. Click the Explore Queries button on the home/default screen of the Task Module. The “view” in the Task Module will change to the Explore Queries view. 
2. In this view, type in a topic/word that you are interested in querying about to find out what kind of natural language questions you can ask. You’ll receive a paginated list of natural language queries you can ask that contain the term (or closely-related terms) you entered. 
3. Scroll through the returned queries to find a query you’d like to ask. Once you’ve found a query that suits what you’re looking for, simply click on that query. You will receive a data response within seconds. 

To return to the home/default screen of the Task Module from the Explore Queries view, simply click on the “back” arrow on the left side of the query input bar. 

Query Toolbar

The Query Toolbar contains tools that enable you to filter results and export your query responses as needed.  

Hover on your data response to see a Toolbar in the top right corner and a range of available visualization options in the top left corner. 

Learn about all the tools available to you in the Query Toolbar:

Visualizations Toolbar

Data visualization types are the graphical representations of data (returned as responses to queries) that communicate relationships among the represented data points to viewers or consumers of that data.  

Visualization options show up on-hover in the top left corner of a data response.  

Dynamically visualize data using a variety of graphing and charting options. AutoQL supports several visualization types. 

Depending on the query input by the user, specific visualization types will be available. 

Tables

Displays array data in a regular table. See example below:

Filter Tables

Displays a multi-dimensional table, with the first column frozen. See example below:

Line Charts

Ordinal data is displayed on the x-axis, numerical data is displayed on the y-axis. Will show a line series for each column of data where applicable. See example below:

Pie Charts

Summarizes a set of nominal data or displays the different values of a given variable (e.g. by percentage distribution). This type of chart is a circle divided into a series of segments. Each segment represents a particular category. See example below:

Bar Charts

Ordinal data is displayed on the y-axis, numerical data is displayed on the x-axis, bars are horizontal. Will show a series for each column of data where applicable. See example below:

Column Charts 

Ordinal data is displayed on the x-axis, numerical data is displayed on the y-axis, bars are vertical. Will show a series for each column of data where applicable. See example below:

Stacked Bar & Stacked Column Charts

Stacked Bar: Ordinal data is on the y-axis, numerical data is on the x-axis, bars are horizontal. Bars are split into categories using the third dimension. Will show a legend for the categories on the right-hand side. 

Stacked Column: Ordinal data is on the x-axis, numerical data is on the y-axis, bars are vertical. Columns are split into categories using the third dimension. Will show a legend for the categories on the right-hand side.

Note: Only available for queries containing more than one groupable. For example: “Total sales by customer by month this year”  

Stacked Area Charts

Ordinal data is on the x-axis, numerical data is on the y-axis. Each area is stacked on top of the previous area. Will show a legend for the categories on the right-hand side. See example below:

Note: Only available for queries containing more than one groupable. For example: “Total sales by customer by month this year”  

Heat Maps

The position of the squares are based on the categories, and the opacity of the squares are based on the values. See example below:

Note: Only available for queries containing more than one groupable.  

Bubble Charts

The position of the bubbles are based on the categories, and the radius of the bubbles are based on the values. See example below:

Note: Only available for queries containing more than one groupable.

Report a Problem

Click on the “warning” icon to report a problem.  

When querying data with AutoQL, you can “report a problem” if you believe an issue has occurred (i.e. if the data returned was inaccurate or not what you were expecting).  

From the data response view, click on the “Report a problem” icon, then select the option that most-closely suits the problem you are experiencing.  

Selecting either of the first two options will report the problem automatically without providing additional context.  

Select “other” to provide helpful context about the issue you are experiencing, then click Submit. Your feedback will be sent to our team for review.  

Show/Hide Columns

Opt to only display the columns in a table that contain the data most relevant for your unique purposes. 

To show or hide individual columns, select the “Show/Hide Columns” icon on the top right side of the data response (the eye icon). 

A list of all columns relevant for the data response will pop up. 

Simply select which columns you want to show, de-select any columns you want to hide, and click “Apply” to make changes. You’ll see these reflected in your data response. 

Filter Table

Once a data response has been returned, you may wish to filter the response to explore and analyze your data in a particular way. 

To filter a response, select the “Filter” icon (funnel icon) on the top right side of your data response. 

The table will switch to a dynamic/filterable view where you can add filters to columns. From here, you can filter by name, number, and enter criteria such as less than and greater than (</>) to filter numerical values. 

Enter a filter you wish to apply to apply it to a column (or enter multiple filters in multiple columns). 

More Options

View additional features/available actions by clicking on the triple dot icon in the toolbar menu on the far left-hand side.

Download as a CSV

To download your result as a CSV file, select the “Download as a CSV” icon and open the CSV file on your computer.  

Note: This feature is only available when viewing a data response in tabular format (not as a graphical response).  

Copy Table to Clipboard

To copy a data response and move it to an external spreadsheet, presentation, report, or other, just select the “Copy to Clipboard” icon, and paste the data response into your desired spreadsheet or other location.  

Note: This feature is only available when viewing a data response in tabular format (not as a graphical response).  

Download as a PNG

To download your chart or graph as a PNG, select the “Download as a PNG” icon and open the PNG file on your computer.  

Note: This feature is only available when viewing a data response in graphical format (not as a tabular response).