Visualize Google Translate Data from Tableau

Jerod Johnson
Jerod Johnson
Director, Technology Evangelism
Use the Tableau Desktop business intelligence tool to connect to Google Translate data.

With CData Drivers for Google Translate, you can use data access standards to unlock connectivity to business intelligence tools like Tableau. The CData API Driver for JDBC allows you to connect from Tableau on Windows and macOS. This article covers how to discover schemas and query Google Translate data data in real-time.

Connect to Google Translate in Tableau

Before starting Tableau, make sure you've placed the .jar file in the correct folder:

  • Windows: C:\Program Files\Tableau\Drivers
  • MacOS: ~/Library/Tableau/Drivers

Once your .jar file is in place, establishing a connection is straightforward.

  1. Start Tableau.
  2. Under To a Server, select More.
  3. Select Other Databases (JDBC)
  4. Enter the JDBC connection string in the URL field.
  5. Authentication

    Google Cloud Translation API requires OAuth 2.0 authentication to ensure secure access to translation services, datasets, glossaries, and adaptive MT resources. This authentication method allows you to securely connect to your Google Cloud project and manage translation resources with proper authorization.

    OAuth 2.0 Setup and Configuration

    Step 1: Create Google Cloud Project and Enable API

    To set up OAuth authentication:

    1. Visit the Google Cloud Console
    2. Create a new project or select an existing project
    3. Note down your Project ID (required for all API calls)
    4. Navigate to "APIs & Services" > "Library"
    5. Search for and enable the "Cloud Translation API"
    6. Go to "APIs & Services" > "Credentials"
    7. Click "Create Credentials" and select "OAuth Client ID"
    8. Configure the OAuth consent screen if prompted
    9. Select "Desktop application" or "Web application" as appropriate
    10. Set the authorized redirect URI (CallbackURL)
    11. Copy the Client ID and Client Secret for use in your connection

    Required Connection Properties

    • AuthScheme: Set this to OAuth (required)
    • OAuthClientId: Client ID from Google Cloud Console (required)
    • OAuthClientSecret: Client secret from Google Cloud Console (required)
    • CallbackURL: Redirect URI specified in your OAuth application (required)
    • InitiateOAuth: Set to GETANDREFRESH for automatic token management (recommended)
    • ProjectId: Your Google Cloud project ID or project number (required for queries)

    Required OAuth Scopes

    The Google Cloud Translation API Profile requires the following OAuth scope:

    • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/cloud-translation - Full access to Cloud Translation API resources including translation, datasets, glossaries, and adaptive MT

    Built-in Connection String Designer

    For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Google Translate JDBC Driver. Either double-click the .jar file or execute the .jar file from the command-line.

    From Windows:

    java -jar 'C:\Program Files\CData[product_name]\lib\cdata.jdbc.api.jar'
    

    From MacOS:

    java -jar cdata.jdbc.api.jar
    

    Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

    When you configure the JDBC URL, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

    The following is a sample URL created in the designer:

    jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\GoogleTranslate.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackUrl=your_callback_url;
    
  6. Select Sign in.

Discover Schemas and Query Data

  1. Select CData from the Database pull-down menu.
  2. Select CData from the Schema pull-down menu.
  3. Drag the table onto the join area. You can include multiple tables.
  4. Select Update Now or Automatically Update. Update Now lets you preview the first 10,000 rows of the data source (or enter the number of rows you want to see in the Rows text box). Automatically Update automatically reflects the changes in the preview area.
  5. In the Connection menu, select the Live option, so that you skip loading a copy of the data into Tableau and instead work on real-time data.
  6. Click the tab for your worksheet. Columns are listed as Dimensions and Measures, depending on the data type. The CData Driver discovers data types automatically, allowing you to leverage the powerful data processing and visualization features of Tableau.
  7. Click and drag a field from the Dimensions or Measures area to Rows or Columns. Tableau creates column or row headers.
  8. Select one of the chart types from the Show Me tab. Tableau displays the chart type that you selected.

Using the CData API Driver for JDBC with Tableau, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on Google Translate data. Download a free, 30-day trial and get started today.

Ready to get started?

Connect to live data from Google Translate with the API Driver

Connect to Google Translate