PocketBI no longer assumes every job is Upload → Clean → Transform → Chart. Cleaning is optional. Use the first-file path to learn the controls, then save only the ordered steps and outputs your recurring data job actually needs.
Most first-time users should start in PocketBI Workspace. The other products are specialized exits when the job changes.
These six steps teach the controls; they are not a required production sequence. Skip cleaning, transforms, or charts when the job does not need them.
Choose CSV/XLS/XLSX, paste CSV, or select Load guided business sample. Every import path stays on Upload first so you can inspect the table.
Review missing values, duplicates, whitespace, and inconsistent categories. Identity-like blanks such as IDs, names, emails, and customer fields are left for manual review instead of being auto-filled from another record.
Do not stop at missing/duplicate counts. Values such as Yes / yes / TRUE / true are a consistency issue and should keep the file below a perfect quality score until standardized.
Calculated columns, filters, combined columns, Group By, and dataset joins use the same rule: Preview is temporary; Apply to dataset commits the preview to the working table and undo/redo history.
Use a category/date field on X and a numeric measure on Y. Bar charts compare categories; line/area charts show ordered trends; scatter compares two numeric variables. Use Top N when labels get crowded.
For the Free first-file workflow, choose Export grouped data to download the summarized chart data as CSV. Open the file and verify headers, row count, labels, and sample values.
Chart PNG download is a PocketBI Pro action; it is not required to complete the beginner workflow.
Secure Export is available in the web Workspace. It encrypts a CSV locally with your password and creates a .pocketbi file; the password is not uploaded or stored.
Cleaning is optional. Save only the ordered operations and outputs the job needs; reconciliation explains how the source became the result.
Current boundary: browser replay and PocketBI ID definition sync are live in this workflow foundation. Scheduled/API/connector execution becomes user-facing only after its server worker is verified.
Use these once the six-step flow feels familiar.
Transform → Aggregate → choose group/value/operation → Preview aggregate → verify totals → Apply to dataset.
Transform → Calculated Column → choose inputs/operation → Preview calculation → verify rows → Apply to dataset.
Open Reconcile, load old/new files, choose a stable key, then inspect added/missing/changed rows. Guest access includes the discrepancy preview; full discrepancy CSV export requires eligible access.
Use the PocketBI workflow editor when the recurring job is grouping, filtering, joining, visualization, or a combination. Use PocketClean when the repeatable job is specifically deterministic cleanup across incoming files.
Use the same PocketBI ID and the same core data workflow, but expect some export and account controls to differ by platform.
Business is for organization-level repeatability: workspaces, saved profiles, scoped API keys, run history, and verification lineage.
Normal path: start at Business Home, choose the job you need, then follow the guided setup for recurring automation. The system terms underneath are Organization → Workspace → Processing Profile → Integration → scoped credential → Run → Verification.
Business Home is the normal directory. Workspaces and Run History are operating views; Organization & team is the advanced admin surface for membership and organization-level access.
Chart: use a numeric Y field. Cleaning: Undo and repeat one operation at a time. Reconcile: verify the match key is unique and stable. Account: confirm the intended PocketBI ID and refresh access.