15. Maps: Showing Maharashtra on a Map
15.3 Data Categories and Geocoding
Power BI converts text into coordinates (geocoding) using an online service. A plain "Aurangabad" or "Nagpur" might be matched to a place with the same name elsewhere. Tell Power BI what each column means with a data category.
Steps in Power BI
- In Table view or the Data pane, select DarkStore › City.
- Column tools › Data category › City.
- Set State › State or Province, Country › Country/Region, Pincode (Text) › Postal code, Latitude › Latitude, Longitude › Longitude.
- A globe icon appears next to geo-categorised fields in the Data pane.
Other data categories: Address, Continent, County, Place, Web URL, Image URL, Barcode.
Avoid wrong geocoding with a full location column:
Map Location = DarkStore[City] & ", " & DarkStore[State] & ", " & DarkStore[Country]
-- "Sambhaji Nagar, Maharashtra, India"
Store Address = DarkStore[Area] & ", " & DarkStore[City] & ", Maharashtra, India"
-- "Tarabai Park, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India"
Set Map Location to data category Place (or Address for Store Address) and use it in the map's Location well. You can also build it in Power Query with Merge Columns (Module 7.11).
Samjla ka? "Nagpur" peksha "Nagpur, Maharashtra, India" jast safe aahe. Nasel tar udaharan punha bagha.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
He bagha, mitrano: plotting "Nagpur" or "Sambhaji Nagar" without the state can drop the bubble in the wrong place, and renamed places may not be recognised yet. Set the data category, build a full location like "Nagpur, Maharashtra, India", and keep Pincode as Text with category Postal code. If a bubble still lands wrong, switch to latitude and longitude. Chuk karu naka!