# Getting started with Plume visuals: installation, license, styles and shared settings

> Install a Plume visual, learn the key Power BI terms, paste your license key, pick a style and adjust the cards shared by all visuals, in one place.

- Language: English
- Web page: https://plumevisuals.com/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume
- Published: 2026-10-14

All Plume visuals (slicers, tables, charts, Gantt, Ridgeline…) share the same foundation: the same installation, the same license card, the same styles and the same settings cards, listed in the same order. This page explains them once and for all; each visual then has its own tutorials (getting started, how-to guides, fields and settings), listed on its page.

## Installing a Plume visual

**What you need**: Power BI Desktop (recent version) or a report open in edit mode in the Power BI service.

From the `.pbiviz` file (your **Downloads** space on plumevisuals.com):

1. In Power BI Desktop, open your report.
2. In the **Visualizations** pane, click **…** (Get more visuals).
3. Choose **Import a visual from a file**, then select the `.pbiviz` file.
4. Confirm the Power BI warning message.

A new icon appears at the bottom of the icons in the **Visualizations** pane. It is saved in the report: colleagues who open the `.pbix` see the visual without installing anything.

From AppSource (visuals certified by Microsoft): **…** › **Get more visuals**, search for the visual's name, click **Add**. This is often the only option allowed in organizations whose Power BI administrator only accepts certified visuals.

> **Tip:** **Tip**: right-click the visual's icon › **Pin to visualizations pane** to keep it in all your reports.

> **Warning:** **Warning**: after an update, re-import the new `.pbiviz`; a report keeps the version it contains as long as the version number doesn't change.

## Sample reports

Each visual has a sample report in French and in English (`.pbix`, in the **Downloads** space, free account required). The data is fictitious and embedded, and the **Tips** page sums up the useful settings. It's the fastest way to see the visual in action before connecting it to your data.

## Inserting the visual and dragging fields

1. Click an empty area of the page, then the visual's icon in **Visualizations**: an empty frame appears, with a welcome screen that shows the expected fields.
2. In the **Data** pane, check or drag a column or a measure to one of the visual's **wells** (the rectangles below the icons: **Category**, **Values**…).
3. To remove a field, click the cross next to its name in the well. To rename it only in this visual: right-click › **Rename for this visual**.

The **Visualizations** pane has three tabs: **Build visual** (the field wells), **Format** (the look, the settings cards) and, for some visuals, **Analytics** (reference lines, trend…). Each card in the Format pane expands with a click; a switch in the header of some cards turns the whole card on or off.

## Glossary

| Term | In plain words |
|---|---|
| **Table** | A grid of data, like an Excel sheet: rows and named columns. |
| **Column** | A piece of information on every row (a date, a product name, an amount). You drag it into the visual to **group** or **filter** (one bar per product, for example). |
| **Measure** | A calculation written in DAX that gives a result based on what is displayed or filtered (the revenue for a month, a region…). Calculator icon in the Data pane. You drag it into the visual to **calculate**. |
| **DAX** | The Power BI formula language. You create a measure with **Modeling › New measure**. |
| **Granularity** | What one row of the table represents: "one row per order", "one row per day and per station"… Each tutorial states the expected granularity. |
| **Relationship** | The link between two tables (for example `Sales[Date]` → `Calendar[Date]`), which lets a filter on one apply to the other. **Model view**. |
| **Date table (calendar)** | A table with one row per day, related to your facts and marked as a date table (**Table tools › Mark as date table**). Essential for date slicers and prior-year comparisons. |
| **Hierarchy** | Nested levels: Year › Quarter › Month, or Category › Product. A date column dragged into a visual can turn into an automatic **date hierarchy** (in the visual's well, click the arrow to the right of the field and choose the column name instead of *Date Hierarchy* to keep the date on its own). |
| **Filter** | A restriction on the data taken into account ("only 2025", "only Brittany"). |
| **Slicer** | A visual used to filter the other visuals on the page (list, dropdown, slider, calendar). |
| **Cross-filter, highlight** | When you click an item in a visual, the other visuals on the page are filtered (cross-filter) or emphasize the matching part (highlight). **Format › Edit interactions** sets the behavior visual by visual. |
| **Tooltip** | The small window that appears when you hover over an item. |
| **Bookmark** | A "snapshot" of the state of a page (filters, selections), to recall with one click (**View › Bookmarks**). |
| **Drill down** | Going down one level in a hierarchy (from year to month) on a visual. |
| **Report theme** | The report's colors and fonts (**View › Themes**). Plume visuals can follow it (see [the Style card](#the-style-card-dress-up-the-visual-in-one-click)). |
| **Edit mode / reading mode** | In edit mode, you build the report (Desktop, or **Edit** in the service); in reading mode, you view it. Some Plume visual messages only show in edit mode. |
| **`.pbiviz` / `.pbix`** | The file of a custom visual / the file of a Power BI report. |
| **AppSource, certified visual** | Microsoft's visual store; a certified visual has passed Microsoft's checks (no network calls, code reviewed). |
| **★ feature** | A premium feature: usable without a license, with a watermark (see [premium features](#free-features-and-premium-features)). |

## The "Plume Studio License" card (first card in the Format pane)

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Get a license | Information line, not editable: the address where you can buy a key. | plumevisuals.com |
| License key | Paste the key you received after purchase here (it starts with `PLUM1.`). The watermark on ★ features disappears immediately. | **empty** |
| Show license holder (edit mode) | In edit mode, shows in the visual the name of the holder recorded in the key. | **On** / Off |

- The key is checked **offline**: the visual never connects to the Internet (a requirement of Microsoft certification).
- The key is saved **in the report's visual**: paste it once in each visual concerned (copy and paste the visual, or use **Format painter** to go faster).
- Possible messages in edit mode: "Invalid license key", "License expired (date)", "This key doesn't cover this visual" (key for another visual; the catalog bundle covers all visuals).
- A license lasts one year (one-time payment, reminders before it expires, 30-day grace period); on renewal, you receive a new key to paste in place of the old one. Prices: [Pricing](/en/pricing) page.

## Free features and premium ★ features

- **Nothing is ever blocked.** All features work without a key.
- Premium features carry a **★** in their label (setting or list value). Used without a valid key, they show a discreet **"Plume Visuals · Premium preview"** watermark with an **Unlock →** link.
- Free features never show a watermark.
- Each tutorial lists its ★ features in its section 6.

## The "Style" card: dress up the visual in one click

The **Style** card is the same in every visual: choose the same style in all the visuals on a page and they match. It has four groups, always in this order: **Style**, **Custom colors**, **Text** and **Animations**. The background and the corner radius are no longer there: they are in the [Frame](#frame) card.

**Style group**:

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Style | Complete look: colors, three palettes, fonts, frame, table header, marks and effects. | **None**, *Minimal*, *Black & White* (free); *Newspaper ★*, *Vintage (antique plate) ★*, *Earth ★*, *Nordic ★*, *Executive ★*, *Accessible (high legibility) ★*, *Pastel ★*, *Bauhaus (pop) ★*, *Climate ★*, *Blueprint ★*, *Unknown Pleasures ★*, *Graphite (dark) ★*, *Neon ★*, *Terminal (Matrix) ★*, *Infographic ★*, *Cockpit (HUD) ★*, *Hologram ★* |
| Theme JSON ★ | Paste a theme (your brand guidelines: colors, palettes, font) that applies on top of the style. See the tutorial [Styles, custom colors and JSON themes](/en/tutorials/themes-json). | **empty** |
| Follow report theme | Text, background, accent and data colors come from the report's Power BI theme (**View › Themes**), like native visuals. | On / **Off** |
| Reverse gradients (charts, Ridgeline Plume, Map Plume) | Reverses the direction of gradients and of the series colors taken from them. | On / **Off** |

**Custom colors group** (free):

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Customize colors | Start from the style and choose each color yourself. Shows the following settings. | On / **Off** |
| Background, Text, Secondary text, Lines and grid, Accent, Favorable, Unfavorable | Base colors of the visual (empty = style color). *Favorable* / *Unfavorable*: increase / decrease, target met or not. | **empty** |
| Bar track (slicers only) | Track behind the bars and sliders of slicers. | **empty** |
| Series 1 to Series 8 | Series colors, in order (empty = style color). | **empty** |
| Gradient palette | Palette used for gradients (heatmaps, colors based on a value). The start, middle and end colors replace it. | **Style or theme palette**, *Plume (sequential)*, *Plume (diverging)* (free); Viridis, Magma, Cividis (colorblind-safe), Warming stripes, Okabe-Ito (colorblind-safe)… ★ |
| Gradient: start, Gradient: middle (diverging), Gradient: end | Colors of your own gradient. | **empty** |

**Text group**:

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Font | Font of every text in the visual (title, axes, labels, cells). | **Segoe UI** |
| Text size (slicers) | Base size of the texts (the other sizes are derived from it). | 8 to 28 (**12**) |
| Density (slicers) | Overall spacing: tighter or roomier. | *Compact*, **Normal**, *Comfortable* |

**Animations group**:

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Animations | Smooth transitions when the data changes. Turned off automatically when Windows asks to reduce motion. | **On** / Off |

Variants: **Ridgeline Plume** and **Map Plume** offer a list of fonts and a *Custom* palette (Color 1 to Color 5); Ridgeline Plume adds **Filter change transition (ms)** to the Animations group. Details are in their tutorials.

Order of priority: Windows **high contrast** comes first, then **dynamic formats** (see [dynamic formats](#driving-any-setting-with-a-dax-formula-dynamic-formats)), then **custom colors**, the **report theme** (if followed), the **JSON theme**, and finally the **style**.

## The shared Format pane cards

Since the new Format pane layout (October 30, 2026), every Plume visual lists its cards in the same order, with the same names:

- **Charts** (and Table, Matrix, Gantt, Ridgeline, Map Plume): **Plume Studio License**, **Style**, then the visual's own cards (Layout, Data colors, axes, Gridlines, Legend, Sort…), then **Interactions**, **Tooltips**, **Title**, **Source note**, **Frame** and **Language and numbers**.
- **Slicers**: **Plume Studio License**, **Style**, **Header**, then the slicer's own cards, then **Preselection**, **Tooltips** (for slicers that show them), **Frame** and **Language and numbers**.

The tutorials of each visual don't repeat these cards.

### Tooltips

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Tooltip on hover, with the fields of the "Tooltips" well and report page tooltips. | **On** / Off |

A visual may add its own settings below (tooltip content, detail lines): they are in its tutorial. Basic Slicer, Filter Bar and Text Plume don't show tooltips and don't have this card.

### Title

The title drawn by the visual (charts). It is separate from the Power BI container title: turn one of the two off in **Format › General › Title** to avoid two titles. The settings match those of the native title.

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Show (Title group, also in the card header) | Shows the title. | **On** (**Off** in Table, Matrix, Ridgeline and Map Plume) |
| Text | Title text. Empty = automatic title built from the fields. | **empty** |
| Size | Title size. | 7 to 40 (**14**) |
| Bold, Italic, Underline | Title formatting. | Bold **On**; Italic and Underline **Off** |
| Color (empty = text) | Title color (fx button). | **empty** |
| Background color | Color band behind the title. | **empty** |
| Horizontal alignment | Title position. | **Left**, *Center*, *Right* |
| Text wrap | A long title wraps to the next line instead of being cut. | **On** / Off |
| Subtitle (Subtitle group) | A second, more discreet line. Several lines allowed: type `\n` to go to the next line. | **empty** |
| Size, Color (empty = secondary text), Italic (appear when the subtitle is not empty) | Subtitle formatting. | 7 to 30 (**11**); **empty**; **Off** |
| Show divider (Divider group) | Line under the title. | On / **Off** |
| Color (empty = lines), Line style, Width (appear when the divider is shown) | Line formatting. | **empty**; **Solid**, *Dashed*, *Dotted*; 1 to 6 (**1**) |
| Space below the title (px) (Spacing group) | Distance between the title and the chart. | 0 to 40 (**4**) |

### Header (slicers)

Slicers have a **Header** card, right after Style, with the same text settings as the Title.

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Show, Text | Shows the header; empty text = field name. | **On**; **empty** |
| Size, Bold, Italic, Underline, Color (empty = text), Background color, Horizontal alignment | Formatting of the header title. | 7 to 36 (**14**); Bold **On**; **Left** |
| Text wrap | A long title goes on two lines instead of being cut. | **On** / Off |
| Show divider, Color (empty = lines), Line style, Width | Line under the header (Divider group). | **Off**; **Solid**; 1 to 6 (**1**) |
| Show value / selection count | Count on the right of the header (Count and Clear button group). | **On** / Off |
| "Clear" button, Clear button label | Button that clears the selection, and its text (empty = "Clear"). | **On**; **empty** |

A few slicers have other defaults (hidden header, count turned off): see their tutorial.

### Source note

A discreet line at the bottom of the visual, to cite the data source ("Source: Census Bureau, 2025"). Switch in the card header.

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Shows the note. | On / **Off** |
| Text | Text of the note. | **empty** |
| Size | Text size. | 6 to 20 (**9**) |
| Italic | Note in italics. | On / **Off** |
| Color (empty = secondary text) | Color of the note. | **empty** |
| Alignment | Position. | **Left**, *Center*, *Right* |

### Frame

The background, border, shadow and margins drawn by the visual, like the **Effects** of native visuals. A setting left at its default takes the one of the style or JSON theme (dark background of *Graphite*, border of *Bauhaus*…).

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Background (Background group) | Draws a background. | On / **Off** |
| Color, Gradient end (optional) (appear when Background is on) | Background color; with an end color, a gradient background. | **#FFFFFF**; **empty** |
| Transparency (%) (appears when Background is on) | Lets the page show through the background, without touching the content. | 0 to 100 (**0**) |
| Transparent background (slicers only) | The slicer lets what is behind it show through (useful for a dropdown placed over another visual). | **Off** (**On** in Basic Slicer and Date Picker) |
| Border (Border group) | Draws a frame around the visual. | **Off** in charts, **On** in most slicers |
| Color (empty = lines), Width (appear when Border is on) | Line color and width. | **empty**; 0 to 6 (**1**) |
| Rounded corners | Rounding of the frame, bars and buttons (px). | 0 to 24 (**8**) |
| Shadow (Shadow group) | Drop shadow under the visual. | On / **Off** |
| Color (empty = soft), Blur (px) (appear when Shadow is on) | Shadow color and blur. | **empty**; 0 to 40 (**12**) |
| Inner padding (Spacing group) | Space between the edge and the content (px). | 0 to 40 (**8** in charts, **10** in most slicers, **0** in Ridgeline and Map Plume) |

### Language and numbers

(Formerly "Language and texts".)

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Interface language | Language of the visual's texts (buttons, messages, months). The field well names always follow the Power BI language. | **Same as Power BI**, *French*, *English* |
| Number format locale (e.g. en-GB) | Thousands and decimal separators (`fr-FR`: 1 234,5; `en-US`: 1,234.5). Empty = same as Power BI. | **empty** |

### Interactions (charts)

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Highlight on hover | When you hover over an item, the others fade. | **On** / Off |
| Dimmed items opacity (%) | How much the other items fade, on hover or after a click. | 5 to 80 (**25**) |

Some visuals add their own interactions to this card (vertical guide, lasso selection, path tracking…): they are detailed in their tutorial. Table Plume and Matrix Plume don't have this card.

### Your previous settings are kept

Several settings moved to another card or were renamed on October 30, 2026 (for example the corner radius, moved from **Style** to **Frame › Rounded corners**, or the gridlines, moved from the axis cards to the **Gridlines** card). A report created with an earlier version keeps its settings: as long as you haven't changed the new setting, the visual reads the old one. A measure in the "Dynamic format" field named with the old name (`style.radius`) is still accepted. Sample reports and JSON themes use the new names.

## Slicer preselection

The seven Plume slicers can open already filtered when the report opens: on the user's region, on the current month, on the last 30 days… The selection is applied like a click: the other visuals filter as usual.

**Two ways to preselect**:

- **A DAX measure** dropped in the slicer's **Preselection** well (premium ★). It returns one value or a list separated by `;`: `"Paris;Lyon"`. The comparison ignores case, accents and spaces.
  - Date slicers (Period, Date Picker): a date or a range in ISO dates, `"2026-01-01;2026-03-31"`.
  - Range Plume: a range `"100;500"`; an empty bound leaves the range open (`";500"`).
  - Basic Slicer: also a given node of a hierarchy, `"Office › Lamp"`.
  - Text Plume: the search text.
  - Filter Bar: one measure per field, named like the field (**Rename for this visual**) or placed in field order.
- **A shortcut without DAX** (free), in the date slicers and in Range Plume: the **Shortcut (no DAX)** setting of the Preselection card.

The measure is removed from the visual's data: it never becomes a row, a bar or a count.

**The Preselection card**:

| Setting | What it does | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| Shortcut (no DAX) (Period, Date Picker) | Period chosen without a measure. | **None (measure only)**, *Today*, *Latest date in the data*, *Last 7 days*, *Last 30 days*, *Last N days*, *This week*, *This month*, *Previous month*, *Year to date (YTD)*, *Last 12 months* |
| N (days) (appears with *Last N days*) | Number of days. | 1 to 3660 (**30**) |
| Shortcut (no DAX) (Range Plume) | Range chosen without a measure. | **None (measure only)**, *Without outliers*, *Middle half (Q1 to Q3)*, *Above median*, *Top 10%*, *Bottom 10%* |
| Apply | *Once per session*: the first time the slicer is displayed in the session. *Reapply on every display*: every time the page is displayed, and every time the measure's value changes. | **Once per session**, *Reapply on every display* |
| Force | Replaces an existing selection: saved in the report, recalled by a bookmark or by persistent filters. Otherwise that selection is kept. | On / **Off** |
| Value separator | Character that separates the values of the list (line breaks work too). | **;** |
| Report values not found (edit mode) | In edit mode, flags a value that isn't in the slicer ("Preselection: Lille not found"). | **On** / Off |

**Writing the measure**:

```dax
-- A fixed list
Preselection = IF ( NOT ISEMPTY ( Sales ), "Paris;Lyon" )

-- The signed-in user's region
Preselection region =
IF (
    NOT ISEMPTY ( Sales ),
    LOOKUPVALUE ( Users[Region], Users[Email], USERPRINCIPALNAME () )
)

-- The month of the latest sale, whatever the other filters (date slicer)
Preselection month =
VAR d = CALCULATE ( MAX ( Sales[Date] ), REMOVEFILTERS () )
RETURN
    IF (
        NOT ISEMPTY ( Sales ),
        FORMAT ( DATE ( YEAR ( d ), MONTH ( d ), 1 ), "yyyy-mm-dd" ) & ";" & FORMAT ( d, "yyyy-mm-dd" )
    )
```

- The measure is computed with the page filters: for a value that doesn't depend on the other slicers, write the calculation with `CALCULATE ( …, REMOVEFILTERS () )` or `ALL ( Table )`.
- `USERPRINCIPALNAME ()` returns the reader's address in the Power BI service (your own account in Desktop): each reader opens the report on their region. An empty measure preselects nothing.
- `IF ( NOT ISEMPTY ( Sales ), … )` keeps a measure that is never empty from bringing back values without data when the slicer has fields from several tables.

> **Note:** **Bookmarks and saved selections**: without **Force**, a selection recalled by a bookmark or saved in the report wins over the preselection. Power BI Desktop saves the selection applied in edit mode: to start again from the preselection, clear the slicer before saving, or turn on **Force**. A bookmark recalled after the report opens is always respected.

The card settings and the shortcuts are free; preselection from a measure is a ★ feature (watermark without a license key).

## Shared fields: Tooltips, Preselection and Dynamic format

- **Tooltips**: drag one or more measures here; they are added to each item's tooltip, below the visual's values. Report page tooltips are supported when the visual allows it.
- **Preselection** (slicers): see [slicer preselection](#slicer-preselection).
- **Dynamic format**: see [dynamic formats](#driving-any-setting-with-a-dax-formula-dynamic-formats).

## Driving any setting with a DAX formula (dynamic formats)

In every Plume visual, each Format pane setting can come from a DAX measure. Two ways:

| | **fx** button | **Dynamic format** field |
|---|---|---|
| Settings covered | Every color and every text | All: sizes, switches, lists, fonts, colors, texts |
| How | Click **fx** next to the setting (rules, gradient or field value) | Drag a measure into **Dynamic format** and rename it for this visual as `card.setting` (e.g. `title.fontSize`) |
| Visuals | All, except Table, Matrix and KPI Plume | All, including Table, Matrix and KPI Plume |

**Where is the fx button?** In the **Format** pane, to the right of every color or text setting (for example **Title › Color (empty = text)**). It is missing only on the License card, on per-series colors (a Microsoft recommendation) and in **Table Plume, Matrix Plume and KPI Plume**: Power BI doesn't allow conditional formatting in table-based or matrix-based custom visuals. In these three visuals, use the **Dynamic format** field; Table Plume and Matrix Plume also have the free **Cell elements** card (background, font, icons, web URL driven by a measure), and KPI Plume has dedicated fields (Title, Note, Icon, Reference labels).

Example: a title that turns red when revenue goes down.

```dax
Title Color =
IF ( CALCULATE ( [Change], ALLSELECTED () ) >= 0, "#2E7D4F", "#C0392B" )
-- dragged into Dynamic format, then renamed title.color
```

- Accepted values: `#RRGGBB` colors, numbers, TRUE / FALSE, and for lists either the technical value or the label shown in the pane.
- The formula wins over the pane setting; only high contrast comes first.
- Driving a setting with DAX is free, but a ★ setting stays ★.
- The list of keys for each visual is in its **technical reference** (the visual's page on the website). Full tutorial, with the recipe to keep the same scale when the report is filtered: [Dynamic formats](/en/tutorials/formats-dynamiques).

## What works everywhere

- **Cross-filter**: clicking an item filters the other visuals on the page (Ctrl + click to add more); clicking an empty area clears the selection.
- **Right-click**: the usual Power BI menu (Drill down, Include, Exclude…).
- **Keyboard**: you can navigate the visuals with the keyboard (Tab, arrows, Enter).
- Windows **high contrast**: respected automatically.
- **Export to PDF, subscriptions, Power BI service**: supported.
- **Bookmarks** and, for slicers, **slicer sync** (**View › Sync slicers**).

## Common issues, shared by all visuals

| What you see | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The welcome screen stays displayed | A required field is empty | Fill in the wells listed on the welcome screen |
| "Premium preview" watermark | A ★ feature is used without a valid key | Paste your key (see [the License card](#the-plume-studio-license-card-first-card-in-the-format-pane)) or go back to a free option |
| "This key doesn't cover this visual" | Key bought for another visual | Use the key for the right visual or the catalog bundle |
| The field wells are in French | They follow the Power BI Desktop language | **File › Options and settings › Options › Regional settings**, or **Language and numbers › Interface language** for the visual's texts |
| Old version of the visual after an update | The report keeps the version it contains | Re-import the `.pbiviz`; if needed, remove the old visual from the report |
| Colors different from what you expected | Color priority order (see [the Style card](#the-style-card-dress-up-the-visual-in-one-click)) | Check dynamic formats, custom colors, Follow report theme, JSON theme |
| Two titles on top of each other | Power BI container title + visual title | Turn one of them off |
| No fx button in Table, Matrix or KPI Plume | Power BI doesn't allow it in table-based or matrix-based visuals | **Dynamic format** field; **Cell elements** card in Table and Matrix Plume |
| The slicer doesn't open on its preselection | A selection saved in the report or recalled by a bookmark is kept | Clear the slicer before saving, or turn on **Preselection › Force** |
| I can't find the corner radius or the background in the Style card | They have been in the **Frame** card since October 30, 2026 | **Frame › Rounded corners**, **Frame › Background** (your previous settings are kept) |
| A syntax error on a pasted `DATATABLE` | Regional `;` separator | Depending on your regional settings, Power BI Desktop may expect `;` instead of `,` between DAX arguments. Replace the separating commas with semicolons |

For any other question: [Support](/en/support) page; to report a bug or suggest an idea: [Feedback and suggestions](/en/feedback) page.