# Period Plume: every field and setting explained

> Every field well and every Format pane setting of Period Plume: what it does, the values you can choose and its default value, card by card, in pane order.

- Language: English
- Web page: https://plumevisuals.com/en/tutorials/period-plume-champs-et-reglages
- Published: 2026-10-14
- Visual: Period Plume, technical reference: https://plumevisuals.com/ai/visuals/period-pulse.md
- If an option name in this tutorial differs from the technical reference, the reference is right (it is generated from the visual's code).

This page describes everything Period Plume offers: the field wells, then each card of the Format pane, in the order they appear. Each setting's default value is in **bold**, and premium features carry a ★. For a guided first visual, see [getting started](/en/tutorials/segment-de-dates-periodes).

## The visual's fields

| Field (exact name) | Required? | How many fields | What to drag in (column or measure, type) | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Date** | Yes | 1 | A date **column** (Date or Date/time), or a column of years (whole number) | The filtered column; it forms the axis of the timeline | `Calendar[Date]` |
| **Measure (trend)** | No | 1 | A **measure** | Draws the timeline and feeds the comparison ★ | `Revenue` |
| **Tooltips** | No | Several | **Measures** | Added to the timeline's tooltip | `Order Count` |
| **Preselection** | No | 1 | A **measure** that returns a date or a range as text | Period selected when the report opens ★ | `Preselected Period` |
| **Dynamic format** | No | Several | Measures named `card.setting` | Drive a Format pane setting with DAX | — |

**Date.** The best choice is the `Date` column of a marked date table, used as **Date** and not as **Date Hierarchy**. *Date/time* columns are grouped by day (the time is ignored). The visual detects the pattern of your dates on its own:

| Your dates | The visual treats them as… |
|---|---|
| Any days | **Daily** data |
| All on the 1st of the month | **Monthly** data (boxes show "March 2024") |
| All on January 1, April 1, July 1 or October 1 | **Quarterly** data |
| All on January 1, a column of years (2001, 2002…) or the Year level of a hierarchy | **Yearly** data (boxes show "2016") |

With **yearly** data, the presets become "Latest year," "5 years," "10 years" and "20 years," and the calendar is hidden. With **monthly or quarterly** data, presets shorter than one period are hidden and the others snap to whole months or quarters.

**Measure (trend).** A single measure. Can you put several series in it? No: the timeline draws one measure. To show others on hover, use **Tooltips**. The comparison ★ computed in the visual is for display; for the rest of the report, create measures such as `Revenue LY`.

**Tooltips.** The measures are added to the tooltip of each point on the timeline; the **Tooltips** card turns it on or off (formerly **Trend timeline › Tooltip on hover**).

**Preselection.** A measure that returns the period to select when the report opens, in ISO dates: `"2026-01-01;2026-03-31"`. Computed example (the current quarter): `Preselected Period = FORMAT ( DATE ( YEAR ( TODAY () ), 3 * QUARTER ( TODAY () ) - 2, 1 ), "yyyy-mm-dd" ) & ";" & FORMAT ( TODAY (), "yyyy-mm-dd" )`. Premium feature ★; for common cases (last 30 days, this month, YTD), a free **Shortcut** in the **Preselection** card is enough, with no measure. Details in [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume).

**Dynamic format**: see [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume).

## The Format pane settings

### Header

The **Header** card sets the slicer's title line and its button to clear the period. When a rolling preset is active, a "Rolling" badge appears in it.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Shows or hides the header line | **On** / Off |
| Text | Header text; left empty, it uses the field name | Free text (**empty**) |
| Size | Title size, in points | 7 to 36 (**14**) |
| Bold | Makes the title bold | **On** / Off |
| Italic | Makes the title italic. | On / **Off** |
| Underline | Underlines the title. | On / **Off** |
| Color (empty = text) | Title color; empty = the style's text color | Color (**empty**) |
| Background color | Fills the header row's background, like the native title background. | Color (**empty**) |
| Horizontal alignment | Puts the title on the left, in the center or on the right. When centered, the title stays in the middle even with the counter and the Clear button. | ***Left*** / *Center* / *Right* |
| Text wrap | A long title goes on two lines (breaking between words) instead of being cut with "…". | **On** / Off |
| Show divider | Draws a line under the header. | On / **Off** |
| Color (empty = lines) (appears if Show divider is on) | Line color. Empty: the style's line color. | Color (**empty**) |
| Line style (appears if Show divider is on) | Line pattern. | ***Solid*** / *Dashed* / *Dotted* |
| Width (appears if Show divider is on) | Line thickness, in pixels. | 1 to 6 (**1**) |
| Show value / selection count | Shows the filtered period in the header, for example "Jan 1, 2025 – Jun 30, 2025," as soon as a filter is active | **On** / Off |
| "Clear" button | Button that removes the date filter | **On** / Off |
| Clear button label (appears if "Clear" button is on) | Replaces the word "Clear" | Free text (**empty** = "Clear") |

### Presets

The buttons for common periods. Each button has its own toggle.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Shows or hides the row of buttons | **On** / Off |
| Standard presets | Master switch for the standard buttons that follow. Off: only the custom periods are shown. | **On** / Off |
| Last 7 days (appears if Standard presets is on) | Button for the last 7 days | **On** / Off |
| Last 30 days (appears if Standard presets is on) | Button for the last 30 days | **On** / Off |
| Last 90 days (appears if Standard presets is on) | Button for the last 90 days | On / **Off** |
| This month (appears if Standard presets is on) | From the 1st of the month to the reference date | **On** / Off |
| Last month (appears if Standard presets is on) | The whole previous month | On / **Off** |
| This quarter (appears if Standard presets is on) | The quarter of the reference date | **On** / Off |
| Last quarter (appears if Standard presets is on) | The whole previous quarter | On / **Off** |
| Last 6 months (appears if Standard presets is on) | The last six months | On / **Off** |
| Year to date (appears if Standard presets is on) | From January 1 to the reference date | **On** / Off |
| Last year (appears if Standard presets is on) | The whole previous year | On / **Off** |
| Last 12 months (appears if Standard presets is on) | The last 12 months | **On** / Off |
| All time (appears if Standard presets is on) | All dates (removes the filter) | On / **Off** |
| Custom periods ★ | Your named periods, one per line or separated by `;`, in the format `Label: start - end` (yyyy-mm-dd or dd/mm/yyyy) | Free text (**empty**) |
| Reference date | Starting point of the presets: today, or the last date found in the data | ***Today*** / *Last date in the data* |
| Rolling preset (moves with each refresh) (appears if Reference date = *Today*) | Saves the preset as a **relative** date filter: "Last 30 days" is still the last 30 days tomorrow | **On** / Off |
| Position | Where the buttons go | ***Top*** / *Bottom* |

> **Tip:** **Tip**: only presets counted from *Today* with **Rolling preset (moves with each refresh)** turned on move forward on their own. "This quarter," "Last quarter," custom periods ★ and any preset counted from the *Last date in the data* are sent as fixed periods.


### Trend timeline

The small chart of the measure on which you draw the period.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Shows or hides the timeline | **On** / Off |
| Granularity | Time step of the timeline (never finer than the data). *Automatic*: day up to 4 months of data, week up to 2.5 years, month up to 10 years, quarter up to 25 years, otherwise year | ***Automatic*** / *Day* / *Week* / *Month* / *Quarter* / *Year* |
| Granularity toggle in the visual | Shows buttons to change the granularity in the report (only relevant granularities are offered) | **On** / Off |
| Chart type | Shape of the timeline | ***Area*** / *Line* / *Bars* |
| Period color (empty = accent) | Color of the chosen part | Color (**empty** = the style's accent) |
| Outside color (empty = auto) | Color of the rest of the timeline | Color (**empty** = automatic) |
| Date axis | Shows the dates under the timeline | **On** / Off |
| Draw the period with the mouse | Lets you draw the period on the timeline | **On** / Off |
| Drag the period | Lets you shift the period as a block, keeping its length | **On** / Off |
| Snap to | Unit the handles snap to (never finer than the data) | ***Displayed granularity*** / *Day* / *Week* / *Month* |

### Start and end dates

The **From** and **To** boxes, where you can type a date (`15/03/2025`, `2025-03-15`, `15.03.25`; the day/month order follows the language).

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Show | Shows or hides both boxes | **On** / Off |
| Format | How dates are written | *Short (04/07/2025)* / *Medium (Apr 7, 2025)* / ***Long (Mon, April 7, 2025)*** |
| Calendar on click | Clicking a box opens a calendar | **On** / Off |
| First day of the week | First day of the weeks in the calendar and of the *Week* granularity | ***Monday*** / *Sunday* |
| Show duration | Shows the length of the period ("30 days," "10 years") | **On** / Off |
| "From" label | Replaces the word "From" | Free text (**empty**) |
| "To" label | Replaces the word "To" | Free text (**empty**) |

### Comparison ★

Compares the chosen period with a reference period, shown inside the visual. This card is **off by default** and needs a measure in **Measure (trend)**.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Show ★ | Turns the comparison on | On / **Off** |
| Compare with ★ | The reference period: the same period one year earlier, or the period of the same length just before | ***Same period last year*** / *Previous period* |
| Comparison period on the timeline | Hatches the reference period on the timeline | **On** / Off |
| Numeric difference | Shows both totals and the difference in % (e.g. "401K vs 292K ▲ +37.2%") | **On** / Off |
| Last year / previous toggle in the visual | Adds a button to switch between the two references in the report | **On** / Off |
| An increase is good | Increase shown in the "favorable" color; turn it off when going down is good news (delivery times, returns): the colors swap | **On** / Off |

### Number format

The format of the measure values written by the visual (comparison difference, tooltips).

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Display units | Shortens large numbers ("34.1K") | ***Auto*** / *None* / *Thousands* / *Millions* / *Billions* |
| Decimals (-1 = auto) | Digits after the decimal point | -1 to 6 (**-1**) |
| Prefix | Text before each number (for example "$") | Free text (**empty**) |
| Suffix (e.g. €) | Text after each number; add a space before "€" if you want one | Free text (**empty**) |

### Behavior

The shape of the filter (Between, Before, After), when it is sent and the minimum length. The period on opening has moved to the **Preselection** card.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Style | Like the native date slicer styles. *Between*: a period with two handles. *Before*: everything up to a date. *After*: everything from a date (a single handle in both cases). | ***Between*** / *Before* / *After* |
| Apply the filter | Filter as soon as you release the mouse, or wait for a click on **Apply** (with **Cancel**) | ***On mouse release*** / *With an "Apply" button* |
| Minimum length (days) | Minimum length of a period | 1 to 366 (**1**) |

### Preselection

Selects a date or a period when the report opens, in two ways: a built-in **shortcut**, with no DAX and free, or a measure dropped into the **Preselection** field that returns a date or a range in ISO dates ("2026-01-01;2026-03-31", premium feature ★, watermark without a key). If both are set, the measure wins. The details (measure format, bookmarks, persistent filters) are in [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume).

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Shortcut (no DAX) | Period selected at opening without writing any DAX (free). Rolling shortcuts stay relative date filters: the report reopened the next day moves forward one day. *None*: only the measure in the **Preselection** field counts. A report from an earlier version finds its **Default period** here. | ***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 if Shortcut (no DAX) = *Last N days*) | Number of days for the *Last N days* shortcut. | 1 to 3660 (**30**) |
| Apply | *Once per session*: the preselection applies the first time the slicer is displayed, then the reader is in control (if they change the selection, it doesn't come back when they switch pages). *Reapply on every display*: it comes back every time the page is displayed and whenever 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. When off, that selection is kept and the preselection doesn't apply. | On / **Off** |
| Value separator | Character that separates the start and end of the range in the text returned by the measure ("2026-01-01;2026-03-31"). | Free text (**;**) |
| Report values not found (edit mode) | In edit mode, flags in the visual a measure whose text isn't a readable date. Readers never see this message. | **On** / Off |

### Frame (extra option)

Here the **Frame** card has one more option than the standard version.

| Setting | What it does | Options (default in **bold**) |
|---|---|---|
| Transparent background | Removes the visual's background: you can see what's underneath (page background, shape). | On / **Off** |

Shared cards (Plume Studio License, Style, Frame, Language and numbers): see [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume).

## Premium ★ features of this visual

| Feature | Where to set it |
|---|---|
| Comparison with last year or the previous period ★ | **Format › Comparison ★ › Show ★** and **Compare with ★** |
| Custom periods ★ | **Format › Presets › Custom periods ★** |
| Preselection with a measure | **Preselection** field (the **Preselection** card's shortcuts are free) |
| Styles ★, palettes ★ and Theme JSON ★ | **Format › Style** (see [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume)) |

Nothing is locked: without a key, these features work and show a discreet "Plume Visuals · Premium preview" watermark. Since the comparison is off by default, a freshly inserted visual shows no watermark. See [the shared basics](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume) for the license.

## Learn more

- [Getting started with Period Plume](/en/tutorials/segment-de-dates-periodes): the data to prepare and a first visual, step by step.
- [Period Plume: 8 how-to guides (last 30 days, year over year, seasons…)](/en/tutorials/period-plume-cas-pratiques): recipes for everyday needs.
- [Getting started with Plume visuals](/en/tutorials/bien-demarrer-visuels-plume): installation, license, styles and settings shared by every visual.
- The visual's page: [Period Plume](/en/visuals/period-pulse). A question? [Support](/en/support).