► Welcome to the DAX Adventure—a step-by-step learning series to master DAX (Data Analysis Expressions), the formula language of Power BI, Excel Power Pivot, and Analysis Services.

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Lab 1: Basic Aggregations

Learn: SUM() Goal: Calculate total sales.

Total Sales = SUM ( Sales[Sales Amount] )

🔎 Explanation:
This measure sums all values in [Sales Amount]. It dynamically adjusts based on filters like year, region, or product.

Lab 2: Conditional Totals

Learn: CALCULATE() with filters
Goal: Return sales only for 2025.

Sales 2025 = CALCULATE ( SUM ( Sales[Sales Amount] ), Sales[Year] = 2025 )

🔎 Explanation:
CALCULATE changes the filter context—here it restricts totals to the year 2025.

Lab 3: Querying with EVALUATE

Learn: FILTER() with queries
Goal: Return products with low stock, sorted alphabetically.

EVALUATE
    FILTER ( DimProduct, DimProduct[SafetyStockLevel] < 200 )
ORDER BY DimProduct[EnglishProductName] ASC

🔎 Explanation:
FILTER extracts only products where stock is under 200.
ORDER BY sorts them alphabetically.
EVALUATE outputs the result (run in DAX Studio).

Lab 4: Variables & Return Logic

Learn: VAR and RETURN
Goal: Apply discounts or penalties depending on total quantity.

VAR TotalQty = SUM ( Sales[Quantity] )
RETURN
    IF (
        TotalQty > 1000,
        TotalQty * 0.95,
        TotalQty * 1.25
    )

🔎 Explanation:
VAR stores values, RETURN outputs logic.
If total > 1000 → 5% discount. Otherwise → 25% markup.

Lab 5: Time Intelligence

Learn: TOTALYTD()
Goal: Show cumulative sales year-to-date.

YTD Sales = TOTALYTD ( SUM ( Sales[Sales Amount] ), 'Date'[Date] )

🔎 Explanation:
TOTALYTD aggregates sales from the start of the year to the current date in context.

Wrap-Up

DAX is more than formulas—it’s a framework for analytics.
With these 5 labs, you’ve learned how to:

Aggregate values with SUM
Control filter context with CALCULATE
Query and filter tables with EVALUATE
Simplify logic using VAR and RETURN
Apply time intelligence with TOTALYTD

👉 Next step: Try combining these concepts to calculate Year-to-Date Sales by Region, then compare it to last year using SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR.

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