Creating graphs, maps, charts, and other infographics can take a lot of time. But the process can be accelerated by using special data visualization tools that have everything you need to quickly and effortlessly create beautiful and informative illustrations. Today, high-quality infographics can be created in just a few minutes and it does not require any special skills. All that is needed is simply to collect and structure the data and load it into the program. Modern data visualization tools have a very simple and intuitive clear interface, graphics are often built by dragging the necessary elements with the mouse, so even a beginner can create interesting graphics.
Most web services and visualization tools work in all major browsers and offer a wide range of choices. useful features. They can be used to create interactive visualizations with animation, for storytelling, as well as to create additional slides for presentations. FreelanceToday brings you 20 data visualization tools.
DataHero is a very useful data visualization tool that can be used to create amazing graphs and charts. The tool is very powerful and at first glance it may seem a bit difficult to use. The thing is that it initially contains very large opportunities for processing huge amounts of data. To create a simple graph, you can find a more convenient tool, but if you need to process a large amount of very different information and then present it in the form of colorful graphics, then DataHero is out of competition here.
Tableau Web Service allows you to quickly and efficiently work with open data. High-quality graphics are created extremely easily: if there are the necessary numbers, the program itself will create visual images, which then will need to be arranged in right order. The created infographics can be posted on blogs, on various websites, as well as in in social networks. It is not necessary to store the created files on your computer - Tableau provides each user with up to 10 GB cloud space, so you can access the data you need anytime, from any device.
The Dygraphs tool allows you to create interactive charts that display beautifully on all types of devices. This is a fairly powerful graph generator with which you can process large amounts of information. By default, the main functionality of the program includes such functions as zooming and panning. For the average user, Dygraphs may seem a bit difficult to use, as working with this tool requires knowledge HTML basics and JavaScript. However, it is quite easy to figure out how everything works, after which it will not take much time to create unique charts.
InstantAtlas was originally created as a tool for creating interactive maps for displaying various statistical data. This software can be used as a regular web service, or it can be installed on a local computer. In addition, you can configure the integration of maps and reports with remote service, which will allow you to create your own information system. The powerful features of IstantAtlas make this data visualization tool useful in areas such as public safety, healthcare, demographics, education, and commerce. If you need to link statistics with geography, then it is best to use InstantAtlas tools to create colorful informative maps.
The Exhibit App Offers Everything necessary tools for quick creation web pages with data visualization. Graphs, charts and other graphic elements are created using various filters, maps and other functionality. The application allows you to create both regular and interactive infographics. The main advantage of Exhibit is a well-established integration with google maps. To create an interactive web page, you need to select a specific region, collect the necessary data and then present all the information in the most understandable way.
Leaflet is one of the best open source JavaScript libraries. source code to create mobile interactive maps. Weighing in at just 38 Kb, this tool provides just about everything a web developer could ever need. When creating Leaflet, the emphasis was on performance, simplicity and convenience. However, it should be noted that for users who are new to HTML, this tool will be somewhat difficult to use. The advantages of the program include effective work on the main desktop and mobile platforms, as well as a large number of plugins that allow you to create beautiful map-based infographics.
JqPlot is a plotting and charting plugin that allows you to visualize the most different information. Using the plugin, you can create various charts, graphs with multiple axes, arrange in right places tooltips, as well as automatically calculate trend lines.
visualization tool JavaScript data InfoVis Toolkit allows you to create amazing web infographics. However, to work with this tool, you need coding skills, you need to be able to work with styles and understand how animated graphics are created. If the necessary skills are available, then the possibilities of the developer are practically unlimited. JavaScript InfoVis Toolkit allows you to create any visualizations based on the collected statistical data.
With Plotly, you can create amazing interactive infographics. The tool allows you to create colorful graphs, charts, summaries and even entire presentations. Plotly is used effectively in areas such as finance, insurance, pharmaceuticals, business intelligence, as well as in industries such as aerospace and automotive. Where you need to work with large amounts of data, you need a powerful tool for working with statistics and the easiest way to present data in the form of graphs using the Plotly tool.
Chart.js is a simple yet very flexible charting tool. It can be used to combine different types graphs, while providing a clear visual distinction between different types of data. The tool also allows you to create interactive infographics with animation elements. All graphics are responsive - any images are instantly scaled depending on the type of device. In total, 8 types of charts are available to the user. This is not much, but it is enough to create a simple visualization.
The developers of the RawGraphs tool claim that this tool is the missing link between spreadsheets and data visualization. It is very easy to work with the application, it supports the transfer of data from various types of tables. Do not worry that confidential data will fall into open access- all information is processed on the side of the browser, operations and storage on the server are not used. Tabular data is processed by the program and displayed in the form of graphic images. If the result is not satisfactory, you can choose another type of visualization. All changes occur instantly, in real time.
The ZingChart tool allows you to build JavaScript graphs using simple declarative syntax. This is a very powerful tool for developers who have to work with large amounts of data. ZingChart offers a choice of more than a hundred types of charts, with which you can visualize any statistics. With the help of ZingChart, the user can add interactive graphics to graphics: animation, 3D, zooming, mixed charts and markers.
With the help of the Timeline widget, you can create beautiful informative graphics in the form of a timeline. This is a rather rare, but very interesting type of data visualization, which is gradually gaining popularity among users. Any event, both historical and modern, can be divided into stages and each change can be accompanied by a separate commentary. The transition between parts of the graphics is carried out using the mouse - the user turns the wheel and views the entire story from beginning to end. Timeline allows you to create horizontal storytelling - very unusual variety graphical display of data.
WolframAlfa allows you to create beautiful graphs based on your own data or based on information provided by the service. The WolframAlfa library covers almost all areas of life, and a user-friendly interface makes it possible to include various types of statistical data in graphics.
Cloud service Visualize Free allows you to combine data preparation and data visualization. The user just needs to upload numbers and other information and immediately begin to visualize it. Visualize Free is primarily an analytical tool that searches and analyzes data at a fairly high level. A simple interface allows you to work with analytics without special skills, you just need to know the basic text and spreadsheet editors. With Visualize, you can create common line charts, bar and pie charts, interactive infographics, maps, and more.
With FusionCharts, the user will never have to start from scratch. A huge gallery of relevant examples, various graphs, charts and maps allow you to quickly find the right kind of visualization. The FusionCharts library has over 800 data display templates. FusionCharts differs from other similar services in advanced functionality: the tool allows you to create charts that work in real time, add custom labels and visually editable charts. The tool also provides multilingual support for all infographics.
D3.js is a JavaScript library for working with data-driven documents. D3 allows you to visualize data with using HTML, SVG and CSS. The tool focuses on adhering to web standards, allowing you to get the most out of modern browsers. Although somewhat difficult to use, D3 allows you to create amazing graphics. With its help, you can embody almost any idea, regardless of the type and complexity of the source information.
The JpGraph tool allows you to create very interesting visualizations without much effort. Most of the processes are automated, so a simple graph or chart can be created within minutes
This list would be incomplete without mentioning useful tool like Google Charts. This data visualization tool supports several animation options and interactive controls. Create graphics with Google Charts won't take long thanks to its intuitive interface.
The Carto web service is not just a data visualization tool. It is primarily a platform for discovering and predicting key insights contained in location data. That is, it is a tool for analysis based on geolocation data. By processing and visualizing data with Carto, you can uncover interesting trends and patterns across a wide variety of industries.
The concept itself is quite multifaceted, there are several definitions depending on what field of activity we are talking about. The purpose of the visualization is This means that the data should come from something abstract, or at least not be immediately obvious. Visualization of objects excludes photography and this transformation from invisible to visible.
Data visualization
Information visualization is the process of presenting abstract business or scientific data in the form of images that can help in understanding the meaning of the data. What is information visualization? This concept can be defined as a comparison of discrete data and their visual representation. This definition does not cover all aspects of information visualization, such as static, dynamic (animation) and most relevant today interactive visualization. Apart from the differences between interactive visualization and animation, the most useful categorization is based on scientific visualization, which is usually done with a specialized tool. software. An important role is given to visibility in the educational sphere. This is very useful when it comes to teaching topics that are hard to imagine without concrete examples, for example, the structure of atoms, which are too small to be studied without expensive and difficult to use scientific equipment. Visualization allows you to penetrate into any world and imagine what is seemingly impossible to imagine.
3D visualization
The software helps designers and digital marketers create a visual representation of a product, design or virtual prototypes in 3D. Visualization provides developers with tools that can enhance advanced Visualization with visual cues is effective way communication. Visual representation is one of the best ways to communicate with potential clients. Effective communication allows you to spend more time improving your projects and productive interactions. 3D rendering is a technique for creating three-dimensional images, diagrams or animations.
Use of visualization in science
Today, visualization has an ever-expanding range of applications in science, education, engineering, interactive multimedia, medicine, and more. Visualization has also found its application in the field of computer graphics, probably one of the most important developments computer world. The development of animation also contributes to the advancement of visualization. Using visualization to present information is not a new phenomenon. It has been used in maps and scientific drawings for over a thousand years. Computer graphics from the very beginning it was used to study scientific problems. Most people are familiar with digital animation, such as the presentation of meteorological data during a television weather report. The TV also offers a version of scientific visualization when it shows rendered with computer programs and animated reconstructions of roads or aircraft crashes. Some of the most interesting examples computer-generated images include images of real spacecraft in action, in the void far beyond Earth or on other planets. Dynamic forms of visualization, such as educational animations or graphics, have the potential to enhance learning as visualization systems change over time.
The key to achieving your goals
What important tool personal development. Just as motivating affirmations can help you focus on achieving your goals, the same can be done with visualizations or mental images. Although visualization techniques in this sense have become very popular as a means of personal development since the late seventies and early eighties, people have been using mental imagery to fulfill their desires since ancient times.
creative tool
What is visualization? It is the use of imagination to create mental images of what we want in our lives. Together with focus and emotions, it becomes a powerful creative tool that helps in achieving the desired goal. When used correctly, it can lead to self-improvement, good health, and various achievements, such as in a career. In sports, mental imagery as a means of visualization is often used by athletes to improve their skills. Using visualization as a technique consistently results in much better performance and results. This is true in business as well as in life.
How it works?
Visualization, or imagination, works on a physiological level. Neural connections that occur in the brain, in other words, thoughts, can stimulate the nervous system in the same way as a real event. This kind of "rehearsal", or running through certain events in the head, creates neural oscillations that cause the muscles to do what is required of them. Take, for example, the same athletes. During sports competitions, not only exceptional physical skills are important, but also a clear understanding of the game and a certain psychological and emotional mood. To be more effective, like any other skill, imagination needs to be trained regularly. Without what is visualization impossible? Imagination lessons include important elements, namely mental imagery of relaxation, realism, and consistency.
When to use visualization?
Visual observation of the successful results of their activities can be carried out absolutely for any reason. Many people use visualization to bring their goals to life. Many athletes, actors and singers achieve something first in their minds and then only in reality. It helps to focus and eliminate some prior fears and doubts. This is a kind of warm-up or rehearsal, which can be carried out before an important and exciting event. Visualization is a great preparation tool that consistently leads to higher levels of productivity.
How is the visualization process carried out?
You can go somewhere quiet and private where you won't be disturbed, close your eyes and think about the goal, attitude, behavior, or skill you want to acquire. Take a few deep breaths and relax. Try to visualize the object or situation as clearly and in as much detail as possible. Emotions and feelings also play a big role, try to feel what you want more than anything else. It is worth practicing the exercise at least twice a day for about 10 minutes each time and persist until you succeed. It is also important to maintain a good mood throughout the process.
Benefits of Visualization
Systematic visualization of your desire model will help you better navigate the path to achieving your goals, inspire and motivate, improve your mood with the help of positive, pleasant images and relieve negative emotions. In life and in work, success begins with a goal. It can be weight loss, promotion, getting rid of bad habits, starting your own business. Goals big or small provide important guidance. They are like a compass - they help you move in the right direction. Visualization was described by Aristotle more than 2000 years ago. The great thinker of his time described this process in these words: “Firstly, there must be a certain, clear, practical ideal, goal or task. Secondly, there are the necessary means to achieve them: wisdom, money, means and methods. Thirdly , the most important thing is to learn how to manage all the necessary means to achieve the desired result. "
Seeing is believing
It usually goes like this: I won't believe until I see it. Before believing in the achievability of the goal, you first need to have a visual idea about it. The technique of creating a mental image of a future event makes it possible to imagine the desired results and feel the joy of achieving them. When this happens, a person is motivated and becomes ready to achieve his goal.
It is worth remembering that this is not a cunning trick, not just dreams and hopes for the future. Rather, visualization is a well-established performance improvement technique used by successful people in a wide variety of fields. Research shows that visualization improves athletic performance by improving motivation, coordination, and concentration. It also helps in relaxation and reduces fear and anxiety.
Why does visualization work?
Based on studies that have used images of the brain that captured imaging at work, it can be concluded that the neurons in the brain, those electrically excitable cells that transmit information, interpret images as the equivalent of real life actions. The brain generates an impulse, this creates new neural pathways - clusters of cells in our brain that work together to recreate memories or behavioral patterns. All this happens without physical activity, but in this way the brain, as it were, programs itself for success. A huge plus of the power of visualization is that it is available to absolutely all people.
Inextricable link between mind and body
Visualization is a mental practice. With its help, the natural forces of the mind are powerfully used. We can use the power of the mind to become successful in all areas of our lives. Psychological techniques teach us how to use our imagination to imagine the specific things we want to have in our lives. It is very remarkable that our thoughts influence our reality.
Scientists have proven that we use only 10% of the total potential of our brain, and this is at best. Can we learn to use our natural abilities more effectively? Visualization systems represent the inextricable biological links between mind and body, and the link between mind and reality. If we learn to use imagination and visualization in the right way, it can be an extremely powerful tool for getting what we want in our lives. It is important to learn how to use the power of our mind together with a creative approach that helps to discover and develop hidden talents and opportunities.
However, if you accept these features, great opportunities will open up before you. You'll be able to make typographic-quality graphics (or at least as good as they start) and love the flexibility of R. If you want, you can write your own functions and packages to create the kind of graphics you want. Or you can use the ones that other people have made available in the R library.
R provides all the basic drawing functions which, in essence, allow you to create almost any object you might need. In a drawing framework, you can draw lines, shapes, and axes, and again, as with other software solutions you will be limited only by your imagination. Almost every kind of diagram is available with different R packages.
Then why use anything else besides R? Why not do everything with it? Here are some reasons for you. R runs on your desktop, so it's not suitable for dynamic web pages. Saving and placing charts and images on a web page is not a problem, but it's not done automatically. You can create graphics on the fly directly on the web, but the solutions currently available for this are not very robust, especially when compared to products specifically designed for the web such as JavaScript.
R is also not well suited for interactive graphics and animation. Of course, you can do this with R too, but there are more flexible, more elegant ways to accomplish this task, such as with using Flash or processing.
Finally, you may have noticed that the graphic objects shown in Fig. 35 and 36, a little lacking gloss. You are unlikely to ever find such graphics in newspapers or magazines. You can take your design to a certain level in R by enabling different options or writing additional code, but I myself usually use a different strategy: I make the basis of a graphic object in R, and then edit and refine it in some kind of document layout application, such as Adobe Illustrator, we will talk about this later. For analysis, the raw R product is fine, but for presentations and storytelling, it would be better to work a little on aesthetics.
Clue. When you search for anything related to R on the Internet, search engines may sometimes ignore such a short name and give an error message or an incorrect result. Therefore, try to specify "r-project" in your request, and not just "R". Search results should be more relevant.
Compromises
Study new program means learning a new language. The language your computer speaks is a language made up of bits and has its own logic. When you work with Excel or Tableau, for example, you are essentially working with a translator. The interface speaks to you in your language, and when you click on a button, the program translates the command and then sends the translation to the computer. Then the computer executes it and does something for you, say, creates a graph or processes some data.
And here time definitely becomes a serious obstacle. It takes time to learn a new language. For many people, such an obstacle is overwhelming, and I can understand them. You need to get the job done now because you have a ton of data in front of you and people are waiting for the results. If this is the case for you - you have a single data-processing task, and no more such tasks are foreseen in the future - then it may really be better to limit yourself to ready-made visualization tools.
However, if you want to make sense of your data and you are likely to continue to work on various data-processing projects in the future, then the time spent learning to code today could be saving time for other projects tomorrow, which are also will have more impressive results. With each new project, your programming skills will improve, and it will become easier and easier for you. As with any foreign language, you don't immediately start writing novels in it. No, you will start with the basics and then gradually expand your knowledge.
You can look at all this in a different way. Imagine that you have been thrown into a foreign country, and you do not speak the local language. However, you have a translator. (Listen to me to the end, I speak to the point.) To communicate with the locals, you must first voice your thought, and then the interpreter must convey your message. But what if the translator does not know the meaning of the word you just said or does not know which word to use to convey what you said? He can simply omit this word or, if he is smart enough, look into the dictionary.
The program for ready-made visual solutions is the same translator. If she does not know how something is done, then you are at a dead end or you will have to try to go the other way. Unlike a human translator, the program is unable to learn new words on the go or, as in our case, new types of charts and graphs or new data processing tools. Additional functions come to it in the form of a program update, the appearance of which you have to wait. So why don't you learn the language yourself?
Again, I'm not advocating that you avoid ready-made tools. I myself use them all the time. They make a lot of boring tasks easy and quick, which is great. Just don't let the software limit you.
As you will see in the following chapters, programming can help you get more work done in less time and with less effort than if you did everything by hand. Of course, there are some tasks that are better done manually, especially when you're telling stories with data. And that brings us to the next point, which lies at the opposite end of the visualization spectrum: illustrating.
illustration
Let's take a look at the realm of graphic designers. If you are an analyst or have a more technical background, this territory is probably unfamiliar to you. You can achieve a lot by combining codes and ready-made visualization tools, but the graphic you end up with will almost always look a little rough - like something auto-generated. Perhaps the captions will be in the wrong place, or the legend will be a bit overloaded. For analysis, such a result is usually quite suitable - you know what you are looking at.
But when you're making a chart or graph for a presentation, for a report, or for publication, you generally need to polish it up so people can clearly understand the story you're telling them.
For example, in fig. Figure 35 shows a raw result in R. It shows the number of views and comments on the FlowingData site for the top 100 posts. Posts are sorted into categories. The brighter the green, the more comments a particular post generated, and the larger the rectangle, the more views. You wouldn't have guessed this from the first version of the trimap, but when I looked at the numbers, I knew exactly what I was seeing, since I wrote this code myself.
On fig. 38 shows a revised version of the same trimap. The names are placed so that they can be seen; at the top, I added introductory text so that readers understand what it is in front of them; I removed the red section of the color legend altogether, as this is nonsense - a post with a negative number of comments. I also changed the background from gray to white just because I thought it would be better.
Rice. 38. Trimap created in R and edited in Adobe Illustrator
I could have edited the code to fit my needs, but it was much easier to click on an object and drag it into Adobe Illustrator. You can create a graph or chart from scratch in an illustration program, or you can import a graphic object that you developed in, say, R into it and edit it the way you want. In the first case, you are limited in your choice of options, since visualization is not the primary focus of this category of software. For anything more complex than a bar chart, you'd be better off using an import. Otherwise, you will have to do a lot by hand, and this is fraught with errors.
What's good about using graphics editors is that you have better control over individual elements and can do everything by drag and drop. and drop). Change the color of columns or a single column, increase or decrease the thickness of centerlines, annotate the most important characteristics - all with a few clicks.
Options
There are many programs for working with illustrations, but among them there are only a few that most people would use, and only one that is used everywhere. Most likely, the decisive factor for you will be the price. Prices range from zero ( free programs open source) up to several hundred dollars.
ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR
Any statistic-driven graphic that looks like it was made to order or appears in some major publication has most likely been processed in Adobe Illustrator at some point. This program is the industry standard. Every graphic object printed on the pages of The New York Times was either created or edited in Illustrator.
Illustrator's popularity in typography comes from the fact that you're working with vectors, not pixels. This means that you can create large graphics without compromising image quality. An example of the opposite is when you have to zoom in on a low-resolution photo and end up with an image broken into colored pixel squares.
This program was originally developed for designing fonts, but later gained popularity among illustrators as a tool for creating logos and art graphics. And that's what Adobe Illustrator is mainly used for to this day.
However, the program provides access to some basic data visualization functionality through the Graph tool. With it, you can create almost all the main types of charts and graphs, such as bar charts, pie charts, and time series charts. You need to enter numbers into a small table, but this is where the data management capabilities end.
The best thing about Illustrator when it comes to information graphics is the flexibility and ease of working with a large number buttons and functionality. Their abundance may confuse you a little at first, but you can quickly get used to them, and you will see for yourself by reading the fourth chapter (“Visualizing Patterns in Time”). It is this flexibility that allows the best information graphics designers to create concise and understandable objects.
Illustrator is available for both Windows and Mac. However, this program has one drawback: it is not cheap. Especially high price starts to seem when you think how much can be done with code that is generally free (assuming you already have a machine to download it to). However, if you compare the price of this program with other ready-made solutions, Illustrator does not seem so expensive.
At the time of writing, the most fresh version Illustrator cost $599 on the Adobe site, you could get significant discounts elsewhere (or take more old version). In addition, Adobe offers significant discounts to students and other members of the scientific community, so you may get the program for a significantly lower price. (This is the most expensive program I've ever bought, but I use it almost daily.)
INKSCAPE
Inkscape is a free (open source) alternative to Adobe Illustrator. If you want to go without the cost, then Inkscape is for you. the best choice. I always use Illustrator, because when I first started learning the intricacies of information graphics, everyone used it, and it seemed to me the most reasonable course of action. But I heard good feedback about Inkscape, and since it's free, there's no harm in trying it. Just don't expect to find as many web-based learning resources as there are for Illustrator on the subject.
OTHER
Illustrator and Inkscape are definitely not the only programs, with which you can create and polish your charts and graphs. It's just that most people use them. But there are also specialists who prefer Corel Draw. This program exists only in the version for Windows and costs about the same as Illustrator. You can find it a little cheaper if you know where to look.
Other programs exist, such as Aviary's Raven and Lineform, but they offer a smaller set of tools. Remember that Illustrator and Inkscape are the main tools of graphic designers, and they have the richest functionality. But if you just want to slightly tweak a couple of existing charts, then you can choose simpler (cheaper) software.
Compromises
Programs like Illustrator and Inkscape are designed for one thing only: to illustrate. They are not created specifically for the development of information graphics. Their main task is graphic design, which is why many people don't take advantage of all the functionality offered by Illustrator and Inkscape. Both of them are also not well suited for managing large amounts of data and do not compare with programs that you yourself write for specific purposes, or with other tools that are specifically designed for data visualization. In other words, graphic editor necessary if you want to make graphics enough high level so that it can be published. They help not only in terms of aesthetics, but also make the object more readable and understandable, which is often difficult to achieve when working with automatically generated results.
Mapping
The capabilities of the mapping tools partially coincide with the capabilities of the visualization tools that we talked about above. However, in last years The amount of geographic data has increased significantly, and with it the number of ways that you can use to create maps has increased. Mobile positioning services are on the rise, with more and more datasets with latitude and longitude tied to them. Among other things, maps are an incredibly intuitive way to visualize data and deserve a closer look. In the early years of the Web, making maps was not easy. And the result was not distinguished by elegance. Do you remember the days when you had to go to MapQuest, follow a lot of instructions, and end up with a tiny static map? At some point, Yahoo had such a service. This lasted until Google implemented the principle of a moving map (Fig. 39). Although the technology had been invented before, it didn't see much use until most people's internet speeds grew enough to keep data up to date. Today we are already accustomed to moving maps. We scroll and zoom in with ease, and in some cases, we need maps not only to determine the direction of movement - they become the main interface for viewing a dataset.
Rice. 39. On the Google Maps You can also get instructions
Note. Movable maps is a principle of implementation of cartographic data, which today has become almost universal. Large cards that would otherwise not fit on the screen are divided into smaller images (or tiles). You see only those tiles that fall on your window, and all the rest are hidden. However, as soon as you drag the map with the mouse, other tiles appear, and thus it seems that you are moving around one large map. You could also see a similar display principle when viewing high-resolution photos.
Options
As geographic data becomes more public domain, there are newer and more diverse tools available for mapping data. In the case of some of them, it takes only a modicum of programming skills to be able to create something with their help and run it. Working with other tools involves a slightly larger investment of labor and time. But there are also solutions that do not require programming skills.
GOOGLE, YAHOO AND MICROSOFT MAP
This is the easiest online solution, but it also requires you to have at least some programming knowledge. The more you know how to code, the more you can achieve with the mapping APIs offered by Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft.
The basic functionality in all three cases is quite similar, but if you are just taking the first steps in this field, I recommend that you start with Google. I think this is the most reliable option. Google has an API for creating maps in both JavaScript and Flash, as well as other geo-related services such as geocoding and routing. Check out the tutorial on how to get started with the system, and then delve into other topics such as how to mark, find the best routes, and add layers. Comprehensive instructions with code snippets and recommendations will help you get up and running quickly.
Rice. 40. Tagging on Google Maps
Yahoo also has an API for creating maps with JavaScript and Flash plus some geoservices, but I'm not sure how long these will be available given the current state of the company. As this book was being written, Yahoo shifted its focus from application development to content delivery. Microsoft also offers an API for JavaScript (called Bing) and another for Silverlight, a platform that Microsoft developed as a response to Flash.
The online map-making services mentioned above are pretty straightforward in terms of what they can actually do. If you need to create more complex maps, you will most likely have to implement the functionality yourself. However, there is also ArcGIS, which was developed as a desktop application for creating maps. This is a heavy program that allows you to transfer a huge amount of data to the card and perform many actions, such as smoothing and processing. You can do all this through user interface so you don't have to write codes.
Nearly all graphics services and departments that map people work for use ArcGIS. Some people are crazy about her. So if you're interested in creating detailed maps, you should take a look at ArcGIS.
I've used ArcGIS on several projects because I prefer to go "programmatically" and I just didn't need all that functionality. Such a rich toolkit has a downside: you have to deal with the same large number of buttons and menus. Online and server solutions are also available, but compared to other developments, they seem a little awkward.
MODEST MAPS
I already mentioned Modest Maps above when I gave the example shown in fig. 29. It showed the growth of the Walmart retail chain. Modest Maps is a Flash and ActionScript library for tile-based maps and is also compatible with Python. The library is maintained by a group of people who understand online mapping and do an excellent job both for their clients and for their own pleasure, which says a lot about the quality of the library.
The funny thing is that Modest Maps is more of a framework than an API for creating maps like the ones Google offers. It provides the bare minimum of what is needed to create an online map, and then does not interfere with your work and gives you the opportunity to implement what you want. You can use tiles from different providers, or you can customize the map to suit your application. For example, in fig. 29 shows the map in blue and black, but you can easily change it to white and red, as shown in fig. 41.
Rice. 41. Map in white and red design using Modest Maps
Modest Maps is licensed under the BSD license, so you can do whatever you want with it for free. True, for this you will need to learn how to work with Flash and ActionScript, but we will talk about them in the eighth chapter (“Visualizing spatial relationships”).
POLYMAPS
Polymaps is a kind of JavaScript version of the Modest Maps library. It was developed and maintained by some of the same people and offers roughly the same functionality, but a lot more to boot. Modest Maps provides only basic mapping functionality, while Polymaps has built-in features such as cartograms (Figure 42) and bubble charts.
Rice. 42. Cartogram showing the unemployment rate implemented in Polymaps
Because it's all JavaScript, the object feels lighter (because it requires fewer lines of code) and works in modern browsers. To display data, Polymaps uses a scalable vector graphics(SVG), and therefore does not work in older Internet versions Explorer, although most people keep up with the times. By the way, only 5% of visitors to the FlowingData site use outdated web browsers, and I suspect that soon this number will drop to zero.
Personally, what I appreciate most about JavaScript map libraries is that the code runs smoothly in browsers. You don't have to do anything - no compilation, no Flash export. As a result, everything is easy to start and easy to update.
In the base R distribution, there is no functionality for creating maps, but there are several packages that allow you to do mapping in R as well. On fig. Figure 43 is a small map I made in R. The annotations were added later in Adobe Illustrator.
Rice. 43. US map created in R
Maps made in R are limited in what they can do and the documentation isn't great, so I only use this way of creating maps if I need to do something simple and by chance I'm working with R at the moment. In other cases, I prefer to resort to the tools that I have already mentioned above.
ONLINE SOLUTIONS
There are also several online mapping solutions that make it easy to visualize geographic data. In most cases, they take as a basis the cards that people use most often, and remove everything unnecessary from them. It turns out something similar to a simplified ArcGIS. Two of these resources are free to access. These are Many Eyes and GeoCommons. The first of them - we talked about it above - has only basic functionality for working with data by country or by US state. But GeoCommons provides more functionality and richer tools for interaction. GeoCommons also supports the most common mapping file formats such as shapefiles and KML.
There are also many paid solutions, the most useful of which are Indiemapper and SpatialKey. SpatialKey is more suitable for business and decision making, while Indiemapper is great for mapping and design tasks. On fig. Figure 44 is an example of a map that I concocted in Indiemapper in just a few minutes.
Rice. 44. Cartogram created in Indiemapper
Compromises
Mapping programs come in a variety of forms and are designed to meet a variety of needs. It would be great to master one single program and be able to create all kinds of maps imaginable. Unfortunately, that won't work.
ArcGIS, for example, has a lot of features, but you might not want to spend the time to learn it and the money to buy it if you only need to create simple maps. But free R with its basic functionality, on the contrary, may be too simple for what you want to do. If your goal is interactive online maps, Modest Maps and Polymaps may well suit you, but then you will need more serious programming skills.
Explore the options available
This list of tools is by no means exhaustive of all the options that you can use to visualize data, but at first it should be enough for you. There is a lot to think about and a lot to play with. Which tools you end up using depends a lot on what you want to achieve, and there are always multiple approaches to accomplishing a task, even within a single program. Want to create a static information chart? Maybe you should stick with R or Illustrator. Want to build an interactive web application tool? Then try JavaScript or Flash.
I did a survey on the FlowingData site, trying to find out what people mostly use to analyze and visualize data. Just over 1,000 people responded. The results are presented in fig. 45.
Rice. 45. What FlowingData readers use to analyze and visualize data
There are several obvious leaders among the answers, especially given the topic of FlowingData. Excel comes first, followed by R. And then there is discord in opinions and preferences when choosing software. More than 200 people have chosen the "Other" category. In their comments, many have stated that they combine tools to meet different needs - and in the long run, this is usually the most effective approach.
Combination of possibilities
Many people like to work with only one program - it's easy and convenient. You don't need to learn anything new. If this is enough to meet your needs in the field of visualization, then you should not deviate from this principle. But after you've worked with the data long enough, there will come a point when you realize that the software's capabilities have been exhausted. You will know what to do with the data or how to visualize it, but the software won't let you do it, or it will make the process more difficult than it should be.
You can live with this situation, or you can start using other programs, which take time to learn, but which will help you realize your design intent. I suggest you go the second way. Mastering a variety of tools ensures that you don't get confused by the data and that you have the flexibility to perform a variety of visual tasks and get real results.
rounding out
Remember: none of these tools is a panacea. Ultimately, data analysis and design will always be up to you. After all, tools are just tools. Just because you have a hammer doesn't mean you can build a house. Similarly, you can have a great program and a supercomputer at your disposal, but if you don't know how to use these tools, you don't have them. It is you who decides what questions to ask, what data to use and what facets of it to highlight, and understanding this comes with experience.
But you're in luck! After all, that is what the rest of the book is about. In the following chapters, you will be introduced to the basic concepts of information design and learn how to put theory into practice using some combination of the tools we talked about above. You will learn exactly what to look for in the data you have and how to visualize this data.
A streamgraph is a type of stacked area chart that is offset around a central axis, resulting in nice smooth shapes (especially when working with large datasets). Designed by Lee Byron in 2008. The generator can be downloaded from GitHub. Note. per.
As the name suggests, data visualization is graphic representation any data. At the same time, on the Internet, I found many definitions that relate to data visualization:
- Graphs and charts,
- Infographics and diagrams,
- Data presentation and analysis,
- interactive storytelling,
- Business analytics and dashboards,
- Scientific and medical imaging,
- Maps and cartograms.
Then everyone decides for himself - what is meant by data visualization for him. At the end of the note, I will tell you what I decided for myself. In the meantime, let's look at each of the types in more detail and find their differences and features.
Graphs and charts
Probably the most familiar type of data visualization for us. Used for both data presentation and analysis. You can meet them both at work, and in a journal and in a scientific report. Usually knowledge about existing types charts and graphs we get from school or from standard set in excel. However, few people know that the world of graphs and charts is not limited to scatter, bar and pie charts. There are about 15 well-known types of charts, and there are more than 60 in total, and their number is increasing every day - people come up with new types to visualize complex and unusual data. We will consider in detail the types of graphs and charts in one of the following notes.
Infographics and diagrams
Infographics have become very popular in recent years, although they have been around for a long time. Infographics refers to data journalism, where graphs and charts explain some facts about a chosen topic. Usually, infographics are static and are a long “sheet” with pictures and text. A distinctive feature of infographics is that it provides ready-made conclusions, that is, the reader is guided by the hand on the chosen topic and at the same time seasoned with numbers and pictures. A drawn or cartoon style is often used. Some media release infographics on a daily basis, such as the AIF. The boom in infographics has caused a decline in the overall level of its quality. Often used out of place or "for beauty", although of course there are wonderful and interesting examples.
Infographic examples
The number of the Napoleonic army during the Russian company, 1869
Population different countries, 1912
10 commandments of typography
flapping wings
Vegetarians in numbers
Presentation and data analysis
One of the most habitual ways use of data visualization - the presentation of information in the form of diagrams or infographics. And if with this, I think everything is clear, then the use of visualization for information analysis is mainly used only by business analysts and scientists. What is the difference?
When analyzing data using visualization, the so-called rapid prototyping is used - that is, the creation of a large number of different visual representations of the same data. This is done in order to be able to find, at first glance, hidden relationships and dependencies, as well as to initially evaluate the data set in order to be able to use more complex analysis tools in the future. This approach is called Eploratory data analysis (EDA), which can be translated into Russian as exploratory data analysis. The main difference from data presentation is that visualization here can be “rough” and ugly, but it is done quickly and by one person or a small working group. For this, Excel, R or Matlab are most often used.
EDA is one of the data mining tools, there are even textbooks for its implementation
Visualization examples for EDA
Interactive storytelling
Storytelling or storytelling in Russian (sounds funny) is the presentation of some useful information in the form of an interesting story. For some reason, videos are often called interactive storytelling, but this is not so, this is just another type of infographics. Interactive storytelling is a story with which the listener can interact. At its core, it is close to data journalism and infographics, but differs in that the user can control the display of information and find those dependencies that the author did not find. In this sense, it is close to exploratory data analysis, but differs in that the data is pre-processed and presented in a form convenient for analysis, as well as there are hints or predefined use cases. Therefore, most often interactive storytelling is called interactive infographics, but in order to become one, it is not enough just to add pop-up windows to static infographics.
Interactive visualizations are actively developing in our time. Strong examples can be found in major media outlets or as individual projects.
Examples of interactive storytelling (going to the site when clicking on the image)
Business analytics and dashboards,
Visualization is actively used in business. The “speak to data” principle helps companies earn more and customers get best service. For a one-time analysis, Excel or R is usually used. However, this is not convenient if you need to monitor some indicators (KPI) on an ongoing basis. To track routine KPIs, dashboards are used - displays that display all the necessary indicators in one place in the form of graphs, charts and tables.
Designing effective dashboards is a complex and extraordinary task. Often they are overloaded with unnecessary information or try to use all possible types of template charts. Often, in order to design a good dashboard, it is necessary to create new types of information visualization. The subject is actively developing due to the increasing use of analytics in business. Dashboards are also used for personal use(fitness trackers, personal spending analysis, etc.)
Maps are one of the oldest ways to visualize the surrounding reality. A cartogram is a map with information printed on it in the form of color or in other ways. Perhaps I will not be precise with the terms here, but cartographers will forgive me. Cartograms can be used to display anything from population density to the frequency of swear words in every region of the country. They can be used in any of the types of visualizations we talked about earlier. I singled them out in a separate paragraph, since their implementation is quite different from other types of visualizations (we are waiting for a note about this).
Examples of cartograms (go to the site when clicking on the picture)
Summing up
The note is surprisingly large. Maybe it's good, you can immediately see how much there is in the world of data visualization. What do I understand by this concept and what will be discussed in this blog?
For me, the presentation of data is primarily associated with graphs and charts, as well as interactive infographics. This is what the bulk of the notes will be devoted to, it will also be interesting to delve into maps and dashboards.
3 D-visualization confidently occupies a leading position in the ratings of the most promising information technologies. Why is this segment of solutions strengthening and expanding its position, what is the catalyst for demand, what new trends are emerging in today's difficult conditions? We talked about this with Sergei Astakhov, leader of the Interactive Data Visualization Platform Consortium (IDVP), the finalist of the competition "The best information and analytical tools - 2016".
What are the driving factors of the interactive data visualization market are key today? What trends can be identified?The driver of demand for analytical tools, paradoxically, is the difficult economic situation. During a crisis, managers need to quickly receive accurate, objective information about the state of the business. Another driver of the market is an avalanche-like growth in the volume of data, which requires new approaches to working with information.
Today there is a need for technologies that have the ability to process large amounts of data, interactive infographics and have an interactive interface. Users have realized that data visualization and live interaction can best help them understand the meaning of this data.
For these tasks, the unique Russian development Interactive Data Visualization Platform (IDVP) is designed - a technological platform for online visualization and data analysis. This management tool is based on functional modeling technologies for analyzing situations using spatial three-dimensional infographics. A platform is used to solve managerial, economic and financial and economic tasks.
When analytics providers talk about customer data, they often talk about data problems. But if we take the ideal case, when the client's data is in exemplary order, how can one distinguish important data from unimportant data that directly affects his business processes from secondary ones?
The most “important” data is obtained from systems that use sensors and meters, such as industrial control systems, pipeline management systems, power generation, etc., or from systems that automate operational activities - banking, payment, logistics systems, etc. where the role of the human factor is minimized or information is tied to "live" money.
Actually, we still know two ways to improve the quality of data: either to minimize the human factor - to obtain data through objective technical means, or tie information to money.
For example, in the Medical Monitoring Center information system the availability of doctors is measured automatically at the time of the patient's appointment, without the human factor.
The completeness of the input of resources into the system is also controlled simply - a doctor will not be able to receive a salary if he is not included in the system and does not work in it every day. While the accounting department existed separately from the Monitoring Center, there were more employees in polyclinics than there were appointments. When they were united, everything quickly returned to normal.
Therefore, the creation of a new generation analytical solution is practically meaningless apart from the reorganization of the grassroots system, as a rule, both management and information.
How do you recognize vulnerable points in your client's business processes? It is important for the CEO to have an understanding of the past, present and forecast of the development of his business, to be aware of current performance and efficiency indicators. How do you deal with it?
In our work, we focus on three main principles.
- wow effect- the quality of graphics, animation and the speed of the application make the work at least not boring. All elements are designed for high-quality display on "large" screens, and for executives - on mobile devices or PC.
- situational analysis- the ability to quickly localize the problem on control objects, for example, according to the principle of a traffic light or a specific image.
- The ability to not only localize the problem, but also reveal everything possible reasons its appearance, thereby pushing to solve the problem.
The development of any analytical solution - Monitoring Center, on the IDVP platform begins with the definition of a case, by analogy with a business case, which includes various indicators that characterize the problem being solved and show the client how to solve it.
Then, when the case is formed and the indicators for solving the problem are selected, we invent and develop three-dimensional interactive visual images that form the “phenomenon space”. Responsible for data visualization special program- "3D player", which is assembled under the control of the platform individually for each user.
IDVP supports a fairly large set of interactive analytical tools. They have the ability to scale, change position in space for better visual perception, the ability to select multiple display objects or values with drill-down support directly from a chart or graph.
For example, for the “Financial Institutions Monitoring Center”, we used the concept of a visual graphical interactive interface of the “cloud” of borrowers, which is easy and convenient to work with. The size of the ball in the cloud encodes information about the amount of loans received by the borrower, and the color - information about the number of identified problems with the borrower. A specialist can click on the borrower he is interested in and see a diagram of his financial relations with counterparties in various sections, relationships and types.
The Smart Warehouse Monitoring Center application uses a three-dimensional visual representation of the warehouse and a line graph with an interactive scale.
In fact, this is a digital snapshot of the warehouse business, in which answers to production problems are presented in an intuitive way - for example, why do long queues of cars form in a warehouse for loading and unloading?
How does the approach to information analysis in classical analytical tools differ from your solution?
Despite the generally accepted positioning of analytical systems, traditionally their user is a trained analyst, twisting the "cubes" of data and looking for patterns in them. It uses tables, graphs, charts, and more to analyze data.
We chose another user for ourselves - this is, first of all, a top manager, business owner, industry leader, who is constantly in a limited time frame. For him, the speed of making managerial decisions is often critical. At the same time, a modern busy person increasingly wants to perceive information in the form of three-dimensional interactive infographics, which allows analyzing the maximum amount of information with a minimum of time, quickly capturing the essence of the problem, various trends of change and assessing possible risks. He is accustomed to exist in three-dimensional space.
Therefore, in our developments, we focus on those areas that allow us to quickly and efficiently bring the situation to managers on complex industry cases. with large amounts of raw data. Among them are the following:
New techniques for interactive visual work with large arrays of operational and strategic information - the technology provides a clear perception of existing problems and possible solutions through visual images. The screen simultaneously examines many aspects that affect the problem, it is easier to understand information, management, financial and economic processes, their interconnection and interdependence is visible.
Introduction of gamification elements is a new level of user interaction that makes the process of data analysis interesting, informative and memorable. Accordingly, the level and quality of information possession increases.
Using new 3D analytical tools, not used in traditional BI systems due to the impossibility of obtaining a normal result on browser platforms, such as sledge flow charts, many-to-many relationship diagrams, etc.
Take a look at the interface examples of our analytical systems for yourself. I think that everything will become clear without further ado.
COMPANY SPECIAL PROJECTIDVP