Book Image

Python Data Visualization Cookbook (Second Edition)

Book Image

Python Data Visualization Cookbook (Second Edition)

Overview of this book

Python Data Visualization Cookbook will progress the reader from the point of installing and setting up a Python environment for data manipulation and visualization all the way to 3D animations using Python libraries. Readers will benefit from over 60 precise and reproducible recipes that will guide the reader towards a better understanding of data concepts and the building blocks for subsequent and sometimes more advanced concepts. Python Data Visualization Cookbook starts by showing how to set up matplotlib and the related libraries that are required for most parts of the book, before moving on to discuss some of the lesser-used diagrams and charts such as Gantt Charts or Sankey diagrams. Initially it uses simple plots and charts to more advanced ones, to make it easy to understand for readers. As the readers will go through the book, they will get to know about the 3D diagrams and animations. Maps are irreplaceable for displaying geo-spatial data, so this book will also show how to build them. In the last chapter, it includes explanation on how to incorporate matplotlib into different environments, such as a writing system, LaTeX, or how to create Gantt charts using Python.
Table of Contents (16 chapters)
Python Data Visualization Cookbook Second Edition
Credits
About the Authors
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Introduction


Plot.ly is an online data visualization tool. It makes it possible for us to create and share interactive charts. Plot.ly can be used in two ways: you can either login into the website, upload your data, and use the web interface to create a chart, or use their API. In this chapter, we will focus on how to use their API.

The difference with matplotlib is that our charts are now created online and not on our machine. This means that we will be able to access them from the Plot.ly website. With a free account, all the charts that you make are made public and anyone can access them.

To try the recipes that will be presented in this chapter, you need a Plot.ly account and an API key. You can create a Plot.ly account by going on https://plot.ly/ and clicking on Sign in. After the account is created, you can go in the Settings section and generate an API key.

After this, the API binding for Python can be installed using pip, as we saw in the first chapter:

$ pip install plotly

Now we...