Book Image

Data Visualization: a successful design process

Book Image

Data Visualization: a successful design process

Overview of this book

Do you want to create more attractive charts? Or do you have huge data sets and need to unearth the key insights in a visual manner? Data visualization is the representation and presentation of data, using proven design techniques to bring alive the patterns, stories and key insights locked away."Data Visualization: a Successful Design Process" explores the unique fusion of art and science that is data visualization; a discipline for which instinct alone is insufficient for you to succeed in enabling audiences to discover key trends, insights and discoveries from your data. This book will equip you with the key techniques required to overcome contemporary data visualization challenges. You'll discover a proven design methodology that helps you develop invaluable knowledge and practical capabilities.You'll never again settle for a default Excel chart or resort to "fancy-looking" graphs. You will be able to work from the starting point of acquiring, preparing and familiarizing with your data, right through to concept design. Choose your "killer" visual representation to engage and inform your audience."Data Visualization: a Successful Design Process" will inspire you to relish any visualization project with greater confidence and bullish know-how; turning challenges into exciting design opportunities.

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Data Visualization: a successful design process
Dec, 2012 | 206 pages
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Table of Contents (13 chapters)
Data Visualization: a successful design process
Data Visualization: a successful design process
Credits
Credits
About the Author
About the Author
About the Reviewers
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Preface
Free Chapter
1
The Context of Data Visualization
The Context of Data Visualization
Exploiting the digital age
Visualization as a discovery tool
The bedrock of visualization knowledge
Defining data visualization
Visualization skills for the masses
The data visualization methodology
Visualization design objectives
Summary
2
Setting the Purpose and Identifying Key Factors
Setting the Purpose and Identifying Key Factors
Clarifying the purpose of your project
Establishing intent – the visualization's function
Establishing intent – the visualization's tone
Key factors surrounding a visualization project
The "eight hats" of data visualization design
Summary
3
Demonstrating Editorial Focus and Learning About Your Data
Demonstrating Editorial Focus and Learning About Your Data
The importance of editorial focus
Preparing and familiarizing yourself with your data
Refining your editorial focus
Using visual analysis to find stories
An example of finding and telling stories
Summary
4
Conceiving and Reasoning Visualization Design Options
Conceiving and Reasoning Visualization Design Options
Data visualization design is all about choices
Some helpful tips
The visualization anatomy – data representation
The visualization anatomy – data presentation
Creating interactivity
Annotation
Arrangement
Summary
5
Taxonomy of Data Visualization Methods
Taxonomy of Data Visualization Methods
Data visualization methods
Choosing the appropriate chart type
Summary
6
Constructing and Evaluating Your Design Solution
Constructing and Evaluating Your Design Solution
For constructing visualizations, technology matters
The construction process
Approaching the finishing line
Post-launch evaluation
Developing your capabilities
Summary
Index
Index

About the Reviewers

Alberto Cairo has taught infographics and data visualization at the University of Miami since January 2012. He is the author of the book The Functional Art: An Introduction to Information Graphics and Visualization (Peachpit/Pearson, 2012, http://www.thefunctionalart.com). He has been director of infographics at El Mundo online, Spain (2000-2005), professor of infographics and visualization at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill (2005-2009), and director of infographics and multimedia at Época magazine, Brazil (2010-2011). In the past decade, he has consulted with media organizations and educational institutions in nearly 20 countries.

Ben Jones is founder of Data Remixed, a website dedicated to exploring and sharing data analysis and data visualization in an engaging way. Ben has a mechanical engineering and business (entrepreneurship) background, and has spent time as a process improvement expert and trainer in Corporate America. Ben specializes in creating interactive data visualizations with Tableau software, and has won a number of Tableau data visualization competitions. This is Ben's first contribution to a book on the subject of data visualization.

I'd like to thank Andy Kirk for selecting me to contribute as a technical reviewer of this book, and my wife Sarah for all the support she gives me in pursuing my passion of the field of data visualization. I'd also like to thank my fellow technical reviewers, from whom I have learned a great deal over the course of the creation of this book.

Santiago Ortiz invents and develops highly innovative and interactive projects for the Web, using self-built frameworks in JavaScript, HTML5, and ActionScript.

He has over more than 10 years of experience working on interactive visualization projects. In 2005, he co-founded Bestiario (http://bestiario.org), the first European company specializing in information visualization. Currently, he freelances in the U.S.A. and Europe.

He has presented at events such as VISWEEK, FutureEverything, VizEurope, O'Reilly STRATA, SocialMediaWeek, NYViz, OFFF, and ARS ELECTRONICA.

His projects have been featured in blogs such as ReadWriteWeb, FlowingData, O'REILLY radar, Fast CoDesign, Gizmodo, and The Guardian datablog.

Jerome Cukier is a highly respected Paris-based data visualization consultant with many years of experience as a data analyst and coordinator of data visualization initiatives at the OECD. Jerome specializes in the creation and design

of data visualizations, data analytics, and gamification. His broad portfolio of work is regularly profiled on the leading visualization and design websites and collated on his own site at http://www.jeromecukier.net.

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