Database Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER 9
Custom Code
Most of the visualizations used in this topic are based upon the standard
Microsoft toolset, but for some types of visualization, those tools just don't
have enough capabilities. Missing visualizations include column charts that
are both clustered and stacked (allowing for another dimension of data), color
wheels, as covered in Chapter 14, heatmaps (although you can build them in
Excel by using cells), network graphs of various types, and tree graphs (although
the Decomposition Tree is available in PerformancePoint).
When a tool doesn't have the visualization you need, it's time to write your
own in a language such as C#. There are various ways of using code to create
a visualization, and this chapter explains the different methods.
AudIenCe
This chapter sets the groundwork for the HTML5 examples covered in
Chapters 11, 12, and 15: each chapter contains only one HTML5 example.
While this chapter and the examples can theoretically be done by someone
with no HTML5, Javascript, or C# background, experience in some form of
coding (such as VBA) will be advantageous. The rest of the topic can be
read without this chapter.
SIlVeRlIgHT, wPF, XAMl, AnD HTMl5
Prior to the release of Windows 8, and indeed prior to the broad success of the
non-Microsoft computer in the form of the iPad and the Android tablet, the
toolset choice for visually rich applications was simple: Windows Presentation
Foundation (WPF) on the desktop and Silverlight (a web-based subset of
