Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
example might be, “
These little clusters off to the side are obscure
products purchased together—but they are not purchased together
with our core products.”
5.
5. Filter and drill down.
When you use a subset of data or you use a
new layout, there is a change of context. This context shift must be
conveyed clearly, or the viewer can be confused. Sometimes a sequence
of images may aid the explanation. An example might be, “
From this
larger graph, we can extract only the products that sell with an
extension cord, shown here as a green dot, and then we can remove the
extension cord to more clearly see that there are two different clusters
of products that sell with extension cords.”
How the explanation is to be conveyed depends on how the story is told:
• A
presentation
such as a PowerPoint benefits from a verbal story,
during which the presenter controls the discussion and flow, but the
viewers do not have the capability to inspect the data, zoom in, nor
control how long to linger on an image.
• A
distribution
such as a PDF file can allow the viewers to review the
data, visualizations, and analysis at their own pace, and potentially
zoom in to inspect details and read small labels.
• An
interactive analysis
such as an interactive version on a web page
(or a saved file, graph software, and accompanying directions) allows
the viewers to do some explorations on their own. In this scenario, the
end viewer has more control (or even full control) over the analysis.
In the case of a presentation, some of the story elements can be verbal
but should be backed up with a corresponding visual element such that
the viewers can still decode what they are seeing should they arrive late or
otherwise miss a point being made. In the case of a PDF or other distributed
document, these story elements must be made an explicit visual element.
Legends
In most cases, some form of legend should be added. Ideally, you should
include a nice legend, similar to a map legend, which visually indicates the
range of data that is desirable. Some graph software (such as Cytoscape)
provides a legend that you can export. Some graph software (such as yEd
or Gephi) provides some visual indicators when configuring the visual
attribute, which can potentially be captured with a screen capture.
