Dashboards have become popular in recent years as uniquely powerful tools for communicating important information at a glance. Although dashboards are potentially powerful, this potential is rarely realized. The greatest display technology in the world won't solve this if you fail to use effective visual design. And if a dashboard fails to tell you precisely what you need to know in an instant, you'll never use it, even if it's filled with cute gauges, meters, and traffic lights. Don't let your investment in dashboard technology go to waste. This book will teach you the visual design skills you need to create dashboards that communicate clearly, rapidly, and compellingly. Information Dashboard Design will explain how to: Avoid the thirteen mistakes common to dashboard design Provide viewers with the information they need quickly and clearly Apply what we now know about visual perception to the visual presentation of information Minimize distractions, cliches, and unnecessary embellishments that create confusion Organize business information to support meaning and usability Create an aesthetically pleasing viewing experience Maintain consistency of design to provide accurate interpretation Optimize the power of dashboard technology by pairing it with visual effectiveness Stephen Few has over 20 years of experience as an IT innovator, consultant, and educator. As Principal of the consultancy Perceptual Edge, Stephen focuses on data visualization for analyzing and communicating quantitative business information. He provides consulting and training services, speaks frequently at conferences, and teaches in the MBA program at the University of California in Berkeley. He is also the author of Show Me the Numbers: Designing Tables and Graphs to Enlighten.

Now You See It: Simple Visualization Techniques for Quantitative Analysis teaches simple, practical means to explore and analyze quantitative data--techniques that rely primarily on using your eyes. This book features graphical techniques that can be applied to a broad range of software tools, including Microsoft Excel, because so many people have nothing else, but also more powerful visual analysis tools that can dramatically extend your analytical reach. You'll learn to make sense of quantitative data by discerning the meaningful patterns, trends, relationships, and exceptions that measure your organization's performance, identify potential problems and opportunities, and reveal what will likely happen in the future. Now You See It is not just for those with "analyst" in their titles, but for everyone who's interested in discovering the stories in their data that reveal their organization's performance and how it can be improved.

Tables and graphs can more adequately communicate important business information when they reflect the good design practices discussed in this practical guide to effective table and graph design. Information is provided on the fundamental concepts of table and graph design, the numbers and knowledge most suitable for display in a graphic form, the best tabular means to communicate certain ideas, and the component-level aspects of design. Analysts, technicians, and managers will appreciate the solid theory behind this outline for ensuring that tables and graphs present quantitative business information in a truthful, attractive format that facilitates better decision making.

Our ability to generate information now far exceeds our capacity to understand it. Finding patterns and making meaningful connections inside complex data networks has emerged as one of the biggest challenges of the twenty-first century. In recent years, designers, researchers, and scientists have begun employing an innovative mix of colors, symbols, graphics, algorithms, and interactivity to clarify, and often beautify, the clutter. From representing networks of friends on Facebook to depicting interactions among proteins in a human cell, Visual Complexity presents one hundred of the most interesting examples of information-visualization by the field's leading practitioners.

A modern classic. Tufte teaches the fundamentals of graphics, charts, maps and tables. "A visual Strunk and White" (The Boston Globe). Includes 250 delightfullly entertaining illustrations, all beautifully printed.

This is the first book to combine a strictly scientific approach tohuman perception with a practical concern for the rules governing theeffective visual presentation of information. Surveying the researchof leading psychologists and neurophysiologists, the author isolateskey principles at work in vision and perception, and from them, derivesspecific, effective visualization techniques, suitable for a wide rangeof scenarios. You can apply these principles in ways to optimize howothers perceive visual information-resulting in improved clarity,utility, and persuasiveness. Likewise, you can apply them to yourown exploratory data analyses to develop display strategies thatmake data patterns and their significance easier to discern.Information Visualization transcends the often-divergent approaches tovisualization taken by individual disciplines. It will prove afascinating, practical resource for anyone who uses graphicalpresentation as a key to successful analysis and communication:graphic artists, user interface/interaction designers, financialanalysts, data miners, and managers faced with information-intensivechallenges. * Brings current scientific insight to the study of data visualization. * Explains multiple facets of visual perception: color, organization, space, motion, texture, and the relationship between images and words.* Explores strategies for designing glyphs and icons to optimize a GUI's effectiveness and ease of use.* Examines the distinctions between word-based and image-based perception and develops guidelines for choosing between verbal and graphical communication approaches.* Presents successful techniques for displaying geographical and other data in multiple layers.* Offers rules for designing easily navigable data spaces in VRML.* Supports points with numerous illustrations, including over thirty color images.

Information visualization is not only about creating graphical displays of complex and latent information structures. It also contributes to a broader range of cognitive, social, and collaborative activities. This is the first book to examine information visualization from this perspective. This 2nd edition continues the unique and ambitious quest for setting information visualization and virtual environments in a unifying framework. It pays special attention to the advances made over the last 5 years and potentially fruitful directions to pursue. It is particularly updated to meet the need for practitioners. The book is a valuable source for researchers and graduate students.

Information Visualization is a relatively young field that is acquiring more and more concensus in both academic and industrial environments. 'Information Visualization' explores the use of computer-supported interactive graphical representations to explain data and amplify cognition. It provides a means to comunicate ideas or facts about the data, to validate hypotheses, and facilitates the discovery of new facts via exploration. This book introduces the concepts and methods of Information Visualization in an easy-to-understand way, illustrating how to pictorially represent structured and unstructured data, making it easier to comprehend and interpret. Riccardo Mazza focuses on the human aspects of the process of visualization rather than the algorithmic or graphic design aspects.

Up to date and easy to use, emphasising real-world examples and applications of computer-generated and interactive visualization. 

Create and distribute data-connected Microsoft Office Visio diagrams and reportsGet full details on the powerful features of Microsoft Office Visio 2007 inside this comprehensive volume. Written by Visio expert David Parker, Visualizing Information with Microsoft Office Visio 2007 demonstrates how to effectively visualize, explore, and communicate complex business information. Learn to use PivotDiagrams, Data Graphics, and Smart Tags, as well as link data to shapes and create meaningful Visio documents and reports. Plus, you'll get vital security information, time-saving tips, troubleshooting techniques, and downloadable macros and code samples.Essential Skills for Database Users and ProfessionalsCreate shapes and link them to dataSummarize and analyze information using PivotDiagramsUse Data Graphics, Smart Tags, and SmartShapes to reinforce informationGenerate robust Excel, HTML, and XML reportsCreate custom, reusable templates, stencils, and mastersUpdate and enhance diagrams with Reviewer's comments and markups Integrate Visio diagrams with other Windows applicationsPublish and securely distribute Visio documents and summariesExtend functionality using VBA macros, add-ins, and wrapper applications