Visualization Techniques and Practice
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How to use visualization techniques for nonprofits in areas like data analysis, learning, facilitation, and innovation
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Data Visualization Tips: Avoid Yak Shaving

Data Visualization Tips: Avoid Yak Shaving | Visualization Techniques and Practice | Scoop.it
From www.poynter.org - September 6, 2012 10:47 AM

Curated by Beth Kanter

http://www.bethkanter.org


Good tips here.  Especially like the term "yak" shaving from Seth Godin (http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2005/03/dont_shave_that.html)


A corollary and contradictory point to the last: Sometimes you need to indulge in yak shaving. “Yak shaving” is a term used particularly by geeks to describe the receding path of prerequisite steps you may find yourself on while completing what appeared to be a simple task.


Yak shaving can distract you from your original goal, (“I just wanted to get the text out of this PDF, and suddenly I find myself researching Java memory resources”), and it often means you’re overlooking a more direct route to getting the job done (“So, have you tried copy and paste?” “Aaargh!”).


But it can also lead you to learn things that otherwise would forever remain on the someday/maybe list. As long as a) it isn’t depleting all the time and energy you’ve reserved for the project and b) there is intrinsic interest and potential value for future projects, then I say “shave away.” Just try to follow Henry James’ advice to writers: “Try to be one of those on whom nothing is lost.”

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Which infographic is right for you?

Which infographic is right for you? | Visualization Techniques and Practice | Scoop.it
From econsultancy.com - April 14, 11:30 PM

That’s right, there’s more to infographics than a scrolling image full of facts and figures. Different types of infographics are consumed differently.

The right kind of infographic should match your data to your narrative and ensure that people take away your message after reading it.

While infographics may not come in that many shapes or sizes (600 x 1,800 pixels is the norm), that doesn’t mean there’s a stock standard infographic for you.  

Use the flowchart to help you decide which infographic is right for you...


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11 of the Most Influential Infographics of the 19th-Century...

11 of the Most Influential Infographics of the 19th-Century... | Visualization Techniques and Practice | Scoop.it
From www.fastcodesign.com - September 26, 2012 2:45 PM
We live in a world steeped in graphic information. From Google Maps and GIS to the proliferation of infographics and animated maps, visual data surrounds us.

While we may think of infographics as a relatively recent development to make sense of the immense amount of data available on the Web, they actually are rooted in the 19th century.

Two major developments led to a breakthrough in infographics: advances in lithography and chromolithography, which made it possible to experiment with different types of visual representations, and the availability of vast amounts of data, including from the American Census as well as natural scientists, who faced heaps of information about the natural world, such as daily readings of wind, rainfall, and temperature spanning decades.

But such data was really only useful to the extent that it could be rendered in visual form. And this is why innovation in cartography and graphic visualization mattered so greatly...


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Artists use data to make political statements

Artists use data to make political statements | Visualization Techniques and Practice | Scoop.it
From www.bbc.co.uk - February 8, 4:19 PM

Big data can feel impersonal, overwhelming and cold. But stark statistics are now being used to make intimate statements through art and public advocacy.


The past few years have seen the widespread availability of a large amount of data, thanks largely to the internet.

Census reports are easily searchable, campaign polling is expertly parsed and analysed, and online dating behaviour provides a glimpse into human sexuality.


Now more artists are using these impersonal details to make an impassioned statement; visit the article link for examples.


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Astrakhan's comment, February 9, 3:44 AM
DataScientists = Data Artists
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Why Infographics Are Visual Thinking

Why Infographics Are Visual Thinking | Visualization Techniques and Practice | Scoop.it
From blog.visual.ly - December 11, 2012 10:56 AM

Beth Kanter

http://www.bethkanter.org


Another way to articulate the importance of sense-making.


Think about it this way: Tools are not always actual objects designed to help us with physical activities. A notebook, whether it is a Moleskine or an Evernote digital document, is a tool that expands our memory. A digital calculator, whether it is an inexpensive machine bought in the nearest Dollar Tree or an app downloaded to your iPhone, frees you from the burden of having to retain and execute many complex mathematical algorithms. Non-physical tools (or sets of tools and practices), such as statistics and the scientific method, evolved to let us gaze beyond what we would normally see, and to overcome our deepest biases and lazy habits of mind. The same is true for great visual displays of information...


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