Visualization Process Blog
1. Experience and process
This week I learned a very useful application called Tableau. This software allows you to turn data into graphic visualizations that clearly communicate information. After becoming familiar with Tableau, I started to enter 911 call data from 2015. A coworker was very helpful in briefly guiding me through the process of using it for the first time. Most of my learning came from trial and error though, which was fun and frustrating at the same time. It was fun because I didn’t know what to expect when I starting working with the software and was pleasantly surprised, but it also ended up being a little frustrating because whenever I created a specific visualization, I also had to figure out how the functions worked for the output I created. The software took some time to learn and get used to, which could be a problem for a first time user.
Link to visualizations: https://public.tableau.com/profile/publish/911calls_3/Dashboard1#!/publish-confirm
2. Reflection
During this experience, the challenge that came up was figuring out how to show all of the “Event Clearance Group” in different colors. If I selected all of the “Event Clearance Group,” then the color would end up repeating. In addition, when I was trying to fit all 3 visualizations onto one page it wasn’t displaying as intended. Before beginning another project in Tableau, I will look this software up on google and watch tutorials to advance my knowledge in creating perfect graphic visualizations and fitting them all on one single page.
3. Wildcard
Why using Tableau, why not using Excel or other visualization software?
I was surprised when I saw the results at the end. This software makes it easy to create beautiful and colorful graphs that clearly visualize all the data you are trying to communicate. There is a wide palette of colors available to use in your graphs to indicate the different kinds of data. Also, it was relatively easy to get started with Tableau.
Because I did not input the data myself like I would with software like Excel, it took me a little while to interpret and properly graph it. However, Tableau ended up being very helpful in sorting out the raw data I was presented with and gave me a much wider range of graphic possibilities than any program I have ever used. I would definitely choose Tableau over other presentation software. Excel, Powerpoint, and other similar programs are often overused and rely too much text when giving presentations.
