PDF Summary:The Big Book of Dashboards, by Steve Wexler, Jeffrey Shaffer, and Andy Cotgreave

How do you design a dashboard that instantly conveys crucial insights? In The Big Book of Dashboards, Steve Wexler, Jeffrey Shaffer, and Andy Cotgreave explore the science behind effective data visualization and interface design. They reveal how our minds instinctively perceive certain visual elements like color, shape, and size before consciously processing the data. You'll discover techniques for leveraging these "preattentive attributes" to highlight key information and drive the user's focus.

The authors guide you through categorizing your data to determine suitable visualizations, then dive into organizing those visual elements into clear, intuitive dashboards. They demonstrate establishing a solid user-centered foundation, balancing high-level overviews with granular details, and optimizing every aspect of your dashboard's look and feel—from typography to color palettes—for maximum impact.

(continued)...

Choosing a bar chart is frequently the best approach when it comes to precisely contrasting amounts among different categories, as it allows us to detect slight differences in length with considerable precision. A time-series line chart is highly effective for illustrating trends and patterns over different time periods. A table designed to emphasize key points is effective for quickly identifying variations and analyzing data distribution, and it also facilitates a focus on specific numerical details. Selecting suitable visual components to improve dashboard clarity ensures rapid and easy understanding of the presented data.

Build a solid base for designing dashboards that uncover essential insights and prompt decisive action.

Grasp the essential elements that constitute a meticulously crafted dashboard and their collaborative functions.

The authors contend that a well-constructed dashboard should be primarily designed with the intended users and their requirements in mind. Shaffer's creation, named Course Metrics, provides university educators and administrators with the necessary resources to assess the effectiveness of individual courses. The dashboard compiles key indicators such as cumulative student enrollments, thorough assessments of faculty performance, and specific outcomes from surveys.

Explore techniques for organizing information, balancing overarching themes with detailed insights, and directing user attention.

A proficient dashboard skillfully blends an overarching perspective with attention to detailed components. The summary offers a concise visual representation that enables quick comprehension of the essential data. People have the opportunity to explore and scrutinize specific subjects, thereby gaining a deeper and more thorough insight.

To maintain a balance between the broad view and specific elements, it's beneficial to allocate distinct areas for each aspect. The dashboard is designed to quickly highlight essential information by positioning it at the forefront or on the left side, aligning with the initial focus area of the viewers. Upon selecting a specific station for detailed analysis, a new page or window emerges, displaying the extensive data.

Explore the best methods for organizing visual elements, determining palettes for hues, applying typefaces, and considering additional design factors.

Wexler argues that dashboards should be both functional and visually appealing. Crafting a captivating dashboard demands not only the assembly but also the meticulous choice and organization of suitable visual elements. Consider the importance of elements like hue, font style, and the incorporation of margins and separators. It's crucial to use color with intention, to highlight patterns and outliers, to differentiate between distinct groups, and to take into account individuals with color vision deficiencies.

Selecting typography with precision can guide focus towards the most important information. Chapter 28 features the "Economy at a Glance" dashboard, which employs a variety of font sizes and styles to distinguish between the key titles and important numbers, highlighted with bolder and larger fonts, and the detailed components such as data labels and chart specifics, which are displayed in a smaller, lighter font. Employing empty space judiciously can improve a dashboard's clarity and elegance by creating distinct visual separations between its components. An overabundance of borders may result in a dashboard that appears congested, thereby complicating the interpretation process.

Other Perspectives

• While preattentive attributes are important, over-reliance on them can lead to cluttered or misleading visualizations if not used judiciously.
• The effectiveness of visual cues can vary across cultures and individual experiences, which might not be universally intuitive.
• Understanding data types is crucial, but the context of the data and the story it tells should also guide the choice of visualization, not just the data type.
• The selection of chart types should also consider accessibility issues, as not all users may perceive visual information in the same way.
• While various graph styles serve different purposes, the choice of a graph should also be informed by the ease with which the intended audience can interpret it.
• User-centered design is essential for dashboards, but it's also important to consider the potential for information overload and the cognitive load on the user.
• Balancing overarching themes with detailed insights is important, but there should also be a consideration for how users navigate between these levels of detail without becoming lost or overwhelmed.
• The organization of visual elements and design choices must also take into account the performance and responsiveness of the dashboard, especially on different devices and platforms.
• Typography is important for focus, but readability and legibility, particularly on small screens or for users with visual impairments, are also critical considerations.
• The use of empty space, while contributing to clarity and elegance, must be balanced against the need to provide sufficient context and explanatory text to make the data understandable.