Data Viz for Dummies IV
Special teams · complete the core chart roster
Charts for more specific questions.
Some questions need a specialist: a rating scale, progress toward a threshold, several measurements at once, or a process moving through time. This guide explains those forms one at a time. Start with the reading instructions, then ask whether the specialist reveals something a simpler chart would leave unclear.
Completion board · specialist rotations
Specialists make sense when the question arrives before the chart.
These charts are grouped by the questions they answer: parts of a whole, ratings, individual observations, several variables, changes over time and moving systems.
Start with the example closest to your question. Compare it with a simpler form to see whether the extra structure helps.
The final rotation board
Every remaining chart has a sentence it is waiting to finish
Start with the question in the third column. The chart names are the answer only after that sentence is true.Pie · Donut
How is one whole divided?
Keep the number of slices low.Gauge · Likert
Where do we stand against a standard?
The standard must be defensible.Swarm · Bubble
Which observations or magnitudes matter?
Packing and area reduce precision.Quadrant · Scatterplot matrix
Which multivariate pattern needs action?
Every extra variable raises reading cost.Stacked area · Multi-axis · Candlestick
Which structure rides on the time axis?
Shared time does not mean shared scale.Swimlane · Minimap
Where and when should the reader look?
Overview and detail need a clear contract.Orbit · Process Sankey
Is the system organized by relation or timed flow?
Layout metaphor must match system behavior.Pie + donut · one whole, few parts
A circle earns the ball when the whole is the headline.
Pie and donut charts trade precise ranking for immediate part-to-whole recognition. Pie gives the wedges maximum area; donut opens a center for a total, status, or annotation. Both need a short category list and a meaningful total.
Never use several pies when the real task is comparison across groups. Aligned bars will expose differences that rotating angles conceal.
Shot diet · 260 attempts
Pie: let wedges own the stage
The same five-category total changes form without changing its claim. Toggle to see what the center space costs and buys.Gauge + Likert · judgment made visible
A value becomes a verdict only after the standard enters the picture.
A gauge locates one current value inside named performance zones. A Likert chart aggregates ordered responses around a neutral center. One summarizes status; the other preserves disagreement.
A gauge needs meaningful thresholds. A Likert chart needs ordered response levels that make the direction and strength of agreement clear.
Season pulse · operational status + fan sentiment
Gauge: one number crosses a standard
The gauge compresses the current call to 74. The Likert view expands four claims into the distribution of opinion behind them.Swarm + bubble · every body counts
Show every observation, then decide whether size deserves a voice.
A swarm shows individual observations without letting them overlap. A bubble chart compares two measurements by position and a third by area. Choose between them according to how many measurements you need to compare.
Read swarm values along the measured axis; the other direction only separates overlapping points. Bubble area represents a value, but exact comparisons are easier in the tooltip or table.
Rotation workload · players remain identifiable
Swarm: the distribution keeps every player
The swarm compares impact inside position groups. The bubble view asks whether usage and efficiency justify each player’s minutes.Quadrant + scatterplot matrix · multivariate film room
Decide with the quadrant; investigate with the matrix.
Quadrants impose meaningful cut lines on two measures and name the resulting actions. A scatterplot matrix compares every pair in a small metric set to expose correlations, clusters, and redundant variables.
Quadrant lines are policy, not natural law. Matrix cells multiply quickly, so three or four purposeful fields beat a wall of tiny plots.
Player development · decision view + diagnostic view
Quadrant: thresholds turn position into action
The quadrant asks who needs investment now. The matrix checks whether impact, usage, assists, and rebounds move together across roles.Stacked area + multi-axis + candlestick · time with extra structure
The time axis stays familiar while the analytical grammar changes.
Stacked area tracks a changing total and its composition. Multi-axis lines compare two differently scaled measures that share timing. Candlesticks preserve open, high, low, and close—or simply a range—inside every period.
Composition, dual scale, and interval are three different claims. Do not choose among them by silhouette; choose by the structure each observation actually contains.
Twelve games · three temporal contracts
Stacked area: composition changes with the season
Rotation share totals 100% in every game while the bridge unit expands.Swimlane + minimap · overview guides attention
When time gets crowded or long, give the reader somewhere to stand.
Swimlanes organize events or tasks into stable rows so overlap becomes schedule. A minimap compresses a long series into an overview and lets a brush choose the detail window. One separates concurrent work; the other preserves long-range context.
A swimlane is not a duration chart unless the value truly represents duration. A minimap is wasted space when the entire series is already legible at once.
Practice plan + season detail
Swimlane: stable rows untangle concurrent work
Training blocks remain grouped by place while drill length stays comparable.Orbit + process Sankey · systems need verbs
A system can revolve around relationships or move through timed states.
Orbit diagrams turn hierarchy into a center-and-satellite metaphor, emphasizing levels and affiliation. Process Sankey adds real time to flow: nodes become lanes with lifetimes and ribbons travel between them at dated intervals.
Orbit motion is not evidence of measured motion. Process Sankey needs actual start and end times; without temporal events, an ordinary Sankey is the honest choice.
Team system · relational model + temporal model
Orbit: roles circle the shared system
The static orbit stresses affiliation and depth without pretending the players literally revolve.Final whistle · the complete roster
Keep a guide to the questions each chart answers.
Parts I–IV cover Semiotic’s core XY, ordinal and network charts. Use the examples to match your question with a data structure and a form your readers can understand.
Divide one whole
Pie or donutFew parts; one meaningful total.
Judge against a standard
Gauge or LikertStatus for one value; sentiment for a crowd.
Keep individuals visible
Swarm or bubbleUse size only when the third measure matters.
Act on several measures
Quadrant or matrixDecide with thresholds; diagnose pairwise.
Add structure to time
Area, multi-axis, candleComposition, separate scale, or interval.
Navigate dense time
Swimlane or minimapSeparate concurrency or brush long context.
Explain a moving system
Orbit or process SankeyAffiliation is not temporal flow.
The contract is unclear
Return to the questionSpecificity is the entry fee.
Knowing a chart includes knowing when another form would be easier to read.