Posted in visualization on Dec 5th, 2008
Among the visarazzi— data visualization’s foot soldiers, scientists and evangelists—”chart junk” is a no-no. If you make a bar chart about trees, for example, don’t for god sakes actually show drawings of trees. That would be silly.
However, the visarazzi probably don’t mean to prohibit chart junk food.
Posted in visualization on Nov 14th, 2008
The junk food of data visualization has found a home. Pie charts show up everywhere, just like trans fats. Visual analysis expert Stephen Few condemns them, and I’ll bet Tableau Software designers held their noses the day they added pie-chart templates.
Posted in BI industry on Oct 23rd, 2008
A recession would benefit business intelligence, say two industry experts I talked to last week.
Posted in marketing/PR, storytelling on Oct 6th, 2008
In a good example of “show, don’t tell,” Tableau Software’s weblog demonstrates the power of its product with a story: how rich, middle-income and poor voters compare in liberal, conservative and battleground states. The political story is awkward to tell in words, but it’s easy in pictures. Pictures that tell stories is what Tableau’s all [...]
Posted in marketing/PR on Sep 23rd, 2008
Why does so much IT marketing put features out in front instead of benefits?
Posted in visualization on Jul 28th, 2008
Blogger Nicholas Goodman writes that Tableau’s visual analysis tool is not actually radical or revolutionary. He trivializes it as if it were a Coke machine with a cool new button.
For now, let’s not quibble about the meaning of radical, revolutionary, or button. Let’s not worry about the title of Nicholas’s post, “Sexy vs. experience,” stated [...]
Posted in visualization on Jul 22nd, 2008
It’s hard to watch Tableau Software CEO Christian Chabot and Tableau visual-analysis demos and not think of Steve Jobs and Mac OS X. Chabot has the same bright stage presence, and his product has the same simplicity and elegance. Like Mac, Tableau makes you love it.
In Monday’s keynote, Chabot couldn’t pace. The conference’s overflow [...]
Posted in visualization on Jul 20th, 2008
I often have to suppress a question while I listen to pitches for BI “solutions.” I want to interrupt and ask, “Hey, isn’t most of what you’re saying just bullshit?”
I’ve found an exception. That voice didn’t even make a peep Sunday as the three-day Tableau Software user conference unfurled in Seattle. Last night at a [...]