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Guideline Catalog

Browse visualization guideline records with sections, labels, and references.

781 records

Page 31 of 33

  1. Use pictographic data marks to attract initial attention in chart collections

    For peripheral scan-and-select tasks, use pictographic data marks on chart thumbnails to maximize initial engagement and address plain previews that blend into surrounding items for viewers browsing mixed text and chart collections.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • quality:aesthetics
    • lever:encoding
    • reading-mode:overview
    • +2

  2. Use pictographic data marks when viewers must remember one chart while reading another

    For recall tasks with intervening information, use pictographic data marks on simple quantitative charts to improve memory fidelity and mitigate interference between successive datasets for viewers keeping multiple charts in mind.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:retrieve
    • chart:bar
    • quality:fidelity
    • +3

  3. Use pie charts only for relative part-whole reading

    For part-whole reading, use relative-value interpretation on pie charts to improve fidelity and mitigate mistaken absolute-value lookup for novice readers.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • chart:pie-donut
    • operator:part-whole
    • lever:encoding
    • +2

  4. Use plain language for context text

    For explanatory context in visualizations, use plain-language text annotation on captions, annotations, labels, and titles to improve readability and mitigate confusion from technical or abstract wording for audiences with low domain knowledge.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:rhetorical
    • quality:readability
    • lever:text-annotation
    • communication:context
    • +2

  5. Use point marks instead of bars for nominal values

    For categorical lookup on charts with nominal values, prefer point-mark charts over bar charts to prevent false ordering cues and address misleading length comparisons for readers interpreting unordered categories.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • data:categorical
    • chart:dotplot:use
    • chart:bar:avoid
    • +2

  6. Use political colors when party brand colors collide

    For compare tasks in grouped election-result reporting, prefer political color assignments on charts and maps with party categories to improve readability and mitigate confusion from overlapping party brand colors for readers following election coverage.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:heuristic
    • task:compare
    • scope:grouped-result
    • quality:readability
    • +3

  7. Use position encoding for extrema and range judgments in time-series views

    For extrema judgments on ordered-time data, use position encoding on time-series views to improve fidelity and mitigate misreading of maxima, minima, and range for overview readers.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:retrieve
    • time:ordered-time
    • data:temporal
    • +3

  8. Use position encoding for interval point comparisons

    For point-comparison tasks over grouped time intervals, prefer position encoding on time-series charts to improve fidelity and mitigate missed extrema and range judgments for viewers making exact interval comparisons.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:compare
    • time:time-interval
    • data:temporal
    • +4

  9. Use position encoding instead of slope encoding for pairwise relation judgments

    For pairwise relation judgments over many quantitative pairs, use position encoding on row-aligned comparison charts to improve fidelity and mitigate slow, low-accuracy reading from slope encoding for viewers making quick scans.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:relate
    • data:quantitative
    • quality:fidelity:use
    • +3

  10. Use position instead of area to encode quantitative values

    For exact value reading in static charts with quantitative data, prefer position encoding on a chosen chart to improve fidelity and mitigate misread magnitudes for readers comparing numeric values.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • data:quantitative
    • quality:fidelity
    • lever:encoding
    • +3

  11. Use position or length when readers need precise value judgments

    For exact quantitative reading, use position or length encoding on quantitative charts to improve fidelity and mitigate imprecise value estimation for readers making precise judgments.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • data:quantitative
    • quality:fidelity:use
    • lever:encoding
    • +3

  12. Use quantile interpolation when linear class breaks leave most regions in one class

    For regional comparison on outlier-rich classed maps, use quantile interpolation on choropleth color scales to improve pattern visibility and address underused darker classes for readers comparing regions.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:heuristic
    • task:compare
    • chart:choropleth
    • data:geospatial
    • +3

  13. Use radar charts instead of line charts for positive correlation judgments

    For association judgments, prefer radar charts over line charts on positively correlated quantitative series to improve fidelity and address weaker discrimination of correlation strength for people comparing relationship strength.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • task:relate
    • chart:radar:use
    • chart:line:avoid
    • +3

  14. Use restrained personalization that keeps attention on the data

    For engagement-focused reading, use restrained personalization on maps with geospatial content to improve insight and mitigate distraction from the data for viewers who may have strong ties to familiar places.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:rhetorical
    • chart:map
    • data:geospatial
    • quality:insight
    • +2

  15. Use row facets instead of single-view hue encoding for dense summary tasks

    For group-level summary judgments in dense point-based views, prefer row facets on categorical groups to improve fidelity and mitigate congestion from single-view hue encoding for readers comparing groups.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • quality:fidelity:use
    • lever:layout-structure
    • density:dense
    • +3

  16. Use row stripes when columns are already easy to follow

    For lookup in dense tables, use alternating row backgrounds on the table when the columns are already easy to follow to improve readability and mitigate reinforcing the wrong reading direction for readers scanning across rows.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:heuristic
    • chart:table
    • quality:readability
    • lever:encoding
    • +3

  17. Use sans-serif typefaces for most chart text

    For skim reading of short labels and numbers in charts and tables, prefer sans-serif typefaces on chart text to improve readability and mitigate paragraph-like typography for readers scanning web visualizations.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:heuristic
    • quality:readability
    • lever:text-annotation
    • aesthetic:style:use

  18. Use scatterplots instead of parallel coordinates for positive correlation judgments

    For association judgments, prefer scatterplots on bivariate quantitative views over parallel coordinates to improve fidelity and address weaker discrimination of positive correlations for people comparing relationship strength.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • task:relate
    • chart:scatter:use
    • chart:parallel:avoid
    • +3

  19. Use scatterplots instead of pie charts for anomaly detection

    For anomaly detection in small static two-dimensional displays, use a scatterplot instead of a pie chart on tabular data to improve insight and accuracy and mitigate missed outliers for readers scanning for abnormal values.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • chart:scatter:use
    • chart:pie-donut:avoid
    • data:tabular
    • +3

  20. Use segment-length ticks when one path must encode both time and speed

    For point lookup on ordered-time trajectories, use segment-length ticks on simple 2D path views to improve fidelity and mitigate loss of either time or speed when one encoding must carry both for readers inspecting the same path for both quantities.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • time:ordered-time
    • quality:fidelity:use
    • lever:encoding
    • +3

  21. Use semantically associated hues for colorable categories

    For category lookup and recall, use semantically associated color encoding on categorical marks to improve readability and mitigate legend-dependent identification errors for viewers interpreting categories with strong color associations.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:retrieve
    • data:categorical
    • quality:readability
    • +3

  22. Use separate displays instead of co-plotting two series for average-position judgments

    For average-position reports after a short delay, prefer multi-view layouts over single-view two-series displays on line or bar charts to improve fidelity and mitigate perceptual pull for readers judging each series separately.

    • purpose:select
    • basis:empirical
    • structure:multi-view:use
    • structure:single-view:avoid
    • lever:layout-structure
    • +3

  23. Use sequential value-varying colors for extreme-value reading without a legend

    For extreme-value lookup without a legend, prefer sequential value-varying color encoding on quantitative maps to improve accuracy and speed and mitigate misordered high-versus-low judgments for readers who must infer magnitude from color alone.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:empirical
    • task:extreme
    • chart:map
    • data:geospatial
    • +4

  24. Use signed values consistently for indexed change

    For explaining ordered-time values indexed to a reference timepoint, use signed value formatting on the y-axis and in tooltips of an indexed chart to improve readability and mitigate mistaken readings of direction for general audiences.

    • purpose:refine
    • basis:heuristic
    • time:ordered-time
    • operator:difference
    • quality:readability
    • +4