20 Unrequested Map Tips

John Nelson | IDV Solutions
uxblog.idvsolutions.com
@JohnNelsonIDV
John.Nelson@IDVSolutions.com

Transcript

1. John Nelson | IDV Solutions uxblog.idvsolutions.com @JohnNelsonIDV John.Nelson@IDVSolutions.com Unrequested Map Tips 2 0
3. Makers need to make. Give them the chance or they'll move on. Close  Encounters  of  the  Third  Kind,  Columbia  Pictures.   1  
4. Stay away from the defaults! 2  
5. Show that same mapped data in companion charts. More visual dimensions for discovery. 3  
6. Can your legend double as a supporting chart? 4   “Give the reader 2+2 and let them figure out 4. They’ll thank you for it.”
7. Can you get away with encoding color right in your map's title and avoid weird math equations? Go for it. 5  
8. Charts and legends should be integrated, not quarantined. 6  
9. Aggregate reluctantly. 7  
10. Does your phenomenon care about political boundaries? Maybe not. 8  
11. 9   To animate or to small-multiple… Just make both (you already did).
12. Thinking choropleth for count data? Maybe try dot density. It self-normalizes for area, is emotionally resonant, and looks cool. •  It self-normalizes for area, •  is emotionally resonant, •  and catches the eye. 10  
14. •  Brandon Martin-Anderson •  Andy Woodruff •  Bill Rankin •  Kirk Goldsberry 10  
15. Be intentional about aesthetics. Good design buys a second, closer, look. 11  
16. Be intentional about aesthetics. Good design buys a second, closer, look. 11  
17. Be intentional about aesthetics. Good design buys a second, closer, look. 11  
18. Be intentional about aesthetics. Good design buys a second, closer, look. 11  
19. Put abstract units into meaningful context, or tangible comparisons. Nobody really understands what a Megawatt is. 12  
20. Sometimes maps are a terrible way to present a geographic phenomenon. Don’t carto so quickly. 13  
22. Using Mercator if you don’t have to, or Equirectangular for...anything? Use something else, anything else! 14  
23. Do you need that basemap? Can it be simplified? Sometimes enough data can provide its own geographic context. 15  
24. 15   Do you need that basemap? Can it be simplified? Sometimes enough data can provide its own geographic context.
25. Stuck with stoplight colors? Pick similar hues that are still cool for the color-deficient (I blow this all the time). 16  
26. 16   Stuck with stoplight colors? Pick similar hues that are still cool for the color-deficient (I blow this all the time).
27. Silke  Baron,  Wikipedia   17  
30. Practical Fore/ground prioritization (data maps) Emotional Brain hack! (scale and af·fect –I love this crap!) Try de-saturating that satellite background. Like, a lot. 18  
31. Try de-saturating that satellite background. Like, a lot. Try de-saturating that satellite background. Like, a lot. 18  
32. Try de-saturating that satellite background. Like, a lot. 18  
36. Did you make it? Put your name on it! Were you influenced by others? Hat tips all around! 19  
37. Share it! 20  
38. John Nelson | IDV Solutions uxblog.idvsolutions.com @JohnNelsonIDV John.Nelson@IDVSolutions.com Beam these 20 tips to your phone. Thanks!