Visualizations in Virtuous BI are graphical representations of data that provide visual context to your analysis. By incorporating visualizations into your workbook, you can uncover patterns, trends, outliers, and correlations essential for crafting a compelling data story.
When selecting visualizations, consider the type of data, questions to be answered, and the audience. This ensures clear and detailed storytelling in your analysis.
Types of Visualizations
Here are several visualizations you can add to your Virtuous BI report:
- Bar Chart: Display variations in values across categories or data groups. Compare values to each other, against a reference point, or as proportions of a whole. You can create simple single-series bar charts or develop advanced charts to compare multiple variables.
- Line Chart: Illustrate changes in one or more metrics over time. Identify trends and anomalies within your dataset. You can also create advanced multi-line charts to analyze and compare multiple variables over the same period of time.
- KPI Chart: Emphasize a single metric value to assess performance or progress toward a goal. Summarize the total value for a specific period, track changes over time, or compare against benchmarks or targets.
Other visualization elements include:
- Area
- Scatter
- Combo
- Box
- Donut
- Pie
- Sankey
- Funnel
- Gauge
- Map - Region
- Map - Point
- Map - Geography
Building a Visualization
To begin building visualizations, ensure you are in edit or explore mode.
Starting the Process
There are a couple of ways to begin the process.
1. Click the plus sign icon in the navigation bar on the left-hand side of the screen to go to the Add New Element page, then select VIZ.
Note: If you go this route, the next step is to select the source(s) for the Visualization.
2. Alternatively, click the toolbox in the upper right-hand corner of a table on the dashboard and select the Visualization icon (bar chart with a plus sign).
Configuring Element Properties
Go to the Element Properties tab in the navigation bar on the left-hand side to begin customization.
From here, drag and drop your source data into the designated axis areas or select the plus signs in the axis boxes to add a new column.
Aggregate Settings and Limits
Note: Bar charts support up to 25,000 data points. If your data set exceeds this limit, the chart will show the first 25,000 points and a warning message will indicate the chart is incomplete. To reduce the number of data points, consider aggregating the values or applying data filters.
To change aggregate value settings, select the down arrow next to the chart variable, then click Set Aggregate.
Advanced Configuration
To add complexity or another chart variable, click the plus sign next to the desired axis.
In addition, on the Element Properties tab is also the ability to adjust the colors and several other details on the Visualization variables.
Regardless of the Visualization element you select, the process from start to finish is very similar for all of them, including the Maps Visualization.
Virtuous BI supports three types of map Visualizations: Region, Point, and Geography. The key is to choose your map type based on your data and what you want to show.
| Map Visualization | Use Case |
| Region map |
Show data distribution by region, including country, state, county, and city. Compare different scales to identify variations and patterns across geographical areas. Note: Region values are not case sensitive. |
| Point map |
Display data distribution using exact positions based on latitude and longitude coordinates. Uncover geospatial patterns and spot outliers in your dataset. Note: Point maps require a number column on both the map's LATITUDE and LONGITUDE fields. |
| Geography map | Geography map Display geospatial objects on a map using geography (WKT) or variant (GeoJSON) data. Show data distribution, reveal patterns, illustrate spatial networks, and assess data variability across different geographical areas. |
Customizing Visualizations
Before presenting your final Visualizations, it is important to further customize to ensure the appearance is exactly as you wish.
The Element Format panel allows you to customize various components, including the visualization title’s content, size, and alignment. Depending on the type of visualization, you can also format the background, axes, legend, data labels, reference marks, trend lines, and more.
Final Adjustments
Once your visual elements are customized, you can resize them directly from the dashboard by clicking and dragging the corners. You can also move visualizations to different locations on the dashboard to improve the overall appearance and presentation.