Design for Information: An Introduction to the Histories, Theories, and Best Practices Behind Effective Information Visualizations

The visualization process doesn’t happen in a vacuum; it is grounded in principles and methodologies of design, cognition, perception, and human-computer-interaction that are combined to one’s personal knowledge and creative experiences. Design for Information critically examines other design solutions —current and historic— helping you gain a larger understanding of how to solve specific problems. This book is designed to help you foster the development of a repertoire of existing methods and concepts to help you overcome design problems.

Learn the ins and outs of data visualization with this informative book that provides you with a series of current visualization case studies. The visualizations discussed are analyzed for their design principles and methods, giving you valuable critical and analytical tools to further develop your design process. The case study format of this book is perfect for discussing the histories, theories and best practices in the field through real-world, effective visualizations. The selection represents a fraction of effective visualizations that we encounter in this burgeoning field, allowing you the opportunity to extend your study to other solutions in your specific field(s) of practice. This book is also helpful to students in other disciplines who are involved with visualizing information, such as those in the digital humanities and most of the sciences.

Editorial Reviews
Review
"Meirelles (Northeaster Univ.) has made an important contribution to the field of information design. In the 1980s and 1990s Edward Tufte wrote Visual Display of Quantitative Information (CH, Nov'83), Envisioning Information (CH, Nov'90, 28-1398), and Visual Explanations (CH, Jul'97, 34-6236). Not since Tufte's work has a book on information design promised such an advance. The key here is the careful classification of information into six kinds of "structures." These are reflected by the six chapter titles: "Hierarchical Structures: Trees"; "Relational Structures: Networks"; "Temporal Structures: Timelines and Flows"; "Spatial Structures: Maps"; "Spatio-Temporal Structures"; and "Textual Structures." Very well illustrated and well written, this book will probably become the benchmark for teaching information design. With an appendix, detailed bibliography, and comprehensive index, this is a key resource in the field. It also makes a contribution to general graphic design theory, as its structural classification can be extended to all kinds of visual communication. Summing Up: Essential." - Choice

About the Author
Isabel Meirelles is Associate Professor in Graphic Design at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, where she teaches Information Design. For the past 15 years, she has worked in communication design as art director in publication design, as well as in motion and interactive design. Her research revolves around the theoretical and experimental examination of the fundamentals underlying how information is structured, represented, and communicated in different media.