Customer Reviews

Envisioning Information

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

To me, this is Tufte's best book, although they are all really good. Although its visually gorgeous, its not a coffee table book to just flip through. You have to be willing to spend time with it, and if you do the rewards are tremendous.

Tufte presents a collection of some the best examples of information design ever invented, and some of the worst examples. And then he goes into the underlying principles that make the great ones sing out.

This book will be really helpful to any web page designer, UI designers, statisticians, cartographers, scientists, or anyone concerned with presenting dense information in a clear way.

There is a chapter on presenting multiple dimensional data on a flat, 2D paper that all by itself is worth the price of the book. Then there's the chapter on "Small Multiples" which presents wonderful examples of how to show patterns and changes. But then there's the chapter on layering of information, so the key pieces of data appear first, and the less relevant ones reveal themselves later. And on and on and on. Its just a great book.

To add to it, Tufte is obsessed with quality like nobody else I can think of in the book business. Its printed on 100% rag paper using real lead type because he thinks that all other methods are inferior. Which means the book is costly to make, but its of heirloom quality.

Envisioning Information is Tufte's best work. It is a catalog of world class information design examples, culled by the author. He has collected examples from sources as diverse as Gallileo's observations of Saturn, a 3D map of a Japanese shrine, a visual "proof" of Pythagoras' theorem, color studies by the artist Joseph Albers, and a New York train schedule.

This is not a "how to" book, but rather a group of inspiring examples showing any would be information designer the concepts behind the execution of these superb examples.The concepts are painstakingly argued and illustrated. Tufte is obsessed with quality - the book is printed on 100% rag paper using old fashioned lead type because he believes this yields the highest quality results. One of the best books I have ever read when it comes to visual design!

Edward Tufte sees things most of us do not initially, then manages to render his vision in exquisitely illustrated, well-written texts. He identifies the attributes of effective communication of information and then illustrates what works and why in very understandable terms.

For instance, in his chapter "Layering and Separation," Tufte dissects the problems with array of marshaling signals then reworks the presentation and provides a step-by-step explanation of his process. His coining of the wonderful notion of an "information prison" shows that his cleverness extends from the visual to the written.

As Tufte writes in his introduction, "The principles of information design are universal-like mathematics-and are not tied to unique features of a particular language or culture." He proves this point amply by drawing on myriad sources and examples.

His comments and insights of the power of color are especially enlightening, and if you have ever been subjected to a particularly hideous PowerPoint slide show where the presenter got more than a bit carried away with the technology, you will be agreeing more than disagreeing with the ideas here.

Finally, I acknowledge there is bound to be some sticker shock associated with Edward Tufte's books. But if you consider the amount and quality of color (which requires special press runs), the quality of the paper, the amount of press time (Tufte oversees and approves the printing), and the vast scope of timeless information contained in each book, then these books are a deal.

In the first book in this series "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information" we were introduced to some pretty clever ideas for presenting numbers using different types of graphs. This time, Mr. Tufte takes us on a journey through time and information space: Using carefully selected examples on graphic communication from all parts of the world, the reader is introduced to essential concepts as: Layering techniques; The use of colour to convey information; Multidimensionality in two dimensions; etc. It is amazing that just about 100 pages is all it takes to deliver a clear and strong message. But, as usual, Mr. Tufte do not waste his words on chit chat, but instead chooses his words carefully with loads of understated humour. Thereby the words themselves are a manifest of the message in this book and at the same time they become the invisible glue that connects the superbly chosen and superbly rendered illustrations which set the standard for the rest of us.

If you can afford only one of the three books by Edward Tufte, then chose this one. The other books in the trilogy, being masterpieces themselves, could be considered being complementary reading.

Passionate exposition on effective visualizations. Key takeaways are small-multiples, use of color, and use of details. However, the material on maps is sketchy. While mostly good, it is also distractedly didactic. While a must-have in any collection on data visualizations, for people looking for only one book on effective data visualizations, this is not it.
This book is like the poetry of visualizations; you will need to supplement it with books that are the prose of visualizations - see suggestions at the end of the review.

Why 3 Stars???
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I initially gave this four stars, but then changed it to three stars. This may seem harsh, but hear me out. There is lots that is good in the book. However, this book's focus is more on cartography and maps. And this is where it falls short. It does not address the issue of map based visualizations in any sort of depth. Not much space is devoted to the different types of map based visualizations - dot plots, qualitative and quantitative choropleths (color patches), heatmaps, proportional bars, 3D maps, maps with variable sized markers, isopleths, flow maps, dot-location maps, graduated symbol maps, and much, much, more. The other reason for deducting two stars is the fact that this book, in 2009, does read a bit dated. It is a beautifully laid out book, that almost falls into the coffee-table book category, but looking beyond that, the material does show its age. 10 or 15 years ago the rating would have been 4 or 5 stars. Perhaps unfair on my part...

Excerpt:
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On the topic of spatial maps, Tufte highlights a problem that may emerge with conventional choropleths (blot maps): "(they)... paint over areas formed by given geographic or political boundaries ..." and resulting in non-uniform sizes, and "historical changes in political boundaries disrupt continuity of statistical comparisons." The solution? Or at least one solution: "Mesh maps finesse these problems." Taking the example of a map of Japan, "... the whole country of Japan was divided up in 379,000 equal-sized units and then, in a heroic endeavor, census data and addresses were collated to match the new grid squares." [page 40, 41]


Some of the examples may not strike a resonant chord with everyone - for example, the "Weather Chart" at the top of page 32 looks too dense and full of diverse symbols to be truly effective.

Excerpts from the book:
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"All communication between the readers of an image and the makers of an image must now take place on a two-dimensional surface. Escaping this flatland is the essential task of envisioning information." [page 12]

Given the inherent multi-dimensionality of data (a measure that represents value or values over time, region, and other dimensions - e.g. number of employees by year, by country, and by line-of-business), Tufte states that we should "... increase (1) the number of dimensions that can be represented on plane surfaces and (2) the data density (amount of information per unit area)." [page 13]
This focus on data density finds resonance throughout the book:
"Simplicity of reading derives from the context of detailed and complex information, properly arranged. A most unconventional design strategy is revealed: to clarify, add detail." [page 37]

Tufte is especially harsh on charts that feature "chart junk", what he describes as "... display apparatus and ornamentation" that "... seek to attract and divert attention...", and that "Lurking behind chart junk is contempt both for information and for the audience. ... designing as if readers were obtuse and uncaring... " [page 33, 34]

"The struggle between maintenance of context and enforcement of comparison... " [page 77]

Excessive or wanton use of color can be very damaging to the visualization. Eduard Imhof enumerates four rules of minimizing such color damage:
"First rule: Pure, bright colors or very strong colors have loud, unbearable effects when they stand unrelieved over large areas adjacent to each other, but extraordinary effects can be achieved when they are used sparingly on or between dull background tones. ...
Second rule: The placing of light, bright colors mixed with white next to each other usually produces unpleasant results..." [page 82]

Tufte lists "... the fundamental uses of color in information design: to label (color as noun), to measure (color as quantity), to represent or intimate reality (color as representation), and to enliven or decorate (color as beauty)." [page 81]

Cons:
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The book is short. It doesn't feel so, but is in fact all of 126 pages.
More color is needed.
Some of the reproductions are not very clear, and it is a real strain on the eyes to discern the data and the visualization: certainly not a ringing endorsement for a book on visualizations.
Without some any formal, theoretical background, this book feels incomplete.

In Closing:
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Consider this: while you may use other books more frequently to learn and reference when creating visualizations, charts, or dashboards, you will want to keep this book handy to remind yourself of the bigger picture and the historical context of visualizations.

Suggested Additional Reading:
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You should supplement the visual feast in Tufte's "Envisioning Information" with these books:
- Tufte's other book, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, 2nd edition, is probably the better one.
- Stephen Few's "Information Dashboard Design: The Effective Visual Communication of Data"
- Jenifer Tidwell's "Designing Interfaces: Patterns for Effective Interaction Design"
- Colin Ware's "Information Visualization, Second Edition: Perception for Design (Interactive Technologies)"
- Visualizing Data by William S. Cleveland
- Exploratory Data Analysis by John W. Tukey
and many other books that cover the topic of information visualizations.

ENVISIONING INFORMATION represents one volume within a set of three. The primary objective of Edward R. Tufte is to demonstrate the importance of graphic illustrations in understanding the world around us.

In this volume, the central focus is to demonstrate how one can use static and a two-dimensional surface (i.e. a piece of paper) to show a world that is complex, dynamic and multidimensional. The illustrations that he selects and his explanation of the impact of the illustrations is nothing less than magnificent. Tufte is brilliant! Unlike the other two volumes, the centerpiece of this work is mapping. He addresses various artistic principles that offer a great clarity in guiding a scholar to reproduce distance and shapes. I draw your attention to page 37. Here, we see a small piece of an "Isometric Map of Midtown Manhattan." The author gives us an opportunity to purchase the entire map. I purchased the map for a close friend who calls Midtown Manhattan "home." It isn't merely a map; it is a beautiful piece of art. According to the author, these mapping principles can be generalized to serve other functions. For example, such techniques can be used to provide dance notations (see page 114-119). That is, Tufte shows us how we can employ illustrations to teach people how to dance.

All of Tufte's three volumes are pieces of artwork. All are awe-inspiring. ENVISIONING INFORMATION is slightly different than the other two volumes. I like to use Tufte's work as an example of how graphics can be employed to illustrate qantitative information to students.

Every academic library should own a copy of these three volumes.

i worked in bookstores for years, i am an avowed bibliophile and here is the one that got away - until now!. yes this is part of a set of three...but you can figure that out yourself. this is an essential edition fo anyone who loves cartography (a la How to Lie with Maps /Monmonier kind of cartography), statistics, art, complexity, symbolism, cognitive science etc - you name it this book has it. It does require that you revel in the concept and manifestation of representation. I believe that it is possibly one of the most beautiful science books around - and it often transcends any definition of a "text" book.

the entire book offers endless brain-fodder for the meaning and impact of the word "vision". The complexity of the subject(s) is given justice in this book - with both beauty and fun!! I was delighted to have been a late comer to this title but now i have to go fully read Tufte's Political Control of the Economy (1980)....if only i had known ten years ago that Tufte was so fantastic, engaging, diverse, and accessible!!

This is the second book in Ed Tufte's trilogy on graphical displays. It is a sequel to "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information". In this book Tufte shows how color, multiple pictures from different perspectives, graphs, charts and even newspaper text can be used to convey on a flat piece of paper information for high-dimesional data.

Most important is the ability of two-dimensional pictures to display the information of the three dimensional world that the human mind can comprehend through sight. This is the reason for the title to the first chapter "Escaping Flatland".

However, as interesting as the pictures are themselves it is necessary to read the text and look back and forth between pictures to fully appreciate the points of the text. As with his earlier work, Tufte demonstrates the principles of good graphics through effective demonstration of ideas conveyed by good and bad examples. The difference is a broader coverage of techniques and greater emphasis on the good examples.

This book is a nice lead in for the third book, "Visual Explanations", which deals with examples where Tufte believes the graphical displays actually lead to good inferences about a problem under study.

This book as a "must-have" for any usability design engineer. While it is not a book that focuses specifically on usability design per se, all of the concepts covered in this insightful volume are extremely useful in designing human-computer interfaces. Moreover, since this is a book on information design, it is also a treasure trove of knowledge critical when designing in many other visual mediums such as those found in the world of print media. Throughout the engaging narrative, Tufte draws on many interesting historical examples of successful and unsuccessful attempts at visual communication including everything from astronomical charts to train schedules.

A masterpiece in visual communication itself, the reams of useful knowledge in this book are brought together in a remarkably concise and coherent package, interspersed with beautifully illustrated examples and narratives. The physical book itself is of notable quality, a hallmark of any of Tufte's publications. My only criticism is that the format of this book (0.89 x 10.81 x 8.90) make it a little unwieldy - a pretty moot point, however.

In "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information", Edward Tufte put forth a theory of graphical excellence which taught his disciples how to present complex data crisply, clearly, and concisely while preserving data integrity.

With "Envisioning Information", Tufte tackles a bolder objective: displaying multi-dimensional data effectively within the two-dimensional space of paper or screen.

To do this, Tufte employs his successful formula from "Visual Display"---outlining the general concepts of his theory and illustrating these principles with many and varied examples.

Tufte's approach to "escaping Flatland" (as he calls it) is simple but richly-illustrated:

- Employing the concept of micro/macro readings to add resolution to data displays, conveying more information in a smaller space

- Using layering and separation to foster comprehension of multivariate data

- Utilizing small multiples to convey change over time

- Leveraging color to convey information

- Weaving narratives of space and time

The effect upon the reader is staggering and transformative. Tufte has revised and extended his theory of graphical excellence with a handful of simple yet powerful techniques for improving our presentation graphics.

Anyone involved in graphics design or in the communication of complex information should have this book on his shelf---it is simply too valuable to keep having to borrow it from your public library.