Interactive examples

Five options for interactive charting tools

The demand to portray data visually on the Web is continually rising. From charting tools on Yahoo finance to data maps on Weather.com, interactive data visualization is everywhere. Let’s examine several companies that provide innovative charting tools.

FusionCharts provides more than 45 types of 2D/3D charts, at cost. They also provide FusionMaps (interactive, Flash-driven maps) and FusionWidgets (real-time data widgets).

amCharts also provides a great set of charting tools. They are provided for free with a link back, or at a relatively low cost for a commercial license.

AnyChart is also driven with Flash, and uses XML for easy customization options. The costs are similar to those of FusionCharts.

RichNetApps provides a free Flash charting tool, also driven with XML. I used these charts to update 2008 election results in real-time while at The Roanoke Times.

Open Flash Chart is open source, which allows for complete customization options.

What other interactive charting tools are out there? Have you used any of the software listed above?

Other posts that might interest you:

• Data visualization tools for free or cheap
• Aaron Koblin visualizes flight patterns in innovative video
• Vuvox: An innovative storytelling tool or an over-rated component?

© 7 January 2009 Innovative Interactivity (II).