Working with Bubble Plots
About Bubble Plots
A bubble plot displays
the values of at least three measures by using differently sized plot
markers (bubbles) in a scatter plot. The values of two measures are
represented by the position on the plot axes, and the value of the
third measure is represented by the marker size.
You can create animated
bubble plots to display changing data over time.
Data Roles for a Bubble Plot
The basic data roles
for a bubble plot are:
X axis
specifies the measure
that is assigned to the X axis.
Y axis
specifies the measure
that is assigned to the Y axis.
Bubble size
specifies the measure
that determines the marker size.
In addition to the basic
data roles, you can assign these roles:
Group
groups the data based
on the values of the category data item that you assign. A separate
set of points is created for each value.
Note: You cannot assign both the Group role
and the Color role at the same time.
Color
specifies a data item
that determines the color of the bubbles. If you specify a category,
then each value of the category is represented by a different bubble
color. If you specify a measure, then the measure value is represented
by the bubble color.
Note: You cannot assign both the Group role
and the Color role at the same time.
Animation
specifies a datetime
data item that is used to animate the bubble plot.
Note: The Animation role
is enabled only if you assign a data item to the Group role.
Lattice columns
creates a lattice of
charts with a column for each value of the category data item that
you assign.
Lattice rows
creates a lattice of
charts with a row for each value of the category data item that you
assign.
Specify Properties for a Bubble Plot
On the Properties tab,
you can specify the following options:
Name
specifies the name
of the visualization.
Title
specifies the title
that appears above the graph.
Note: The Title option
is disabled if you select Generate graph title.
Generate graph title
specifies that the
graph title is generated automatically based on the data items in
the visualization.
Show grid lines
displays grid lines
for each tick on the response axis.
Size scale
specifies the type
of scaling that is used to draw the bubbles. Select one of the following
values:
Linear
specifies that the
bubble sizes are scaled relative to the minimum and maximum values
(or frequencies) in your data. A negative value is displayed as a
smaller bubble than a positive value.
For the Linear scaling
type, the difference in bubble sizes might not be proportional to
the difference in values.
Magnitude
specifies that the
bubble sizes are scaled relative to zero and the greatest absolute
value in your data. A negative value is displayed as a hexagon.
For the Magnitude scaling
type, the difference in bubble sizes is proportional to the difference
in absolute values.
Frequency
specifies whether the
frequency is displayed as a count (Count)
or as a percentage (Percent).
Note: The frequency values are
based on the data that is shown in the visualization (after filters
and other data selections have been applied).
Note: This option has no effect
if a measure is assigned to the Bubble size role.
Color gradient
selects the gradient
colors for the visualization.
You can click 
to select the values that are used to assign the
colors. See
Specify a Custom Data Range.
to select the values that are used to assign the
colors. See
Specify a Custom Data Range.Reference Lines
adds reference lines
to the visualization. To create a reference line, click 
, and then specify the parameters for the line in
the New Reference Line window.
, and then specify the parameters for the line in
the New Reference Line window.
The name of each reference
line appears below the Reference Lines option.
You can edit or delete your reference lines by using the icons next
to each name.
Using Animated Bubble Plots
About Animated Bubble Plots
An animated bubble plot
displays the changes in your data values over time. Each frame of
the animation represents a value of the datetime data item that is
assigned to the Animation data role.
For example, if you
assign a category with the YEAR format to the Animation data
role, then each frame of the animation displays a bubble plot of your
data for a specific year.
Display an Animated Bubble Plot
For an animated bubble
plot, a set of animation controls appears at the bottom of the visualization.
|
Task
|
Action
|
|---|---|
|
Start the animation.
|
Click
 .
|
|
Go to the previous animation
frame.
|
Click
 .
|
|
Go to the next animation
frame.
|
Click
 .
|
|
Jump to a specific animation
frame.
|
Use the slider.
|
|
Specify whether to repeat
the animation.
|
Select or deselect Loop.
|
|
Select the animation
speed.
|
Use the Speed slider.
|
|
Track the movement of
a specific bubble.
|
Click the bubble that
you want to track.
|
Note: If you select a bubble to
track, the selected bubble is highlighted in the current animation
frame.
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