Graphs, Charts, and Plots
Bar Charts
A bar chart consists
of vertical or horizontal bars that represent quantitative data. Use
bar charts to compare data that is aggregated by the distinct values
of a category.
You can apply grouping
and create data-driven lattices. You can filter or rank your data
based on a specified number of top or bottom values.
Waterfall Charts
A waterfall
chart (also known as a progressive bar chart) shows
how the initial value of a measure increases or decreases during a
series of operations or transactions. The first bar begins at the
initial value, and each subsequent bar begins where the previous bar
ends. The length and direction of a bar indicate the magnitude and
type (positive or negative, for example) of the operation or transaction.
The resulting chart is a stepped bar showing how incremental changes
lead to the final value of the measure.
Line Charts
A line
chart shows the relationship of one or more measures
over some interval, such as time or a series of ranges. You can measure
a single measure (univariate analysis), or you can show the relationships
among multiple measures (multivariate analysis), such as the leading
or lagging relationship between advertising and sales over time. The
category on the X axis of a line chart is discrete; the category on
the X axis of a time series plot is continuous.
You can apply grouping
and create lattices.
Pie Charts
A pie chart displays
a part-to-whole relationship in a circle divided into multiple slices
for each value of a category data item based on a single measure data
item. Each slice represents the relative contribution of each part
to the whole. In a pie chart, the legend is sorted by contribution.
In SAS Visual Analytics
Designer (the designer), a pie chart does not show a slice with a
missing or zero response.
Effective pie charts
limit the number of slices to 5 or 6. In the designer, you can use
a rank to reduce the number of slices in a pie chart. For more information,
see
Add a New Rank.
Note: The Other slice does not
display data tip values. In addition, the Other slice always sums
the included values, regardless of the aggregation method selected
for the measure. For example, if the aggregation method selected is
Count, then the Other slice displays the sum of the individual counts.
Scatter Plots
A scatter
plot is a two-dimensional plot that shows the relationship
of two measure data items. Each marker (represented by a symbol such
as a dot, a square, or a plus sign) represents an observation. The
marker’s position indicates the value for each observation.
Use a scatter plot to examine the relationship between numeric data
items. You can apply grouping by assigning a category to the Color role.
Scatter plots do not
use aggregated data.
Comparative Time Series Plots
Note: This
graph object is not displayed in the designer by default. You can
select what you want to display using the designer’s Show
or Hide Objects window.
A comparative
time series plot
uses line segments to chart two measures on different scales over
time. A comparative time series plot requires a date, datetime, time,
or hierarchy data item that is continuous on the X axis. The X axis
is shared across both plots.
Series Plots
Note: You must create and save
this custom graph object in the SAS Visual Analytics Graph Builder
(the graph builder) before the object is available for use in reports.
A series
plot displays a series of line segments that connect
observations of input data. A series plot can use numeric or character
data on the X axis.
Numeric Series Plots
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A numeric
series plot shows the relationship of one or more measures
across a series of numeric values. A numeric series plot requires
numeric data on the X axis.
Bubble Plots
A bubble
plot is a variation of a scatter plot in which the markers
are replaced with bubbles. A bubble plot displays the relationships
among at least three measures. Two measures are represented by the
plot axes, and the third measure is represented by the size of the
bubbles. Each bubble represents an observation. A bubble plot is useful
for data sets with dozens to hundreds of values. You can add categories
to the Grouping and Lattice roles.
Note: A bubble’s size is
scaled relative to the minimum and maximum values of the size variable.
The minimum and maximum sizes are illustrated in the plot legend.
The actual value for each bubble is displayed as a data tip. For example,
the legend that is displayed in
A Bubble Plot, the minimum size is 1.3 and the maximum size is 8.3.
Treemaps
A treemap displays
your data as a set of rectangles (called tiles). Each tile represents
a category node or a hierarchy node. The color of each tile represents
the value of the first measure. The size of each tile represents the
value of the second measure. (There are two data roles for measures
in a treemap—Size and Color.)
For example, a sales data treemap might have tile sizes that represent
the number of orders, and it might have tile colors that are derived
from color gradients that represent sales.
The layout of the tiles
in the treemap is dependent on the size of the display area because
it uses a space-filling algorithm to lay the tiles down. This means
that the same treemap might appear slightly different in the designer
than it does in the viewer or on a mobile device because the aspect
ratio and size available in those viewers might be different from
what the original report designer sees in the designer.
Note: Treemaps allow only one category
data item or hierarchy data item.
Dual Axis Time Series Plots
A dual
axis time series plot is a variation of the time series
plot that has two measures. A measure is displayed on both the left
and right side of the Y axis.
For example, a dual
axis time series plot can be useful when you need to display two measures
that have the same unit of measurement and different scales, such
as quantity ordered and returns, or when you need to display two measures
that have different units of measurement, such as sales and quantity
ordered.
Band Plot
Note: You must create and save
this custom graph object in the graph builder before the object is
available for use in reports.
A band
plot draws a horizontal band with two Y values for each
X value. Or, it draws a vertical band with two X values for each Y
value. A band plot is typically used to show confidence, error, prediction,
or control limits. The points on the upper and lower band boundaries
can be joined to create two outlines. The area between the boundaries
is filled.
Note: A band plot does not support
display rules in the designer.
Needle Plot
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A needle
plot is a plot in which data points are connected by
a vertical line that connects to a horizontal baseline. The baseline
intersects the 0 value or the minimum value on the vertical axis.
Step Plot
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A step
plot consists of a series of horizontal and vertical
line segments (giving the appearance of steps) that connect observations
of input data.
Note: A step plot does not support
display rules in the designer.
The following example
shows the price trend during a particular time interval:
Schedule Chart
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A schedule
chart makes it easy to visualize time lines by representing
tasks, start dates, durations, and end dates in cascading horizontal
bar charts.
Vector Plots
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A vector
plot
shows the change in value of a measure using directed line segments,
or vectors, to represent both direction and magnitude at each point.
The following example
shows the changes in exam scores for different North Carolina school
systems from 2012 to 2013:
A Vector Plot
For an example
that shows a vector plot enhanced with bubble plots, see
Example: Vector Plot.
Stock High-Low Plots
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A stock
high-low plot tracks changes in the price of a tradable
asset over time. This plot creates a display of floating vertical
lines that represent high and low stock values. The plot also displays
stock closing values as markers.
Stock Volume and Volatility Plots
Note: This graph object is not
displayed in the designer by default. You can select what you want
to display using the designer’s Show or Hide Objects window.
A stock
volume and volatility plot tracks changes in the price
of a tradable asset over time with additional context.
This plot creates a
display of floating vertical lines that represent high and low stock
values. The plot also displays stock closing values as markers. The
plot shows the stock’s moving average and Bollinger upper and
lower bands.
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