Properties depend on your widget type. Charts are an excellent option when you want to present data that needs to be understood quickly. As expected, graphs exist in many different options and possibilities.
The Properties tab in chart widget allows you to view and modify information based on the data set defined at the widget creation. The information can be inputted using the following criteria:
- Chart type
- Values
- Average for categories?
- Category
- Grouping type
- Sort value and sort order
- Maximum category to display
- Group other records
- Add subcategories?
Chart type
This section lets you choose which graph you will be using to display information.
Some graphs are more relevant than others given the situation and according to the information you are looking for. For example, the spline graph or the lines are useful to represent a progression over time, while the pyramid and pie chart is great for percentages and proportions.
Main graph options are grouped under the following and present different stacking possibilities:
- Areas
- Bars
- Donut
- Horizontal bars
- Line
- Pie
- Pyramid
- Spline
Tip: when browsing chart options, you should consider the “stacked” possibility when you want to compare categories or segments and compare parts of a whole. To allow stacking possibility, make sure to check the “Add subcategories?” option.
Tip: consider the "percent" option when the absolute number is not relevant and your objective is more focused on comparing data.
Values
Values in charts are always numbers. They are referring to the data you want to show in your chart in relation to your category selection described below. It may be a number of communications, a number of attendees, an average of occurrences, a sum of investments, etc. Statistically, the definition of the values in Borealis refers to the dependent variable of your chart.
Average for categories
Checking this option will make Borealis calculate automatically the average for the given set of data and add a dashed line in the chart.
Category
Categories act as the independent variable in your chart, in relation to the values data described above. In some charts (bars, areas, lines, etc.), the category acts as the X axis and in other charts (pies, donuts, etc.) as a color segmentation.
Grouping type
You can make custom groups of data, according to predetermined values. This is similar to filters, as data is filtered according to grouping type. If your category is a date, Borealis offers preconfigured date grouping options (weekly, monthly, etc.).
Sort value and sort order
You can sort the data either per values or categories in ascending or descending order.
Maximum category to display
As for other types of widgets, you can limit data appearing in a chart to a certain number. To do so, enter a numeric value in the field Maximum category to display. Keep in mind that if you set the maximum to 5, only the first 5 items will display.
You can set a maximum for the categories and the subcategories independently.
Tip: this option is useful if you only want to show a “top 5” or a “top 10” for example. For an accurate usage of the maximum categories to display functionality, it should be use with a relevant order parameter.
Group other records
If you decided to only display your “top 5”, for example, but you still want your chart to present the other data, without focusing the chart on them, you can select the “Group other records?” checkbox. Automatically, a category named “Other records” will be added to your chart and will group the records not represented in your “top 5”.
Add subcategories
This option is only available in the edit view. Allows users to add a sub-group to the graph. It will group data with the same values at a first level (category), then with different values at a second level (subcategory).
For some types of charts, subcategories will be represented as different colors, and for others, like the pie chart, the subcategories will offer the possibility to drill down on your graph.
Here is an example on how subcategories work with a Stacked bars widget:
Here is an example on how subcategories work with a Pie widget:
Filters can be added to your Widget to present specific data.