Show Me the NumbersStephen Few
Show Me the Numbers
by Stephen Few · first published 2004
8mentions
4recommended by
5HN commenters
2009–2024first – last mentioned
80% recommend20% neutral
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I would recommend starting with Stephen Few's books: Show Me the Numbers and Information Dashboard Design: Displaying Data for At-a-Glance Monitoring to get an idea of visualization from a business needs perspective. These are easy reads. Few is heavily influenced (and cites)…
on “Ask HN: Data visualization consultant” ↗Can't go wrong with Tufte, but I'm also partial to Stephen Few for a more pragmatic approach ("Show Me the Numbers", "Information Dashboard Design").
on “Ask HN: What is the best book on data visualization in 2021?” ↗I would also recommend checking out Stephen Few's books (Information Dashboard Design and/or Show Me the Numbers) for quick and useful guidelines on visually communicating data. Few is a big advocate of Tufte's work and books, and he has a nice set of good vs bad practices in Information Dashboard Design. I've…
on “Draw Charts with Google Visualization API” ↗Reminds me of Stephen Few's classic book, "Show Me the Numbers". Excellent book if you have to report information to others that must be quickly understood.
on “Design Better Data Tables” ↗…time compared to a table where I can sort/filter by different criteria. Most of the time, "creative" visualizations tend to actually obscure meaning, or worse, mislead viewers. Recommended reading: Show me the numbers by Stephen Few (his blog is also great: http://www.perceptualedge.com/blog/)
on “Ask HN: What are weird and/or novel ways to do web UIs?” ↗Can also recommend his book, Show me the numbers. A nice companion when you're done with Tufte.
on “Common color mistakes and how to avoid them” ↗Information Dashboard Design - is definitely the first one you should read. It really gives a more high level overview of charting best practices and dashboard design. Show me the Numbers - goes much more in depth about the details of the different chart types and visualization best practices. There's a chapter or two on each of the main chart types. Now You See It - This is described…
on “Information Dashboard Design, 2nd Edition” ↗…a dozen viz books. Some written over 50 years ago. While they impart knowledge, I want the knowledge but also the application. I'm going to go out and paint that bike shed. You can go read Tufte or "Show me the Numbers" but I will show you how to get the results.
on “The 70% problem: Hard truths about AI-assisted coding” ↗