SCImago Graphica

Help: User Guide

SCImago Graphica builds charts by connecting the variables in your data to the visual properties of the marks on screen. Part I teaches that idea from the ground up, in order; Part II covers the specialized work — maps, networks, clustering, distributions — and can be read in any order.

Part I · Fundamentals

  1. Introduction to SCImago Graphica What SCImago Graphica is, how it differs from a chart-type gallery, and what you need to get started.
  2. Data formats and arrangement Which file formats SCImago Graphica reads, and how to arrange your dataset so it can be visualized.
  3. Data types The five data types SCImago Graphica works with, how they are detected, and how to correct them.
  4. The user interface A tour of the app: the toolbar, the data tab, chart tabs, the properties panel and the canvas.
  5. Your workspace: projects, autosave and .gph Where your projects live in the browser, how autosave works, and when you need a .gph file.
  6. How to create a chart Two ways to start a chart: the chart wizard, which writes an encoding for you, and an empty chart you build yourself.
  7. An introduction to encoding How SCImago Graphica turns data into charts: drag a variable onto a visual property and the marks change. The twelve encoding channels, what each one accepts, and how many variables it takes.
  8. Structural channels: units, subdivision and small multiples The three channels that change how many marks there are and what each one stands for, instead of how they look.
  9. An introduction to aggregation What happens to the numbers when several rows collapse into one mark, and how to choose the function that combines them.
  10. An introduction to filters How to restrict what the chart draws: include and exclude filters, ranges, nulls, and filters your readers can operate.
  11. Labels and tooltips Writing text on the marks and behind them: label placement, which marks get labelled, and composing rich tooltips.
  12. Annotations Notes that point at a mark or at any position of the chart, tied to the data: placing, moving and listing them, and when they hide.
  13. Adding interaction Making a chart respond to its reader: hover highlighting, zoom, interactive legends and clickable marks.
  14. Exporting your visualization Getting your chart out of the app: SVG, PNG, high-resolution PNG, the data behind the chart, and the project file.

Part II · Advanced topics

  1. Displaying geospatial data Mapping from named places or from latitude and longitude: map divisions, projections, choropleths, bubble maps and cartograms.
  2. Graph visualization Visualizing networks: node and link tables, layouts, link styling, bundling and pruning dense graphs.
  3. Clustering Letting SCImago Graphica group your data for you — from network links or from the variables you choose.
  4. Reference lines and regression analysis Overlaying trends and thresholds: regressions, curves, averages, moving averages, constants and interval bands.
  5. Distribution plots Showing the shape of your data: density maps, box plots, convex hulls and histograms.
  6. Part-to-whole and hierarchies Pies, donuts, waffles, rose and radar charts, treemaps and alluvial diagrams — the charts built from proportions.