How can interactive dashboards improve your data mining communication?

1 What are interactive dashboards?

Interactive dashboards are web-based applications that allow users to explore, visualize, and manipulate data in real time. They usually consist of multiple charts, graphs, tables, maps, and filters that display different aspects of the data. Users can interact with the dashboards by clicking, dragging, zooming, or selecting options to change the views, parameters, or scenarios. Interactive dashboards can be created using various tools, such as Tableau, Power BI, or R Shiny.

2 Why use interactive dashboards for data mining communication?

Interactive dashboards can improve your data mining communication in several ways. First, they can help you tell a compelling story with your data, by highlighting the key findings, trends, patterns, and outliers. You can also use dashboards to provide context and background information, such as the data sources, methods, assumptions, and limitations. Second, they can engage your audience and encourage feedback, by allowing them to explore the data at their own pace and interest. You can also use dashboards to facilitate collaboration and discussion, by enabling users to share, comment, or annotate the data. Third, they can enhance your credibility and transparency, by showing the data behind your conclusions and recommendations. You can also use dashboards to demonstrate your data mining skills and expertise, by showcasing the complexity and diversity of the analysis.

3 How to design interactive dashboards for data mining communication?

Designing interactive dashboards for data mining communication requires careful planning and execution. To create effective and user-friendly dashboards, you should first define your purpose and audience, as this will inform what data to include, what visualizations to use, and what level of interactivity to offer. Selecting the right tools and platform is also important. Consider the compatibility and accessibility of your dashboard platform, especially if you want to share it online or on mobile devices. Organizing and simplifying your data is key for easy understanding and navigation. Select and customize your visualizations to make your dashboard appealing and informative, using the right colors, shapes, sizes, labels, legends, titles, and interactive features. Finally, test and refine your dashboard before sharing it with your audience. Ask for feedback from peers or potential users, make any necessary adjustments or improvements, and monitor/update your dashboard regularly.

4 What are some examples of interactive dashboards for data mining communication?

To spur creativity, here are some examples of interactive dashboards for data mining communication from different domains and applications. The COVID-19 Dashboard by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University allows users to filter data by country, date, or indicator, and shows global and regional statistics and trends of the pandemic with maps, charts, and tables. The World Happiness Report Dashboard by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network displays rankings and scores of countries in the World Happiness Report via bar charts, scatter plots, and maps. It also permits users to compare countries by various factors such as GDP, social support, or freedom. The Spotify Dashboard by Rasmus B??th enables users to search for their favorite artists, songs, or genres and listen to samples of the tracks. Additionally, it displays a user's personal listening history and preferences with histograms, pie charts, and word clouds. Lastly, the NBA Dashboard by DataCamp offers users the ability to filter data by season, team, or player. Additionally, it presents game results and standings with line charts, bar charts, and tables.

5 How to learn more about interactive dashboards for data mining communication?

If you want to learn more about interactive dashboards for data mining communication, consider these resources: Duke University's Data Visualization and Communication with Tableau course, DataCamp's Interactive Data Visualization with R Shiny course, Plotly's Dash User Guide, and LinkedIn Learning's Data Visualization: Best Practices course. Each of these online courses teach you how to create and share interactive dashboards using various web application frameworks. Additionally, the LinkedIn Learning course provides insight into best practices for dashboard design and interactivity.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?