The celebrated design professor here tackles the question of how best to communicate real-life experience in a two-degree format, whether on the pr...
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Aug 28, 2010
Roger
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The book led was one of the most enlightening books that I've every read. I've always had a penchant for using numbers, images, and heuristics to explain, and began taking Edward Tufte's courses when the opportunity arose, starting in 1998. He held them in hotel ballrooms throughout the United States, and his followers attended with cult-like repetition, sometimes registering for the same course 6 times in one year.
Edward Tufte is one of the most elegant designers of information aliv More...
Edward Tufte is one of the most elegant designers of information aliv More...
Apr 12, 2009
Bruce
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This makes the third and last of Edward Tufte's books I have (and most likely, will ever) read. I hear he's working on a fifth, but I can't really see the point. He just doesn't seem to have anything new to say. Per my earlier reviews, I found his first book (especially the first 50 pages, which contain almost all the content) to be terrific. His third, a bit lame. This one (the shortest of the three) is simply a confounding, rambling disaster.
I have three reasons to offer here. More...
I have three reasons to offer here. More...
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Dec 16, 2009
Mister
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A helpful marketing guide on how to write, draw and give lectures in regards to descriptions of meaningful figures and diagrams that piques both the audience's retina as well as their neural cells where information is swallowed and later dissolved into their jugular veins where internally the audience can know what is being described in their own words and understanding :)
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Jan 08, 2012
Laurian
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This is the second book that was picked for the UX book club at work.
I've only seriously read two of Tufte's books. I've skimmed the other two and his pamphlets and taking bits and pieces from them that were convenient for what I was looking for. So when Tufte was brought up in the book club I was happy to push for this one that I hadn't had a chance to read as thoroughly as I would have liked.
Information is just about the cornerstone of the work that I do. The people I More...
I've only seriously read two of Tufte's books. I've skimmed the other two and his pamphlets and taking bits and pieces from them that were convenient for what I was looking for. So when Tufte was brought up in the book club I was happy to push for this one that I hadn't had a chance to read as thoroughly as I would have liked.
Information is just about the cornerstone of the work that I do. The people I More...
Dec 16, 2009
TK
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If you can't present data in a way that communicates your thoughts or the emergent information, there is no reason to present the data. This book and other Tufte books are fundamental.
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Jun 22, 2009
Spencer
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you know, this was good. tufte is really surprising in the things he considers to be good design. what it really comes down to for him is density in the display. if you can find a way to stuff five or 6 variables into a graph, no matter how ugly it is, he'll love it. but then again, he offers some really practical advice for everyday excellers -- for example, stop using so many grids, skip the vertical lines, don't crowd, don't repeat labels unnecessarily, and so on. but he spills too far s
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Aug 16, 2010
Roy
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Dec 12, 2010
James
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I really enjoyed this book! The scope seems to be more broad than The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. It contained perhaps just one too many train schedule examples for my liking but I really appreciate the thought Edward Tufte has put into this subject. As a software developer for a company focused on UX, the tidbits on display for a computer interface were particularly interesting.
Mar 18, 2009
Matthew
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I've admired Tufte's teachings on presenting information. In the corporate world of PowerPoint, that power is often abused. Information is lost in a sea of words and bad graphics (or the lack thereof). This particular book of Tufte's is a bit dry and academic, but it makes for good reference. I'm adding his latest book to my to-read list as I've heard it's a little easier to absorb.
Dec 13, 2008
Andrea
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A must-read for anyone in the field of information design, not to mention a refreshing counterpoint to the PowerPoint credo of our day. Envisioning Information is a visually sumptuous book with page after page of remarkable examples through history of multi-dimensional data adroitly transcribed to the 2D surface (a.k.a. flatland).
As a series, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, Envisioning Information and Visual Explanations largely cover the same material - some illustr More...
As a series, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, Envisioning Information and Visual Explanations largely cover the same material - some illustr More...
Oct 27, 2010
Ben
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This book, combined with Godin's inspiring Linchpin, helped me on a recent project to go the extra mile and create "art" rather than just more "chartjunk". As an avid hiker, the section on using colors found in nature and beautiful series of photos of an aspen grove at different times of the year (p. 90) inspired me to toss the garish color scheme that is the default in Microsoft Excel and experiment until I found a much more "natural" scheme. It made all the diff
Jan 31, 2012
Kinda dull - for a book touting the amazing power of visualising information, the presentation is amazingly lacklustre and disorganised feeling.
I'd encountered Tufte in a number of 'recommended reading' lists for User Experience/Information Design, so I gave his two most popular books a quick spin. Found them both poorly designed and not at all engaging enough to make me want to sit down and read it straight through. I flipped through to get a sense of what he considered the pinnacle More...
I'd encountered Tufte in a number of 'recommended reading' lists for User Experience/Information Design, so I gave his two most popular books a quick spin. Found them both poorly designed and not at all engaging enough to make me want to sit down and read it straight through. I flipped through to get a sense of what he considered the pinnacle More...
Aug 08, 2010
Matt
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Envisioning Information is very similar to another of Tuft's books I read, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Envisioning Information doesn't focus as much on the display of data per se but rather broadens the scope to include all types of information. As you would expect with a book on such a topic, this one is a visually pleasing experience. The included graphs, maps and pictures along with the anecdotal evidence for Tufte's conclusions made this an enjoyable read.
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May 19, 2010
Sean Billy
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who works with the visual representation of information. The book itself is beautiful, the writing is clear, and the drawings work seamlessly to create a comprehensive understanding of different categories of information. I look forward to reading more Edward Tufte.
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Apr 19, 2011
^
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An expert text in how to communicate effectively by thinking upfront about the order and presentation of information.
Compellingly readable. Unmissable.
My copy is the Third Printing, with revisions, December 1992. No ISBN number stated.
Compellingly readable. Unmissable.
My copy is the Third Printing, with revisions, December 1992. No ISBN number stated.
Dec 17, 2009
Vincent
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Overall, I loved the book. Edward Tufte has a way of teaching us why its very important to think about how information interacts with the reader. He gives concrete examples of what and what not to do. He illustrates his theories with.. well.. illustrations.
The book is great, until the end, where he departs from teaching by example method and starts to speculate on the future of envisioning information. I hoped that his analysis in the latter portion of the book would be more insigh More...
The book is great, until the end, where he departs from teaching by example method and starts to speculate on the future of envisioning information. I hoped that his analysis in the latter portion of the book would be more insigh More...
Apr 09, 2011
Ryan
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Envisioning Information is a beautiful guide to compressing four-dimensional concepts into what Tufte lovingly calls "flatland." The only thing preventing this from being a canonical work of the visual arts, as Strunk and White serve to the written, is a lack of organization. However the unity of the book is not in question; it is a work of art.
Oct 05, 2010
Alice
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I love the examples in this book. Unfortunately, a lot of the ideas cannot be easily done using standard software available in my office. Oh the luxury of having you own printing press! But, I'm sure some of the ideas will help me in my work.
Dec 13, 2008
Ill
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Am I the only lay-person who has read Tufte and not just looked at them? He is passionate about his graphs. In fact, he is extreme about his graphs. That kind of exuberant, mouth- breathing, obsessive nerdiness just warms my little heart.
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Jan 11, 2012
Caitlin
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Honestly, I nearly didn't make it through this book because the style (brief staccato descriptions of different visual displays of information) wasn't what I expected initially. But I'm glad I soldiered on because there were many great examples of color, layering, grapheme, and spatial usage in there.
May 12, 2010
Murray
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My fave of the 'original Tufte trilogy'. Awesome concepts around representing information in clear, truthful, and accurate ways. A lot of focus on map-based graphics, but concepts are applicable to other types as well. Sometimes a bit of high-and-mighty writing, but it's still eye-opening.
Jan 05, 2009
Andreas
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Great book about how to visualize data in an efficient way. The examples make the book very interesting and inspiring but I am missing some practical examples to be able to come up with similar graphics.
Nov 07, 2011
Esteban
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Great book on presenting information. It's relatively short, but requires more attention and time per page than most books due to the discussion of subtleties and details of diagrams, maps, charts, etc. Every double page has at least one diagram that is discussed in the text in that same page. In particular, the comparisons between an original, bad design and an improved version are very illustrative and inspiring.
Aug 21, 2010
Rohit
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This book is filled with amazing ways of presenting complex, often intimidating information in a simple, two-dimensional form that is easily understandable and better to draw conclusions from.
But that isn't the lasting message that you'll carry from this one. Often, as this book will show you - our problems exist chiefly inside our heads.
An excellent and entertaining read for anyone who is interested in statistics or information representation.
But that isn't the lasting message that you'll carry from this one. Often, as this book will show you - our problems exist chiefly inside our heads.
An excellent and entertaining read for anyone who is interested in statistics or information representation.
Aug 28, 2011
Jonathan
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A lot of rehash of the first book in Tufte's loose trilogy, but better-organized, better-looking, with more clearly articulated arguments across a range of issues.
Oct 01, 2010
Kristen
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Tufte's books give you the analytic tools to rethink the way you present and illustrate information--and the examples he provides range across centuries and cultures.
Sep 04, 2010
Scott
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Not as insightful as his first book (The Visual Display of Quantitative Information). A variation on a theme well-described in the prior book.
Aug 18, 2011
Mary
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WOW! Where does "stuff" come from on this information highway that we live around. Interesting chapters with a wealth of knowledge.
Jan 22, 2011
Benjamin
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Interesting, though not as helpful as I thought it might be. Written at a high level. Neat infographics from all parts of the world though.
Sep 13, 2008
Betty
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I ran across this book by pure luck in the library and ended up in one of Edward Tufte's workshops about a year later. Anyone who deals with data presentation needs to read at least one of Tufte's books on the topic.
The books are very general, so you do have to reach to apply the principles to your field of application.
But I noticed that after I read the books and attended the workshop, I was forever picking out the elements of good visual presentation in catalogs, magaz More...
The books are very general, so you do have to reach to apply the principles to your field of application.
But I noticed that after I read the books and attended the workshop, I was forever picking out the elements of good visual presentation in catalogs, magaz More...
