JordanO_R01

Information graphics are something that I find easily readable and very practical ways of transferring data from one person to another. You can find ways to make people comprehend information that would take pages of written information in one simple effective graphic. Charts, maps, tables and all other forms of information graphics are especially effective when the user can easily navigate and use this information for something identifiable to their current situation, position or area of interest. I think that from my previous experience with information graphics this course will be very interesting and reassert my previous knowledge of the topic. People are drawn to good info graphics and can also influence someone’s opinion, position or direction they are traveling. Take for example the marketing strategy that takes place in any Target Store. All of the graphics are identifiable as a uniform body or identity. This identity helps them market their products and directs you around their store in a fashion they want you to. There is always a food counter at the beginning for example. This strategy is used to make you get comfortable with the store, and if you are hungry you wont have to leave to go eat. This is also a way to get you to spend more money in their store and strategies like this are now being used by all major businesses.

Besides the marketing aspect of information graphics and signage used by large corporations there is also scientific side to information graphics that can be used as a educational tool or reference. Most of the charts and pictographs in this article are some sort of scientific study. The study of the animals is particularly interesting and is a form of information graphics that I am familiar with but over the years have not thought of these in same way as a numeric chart given the nature of the information and how it is displayed. The study of the wolf is a dynamic graphic that reminds me of Munsell’s color scale in how it is laid out and information is presented. Another interesting but more scientific appearing graphic is the one of the Paris train schedule. It is about as simple as a graphic can come but provides so much information with out providing a numerical table. You can tell when the train will depart and when it will arrive. You can tell when your train will intersect with another train and at which depot or between which stops. There is a clear order to the chart as one side is destinations and other is composed of the departure and arrival times. I think for its time it is an extremely well done info graphic.

As for the article as a whole I found it to be interesting in itself the progression of information graphics over time and how they have evolved both through technology but through method and the implication of previous experience as a factor in design. Also it is interesting where you can see charts need improvement on getting proper information a crossed or where there are grey areas of information. As a designer these are things that I need to be conscious about in the future as I design my own information graphics.