Data Visualization for Database Software

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Data Visualization for Database Software

• Anna Wichansky
• Advanced User Interface Group

9/28/00
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Outline

• Database User Interfaces
• Before and After Uis
• Visualization Challenges
• Visualization Projects

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A Database

• receives
• stores
• summarizes
• transforms
• manipulates
• reports
• Data

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Database tasks

• Installation configuration
• Upgrade
• Maintenance
• Ad hoc and scheduled queries
• Routine jobs
• Analysis
• Reporting and charting
• Use of applications

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Database users

• Database administrators (dbas)
• Database designers
• Programmers
• High end-users (e.g. analysts)
• Low end-users (e.g. data entry clerks)

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Database applications

• Financial
• Manufacturing
• E-commerce
• Marketing Sales
• Clinical
• Government

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Oracle Browser 2.0 (Before)
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Discoverer 3.0 (After)
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Discoverer Graphing
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Reports 2.5 (Before)
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Reports 3.0 (After)
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Server Manager 2.3 (Before)
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Enterprise Manager 1.3 (After)
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Enterprise Manager 3.0
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Visualization Challenges

• Diversity of data
• Complexity of data
• Expertise of users
• Screen real estate
• Platform issues
• Internationalization pressure
• Output constraints

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Visualization Projects

• Business Intelligence w/ multidimensional data
• Object tree hierarchies
• Database system topologies

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Business Intelligence Visualization

• Video store financial data
• Multiple nested dimensions
• Geography Region -gtCity -gtStore
• Products Video Rentals, Video Sales, Beverages,
  Snacks
• Time Year-gt Quarter
• Drill down capability on hierarchies
• Geographical representation
• 3-D representation

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Object tree hierarchy project

• Thousands of objects in nested folders
• Drill down into folder results in loss of
  context, truncation of text labels
• Graphical representation required for interaction
• Common problem on website databases
• Dynamic demo (e.g. animation) may help
• Hyperbolic browser not allowed

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System Topology Project

• Distributed databases contain hundred of nodes
  with different features and functions
• Geographical representation may be useful
• Dynamic aspect to represent node status, jobs
  running (e.g. animation)
• 3-D may be helpful