Tools and Visualisations: SIMILIE Timeline

The SIMILE Timeline (http://www.simile-widgets.org/timeline/) is a way of representing time-series data - such as this timeline describing JFK's assassination - in an interactive way. It is written in Javascript, so if you are already familiar with programming, then take a look at the documentation (http://simile-widgets.org/wiki/Timeline, and in particular http://simile-widgets.org/wiki/Getting_Started_with_Timeline), and think about how you could create your own timeline.

Excercise:

Have a look at the examples (http://www.simile-widgets.org/timeline/examples/index.html) then, in your groups, discuss:

Is this a good way of visualising data? Why? Why not?

Does this timeline tell a data story? If yes, what is the point the author is trying to make? If not, what would need to be added to make it a coherent story?

What other sorts of data would suit a visualisation like this?