Workshop: Applied Visualization with D3

**Please note: this is the same content of the February 12th Meetup. It is an encore presentation from individuals who wished, but could not, make the first meetup.

Please join the Chicago Data Visualization Group workshop on 'Applied Visualization with D3' facilitated by Paul Katsen, co-founder of Graf.ly.

Host: Justin Smith was nice enough to volunteer the Critical Mass space for this meetup. Registrations will close Tuesday, April 1 at 6p. We also need both first and last names (as shown on your ID), so if your meetup username only displays your first name, please email 'paulkatsen@gmail.com' your full name.

Date and Location: April 3rd, 6:00 - 8:30pm at Critical Mass, located at 225 N. Michigan Ave (Suite #2050).

Target Audience: This workshop is designed for all the Excel pros out there who haven't mastered coding just yet. If you're an analyst who wants to turn your datasets into beautiful interactive visualizations, but are still new to d3 and javascript, we'll get you off to the right start.

Prerequisites: Please bring your laptop with:

• A dataset you want to visualize with d3

• A browser that supports SVG (any version equal to, or greater than, these browser releases: Firefox 15, Chrome 22, Safari 5.1, Opera 12, IE 9),

• A local server installed. If you're on Mac or Linux you're already set. If you're on Windows just install Python; and

A text editor like Sublime Text.

Basic Outline: While the typical d3 intro workshop is about building a visualization from the ground up and learning the theory, we're going to do the opposite:

1. Make a fully functional visualization in 60 minutes by finding the right template (bl.ocks.org), identifying input data structure, then restructuring our data to populate existing template. It'll be like pushing your data into a black box and getting the right answer on the other end.

2. We'll spend 45 minutes going through the basics of how the black box is operating. We'll discuss what sections of code is creating what, and direct you to additional resources to learn the d3 api.

3. Then the last 45 minutes you'll be split into pairs working with your own data. You'll choose a new visualization, restructure your own data, and populate the visualization. By the end of this workshop you should have the tools to populate incredible interactive visualizations, and have enough exposure to d3 for the intro tutorials to make much more sense. Hence 'Applied Visualization' :).

Register Soon: This space is limited to 65 people. These workshops fill up quickly so I suggest you sign up early. Please also consider your fellow members and update your RSVP if you cannot attend the workshop.