Home / Brinton, Willard C. Graphic Methods for Presenting Facts. New York: The Engineering Magazine Company, 1914. Internet Archive identifier: cu31924032626792 (Cornell University Library copy). The first American textbook on what we now call data visualization. / Passage

Graphic Methods for Presenting Facts

Brinton, Willard C. Graphic Methods for Presenting Facts. New York: The Engineering Magazine Company, 1914. Internet Archive identifier: cu31924032626792 (Cornell University Library copy). The first American textbook on what we now call data visualization. 316 words

Orders and other printed forms sent through a large organization must follow a routing entirely distinct from that actually followed bj' the heavy materials. The routing of printed forms in a large business is, in itself, a matter worthy of most careful study to get a true understanding of their complex movements. A clear idea of office system is almost impossible unless the data are charted. Fig. 15 may give some suggestions for a chart to show the movement of printed forms through an industrial plant. Here again printing by colored inks such as would be used on the original drawing would be of great service in making the chart easy to understand and easy to follow from department to department.

If a building contains many stories the routing diagram for materials and also the routing diagram for printed forms can be made conveniently by a rough perspective drawing showing the different floors as planes one above the other. Colored ink lines on the perspective chart will show clearlj' the movement of materials through the manufacturing building, and will indicate the elevator movements for material in a manner not possible if the departments are represented all in one plane on the ordinary sheet of paper. Perspective charts of floors, one above the other, are so simply made that their advantage should not be overlooked when preparing routing charts for plants having multi-story buildings.

Chapter II SIMPLE COMPARISONS

ONE of a business man's chief assets is his abihty to show things to others in their true proportions. He is continually making contrasts, and holding up for comparison different propositions which come up in his daily affairs. The graphic method lends itself admirably to use in making comparisons. It is surprising how much clearer even simple comparisons of only two or three items will appear when their numerical value is put in graphic form rather than in figures.