Processing 2: Data Visualization

The objective of this project was to create an audio-visualizer of data from a web-stream. It works in fullscreen on a screen of any resolution. It is an an exported application that makes use of a settings.txt file to setup the parameters of the system. Info-visualizations need to tell the story of the data in a minimal & attractive way. The system should:

1. Acquire & Parse the data stream
a. Computer Science

2. Filter & Mine for only the data that you need
a. Mathematics & Statistics

3. Represent as information reveals story/pattern behind the data
a. Graphic Design

The real time data that I used for this visualization is what could be acquired from Twitter. From using the Twitter API, peoples names, screen names, keywords, topics, followings, location etc. could be streamed. This data stream would then be filtered for only the information that I desire. The values obtained are used to scale outputs i.e. the length of the screen names, determined how big a balloon would look. The nature of the data stream Twitter provides reflects more on the personality of a user. It creates a digital clone of a user that exists in this ‘cloud’.

Initial Design

Twitter is used as a medium for users to share their thought at that particular instance with the world. People are then willing to let go of that information to higher power, which is this ‘cloud’. All this data is accumulated from all over the world with thoughts, opinions, topics etc. all co existing. The fundamentals of the graphic is design is to depict how all these opinions of the world exist and float out there separately but held together by the common denominator which is Twitter. I created what looks like balloons floating in the sky.

Development with PImage

As the programme runs, the amount of tweets shall increase. As they accumulate, the user can observe and study how opinions may vary in certain topics. All these different opinions are tied together by this cloud of data. The center circle will slowly increase in size as the tweets build up and things become more chaotic. The user can also compare the ratio between people having followers to following people through the number/bar display. If they change (or add to) the, txt. file, they can compare the frequency of keywords being tweeted. Things appear calmer with less amount of tweets on the screen.