The Basics of Working with Visuals

Relationship with Data Source

Data sources hold the data that you need to create a visual. This is why the first step in the creation of most visuals requires you to link the data source. There are two visual types that do not require a data source link to work, they are Embed and Summary visual types. The reason being the chart type is more 'informational' and does not depend on source data.

Chart Properties

Configuration of the overall look of the chart is available in Chart Properties. To access the Chart Properties, click on the chart type node. On a combo chart, click on the word 'Combo Chart'. You will then see the Properties tab open in the lower panel. 

The following configuration options are available in Chart Properties throughout most charts:

• Visual Title
  The text that you enter here appears above the chart and is visible to everyone. Use this field to enter a short title that best describes the chart. When text is entered into this field, the corresponding option 'Show Title on Visual' is automatically checked. You can hide the title by unchecking this option. You can also change the text color and font size by clicking on the color picker and font size setting to the right of the field.
  
  
• Additional Information
  When you have additional information to share with your viewer, such as source information or to highlight certain areas of the chart, you can use the Additional Information field. Text entered here appears below the chart and is visible to everyone. You can change the text color and font size by clicking on the color picker and font size setting.
  
  
• Enable Plans Linking
  Analytics visuals can be associated with plan elements in the Plans module. Data entry still resides in Analytics however all plan element assignees will be able to view the updated charts and graphs without any effort. To allow the visual to be linkable, the Enable Plans Linking option needs to be enabled.
  
  

Chart Comment

The chart Comment field is an HTML text field that allows you to provide more information on your chart for your viewers. The information entered in this field is only visible in Analytics and Public Dashboard.

In Analytics, you will see this information in the visual's expanded view from a dashboard. In Public Dashboard, after syncing the data from plans with the associated measure, one will be able to view the information when clicking on the measure's page.

Node Properties

Each visual contains nodes that represent the information required to draw the chart. Each node may contain configuration options. For example, on the combo chart above, the nodes are Series, X and Y-axis. To access the nodes' configuration options, click on the individual node.

Refresh 

The Refresh icon is located to the right of your avatar on the visual. When the icon lights up in Red, it indicates there are changes to the linked data source(s). To manually update and view the changes in your visual, click on the Refresh icon.

Alternately, visuals are automatically refreshed with new data every hour, on the half hour. 

Link Visual to Plans

The Plans module contains all your planning data and qualitative progress. You can easily combine your quantitative measures from Analytics with your qualitative progress to reinforce a data-driven decision support management practice.  To make the visual linkable in Plans, turn on the Enable Plans Linking option on the Visual. The option is located in the Chart properties. All visuals can be linked to Plans. To enable/disable this option for multiple visuals, you can use bulk edit. Learn more in the Performing Bulk Edit in Analytics article.

Link Visual to Projects

The Projects module centrally manages project progress. Enhance communication by incorporating visuals into your projects, allowing for easy sharing of quantitative data with stakeholders through the projects dashboard. Furthermore, linking visuals to related projects within your plans enables reporting, dashboard inclusion, and informed updates. To activate this feature, enable Enable Projects Linking in the Chart properties of the Visual. These visuals can connect to any project within the Projects module. For simultaneous activation or deactivation across multiple visuals, utilize the bulk edit function, detailed in the Performing Bulk Edit in Analytics article.

Note: If you don't see this option on your visuals, please inform your CSM and they can turn this feature on for your team.

Clone Visual

Visual cloning can be useful when you need to create a similar visual with either minor adjustments to the visual or one that points to a different data source, such as a data source that captures a different time period. To clone the visual, click on the three dots to the right of your avatar on the header bar, with your visual open. To learn more, check out the article How to Clone Data Source, Visual or Dashboard in Analytics. You can also clone multiple visuals by using bulk clone. Learn more in the Performing Bulk Edit in Analytics article.

Delete Visual

You can delete visuals you own, or if you're the Analytics Admin, you can delete other user's visuals through the administration page. 

Envisio Analytics offers several ways to delete visual(s):

Visuals Listing

From the listing page, you can individually or bulk select your owned data sources that you wish to delete by clicking on the check-box to the left. When selecting multiple data sources, click on the Actions icon (3 dots) and select Delete from the drop-down list. 

To delete an individual data source, you can hover your mouse over the data source row to reveal the delete button on the right. 

Within a Visual

When viewing a visual that you own, you can click on the three dots to the right of your avatar and select the Delete option to delete the data source.

Rules When Deleting Visuals

• If a visual is used on a dashboard, deletion is allowed, however the visual on the dashboard will be a static widget and will no longer be editable.