This product is not specifically a PostgreSQL product but it is one that we use frequently with many of our database apps so we felt our obligation to blog about it in the context of databases.
Lets face it, when you have a database, somebody will come to you
one day and demand to see their data in sparkling colors, because why have data if you can't see it in sparkling colors.
They might not know what the data is telling them, but at least it will look damn good when charted in 3D.
This is when you should whip out something like Fusion Charts. This is just a small part of a three part series. In our application arena, we shall demonstrate using Fusion Charts in PHP as well as ASP.NET
and of course display PostgreSQL data using it. We shall only be demonstrating the Free version. If you really insist on Oracle, MySQL, IBM DBII, SQL Server, SQLite or FireBird or some other flavor of db, you can perform the same trick with slight variation.
You just need data you want to chart.
What is Fusion Charts?
Fusion Charts is a Macromedia Flash-based charting component that makes extremely attractive 2D and 3D charts.
It comes in 2 flavors.
- Fusion Chart v3 Fusion Charts v3 which comes with about 45 different chart types to choose from
and numerous other extra bells and whistles for animation and integration.
- Fusion Charts v2 Free - The free version is free for commercial use as well, but has only 22 chart types and limited animation features.
This version actually satisfies most of our charting needs.
The differences between the Free and Non-free versions are outlined in Free vs. v3
Surprisingly, even the Free version contains a Gantt Chart which is a real rarity among free charting software.
Cool Features
What we really love about this product
- The Charts are clean and breathtakingly beautiful
- The XML data format it requires is relatively easy to produce
- Both the Free and Commercial come packaged with APIs for ASP.NET, PHP, ASP
Some simple demonstrations can be seen here.
Stay tuned for our Application demonstrations of how pretty data can look when dressed up in charts.
PostGIS in Action
About the Authors
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