A useful visualization helps someone compare values, recognize a change, or decide what to investigate. Start with that question before choosing a chart type. A collection of numbers does not always need a chart.

This section provides design guidance for charts used alongside Liquidify. The installed Liquidify packages do not export a general chart component, axes, legends, or a series API. A chart requires a separately evaluated implementation. The presence of these documentation pages does not establish chart support.

Choose the presentation

Gauge displays a caller-supplied value within a range. It does not plot a dataset or provide axes, history, or chart interactions. ProgressIndicator communicates operation progress; avoid using it to represent an unrelated measurement. Consult each catalog page for its supported API.

Define the question and context

Write down the measure, unit, population, and time period. Identify whether people need a comparison, a trend, an individual reading, or several of these. Include the source and update time when they affect interpretation.

For example, “How many support requests arrived each weekday?” suggests daily totals. “Which request needs a reply?” calls for individual records and actions. A chart of totals cannot answer the second question on its own.

Give the chart a descriptive title and a short explanation of what the data covers. Keep essential context visible; hover or selection can reveal detail, but should not be the only way to discover the unit or reporting period.

Make the information accessible

Provide a text summary of the chart's purpose and important relationships, plus access to the values needed for the task. A native table can provide exact values where appropriate. Interactive marks and controls also need meaningful names, predictable keyboard operation, and visible focus.

Swift Charts supplies native accessibility features, including Audio Graphs. Liquidify does not supply that charting system or its accessibility behavior. Evaluate the chosen web renderer and its interaction model with assistive technology; a caption alone is not a complete alternative for an interactive chart.

Plan the implementation

The application owns data retrieval, aggregation, units, filtering, and feedback. The chart implementation must provide scales, marks, labels, and any interactions. Liquidify can supply surrounding controls and verified display components, but does not connect them to a dataset automatically.

Start with Simple charts, then review Chart anatomy, Axes and labels, Color palettes, and Legends. Use Dashboards when several views support one task.

Flow, spatial, and Gantt guidance remains pending. Those pages identify the specialized evidence still needed.

Further reading

• Apple: Charting data
• Apple: Charts
• Liquidify component catalog