Whenever somebody has something technical to explain, or some stats to communicate, it seems that the trend nowadays is share a digitally produced and very cool infographic. People seem to instinctively demand a visual aspect to the constant data to which they are exposed. It’s efficient and makes the world of hard data a more beautiful place. So let’s take a look at the best infographic websites on the net.
Designtaxis ‘ Most Popular Infographics of 2011’
Just released is this list of 2011’s top 10 infographics from Designtaxi.com. Of course Read XML is most interested in ‘Google’s Most Expensive Keywords in 2011’, but also popular in 2011 were ‘Anatomy of an Ad Agency’ and ‘Did You Know: Computer Keyboards Five Times Dirtier than Toilet Seats?’ Hmm. You might wonder about the ratio of useful ‘info’ vs. fun graphics in some of these, but apparently this is what the people want.
Visual.ly
User-generated infographics website, Visual.ly boasts a virtual buffet of visualised data. Although the infographics vary in their quality and complexity, it’s worth the dig to find infographics that inspire you. Did you ever want to see a map of submarine cables across the world? Or an infographic that explains sales figures for a bestselling series of novels? We like that sort of thing.
Strange Maps (from Bigthink.com)
Map infographic enthusiast Frank Jacobs collects unusual maps. Not restricted to creatively realised maps of actual places, you can also find true fantasy maps. The website contains a huge archive trailing back to 2006.
Informationisbeautiful.net
David McCandless is the author of coffee table book ‘Information is Beautiful’. Describing himself as a “data journalist” and “information designer”, McCandless has made a career for himself as a creator and educator in the realm of infographics. On the site you can view many of his own visualisations, including ‘2012: The End of the World?’ (lo and behold, experts on the Mayans don’t think the world will actually end – but it’s a fun, interesting visualisation).
Infographics tend to keep geeks and non-geeks alike happy. Like most good trends, infographics are a democratic tool. What will people be creating infographics about in 2012?
