Putting Visualization on the Web – at VisWeek 2009 ​

A while ago, I complained about the state of visualization on the web. To improve things, I am co-organizing a workshop at VisWeek in October to discuss the status quo, potential problems, and to find new ways to get visualization people to make their mark online. Whether you have a blog or website, don't have a blog or website, plan on starting one, are afraid of starting one, or think this whole web thing is just a fad – we want to hear from you!

I have enlisted the help of two colleagues: Nathan Yau, who runs FlowingData; and Andrew Vande Moere of infosthetics fame. We will provide some experiences and pointers to resources. But the main story will, of course, be the participants.

We are looking for one-page position statements where you tell us your experiences, provide ideas, or simply raise questions. These are meant to be the starting points for the discussion at the workshop, so we do not expect you to have everything figured out – quite the opposite, actually.

Blogging in academia is still a problem. How much do you want to talk about your current research? How do you even start a blog and don't get frustrated when nobody reads it for the first few months? How do you find the time to do it? What is the value of getting the word out about your research? Will it hurt or help your tenure case?

If you have these or other questions, submit a position statement! If you have ideas or solutions, submit one! This promises to be a highly interesting and engaging workshop, and we hope to spur a wave of new visualization websites.

Go to the Workshop Page for more details and the submission form.

Posted by Robert Kosara on June 26, 2009.