© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 1 Chapter 14 Designing Visuals Technical Communication, 9/e John M. Lannon PowerPoint prepared by Jimidene Murphy

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 2 How Visuals Work  Enhance comprehension  Make meaningful comparisons possible  Depict relationships  Serve as a universal language  Provide emphasis  Focus and organize information, making it easier to remember

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 3 What Types of Visuals to Use Graphs display numerical relationships Charts display parts of a whole Tables display organized lists of data Graphic illustrations show actual views

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 4 Tables  Tables are used to organize numerical data  No table should be overly complex for the intended audience  Tables are easy to construct through word processing and spreadsheet programs

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 5 Graphs Graphs convert numbers and words into shapes that are easy to interpret and compare Types of graphs include  Simple bar graphs  Multiple-bar graphs  Horizontal bar graphs  Stacked bar graphs  100-percent bar graph  Deviation bar graph  3-D bar graph

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 6 Line Graphs  Simple line  Multiple line  Deviation line  Band or area Total Sales Volume Price

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 7 Charts  Pie charts  Organization charts  Flowcharts  Tree charts  Gantt and PERT charts

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 8 Pictograms Sales of Pharmaceuticals by Division MidwestWestSouthNortheast $8,000,000 $6,000,000 $4,000,000 $2,000,000

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 9 Graphic Illustrations Diagrams  Exploded  Cutaway  Block Maps Photographs

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 10 Computer Graphics  Select appropriate designs  Use clip art wisely and creatively  Use color to enhance, interpret, orient, and organize  Create Web pages that utilize color effectively

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 11 Avoid Visual Distortion  Present the real picture  Present the complete picture  Concentrate on emphasis, not distortion (An example of distortion is on the next slide.)

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 12 Example of Visual Distortion Sales of Beer by Store Avoid this graphic Use this graphic Sales of Beer by Store

© 2003 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 13 Any Questions? For additional help reviewing this chapter, please visit the Companion Website for your text at