Posts Tagged ‘Uplink’
Investigating income inequality with the Gini coefficient and other data
Paul Overberg, of USA TODAY, points to a graph of the Gini Index, which is a measure of income inequality. The diagonal line is perfect distribution of income and the curved line is a representation of actual distribution income. Overberg is interested in the space between them and what it describes. Photo by Travis Hartman.…
Read MoreGetting started with an open-source database manager: MySQL
If you’re working from a Mac computer or getting into truly large datasets, Access may not be a viable option as a database manager. (It doesn’t work on Macs, and there are row limitations.) A good alternative is MySQL, an open-source database manager, which Alex Richards of the Chicago Tribune taught on Friday. MySQL essentially…
Read MoreInspect This: The many uses of inspection data
Take a ride to understand inspection data. Megan Luther of IRE said. Buckle up next to an inspector and get to know their world: how often they inspect, how do they do it? How often? Do they inspect everyone on a set timeline, or just the new kids on the block? What is the inspection…
Read MoreIntegrity checks and simple data cleaning – the art of doubt
There is a saying about software engineering that could easily be applied to formatting data. The truism goes something like, “it’s like looking for black cats in a dark room that has no cats in it.” And then, someone yells, ‘I got one!’” Well, Joe Kokenge of ProPublica is practicing animal control. His presentation on…
Read MoreGetting started with Tableau Public
Photos by Travis Hartman I walked into the Tableau Public session with absolutely no experience — and within about 10 minutes the instructor had us open up some data, sort through a few of the elements, and create a visualization. Its immediate ease of use is clear. To produce quick, coherent interactive charts seemed pretty…
Read MoreMaking the best use of the conference
IRE executive director Mark Horvit and training directors Jaimi Dowdell and Megan Luther offered advice this morning for how to make the best use of the conference. For first-time attendees, here are a few basic things to keep in mind: There are three types of sessions: panels, demos and hands-on rooms. Panels follow a fairly…
Read MoreGet acquainted with the new look of Fusion Tables
Google Fusion tables has a new look.You can learn how to use it with Google Fusion Tables tutorials, and get a grip on how to import map data, and style, filter and share your creation with the world. Learn step-by-step how to formulate “lots of points” maps, heat maps and intensity maps. Some other cool…
Read MoreQuick tips on presenting data-driven stories
Cheryl Phillips of The Seattle Times and Anthony DeBarros of Gannett Digital presented on how to fit your data to the appropriate presentation style. Just like when you’re shopping for clothes, you should ask a lot of questions before you buy (or in this case, before you spend resources designing anything). What is the story…
Read MoreFOIA Machine offers web platform for managing open record requests
FOIA Machine is a new open-source web platform to manage your open records requests. It’s aimed to help you get what you want from your request, avoid being ignored and appeal when you are denied. “It’s aimed to help you get what you want from your request, avoid being ignored and appeal when you are denied”,…
Read MoreAdvanced social media sleuthing
Geolocation tools help you search for social media activity buzzing in your beat, on your block and even in your building. The following tools help you search by geolocation information embedded in tweets, Facebook updates, youtube videos and more. “Geolocation is one of the most exciting things for journalists out in the field,” presenter Doug…
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