Choosing JavaScript Charting Library – Few Factors to Take into Account
Chart is one of the oldest form of displaying data or information on the paper or web page. This is extremely helpful in many cases where we need to represent various figures in graphical way. It lessen the effort of the writer to a large extend. For a web developer, the charting library is always works like a charm. Though there are a variety of charting tools developed in JavaScript, it is the responsibility of the web developer to select the best one for his application. Let us discuss what are the important factors that we should consider before we choose a charting library?
Input Data format: Well, charts can’t be developed without figures or data. These data are known as input data. While dealing with JavaScript charting library, we must consider the format of input data it requires for displaying on the web page. There are many formats that can be imported for the purpose like csv, JSON or XML etc. The best option is JSON; because it is easier to access and it is highly flexible. So choose a JS library that takes JSON file for importing the input data.
Cross Platform compatibility: In this new era, there are a hundreds of different devices that are being used for browsing purpose. Smart phones and tablets are being used extensively by the users. So, it is the responsibility of the web developer to choose the right and appropriate JavaScript library so that it can be compatible with all platforms. It should enable the JavaScript developer to handle with multiple platforms for displaying the chart without any hassle.
Customization options: Yes, this is yet another factor to be considered while choosing the best charting tool for your application. Many chart libraries have a lot of features to customize; but that comes at a cost of memory. So, if you are not going to use these features in your application then why you choose that tool. It will unnecessarily put burden on the application. So, choose the right tool for your application that will not only fulfil all your needs but also prevent unnecessary load on the application.
Look n Feel: Many times, we find certain theme or background to be suitable for our website. Similarly, certain libraries can provide you better look and feel to your application. Look and feel matters a lot from the user’s point of view. So, we can’t ignore its importance at any cost. So we must choose appropriate JavaScript library for our application.
Performance: As a smart web developer or may be front end JavaScript developer, you must be cautious for the performance of the web application. Sometimes, we find some libraries making the overall system not only slower but also inefficient. So, we should avoid these types of unreliable and un-optimized tools in our application.
Support: Last but the most important factor i.e. Support. We must think twice before we choose a library that has no or bad support reputation. A JavaScript web developer must select a tool that is highly reliable with 24×7 support service. This would help you leverage the benefits of JavaScript web development.
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