I was laying out a UX report for a client including a section on competitive analysis I had researched. This called for a number of heat maps to be created. Our findings were still under review and also included some soft metrics which made it probable that our rating system would change. Creating each map in Illustrator would have taken a long time, plus the work would have been lost if the values had been changed. Instead, I decided to spend the time to create a tool that would let me to quickly generate heat maps and allow me to use them in my work. I also wanted to have control over colors and needed some flexibility in regards to my data source. So I set out to create HeatMapper.
Input:
HeatMapper reads an SVG file as well as an CSV spreadsheet. The map shapes labels — in my case the US states — need to correnspond to field values in the spreadsheet, but the tool allows the user to choose the column or row that is applicable.
Processing:
HeatMapper creates a gradient with as many steps as there are values between the highest and lowest value in the spreadsheet. displays colored version of the vector map.
Customization:
HeatMapper allows the user to customize the colors at both ends of the gradient.
Export:
HeatMapper offers PDF and ASE color swatch export, ideal to continue work in Illustrator.
PNG export is also available.
PNG export is also available.
In the development of HeatMapper I used a more complex data source: historic birth rates in the communities of my home state NorthRhine-Westphalia).
Result:
The maps created using HeatMapper became part of our report and its presentation for the client. HeatMapper took a similar amount of time to develop as creating the heatmaps by hand, but it was efficient not only because it can be reused in other projects, but also because our rating system did change and required all maps to be redone, which only took minutes using HeatMapper.
