Part 1 D3.js fundamentals

Welcome to the world of D3.js! We know you are impatient to build mind-blowing data visualizations. You’re going to get there soon, we promise! But first, let’s make sure that you get the basics right. The notions you’ll encounter in this section are the ones you’ll meet repeatedly in your D3 journey, and understanding them in depth will give you a definite advantage once you approach more complex visualizations.

In chapter 1, we’ll discuss why and when someone might want to use D3 and its ecosystem. We’ll also introduce concepts that will support your learning: drawing Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) shapes, manipulating data with JavaScript, and method chaining.

Then, in chapters 2 and 3, we’ll use D3 to build our first data visualization: a bar chart. For that, we’ll discuss how to manipulate the document object model (DOM) and work with data. In chapters 4 and 5, we’ll already build more complex visualizations with the help of D3’s shape and layout generators. We’ll finish this part in chapter 6 by discussing distributions, a subject that all data visualization practitioners meet from time to time.