chart-type-advisor

# Chart type advisor ## What this skill does Recommends the most effective chart type for your data and editorial goal, explains why it works, and warns you about common misrepresentations. ## When to use this skill - You have data and a story but aren't sure how to visualize it - Your editor asks "what's the best way to show this?" and you need a quick, defensible answer - You want to avoid the default bar chart when something more precise exists - You are reviewing a graphic before publication and want to check if the chart type matches the claim ## What you need to provide **Required:** - What the data measures (e.g., "unemployment rates across EU countries over 10 years") - What point you want the reader to take away (e.g., "Germany's rate recovered faster than France's") **Optional:** - Number of data points or categories - Whether the data is time-series, categorical, geographic, or relational - Publication format (print, web, social — affects complexity) - Any house style constraints (e.g., "we never use pie charts") ## How the Assistant Approaches This 1. Identifies the data type (time-series, comparison, distribution, composition, relationship, geographic) 2. Maps the editorial goal to the chart types that serve it best 3. Recommends a primary chart type with a brief explanation of why it works 4. Offers one alternative if the primary has trade-offs 5. Flags misrepresentation risks — cases where the recommended chart could mislead if axes, baselines, or scales a...