A big factor in the success of Rich Internet Applications is data visualization. Technologies like Flash and Flex are ideal for exploring innovative new ways to display data or to bring interactivity to traditionally static visualizations. The richness of these applications can make information easier to understand, and I’m always looking for cool new ideas that might inspire useful Flex components.
Heatmaps are one interesting way to display data on top of two-dimensional objects, such as maps, images. or even webpages. They use color to differentiate between different regions on the object. A map might be enhanced to show population density or whether it is more likely to rain in certain areas. A website might be overlayed with a heatmap that displays where visitors are most likely to click or what parts of the page catch their eyes most effectively. It’s a fascinating way to look at data.
Today, we released a new open source component, a heatmap for Flex. The downloadable ZIP package includes a SWC library for Flex 3, the API documentation, a couple of examples, and full source code available under the terms of an MIT-style license. Take a look at the heatmap API documentation one or one of the examples, such as the sample Click Tracker heatmap to get started with this component. Enjoy!