Overview
The Appfire FlashCharts Plugin introduces "data visualization" to Clearspace through stunning XML-based Flash charts and graphs. 20 different flavors of animated charts are individually controlled through 'macro parameters' and a set of associated 'xml data structures' required by each chart type. A few of the many example uses for this plugin include:
Creating Informative Dashboard Widgets
Comparing Sales Performance
Developing and Presenting Financial Reports
Archiving Performance Statistics
General Presentation Collaboration
... and much, much more.
Macro Examples
Syntax Example #1:
{flashcharts:chart=Column3D|width=600|height=325}
<graph yAxisName='Sales Figures' caption='Top 5 Sales Representatives' numberPrefix='$' decimalPrecision='1' divlinedecimalPrecision='0' limitsdecimalPrecision='0'>
<set name='Jonathan' value='54000' color='AFD8F8' />
<set name='Phil' value='34000' color='F6BD0F' />
<set name='Randall' value='22300' color='8BBA00' />
<set name='Mat' value='45300' color='FF8E46' />
<set name='Dawn' value='61300' color='008E8E' />
</graph>
{flashcharts}
Syntax Example #2:
{flashcharts:chart=Column3D|xml=http://www.appfire.com/example.xml|width=600|height=325}{flashcharts}
Rendered Chart Example: (Same for syntax examples #1 and #2)
Macro Components
Note that "(!)" represents required, "(-)" represents not required and "(+)" represents conditional
Required | Macro Component | Example | Default Value | Details & Notes |
|---|
| chart parameter | chart=Column3D | -- | Used within the opening macro tag, this parameter defines the desired chart type (options outlined below). |
| width parameter | width=550 | 600 | Used within the opening macro tag, this parameter defines the width of rendered chart (in pixels). |
| height parameter | height=350 | 400 | Used within the opening macro tag, this parameter defines the height of the rendered chart (in pixels). |
| xml parameter | xml=http://www.appfire.com/example.xml | -- | Used within the opening macro tag, this parameter defines the URL path to an external .xml file containing data for the chart (xml syntax outlined below).  This parameter is only required if the macro body does not contain the necessary xml data.
This parameter will override the macro body if both are defined. Values defined for this parameter are case sensitive. |
| "pipe" parameter separator | width=550\ | height=350 | -- | Used to separate multiple parameter/value pairs within the opening macro tag. This is not required if only one parameter is defined. |
| macro body | click to view an example macro body | -- | Used to define the XML data for a chart between the opening and closing macro tags. Properly structured XML data within the macro body is only required if an xml parameter is not defined. |
| closing macro tag | {flashcharts:chart=FCF_Column3D} ... macro body ... {flashcharts} | -- | Defines the end of the macro |
Chart Options (including required XML Syntax for chart data)
General Documentation & Usage Notes
The
{flashcharts}
macro can be leveraged within most areas of Clearspace including:
Wiki Documents
Forum Messages
Blog Entries
Comments
Internal Email Messages
An 'Enterprise' version of this plugin is currently in the early stages of development. You can sign up to be informed of our progress on our website.
For enterprise Clearspace implementations, Appfire Technologies offers professional plugin customization services which can enable charts to read from existing data repositories.
Known Issues & Incompatibilities
The current version does not support the "Export to PDF" feature in Clearspace.
The current version does not render flash charts within the content edit view's "Preview" pane in Clearspace.
When defining XML chart data inside a macro's body in Clearspace, the XML characters
"<"
and
">"
are being converted into their html equivalents. This has been noticed to occur when a macro is created within the "Rich Text" pane and then viewed within the 'Plain Text' pane. Note however that this does not seem to affect the macro's performance in any way.
Related Documents & Discussions
Release Versions & Notes
Plugin Installation Steps
Method 1: Through The Plugin Admin
Confirm that you have installed and are running the latest compatible release version of Clearspace.
If you have a previous version of the Appfire FlashCharts Plugin installed, delete the old version through the 'Clearspace Admin' > 'System' > 'Plugins' interface.
Download the latest compatible release version of the Appfire FlashCharts Free JAR file.
Install the downloaded JAR file through the 'Clearspace Admin' > 'System' > 'Plugins' > 'Add Plugin' interface.
After the plugin is installed, navigate to the front-end Clearspace instance and create a new wiki document.
Add a properly formatted
{flashcharts}
macro (as outlined in 'Syntax Example #1' above) to the document.
Publish the new document and confirm that you can see the 'Rendered Chart Example' outlined above.
Method 2: Directly Into The Plugin Folder
Confirm that you have installed and are running the latest compatible release version of Clearspace.
Stop the Clearspace instance.
If you have a previous version of the Appfire FlashCharts Plugin installed, delete the old version within the 'clearspace_jiveHome_location\plugins' folder.
Download the latest compatible release version of the Appfire FlashCharts Free JAR file.
Copy the downloaded JAR file into the 'clearspace_jiveHome_location\plugins' folder.
Restart the Clearspace instance.
Navigate to 'Clearspace Admin' > 'System' > 'Plugins' to confirm that the Appfire FlashCharts Plugin was installed.
With the plugin installed, navigate to the front-end Clearspace instance and create a new wiki document.
Add a properly formatted
{flashcharts}
macro (as outlined in 'Syntax Example #1' above) to the document.
Publish the new document and confirm that you can see the 'Rendered Chart Example' outlined above.
Clearspace 1.X Plugin Files