Tinkerplots will create a new collection for this region. Since the data collected is the same (Price, Vendor, Location, Time, Submitter), both datasets have the same attributes.
Observations
So now we have a Tinkerplots workspace with two collections of data.
Let’s bring two plots onto the screen to analyse our data. Click
to select one of the data collections. You’ll notice that it
is selected by the heavy border that appears around the outside.
Now, from the toolbar at the top of the screen, click on the “Plot” icon and move your cursor onto the workspace. Using your mouse in the bottom right hand corner, drag the plot window to a nice readable size.
Let’s place some data.
From the data collection, move your cursor over the data attribute names. When you are in the right place, your cursor will turn to a “grabbing hand”. On the vertical axis, we will plot the attribute “Vendor” by clicking and dragging the “Vendor” attribute to the axis. You’ll know that you’re in the right spot when Tinkerplots highlights the axis for you. Release your mouse button to complete the plotting.
On the horizontal axis, repeat the process by using the “Price” attribute.
By dragging the circle icons, you can pull the data apart. Alternatively, select the separate button in the menu bar.
It makes sense to me that “Other” is the bottom vendor so I’ll just click and drag that name to the bottom.
By clicking individual attributes in the data collection, Tinkerplots will colourize your plot. In the picture below, I’ve clicked on the vendor attribute. You might want to further clarify your data by stacking it.
How many Sunoco stations were reported? What is their range of pricing? By identifying and clicking on a circle icon, you can see that specific card in your collection.
data "unstacked"
data "stacked" - easier for counting and identifying
Comparing the Two Plots
Repeat
the process to show your Kitchener Waterloo data in the same manner.
It’s most effective if you resize your plot
windows so that they have the same dimensions.
We do have a problem though. There is significant differences in the pricing. We need to level the playing field in terms of the price ranges so that both plots are on the same scale.
| Move your cursor over the numbers in one of the ranges on the horizontal axis and double click. Tinkerplots lets you identify two things. First, the starting value and secondly, the range of data or “Bin width”. Looking at my data, it appears that the lowest price I found was 82 cents and 3 looks good as a bin width. |  |
For a fair comparison, both plots need to have the same axis starting point and bin width. Now, you can compare the two plots.
Questions to Ask
We now have a good representation of some of the data from this collection and can start to ask questions. Tinkerplots is there to help.
To plot other data, just drag it from the collection to the plot.
Where should I buy my gas to get the best price on this date?
Where is the priciest gas?
What company has the best prices?
Is the price of gas from a company the same at all locations?
Does the price of gas depend upon the time of day?
These prices were observed on a particular day. Will they change tomorrow? How will you know?
In addition to plotting the prices using Tinkerplots, you may wish to plot the prices by location on an Ontario Road Map. You might also want to check out the excellent "Math is a Gas" Webquest |
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