Static, interactive and live data visualisations

Name:

Date:

Class:

Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. A printed poster showing last year's school canteen sales is which type of visualisation?

A Static

B Interactive

2. A dashboard where you click a slicer to switch between Year 10 and Year 12 results is...

A Static

B Interactive

3. A chart linked to a weather feed that refreshes every few minutes uses...

A Stored data

B Live data

4. A CSV file of 2023 census results downloaded once and used in a chart is...

A Stored data

B Live data

5. Which statement is true?

A A static visualisation cannot be changed by the viewer

B A static visualisation updates itself when the data changes

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
1Static visualisation		AA CSV saved last month is stored data, not live data. It will not update automatically unless it is linked to a source that refreshes.
2Interactive visualisation		BA printed poster is static, not interactive. Reading it does not let the viewer change the view, filter it or click anything.
3Live data updates automatically, so a dashboard always shows the latest values without anyone re-entering them		CLive data feed: chart refreshes every 60 seconds from an online weather API
4Stored data is a fixed copy saved at one point in time, so the visualisation shows only what was in the file when it was saved		DStored data: chart built from sales_2024.csv downloaded on 1 March
5A printed infographic poster is an interactive visualisation because people can read it closely		EA visualisation where the user can filter, click or use slicers to change what they see
6A dashboard built from a CSV file saved last month shows live data		FA fixed visualisation, such as a printed poster or an exported PNG, that cannot be changed by the viewer

Definitions

static vs interactive vs live

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

chart.type = ______ chart.userCanFilter = False

chart.type = ___________ chart.addSlicer(Region)

dataSource = ____ refreshMode = AUTOMATIC

dataSource = ______ fixedCopy = True

__ dataSource = live THEN refresh(chart) ENDIF

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A SET source TO "sensor_feed"

B SET dataType TO "live"

C SET refresh TO "never"

D REDRAW chart

Question 2

A SET type TO "static"

B ADD slicer TO chart

C PRINT poster

Question 3

A SET type TO "interactive"

B ADD slicer "Year" TO chart

C ON slicer CHANGE

D KEEP chart UNCHANGED

Question 4

A SET dataType TO "live"

B LOAD "sales_2024.csv"

C DRAW chart FROM file

Question 5

A SET dataType TO "stored"

B COPY data EVERY second

C SAVE copy TO "snapshot.csv"

Answer Key

Static, interactive and live data visualisations

Section A: Quick Questions

A — Static

B — Interactive

B — Live data

A — Stored data

A — A static visualisation cannot be changed by the viewer

Section B: Match the Pairs

Static visualisation → A fixed visualisation, such as a printed poster or an exported PNG, that cannot be changed by the viewer

Interactive visualisation → A visualisation where the user can filter, click or use slicers to change what they see

Live data updates automatically, so a dashboard always shows the latest values without anyone re-entering them → Live data feed: chart refreshes every 60 seconds from an online weather API

Stored data is a fixed copy saved at one point in time, so the visualisation shows only what was in the file when it was saved → Stored data: chart built from sales_2024.csv downloaded on 1 March

A printed infographic poster is an interactive visualisation because people can read it closely → A printed poster is static, not interactive. Reading it does not let the viewer change the view, filter it or click anything.

A dashboard built from a CSV file saved last month shows live data → A CSV saved last month is stored data, not live data. It will not update automatically unless it is linked to a source that refreshes.

Section C: Definitions

static vs interactive vs live — A static visualisation is fixed. An interactive one lets users change the view. Live data updates automatically, while stored data is a fixed copy saved at one point in time.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

chart.type = static
chart.userCanFilter = False

chart.type = interactive
chart.addSlicer(Region)

dataSource = live
refreshMode = AUTOMATIC

dataSource = stored
fixedCopy = True

IF dataSource = live THEN
    refresh(chart)
ENDIF

Section E: Spot the Error

C — Live data updates automatically, so the refresh must happen regularly, for example every 5 seconds. "never" would leave the chart stuck on old values like a stored copy.

B — A static visualisation is fixed, so it cannot have a slicer. Slicers belong to interactive visualisations. This line should save the chart as a fixed image, such as SAVE chart AS "poster.png".

D — An interactive visualisation lets the user change the view. When the slicer changes, the chart must update (UPDATE chart VIEW), not stay unchanged.

A — Data loaded from a saved CSV file is a fixed copy taken at one point in time, so it is stored data. It does not update by itself, so it is not live. The line should be SET dataType TO "stored".

B — Stored data is a copy saved at one point in time. Copying every second would make it live data. The line should copy the data once, at a set time, such as COPY data AT "9:00am".