Last Updated: 3/4/97
Class NFBoxchartApp

Class NFBoxchartApp

public class NFBoxchartApp extends Applet

This class supports the generation of Box Charts that are defined by <applet> parameters in an HTML file. A box chart (sometimes referred to as a "Box And Whiskers" chart) displays the following data:

 	minimum data point
 	maximum data point
 	25th Percentile
 	50th Percentile
 	75th Percentile
 	Any outliers

NOTE: This object determines outliers based on the following evaluation:

 	IF    data point > 75th pctl + (1.5 * interquartile range)
 	OR    data point < 25th pctl - (1.5 * interquartile range)
 	THEN  data point is considered an outlier.

The following standard parameters are supported by this chart:

 	Background

 	Header
 	HeaderBox
 	Footer
 	FooterBox
 	LeftTitle
 	LeftTitleBox
 	RightTitle
 	RightTitleBox

 	DwellLabel
 	DwellBox
 	ActiveClicks
 	ActiveLabels[1-50]

 	Legend
 	LegendBox
 	LegendItems

 	TopAxis
 	LeftAxis
 	RightAxis
 	BottomAxis

 	Grid
 	GridLine
 	GridAxis

 	ColorTable

 	NoteSets
 	NoteSets[1-20]
 	NoteArrow
 	NoteAxis
 	NoteLabel
 	NoteBox

The following parameters are specifically supported by this chart:

DataType = type;

 	Defines the type of data in the data sets.  The following
 	types are supported:

 	RAW - Data is raw statistical data.  Percentiles and
 	      other ancilliary information will be computed
 	      based on these values.

 	SUMMARY - Percentile information has already been 
 	      computed.  The data is formatted as follows:
 			v1 = 25th Percentile
 			v2 = 50th Percentile (median)
 			v3 = 75th Percentile 
 			v4 = smallest (non outlier)
 			v5 = biggest (non outlier)
 			v6 ... = outliers (if any)

DataSets = (Name1, Color1), (Name2, Color2)...;

 	Defines a list of datasets with the given name and color.

 	If a color is not specified in the vector, then the 
 	previously specified color will be used. If the color is
 	specified as "null", then a default color will be chosen
 	from the color table. (See the ColorTable parameter.)

DataAxis = (XAxis1, YAxis1), (XAxis2, YAxis2), ...;

 	The XAxis and YAxis attributes define the specific axis
 	to be used when mapping the X and Y values respectively
 	for each data set defined. The XAxis attribute may be 
 	set to BOTTOM or TOP, while the YAxis may be set to LEFT
 	or RIGHT.

DataSet[1-50] = v1, v2, v3, v4, ...;

 	Defines a list of raw or summary values (see DataType above).

MedianColor = color;

 	Defines the color to be used when drawing the median.  if not
 	defined, the default color is white.

OutlierColor = color;

 	Defines the color to be used when drawing outliers.  If not
 	defined, it defaults to the same color as the data set.

BoxHeight = height;

 	Defines the height (in pixels) for each box displayed.
 	If the value is 0, then a default height will be 
 	selected based on the size of the display and the number
 	of data sets being displayed.  The default size will 
 	also be used if the specified height is taller than the 
 	amount of space that is physically available to a given 
 	box.

The following HTML segment defines an Box chart containing three sets of data points, with the second connected by dotted lines.

 	<applet code=NFBoxchartApp.class width=400 height=200>
 		<param	name=NFParamScript	value = '

 	Background   = (lightGray, NONE, 4);

 	Header	     = ("Box Chart Demo", black, "TimesRoman", 18);
 	HeaderBox    = (white, SHADOW, 5);

 	BottomTics   = ("ON", blue, "TimesRoman", 14);

 	Legend	     = ("Legend", black, "TimesRoman", 12);
 	LegendBox    = (lightGray, SHADOW, 5);

 	DwellLabel   = ("", black, "TimesRoman", 20);
 	DwellBox     = (cyan, SHADOW, 5);

 	MedianColor  = white;
 	OutlierColor = white;

 	DataType     = RAW;

 	DataSets = ("Set #1", darkCyan),
 		   ("Set #2", darkGreen),
 		   ("Set #3", darkYellow);

 	DataSet1 = 67, 45, 18, 82, 45, 54, 61, 55, 63, 47, 21, 31;
 	DataSet2 = 32, 45, 5, 82, 45, 54, 61, 55, 63, 47, 21, 31;
 	DataSet3 = 17, 22, 78, 34, 78, 56, 76, 98, 76, 77, 84, 82;

 	'>
 	</applet>

Instance Variables

Type Name Description Default
public NFBoxchart Underlying box chart object boxchart