As we’ve seen over the years, Google Earth is an amazing tool for data visualization. We’ve shown you tools for visualizing census data, CO2 emissions and a variety of other items.
DataAppeal is a new data visualization company that is doing some neat stuff. They allow you to upload XLS files, which are then converted into 3D models and/or animations. The resulting models are quite well-done, as seen here:
Because they’re a young company and are still building our their product, it’s entirely free to use right now. That will likely change in the future, but hopefully they’ll continue to provide a free option.
Their tool is already being used in mainstream publications, such as this article in the Globe and Mail a few months back.
Nadia and her team have put together a solid tool, and it’ll be fun to see how it develops in the coming years. If you build any interesting items with this system, leave a comment below and show it off to everyone.
About Mickey Mellen
Mickey has been using Google Earth since it was released in 2005, and has created a variety of geo-related sites including Google Earth Hacks. He runs a web design firm in Marietta, GA, where he lives with his wife and two kids.
I enjoyed the freudian slip in this article.