Rating: 
Summary: Muddled artsy fartsy pretentious mess
Review: This book is beautifully produced but it lacks any "how-to" information for designers. The author totally misses his own presumed mission for the book. For example, he rips apart a graph used in a popular magazine as not effectice, etc yet his own book is a mess and a how-to for not designing and conveying informtion. Case in point: All of his diagrams or illustrations are never labeled. So you just have illos all over and no reference to the text. YOU have to figure it out yourself. Pretentious artsy rubbish. If you want to waste your money on something "interesting," then blow your wad on this book. But if you want clear, concise, relevant design info or even about the history of design, forget this book. I have it and I don't read it. Like I said, it's pretentious artsy nonsense at its worst. The only thing interesting about the book is its sparse and obscure layout and interesting historical examples of information design which are excellent but I can't help but feel that there are tons of examples like that out there and most likely an hopefully in better books.
Rating: 
Summary: Damn good information-design theory (what there is of it)
Review: I was greatly pleased with the book except that it was a little thin. I'm sure I'll be waving it with a battle cry during production planning meetings, but it just wasn't full enough to leave me feeling fully satisfied.
Rating:
Summary: Tufte's excellent third book starts showing his limitations
Review: Tufte's first two books concentrated on the print medium, where he is comfortable and knowledgable. This book steps into the computer graphics domain, where his knowledge is only partially applicable. He fully recognizes the problems related to the limited pixel resolution of the computer screen, but he doesn't know what to do about it. In his example screens for the Museum kiosk, his vision is clear but impractical. He knows what should be done if more screen resolution were available, but fails to show how his vision can be embodied in the computer screens we really have available. I hope Tufte will rethink the subject and figure out how to properly apply the high temporal resolution of the screen to make up for its low spatial resolution.
Rating:
Summary: Should be legally required reading for Web Designers
Review: and anyone else who creates interfaces, graphs or any other utilitarian visuals. The oh-so-hip designers working in the "grunge" or faux 3D styles should be beaten with this book until they promise to stop. Tufte does for graphics what Jan Tschichold does for type
Rating:
Summary: Perfectness
Review: One the best I've ever seen. Just buy and read it, you won't regret
Rating:
Summary: WOW! What a good Deal!
Review: This book will change the way you look at any graphic information, your's or someone else's. The author hocked his house so he could print it HIS WAY, and the result justifies his faith in himself. At this price, I would buy two, if I didn't have two already
Rating:
Summary: Chartjunk
Review: No one should be permitted to touch the chart or graph button in a spreadsheet program without first reading the VDQI chapter on Chartjunk. Anyone who creates a 3d chart after reading the chapter needs to read it again
Rating:
Summary: Guidance for good design and critical thinking
Review: If you need to exalt form over content, this is not the book for you. But if you want to communicate numbers clearly and effectively, here is a trove of ideas. Tufte shows dozens of examples of both terrific and horrible design, and gives sensible criteria for assessing our numerical tables, charts, and diagrams. I find myself instinctively applying his rules whenever I look at a newspaper graph, and shuddering whenever a spreadsheet automatically generates his despised "chartjunk."
Rating:
Summary: The essential guide to avoiding graphical lies
Review: This book, and the two companion volumes ("Envisioning Information" and "Visual Explanations") are must-haves for anyone who is in the business or producing or interpreting
statistical information.
Tufte starts with a simple proposition: graphs and graphics
that represent statistical data should tell the truth. It's
amazing how often designers of such graphics miss this basic
point. Tufte clearly and entertainingly elucidates the most
common "graphical lies" and how to avoid them.
Read this
book and you'll never look at a newspaper or presentation
graphics the same way again -- you'll be left wondering if
the author *intended* to lie about what the data were saying, or if he/she just didn't know any better.
Another reviewer claimed that this book talks about how to make graphics accurate, not beautiful. He's right in some sense, but who cares? There are a million books on how to make "pretty" graphical displays, but precious few on how to make useful ones. These books are they.
Rating:
Summary: great tips for effective presentations
Review: i have bought copies to give away to friends. a great lesson in presentation of information
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