Right off the bat in this chapter, Tufte makes his points of view on the use of color very clear. He interestingly states that the main focus in using color to convey information is to avoid mishap, rather than to strive for great designs and color combinations. I was wondering if this was due to his apparent bias against graphics (I read the other reading first), or the increased probability that certain designs will not be good due to the immense number of colors. I assume it’s the latter, based on his following appraisal of color in the Swiss Map.

He later reveals how he subscribes to Imhof’s CRP, a guideline on how to properly use color to convey information. Reading through that, I really like what he has to say about certain color combinations - these things are true, I had just never given them any thought past what looks good and what doesn’t. I also think the 1+1=3 analogy perfectly describes the effect of incorrectly combined colors, and the map example right after this was in fact an eyesore. I also thought his wording was hilarious.

Having read the other one first, this is a very interesting read. I’m beginning to sympathize with Tufte’s views. In the other reading, his ideas were not articulated as well they were in this one - probably because the author was for the other side of the debate. However, the quotes they did use were more blanket statements that could be seen as discouraging the very ideas he is supporting here.

I really like what I was reading about the rules of color combinations, particularly the usage of primary colors and black - I feel like I will definitely use these colors in future personal designs.

Tufte also makes the point that a neat fusion of color coding and precise and concise text can be an optimal option in the presentation of data in the context of proofs. I think this is very true, the example shown proved that, and it is also used in diagram or map legends in the same way, also incorporating smaller shapes.

I think his question about using the multidimensionality of colors (3) to communicate data about multiple dimensions was extremely insightful and very interesting. I also think his question about how far that can go in terms of what we as humans can understand is equally as important and interesting, if not more.

The suggestion about using the natural colors in nature was also very interesting to me, and the reasoning behind it (familiarity, natural blending) makes perfect sense - the colors in nature play a HUGE part in information gathering of our surroundings, and it’s an interesting form of biomimicry.

Tufte says that color has immense power as a natural quantifier, just based on how many different values and combinations it can take. However, it’s not as great as it seems, as there are numerous constraints, as most of this chapter points out, to be followed when considering color choice in the communication of information.