Recently I had the pleasure of working with the HighCharts library for an advanced data visualization project. I was doing a small contract for a company down in Santa Monica that wanted to redo their internal reporting system to HTML5, ensuring cross-platform compatibility and a more responsive user experience.

They were already using FusionCharts, which does have iOS and HTML5 support. But apparently paying a thousand bucks just for a license and then paying another nine thousand to a developer didn't make any sense to them. So they skipped over FusionCharts and asked me to install HighCharts and customize their Zend Framework powered reporting system.

The API fed the FusionCharts with data, and that had to be modified as well to support the new JSON structure required by HighCharts. Ultimately I had very little PHP to write. Simply extending the ViewHelper class to check for iOS devices and then fire off the HighCharts JavaScript was sufficient.

There was only a little finessing I had to do with the old data format. But thanks to jQuery's sizzle selector, it was so easy! I made quick work of the project, and did it while I was working another job simultaneously. Under budget, ahead of schedule.

Why HighCharts Over FusionCharts?

When evaluating chart libraries for HTML5 reporting, HighCharts stands out for its lightweight footprint and native SVG rendering capabilities. Unlike legacy Flash-based systems or expensive enterprise options like FusionCharts, HighCharts offers robust documentation and seamless integration with modern web stacks, including Zend Framework and jQuery.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)