The final version of the 6-column graphic
I was the architect and implementor of the entire software system responsible for generating and delivering the AP election maps graphics for print newspapers.
The primary elements of the system included:
- Server-side data collection and processing of AP election data feeds, including data modeling, aggregation and synchronization.
- Distributed workflow interfaces for editorial staff to monitor results, verify data, and publish maps in near-real-time.
- SVG-based templating software that reads SVG documents into a DOM, populates them with content, and writes CMYK PDFs.
- Tools to convert GIS data to tagged SVG geometry, including detail reduction operations.
- The server-side system needed to package and deliver the graphics files to AP distribution systems.
I also worked in an editorial capacity to define the content of these graphics with the AP Graphics staff:
- We handled data for all major races and some special elections.
- We created separate GIS projections for the US and every state.
- We created 56 templates for the system.
- Graphics included map coloration, graph and chart generation, and dynamic label placement.
On the night of the election we worked around the clock to deliver the election coverage:
- My software generated around 11,000 print-ready PDFs.
- Using the editorial interface, 409 were selected for transmission to AP members based on newsworthiness.
- Each complete cycle (raw data to 56 final PDFs) took 3.5 minutes.
- PDF creation was performed in parallel on an 3 Ghz 8-core machine with 16 GB of RAM.
- The data was fully archived and a complete data audit trail created.
- One Spanish-language template was populated with English labels instead of Spanish and had to be hand-edited before transmission.
- By late the following morning, network performance of the systems had degraded noticeably. The problem was solved by moving the prior night’s data offline.
This project’s template-based workflow is based on my SuperGraphics framework. This software allows SVG templates to be read into a DOM, modified, and output in a number of formats. SuperGraphics has advanced text handling features such as font and glyph metrics and word wrap with hyphenation.
Monitoring and verification is performed from the editorial front-end of the election graphics software
All 56 maps and graphics
California’s state results graphics
Florida’s state results graphics
Screen shot of the server component