Unemployment Data Graphing Application

Authored by Sashank Rao as part of a C# graphing experience. (Still a work in progress)

Project Overview

This project is a graphical user interface (GUI) application that visualizes unemployment data by state from 1976 to 2024. The application allows users to select specific states, customize axis scaling, and generate a graph using the OxyPlot library. The graph can be saved as an image file, and the application's settings (such as selected states and axis scales) are remembered between restarts.

Design Specifications

This project required a combination of new and past experiences, including:

• Data Formatting and Reading: The data was provided as an Excel file, which was converted into CSV format for ease of use. CSVHelper was used to parse and load the data into the application.

• GUI Elements:

  • A CheckedListBox was used to list all 50 states, along with LA County and New York City.
  • Numeric up and down boxes were provided for x axis ranges to allow users to view data for specific years (new).
  • Text input boxes were provided for vertical and horizontal scalers to allow users to customize the graph.

Key Features

Graphing

For graphing, I chose OxyPlot, which provided the versatility needed for this project. Users can:

• Select which states they want to view using the CheckedListBox.
• Adjust the horizontal (year) and vertical (unemployment %) scales using the text boxes. If no valid input is provided, the graph auto-scales to fit the data.
• Save the graph as a PNG file, with a legend for clarity.

Undo Functionality

• An Undo button allows users to revert changes made to the graph. The application saves the graph state using the GraphState struct and stores them in a stack.
• Users can undo up to the last 7 actions, and if the limit is exceeded, the program notifies the user.

Saving Settings for Restarts

To ensure that settings such as selected states and scales are remembered between application restarts, I implemented functionality using the Settings.settings file. This was a new experience for me, and involved creating custom methods for loading and saving settings (LoadSettings and SaveSettings), which are called during form load and close events.

Testing

I focused on ensuring that the GUI provided a smooth user experience without breaking. Key test areas included:

• Axes Scaling: The vertical scale is constrained to values greater than 0 and less than 6 for a visually balanced graph. The horizontal scale is set between 0 and 20. If the user inputs invalid scale values, the graph does not adjust, and no warning is issued—this would be a discussion point for an enterprise project.
• Auto-scaling: If no scaling values are provided, the graph auto-scales to fit all data.