Protovis aims to bridge the gap between computer scientists and visual artists.

Now researchers at Stanford are offering a suite of tools called Protovis that streamline the process of building data visualizations. The tools still require knowledge of programming but are designed to be easier to implement for someone without programming experience, says creator Jeff Heer, a professor of computer science at Stanford.

Instead of having to focus on how to structure code for the program, Protovis lets a user create simple building blocks, such as the colors and shapes needed for the visualization, then piece the blocks together to define the complete picture. "With Protovis, you think first and foremost in visual marks on a page," Heer says. "It is our belief that this would make visualizations easier to learn and easier to modify."