AI-Assisted Plotting

Under construction.

The AI-Assisted Plotting page lets you create custom visualizations by describing what you want to see in plain English. The built-in Plotbot (powered by ChatGPT) generates Python code to create your plot, and you can iteratively refine your request through chat.

What You Can Do

  • Select a data table from your corpus (target, reference, keywords, or grouped)
  • Preview and optionally pivot or normalize your data
  • Choose a plotting library (Plotly Express, Matplotlib, or Seaborn)
  • Describe the plot you want in natural language
  • View, download, and iteratively refine your plot through chat
  • Download plots as PNG images

How It Works

Important

Plotbot uses AI to turn your text prompts into Python code for plotting. Each time you send a message, Plotbot generates or updates the code and shows you the result. You can keep chatting to refine your plot until it looks just right.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Select Data

  • Use the Select corpus radio buttons to choose which data to plot (Target, Reference, Keywords, or Grouped).
  • Use the Select data to plot dropdown to pick a specific table (e.g., tag frequencies, document-term matrix).
  • Preview your data in the main panel. You can toggle Pivot Table or Make Percent to adjust the format.

2. Choose a Plotting Library

  • Select from plotly.express, matplotlib, or seaborn.
  • The library you choose will affect the style and features of your plot.

3. Describe Your Plot

  • Use the chat input at the bottom to describe the plot you want. For example:
    • “Show a bar chart of the top 10 tags.”
    • “Plot a scatterplot of noun vs. verb frequency, colored by group.”
    • “Make a boxplot comparing tag frequencies across categories.”
  • Plotbot will generate the code, run it, and display the plot.

4. Refine Your Plot

  • If you want to change something, just describe the update in the chat. For example:
    • “Change the color scheme.”
    • “Add axis labels.”
    • “Show only documents from group A.”
  • Plotbot remembers your previous messages and builds on them, so you can iterate until you’re satisfied.
Tip

Tip:
Be as specific as you like! You can ask for titles, legends, color changes, or even new plot types. If Plotbot doesn’t get it right, clarify your request or start over.

5. Download Your Plot

  • Each plot is shown as a static PNG image.
  • Use the Download PNG link below the plot to save it.

6. Manage API Keys and Quotas

  • If you’re using the community API, you have a daily quota of queries. The sidebar shows your usage and remaining queries.
  • If you run out, or want to use your own OpenAI API key, enter it in the sidebar.

7. Clear Chat History

  • Use the Clear chat history button in the sidebar to start a new conversation with Plotbot. This can help if your thread gets off track.

Tips for New Users

Tip
  • Start simple: “Show a bar chart of tag frequencies.”
  • Refine step by step: “Now color by group,” “Add a title,” etc.
  • If you get an error or the plot isn’t what you expected, rephrase your request or clear the chat history.
  • Download your plots to include in reports or presentations.

If You Get Stuck

Important
  • Make sure you have loaded and processed a target corpus.
  • If you see warnings about data, check your table selection.
  • If you run out of community API queries, enter your own OpenAI API key.
  • Use the reset button on the Manage Corpus Data page if you need to start over.