I am working on a report that requires a multi-line chart (representing how a given value varies over time among different groups) They are displayed in a single chart sharing both axis. My problem is that at some stages, the data looks similar to this:
DAY: 1 2 3 4
GROUP A: 10 12 15 18
GROUP B: 11 12 15 20
Now, the lines joining days 2 and 3 will overlap with each other, so the one that is drawn later erases the previous line. I've thought of a few solutions, not all of them entirely convincing:
- Color mixing: let's say I draw the series for group A in red and the one for group B in yellow. I would draw the overlapping section in orange.
- Randomization: adding a small random value to each point, big enough to make the lines distinct, but small enough to keep the "fake data" as close to the original as possible.
- Layers: making the first line slightly thicker, so that when the second line is drawn on top, it doesn't completely disappear.
In my real problem, I sometimes have 3 or even 4 overlapping lines at some sections, and each line has about 20 points. I would like to know if there are other more interesting solutions (or at least, which of the ones I thought of you would recommend as a "best practice")
This is an example of one of those charts (in its pure form, without any correction)