Comparison between MS Charts and ZedGraph?

Question

Question: Anybody has experience with ZedGraph / MS-Chart controls ?

I am thinking about which to use ?

Basically, I have a tendency to ZedGraph,
because I need .NET framework 2.0 while MS-Chart is 3.5 (and I don't know how well a 3.5 assembly works on 2.0)
and because I could use it privately, too (I use Linux privately).

But I don't know if MS-Charts offers more.
Does ZedGraph for example offer reasonable quality 3d piecharts ?
And reasonable color design, like gradient colors ?
And if it does, is it as simple (or nearly as simple) as MS-Chart controls ?
And does ZedGraph offer databinding, e.g. a datatable from a database ?

Sunbathe

Answer 1

I've tried some examples in my free time. With a bit of minor tweaking, ZedGraph's quality is just as good as MS/Dundas Chart controls.

Here's an example of a 3d piechart: http://www.codeproject.com/KB/web-image/3dpiechart.aspx

Zedgraph is a bit more user-unfriendy than MS/Dundas chart controls. However, Zedgraph is also more powerful and faster, while the rendering quality is the same. Plus Zedgraph is cross-platform, while MS-Chart controls is limited to windows (by license, not by technique).

So the way to go is definitely Zedgraph. A deeper reason can be found here: http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/MSWinWebChart/thread/1271d98f-f52e-424d-a0dc-8bc831a5f4b8

Sunbathe

Answer 2

I have used MSCharts since they went RTM and have been pleased with them for many different kinds of charts; however, I find them deficient when I want to generate a plot or a graph. For these, ZedGraph seems to offer a more appealing solution.

The MSChart Samples environment can give you a good idea of the capabilities of that library. You can compare the samples environment to the demos from the ZedGraph wiki to see they have a lot of overlapping capability. I've just found that this kind of chart is pretty difficult to create with MSChart.

Marjorie

Answer 3

I have used them to create complex dashboards, and they are very stable, well written pieces of code. However, you have to consider the fact that whichever you would be betting on, would actually be there for a long time.

Additionally, if you're using MSCharts, you would be able to use the same knowledge to build charts for web applications as well (on ASP.net)

However, if you are using them in a server ASP.net based environment, the only issue with MSCharts is that they are not dynamic charts i.e. they are rendered as images and returned from the server. They use image maps to support HyperLinks / Tooltips, and work pretty well.

Harrison

You can make them pretty dynamic using JavaScript reload on the fly. However, to be truly dynamic, it would need to be Flash or entirely JavaScript. But static will do, for the moment. – Sunbathe

Answer 4

I haven't used MSChart, but from my experience with ZedGraph, you can't make 3-d charts. ZedGraph also requires a bit of tweaking to make really sharp looking graphs (if you notice, most of their examples don't qualify for this title).

Stonefish

I have. I saw that 'round' piecharts (the example I saw) and vertical aligned fonts lacked anti-aliasing, which made it look really bad. However, this is why I ask, because I don't know whether this was a programmer fault or a zedgraph deficiency. – Sunbathe

Yeah, none of their examples seem to use anti-aliasing. Not sure why if you're trying to convince people to use your software? – Stonefish

A good question, after all, Zedgraph anti-aliasing works and looks fine. Probably these are old examples, that were never updated. – Sunbathe