Before I begin, readers (and especially family and friends) should not derive any subtle conclusions from the topic! Believe me, there is nothing to announce. Who has time?
I have always been fascinated by data, and especially different methods to represent data. I can't tell you how many times I have revised spreadsheets and charts just to make the information more understandable. I'm also on the lookout for innovative ways to display complex and sometimes overwhelming amounts of data.
Several years ago I came across the Baby Name Voyager. This unique java-based website taps into a monstrous name database and lets you view the popularity of various names throughout the last several decades. But the most intriguing aspect of the site is how the data is displayed.
You start with what looks like a jumble of stacked lines.
You then start to enter letters at the cursor. For example, entering "K" constrains the data to all names beginning with that letter.
As additional letters are typed the data is constrained further and dynamically updated. Finally we get to the name we want.
Which is when we often realize that our names peaked right around when we were born. I wonder why that is...! Rolling over the various components of the chart will provide additional information like overall rank and trending.
Now... imagine how this type of data display could be used in business. Take sales or other financial data. The aggregate could be for the entire business, then you could dynamically drill down by division, value stream, work cell, and part. Has anyone seen such a system?