Question from customer:
There are two ways to create charts in Workshop: with the canned widgets and with a Vega config. At a glance, it looks possible that the canned widgets also generating Vega, but just don’t expose that configuration in the UI. So, two questions:
The Vega chart widget is a completely separate charting implementation built on top of https://vega.github.io/vega/
The XY chart widget, pie chart widget, and other chart widgets offered in Workshop are not built on top of Vega. The JSON config is not explicitly documented for any Workshop widgets, this is an internal structure that changes and migrates over time. It is exposed through the Workshop UI for debugging and advanced editing purposes but is not intended to be a primary first class method of configuration or for human users to understand the widget configuration.
Since Vega is an open source spec, we have seen success in having LLMs provide vega config based on high level descriptions.
If by the “canned widget” you are referring to Chart: XY in the widget picker, this widget is not backed by Vega. It is built on top of an internal charting library.
There is not any documentation on the JSON configuration in the metadata tab because, unlike Vega, we do not recommend changes to that JSON directly to modify your chart. Every possible modification can be done through the point-and-click UI.
Generally we recommend using Vega if your chart is complex enough that it cannot be configured in the “canned” XY Chart. Vega is more powerful, given that we expose the entirety of the Vega spec through the inline JSON editor, trading off the point-and-click convenience of the XY Chart widget. See more information about the Vega chart in these docs.