Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

nbviewer.org VS Observable

Compare nbviewer.org VS Observable and see what are their differences

nbviewer.org logo nbviewer.org

Rackspace server host Jupyter Notebooks from your github repo

Observable logo Observable

Interactive code examples/posts
  • nbviewer.org Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-19
  • Observable Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-09

nbviewer.org features and specs

  • Simple Viewing
    nbviewer.org allows for easy rendering of Jupyter Notebook files directly in the browser without needing to run a Jupyter server locally.
  • Read-Only Access
    Notebooks are rendered in a read-only format, so users do not need to worry about accidental modifications while viewing.
  • No Installation Required
    Users don't need to install any software to view notebooks, which is beneficial for quick sharing with people who do not have Jupyter installed.
  • Supports Multiple File Sources
    Supports notebooks from various sources including URLs, GitHub repositories, and uploaded files.

Possible disadvantages of nbviewer.org

  • Lack of Interactivity
    Since nbviewer renders notebooks in a static, read-only mode, users cannot interact with the code or execute cells.
  • Dependency on External Hosting
    Requires access to hosted content, which may be unavailable if the source server is down or if there are network issues.
  • Security Concerns
    Hosting a notebook publicly via a URL or GitHub can expose sensitive data if not properly managed, as nbviewer does not provide authentication or access control.
  • No Offline Access
    Users need an internet connection to use nbviewer, which limits its utility in offline scenarios.

Observable features and specs

  • Collaborative Environment
    Observable allows multiple users to collaborate in real-time, making it easier for teams to work together on data visualizations and analyses.
  • Reactive Programming
    The platform supports reactive programming, where changes in data automatically trigger updates in the visualizations, enhancing interactivity and reducing the need for manual updates.
  • Built-in Data Visualization Libraries
    Observable integrates seamlessly with popular libraries like D3, Plotly, and Leaflet, providing powerful tools for creating complex and interactive data visualizations.
  • Notebook Interface
    The notebook interface is user-friendly and allows for easy documentation and sharing. Users can combine code, visualizations, and markdown text in a single document.
  • Extensive Resources and Community Support
    Observable has a rich set of tutorials, examples, and a strong community, making it easier for new users to learn and get help.
  • Customizability
    Users have the flexibility to customize their visualizations extensively, thanks to the open-ended nature of JavaScript and the supported libraries.

Possible disadvantages of Observable

  • Steeper Learning Curve for Beginners
    New users, especially those without a background in JavaScript, might find the platform challenging to learn compared to more specialized data visualization tools.
  • Performance Issues
    For very large datasets or highly complex visualizations, performance can become an issue, potentially leading to slow rendering times.
  • Dependency on Internet Connection
    Observable notebooks currently require an internet connection to run, which can be a limitation for users needing offline access.
  • Limited Integration with Other Tools
    While Observable is powerful, its integration with other enterprise tools and platforms is somewhat limited compared to more established data analysis tools.
  • Subscription Costs
    Access to some of Observable's more advanced features requires a paid subscription, which might be a barrier for individual users or small teams with limited budgets.

nbviewer.org videos

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Observable videos

Observable Overview

More videos:

  • Review - observablehq.com review observable hq data analysis
  • Review - Hands-on Data Visualization with Observable Plot

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to nbviewer.org and Observable)
Data Science And Machine Learning
Data Visualization
5 5%
95% 95
Data Science Notebooks
29 29%
71% 71
Data Dashboard
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare nbviewer.org and Observable

nbviewer.org Reviews

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Observable Reviews

Top 10 Grafana Alternatives in 2024
Observable is a Grafana alternative that enables users to visualize data via charts and dashboards using code.
Source: middleware.io
Embedded analytics in B2B SaaS: A comparison
A few options were disregarded from the start due to a hefty price tag, these were Looker, Tableau, Power BI, GoodData. A few options like Trevor.io, Preset, Observable were disregarded as they did not seem to fit our criteria (based on the evaluation matrix).
Source: medium.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Observable seems to be a lot more popular than nbviewer.org. While we know about 312 links to Observable, we've tracked only 13 mentions of nbviewer.org. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

nbviewer.org mentions (13)

  • Jupyter kernel for Logtalk
    Example notebooks are included in the repo and can be previewed using nbviewer:. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Is there a CodePen/OverLeaf equivalent for sharing and viewing Jupyter Notebooks/Labs
    Nbviewer (https://nbviewer.org/): very easy to use for smaller jupyter notebook that does not require heavy rendering. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Collaborative Jupyter Whiteboards
    Nbconvert renders everything exactly as it looks in your notebook app into a read-only HTML version and is what GitHub uses for notebooks. Interactive plots from Bokeh, Holoviews, etc can still work if you trust the JS, and since editing notebooks while showing them during a meeting usually doesn't go well, read-only is probably good enough (eager to hear feedback on this point though). The nice thing is that... Source: over 2 years ago
  • First data science project (visualization): What should I improve on?
    Just as a heads up, I used plotly to generate a lot of the charts, so you'll need to view it from an nbviewer like nbviewer.org. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Can someone please review my data visualisation notebook?
    I used a lot of plotly not knowing that Github wouldn't show it, so you'll need notebook viewer like nbviewer.org to see some of the charts. Source: about 3 years ago
View more

Observable mentions (312)

  • Apache ECharts
    "Observable is obnoxious if you want to add a D3 pie chart to your Vue application and have to untangle calls to D3’s API from reactive cell values, which look like ordinary JavaScript, but are not, and will cause compilation and runtime errors when copied." Yep - as I wrote: "If you want to just blindly copy and paste d3 code, you may have issues with the docs being hosted on observable." If instead you learn the... - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • Natural occurring molecule rivals Ozempic in weight loss, sidesteps side effects
    I'd imagine many nested named capturing groups may trip even the best automated system! I do like the solution though. I would've probably approached it differently, trying to first get the 'inverted' match (i.e. Not matching anything that isn't a currency like pattern) and refine from there. A bit like this one I did a while back, to parse garbled strings that may occur after OCR [0]. I imagine the approach does... - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Visualizing Data Is an Art – We Should Treat It Like One
    Was looking for some mention of Mike Bostock and his epic odyssey into this space. For those who aren't familiar https://observablehq.com/@mbostock. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • Ohm: A user-friendly parsing toolkit for JavaScript and TypeScript
    I experimented with an Ohm/CodeMirror bridge that would map an Ohm grammar to CodeMirror classes for marks and syntax highlighting. It might be an interesting starting point for you: https://observablehq.com/@ajbouh/editor. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • WebGL Fluid Simulation
    I have a fork of this that inverts the light model from additive to subtractive and suddenly its like ink in water https://observablehq.com/@tomlarkworthy/ink. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing nbviewer.org and Observable, you can also consider the following products

Jupyter - Project Jupyter exists to develop open-source software, open-standards, and services for interactive computing across dozens of programming languages. Ready to get started? Try it in your browser Install the Notebook.

D3.js - D3.js is a JavaScript library for manipulating documents based on data. D3 helps you bring data to life using HTML, SVG, and CSS.

Livebook - Automate code & data workflows with interactive Elixir notebooks

RunKit - RunKit notebooks are interactive javascript playgrounds connected to a complete node environment right in your browser. Every npm module pre-installed.

SQL Notebook - SQL Notebook is a free Windows app for exploring and manipulating tabular data.

Vega-Lite - High-level grammar of interactive graphics