Company
Date Published
Author
Daniel Berman
Word count
1024
Language
English
Hacker News points
None

Summary

Kibana's Timelion, introduced by Elastic, enhances Kibana's capabilities in time series analysis and visualization, bridging some gaps with Grafana. Timelion allows users to combine data sources in a single visualization, perform advanced mathematical calculations, and visualize results using a straightforward syntax. With around fifty functions available—some experimental—users can calculate metrics like derivatives and moving averages. The tool requires Kibana 5.0 or later, and for older versions, a specific installation process is necessary. Timelion expressions begin with a data source function, and users can perform calculations such as memory usage analysis, visualize trends, and compare current data with past trends using offsets. Data formatting and visualization options are available, and Timelion can integrate external data sources via APIs. While still developing, Timelion provides powerful capabilities to complement Kibana's traditional visualizations, with the potential for integration into platforms like Logz.io. Users are encouraged to explore the built-in Timelion tutorial to overcome the learning curve associated with its use.