I need to create an ASP.NET site which can display graphs, charts, statistics for a dashboard type application pulling data from a backend data source.
I am trying to locate either:
(a) open-source modules that I can use / build up on
(b) tutorials which teach the above
(c) existing modules (preferably low-cost) that work well.
I did the basic googling, but found only VERY expensive paid solutions (eg: http://www.dundas.com/ $700+, http://www.devexpress.com/ $300 * n).
ASP.NET is shipped with everything you need to build the application without having to purchase additional components.
(a) there are plenty of open source projects around charting. http://www.codeproject.com/KB/graphics/zedgraph.aspx
(b) there are plenty ASP.NET tutorials on the next including ones related to charting. Google is your friend here!
(c) see point a (if I understand well what you are asking for.
And the last but not least, don't hesitate to ask your questions on stackoverflow.com !
For simple visualizations, you should take a look at the EXTJS library. It's a free javascript framework. http://www.sencha.com/products/js/
There are several good examples of dynamic charts there and I've found the API is pretty easy to use.
A non-free library that you can always go to is Adobe's Flex platform. That will give you more of a sexy front end. A basic license for Flash Builder (which comes with the Flex library) is only $249, so that may be within your budget.
If you can publish your data as JSON objects and have the results displayed in a browser, Protovis is a free JS library that's pretty nice to work with: