Here's a simple
example that might have been used around the time
Gantt charts were
invented (if computers had also been available
to make the charts look this precise:)
Early
Gantt chart users showed progress using a simple
"fill in the bar" method to show how much of the
project was complete:
They
also might have shown the planned bar along side the
progress bar like this:
Another type of
chart which was used along with the Gantt chart was
the basic "Milestone chart". This type of chart
shows only important project events or milestones:
Milestone charts are very
popular today, especially for management reporting. A major
benefit is that it's easy to communicate a great deal of
information in a single presentation slide. This example
shows how the complete overall progress of two major
projects might be presented to upper management:
Combining
the gantt chart and the milestone chart was the next logical
step. This "Remodeling Project" uses bars to show the time
required for each phase of the remodeling project.
Important milestones are shown with a single diamond symbol:
