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Event Log Anatomy

Run Event Log Anatomy Fullscreen

You can include this MicroSim on your website using the following iframe:

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<iframe src="https://dmccreary.github.io/organizational-analytics/sims/event-log-anatomy/main.html" height="487px" width="100%" scrolling="no"></iframe>

Description

This infographic MicroSim visualizes the anatomy of a single event log record — the fundamental building block of employee event streams. The diagram displays the six required fields (Event ID, Timestamp, Actor, Action, Target, Source System) in indigo with solid borders, and five optional metadata fields in amber with dashed borders.

How to use:

  • Hover over any field to see a tooltip explaining its purpose and an example value
  • Toggle between "Email Event" and "Chat Event" using the buttons to see how the same structure applies to different source systems

Lesson Plan

Learning Objective: Students will describe the core fields of an event log entry and explain why each is necessary for organizational analytics.

Bloom's Level: Understand (L2)

Activities:

  1. Have students hover over each required field and write a one-sentence explanation of why that field is essential
  2. Toggle between Email and Chat examples — identify which fields change and which stay the same
  3. Discuss: What would happen if the Timestamp field were missing? What about the Actor field?

Assessment: Ask students to design an event log entry for a new source system (e.g., a video conferencing platform) with all required and at least three optional fields.

References

  1. Event Log - Wikipedia - Overview of event logging concepts and their role in system monitoring
  2. ISO 8601 - Wikipedia - The international standard for date and time representation used in timestamps