Online Tech Reports

Freire, M., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Golbeck, J. (September 2009)
ManyNets: An Interface for Multiple Network Analysis and Visualization
HCIL-2009-30

Traditional network analysis tools support analysts in studying a single network. ManyNets offers these analysts a powerful new approach that enables them to work on multiple networks simultaneously. Several thousand networks can be presented as rows in a tabular visualization, and then inspected, sorted and filtered according to their attributes. The networks to be displayed can be obtained by subdivision of larger networks. Examples of meaningful subdivisions used by analysts include ego networks, community extraction, and time-based slices. Cell visualizations and interactive column overviews allow analysts to assess the distribution of attributes within particular sets of networks. Details, such as traditional node-link diagrams, are available on demand. We describe a case study analyzing a social network geared towards film recommendations by means of decomposition. A small usability study provides feedback on the use of the interface on a set of tasks issued from the case study.

Vuillemot, R., Clement, T., Plaisant, C., Kumar, A. (April 2009)
What’s Being Said Near "Martha"? Exploring Name Entities in Literary Text Collections
Is to appear in Proceedings of IEEE VAST 2009.
HCIL-2009-12

A common task in literary analysis is to study characters in a novel or collection. When dealing with large documents or collections automatic entity extraction, text analysis and effective user interfaces might facilitate the exploration of the topics discussed or the vocabulary used in the neighborhood of the characters. Using our interface, called POSvis, the scholar uses word clouds and self-organizing graphs to review the vocabulary in the vicinity of one or more entities, to filter by part of speech, and to explore the network of other characters in that vicinity. Visualizations show word usages within an analysis window (i.e. a book chapter), which can be compared with a reference window (i.e. the whole book). We describe the interface and report on an early case study with a humanities scholar.

Wang, T., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Spring, N., Roseman, D., Marchand, G., Mukherjee, V., Smith, M. (April 2009)
Temporal Summaries: Supporting Temporal Categorical Searching, Aggregation and Comparison
To appear in Proceedings of IEEE Infovis 2009.
HCIL-2009-09

When analyzing thousands of event histories, analysts often want to see the events as an aggregate to detect insights and generate new hypotheses about the data. An analysis tool must emphasize both the prevalence and the temporal ordering of these events. Additionally, the analysis tool must also support flexible comparisons to allow analysts to gather visual evidence. In a previsous work, we introduced align, rank, and filter (ARF) to accentuate temporal ordering. In this paper, we present temporal summaries, an interactive visualization technique that highlights the prevalence of event occurrences. Temporal summaries dynamically aggregate events in multiple granularities (year, month, week, day, hour, etc.) for the purpose of spotting trends over time and comparing several groups of records. They provide affordances for analysts to perform temporal range filters. We demonstrate the applicability of this approach in two extensive case studies with analysts who applied temporal summaries to search, filter, and look for patterns in electronic health records and academic records.

Clement, T., Plaisant, C., Vuillemot, R. (November 2008)
The Story of One: Humanity scholarship with visualization and text analysis
to appear in Proc. of the Digital Humanities Conference (DH 2009)
HCIL-2008-33

Most critiques of The Making of Americas (Paris 1925) by Gertrude Stein contend that the text deconstructs the role narrative plays in determining identity by using indeterminacy to challenge readerly subjectivity. The current perception of Making as a postmodern text relies on the notion that there is a tension created by frustrated expectations that result from the text’s progressive disbandment of story and plot as the narrative unweaves into seemingly chaotic, meaningless rounds of repetitive words and phrases. Yet, a new perspective that is facilitated by digital tools and based on the highly structured nature of the text suggests that these instabilities can be resolved by the same seemingly nonsensical, non-narrative structures. Seeing the manner in which the structure of the text makes meaning in conversation with narrative alleviates perceived instabilities in the discourse. The discourse about identity formation is engaged—not dissolved in indeterminacy—to the extent that the reader can read the composition.

Plaisant, C., Lam, S., Shneiderman, B., Smith, M., Roseman, D., Marchand, G., Gillam, M., Feied, C., Handler, J., Rappaport, H. (May 2008)
Searching Electronic Health Records for Temporal Patterns in Patient Histories: A Case Study with Microsoft Amalga
AMIA Annual Symposium Proceedings (2008) 601-605.
HCIL-2008-13

As electronic health records (EHR) become more widespread, they enable clinicians and researchers to pose complex queries that can benefit immediate patient care and deepen understanding of medical treatment and outcomes. However, current query tools make complex temporal queries difficult to pose, and physicians have to rely on computer professionals to specify the queries for them. This paper describes our efforts to develop a novel query tool implemented in a large operational system at the Washington Hospital Center (Microsoft Amalga, formerly known as Azyxxi). We describe our design of the interface to specify temporal patterns and the visual presentation of results, then summarize the feedback gathered during early testing with physicians. The use case described in the paper focuses on adverse reactions following radiology studies using contrast.

Wang, T., Plaisant, C., Quinn, A., Stanchak, R., Shneiderman, B., Murphy, S. (January 2008)
Aligning Temporal Data by Sentinel Events: Discovering Patterns in Electronic Health Records
Proc. of ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (2008) 457-466
HCIL-2007-28

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and other temporal databases contain hidden patterns that reveal important cause-and-effect phenomena. Finding these patterns is a challenge when using traditional query languages and tabular displays. We present an interactive visual tool that complements query formulation by providing operations to align, rank and filter the results, and to visualize estimates of the intervals of validity of the data. Display of patient histories aligned on sentinel events (such as a first heart attack) enables users to spot precursor, co-occurring, and aftereffect events. A controlled study demonstrates the benefits of providing alignment (with a 61% speed improvement for complex tasks). A qualitative study and interviews with medical professionals demonstrates that the interface can be learned quickly and seems to address their needs.

Bederson, B., Clamage, A., Plaisant, C. (January 2008)
Enhancing In-Car Navigation Systems with Personal Experience
Proceedings of the Transportation Research Board 87^th annual meeting, The National Academies, Washington, DC (2008) 1-11[ Published Version] Also Journal of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, 2064 (2008) 33-42
HCIL-2007-11

Computers are extremely powerful for data processing, but less adept at handling problems that involve subjective reasoning. People, on the other hand, are very good at these kinds of problems. We present a framework for adding subjective human experience to in-car navigation systems. People often rely on their own experience when planning trips, choosing the route that seemed fastest in the past, the one that was the prettiest, or the one recommended by a friend. This led us to develop a set of methods to help people record their personal driving history, add rich annotations, and share their data with friends and family, or even the broader community. Users can then learn from their own data, or harness the multiplicity of individual experiences to enjoy new routes. This approach can be used in conjunction with traditional in-car navigation systems.

Buono, P., Plaisant, C., Simeone, A., Aris, A., Shneiderman, B., Shmueli, G., Jank, W. (April 2007)
Similarity-Based Forecasting with Simultaneous Previews: A River Plot Interface for Time Series Forecasting
Similarity-Based Forecasting with Simultaneous Previews: A River Plot Interface for Time Series Forecasting,Proc. of the 11th International Conference Information Visualization (IV '07), 2007, 191-196
HCIL-2007-05

Time-series forecasting has a large number of applications. Users with a partial time series for auctions, new stock offerings, or industrial processes desire estimates of the future behavior. We present a data driven forecasting method and interface called Similarity-Based Forecasting (SBF). A pattern matching search in a dataset of historical time series produces a subset of curves similar to the partial time series. The forecast is displayed graphically as a river plot showing statistical information about the SBF subset. A forecasting preview interface allows users to interactively explore alternative pattern matching parameters and see multiple forecasts simultaneously. User testing with 8 users demonstrated advantages and led to improvements.

Lee, B., Plaisant, C., Parr, C., Fekete, J., Henry, N. (May 2006)
Task Taxonomy for Graph Visualization
Proceedings of BELIV '06, pp.81-85.
HCIL-2006-13

Our goal is to define a list of tasks for graph visualization that has enough detail and specificity to be useful to designers who want to improve their system and to evaluators who want to compare graph visualization systems. In this paper, we suggest a list of tasks we believe are commonly encountered while analyzing graph data. We define graph specific objects and demonstrate how all complex tasks could be seen as a series of low-level tasks performed on those objects. We believe that our taxonomy, associated with benchmark datasets and specific tasks, would help evaluators generalize results collected through a series of controlled experiments.

Kang, H., Plaisant, C., Lee, B., Bederson, B. (May 2006)
NetLens: Iterative Exploration of Content-Actor Network Data
Proceedings of IEEE Symposium on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST 2006), 91 - 98.
HCIL-2006-10

Networks have remained a challenge for information retrieval and visualization because of the rich set of tasks that users want to accomplish. This paper offers an abstract Content-Actor network data model, a classification of tasks, and a tool to support them. The NetLens interface was designed around the abstract Content-Actor network data model to allow users to pose a series of elementary queries and iteratively refine visual overviews and sorted lists. This enables the support of complex queries that are traditionally hard to specify. NetLens is general and scalable in that it applies to any dataset that can be represented with our abstract data model. This paper describes NetLens applying a subset of the ACM Digital Library consisting of about 4,000 papers from the CHI conference written by about 6,000 authors. In addition, we are now working on a collection of half a million emails, and a legal cases dataset.

Plaisant, C., Rose, J., Yu, B., Auvil, L., Kirschenbaum, M., Smith, M., Clement, T., Lord, G. (January 2006)
Exploring Erotics in Emily Dickinson's Correspondence with Text Mining and Visual Interfaces
Proceedings of the 6th ACM/IEEE Joint Conference on Digital Libraries, JCDL 06, 141-150 (nominated for Best Paper award)
HCIL-2006-01

This paper describes a system to support humanities scholars in their interpretation of literary work. It presents a user interface and web architecture that integrates text mining, a graphical user interface and visualization, while attempting to remain easy to use by non specialists. Users can interactively read and rate documents found in a digital libraries collection, prepare training sets, review results of classification algorithms and explore possible indicators and explanations. Initial evaluation steps suggest that there is a rationale for “provocational” text mining in literary interpretation.

Zhao, H., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (October 2005)
A Framework for Auditory Data Exploration and Evaluation with Geo-referenced Data Sonification
This report was updated and improved by TR HCIL-2006-22
HCIL-2005-28

We first describe an Action-by-Design-Component (ADC) framework to guide auditory interface designs for exploratory data analysis. Applying the framework to the interactive sonification of geo-referenced data, we systematically explored and evaluated its design space. A data exploration tool, iSonic, was implemented for users with vision impairment. In depth case studies with 7 blind users showed that iSonic enabled them to find facts and discover data trends of geo-referenced data, even in unfamiliar geographical contexts. Analysis of user task behaviors and usage patterns confirmed that the framework has captured auditory information seeking actions and components that were naturally adopted by subjects to accomplish geo-referenced data exploration tasks. The results provide evidence for us to extend the framework, and guidance for designers of unified auditory workspaces for general exploratory data analysis.

Zhao, H., Plaisant, C. (May 2005)
InterSon: Interactive Sonification for Geo-referenced Data Exploration for the Vision Impaired
HCIL-2005-13, CS-TR-4751, UMIACS-TR-2005-54

Abstract. InterSon is an interactive sonification tool that allows vision im-paired users to explore complex geo-referenced statistical data for fact finding, problem solving and decision making. Examples include maps of population density, crime rates or housing prices. The integrated use of sounds and speech allows users to hear the overall distribution of values on maps and to explore the map to get more details. Users can use the standard computer keyboard, or take advantage of special devices such as a touchpad when they are available. Synchronized auditory and visual displays allow the use of residual vision and facilitate collaboration with sighted colleagues. The prototype was developed at the University of XXXX and is being evaluated with vision impaired users at the University of XXXX.

Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (February 2005)
Show Me! Guidelines for Producing Recorded Demonstrations
Proceedings of 2005 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing, (VL/HCC'05), 171 - 178.
HCIL-2005-02, CS-TR-4712, UMIACS-TR-2005-20, ISR-TR-2005-72

Although recorded demonstrations (screen capture animations with narration) have become a popular form of instruction for user interfaces, little work has been done to describe guidelines for their design. Based on our experience in several projects, we offer a starting set of guidelines for the design of recorded demonstrations. Technical guidelines encourage users to keep file sizes small, strive for universal usability, and ensure user control etc. and provide tips to achieve those goals. Content guidelines include: create short demonstrations that focus on tasks, highlight each step with auditory and visual cues, synchronize narration and animation carefully, and create demonstrations with a clear beginning, middle, and end.

Plaisant, C. (January 2005)
Information Visualization and the Challenge of Universal Access
In Exploring Geovisualization (Eds, J. Dykes, A. MacEachren and M.J. Kraak), Oxford: Elsevier (2005) 53-82.
HCIL-2004-36, CS-TR-4717, UMIACS-TR-2005-25

Information Visualization aims to provide compact graphical presentations and user interfaces for interactively manipulating large numbers of items. We present a simple “data by tasks taxonomy” then discuss the challenges of providing universal usability, with example applications using geo-referenced data. Information Visualization has been shown to be a powerful visual thinking or decision tool but it is becoming important for services to reach and empower every citizen. Technological advances are needed to deal with user diversity (age, language, disabilities, etc.) but also with the variety of technology used (screen size, network speed, etc.) and the gaps in user's knowledge (general knowledge, knowledge of the application domain, of the interface syntax or semantic). We present examples that illustrate how those challenges can be addressed.

Plaisant, C., Fekete, J., Grinstein, G.
Promoting Insight Based Evaluation of Visualizations: From Contest to Benchmark Repository
Promoting Insight Based Evaluation of Visualizations: From Contest to Benchmark Repository, ACM Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics , 14, 1 (2008) 120-134
HCIL-2004-30

Information Visualization (InfoVis) is now an accepted and growing field with numerous visualization components used in many applications. However, questions about the potential uses and maturity of novel visualizations remain. Usability studies and controlled experiments are helpful but generalization is difficult. We believe that the systematic development of benchmarks will facilitate the comparison of techniques and help identify their strengths under different conditions. A benchmark typically consists of a dataset, a list of tasks, and a list of non-trivial discoveries. We were each involved in the organization of three information visualization contests for the 2003, 2004 and 2005 IEEE Information Visualization Symposia. Our goal is to encourage the development of benchmarks, push the forefront of the InfoVis field by making difficult problems available, create a forum for the discussion of evaluation and provide an interesting event at the InfoVis conference. The materials produced by the contests are archived in the Information Visualization Benchmark Repository. We review the state of the art and challenges of evaluation in InfoVis, describe the three contests, summarize their results, discuss outcomes and lessons learned, and conjecture the future of visualization contests.

Buono, P., Aris, A., Plaisant, C., Khella, A., Shneiderman, B. (October 2004)
Interactive Pattern Search in Time Series
Proceedings of Conference on Visualization and Data Analysis, VDA 2005, SPIE, Washington DC (2005) 175-186.
HCIL-2004-25, CS-TR-4634, UMIACS-TR-2004-76, ISR-TR-2005-57

The need for pattern discovery in long time series data led researchers to develop algorithms for similarity search. Most of the literature about time series focuses on algorithms that index time series and bring the data into the main storage, thus providing fast information retrieval on large time series. This paper reviews the state of the art in visualizing time series, and focuses on techniques that enable users to interactively query time series. Then it presents TimeSearcher 2, a tool that enables users to explore multidimensional data using coordinated tables and graphs with overview+detail, filter the time series data to reduce the scope of the search, select an existing pattern to find similar occurrences, and interactively adjust similarity parameters to narrow the result set. This tool is an extension of previous work, TimeSearcher 1, which uses graphical timeboxes to interactively query time series data.

Plaisant, C. (May 2004)
The Challenge of Information Visualization Evaluation
Proc. of Conf. on Advanced Visual Interfaces AVI'04 (2004), p.109-116.
HCIL-2004-19, CS-TR-4655

As the field of information visualization matures, the tools and ideas described in our research publications are reaching users. The reports of usability studies and controlled experiments are helpful to understand the potential and limitations of our tools, but we need to consider other evaluation approaches that take into account the long exploratory nature of users tasks, the value of potential discoveries or the benefits of overall awareness. We need better metrics and benchmark repositories to compare tools, and we should also seek reports of successful adoption and demonstrated utility.

Zhao, H., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Duraiswami, R. (February 2004)
Sonification of Geo-Referenced Data for Auditory Information Seeking: Design Principle and Pilot Study
Proc. International Conference on Auditory Displays (2004), (http://www.icad.org)
HCIL-2004-04, CS-TR-4669, ISR-TR-2005-36

We present an Auditory Information Seeking Principle (AISP) (gist, navigate, filter, and details-on-demand) modeled after the visual information seeking mantra [1]. We propose that data sonification designs should conform to this principle. We also present some design challenges imposed by human auditory perception characteristics. To improve blind access to geo-referenced statistical data, we developed two preliminary sonifications adhering to the above AISP, an enhanced table and a spatial choropleth map. Our pilot study shows people can recognize geographic data distribution patterns on a real map with 51 geographic regions, in both designs. The study also shows evidence that AISP conforms to people's information seeking strategies. Future work is discussed, including the improvement of the choropleth map design.

Plaisant, C., Bederson, B., Clamage, A., Hutchinson, H., Druin, A. (October 2003)
Shared Family Calendars: Promoting Symmetry and Accessibility
ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 13, 3 (2006) 313 - 346.
HCIL-2003-38, CS-TR-4680

We demonstrate a system facilitating the sharing of calendar information between remotely located family members. Depending on their preference, some users enter information into computerized calendars, while others handwrite on digital paper calendars. All of the information is automatically viewable by everyone in the family.

Baker, H., Duarte, N., Haririnia, A., Klinesmith, D., Lee, H., Velikovich, L., Wanga, A., Westhoff, M., Plaisant, C. (June 2003)
A Design Study of the Integration of Email and Role Management for University Students
(This TR was revised and expanded into HCIL-2005-30)
HCIL-2003-30, CS-TR-4687

In order to accommodate the increasing diversity of email users, applications have evolved in both functionality and user interface. In this study, we attempt to determine whether email user interfaces can be improved to serve a specific target population: college students. We present our results from college campus surveys that examine email usage patterns and subjective experiences among college students. From our survey feedback and related research, we conclude that email overload and feature intimidation are the greatest hindrances to email communication on campus. To address these problems, we propose employing role management to organize messages calendar and contacts in an email program for students, using school, work and family roles. We describe a prototype and user reactions. Our conclusion is that role management, integrated into email software, may help college students manage their email more effectively.

Zhao, H., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (March 2003)
Improving Accessibility and Usability of Geo-referenced Statistical Data
Proc. of the Digital Government Research Conference, 147-150, http://www.dgrc.org/dgo2004
HCIL-2003-11, CS-TR-4467, UMIACS-TR-2003-37, ISR-TR-2005-40

Several technology breakthroughs are needed to achieve the goals of universal accessibility and usability. These goals are especially challenging in the case of geo-referenced statistical data that many U.S. government agencies supply. We present technical and user-interface design challenges in accommodating users with low-end technology (slow network connection and low-end machine) and users who are blind or vision-impaired. Our solutions are presented and future work is discussed.

Kules, B., Shneiderman, B., Plaisant, C. (March 2003)
Data Exploration with Paired Hierarchical Visualizations: Initial Designs of PairTrees
Proc. of the Digital Government Research Conference, 255-260, http://www.dgrc.org/dgo2004
HCIL-2003-09, CS-TR-4465, UMIACS-TR-2003-35, ISR-TR-2005-38

Paired hierarchical visualizations (PairTrees) integrate treemaps, node-link diagrams, choropleth maps and other information visualization techniques to support exploration of hierarchical data sets at multiple levels of abstraction. This paper describes several novel applications of PairTrees in the econometric and health statistics domains, as well as some challenges and trade-offs inherent in the technique.

Hutchinson, H., Bederson, B., Druin, A., Plaisant, C., Mackay, W., Evans, H., Hansen, H., Conversy, S., Beaudouin-Lafon, M., Roussel, N., Lacomme, L., Eiderbäck, B., Lindquist, S., Sundblad, Y., Westerlund, B. (September 2002)
Technology Probes: Inspiring Design for and with Families
ACM Conference on Computer-Human Interaction (CHI 2003), pp. 17-24.
HCIL-2002-16, CS-TR-4407, UMIACS-TR-2002-87

We describe a new methodology for designing technologies for and with families called technology probes. Technology probes are simple, flexible, adaptable technologies introduced into families' homes with three interdisciplinary goals: the social science goal of collecting data about the use of the technology in a real-world setting, the engineering goal of field-testing the technology, and the design goal of inspiring users and designers to think about new technologies. We present the results of designing and deploying two technology probes, the MessageProbe and the VideoProbe, with families in France, Sweden, and the U.S. We conclude with our plans for creating new technologies based on our experiences. Keywords Design Methods, Computer Mediated Communication, Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), Home, Ethnography, Participatory Design and Cooperative Design, User Studies and Fieldwork

Plaisant, C., Grosjean, J., Bederson, B. (April 2002)
SpaceTree: Supporting Exploration in Large Node Link Tree, Design Evolution and Empirical Evaluation
INFOVIS 2002. IEEE Symposium on Information Visualization, 2002, Page(s): 57 -64, Boston, October 2002.
HCIL-2002-05, CS-TR-4360, UMIACS-TR-2002-40

We present a novel tree browser that builds on the conventional node link tree diagrams. It adds dynamic rescaling of branches of the tree to best fit the available screen space, optimized camera movement, and the use of preview icons summarizing the topology of the branches that cannot be expanded. In addition, it includes integrated search and filter functions. This paper reflects on the evolution of the design and highlights the principles that emerged from it. A controlled experiment showed benefits for navigation to already previously visited nodes and estimation of overall tree topology.

Kules, B., Kang, H., Plaisant, C., Rose, A., Shneiderman, B. (October 2001)
Immediate Usability: Kiosk Design Principles from the CHI 2001 Photo Library
This paper has been updated and replaced by HCIL-2003-22
HCIL-2001-23, CS-TR-4293, UMIACS-TR-2001-71, ISR-TR-2005-25

This paper describes a novel set of design principles and guidelines for ensuring the immediate usability of public access systems. These principles and guidelines were formulated while developing PhotoFinder Kiosk, a community photo library. Attendees of CHI 2001 successfully used the tool to browse and annotate collections of photographs spanning 20 years of CHI and related conferences, producing a richly annotated photo history of the field of human-computer interaction. We used observations and log data to evaluate the tool and refine the guidelines. They provide specific guidance for practitioners, as well as a useful framework for additional research in public access interfaces.

Konishi, M., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (July 2001)
Enabling Commuters to Find the Best Route: An Interface for Analyzing Driving History Logs
Proc. Interact 2001, IFIP IOS Press, (2001), 799-800.
HCIL-2001-15, CS-TR-4274, UMIACS-TR-2001-54, ISR-TR-2005-19

This paper describes a prototype interface design for an automobile driving history log. It allows drivers to choose the best route among several alternatives for their common trips. Recorded data includes time to complete the travel, fuel consumption, and number of stops.

Hornbæk, K., Bederson, B., Plaisant, C. (May 2001)
Navigation Patterns and Usability of Overview+Detail and Zoomable User Interfaces for Maps
Revised version with new title, "Navigation Patterns and Usability of Zoomable User Interfaces with and without an Overview", ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, Vol. 9, No. 4, pp. 362-389, December 2002.
HCIL-2001-11, CS-TR-4267, UMIACS-TR-2001-48

The literature on information visualizations establishes the usability of overview+detail interfaces, but for zoomable user interfaces, results are mixed. We compare overview+detail and zoomable user interfaces to understand the navigation patterns and usability of these interfaces. Thirty-two subjects solved navigation and browsing tasks on maps organized in one or multiple levels. We find no difference between interfaces in subjects' ability to solve tasks correctly. Eighty percent of the subjects prefer the overview+detail interface, stating that it supports navigation and helps keep track of their position on the map. However, subjects are faster using the zoomable user interface, especially in combination with the multi-level map and when solving navigation tasks. The combination of the zoomable user interface and the multi-level map also improves subjects' recall of objects on the map. Switching between overview and detail windows was correlated with higher task completion time, suggesting that integration of overview and detail windows require mental and motor effort. We found large individual differences in navigation patterns and usability, but subjects' visualization ability influenced usability similarly between interfaces.

Plaisant, C. (Editor) (October 2000)
2000 and 1999-1991 Retrospective: Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory Video Reports
HCIL-2000-24, CS-TR-4196

45 minute video of the lab's work over this year. Topics are:

• Browsing and annotating digital photographs with Photofinder
• Learning histories in simulation based learning environments
• Dynamap
• StoryRooms

Plaisant, C., Druin, A., Lathan, C., Dakhane, K., Edwards, K., Vice, J., Montemayor, J. (September 2000)
A Storytelling Robot for Pediatric Rehabilitation
Revised version: Proc. ASSETS '00, Washington, Nov. 2000, ACM, New York, 50-55.
HCIL-2000-16, CS-TR-4183, UMIACS-TR-2000-65

We are developing a prototype storytelling robot for use with children in rehabilitation. Children can remotely control a large furry robot by using a variety of body sensors adapted to their disability or rehabilitation goal. In doing so, they can teach the robot to act out emotions (e.g. sad, happy, excited) and then write stories using the storytelling software and include those emotions in the story. The story can then be "played" by the remote controlled robot, which acts out the story and the emotions. We believe that this robot can motivate the children and help them reach their therapy goals through therapeutic play, either by exercising muscles or joints (e.g. for physically challenges children) or by reflecting on the expression of emotions (e.g. for autistic children). We use an innovative design methodology involving children as design partners.

Plaisant, C., Komlodi, A. (May 2000)
Evaluation Challenges for a Federation of Heterogeneous Information Providers: The Case of NASA's Earth Science Information Partnerships
IEEE 9th Intl. Workshops on Enabling Technologies (WETICE'2000) Evaluating Collaborative Enterprises, June 14-16, Gaithersburg, MD, pp. 130-138, IEEE, Los Alamitos, CA. http://www.mel.nist.gov/msidevent/workshop/wetice-ece/
HCIL-2000-09, CS-TR-4134, UMIACS-TR-2000-27

NASA's Earth Science Information Partnership Federation is an experiment funded to assess the ability of a group of widely heterogeneous earth science data or service providers to self organize and provide improved and cheaper access to an expanding earth science user community. As it is organizing itself, the federation is mandated to set in place an evaluation methodology and collect metrics reflecting the health and benefits of the Federation. This paper describes the challenges of organizing such a federated partnership self-evaluation and discusses the issues encountered during the metrics definition phase of the early data collection.

Plaisant, C. (Editor) (October 2000)
1999 Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory Video Reports
HCIL-99-34, CS-TR-4195

45 minute video of the lab's work over the past year. Topics are:

• Introduction - Ben Shneiderman
• Query Previews for EOSDIS
• Design Space for Data and label Placement for information visualization
• Understanding the effect of incidents on transportation delays with a simulation based environment
• Visualizing Legal Information: Hierarchical and Temporal presentations
• Snap together visualization
• Designing PETS: A Personal Electronic Teller of Stories
• Welcome to the HCIL-2 Kids First Kid-Made Video
• KidPad: A Collaborative Storytelling Environment for Children
• Softer Software: an excerpt from the Maryland State of Mind program

Harris, C., Allen, R., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (June 1999)
Temporal Visualization for Legal Case Histories
ASIS'99 Proceedings of the 62nd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Information Sciences, Conference October 31-November 4, 1999, Vol. 36, 271-279.
HCIL-99-18, CS-TR-4047

This paper discusses visualization of legal information using a tool for temporal information called LifeLines. The direct and indirect histories of cases can become very complex. We explored ways that LifeLines could aid in viewing the links between the original case and the direct and indirect histories. The Apple Computer, Inc. v. Microsoft Corporation and Hewlett Packard Company case is used to illustrate the prototype. For example, if users want to find out how the rulings or statutes changed throughout this case, they could retrieve this information within a single display. Using the timeline, users could also choose at which point in time they would like to begin viewing the case. LifeLines support various views of a case's history. For instance, users can view the trial history of a case, the references involved in a case, and citations made to a case. The paper describes improvements to LifeLines that could help in providing a more useful visualization of case history.

Keywords: Graphical user interface, information visualization, legal information, temporal data, history

Plaisant, C., Rose, A., Rubloff, G., Salter, R., Shneiderman, B. (May 1999)
The Design of History Mechanisms and Their Use in Collaborative Educational Simulations
Proc. of the Computer Support for Collaborative Learning, CSCL' 99, Palo Alto, CA, 348-359.
HCIL-99-11, CS-TR-4027, UMIACS-TR-99-34, ISR-TR-99-74

Reviewing past events has been useful in many domains. Videotapes and flight data recorders provide invaluable technological help to sports coaches or aviation engineers. Similarly, providing learners with a readable recording of their actions may help them monitor their behavior, reflect on their progress, and experiment with revisions of their experiences. It may also facilitate active collaboration among dispersed learning communities. Learning histories can help students and professionals make more effective use of digital library searching, word processing tasks, computer assisted design tools, electronic performance support systems, and web navigation.

This paper describes the design space and discusses the challenges of implementing learning histories. It presents guidelines for creating effective implementations, and the design tradeoffs between sparse and dense history records. The paper also presents a first implementation of learning histories for a simulation-based engineering learning environment called SimPLE (Simulated Processes in a Learning Environment) for the case of a semiconductor fabrication module, and reports on early user evaluation of learning histories implemented within SimPLE.

Keywords: HCI, scaffolding, simulation

Plaisant, C. (Editor) (March 1999)
1998 Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory Video Reports
HCIL-98-16, CS-TR-4007

45 minute video of the lab's work over the past year. Topics are:

• Introduction - Ben Shneiderman
• LifeLines: Enhancing Navigation and Analysis of Patient Records
• SimPLE: Simulated Processes in a Learning Environment
• Pad++: A Zooming User Interface
• LinKit: Tight Coupling for Flexible Mutiple-Window Coordination
• Query Previews for NASA EOSDIS
• Children as Our Technology Design Partners
• Genex: An Introduction
• Genex: A Medical Scenario
• Human Values for Shaping Educational Technology

Fekete, J., Plaisant, C. (1998)
Excentric Labeling: Dynamic Neighborhood Labeling for Data Visualization
Proceedings of CHI'99, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, May 15-20, 1999, ACM, New York, 512-519.
HCIL-98-09, CS-TR-3946, UMIACS-TR-98-59

The widespread use of information visualization is hampered by the lack of effective labeling techniques. A taxonomy of labeling methods is proposed. We then describe "excentric labeling", a new dynamic technique to label a neighborhood of objects located around the cursor. This technique does not intrude into the existing interaction, it is not computationally intensive, and was easily applied to several visualization applications. A pilot study indicates a strong speed benefit for tasks that involve the rapid exploration of large numbers of objects.

Li, J., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (1998)
Data Object and Label Placement for Information Abundant Visualizations
Proceedings, Workshop on New Paradigms in Information Visualization and Manipulation (NPIV'98) In conjunction with the CIKM'98, ACM, New York, 41-48.
HCIL-98-05, CS-TR-3901, UMIACS-TR-98-28, ISR-TR-98-65

Placing numerous data objects and their corresponding labels in limited screen space is a challenging problem in information visualization systems. Extending map-oriented techniques, this paper describes static placement algoritms and develops metrics (such as compactness and labeling rate) as a basis for comparison among these algorithms. A control panel facilitates user customiziation by showing the metrics for alternative algorithms. Dynamic placement techyniques that go beyond map-oriented techniques demonstrate additional possibilities. User actions can lead to selective display of data objects and their labels.

Marchionini, G., Plaisant, C., Komlodi, A. (1998)
Interfaces and Tools for the Library of Congress National Digital Library Program
Information Processing & Management, 34, 5, pp. 535-555, 1998. Also French version appeared in Document numerique. 2(1), 1998, pages 53-65, Hermes, Paris.
HCIL-98-01, CS-TR-3872, UMIACS-TR-98-09

This paper describes a collaborative effort to explore user needs in a digital library, develop interface prototypes for a digital library, and suggest and prototype tools for digital librarians and users at the Library of Congress (LC). Interfaces were guided by an assessment of user needs and aimed to maximize interaction with primary resources and support both browsing and analytical search strategies. Tools to aid users and librarians in overviewing collections, previewing objects, and gathering results were created and serve as the beginnings of a digital librarian toolkit. The design process and results are described and suggestions for future work are offered.

Greene, S., Tanin, E., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Olsen, L., Major, G., Johns, S. (1997)
The End of Zero-Hit Queries: Query Previews for NASA's Global Change Master Directory
International Journal Digital Libraries Vol. 2 No.2+3 (1999), pp.79-90
HCIL-97-20, CS-TR-3856, UMIACS-TR-97-84

The Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCIL) of the University of Maryland and NASA have collaborated over the last three years to refine and apply user interface research concepts developed at HCIL in order to improve the usability of NASA data services. The research focused on dynamic query user interfaces, visualization, and overview +preview designs. An operational prototype, using query previews, was implemented with NASA's Global Change Master Directory (GCMD), a directory service for earth science data sets. Users can see the histogram of the data distribution over several attributes and choose among attribute values. A result bar shows the cardinality of the result set, thereby preventing users from submitting queries that would have zero hits. Our experience confirmed the importance of metadata accuracy and completeness. The query preview interfaces make visible problems or holes in the metadata that are unnoticeable with classic form fill-in interfaces. This could be seen as a problem, but we think that it will have a long-term beneficial effect on the quality of the metadata as data providers will be compelled to produce more complete and accurate metadata. The adaptation of the research prototype to the NASA data required revised data structures and algorithms.

Greene, S., Marchionini, G., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (1997)
Previews and Overviews in Digital Libraries: Designing Surrogates to Support Visual Information-Seeking
Journal of the American Society for Information Science 51, 3 (March 2000), 380-393.
HCIL-97-16, CS-TR-3838, UMIACS-TR-97-73, ISR-TR-97-80

To aid designers of digital library interfaces and web sites in creating comprehensible, predictable and controllable environments for their users, we define and discuss the benefits of previews and overviews as visual information representations. Previews and overviews are graphic or textual representations of information abstracted from primary information objects. They serve as surrogates for those objects. When utilized properly, previews and overviews allow users to rapidly discriminate objects of interest from those not of interest, and to more fully understand the scope and nature of large collections of information resources. We provide a more complete definition of previews and overviews, and discuss system parameters and aspects of primary information objects relevant to designing effective preview and overviews. Finally, we present examples that illustrate the use of previews and overviews and offer suggestions for designers.

Nation, D., Plaisant, C., Marchionini, G., Komlodi, A. (May 1997)
Visualizing Websites Using a Hierarchical Table of Contents Browser: WebTOC
Proceedings of 3rd Conference on Human Factors and the Web, Denver, Colorado, June 12, 1997.
HCIL-97-10, CS-TR-3791, UMIACS-TR-97-41, CLIS-TR-97-08

A method is described for visualizing the contents of a Web site with a hierarchical table of contents using a Java program and applet called WebTOC. The automatically generated expand/contract table of contents provides graphical information indicating the number of elements in branches of the hierarchy as well as individual and cumulative sizes. Color can be used to represent another attribute such as file type and provide a rich overview of the site for users and managers of the site. Early results from user studies suggest that WebTOC is easily learned and can assist users in navigating websites.

Doan, K., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Bruns, T. (1997)
Query Previews for Networked Information Systems: A Case Study with NASA Environmental Data
ACM SIGMOD Record, Vol. 26, No. 1 (75-81), March 1997
HCIL-97-02

Formulating queries on networked information systems is laden with problems: data diversity, data complexity, network growth, varied user base, and slow network access. This paper proposes a new approach to a network query user interface which consists of two phases: query preview and query refinement. This new approach is based on dynamic queries and tight coupling, guiding users to rapidly and dynamically eliminate undesired items, reduce the data volume to a manageable size, and refine queries locally before submission over a network. A two-phase dynamic query system for NASAüs Earth Observing Systems--Data Information Systems (EOSDIS) is presented. The prototype was well received by the team of scientists who evaluated the interface.

Keywords: User interface, direct manipulation, dynamic query, metadata, query preview, query refinement, EOSDIS.

Plaisant, C., Marchionini, G., Bruns, T., Komlodi, A., Campbell, L. (October 1996)
Bringing Treasures to the Surface: Iterative Design for the Library of Congress National Digital Library Program
CHI 97 Proceedings, Atlanta GA, 22-27 March 1997, ACM New York, 518-525
HCIL-96-16, CS-TR-3694, CLIS-TR-96-03

The Human-Computer Interaction Lab worked with a team of the Library of Congress (LC) to develop and test interface designs for LCUs National Digital Library Program. Three iterations are described and illustrate the progression of the design toward a compact design that minimizes scrolling and jumping and anchors users in a screen space that tightly couples search and results. Issues and resolutions are discussed for each iteration and reflect the challenges of incomplete metadata, data visualization, and the rapidly changing web environment.

Plaisant, C. (Editor) (June 1996)
1996 Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory Video Reports
HCIL-96-12, CS-TR-3664

45 minute video of the lab's work over the past year. Topics are:

• Introduction - Ben Shneiderman
• Elastic Windows for Rapid Window Management
• Life-Lines: Visualizing Personal Histories
• Designing Interfaces for Youth Services Information Management
• Query Previews in Networked Information Systems: The case of EOSDIS
• Baltimore Learning Communities
• Sample from '94 Video Report - Visual Information Seeking using the FilmFinder

Rose, A., Ellis, J., Plaisant, C., Greene, S. (May 1996)
Life Cycle of User Interface Techniques: The DJJ Information System Design Process
HCIL-96-07, CS-TR-3637, CAR-TR-826

To take advantage of today's technology, many organizations are migrating from their legacy systems. With help from the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCIL) and Cognetics Corporation, the Maryland Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) is currently undergoing an effort to redesign their information system to take advantage of graphical user interfaces. As a research lab, HCIL identifies interesting research problems and then prototypes solutions. As a project matures, the exploratory prototypes are adapted to suit the end product requirements. This case study describes the life cycle of three DJJ prototypes: (1) LifeLines, which uses time lines to display an overview of a youth in one screen, (2) the DJJ Navigator, which helps manage individual workloads by displaying different user views, and (3) the ProgramFinder, a tool for selecting the best program for a youth.

Plaisant, C., Levy, R., Zhao, W. (November 1995)
BizView: Managing Business and Network Alarms
Summary of the video available from HCIL as part of the 1995 HCIL Video report.
HCIL-95-22

We demonstrate a network monitoring prototype incorporating both physical network alarms (e.g., a node is down) and logical alarms generated by sensors in the business applications running on the network (inventory too low or too high, excessive number of orders, etc.). Our BizView Enterprise Monitoring prototype provides tightly coupled filtered views of the network's current status and past history, timelines of alarm overviews and traditional textual details. Filtering attributes are modified interactively to deal with temporary needs or alarm overflows.

Plaisant, C. (Editor) (June 1995)
1995 Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory Video Reports
HCIL-95-17, CS-TR-3532, CAR-TR-795

49 minute video of the labs work over the past year. Topics are:

• Introduction and table of contents - Ben Shneiderman
• Using Dynamic Queries for Youth Services Information - Anne Rose, Ajit Vanniamparampil
• Life-Lines: Visualizing Personal Histories - Brett Milash, Catherine Plaisant, Anne Rose
• Dynamic Queries and Pruning for Large Tree Structures - Harsha Kumar
• Browsing Anatomical Image Databases : the Visible Human - Flip Korn, Chris North
• Spinning Your Web: WWW Interface Design Issues - Vince Boisselle
• BizView : Managing Business and Network Alarms - Catherine Plaisant, Wei Zhao and Rina Levy
• Animated Specifications Using Interaction Object Graphs - David Carr
• WinSurfer: Treemaps for Replacing the Windows File Manager - Marko Teittinen

Plaisant, C., Milash, B., Rose, A., Widoff, S., Shneiderman, B. (September 1995)
Life Lines: Visualizing Personal Histories
ACM CHI '96 Conference Proc. (Vancouver, BC, Canada, April 13-18, 1996) 221-227, color plate 518, http://www.acm.org/sigchi/sigchi96/proceedings. The paper also has a corresponding video in the CHI 96 Video Program ACM, New York. Video also available from HCIL in the 1996 HCIL Video report.
HCIL-95-15, CS-TR-3523, CAR-TR-787, ISR-TR-95-88.

Life Lines provide a general visualization environment for personal histories that can be applied to medical and court records, professional histories and other types of biographical data. A one screen overview shows multiple facets of the records. Aspects, for example medical conditions or legal cases, are displayed as individual time lines, while icons indicate discrete events, such as physician consultations or legal reviews. Line color and thickness illustrate relationships or significance, scaling tools and filters allow users to focus on part of the information. Life lines reduce the chances of missing information, facilitate spotting anomalies and trends, streamline access to details, while remaining tailorable and easily sharable between applications. The paper describes the use of Life Lines for youth records of the Maryland Department of Juvenile Justice.and also for medical records. Techniques to deal with complex records are reviewed and issues of a standard personal record format are discussed.

Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (May 1995)
Organization Overviews and Role Management: Inspiration for Future Desktop Environments
IEEE Proc. 4th Workshop on Enabling Technologies: Infrastructure for Collaborative Enterprises (Berkeley Springs, WV, April 20-22, 1995) 14-22.
HCIL-95-11, CS-TR-3473, CAR-TR-771.

In our exploration of future work environments for the World Bank we propose two concepts. Organization overviews provide a consistent support to present the results of a variety of manual or semi-automated searches. This view can be adapted or expanded for each class of users to finally map the multiple personal roles an individual has in an organization. After command line interfaces, graphical point and click interfaces, and the current "docu-centric" designs, the natural direction is towards a role-centered approach where we believe the emphasis is on the management of those multiple roles. Each role involves coordination with groups of people and accomplishment of tasks within a schedule.

Rose, A., Shneiderman, B., Plaisant, C. (February 1995)
An Applied Ethnographic Method for Redesigning User Interfaces
ACM Proc. of DIS 95, Symposium on Designing Interactive Systems: Processes, Practices, Methods & Techniques (Ann Arbor, MI, Aug 23-25, 1995)115-122.
HCIL-95-07, CS-TR-3454, CAR-TR-765.

Methods for observing software users in the workplace will become increasingly important as the number of people using computers grows and developers improve existing systems. Successful redesigns rely, in part, on complete and accurate evaluations of the existing systems. Based on our evaluation experience, we have derived a set of practical guidelines to be used by designers in preparing for the evaluation, performing the field study, analyzing the data, and reporting the findings. By providing a general framework based on ethnographic research, we hope to reduce the likelihood of some common problems, such as overlooking important information and misinterpreting observations. Examples from our ongoing work with the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services are used to illustrate the proposed guidelines.

Atallah, G., Ball, M., Baras, J., Goli, S., Karne, R., Kelley, S., Kumar, H., Plaisant, C., Roussopoulos, N., Shneiderman, B., Srinivasarao, M., Stathatos, K., Teittinen, M., Whitefield, D.
Next Generation Network Management Technology
ISR-TR-94-42 Proceedings of the 12th Symposium on Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion/Commercialization, pp. 75-82, Albuquerque, NM, January 8-12, 1995.
HCIL-94-19

Today's telecommunications networks are becoming increasingly large, complex, mission critical and heterogeneous in several dimensions. For example, the underlying physical transmission facilities of a given network may be "mixed media" (copper, fiber-optic, radio, and satellite); the sub networks may be acquired from different vendors due to economic, performance, or general availability reasons; the information being transmitted over the network may be "multimedia" (video, data, voice, and images) and, finally, varying performance criteria may be imposed e.g. data transfer may require high throughput while the others, whose concern is voice communications, may require low call blocking probability. For these reasons, future telecommunications networks are expected to be highly complex in their services and operations. Due to this growing complexity and the disparity among management systems for individual sub networks, efficient network management systems have become critical to the current and future success of telecommunications companies. This paper addresses a research and development effort which focuses on prototyping configuration management, since that is the central process of network management and all other network management functions must be built upon it. Our prototype incorporates ergonomically designed graphical user interfaces tailored to the network configuration management subsystem and to the proposed advanced object-oriented database structure. The resulting design concept follows open standards such as Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) and incorporates object oriented programming methodology to associate data with functions, permit customization, and provide an open architecture environment.

Plaisant, C., Jain, V. (April 1994)
Dynamaps: Dynamic Queries on a Health Statistics Atlas
Video in CHI '94 Video Program, ACM, New York. A two page video summary also appears in ACM CHI '94 Conference Companion, (Boston, MA, April 24-28, 1994) 439-440. Video also available through HCIL as part of the 1993 HCIL Video Report.
HCIL-94-16

Dynamic queries are user-controlled animated displays of visual or textual data. On an application developed for the National Center for Health Statistics and running on their ordinary staff equipment, a thematic map of the United States is animated by moving a time slider to illustrate trends of mortality rates. Other sliders filter parts of the maps interactively according to parameters such as demographics. During the filtering possible correlations can be observed as they create color patterns in he "dissapearance" of the states. This application has been received with enthusiasm by the user community and will be distributed with selected new datasets.

Shneiderman, B., Plaisant, C. (May 1994)
The Future of Graphic User Interfaces: Personal Role Managers
People and Computers IX, British Computer Society's HCI 94 (Glasgow, Scotland, Aug. 1994) CU Press (Cambridge, U.K.) 3-8.
HCIL-94-05, CS-TR-3285, CAR-TR-713, ISR-TR-94-48

Personal computer users typically manage hundreds of directories and thousands of files with hierarchically structured file managers, plus archaic cluttered-desktop window managers, and iconic representations of applications. These users must deal with the annoying overhead of window housekeeping and the greater burden of mapping their organizational roles onto unnecessarily rigid hierarchy. An alternate approach is presented, Personal Role Manager (PRM), to structure the screen layout and the interface tools to better match the multiple roles that individuals have in an organization. Each role has a vision statement, schedule, hierarchy of tasks, set of people, and collection of documents.

Plaisant, C., Carr, D., Shneiderman, B. (April 1994)
Image Browsers: Taxonomy, Guidelines, and Informal Specifications
IEEE Software, vol.12, 2 (March 1995) 21-32.
HCIL-94-02, CS-TR-3282, CAR-TR-712, ISR-TR-94-39

Image browsing is necessary in numerous applications. Designers have merely used two one-dimensional scroll bars or they have made ad hoc designs for a two-dimensional scroll bar. However, the complexity of two-dimensional browsing suggests that more careful analysis, design, and evaluation might lead to significant improvements. We present a task taxonomy for image browsing, suggest design features and guidelines, assess existing strategies, and introduce an informal specification technique to describe the browsers.

Plaisant, C., Carr, D., Hasegawa, H. (April 1993)
Exploring Remote Images: A Telepathology Workstation
Video in ACM INTERCHI 93 Video Program (Amsterdam, Netherlands, April 24-29, 1993), video available through ACM SIGGRAPH Video Review, issue 88-89. A one page summary also appears in INTERCHI 93 Proceedings, 518. Video also available through HCIL as part of the 1992 HCIL Video Report.
HCIL-93-24

Telemedicine is the practice of medicine over communication links. The physician being consulted and the patient are in two different locations. A first telepathology system has been developed by Corabi Telemetrics. It allows a pathologist to render a diagnosis by examining tissue samples or body fluids under a remotely located microscope. Of course it would seem natural to digitize the entire specimen at the highest magnification and then leisurely explore the transmitted image. But this is not currently practical because the specimens are very high definition 3D color objects requiring too long to digitize and having impractical storage requirements. Therefore the specimen still needs today to be explored under a microscope.

Shneiderman, B. (1993)
Preface to Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction
Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction, B. Shneiderman, Ed., Ablex Publ. (1993) 385 pages. ACM Interactions, vol. 1, 1 (Jan. 1994) 67-71.
HCIL-93-13

The occasion for this book is the 10th Anniversary of the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCIL) at the University of Maryland. I have selected two dozen key papers from more than a hundred to repersent the work of many participants. My section introductions tell how we do what we do, including some of our failures and background stories that are not appropriate for journal papers. Many papers are trimmed to emphasize the cogent points. They weave together the threads of our work into a unified fabric that reveals the patterns of developement. It was difficult to choose the best papers; these exemplify different research method-ologies and show the maturation of thuman-computer interaction research. This book is a tribute to the faculty, staff, visitors, and students who have shared in a decade of work.

Contents
Preface
Overview: fuel for a new discipline
Introduction: supporting the process of innovation
1. Direct manipulation
1.1 Direct manipulation: a step beyond programming languages, Ben Shneiderman
1.2 A study of file manipulation by novices using commands vs. direct manipulation, Sepeedeh Margono, Ben Shneiderman
1.3 Remote direct manipulation: a case study of a telemedicine workstation, Richard Keil-Slawik, Catherine Plaisant, Ben Shneiderman
2. Menu selection
2.1 Embedded menus: selecting items in context, Larry Koved, Ben Shneiderman
2.2 An empirical comparison of pie vs. linear menus, Jack Callahan Don Hopkins, Mark Weiser, Ben Shneiderman
2.3 Time stress effects on two menu selection systems, Daniel F. Wallace, Nancy S. Anderson, Ben Shneiderman
3. Hypertext
3.1 Finding facts vs. browsing knowledge in hypertext systems, Gary Marchionini, Ben Shneiderman
3.2 Restructuring knowledge for an electronic encyclopedia, Charles B. Kreitzberg, Ben Shneiderman
3.3 The Electronic Teaching Theater: interactive hypermedia & mental models of the classroom, Kent L. Norman
4. Touchscreens
4.1 Improving the accuracy of touchscreens: an experimental evaluationof three strategies, Richard L. Potter, Linda J. Weldon, Ben Shneiderman
4.2 High precision touchscreens: design strategies and comparisons with a mouse, Andrew Sears, Ben Shneiderman
4.3 Touchscreens now offer compelling uses, Ben Shneiderman
4.4 Touchscreen interfaces for alphanumeric data entry, Catherine Plaisant, Andrew Sears
4.5 Scheduling home control devices: a case study of the transition from the research project to a product, Catherine Plaisant, Ben Shneiderman, Jim Battaglia
5. Public access
5.1 Guide to Opportunities in Volunteer Archaeology: case study on the use of a hypertext system , in a museum exhibit, Catherine Plaisant
5.2 Evaluating three museum installations of a hypertext system, Ben Shneiderman, Dorothy Brethauer, Catherine Plaisant, Richard Potter
5.3 ACCESS at the Library of Congress, Gary Marchionini, Maryle Ashley, Lois Korzendorfer
5.4 User interface consistency: an evaluation of original and revised interfaces for a videodisk library, Richard Chimera, Ben Shneiderman
6. Information visualization: dynamic queries, treemaps, and the filter/flow metaphor
6.1 Dynamic Queries for information exploration: an implementation and evaluation, Christopher Ahlberg, Christopher Williamson, Ben Shneiderman
6.2 The Dynamic HomeFinder: evaluating Dynamic Queries in a real-estate information exploration system, Christopher Williamson, Ben Shneiderman
6.3 Treemaps: a space-filling approach to the visualization of hierarchical information structures, Brian Johnson, Ben Shneiderman
7. Essays and explorations
7.1 A nonanthropomorphic style guide: overcoming the Humpty Dumpty syndrome, Ben Shneiderman
7.2 Human values and the future of technology: a declaration of responsibility, Ben Shneiderman
7.3 Engagement and construction: educational strategies for the post-TV era, Ben Shneiderman
7.4 Protecting rights in user interface designs, Ben Shneiderman
7.5 Declaration in Apple vs. Microsoft/Hewlett-Packard, Ben Shneiderman
Appendix-HCIL publications
Appendix-videos
Name index
Subject index

Plaisant, C., Carr, D., Hasegawa, H. (Oct. 1992)
When an intermediate view matters: A 2D browser experiment
HCIL-92-13, CS-TR-2980, CAR-TR-645, SRC-TR-92-119.

The browsing of two dimensional images can be found in a large number of applications. When the image to be viewed is much larger than the screen available, a two dimensional browser has to be provided to allow users to access all parts of the image. We show the diversity of tasks and systems available and the need for 2D browser design guidelines. In the context of a microscope image browser, we investigate one common technique consisting of a global view of the whole image, coupled to a detailed, mag nified view of part of the image. In particular we look at the benefits of providing an intermediate view when the detail-to-overview ratio is high. An experiment showed that users performance significantly degrades when no intermediate view is provided for a detail-to-overview ratio over 20:1. Our experience is also a good example of a real world application for which added features and added hardware need to be justified.

Carr, D., Hasegawa, H., Lemmon, D., Plaisant, C. (March 1992)
The effects of time delays on a telepathology user interface
Proc. of the 16th Annual Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care , SCAMC (Baltimore, MD, Nov. 7-11, 1992) 256-260.
HCIL-92-05, CS-TR-2874, CAR-TR-616, SRC-TR-92-49.

Telepathology enables a pathologist to examine physically distant tissue samples by microscope operation over a communication link. Communication links can impose time delays which cause difficulties in controlling the remote device. Such difficulties were found in a microscope teleoperation system. Since the user interface is critical to pathologist's acceptance of telepathology, we redesigned the user interface for this system, built two different versions (a keypad whose movement commands operated by specifying a start command followed by a stop command and a trackball interface whose movement commands were incremental and directly proportional to the rotation of the trackball). We then conducted a pilot study to determine the effect of time dela ys on the new user interfaces. In our experiment, the keypad was the faster interface when the time delay is short. There was no evidence to favor either the keypad or trackball when the time delay was longer. Moving long distances over the microscope slide by dragging the field-of-view indicator on the touchscreen control panel improved inexperience user performance. Also, the experiment suggests that changes could be made to improve the trackball interface.

Plaisant, C., Sears, A. (Sept. 1991)
Touchscreen interfaces for alphanumeric data entry
Proc. of the Human Factors Society - 36th Annual Meeting, vol. 1, (Atlanta, GA, Oct. 12-16, 1992) 293-297. Also Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction, Shneiderman, B., Ed., Ablex (June 1993) 195-204. Also Human Factors Perspectiv es on Human-Computer Interaction, Selections from Proc. of Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meetings 1983-1994, Perlman, G., Green, G.K., Wogalter, M.S., Eds. (1995) 261-265.
HCIL-91-12, CS-TR-2764, CAR-TR-585

In cases when only limited alphanumeric data must be entered, or when layout, labeling, or size may be changed, traditional keyboards may not be optimal. A series of experiments has demonstrated the usability of touchscreen keyboards. We give a summary of the existing data concerning the usability of touchscreen keyboards including typing rates for experts and novices on keyboards of various sizes. We also report on a recent study done with representative users. Results indicate that typing rates inc rease rapidly reaching peak performance after only 25 minutes of use. Practical suggestions for the design of such a keyboard are also presented.

Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B., Battaglia, J. (1990)
Scheduling home-control devices: a case study of the transition from the research project to a product
Human Factors in Practice, Computer Systems Technical Group, Human Factors Society (Santa Monica, CA, Dec. 1990) 7-13. Also Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction, Shneiderman, B., Ed., Ablex (June 1993) 205-215.
HCIL-90-10

This case study describes the transition from a research project on scheduling home-control devices to a product integrated in an existing home automation system. First we describe the research that explored several designs to schedule devices over time periods ranging from minutes to days: four designs were compared, three of them prototyped and tested. One of the designs was selected for implementation in the commercial system. We then categorize the actions that were taken in order to improve and mold the prototype design into an integrated product. Finally we report on an additional study that emerged from the first one - the scheduling of periodic events - and on the extensions of the scheduler interface design to other aspects of home automat ion.

Plaisant, C., Wallace, D. (Nov. 1990)
Touchscreen toggle switches: push or slide? Design issues and usability study
HCIL-90-08, CS-TR-2557, CAR-TR-521

This article describes six different touchscreen based toggle switches allowing the control of two state (ON/OFF) devices. The user interfaces, ranging from button type toggles to sliding toggles are described and compared. A usability test with 15 subj ects was conducted. Error rates, user preferences and subjective satisfaction ratings were collected. Results indicate that all the toggles described here can be used with low error rates. The sliding toggles were rated harder to use and were least pre ferred. Individual differences in personal preference were shown to be very large. It was also observed that users spontaneously or after one trial use a sliding motion to activate a control showing a sliding affordance.

Sears, A., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (June 1990)
A new era for high-precision touchscreens
Advances in Human-Computer Interaction, vol. 3, Hartson, R. & Hix, D. Eds., Ablex (1992) 1-33.
HCIL-90-01, CS-TR-2487, CAR-TR-506

While many input devices allow interfaces to be customized, increased directness distinguishes touchscreens. Touchscreens are easy to learn to use, fast, and result in low error rates when interfaces are designed carefully. Many actions which are diffi cult with a mouse, joystick, or keyboard are simple when using a touchscreen. Making rapid selections at widely separated locations on the screen, signing your name, dragging the hands of a clock in a circular motion are all simple when using a touchscre en, but may be awkward using other devices. This paper presents recent empirical research which can provide a basis for theories of touchscreen usage. We believe recent improvements warrant increased use of touchscreens.

Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (revised Feb. 1991)
Scheduling home control devices: design issues and usability evaluation of four touchscreen interfaces
International Journal of Man-Machine Studies (1992) 36, 375-393.
HCIL-89-18, CS-TR-2352, CAR-TR-472

This article describes four different user interfaces supporting scheduling two-state (ON/OFF) devices over time periods ranging from minutes to days. The touchscreen-based user interfaces including a digital, 12-h clock, 24-h linear and 24-h dial proto types are described and compared on a feature by feature basis. A formative usability test with 14 subjects, feedback from more than 30 reviewers, and the flexibility to add functions favour the 24-h linear version.

Furuta, R., Plaisant, C., Shneiderman, B. (May 1989)
A spectrum of automatic hypertext constructions
Hypermedia, vol. 1, 2 (1989) 179-195.
HCIL-89-15, CS-TR-2253, CAR-TR-443

We describe our experiences with four separate conversions from paper documents into hypertext and discuss the lessons we have learned. The paper document's organization affects the ease with which it can be converted and the appropriateness of the resu lting hypertext. The form of the paper document's machine-readable `markup' description affects the ability to transform the structure automatically. Designing the link structures that tie together the parts of the hypertext takes special care in automa ting, as badly-designed and incorrectly-formed links destroy the integrity of the hypertext. Overall, each of the conversions followed the same basic methodology, providing the handle for the development of `power tools' that can be applied to simplify s ubsequent conversions.

Shneiderman, B., Brethauer, D., Plaisant, C., Potter, R. (May 1989)
Evaluating three museum installations of a hypertext
Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 40(3) 172-182. Also Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction, Shneiderman, B., Ed., Ablex (June 1993) 231-250.
HCIL-89-08

This study explores the use of a hypertext system by patrons of three museums. Data on the articles accessed, the time spent in each, the number of times the index was accessed, etc. were collected from a total of more than 5000 sessions. Results show that visitors at all three museums used the embedded menus of the Hyperties hypertext system in moving from one article to another far more than the traditional index. Article selection appears to reflect anticipated interests of patrons at each museum s uggesting success in traversing the database. At the third museum, the data collection was complemented by direct observation and interviews of the museum patrons. This approach appears to be more appropriate to analyze the usage data as well as to imp rove the user interface and database structure.