Elastic Presentation

Sheelagh Carpendale, University of Calgary
   sheelagh@cpsc.ucalgary.ca

Seminar on People, Computers, and Design
Stanford University December 7, 2001

Representing vast amounts of information on our relatively small screens is becoming increasingly problematic and has been associated with difficulties in information navigation and interpretation. User interface research has proposed several approaches to address these problems. These methods create displays that vary considerably, visually and algorithmically. I will present a unified geometric framework that provides a way of relating these seemingly distinct methods, facilitating the inclusion of more than one presentation method in a single interface. Furthermore, it supports extrapolation between the methods it describes. Of particular interest are the presentation possibilities that exist in the ranges between fisheye views and Perspective Wall, between magnified insets and detail-in-context, and between detail-in-context presentations and a full-zooming environment. From this unified framework we have created a presentation library in which geometric layout variations are available independently from the mode of graphic representation. The intention is to promote the ease of exploration and experimentation into the use of varied presentation combinations.

Sheelagh Carpendale is a professor in Department of Computer Science at the University of Calgary. Her research interests include information visualisation, user interface design, visual languages and graphics. Previously she was a research scientist with a Forest Renewal, British Columbia project called SEED (Simulating and Exploring Ecosystem Dynamics). Though her current professional focus is computing science she has a background in both fine arts and sciences. She received her computing science PhD from Simon Fraser University and attended Sheridan College, School of Design and Emily Carr, College of Art. Her professional work in the arts included teaching fine arts at Humber College and establishing the Arts Centre at York Quay, Harbourfront in Toronto. In her current information visualisation research, she has found the combined visual arts and computing science background invaluable

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