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Pad++: A Zooming Graphical Interface for Exploring Alternate Interface Physics. Presented By: Daniel Loewus-Deitch. Introduction. Pad++ is a zooming graphical interface. Possible alternative to traditional windows/icon interface design.
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Pad++: A Zooming Graphical Interface for Exploring Alternate Interface Physics Presented By: Daniel Loewus-Deitch
Introduction • Pad++ is a zooming graphical interface. • Possible alternative to traditional windows/icon interface design. • A different direction than many other groups exploring 3D virtual worlds.
Metaphor vs. Physics • Metaphor-based approaches have certain limitations • Too much focus on old media. • Underutilizing potential of mechanisms associated with new computerized media. • Physics approach views interface design differently • Appearance and behavior of informational objects.
Metaphor vs. Physics • Examples of informational physics: • Useful representations to show extent of use for an object (i.e. dog-eared pages in real world). • History-enriched digital objects. • New physics for interacting with graphical data (i.e. zooming).
Metaphor vs. Physics • 4 problems with metaphor-based model: • Metaphors always pre-exist their use. • Metaphor must be familiar. • Limits resources and choices.
Metaphor vs. Physics • Metaphors are temporary bridging concepts. • Eventually they die as a metaphor and take on a common meaning in the computer environment. • After metaphor dies, it can still restrict functionality when trying to keep the metaphor from being violated. • Metaphor-based interface is not easily scalable. • Metaphors may lead users to expect functionality associated with the source object that is not actually included in the interface.
Metaphor vs. Physics • Issues with physics-based model • Can’t rely on user familiarity to same extent (learnability consequences). • Make sure physics mechanisms are easily discoverable and learnable.
Motivation • Desktop metaphor has hit a dead end. • Present large amounts of information with the same rich structure and dynamic character of the real world. • Create physics that symbolically relate to informational objects and exploit semantic relationships. • Attempting to fully utilize our natural spatial abilities.
Motivation • Pad++ provides more choices than just the inclusion or exclusion of information. • Make it easier to find specific information in large dataspaces. • Complements traditional filtering and recommendation approaches. • Highly rated information is largest. • Lower rated information is smaller and off to the side.
Pad++ System • General purpose • Supports these standard objects: • Colored text • Text files • Hypertext • Graphics • Images • Zooms around current cursor position.
Pad++ System • Originally designed for use with a 3-button mouse. • Semantic zooming • When zoomed out, object is represented differently. It is not just scaled down.
Recent Advances • Focus on smooth zooming with large graphical datasets. • Essential that frame rates be consistently maintained because of nature of interaction. • Coded in C++
Efficiency • New efficiency methods: • Spatial indexing • Restructuring • Spatial level-of-detail • Clipping • Refinement • Adaptive render scheduling • Search for balance between local detail and global context.
Efficiency • Parallel lazy loading • Helps avoid start-up costs of parsing and loading database when accessing external information sources. • Only loads portion of database that is currently visible. • Performed in background. • Ephemeral objects • Automatically deleted if not viewed within several minutes.
Hypertext • Multiscale layouts • Graphically represent parent-child relationship between links. • Linked data is loaded to side and made smaller. Then view is animated to center new data.
Interface to TCL/TK • 3 classes: • Create objects • Handle objects • Render scene • Every object assigned a unique integer id. • Procedural objects support semantic zooming.
Interface to TCL/TK • Navigation and search mechanisms provided. • Most of panning is performed while zoomed out. • Gives sense of context. • Speeds up animation.
Visualizations • Pad++ directory browser • For viewing large hierarchical databases. • Square frame = directory • Solid square = file • Text names shown when zoomed in. • Search by zooming in and out of directory tree or by content-based search. • Zooming into file loads text inside colored square.
Visualizations • Timeline • Helpful to look at history using different scales. • Zoom into particular years to see content in detail.