An Exploration in the Design Space of Three Dimensional Hierarchies

Abstract

Three dimensional hierarchies may be used to visualize and manipulate a variety of types of information, including tables of contents, taxonomies, fault trees, and code libraries in languages such as C++. Based on a review of the literature, it is suggested that visual scanning and perceived organization are two main processes involved in the understanding and use of 3D hierarchies. A general system (Info-TV) is described which can be used to explore a 3D design space. Info-TV is an information tree visualization system that takes hierarchical information and displays it in a three dimensional format. It has been designed to include the major parameters of the tree visualization design space and can be used to explore this space. Two experiments are reported that assess the effect of different tree shapes on different tasks. The results of these experiments are then discussed in terms of their implications for the design space of three-dimensional hierarchies.