The Eyes Have It: A Task by Data Type Taxonomy for Information Visualizations

Abstract

Novel graphical and direct-manipulation approaches to query formulation and information visualization are now possible. A useful starting point for designing advanced graphical user interfaces is the Visual Information-Seeking Mantra: first overview, followed by zoom and filter, and then details-on-demand. This chapter offers a task by data type taxonomy with seven data types (1D, 2D, 3D data, temporal data, multi-dimensional data, tree data, and network data) and seven tasks (overview, zoom, filter, details-on-demand, relate, history, and extracts). The success of direct-manipulation interfaces is indicative of the power of using computers in a more visual or graphical manner. Visual displays become even more attractive to provide orientation or context, to enable selection of regions, and to provide dynamic feedback for identifying changes (for example, a weather map). Scientific visualization has the power to make atomic, cosmic, and common 3D phenomena (for example, heat conduction in engines, airflow over wings, or ozone holes) visible and comprehensible. In the visual representation of data, users can scan, recognize, and recall images rapidly and can detect changes in size, color, shape, movement, or texture. They can point to a single pixel, even in a megapixel display, and can drag one object to another to perform an action. The novel-information exploration tools—such as dynamic queries, treemaps, fisheye views, parallel coordinates, starfields, and perspective walls—are a few of the inventions that will have to be validated.