GVU Technical Report Number:
GIT-GVU-00-03
Title:
An Evaluation of Space-Filling Information Visualizations for Depicting
Hierarchical Structures
Authors:
John T. Stasko
Richard Catrambone
Mark Guzdial
Kevin McDonald
Abstract:
A variety of information visualization tools have been developed
recently, but relatively little effort has been made to evaluate the
effectiveness and utility of the tools. This article describes
results from two empirical studies of two visualization tools for
depicting hierarchies, in particular, computer file and directory
structures. The two systems examined implement space-filling
methodologies, one rectangular, the Treemap method, and one circular,
the Sunburst method. Participants performed typical file/directory
search and analysis tasks using the two tools. In general,
performance trends favored the Sunburst tool with respect to correct
task performance, particularly on initial use. Performance with
Treemap tended to improve over time and use, suggesting a greater
learning cost that was partially recouped over time. Each tool
afforded somewhat different search strategies, which also appeared to
influence performance. Finally, participants strongly preferred the
Sunburst tool, citing better ability to convey structure and
hierarchy.
Keywords:
Information visualization, Treemap, hierarchy, evaluation, empirical study
You can access this technical report via:
PDF
Postscript
|
