From: osborne@software.org (Skip Osborne)
Subject: Re: Object Oriented Classification of Visualization "Idioms"
Date: Thu, 28 Feb 91 10:05 EST



In article <17329@milton.u.washington.edu> you write:>
>
>The following message was posted to comp.graphics, but I think it has
>high relevance to our newsgroup as well.  Let me know what you think,
>and don't forget to reply to the poster directly, too.
>
>From: sdl@lyra.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvinchouk)
>
>I am interested in developing an object-oriented class hierarchy of
>useful "idioms" in scientific visualization, such as maps, spatial
>fields, etc.  (More precisely this would be a multiple-inheritance

 etc, etc

>Does anyone know of any other research in this field that they could
>supply me with pointers to?  Also, if anyone has any ideas on this

        The work currently being done at Xerox PARC on the "Rooms"
        interface is spawning new metaphors of visualization, primarily
        for navigation of huge information spaces. If I named these
        entities, I'd call them "Spindles", "Coatracks", or whatever
        else they might look like; but the point is that they are 
        decidedly novel objects, which would extend anybody's hierarchy.
        Also, considering the source,they are probably being developed in 
        an object-oriented context anyway, simplifying a merge into
        Livinchouk's hierarchy.

        Similarly, if less dramatically, Doug Lenat's work at MCC on 
        the CYC knowledge base is producing neat visualization modalities,
        to deal with similar problems. It's worth a look.

Skip Osborne
Software Productivity Consortium
Herndon, Va.