title: Comparing dot and landscape spatializations for visual memory differences.
abstract: Spatialization displays use a geographic metaphor to arrange non-spatial data. For example, spatializations are commonly applied to document collections so that document themes appear as geographic features such as hills. Many common spatialization interfaces use a 3-D landscape metaphor to present data. However, it is not clear whether 3-D spatializations afford improved speed and accuracy for user tasks compared to similar 2-D spatializations. We describe a user study comparing users' ability to remember dot displays, 2-D landscapes, and 3-D landscapes for two different data densities (500 vs. 1000 points). Participants' visual memory was statistically more accurate when viewing dot displays and 3-D landscapes compared to 2-D landscapes. Furthermore, accuracy remembering a spatialization was significantly better overall for denser spatializations. These results are of benefit to visualization designers who are contemplating the best ways to present data using spatialization techniques.
authors.affiliation: University of Victoria. mtory@cs.uvic.ca
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tory
authors.forename: Colin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Swindells
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dreezer