Semantic Zoom With Immersive Detail View for ExplorViz.

Bamberg, Jens (2024) Semantic Zoom With Immersive Detail View for ExplorViz. Open Access (Master thesis), Kiel University, Kiel, 85 pp.

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Abstract

The demand for large software projects is growing and therefore the use of software visualizations is a precious tool for onboarding new developers and introducing new software features. The use of visualizations is an effective method for accelerating the comprehension of data. Given the limited visual processing power of the human brain, the amount of visible objects can become overwhelming. It is therefore necessary to reduce the number of visible objects at once without losing access to important details. In light of these considerations, we introduce two new features, namely semantic zoom and immersive view, to the domain of software visualization, with ExplorViz serving as a case in point. ExplorViz is a 3D city metaphor software visualization tool that displays both dynamic and static data. Semantic zoom is a common technique employed in 2D graph representations for the aggregation of data. In this work, the semantic zoom feature is applied to a 3D visualization. The feature in question conceals, reveals, and modifies the 3D objects of the visualization in accordance with the position of the camera within the environment. The immersive view offers a comprehensive, unobstructed representation of the object in question, free from the distractions inherent to traditional visualizations.
A user and a system’s performance evaluation provides insight into the usability and performance improvements. The system’s performance evaluation indicates a higher rate of frames per second on average in large landscapes compared to a system without the semantic zoom feature. However, the frames per second exhibited more fluctuations and could even reach almost zero in some cases. A user evaluation was conducted with 16 participants to examine the user performance while performing tasks in the visualization. The results of the user evaluation indicate no improvement in the time required to complete the tasks. However, the participants rated the interaction with the visualization positively. The newly introduced immersive view provided further detailed information and was considered beneficial by the participants.

Document Type: Thesis (Master thesis)
Keywords: Semantic Zoom
Research affiliation: Kiel University > Software Engineering
Projects: ExplorViz
Date Deposited: 18 Dec 2024 11:01
Last Modified: 18 Dec 2024 11:01
URI: https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/61118

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