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Bridging the Gaps
November/December 2006 (vol. 26 no. 6)
pp. 6-9
ASCII Text
x 
 
Jarke J. van Wijk, "Bridging the Gaps," IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, vol. 26, no. 6, pp. 6-9, November/December, 2006.
 
 
BibTex
x
 
@article{ 10.1109/MCG.2006.120,
author = {Jarke J. van Wijk},
title = {Bridging the Gaps},
journal ={IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications},
volume = {26},
number = {6},
issn = {0272-1716},
year = {2006},
pages = {6-9},
doi = {http://doi.ieeecomputersociety.org/10.1109/MCG.2006.120},
publisher = {IEEE Computer Society},
address = {Los Alamitos, CA, USA},
}
 
 
RefWorks Procite/RefMan/Endnote
x 
 
TY - MGZN
JO - IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications
TI - Bridging the Gaps
IS - 6
SN - 0272-1716
SP6
EP9
EPD - 6-9
A1 - Jarke J. van Wijk,
PY - 2006
KW - visualization
KW - scientific visualization
KW - information visualization
KW - visual analytics
KW - cooperation
KW - user-centered design
VL - 26
JA - IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications
ER -
 
Jarke J. van Wijk, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven
The aim of visualization is to enable users to obtain insight, and not just to produce images. Hence, if we want to make progress in the field of visualization, close cooperation with users is essential, but such cooperation is not without problems. There are two major gaps to be bridged. First, there?s a knowledge gap between the visualization expert and domain expert. The visualization expert must spend much effort to understand what the domain expert is studying and what his or her concerns are. Second, there is an interest gap. A visualization researcher will aim at new methods and results, whereas the domain expert primarily needs a useful tool. This article discusses various modes for cooperation, in view of these gaps. The royal road is to use user-centered design, but this can be time consuming and does not necessarily lead to innovative results. The latter holds even stronger when a visualization expert just acts (or is viewed as) a tool smith. In contrast, a visualization expert can also operate as a computer scientist, and focus just on the parts of the puzzle where he or she already has expertise. Finally, the article discusses a purely curiosity driven approach, where the visualization expert acts as domain expert.

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Index Terms:
visualization, scientific visualization, information visualization, visual analytics, cooperation, user-centered design
Citation:
Jarke J. van Wijk, "Bridging the Gaps," IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, vol. 26, no. 6, pp. 6-9, Nov./Dec. 2006, doi:10.1109/MCG.2006.120
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