[IxDA Discuss] Graphical methods for displaying time elapsed

[Will Parker]

I just happened to run across something that could be useful for your  
project -- an MIT timeline display framework - http://simile.mit.edu/ 
timeline/

	"Timeline is a DHTML-based AJAXy widget for visualizing time-based  
events."

Good luck with your final design. I'd love to hear more on your  
project when appropriate.

- Will

Will Parker
wparker at ChannelingDesign.com

"Well, let's look at it for awhile and be irritated by it and then  
we'll figure out what to do." - Frank Gehry on the creative process

On Mar 2, 2007, at 2:49 PM, Will Parker wrote:

> A few more questions and observations:
>
>  - Do the events have a variable duration?
>  - Do events of a different class have different durations?
>  - Can multiple events (either same class or different classes)  
> overlap?
>  - If overlap is possible, is that state worse than the worst  
> single state? How should that 'super-bad' state be signaled?
>
> All of the above will affect the design of your display.
>
>  - Does the user have to take different kinds of actions to respond  
> to different classes of events,
>     or is the reaction merely a matter of different degrees of the  
> same basic action?
>
>  - Are you required to use visual signals for current-state alarms?
>     How about sounds or haptic feedback via a buzzer in the user's  
> mouse, joystick or chair?
>
> If the controls to correct different classes of errors are in  
> different locations, you might want to lay out your current-state  
> alarm indicators so that the warning signal is close to the correct  
> set of controls.
>
> -Will
>
> On Mar 2, 2007, at 1:57 PM, dnp607 wrote:
>>
>> This is a great suggestion Dmitri, thank you. Since there are only 3
>> alarms (and there's little chance of that growing to more in the
>> future), showing each of the alarms on a separate scrollable timeline
>> would reduce confusion. Example:
>>
>> [alarm itself]: alarm timeline
>>
>> [AlarmA]: * * * A * * *
>>
>> [AlarmB]: * A * * * A *
>>
>> [AlarmC]: * * * * * * *
>>
>> ..and then be able to scroll the alarm timeline. There can also be a
>> clear scale showing where in the 30 minute period the alarm occurred.
>>
>> -Dan
>>
>> -------------------------------------------------------------
>> Dan Peknik * NASA Ames Research Center
>>          San Jose State University, ID HF/E
>> -------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> On Mar 2, 2007, at 1:18 PM, Dmitry Nekrasovski wrote:
>>
>>> Dan,
>>>
>>> Have you considered separate timelines for each type of alarm, with
>>> highlighted segments/icons to indicate alarms that have occurred in
>>> the past? These could be displayed in a sliding window, where one  
>>> end
>>> of the window corresponds to the current status and the other to 30
>>> min in the past.
>>>
>>> Dmitry
>
>
> - Will
>
> Will Parker
> wparker at ChannelingDesign.com
> 206-228-3187 (cell-preferred)
> 206-783-1943 (home office)
>
>
> "The only people who value your specialist knowledge are the ones  
> who already have it." - William Tozier
>
>