Georgi Kobilarov wrote: >> Perhaps we have different objectives: you want to explore big graphs >> while I want anybody to be able to build a browseable UI for a small >> graph. >> > You are right, our objectives are a bit different, but I think they > overall fit quite well together. My goal is to find ways to enable users > to explore large graphs and break them down into smaller graphs > containing the actual data they are interested in. Analyzing and > browsing these smaller graphs works wonderfully with the tools you've > created. And in order to create an coherent user experience, these two > tasks shouldn't be disconnected. > I haven't thought of it from that perspective, but you're right, that makes perfect sense.
> I'm not advocating "Web of Data browsers" like Tabulator here, I'm just > looking at how users e.g. in businesses could deal with their > information when access to relational databases is opened through tools > like D2R server. > > I remember a discussion a while ago on loading DBpedia into Longwell. > Besides raw computational scalability that wouldn't work from a UI > perspective as well. > Agreed. The mismatch is perhaps in the assumption (in Longwell and other faceted browsers) of a closed world, containing a coherent data set, with a few data types that have been groomed to work well together. But if that's true, then in fact, we'll need something that approaches "web of data browsers". Tabulator certainly has the spirit of the open Web, but it has few powerful browsing facilities. >> I did think of query graphs and other designs, e.g., in early 2005 >> >> http://people.csail.mit.edu/dfhuynh/research/ideas/zoomable-faceted- >> browsing/query-graph-2.pdf >> >> http://people.csail.mit.edu/dfhuynh/research/ideas/nested-queries-in- >> faceted-browsing/page-06.png >> but I'm not convinced that a pipeline UI is the best. >> > > Interesting that you called the first one "zoomable". I've been recently > thinking what "zooming and panning" means for graph-based UIs, and I > failed to find papers on that topic. And haven't figured it out myself > yet... > I was trying different perspectives on the problem space... There is a tension in the web 2.0 user interfaces: trying to accommodate as much interactivity + direct manipulation as possible while maintaining the medium of the web page. It is this very tension that, if used properly, can help guide us away from zoomable UIs that so far have seen little general adoption. In my opinion, this browsing interface must resemble a web page so that people can pick it up and use it, and so that it can be smoothly integrated with existing web sites. David _______________________________________________ General mailing list [email protected] http://simile.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/general
