From Tabular Data to Metaphoric Landscape Visualisation - A Template-based Approach

This paper presents a template-based approach to the generation of metaphoric visualisation from tabular data. This technique allows a coherent transformation between a relatively abstract visual representation (e.g., a treemap) to a more expressive metaphor (e.g., a virtual atlas). It enables easy customisation of existing metaphors by ordinary users and uncomplicated introduction of new metaphors by expert users. It provides automation in much of the pipeline for creating a metaphoric visualisation, except aspects where crucial semantic input is necessary. The technique was realised in a software system, vis4me2 . As a case study, the outcome of the latest UK Research Assessment Exercise (RAE2008) was used to demonstrate the usability and effectiveness of this technique.