Object-oriented versus bit-mapped graphics interfaces: performance and preference differences for typical applications

Abstract This study used a standardized evaluation to compare two direct manipulation graphics interfaces. The interfaces investigated were: (I) object-oriented (vector) graphics; and (2) bit-mapped graphics (object-oriented graphics interfaces are not to be confused with object-oriented programming or object-oriented data bases). Experienced and novice subjects performed objectively derived benchmark tasks appropriate for two-dimensional graphics packages. Both performance and preference data were collected. Task completion time, aborted attempts, learning effects, and errors consituted the performance measures. For the preference data, subjects completed questionnaires to rate the interfaces on both an absolute and a relative basis. Results indicate that the object-oriented graphics interface is superior to the bit-mapped interface for most tasks included in the benchmark set. The advantages of the object-oriented interface are especially pronounced for graphic manipulations such as rotation, resizing (...