Empirical Testing of Bends in Workflow Diagrams by Eye-Tracking Method

Workflow diagrams consist of nodes and connectors to express the steps of processing in the form of a visual program. The graphical vocabulary and the layout of the diagram have an influence on the user cognition of diagram. The aesthetic aspects also have an impact on users understanding. One aesthetic recommendation – “minimize beds in edge” was tested in workflow diagrams from ArcGIS ModelBuilder. Eye-tracking measuring in the laboratory was prepared for objective empirical testing. Five couples of diagrams with and without orthogonally bends were showed to 26 respondents. The user executed specific tasks above diagrams. Eye-tracking measuring brought interesting objective results. Eye-tracking metrics affirm that diagrams with orthogonal bends on connector lines have an average higher number of fixations, longer length of scanpath, shorter average time of fixation and longer duration time. The result is that the using of straight lines brings effective cognition of workflow diagrams in case of spatial data processing in geographic information system (GIS).

[1]  Zdena Dobesova,et al.  USING THE PHYSICS OF NOTATION TO ANALYSE MODELBUILDER DIAGRAMS , 2013 .

[2]  Jitka Komarkova,et al.  Usability evaluation methods for spatial information visualisation: Case study: Evaluation of tourist maps , 2015, 2015 10th International Joint Conference on Software Technologies (ICSOFT).

[3]  Edward M. Reingold,et al.  Tidier Drawings of Trees , 1981, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering.

[4]  Petra Mutzel,et al.  Planar Polyline Drawings with Good Angular Resolution , 1998, GD.

[5]  Harald Störrle.  On the impact of layout quality to understanding UML diagrams: Diagram type and expertise , 2012, VL/HCC.

[6]  David W. Martin,et al.  Doing psychology experiments , 1977 .

[7]  D. Stott Parker,et al.  Aesthetics-Based Graph Layout for Human Consumption , 1996, Softw. Pract. Exp..

[8]  Zdena Dobesova.  Student Reading Strategies of GIS Workflow Diagrams , 2016 .

[9]  Kenneth Holmqvist,et al.  Eye tracking: a comprehensive guide to methods and measures , 2011 .

[10]  Colin Ware,et al.  Cognitive Measurements of Graph Aesthetics , 2002, Inf. Vis..

[11]  Zdena Dobesova.  DATA FLOW DIAGRAMS IN GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS: A SURVEY , 2014 .

[12]  Peter Eades,et al.  A Heuristic for Graph Drawing , 1984 .

[13]  Daniel L. Moody,et al.  The “Physics” of Notations: Toward a Scientific Basis for Constructing Visual Notations in Software Engineering , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering.

[14]  Harald Störrle,et al.  On the Impact of Diagram Layout: How Are Models Actually Read? , 2014, PSRC@MoDELs.

[15]  Mark Strembeck,et al.  The Influence of Notational Deficiencies on Process Model Comprehension , 2013, J. Assoc. Inf. Syst..

[16]  Roberto Tamassia,et al.  On Embedding a Graph in the Grid with the Minimum Number of Bends , 1987, SIAM J. Comput..

[17]  Ioannis G. Tollis,et al.  Efficient Orthogonal Drawings of High Degree Graphs , 2000, Algorithmica.