SpaceTree: a novel node-link tree browser

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Project description:

SpaceTree is a novel tree browser that builds on the conventional layout node link diagrams along a single preferred direction. It adds dynamic rescaling of branches of the tree to best fit the available screen space, optimized camera movement, and the use of preview icons summarizing the topology of the branches that cannot be expanded. In addition, it includes integrated search and filter functions. This paper reflects on the evolution of the design and highlights the principles that emerged from it. A controlled experiment showed benefits for navigation tasks to already previously visited nodes and estimation of overall tree topology.

Participants:

Jesse Grosjean, Faculty Research Assistant and main developer
Catherine Plaisant, Associate Research Scientist, HCIL
Ben Bederson, Assistant Professor, Computer Science

Video/Software/Download/Licensing:

SpaceTree is one of the HCIL Products available for licensing by the Office of Technology Commercialization at the University of Maryland.  Please read the licensing terms carefully and register first.  This will lead you to the download area.  By downloading SpaceTree, you agree to the Terms and Conditions of the SpaceTree Noncommercial Use License. If you need more information on licensing SpaceTree and its source code please contact the Office of Technology Commercialisation.

Download: Spacetree-1.6.zip (Java application, requires Java 1.4) - 1.9 Mg - April. 2003

Video demo of version 1.1(orgchart) 5.6 Mg
Video demo of version 1.1 (find planaria) 2.7 Mg

Warning: As of 2020 the Java Applets do not run on web browsers for security reasons. We have been successful running them by installing a google chrome extension called CheerpJ Applet Runner.

APPLET DEMO (requires Java 1.4 - partial demo - still runs as of July 2014)

Java Web Start Demo (Probably cannot work anymore... Requires Java 1.4 and Java Web Start installed on your computer.) .

Publications and reports:

Plaisant, C., Grosjean, J., Bederson, B.,
SpaceTree: Supporting Exploration in Large Node Link Tree, Design Evolution and Empirical Evaluation
Procedings of IEEE Symposium on Information Visualization, 2002 (57 -64), Boston, October 2002

Download all experiment materials:

Experiment materials (software, tasks and data)

Sponsors and Partners:

This project is supported in part by and DARPA.
The animal taxonomy data was provided by the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology Animal Diversity Web www.animaldiversity.org

Other relevant HCIL pages

TaxonTree (an application of SpaceTree)

TreePlus provides a very readable way to navigate graphs represented as trees.

A variation of spacetree (see this blog entry) for diversity data.

Treemap

InfoVis2003 Contest (on tree visualization)

HCIL Annual Symposium and Open House

Web Accessibility