Corné P.J.M. van Elzakker

Field-Based Usability Evaluation Methodology for Mobile Geo-Applications

Abstract An important aspect of a Dutch research project into usable (and well scaled) mobile maps for consumers is presented: the development of an appropriate field-based usability evaluation methodology for the prototype of a geo-mobile application that will be the result of a user centred design approach. Automatic generalisation, required for the users orientation in space, but also for progressive data transfer, will be an important aspect of the prototype. What is reported here is an effective and technically unique user research methodology, based on a combination of video observation, thinking aloud and semi-structured interviewing. The experiments that have led to this outcome revealed some interesting usability issues that deserve further investigation.

The SID Creator: A Visual Approach for Integrating Sensors with the Sensor Web

This paper describes the Sensor Interface Descriptor (SID) model and focuses on presenting and evaluating the SID creator, a visual approach to create instances of the SID model. Those SID instances comprise the knowledge required to integrate a sensor with the Sensor Web. This integration is done by an SID interpreter which uses an SID instance to translate between a sensor protocol and the Sensor Web protocols. An SID instance, designed for a particular sensor type, can be reused in multiple applications and can be shared among user communities. The SID creator enables users to describe the interface, commands and metadata of their sensors. In a user study, we evaluated the simplification of the sensor integration process through the SID concept. The study incorporated four user groups, ranging from high school students to expert users, who were challenged to integrate weather station sensors with the Sensor Web by utilizing the SID creator. While the common approaches of integrating such sensors with the Sensor Web involve manual coding and extensive adaptation efforts, this new visual approach significantly simplifies the integration process.

An agenda for democratising cartographic visualisation

Cartographic visualisation tools aid exploration, but they are designed for, and used exclusively by, experts. A democratised visualisation tool will include second-generation users, and these non-specialists might also want to use the available computer technology to visualise their geographical data. In this paper, we argue that democratised GIS should have a functionality similar to visualisation tools and we forward our opinion on how these can be developed in order to do so. Our emphasis is on interactivity regarding representation methods and on elaborating principles for implementing map type selection in interfaces for democratised GISs.

User studies in cartography : opportunities for empirical research on interactive maps and visualizations

ABSTRACT The possibility of digital interactivity requires us to reenvision the map reader as the map user, and to address the perceptual, cognitive, cultural, and practical considerations that influence the user’s experience with interactive maps and visualizations. In this article, we present an agenda for empirical research on this user and the interactive designs he or she employs. The research agenda is a result of a multi-stage discussion among international scholars facilitated by the International Cartographic Association that included an early round of position papers and two subsequent workshops to narrow into pressing themes and important research opportunities. The focus of our discussion is epistemological and reflects the wide interdisciplinary influences on user studies in cartography. The opportunities are presented as imperatives that cross basic research and user-centered design studies, and identify practical impediments to empirical research, emerging interdisciplinary recommendations to improve user studies, and key research needs specific to the study of interactive maps and visualizations.

Empirical Evaluation of Smartphone Augmented Reality Browsers in an Urban Tourism Destination Context

Today, exposure to new and unfamiliar environments is a necessary part of daily life. Effective communication of location-based information through location-based services has become a key concern for cartographers, geographers, human-computer interaction and professional designers alike. Recently, much attention was directed towards Augmented Reality (AR) interfaces. Current research, however, focuses primarily on computer vision and tracking, or investigates the needs of urban residents, already familiar with their environment. Adopting a user-centred design approach, this paper reports findings from an empirical mobile study investigating how tourists acquire knowledge about an unfamiliar urban environment through AR browsers. Qualitative and quantitative data was used in the development of a framework that shifts the perspective towards a more thorough understanding of the overall design space for such interfaces. The authors analysis provides a frame of reference for the design and evaluation of mobile AR interfaces. The authors demonstrate the application of the framework with respect to optimization of current design of AR.

Increasing the usability of pedestrian navigation interfaces by means of landmark visibility analysis

Communicating location-specific information to pedestrians is a challenging task which can be aided by user-friendly digital technologies. In this paper, landmark visibility analysis, as a means for developing more usable pedestrian navigation systems, is discussed. Using an algorithmic framework for image-based 3D analysis, this method integrates a 3D city model with identified landmarks and produces raster visibility layers for each one. This output enables an Android phone prototype application to indicate the visibility of landmarks from the users actual position. Tested in the field, the method achieves sufficient accuracy for the context of use and improves navigation efficiency and effectiveness.

The space-time cube as part of a GeoVisual analytics environment to support the understanding of movement data

This paper reports the results of an empirical usability experiment on the performance of the space-time cube in a GeoVisual analytics environment. It was developed to explore movement data based on the requirements of human geographers. The interactive environment consists of multiple coordinated views incorporating three graphical representations. For the experiment, two groups of the user, domain experts and non-domain experts, had to execute several map-use tasks to answers specific question. The data collected during the experiment were analysis resulting in a set of usability metrics related to the effectiveness, efficiency and user satisfaction of developed application. The comparison of both groups showed that domain experts were able to operate the visual analytical environment more effectively and efficiently due to their interest to explore their data. The user feedback derived from the analysis of both experiments was further processed for the improvement of the application.

Caring for the Users

Throughout history, of all the scientists and professionals engaged with geographical data collection, processing and dissemination, cartographers have most frequently paid attention to the users of the outcome of these scientific and professional activities. This is logical because cartographers aim to design and produce the tools with which the geographical data are most effectively and efficiently transmitted to their users. We are referring to maps, of course, and the prominent role of map users was reflected in one of the outcomes of the first real ’wave’ of scientific cartographic research in the 1960s and 1970s: the traditional models of cartographic communication. Somewhat earlier, in the 1950s, Robinson had laid the foundation for scientific map use research, involving ’real’ map users. In the years thereafter, many functional as well as perceptual and cognitive map-use research projects have been executed all over the world. However, during the 1980s there was criticism of the communication paradigm and cartographic research became more and more focused on map making and the map producer. To a great extent this new focus was the consequence of tremendous technological developments in the world as a whole, which have also clearly influenced the field of map production. We now reap the benefits of this with our current cartographic visualisation tools, which make it possible to quickly produce many more, and more up-to-date, maps than ever before. It is a pity, however, that mapuse research faded into the background at a time when there remained much to be done in this field. After all, we all realise that there still are many requirements for improvement in geographic information usability. Fortunately, in the course of the 1990s a renewed interest in map use research emerged, first of all directed towards cognitive issues of how maps work. In this century, the interest in use, users and usability has further increased and is still growing. As a reflection of this: the term ‘user’ was mentioned in 69% of the 346 papers presented at the International Cartographic Conference in Durban in 2003. Research attention has also broadened from just map use to all kinds of use and user issues within the realm of geo-information acquisition, processing, management and dissemination. This broadening has emerged as a consequence of the technological developments, through which the various elements of the process of geographic data handling have become much more interrelated and the boundaries between map maker and map user became less clear. So, we should now also think of use, users and usability of, for instance, hardware, software and information systems, interfaces, geographic data and databases. The International Cartographic Association (ICA) is the world authoritative body for cartography. Its mission is to promote the discipline and profession of cartography in an international context. One of the most important means to achieve this mission is through international collaboration in the ICA’s Commissions and Working Groups. They cover the most important fields and research themes within the cartographic discipline, such as education and training, geovisualisation, map production and generalisation. As such, the fields covered by the commissions also reflect the developments within the discipline. For instance, an ICA Commission on Cartographic Communication was established in 1972 and, in 1984, this commission was split up into two working groups, of which one concentrated on map use, under the leadership of Dr Chris Board from the UK. In 1987, this working group was upgraded to a Commission on Map Use, successively led by Olson and Carter from the USA. The commission was discontinued in 1999 because of a lack of output and interest. In the years thereafter, the interests of the users were still visible in the terms of reference of, for instance, the Commission on Maps and the Internet, but an overall usability focus was lacking. In the early 2000s, it became apparent that there was a need to do more about use and user issues and, in 2005, at the International Cartographic Conference in A Coruña, Spain, some 30 participants proposed a new ICA Working Group on Use and User Issues, a proposal that was accepted by the ICA Executive. The working group carried out various activities, such as a special seminar at the Annual Symposium of the British Cartographic Society in Manchester in 2006. In 2007 in Moscow, Russia, the General Assembly of the ICA upgraded the working group to a Commission on Use and User Issues. This is clearly a consequence of the fact that ‘usability’ is one of the ten main research topics of the ICA. The commission’s categorisation of its field of attention reflects a scope that is broader than just map use. The three main categories are the user, usability and improving user abilities. Sub-categories of ‘the user’ are user characteristics, profiles and requirements, use context and goals, and task analysis and modelling. The Cartographic Journal Vol. 45 No. 2 pp. 84–86 Use and Users Special Issue 2008 # The British Cartographic Society 2008

Dissemination of census and other statistical data through web maps

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the role that Web maps play in the dissemination of census and other statistical data, including the geographical interfaces for finding and retrieving the data, the use of maps as a means of presentation, and for online analysis and exploration of the data. These functions are illustrated with examples from the Netherlands and Philippines. A worldwide inventory of the current websites of national statistical organizations and their functionalities and characteristics, including their cartographic aspects is also presented by the chapter. The chapter also explains peculiarities of the hardware and software requirements that make it possible for Web maps to function in various ways. These requirements, along with a lack of awareness of the potential roles of Web maps in the dissemination of census and other statistical data, explains why many national statistical organizations allow the use of Web map tools. The analysis of current websites reveals that not many national statistical organizations (NSOs) are making use of Web maps. This may be partly due to the fact that NSOs are not fully aware of the possible functions of Web maps.

Requirements Elicitation for Geo-information Solutions

Geo-information solutions can achieve a higher level of quality if they are developed in accordance with a user-centred design that requires definition of the user requirements in the first step of solution construction. We treat a geo-information solution as a system designed to support human-based activities in a specific context through which solutions to contextual problems can be achieved via geographic knowledge. Geographic knowledge is a result of geo-data exploration, analysis, interpretation and dissemination with a given geo-information system. Taking the characteristics of geo-information systems into account, existing methods and techniques of requirements engineering may be applied for the design and implementation of geo-information solutions. Based on these considerations, here we present a generic framework that can aid geo-information experts, geo-informaticians and cartographers in the design and construction of more efficient, effective and satisfactory solutions.