Supporting window switching with spatially consistent thumbnail zones: Design and evaluation

Susanne Tak*, Joey Scarr, Carl Gutwin, Andy Cockburn

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Computer users switch between applications and windows all day, but finding the target window can be difficult, particularly when the total number of windows is high. We describe the design and evaluation of a new window switcher called SCOTZ (for Spatially Consistent Thumbnail Zones). SCOTZ is a window switching interface which shows all windows grouped by application and allocates more space to the most frequently revisited applications. The two key design principles of SCOTZ are (1) predictability of window locations, and (2) improved accessibility of recently and frequently used windows. We describe the design and features of SCOTZ, and present the findings from qualitative and empirical studies which demonstrate that SCOTZ yields performance and preference benefits over existing window switching tools.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationLecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
Pages331-347
Number of pages17
Volume6946 LNCS
EditionPART 1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2011
Externally publishedYes
Event13th IFIP TC 13 International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, INTERACT 2011 - Lisbon, Portugal
Duration: 5 Sept 20119 Sept 2011

Publication series

NameLecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
NumberPART 1
Volume6946 LNCS
ISSN (Print)03029743
ISSN (Electronic)16113349

Conference

Conference13th IFIP TC 13 International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, INTERACT 2011
Country/TerritoryPortugal
CityLisbon
Period5/09/119/09/11

Keywords

  • predictability
  • revisitation
  • spatial stability
  • window switching

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