Quantifying the Performance Effect of Window Snipping in Multiple-Monitor Environments

  • Dugald Ralph Hutchings
  • John Stasko
Conference paper
Part of the Lecture Notes in Computer Science book series (LNCS, volume 4663)

Abstract

Snip is a tool that allows a user to constrict the view onto any window. We report on a controlled study of the snip tool in the context of a multiple-monitor environment. The study was designed based on observed user behavior in a field study of multiple-monitor users’ snipping habits. Analysis provided results that indicate that users can expect to reference information approximately 15% to 30% faster from snipped windows than from non-snipped windows. Further, users need to pay only a small overhead cost to perform the snip operation. The result extends to other recently presented region-based interface tools that aim to assist multiple-monitor users interact effectively and employ additional monitor space for information-referencing activities.

Keywords

multiple monitors window management evaluation snip 
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Copyright information

© IFIP International Federation for Information Processing 2007

Authors and Affiliations

  • Dugald Ralph Hutchings
    • 1
  • John Stasko
    • 2
  1. 1.Computer Science Department, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403USA
  2. 2.GVU Center, College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332USA

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