User Interface Management Systems: Proceedings of the Workshop on User Interface Management Systems held in Seeheim, FRG, November 1–3, 1983

220 Pages·1985·9.818 MB·English

by  H. J. Strubbe (auth.), Günther E. Pfaff (eds.)

EurographicSeminars
Tutorials and Perspectives in Computer Graphics
Edited by G. Enderle and D. Duce
User Interface
Management Systems
Proceedings of the Workshop on User Interface
Management Systems held in Seeheim, FRO,
~ovemberl-3,1983
Edited by Gunther E. Pfaff
With 69 Figures
Springer-Verlag
Berlin Heidelberg New York Tokyo
Eurographic Seminars
Edited by G. Enderle and D. Duce
for EUROGRAPHICS -
The European Association for Computer Graphics
P.O. Box 16
CH-1288 Aire-la-Ville
Editor:
Giinther E. Pfaff
GTS/GRAL
AlsfelderstraBe 7
D-6100 Darmstadt
ISBN-13: 978-3-642-70043-9 e-ISBN-13:978-3-642-70041-5
DOl: 10.1007/978-3-642-70041-5
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data.
Workshop on User Interface Management Systems (1983 : Seeheim-Jugenheim,
Germany) User interface management systems. (EurographicSeminars) Bibliography: p.
1. Interactive computer systems-Congresses. 2. Computer graphics-Congresses.
I. Pfaff. G. (Giinther).1951-. II. Title. III. Series. QA76.9.l58W671983 001.64'404 85-2831
ISBN-13: 978-3-642-70043-9 (U.S.)
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Sof tcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1985
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2145/3140-543210
Editors Introduction
The book contains the proceedings and reports of the "Workshop on
User Interface Management Systems", held in Seeheim, Federal Re
public of Germany, November 1-3, 1983. The workshop brought toge
ther experts in using and developing techniques for managing the dialo
gue between users and interactive graphics systems. The purpose of the
workshop was to produce an agreed report contrasting existing ap
proaches, and outlining directions for future work. Four different areas
were defined and addressed at the workshop, namely
a) role, model, structure and construction of a UIMS
b) dialogue specification tools
c) interface of the UIMS to the application
d) user's conceptual model
All participants prepared papers each in one ofthose problem areas. The
papers have been rewritten in the light oft he issues discussed during the
workshop. Also a subgroup report was produced for each problem area
summarizing the results of the discussions at the workshop.
Preface
User Interface Management Systems (UlMS) are the mediators
between the user and the application programs. As more and more in
teractive programs become widely available,methods and techniques of
designing and implementing acceptable user interfaces have to be inves
tigated. Since many years, research on the design ofu ser interface mana
gement systems is going on. This EUROGRAPHICS Workshop follows
from the ACM SIGGRAPH Workshop on Graphical Input and Interac
tion Techniques of May, 1982 in Seattle (see: Computer Graphics 17(1),
1983), and the IFIP WG 5.2 workshop on Methodology ofInteraction of
1979 (see: R. Guedj et al, eds, "Methodology ofInteraction", North-Hol
land, Amsterdam, 1980) held at Seillac, France.
After the Seattle workshop, two more workshops were proposed: one to
concentrate attention on the software aspects of the UlMS, and the
other to clarify the interdisciplinary relationships required to better
understand interaction methodology. The first of these two workshops
is the one reported in this book, the other will be held in the USA in
1985.
The UlMS workshop concentrated on the four areas of general UIMS
topics (role, model, structure, and construction of a UlMS), dialogue
specification tools, interface to application programs, and the user's con
ceptual model. After initial presentations in these four areas, partici
pants split into four subgroups, each of which was assigned one of the
above topics. The three days we respent on discussing issues specific to
the subgroup topics, presenting them and the proposed results to the
general assembly, and reconvening with refmed issues and accepted
solutions.
Subgroup alpha (Role, Model, Structure and Construction of a UlMS)
was to discuss general UlM topics and to fmd a link to the previous Seatt
le workshop. Since "Role" was sufficiently discussed in the GIlT work
shop and was agreed here, the discussion concentrated on ''Model'' and
"Structure". It was recognized that the OSI layer model can be applied
very well to communication layers in a UlMS. Similarily, the known mo
dels ofhierachical interaction blocks fit very well to construct a UlMS.
A general generic UIMS being a basis for the construction of special
UlMS's remains to be elaborated in future activities.
VIII
Subgroup beta (Dialogue Specification Tools} concentrated on the is
sue, how to describe user interfaces with regard to the following que
stions:
a) how can implementations of user interfaces be automatically produ-
ced,
b) how do UI-descriptions relate to human factors,
c) how can user interface description techniques be classified
A model was developed which defmes the logical components ofa gene
ral UIM system.
Subgroup gamma discussed the interface of a UIMS to application pro
grams, especially to CAD applications. Three major problems were
identified, namely the configuration of a UIMS with respect to specific
applications, the division of the responsibility for graphical output be
tween application and UIMS,and the communication services and func
tions required by both applications and UIMS.
Subgroup omega fmally made an attempt at the formal specification of
the User's Conceptual Model (DCM). Several notations were investiga
ted which can be a start-point to integrate also the work of other experts
in the field of the user interface problems, such as philosophers,
linguists, or psychologists.
The organisation of the workshop was accomplished with support from
several sources. The following institutes provided the means and re
sources for the workshop:
- EUROGRAPHICS Association
-IFIPWG 5.2
- Gesellschaft ftir Informatik, GI-FA 4.1
Organising an event such as this workshop can only be done with the
help of the right team. Thanks are due to the programme and organi
zing committee consisting of Paul ten Hagen, Herbert Kuhlmann, and
David Rosenthal. Special thanks go the workshop secretary, Bridget
Astridge, for her help and assistance.
Obviously the success of a workshop like this depends on the partici
pants and their cooperation. This fruitful and highly interesting event
was made possible by the following participants:
Mark Apperly, New Zealand Herbert Kuhlmann, FRG
Rudolfo Belliardi, USA Michael Mac an Airchinnigh, Ireland
Bertran David, France Jan Matthys, Belgium
Jan Derksen, The Netherlands Dimitr Novatchev, Bulgaria
Ernest Edmonds, UK Dan Olsen, USA
Jose Encamacao, FRG GUnther Pfaff, FRG
GUnter Enderle, FRG John Sibert, USA
Mark Green, Canada Robert Spence, UK
Richard Guedj, France Hugo Strubbe, USA
IX
Henning Hanusa, FRG Tapio Takala, Finland
Abid Kamran, USA Peter Tanner, Canada
Robert Kenyon, UK Paul ten Hagen, The Netherlands
Fumihiko Kimura, Japan James Thomas, USA
Gergely Krammer, Hungary Fan Yu-Quing, UK
Darmstadt, January 1985 Giinther E. PfatT
Table of
Cont~nts
Part 1
Subgroup Reports
H. J. Strubbe:
Report on Role, Model, Structure and Construction of a UIMS . 3
M. Green:
Report on Dialogue Specification Tools . . . . . . . . 9
G. Enderle:
Report on the Interface ofthe UIMS to the Application. . . . .. 21
M. Mac an Airchinnigh:
Report on the User's Conceptual Model . . . . . . . . . . . .. 31
Part 2
Role, Model, Structure and Construction of a UIMS
A. Kamran:
Issues Pertaining to the Design of a User Interface Management
System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 43
H. J. Strubbe:
Components of Interactive Applications ...... 49
T. Takala:
Communication Mediator - A Structure for UIMS . . . . .. 59
P. P. Tanner and W. A. S. Buxton:
Some Issues in Future User Interface Management
System (UIMS) Development . . . . . . . . . . . 67
J.J. Thomas:
Architecture for A User Interface Management System 81
Part 3
Dialogue Specification Tools
G. Green:
Design Notations and User Interface Management Systems . .. 89
XII
P.I. W ten Hagen and 1. Derksen:
Parallel Input and Feedback in Dialogue Cells .... 109
D. R. Olsen, Jr.:
Presentational, Syntactic and Semantic Components of
Interactive Dialogue Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Part 4
Interfaces and Implementations of UIMS
P. David, S. Lafont, and P. Uvietta:
UIMS as Part of a CAD System . 137
E. Edmonds and S. Guest:
The Unification of a Dialogue Manager and a Graphics System. 155
G. Enderle:
The Flexible Configuration of Interaction Environments
using GKS and Workspaces . . . . . . . . . . . 161
1. Matthys:
Recent Experiences with Input Handling at PMA 171
1. Sibert, R. Belliardi, and A. Kamran:
Some Thoughts on the Interface Between User Interface
Management Systems and Application Software . . . . . . . . 183
Part 5
User's Conceptual Model
M. Apperley and R. Spence:
The Role of a User's System Model, and its Relevance to User
Interface Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
M. Mac an Airchinnigh:
A Model of a User's Conceptual Model of ... 203
Part 1
Subgroup Reports