Viewing personal history records: A comparison of tabular format and graphical presentation using LifeLines

Thirty-six participants used a static version of either LifeLines, a graphical interface, or a Tabular representation to answer questions about a database of temporal personal history information. Results suggest that overall the LifeLines representation led to much faster response times, primarily for questions which involved interval comparisons and making intercategorical connections. A “first impression” test showed that LifeLines can reduce some of the biases of the tabular record summary. A post-experimental memory test led to significantly (p<.004) higher recall for LifeLines. Finally, simple interaction techniques are proposed to compensate for the problems of the static LifeLines display’s ability to deal with precise dates, attribute coding and overlaps. INTRODUCTION The way in which temporal data is represented has a dramatic effect on the way we interpret and use those data. Metaphors and analogies have been used quite effectively to aid the user and provide a mental model of the system (Carroll & Mack, 1985). In order for a graphical interface (visual, as opposed to textual or numeric) to be the most effective, though, it is useful to "use