Using direct manipulation to build algorithm animations by demonstration

Abstract

Dance is a tool that facilitates direct manipulation, demonstrational development of animations for the Tango algorithm animation system. Designers sketch out target actions in a graphical-editing fashion, then Dance automatically generates the code that will carry out those actions. Dance promotes ease-of-design, rapid prototyping, and increased experimentation. It also introduces a methodology that could be used to incorporate demonstrational animation design into areas such as computer assisted instruction and user interface development.

Visual construction of highly interactive applications

“…Pastis (MUller eta!., 1990) is a program animation system based on a debugger. Tango (Stasko, 1991) is another algorithm animation system which implements a path-transition paradigm.…”

Can Direct Manipulation Lower the Barriers to Programming and Promote Positive Transfer to Textual Programming? An Experimental Study

“…For example, Burnett and Gottfried [12] describe an extension to the Forms/3 spreadsheet environment that allows users to program graphical objects by direct manipulation, as opposed to by specifying formulas. Likewise, Stasko [13] presents an environment in which programmers can specify algorithm animations by direct manipulation, rather than by writing complex C code.…”

QUICK: a tool for graphical user-interface construction by non-programmers

“…The object can be asked to run its animation, moving itself along the predefined path. We have invested considerable effort in exploring how best to support the user in specifying animation in the interface, an area that has received little attention up until now except in the area of algorithm animation (Stasko 1991). For instance, it should be possible to specify that a given motion is to be repetitive, cyclic, or relative to the current position of the object in the interface or to some fixed point in the Cartesian plane.…”

“…Myers' early work on Peridot and later work on Garnet (1990) combines programming by demonstration with active value objects. Recent work of Stasko (1991) in the Dance system uses direct-manipulation techniques to build algorithm animations by demonstration.…”