Technical Report No. 117 - Abstract

Christoph A. Hipke, Sven Schuierer
Vega---A user-centered approach to the distributed visualization of geometric algorithms

We present a new approach to the distributed visualization of geometric algorithms that emphasizes the position of the end user. Concepts are introduced that enable a more flexible usage of visualized geometric algorithms, while keeping the task of adapting existing algorithms to the new scheme as simple as possible. A main proposition is that interactivity should not be built into the visualized algorithms, but into the visualizing system. With this in mind, we devise a visualization model for geometric algorithms that incorporates strong algorithm execution control, flexible manipulation of geometric input/output data and adjustable view attributes. The new visualization model is implemented in the Vega system. Vega offers distributed visualization of geometric algorithms based on source code annotation and supports the standard libraries LEDA and CGAL. More information about Vega is available at
http://ad.informatik.uni-freiburg.de/Vega/