We propose an interaction technique for manipulating precise data or selecting one element from a large number of items.Although conventional graphical interaction tools like sliders cannot be used for selecting more items than the pixel size of the slider, we can specify more precise data by using the elastic slider based on the rubber-band metaphor, where a control object can be moved by pulling the object with a rubber-band between the object and the mouse cursor. The same technique can be applied to many graphical interface tools like scroll bars and drawing editors.

Although various visualization techniques have been proposed for information retrieval tasks, most of them are based on a single strategy for viewing and navigating through the information space, and vague knowledge such as a fragment of the name of the object is not effective for the search. In contrast, people usually look for things using various vague clues simultaneously.For example, in a library, people can not only walk through the shelves to find a book they have in mind, but also they can be reminded of the author's name by viewing the books on the shelf and check the index cards to get more information.To enable such realistic search strategies, we developed a multiple-view information rerneval system where data visualization, keyword search, and category search are integrated with the same smooth zooming interface, and any vague knowledge about the data can be utilized to narrow the search space. Users can navigate through the information space at will, by modifying the search area in each view.

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