Writing technical documents frequently requires following constraints and consistently using domain-specific terms. We interviewed 12 legal professionals and found that they all use a standard word processor, but must rely on their memory to manage dependencies and maintain consistent vocabulary within their documents. We introduce Textlets, interactive objects that reify text selections into persistent items. We show how Textlets help manage consistency and constraints within the document, including selective search and replace, word count, and alternative wording. Eight participants tested a search-and-replace Textlet as a technology probe. All successfully interacted directly with the Textlet to perform advanced tasks; and most (6/8) spontaneously generated a novel replaceall-then-correct strategy. Participants suggested additional ideas, such as supporting collaborative editing over time by embedding a Textlet into the document to flag forbidden words. We argue that Textlets serve as a generative concept for creating powerful new tools for document editing.

A key aspect of knowledge work is the analysis and manipulation of sets of related documents. We conducted interviews with 12 patent examiners and 12 scientists and found that all face difculties using specialized tools for managing text from multiple documents across interconnected activities, including searching, collecting, annotating, organizing, writing and reviewing, while manually tracking their provenance. We introduce Passages, interactive objects that reify text selections and can then be manipulated, reused, and shared across multiple tools. Passages directly supports the above-listed activities as well as fuid transitions among them. Two user studies show that participants found Passages both elegant and powerful, facilitating their work practices and enabling greater reuse and novel strategies for analyzing and composing documents. We argue that Passages ofers a general approach applicable to a wide variety of text-based interactions. CCS CONCEPTS• Human-centered computing → HCI theory, concepts and models.

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