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This paper surveys the literature on alphanumeric display formatting, focusing primarily on computer-generated displays. Two general areas are included: guidelines addressing display design and empirical studies of displays. Four characteristics of display formats are described: overall density, local density, grouping, and layout complexity. Objective measurement techniques for these characteristics are proposed and are applied to two different display formats. The results suggest that these measures could provide the basis for objectively evaluating a display without collecting performance data.

Four different types of CRT display formats were evaluated in the context of a computerbased telephone line testing system. The formats considered were narrative, which used complete words and phrases; structured, which used a tabular format; black-and-white graphics, which used a schematic of the telephone line; and color graphics, which also used a schematic but added color coding. The evaluation measured speed and accuracy of the subjects' interpretation of the displays of test results. Accuracy did not significantly vary with format but speed did. Response times for both graphic formats were consistently shorter than those for the narrative format. With additional practice, however, response times for the structured format were just as short. There was no significant difference between response times for the black-and-white graphic and color graphic formats.

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