table top.

I have been working on the building arrangement design interface. That is the table based tool that allows members of the department to assign locations in the new building. To get accurate click and drag I had to use a higher level of the dimond spin java interface - which makes the zoomin/zoom out less slick ( irriation) but lets you click and drag with ease.

Most of the work has been collecting the social network and normalising this against the list of people with their names and pictures. The department has a list of pictures but no simple way to map from names to image with out a lot of arcane Ajax /Lotusnotes ( good example of being far to clever).

I'm getting close to having a decent system with simple start at the data set. the main problem is getting the table ready for expeiments in time to do the table conferance.

Yesterday Yvone made an intreasting throwaway comment about not doing a paper version of the same thing as the paper version would be better. The important part being that the display of social network would not exist in the paper version. This got me to thinking what about an interface using a projector and the feducials/bloby barcodes? You would have cards to represent people ( with pictures ) and then use the fedicilas to get them tracked and project on the rubber lines/ extra info. Mentioned this to Paul and he thought projection from under the table would be good ( simpler for the trackker too ). Yvone suggested doing this for the seminar in june - letting people plan the optimum layout of places to sit over lunch.