DNBVIS Visualization of bibliographic data and content

Research cooperation with the German National Library (Deutsche Nationalbibliothek) to study interactive visualizations of a comprehensive bibliographic collection

Year
2017

This project examines graphical user interfaces to large bibliographic collections in order to support exploratory information access. In cooperation with the German National Library, scenarios, concepts, and prototypes are developed with the aim to support visual search and exploration of semantic information spaces. Among collecting institutions, libraries are the most advanced with regard to their digitization efforts. Especially, the German National Library, whose main mission is to collect, register, and make available all German works since 1913, has a special role to play here.

Together with library networks and other institutions, the German National Library is responsible for the standardization, integration, and maintenance of various authority files in the context of the “Gemeinsame Normdatei” (GND), which can be considered the lingua franca for metadata on German works. Based on rich data relations and interactive and graphical capabilities of modern browsers, new possibilities emerge for the visual exploration of comprehensive collections. However, so far most search interfaces lack any inviting access revealing the relationships among resources and entities.

In cooperation with users and developers of library databases, the visualization researchers working on this project examine the potential of visual interfaces for exploration of large data collections. The aim is to devise viable concepts for overview visualizations of entire collections and specific context visualizations of individual resources. Users should be enabled to grasp the term and topic spaces of specific subject areas and across their boundaries. Particular attention is paid to the integration of search and visualization as well as the development of attractive entry points to support thematic search queries.

This project is a collaboration with the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.

 

Publications Associated Publications

Die bibliografischen Daten der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek entfalten

— Dialog mit Bibliotheken, 2018
Wie sieht die Zukunft der Recherche in digitalen Bibliothekskatalogen aus? Wie können umfangreiche und heterogene Sammlungsbestände mit Hilfe von Datenvisualisierungen besser zugänglich gemacht werden? Kann man durch eine digitale Bibliothek flanieren und dabei den Bestand auf ganz neue Art entdecken? Diese Fragen standen im Zentrum eines Forschungsprojekts, das ein interdisziplinäres Team von Forscherinnen und Forschern des Urban Complexity Lab der FHP im vergangenen Jahr in Kooperation mit der DNB durchgeführt hat. Dieser Artikel stellt das Hauptergebnis des Projekts vor: DNBVIS, der Prototyp eines experimentellen Kataloginterfaces. Anschließend werden die Vorgehensweise und wichtigsten Erkenntnisse des Projekts zusammengefasst.
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Co-Designing Visualizations for Information Seeking and Knowledge Management

— Open Information Science‚ 4(1), pages 217-235, 2020
Creativity is a crucial factor in finding novel and useful visualization and interaction techniques, but its emergence is contingent on the right conditions. The focus of visualization research has traditionally been on techniques, and to a lesser degree on the process of creating them with domain experts and end users. This paper focuses on the collaborative design of visualizations for information seeking and knowledge management. The difficult, yet common challenge in any visualization project is to find meaningful visual representations and useful interaction techniques to carry out complex analysis tasks. The unique difficulty for preparing co-design activities for visualization lies in the gap between the abstract nature of data and the concrete form of visual representations. To bridge this gap, our co-design framework for visualization places particular emphasis on actors, activities, and artifacts as categories that expand the focus of visualization design beyond the traditional triad of users, tasks, and data. Drawing from general co-design principles, the framework is developed and validated during the course of two case studies in the context of information management systems and library collection databases. Based on observed patterns during the case studies, practical tactics provide advice on carrying out co-design in information visualization.
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People
Johannes Herseni
Katja Dittrich
Fidel Thomet
Jonas Parnow
Viktoria Brüggemann
Jens Rauenbusch
Marian Dörk

Year
2017