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TableOfContents [HideShow]    Opening a Space       Example Space       Opening Other Space Files    Navigating       Designtime vs. Runtime       Navigating Using the Tree View    Working with Nodes       Adding Nodes to a Space       Editing Nodes       Mouse-Drag Linking       Removing Nodes    Creating a New Space       Saving the Space

theWheel is a tool for knowledge visualization and management. It can manage anything that can be represented as interconnected pieces of information, or nodes. The primary means of organizing nodes is by assigning links connecting the nodes together. The link between any two nodes is assigned a weight, so that two nodes (two CDs, two books, two recipes) that are closely related have a high link weight. If two nodes are not at all related, they have a link weight of zero.

A group of nodes that are interconnected form a space. One of the nodes in the space is designated as the entry point into the space. When the space is first opened in theWheel, this node is displayed prominently near the center of the space view, which is the main window into the space. Other closely related nodes are displayed around it. Moving through the space is intuitive: point at a node that you are interested in. As you do, that node and related nodes are displayed more prominently in the space view.

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Opening a Space

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Example Space

Several example spaces are installed with theWheel. The example spaces that are installed are available under the Start Menu, under the menu items for theWheel.

theWheel will be launched and the chosen example file will be loaded. The nodes will be displayed in their initial configuration.

Notice that the screen is divided into two areas: the large space view to right and the tree view to the left. The tree view displays the nodes in a more traditional hierarchical display. Each node has child nodes, which are displayed below it and indented. A node can be expanded by clicking on the “+” button, or closed by clicking on the “-” button.

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Opening Other Space Files

The example spaces, like all spaces, are saved in files that end with “.spx”. To open any other space file, select Open from the File menu. A dialog box is displayed, allowing you to browse for the space file. Only space files will be displayed.

When you have located the space file, click on it, and then click “Open” in the dialog box. theWheel will load the space and display the nodes.

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Navigating

Navigating a space using the space view is an easy and intuitive way of browsing information. There are four steps to navigating using the space view:

1. Move the mouse pointer over a node that you are interested in
2. That node will grow larger (it becomes more activated), and related nodes will also appear and grow larger
3. If you see a related node that you are interested in, move the mouse pointer over that node
4. Repeat

To see an example of this, check out the screen capture.

Some nodes have description text, images, or both. As the node gets larger, more of the description text and images becomes visible. Additionally, some nodes may have an associated web site. If this is the case, then you can click on that node and a separate web browser will be opened, navigating to that site (except that this doesn't work).

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Designtime vs. Runtime

The interaction just described applies to theWheel’s Runtime mode, which is the typical mode for navigating a space. While designing a space, theWheel works in Designtime mode, which provides more flexibility while designing a space.

In Designtime mode, moving the mouse cursor over a node does not cause it to become more activated. Rather, you must click on a node to activate it. This is to allow for more flexible use of the mouse during space design.

The Runtime switch is on the toolbar . When it is switched on , theWheel is in Runtime mode, and the mouse movement activation will occur. When it is switched off, theWheel is in Designtime mode.

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Navigating Using the Tree View

The tree view provides a more conventional view of the space. Each node has a parent (except the root node) and possibly children. The tree view displays this hierarchy in a familiar Windows™ tree control. A node can be expanded to show its children by clicking on the <+> button next to it. A node can also be collapsed if it has a <-> button next to it.

Scroll bars are visible if the tree display becomes too large to fit into the window.

A node can be selected in the tree view, in which case it will also be activated in the space view. This provides a convenient means of quickly finding a node based on the tree view hierarchy, and then browsing from that node using the space view.

The selected node in the tree view is also the current selection for the items in the Edit menu.

















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Working with Nodes

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Adding Nodes to a Space

To add a new node to a space, you should first decide where it belongs, at least the general neighborhood where it would fit in. Then identify an existing node that can be the new node's parent. This should be a node which is logically related to the new node in a hierarchical fashion, such as a more general concept.

Then, in Designtime mode, the new node is added by:

1. Select the designated parent of the new node in the tree view
2. Right-click on the parent node to display a popup menu
3. Choose the option New Child Node to add the new node as a child of the selected node
4. The new child node will be created with a default name, which you should change to something more meaningful
5. Select the child node to edit its properties using the property pages at the bottom of the tree view (see Editing nodes below

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Editing Nodes

After adding a new node to a space, its content can be edited, images can be added to it, and its links to other nodes can be modified.

To edit a particular node, make sure you are in Designtime mode, and select it in the Tree View. When the node is selected, the property pages at the bottom of the tree view will reflect the values for the selected node.

The property pages are selected by clicking on the appropriate tab. The first tab, Node, contains the basic attributes of the node – its name and its body text. Edit the name or body text of the node using the entry fields on the property page. As you edit the fields, the display of the node in the space view will be updated dynamically to reflect the new values.

The next tab, Image, allows you to assign an image to be shown with the node. This property page also allows the node to be assigned to a class, which determines the color of the node’s title bar. A generic URL can also be assigned to the node on this property page as well.

A node’s image is specified as a file name within a sub-directory called image which must exist in the same directory as the space file. Multiple nodes may have the same image file. The display of the node in the space view will show the image whose filename is entered here.




The last tab, Links, allows you to manually assign weights to the currently selected node's links with other nodes. All other nodes are listed under the Links tab, sorted in decreasing order by the link weight. If you want to change the weight of a link, edit the link weight directly in this list. Notice that most links are weighted 0.0 – this is typically the case for most spaces, as most nodes are only connected to a few other nodes.









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Mouse-Drag Linking

Rather than specifying link weights as numerical values, a more intuitive mechanism for establishing link weights is available in the Designtime mode. Navigate so that both nodes to be linked are visible in the Space View. Then simply drag the mouse cursor from the source node to the destination node, and release on the destination node. While dragging, a dotted line will indicate the position of the start of the drag, and the mouse cursor will change to a “chain-link”. Upon releasing the drag on the destination cursor, the link weight connecting the source to the destination will either be set to 10.0 (if it had been < 10.0), or it will be multiplied by 1.2 if it was greater than 10.0.

Mouse-drags can also be used to weaken a link. If you decide that the link connecting two nodes is too strong, navigate so that both nodes (as well as the link connecting them) are visible. Then drag the mouse cursor across the link (ensuring that you don’t start the drag on a node, and that you don’t cross any other links). The mouse cursor will change to a “saw” during the drag. The link will be decreased to 85 percent of its previous strength.

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Removing Nodes

To remove a node from a space, right-click on the node in the tree view. Select Delete Node from the right-click menu.

A confirmation message will appear asking if you really want to permanently delete the node from the space. If you respond with Yes, then the node will be permanently deleted and all links to/from the node will also be deleted.

Removing nodes should be done infrequently, as it can disrupt the connective structure of the space. Generally, if a node has been added and then determined to be unimportant, it would be better to decrease the weights of the links connecting it to other nodes, rather than removing it entirely.



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Creating a New Space

To create a new space select New from the File menu. Alternatively, click on the New button on the toolbar.

If the space that is currently opened has been changed, you will be prompted to save the changes before the new space is created.

A new space will be created which consists of four nodes – a single parent node and three child nodes.

These four nodes can be renamed and populated with information specific to your space. Additional nodes can also be added to the space.

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Saving the Space

After creating a new space, you must save the space and assign it a name so that your work will not be lost. Select either Save or Save as… under the File menu to save the space. You will be prompted for a file name for the space. Alternatively, click on the Save button on the toolbar.

You will also need to save after making any changes to an existing space. In this case select Save from the File menu and the space will be saved under its current name.