TrackStack mockup help request

[Michael Allan]

This is really a beautiful effort, C!  I can see the reasoning behind
it, which makes it very attractive.  The design task (to answer Alex)
is to convey an immediate (2 second) message of progress toward a
goal.  But C, you emphasize *collaborative* progress and I feel you're
definitely right.  Nice!

Here are your mockups again:
http://whiletaker.homeip.net/mockups/2.xht
http://whiletaker.homeip.net/mockups/2ab.xht
http://whiletaker.homeip.net/mockups/2b.xht

That last one made me say, "Wow".  I agree with you and Alex that the
rainbow colours are a distraction and might perhaps be toned down or
(sometimes better) even removed.  But the arrow-like indicator of
progress is an excellent idea.  Definitely something to enhance in
later mockups.

I also like the segmentation of the progress bar according to user
contributions.  Here (for others) you can get a sense of what C is
thinking: http://zelea.com/y/vw/xf/#a=qUS$&c=DV&s=G!p!sandbox*9

The numbers don't match, but see how the accumulated pledges flow
through the delegate users (El, Al, Aa, Bd, Aa, Tz) to the end
candidate's account (Th)?  It's those separate contributions that C is
showing with his segments.  Beautiful idea!  (I remind others that
these visuals will be applied to votes too, not just to quantitative
pledges like $$$.)

One suggestion: The first mockup (2.xht) adds a time dimension to the
progress; as you say, it shows last month's progress toward the goal
compared with today's.  I wonder if you could stack up separate tracks
for that purpose, and use the vertical dimension for the time series.

Another suggestion is to put the mouse to work and bring a "tactile"
sense into the visuals.  Maybe show info details as the mouse
traverses the segments and (if you agree) the time series.  Project
the details onto a heads-up display (not yet coded) just beneath the
toolbar.  That might bring you closer to the point where you could
remove the text entirely from the tracks and reduce their thickness,
in turn increasing screen space, info density, etc.  - But these are
just suggestions.

Good work!

-- 
Michael Allan

Toronto, +1 416-699-9528
http://zelea.com/


conseo wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I have some mockups for the TrackStack layout (1) (2).
> I need help, because I am stuck at how to properly combine accounting progress 
> and collaborative assembly. First I'll show you what I got:
> 
> 2.xht (3) simply uses the horizontal axis to show state (7320 already 
> collected) and progress (1880, in last month for example). Yet it rather looks 
> like a fundraiser-widget and doesn't really show the collaborative and dynamic 
> form of the account assembly. None of this resource (here US$, can be anything 
> countable including labour) is yet bound to the position which is selected 
> (seen in the SuperAccount selector on the top left).
> 
> 2ab.xht shows the fragments with gaps in between. I have also started to show 
> the Mnemonics of the users, to make the collaborative nature of the accounting 
> clearer. Individual contributions are distinct now.
> But this looks a bit cluttered and might confuse most people as they don't 
> understand it is a progress bar. I could add a percent information, yet I feel 
> this defeats the overall progress visualisation.
> 
> 2b.xht uses a rainbow colouring to show that the positions are distinct yet 
> bound together and I can therefore still show a solid bar. It is very eye-
> catching and likely too distracting. I have also lost the progress 
> visualisation.
> 
> So how can I visualize that there is solid backup and progress in terms of 
> accounting, as well as that this is not a bound, but dynamical* social type of 
> accounting? 
> If people get the impression that this money is already booked, then they 
> won't see their chances of participation.
> 
> conseo
> 
> * The assigned money is shifted with the votes for this candidate's position 
> and these shifts can take money/... away to a better (maybe forked) position 
> at any time, so good ideas never come too late.
> 
> (1) http://whiletaker.homeip.net/mockups/
> (2) See for how this layouts in Crossforum:  
> http://zelea.com/project/votorola/_/javadoc/votorola/a/xf/vote/VotespaceV.html
> (3) http://whiletaker.homeip.net/mockups/2.xht