Visualizing Conversation January 27, 2009
Dhruv Gupta CS 498 KK3
This paper is basically about visualizing text conversations. There are two methods
(projects) that will achieve this aim – Chat Circles and Loom. Chat Circles are essentially
online conversations with two or more people. They include two main types of
information – the content of the particular message and the presence of the writer.
Chat circles can take on various forms with multiple added tweaks. The conversational
pattern is an interesting form where each user represented as chat circle that expands for a
few seconds when a message is sent.
I found it very interesting when the point was made about people rambling on in
conversations even when there is nothing to say, merely chatting so one is not forgotten. I
have noticed such patterns in my chat groups as well. Further, it was also interesting to
learn about the use of Avatars or graphical icons to represent a person in a chat room. It is
true, and I have found during my use of chat rooms, that people are judged based on their
graphical icon choice. Moreover, their text content is again subject to the expression, or
mood that their graphical icon represents.
The graphical representation for conversations seems like an ideal way to visually
understand they dynamics of conversations in a chat room. I found it impressive that they
were able to color code the circles, and include scales of brightness that indicated the
level of participation.
