In Summer 2014, I worked on a project that aimed to be a case study to define what end users will and want to do with an interface on a multi-site visualization platform. The question being: as a user, I want to [action] in order to [goal]. I focused on creating a web-application that could be used as a disaster management support decision tool.
The data-centric design had to consider multiple factors:
- Collect different data types that can be updated
- Access to temporal and spatial referenced data
- Simple and easy to access and interpret assuming the user has limited IT experience
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| This was the design vision. As users (D) interface with the map, users (E) could actively see changes while also making changes over their own. Rather than mirroring the changes on the interface, both users could directly engage on the content. |
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| This was the initial blueprint for the data presentation based on what relevant information would be needed to make educated decisions. |
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| Early renditions with a static UI and sample data |
The design objectives were to geographically visualize regions of interest, to access multiple unique datasets to gauge disaster action choices, and to selectively filter relevant datasets on the map. Most of all, the application had to be streamlined, straightforward, and transparent to the user.
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| Current rendition of the application overlooking Chicago with Police & Fire Station JSON data with an updated dynamic UI |
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| Current rendition overlooking east Japan with historical earthquake disaster data and magnitude plotting |
Although far from finished, this application allowed me to prototype an application on the multisite visualization platform and showcase its potential to access and display various datasets onto a live map.
