Abstract
Graphic data models are used as a communication tool between system users and a system analyst to support database design. It is a tacit assumption that users understand graphic models and can confirm that the model correctly depicts important requirements for the system. For this, the data model syntax and style must facilitate understanding of the information elements, interrelationships, and constraints represented. Unfortunately, little is known about how users read and interpret data models, what level of detail is seen, or how model type or graphic style influences model comprehension. Our observations, from a pilot study in graphic data model perception, indicate that many graph details are seen by less than half of the readers and that graphic style influences both the ease with which the models are read and model comprehension.
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© 1995 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Nordbotten, J.C., Crosby, M.E. (1995). Recognizing graphic detail an experiment in user interpretation of data models. In: Goble, C., Keane, J. (eds) Advances in Databases. BNCOD 1995. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 940. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0000541
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0000541
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