| This thesis presents the development, implementation, and user testing of a novel interaction technique for tabletop computer displays. Although remote pointing has been investigated for large wall displays, there has been no similar research into reaching distant objects on tabletop displays. When using a direct input device, such as a stylus, reaching objects on the far side of a table is difficult. Augmenting a stylus to allow remote pointing may facilitate this process. Our research demonstrates that, with no special selection aids, remote pointing is faster than direct touch for large targets, slower for small, distant and medium-distance targets, and comparable in all other cases. Based on these results we developed the TractorBeam interaction technique, a hybrid point-touch input technique that allows users to seamlessly reach distant objects on tabletop displays. Upon investigating use of our technique we found that, when given a choice, people choose the pointing interaction technique significantly more often than direct touch. Additionally, further experiments to improve the selection of small, distant targets with the TractorBeam revealed that special selection aids such as expanding the target, expanding the cursor, and snapping to the target all result in faster selection times than no selection aid at all, with snapping to the target being the fastest. Overall, the results of this research demonstrate that the TractorBeam is an effective interaction technique for selecting both close and distant items on tabletop displays. |
