Using compound earcons to represent hierarchies

Brewster, S.A. , Capriotti, A. and Hall, C.V. (1998) Using compound earcons to represent hierarchies. HCI Letters, 1(1), pp. 6-8.

Abstract

Previous research on non-speech audio messages called <i>earcons</i> showed that they could provide powerful navigation cues in menu hierarchies. This work used <i>hierarchical</i> earcons. In this paper we suggest <i>compound</i> earcons provide a more flexible method for presenting this information. A set of sounds was created to represent the numbers 0-4 and dot. Sounds could then be created for any node in a hierarchy by concatenating these simple sounds. A hierarchy of four levels and 27 nodes was constructed. An experiment was conducted in which participants had to identify their location in the hierarchy by listening to an earcon. Results showed that participants could identify their location with over 97% accuracy, significantly better than with hierarchical earcons. Participants were also able to recognise previously unheard earcons with over 97% accuracy. These results showed that compound earcons are an effective way of representing hierarchies in sound.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Brewster, Professor Stephen and Hall, Dr Cordelia
• Authors: Brewster, S.A., Capriotti, A., and Hall, C.V.
• Subjects: Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA75 Electronic computers. Computer science; Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA76 Computer software
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Computing Science
• Journal Name: HCI Letters
• Publisher: Springer
• ISSN: 1430-8630
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 1998 Springer
• First Published: First published in HCI Letters 1(1):6-8
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher