Bubble radar : efficient pen-based interaction

The rapid increase in display sizes and resolutions has led to the re-emergence of many pen-based interaction systems like tabletop and wall display environments. Pointing in these environments is an important task, but techniques have not exploited the manipulation of control and display parameters to the extent seen in desktop environments. We have overcome these in the design of a new pen-based interaction technique -- Bubble Radar. Bubble Radar allows users to reach both specific targets and empty space, and supports dynamic switching between selecting and placing. The technique is based on combining the benefits of a successful pen-based pointing technique, the Radar View, with a successful desktop object pointing technique -- the Bubble Cursor. We tested the new technique in a user study and found that it was significantly faster than existing techniques, both for overall pointing and for targeting specific objects.