A second, related objective of the research
is to explore ethnographic methods of data acquisition and
alternative domain modelling techniques for reuse. Software
reuse researchers have considered a wide spectrum of representation/retrieval
schemes (e.g., free text searches, keyword-in-context, faceted schemes
[Prieto87],
entity-relationship models, semantic network, frame-based, and object-oriented
systems). While these vary widely in terms of flexibility, formality and
extensibility, most share the characteristic of being textual/verbal in nature
(even when a graphic interface is provided to navigate through the
taxonomy). Effective retrieval of multi-media information may need to rely on
different kinds of models and navigation strategies—both using different
kinds of linguistic cues and non-verbal cues as well.
Certain ``virtuoso'' studio engineers and sound
programmers are surprisingly skillful at accessing massive collections of
sound samples with minimal tool support. By empirical study of their intuitive
classification and retrieval techniques, we hope to gain important insights
into effective navigation strategies that will prove relevant beyond
multimedia domains.
For example, in a ``spatial'' model, navigation
through the component collection is projected into movement (continuous or
quantized) through a qualitative ``space'', each dimension or axis of which is
mapped to some parameter or polarity between features. As a familiar example
in the typeface domain, movement from ``light'', through ``medium'', ``demi-bold'',
and ``bold'' faces to ``extra-bold'' could be modelled as movement along an axis
of ``font weight''.
Preliminary analysis of the kinds of categories used in the
sound domain suggest that qualitative polarities like ``fat-thin'' and
``warm-cool'' may be important ways of structuring the sound palette. An
attribute of ``brightness'' vs. ``darkness'' (or ``fatness'' vs. ``thinness'') might
be associated with one axis of the sound (or timbre) space.
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