Toward Characterizing the Productivity Benefits of Very Large Displays

Larger display surfaces are becoming increasingly available due to multi-monitor capability built into many systems, in addition to the rapid decrease in their costs. However, little is known about the performance benefits of using these larger surfaces compared to traditional single-monitor displays. In addition, it is not clear that current software designs and interaction techniques have been properly tuned for these larger surfaces. A preliminary user study was carried out to provide some initial evidence about the benefits of large versus small display surfaces for complex, multi-application office work. Significant benefits were observed in the use of a prototype, larger display, in addition to significant positive user preference and satisfaction with its use over a small display. In addition, design guidelines for enhancing user interaction across large display surfaces were identified. User productivity could be significantly enhanced in future graphical user interface designs if developed with these findings in mind.