Pragmatic Information Processing Aspects of Graphically Accessed Computer-Aided Design

The specification of the pragmatic information content of graphical displays is approached by defining three display attributes- quantity, format, and time. A mathematical measure of pragmatic information quantity is proposed while the effects of format and time on pragmatic information processing activity are discussed qualitatively. An experimental evaluation of the effects of quantity, format, and timing of pragmatic information in a specially constructed graphically oriented design task is described.