IVORY-an object-oriented framework for physics-based information visualization in Java

We present IVORY a newly developed, platform-independent framework for physics based visualization. IVORY is especially designed for information visualization applications and multidimensional graph layout. It is fully implemented in Java 1.1 and its architecture features client server setup, which allows us to run the visualization even on thin clients. In addition, VRML 2.0 exports can be viewed by any VRML plugged-in WWW browser. Individual visual metaphors are invoked into IVORY via an advanced plug-in mechanism, where plug-ins can be implemented by any experienced user. The configuration of IVORY is accomplished using a script language, called IVML. Some interactive visualization examples, such as the integration of a haptic interface illustrate the performance and versatility of our system. Our current implementation supports NT 4.0.