The Leyline: A Comparative Approach to Designing a Graphical Provenance-Based Search UI

In this paper we explore the design of Leyline, a provenance-based desktop search and file management system, both on a conceptual and user interface level. We start with a comparative analysis and classification of previous provenance based search systems, examining their underlying assumptions and focus, search coverage and flexibility, as well as features and limitations. We then describe a novel provenance-based search system based around a flexible visual sketchpad interface, and explore how this interface technique expands the flexibility of such systems within acceptable limits on complexity and search time. We conclude with a discussion of design implications and lessons learned in the development and evaluation of such a provenance-based search system.