TRELLIS: A BLOG-BASED APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT,
ORGANIZATION, AND VISUALIZATION OF IDEAS
Except where reference is made to the work of others, the work described
in the thesis is my own or was done in collaboration with my advisory
committee. This thesis does not include proprietary or classified
information.
______________________________
Michael Gordon Felix
Certificate of Approval:
_________________________
Brett Smith
Professor
Industrial Design
_________________________
Tsai Liu Lu
Assistant Professor
Industrial Design
_________________________
Christopher J. Arnold, Chair
Assistant Professor
Industrial Design
_________________________
Joe F. Pittman
Interim Dean
Graduate School
TRELLIS: A BLOG-BASED APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT,
ORGANIZATION, AND VISUALIZATION OF IDEAS
Michael Gordon Felix
A Thesis
Submitted to
the Graduate Faculty of
Auburn University
in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the
Degree of
Master of Industrial Design
Auburn, Alabama
August 4th, 2007
iii
TRELLIS: A BLOG-BASED APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT,
ORGANIZATION, AND VISUALIZATION OF IDEAS
Michael Gordon Felix
Permission is granted to Auburn University to make copies of this thesis at its
discretion, upon request of individuals or institutions and at their expense. The
author reserves all publication rights.
Signature of Author
Date of Graduation
iv
TRELLIS: A BLOG-BASED APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT,
ORGANIZATION, AND VISUALIZATION OF IDEAS
Michael Gordon Felix
Masters of Industrial Design, August 4th, 2007
(BSEV Auburn University, 2005)
107 Typed Pages
Directed by Chris Arnold
The creative process is often indirect. Ideas may come in bursts, evolve
gradually, or include missteps and false turns. It is helpful to have a scaffold to
maintain a history of thoughts and provide structure onto which nascent ideas
can be stored and expanded. ?Trellis? is a model for implementing such scaffolds,
based on two maturing technologies, blogging and radial mapping. Although
common methodologies for developing ideas are traditionally implemented on
paper, they are particularly suited for the digital realm. Rather than re-
interpreting these methods, Trellis provides a centralized, hierarchical container
for the information associated with an idea, visualizes the connections between
ideas, and allows the user to travel backward in time to monitor the evolution of a
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project. This approach conjoins the real-world creative processes of thinking,
writing, and collaborating ? with a digital space for storing, collecting, and
visualizing the result of an intellectual activity.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many thanks to my family and friends who dealt with me during this long
process.  Bonus points to Michael Douma for acting as a mentor and providing
me with the knowledge, advice, and software to make this project possible.
vii
Style Manual used:
Department of Industrial Design
Software used:
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Apple Safari
Apple iTunes
Mac OS X Dictionary & Thesaurus
Microsoft Word
viii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF FIGURES xi
I. INTRODUCTION 1
II. KNOWLEDGE & IDEAS 3
2.1 Knowledge 3
2.1.1 Description 5
2.1.2 Definition 7
2.1.3 Vocabulary 9
2.1.4 Language 10
2.1.5 Interface 11
2.2 Ideas 12
2.2.1 Creativity 13
2.2.2 Creative Process 14
2.3 Managing Ideas and Developing Knowledge 15
2.3.1 Paper-based approaches 16
2.3.2 Software-based approaches 17
2.3.3 Distributed approaches 21
III. BLOGGING 25
3.2 Foundations 27
3.2.1 A Virtual Space 27
3.2.2 Personal Publishing 28
3.2.3 Business Models 28
3.3 Leading Systems 29
3.3.1 WordPress 29
3.3.2 Blogger 30
3.3.3 Moveable Type 30
3.4 Strengths 30
3.5 Weaknesses 31
3.6 Design Patterns 32
3.6.1 Architecture 33
3.6.2 Content 34
3.6.3 Organization 35
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3.6.4 Theming 36
3.6.5 Community 37
3.7 Emerging Design Patterns 39
3.7.1 Architecture 40
3.7.2 Theming 41
3.7.3 Experience & Integration 43
IV. TRELLIS 44
4.1 Blogging 44
4.2 Radial Mapping 45
4.3 Approach 46
4.4 Design Process 47
4.4.1 Beginnings 48
4.4.2 Learning From Nature 49
4.4.3 Iterative Simplicity 53
4.4.4 Organic Adaptation 54
4.4.5 The Activity Feed 54
4.4.6 Hierarchical Visualization 58
4.4.7 Interaction Wireframes 61
4.4.8 Prototypes 65
4.4.9 Final Concept 66
4.5 Workflow 70
4.5.1 Posting 70
4.5.2 Reviewing 71
4.5.3 Sharing 72
4.5.4 Collaborating 73
4.6 Implementation 74
4.6.1 A Virtual Space 75
4.7 Delivery 76
4.7.1 Enterprise 78
4.8 Testing 78
4.9 Strengths 80
4.10 Weaknesses 81
V. APPLICATIONS 82
5.1 Developing a Project 82
5.2 Collaborating on a Creative Project 85
5.3 Managing a Group 86
x
5.4 Organizing Output 86
VI. CONCLUSION 88
6.1 Blogging for Ideas 89
6.2 Further Research 89
REFERENCES 91
xi
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1 - The same image at different resolutions. 6
Figure 2 - A collection of words 8
Figure 3 - Applying organization 8
Figure 4 - Romanesco Broccoli 9
Figure 5 - DNA 11
Figure 6 ? OmniOutliner 18
Figure 7 ? FreeMind 19
Figure 8 ? Tinderbox 19
Figure 9 - DEVONthink 20
Figure 10 ? Backpack 21
Figure 11 - SVNx, a Subversion client for Mac OS X 23
Figure 12 - Wikipedia, a popular wiki-based encyclopedia 24
Figure 13 - Typical blog architecture compared to an actual blog. 34
Figure 14 - The same blog styled with three different themes. 37
Figure 15 - ?Asides? are posts that are given less visual impact. 40
Figure 16 - Inline commenting 41
Figure 17 - k2, an advanced theme for WordPress 42
Figure 18 - A radial map 45
Figure 19 - The Time Since plugin calculates datestamps on relative terms 48
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Figure 20 - A brainstorm of name and idea generators 49
Figure 21 - The logo of Trellis. 49
Figure 22 - The seeds of a sunflower 51
Figure 23 - A screenshot of the initial Trellis interface 52
Figure 24 - The 'Clock' method. Ink on napkin. 55
Figure 25 - The 'Stack' method 56
Figure 26 - The Facebook Newsfeed 57
Figure 27 ? A working prototype of the Activity Feed 58
Figure 28 - The knowledgebase of Trellis rendered as a list. 59
Figure 29 - A section of the Trellis knowledgebase rendered in a radial map 60
Figure 30 - Wireframe Scene 1 61
Figure 31  - Wireframe Scene 2 62
Figure 32 - Wireframe Scene 3 62
Figure 33 - Wireframe Scene 4 63
Figure 34 - Wireframe Scene 5 63
Figure 35 - Wireframe Scene 6 64
Figure 36 - Wireframe Scene 7 64
Figure 37 - Preprototype in development 65
Figure 38 - Similar layout with different mapping strategy 65
Figure 39 - Final Design Concept: Main View 66
Figure 40 - Final Design Concept: Viewing a Post 67
Figure 41 - Final Design Concept: Writing a Post 68
Figure 42 - Final Design Concept: Blank State 69
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Figure 43 - The iterative idea development workflow of Trellis 70
Figure 44 - The posting environment within Trellis 71
Figure 45 - The Activity Feed 72
Figure 46 - Viewing a blog via a newsreader 73
Figure 47 - Commenting on a Post 74
Figure 48 - Marketing and Service Portal 77
Figure 49 - A project being developed in the Trellis testbed 79
Figure 50 - Collecting research 83
Figure 51 - Posting Concept Sketches 84
Figure 52 - Organizing Plotlines 85
1
I. INTRODUCTION
The idea development process is often difficult to predict. New knowledge
can give way to new concepts, radically changing the organization or scope of the
idea. Such a rapidly changing approach makes it easier to lose track of not only
the process, but also any knowledge associated with the idea [24].
Often, it is up to the individual to establish an organizational structure for
the development of an idea. Commonly a sketchbook or journal may be used, but
this format proves cumbersome when working with a diverse palette of media
[2]. Such an invariable storage medium also makes knowledge reinterpretation
more difficult. This is evident when doing Internet-based research, as writing
down the addresses to websites on paper proves to be less natural than saving it
as a bookmark within a browser.
Static structures for the management and storage of ideas are revealing
that they are incompatible with the processes and media associated with a
technology-aided design process [13]. This incompatibility can manifest itself as a
stumbling block in the design process, for example, in how time is wasted in the
search for misplaced information. These stumbling blocks hinder the design
development phase, which can account for up to 85% of the total cost of the
design process [4].
2
Knowledge is becoming a critical asset of accelerated design development
[8]. As design development moves toward a more knowledge-centric axis,
systems that enable the continuous flow of information during the design process
can reduce both the costs and time required for development [16]. Beyond the
cost advantage, these systems form a historical design record, capable of bridging
the gap between past and present design initiatives [21].
This paper investigates knowledge, surveys its usage for developing ideas,
and proposes a self-sustaining model for managing the development of ideas. The
proposed model employs a scaffold for managing the information encountered
during the idea development process. This scaffold organizes and visualizes the
process by abstracting the function of open-source web publishing software. Such
an approach aids in the retention of ideas and being based on an open platform,
relies upon no proprietary technology.
3
II. KNOWLEDGE & IDEAS
A characteristic of human behavior is the intrinsic desire to capture,
sustain, and transfer knowledge. This human fascination with knowledge is
clearly evident in how, as a species, we have collected and compiled a record
of our growth, which we call history. Access to this history sustains the
knowledge of those who have come before us, often revealing new ideas as
combinations of new and pre-existing knowledge. By paying careful attention
to history, one can collectively learn from both the mistakes and success of
others.
2.1 Knowledge
Davenport and Prusak define knowledge as a combination of
experience, ancillary information, insight, and standards that provide a
foundation for assessing and assimilating new experiences and information
[6]. Polanyi further identifies knowledge as existing in two forms, both tacit
and explicit [23]. Tacit knowledge exists subconsciously, often without the
individual being actively aware of its presence. Conversely is explicit
knowledge, which exists actively and may be more easily communicated or
understood. A good example of this distinction can be seen in describing how
to write a song or paint a picture ? the actual process, although
4
documentable, is difficult to simplify down to a set of instructions which will
give the same result, when repeated.
Likewise, even though knowledge about designing is usually
considered tacit [9], it can be externalized and embedded within its creators
[6]. Even externalized, knowledge is often difficult to quantify, due to the fact
that the cognitive dimension of knowledge consists of concepts, values, and
mental frameworks that are established within the creators, and often taken
for granted [21].
Both Court [5] and Ramesh and Tiwawna[25] recognize several
classifications of knowledge that designers use in the development process:
1. General knowledge: Knowledge gained through day-to-day
experiences and not applied to a specific domain.
2. Domain specific knowledge: Knowledge gained through study and
experience within a domain. This is commonly proportional with
experience.
3. Procedural knowledge: Knowledge gained from experience of
undertaking a task within a domain.
Procedural knowledge usually exists in a tacit form and may contain
the most valuable knowledge of the design process [5]. This knowledge may
include a set of mental concepts, such as design fundamentals, criteria,
specifications, or theory [25]. Being tacit knowledge, it is often difficult to
5
articulate, which if not transferred can create knowledge gaps within an
organization [6]. Tiegland, et al [32] note that channels for leveraging
procedural design knowledge are becoming increasingly important for the
efficiency of a modern Internet aided design process. They continue to
suggest that these channels must be effective in the capture, recycling,
management, and transfer of procedural design knowledge.
2.1.1 Description
Before knowledge can be captured, it must be somehow described.
Russell cites description as a set of understandings about an object [28].
Similarly, describing is the process of generating these descriptions.
Description is crucial in the development of knowledge, as it serves as a
foundation upon which an object can be understood. Descriptions can be
simplified into individual traits. A trait is a singular distinguishable property
of an object ? such as color, size, or texture.  Quantifiable traits can be
further rendered into standardized units called data, a set of discrete,
objective facts [6].
The iterative foundation of description can be understood by viewing
it with a technology-based model. Just as new technology is formed from
varying combinations of older technologies, description is in itself a similarly
recursive process. This recursion forms descriptions that ultimately seek to
describe themselves, becoming increasingly more complex with each
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iteration. Such complexity can be organized by processing description with
an object-oriented, recursively explained approach:
A description: Broken into traits: Interpreted as data:
?The phonebook is in
the sunroom inside the
basket with magazines.?
1. The phonebook is in the sunroom.
2. The sunroom has a basket.
3. The phonebook is in the basket.
4. Magazines are in the basket.
sunroom
{
basket
{
phonebook
magazines
}
}
Table 1 - A description broken down into traits and interpreted as data.
Descriptions are a multivariate medium. This dynamic nature enables
them to be rendered in different resolutions. Low-density descriptions,
although compact, can be misleading. In contrast, high-density objects are
well described, at the cost of storage space. Consider the figure below:
Figure 1 - The same image at different resolutions.
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Although both images are the same physical size, they are rendered at
different resolutions. The image on the left is difficult to discern, yet occupies
only 5 kilobytes of disk space. In contrast, the image on the right is described
in high density at a cost of 50 kilobytes.
A side effect of variability is misinterpretation. Just as one might
describe his girlfriend as smoking hot, this description carries multiple
meanings: either she is quite physically attractive or perhaps she is on fire
and should seek medical attention immediately. The variable nature of
description proves troublesome when transferring knowledge, as their
interpretation can lead to false understanding [17].
2.1.2 Definition
Definitions are the formalized descriptions of an object. Having an
official definition makes knowledge easier to understand by establishing
rules upon which assumptions can be formed [31]. These rules enable
understanding to advance at exponential rates by building upon the
assumptions formed from previous knowledge.
Formalized definitions compress knowledge. Compression attempts to
reduce the size of a description by grouping together similar traits [14]. The
resultant group is of smaller size and simplified description. Well-formed
compression techniques are keen to identify similarities within a dataset,
allowing for further simplification. A good example can be found in John
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Maeda?s The Laws of Simplicity [18]. He presents the reader with the
following collection of words:
red lion cola pepper sapphire
blue bear frappe salt diamond
green alligator martini msg topaz
pink flamingo espresso garlic ruby
white giraffe milk cumin emerald
black penguin beer saffron amethyst
gray dog water cinnamon turquoise
Figure 2 - A collection of words
He notes that the addition of a little white space clarifies this jumbled mess
of words, revealing its implied relationships:
red lion cola pepper sapphire
blue bear frappe salt diamond
green alligator martini msg topaz
pink flamingo espresso garlic ruby
white giraffe milk cumin emerald
black penguin beer saffron amethyst
gray dog water cinnamon turquoise
Figure 3 - Applying organization
Optimum compression yields the perfect balance of size to density.
Nature tends to be quite good at this, obvious in the structure of Romanesco
Broccoli, which uses a spiral to compress its form into a beautiful result:
9
Figure 4 - Romanesco Broccoli
2.1.3 Vocabulary
Grouped sets of definitions form vocabularies. A vocabulary is a set of
definitions upon which knowledge can be formalized and interpreted [29].
The complexity of a vocabulary is dependent upon the resolution of its
description. Likewise, vocabularies are necessary for describing new
technology. This symbiosis sustains evolving knowledge by forming a
recursive process of description and definition.  As knowledge evolves, new
vocabularies are formed to describe it.
The symbiotic relationship between knowledge and technology can be
understood by examining the development of the field of medicine. In
proportion to the understanding of the human body, medicine has been able
to both cure and prevent the spread of diseases that would have ravaged past
civilizations. As a body of knowledge develops, new vocabularies are
produced to formalize the knowledge they describe. Such is the case with the
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modern field of genetics budding from Mendel?s study of inheritance in pea
plants. Future research in genetics will continue to simplify the
understanding of the human body, spawning new research and developing
new vocabularies for describing its function.
2.1.4 Language
Language is a structured method of encoding knowledge for transfer.
Specialized languages developed as a result of organized knowledge are
called pattern languages. The idea of pattern language was first described by
the architect and systems theorist Christopher Alexander and can be used to
describe how formalized vocabularies can be evolved into specialized
languages for increased understanding [1]. His research sought to develop a
language in which architects and civil engineers could communicate with
others about the intricacies of designing spaces.
Language development reflects a high level of organization applied to
a specific body of knowledge. Through the application of different
vocabularies, languages further compress knowledge and encode it within a
streaming format for exchange. Nature offers an excellent application with
DNA, a pattern language that defines the structure and function of living
organisms. DNA compresses the knowledge required to build living things
within a vocabulary defined by combinations of four different nucleotides.
This compression forms a beautifully succinct, high-density structure:
11
Figure 5 - DNA
2.1.5 Interface
Interfaces facilitate the transfer of knowledge. This process is delicate
and tedious, as knowledge must be decompressed, interpreted, and
reconstituted. Use of an interface produces experience, a historical record
formed as the result of interaction [6]. Experiences are simple descriptions
themselves, which can be further formalized into expected results; called
expectations.
Interfaces create robust, high-density experiences that properly
decompress knowledge and reveal its definition. A successful interface
delegates knowledge quickly and with great accuracy, while handling
unexpected events; called errors. Such errors occur when knowledge cannot
be interpreted, often as a result of incomplete description or false
organization. Upon encounter of the unexpected, an interface attempts to
12
render experience at reduced detail, degrading gracefully into a lower
resolution.
The human body transfers description through a set of specialized
interfaces; called senses. Each sense has its own language and subsequent
vocabulary. For example, vision may be interpreted through languages of
color, form, and balance, and taste with salty, sweet, and sour. These
interfaces compress, encode, and transfer information at great speed and
resolution, allowing instantaneous response to multiple stimuli.
2.2 Ideas
Not surprisingly, more attention has been placed upon systems to
manage ideas and associated knowledge [7]. Dooley and O?Sullivan suggest
that the growth may be attributed to recent findings that organizations that
manage and develop their own ideas see more growth and better knowledge
retention [7]. Despite Council?s projection of development costing up to 85%
of the total cost of the design process [16], Rochford maintains that the idea
creation phase of design is considerably less costly in comparison with later
development stages [27]. Given its lower cost and intrinsic flexibility,
employing strategies for the management of developing ideas can both
maximize and preserve the total creative potential of the idea creation phase.
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2.2.1 Creativity
Van de Ven [33] suggests that innovation can originate from ?a
recombination of old ideas, a schema that challenges the present order, or a
formula or unique approach that is perceived as new by the individuals
involved.? Innovation is a product of creativity, a process which ?results in
the generation of new and useful ideas or the combination of existing ideas
into new and useful concepts to satisfy a need [10].? Creativity can be
separated into three categories: normative creativity, exploratory creativity,
and creativity by serendipity [19]. Normative creativity forms ideas to solve a
fixed set of problems and objectives. The pre-defined nature of normative
creativity is generally more efficient, yet it has a tendency to limit creative
output.
Exploratory creativity generates a wider array of ideas. These ideas
may not necessarily be related to known design requirements. It differs from
normative creativity in that it does not focus on using pre-determined
answers to known problems. Exploratory creativity may not always generate
commercially viable ideas, yet the broad scope can sometimes uncover a
broader diversity of concepts and ideas from which another solution can
form [20]. Flynn, et al note how exploratory creativity is especially useful for
combining current knowledge with new technology [11]. In the proper
balance, exploratory and normative creativity can sustain both specification
and creative freedom.
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Creativity and the resulting innovation are said to take place by
serendipity when the idea underlying the innovation is discovered by
accident [11]. Often this occurs as a result of being involved in a problem yet
at the same time sufficiently distant enough to prevent over-analysis. This
immersion is regarded as being an important factor for gaining creative
insight. Beyond immersion, creativity may be further affected by external and
internal relationships as well as the environment in which creativity occurs
[17]. Flynn, et al. agree, noting the presence of a creative culture becoming a
critical component of innovation and better maximization of the creative
process [11].
2.2.2 Creative Process
The creative process calls upon the collection and organization of
knowledge into a mental model, which can then be used to develop new
ideas. James Webb Young identifies the creative process as a five-stage
process [35]:
1. Gathering of raw materials
2. Order and analysis of collected material
3. Mental incubation
4. Idea conception
5. Shaping and development
15
Creative action begins with research, which is later compiled and
indexed. This material incubates within the unconscious mind of the creator,
finally presenting the conscious mind with creative ideas [34]. These ideas
are shaped and finally developed into a finished product. This strategy forms
an iterative loop, where each stage of the process requires the organization of
some sort of information from its predeceasing operation.
The creative process is based on a series of ?complex deliberations
about interdependent decisions that lead to design solutions? [25]. Ramesh
and Sengupta note that knowledge about these ?deliberations? is typically lost
as it is never recorded [24]. Having access to this level of knowledge could
provide deep insight into a firm?s design process and help to reveal its
inefficiencies.
2.3 Managing Ideas and Developing Knowledge
Given the nature of the creative process as a knowledge-centric
activity, much research has been conducted in the field of knowledge
management for developing ideas [5, 25, 9, 26]. Modern tools for idea and
knowledge management are based upon a central methodology and
organizational system. Some commonly used methodologies include:
? Outlining ? a method of organizing and categorizing information
within hierarchical lists.
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? Brainstorming ? a creative process where a group meets to rapidly
produce ideas and concepts, often in a stream-of-consciousness,
quantity-over-quality format.
? Mindmapping ? a method of visualizing an abstract idea by creating
a graphical map of individual thoughts, which can be linked to imply
relationship or hierarchy.
? Version Control ? a procedure for managing the changes to a unit
of information, tracking progress, and recovering from mistakes.
Most idea development tools implement one or more of these methodologies
into some sort of organizational structure, along with an interface for
interacting with the collected data. Following is a survey of approaches to
idea management.
2.3.1 Paper-based approaches
One of the first technologies to facilitate developing knowledge was
paper, which revolutionized the way in which information could be stored.
Using paper ended up being a huge success, improving upon the time-proven
techniques of carving rocks or painting cave walls.  Its simplicity, low cost,
and availability make it a logical medium for recording information. Paper
can be easily organized into stacks and placed within files, or collected and
bound to form books.
17
As the idea management process becomes increasingly complex,
paper-based approaches reveal their inefficiencies. Being a physical media,
there is no separation between the data and the media. This lack of
separation makes information more difficult and cumbersome to index.
When collected in large amounts, paper reveals another problem. Even
though an individual piece of paper may occupy a small amount of space,
when combined the result can be quite massive. Even though solutions for
records management readily exist, these solutions generally only optimize
the physical storage of paper and the information still remains in a static
form.
2.3.2 Software-based approaches
Software-based approaches to idea management are generally more
flexible their paper-based counterparts. Being virtual, software can
dynamically manipulate and organize information at great speed. This has
great potential for organizing large amounts of information and managing
the connections within it. Commonly, idea management software will model
everyday creative and organizational processes in a virtual environment,
where information can be more easily abstracted and transformed.
OmniOutliner is a virtual environment for developing outlines. It
expedites the creation and modification of complex outlines that can contain
various multimedia elements.
18
Figure 6 ? OmniOutliner
A similar tool is FreeMind, an open-source program for transforming
outlines into interactive mind-maps. These maps are displayed visually and
can contain HTML links and simple graphical elements.
19
Figure 7 ? FreeMind
Tinderbox is a software-based personal content management
assistant. Similar to FreeMind, it uses graphical maps to both organize and
visualize the connections within an information database. These maps can be
richly described with text, links, or images.
Figure 8 ? Tinderbox
DEVONThink approaches idea management from an artificial
intelligence perspective. Its algorithms discover connections within a
collection of information, revealing relationships and helping to visualize
trends.
20
Figure 9 - DEVONthink
Backpack is a centrally hosted web-based information management
system. It allows information to be stored within pages that can be organized
by a user or user group. These pages act as centralized containers for
associated media and can be organized with tags that describe the content.
21
Figure 10 ? Backpack
2.3.3 Distributed approaches
Distributed approaches to idea management create networks that
connect people together for the collection and index of information. These
22
approaches support the collection of knowledge by establishing frameworks
for its subsequent description and organization. Similar to software-based
approaches, the distributed model reinterprets existing idea development
approaches in the digital realm. Its core advantage is connectivity, allowing
ideas to be managed in real-time on a global scale.
The Internet offers the same utility as paper, realized with today?s
prevalent technology. The true innovation added by the Internet is not only a
new storage medium for knowledge, but also a global network for
distributing and organizing it. As with any technological innovation, current
modes of thinking and problem solving are the first replicated in a new
technology, after which, new approaches evolve that take greater advantage
of the degrees of freedom offered by the technology.
One such distributed approach is Subversion, an open-source version
control application. Subversion assists in the distributed development of a
collection of information, and generates a historical record of revisions.
Although it is most often used for managing source code, Subversion can also
be used to manage the development of large hierarchies of digital files.
23
Figure 11 - SVNx, a Subversion client for Mac OS X
Wiki is a collaborative technology for organizing information on Web
sites. Similar to Subversion, a wiki allows users to edit collaboratively-
constructed content. Each revision is stored within a historical database.
Whereas Subversion is aimed toward handling large collections of files, wiki
systems are designed so that their content can be made available in a quick
and uncomplicated manner and edited by anyone.
24
Figure 12 - Wikipedia, a popular wiki-based encyclopedia
This paper approaches idea management by using a similar web-based
distributed idea management approach. Rather than developing a system
from the ground up, this paper seeks to investigate the use of blogging, a
technology historically developed to support web-based journaling, for
assisting in the development of ideas. The next chapter examines the history,
development, and design patterns behind blogging.
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III. BLOGGING
Blogging began as the experimental implementation of publishing within a
new electronic medium. Early adopters of the new format realized this potential
and sought to develop a practical method of updating their websites with new
content. Journaling was the obvious choice to build upon, as the format is well
suited for providing updates over time. The first blogs were usually static web
pages with regularly updated ?What?s New? or ?Updates? sections. The process of
updating these websites involved some technical know-how of content editing,
coding, and file transferring.
As access to the Internet became more widespread, blogging became more
accessible. Pitas.com was opened in July of 1999 and offered the first centrally
hosted blogging service. A month later, Pyra Labs announced Blogger, and
hundreds of other services soon followed. These sites made blogging easier by
handling all of the technical aspects of updating a website. They usually
presented a user with a simple posting procedure: type your content in the box
and click a button. Another advantage provided by these sites was data indexing.
Most systems were beginning to rely upon databases for information storage
rather than static pages. The software powering blogging was being used to
dynamically generate web pages based upon database queries, making it a much
more dynamic and scaleable process.
26
The move towards database-driven systems had other advantages. Posts
could be grouped into different categories, which would automatically be updated
by the database. Commenting was added, allowing users to post their feedback to
the content. The move towards standardized data formats saw syndication being
applied to blogging through RSS and eventually Atom. Blogging was beginning to
emerge as a powerful technology not only for journaling but also for content
management.
The massive popularization of blogging saw the development of new
applications. Business use of blogging has included not only internal blogs, used
for intra-company news and discussion, but also external product, public
relations, or CEO blogs. Blogging has also begun to become a popular practice
among many politicians and celebrities, reaching out and interacting with their
constituents and fans at a level never before seen.
Blogging is a technological innovation that is overturning the existing
dominant technologies and publishing methods in the market. It is what Clayton
Christensen called a ?low end? disruptive innovation [3]. Blogging is not only
disrupting the existing market of content management systems, but more
importantly, it is disrupting the very basis on which information is created and
distributed in our society.
By comparison, an example of a disruptive innovation in the generation of
content is digital photography, which began as a low-end novelty, but has since
overtaken and for the most part replaced the instant photographic market
(Polaroid, etc). Similarly, blogging can be seen as a disruptive technology in the
27
way it has revolutionized web publishing. Many vendors of content management
systems (CMS) have been selling products that function similarly to blogs, only
cost thousands more. It is only a matter of time until CMS software will be
completely overtaken by blogging as both the standardized format and
methodology for web publishing [15]
3.2 Foundations
The word ?blog? is an abbreviation of ?weblog,? coined by Jorn Barger in
1997. Being based upon the practice of journaling, the formalized definition of a
blog is a website where information is stored as separate entries and commonly
listed in reverse chronological order. Just as the theory and technology behind
blogging has evolved, it has found itself as less of a journal and more of an
organized format for sharing information.
Owing much to its predeceasing technologies, blogging simply extends
journaling into a richer, more organized process. The framework provided by a
blogging system helps to order and index the data, while abstracting the technical
processes of interfacing with a database. This abstraction makes the format much
more approachable, and is in a large part responsible for its success.
3.2.1 A Virtual Space
Beyond their basic function, blogs serve as virtual environments for
widespread communication. These virtual environments exist separately from the
physical realm, facilitating interaction where it would be otherwise impossible.
28
Blogging presents users with unfiltered, predigested content from both amateur
and professional sources, leveling the playing field of information distribution
and access. This functionality would be difficult to implement in a physical sense,
as information is virtual in nature, having no real tangible form.
3.2.2 Personal Publishing
A key theme of blogging is personal publishing. The invention of the
printing press allowed information to be duplicated and distributed fairly easily,
but remained out-of-reach for many authors, as typesetting and printing services
required a massive monetary investment. Even as printing technology advanced
and became somewhat cheaper, it still remained much too expensive for the
uninitiated. This frustration is what fueled the beginnings of the DIY (Do It
Yourself) movement, which suggested that one should abandon the giant
bureaucracy of printing altogether, instead seeking out smaller publishers or
perhaps even buying an older press, fixing it, and printing it yourself [30].
Blogging, and the Internet in general, has been the emancipator of the DIY
movement. By no longer requiring a physical medium to capture information, the
startup capital to publishing is almost nil. Along with this theme, several of the
most popular blogging systems have been developed as open source projects,
inviting both modification and experimentation.
3.2.3 Business Models
As blogging has matured, its value for business has become more and
more appealing. The appearance of ?niche? blogs from companies like Gawker
29
Media came hand in hand with the addition of heavily targeted banner ads to
blogs. Commonly, bloggers are paid a commission for customers buying
merchandise based on an ad click. Another popular strategy of self-supported
monetization is the click-to-donate model, which solicits donations from readers.
A recent trend has been the establishment of paid posting models, which
offer bloggers money in exchange for reviewing, linking to, or supporting a good
or service within a post. Most pay-per-post models require that blogs pass a set of
style requirements, are credible, and contain a large enough readership to
warrant the cost. This model is still quite controversial, as some bloggers feel it is
subversive to present advertisements under the guise of content.
3.3 Leading Systems
The infrastructures powering blogging advance proportionally with new
developments in web technology. Although a multitude of systems exist, some of
the most established are introduced below.
3.3.1 WordPress
WordPress is a free, open source project with a large base of users and
developers. It includes all of the expected features and a unique plug-in system
for creating custom actions based on PHP and SQL code. Also popular for its
flexible theming engine, for which thousands of free, user developed themes have
been written and distributed on the Internet, WordPress comes in two flavors, a
single install and multi-user version. The multi-user version (called WordPress
30
MU) is the software that powers WordPress.com, a free service that boasts a
membership of over half a million active blogs.
3.3.2 Blogger
Blogger is one of the oldest and largest hosted blogging services, in
operation since 1999. Blogger doesn?t provide much advanced customization, but
makes up for this shortcoming by offering a large number of semi-customizable
templates and a straightforward publishing interface. Google acquired Blogger in
2002, which helped to both promote and standardize the Blogger API, an
Application Programming Interface for remotely publishing and retrieving
information from a blogging system.
3.3.3 Moveable Type
Moveable Type is a commercial product produced by Six Apart, which has
developed a large number of both professional and personal level blogging
systems. Moveable Type is a feature-rich system, and well known for introducing
the ?Trackback,? a feature that allows posts from to be linked with a reference.
Customization is limited for personal use but readily available by purchasing a
license of the software.
3.4 Strengths
One of blogging?s most admirable features is its abstraction of the
publishing process. By hiding most of the technical complexity of the system, the
writer can focus more upon the content rather than the process of publishing.
31
The simplicity of the format is another strength. Blogs present writers with
straightforward posting and administration environments, where content can be
easily moderated.
Not only does blogging make the process of publishing information easier,
but it also makes that information more organized and accessible. Blogging
abstracts how the information is contained within a database by offering higher-
level organization structures, along with the methodology of retrieving and
filtering the information displayed. Syndication technologies take the next step in
offering a platform for broadcasting this information. Being indexed, the format
is also inherently standardized. This standardization provides a template that
accelerates modification and plug-in development by not having to redefine
commonly used functions.
Blogging invites conversation about the content it displays through
commenting. The conversation is normally displayed near or around the content
of a post, along with a form to add another comment. This visual link helps keep
to the conversation within context and solicits both discussion and criticism.
Being an indexed system, these comments can be syndicated through a newsfeed,
so that one may remotely follow the conversation via a newsreader.
3.5 Weaknesses
A major problem with blogging is its fundamental preference for new
material. This flaw stems from the standardization of the reverse chronological
display format, where visual precedence is given to the most recently published
32
material by placing it above its preceding entries. Older, possibly more popular
content is eventually cycled out of the main display chronology and archived,
often never seeing the home page again. The drive for fresh material can also
produce a body of vacuous content, as bloggers attempt to captivate audiences by
providing new, yet useless information.
Being born in journaling, blogging inherits its style of voice. Although
journaling can be formalized, it is often written in an informal voice, where the
author is the main audience. Applied to blogging, this informality can make
information seem less credible. The informal tone of blogging could be a product
of the triviality of the process; whereas, clicking a single button abstracts a
procedure that used to take massive amounts of power, money, and time.
3.6 Design Patterns
Behind blogging is a community of researchers, programmers, and
designers guided by the desire to collect, organize, and visualize information. By
experimenting with the technology, several design patterns have developed,
affecting blogging on both an individual and community-wide basis. These
patterns are not clearly defined, and like most guidelines, can be applied in a
variety of ways. This section discusses the design patterns behind blogging and its
community of architects, designers, and developers.
33
3.6.1 Architecture   
Most blogs share a similar visual architecture. This similarity is evident as
blogging is in itself an extension of web technology, which has several clearly
defined methods for displaying and interacting with information. Using these
guidelines, most blogs are built using the following structure:
? Header ? an image, title, or logo. Sometimes accompanied with a quote
or phrase that captures the spirit of the information contained within the
blog. May also contain navigation elements.
? Content ? the area in which the information is displayed, within a reverse
chronological list. Any information relevant to the post, including
categories, tags, publication and modification dates, is attached to its
content.
? Sidebar ? often acts as a holder for secondary content or supplemental
navigation. Sidebars also commonly contain links to other blogs or
advertisements.
? Footer ? may include copyright information, terms-of-use, signatures, or
group affiliation icons.
34
Figure 13 - Typical blog architecture compared to an actual blog.
Whereas this is a commonly encountered structure, it is by no means the
only pattern used. There are many variations upon the above model, some of
which include another sidebar that either wraps around the content or rests at
the flank of the first sidebar. A secondary sidebar is especially useful when
displaying advertisements, links, or additional navigational elements.
3.6.2 Content
At the heart of the blog is its content. The content area acts as the main
display for information, and is where users will spend the most time. Within this
area, posts are displayed in a reverse chronological list. The content area is
subdivided into individual units of information called posts. Each post can be
further divided into its content and information that describes the content, called
metadata. This metadata usually contains the title of the post, historical
35
information such as publication and modification dates, and a list of comments
posted by readers, within a similar reverse chronological display order.
The content area is multifunctional in the types of information it displays.
Along with displaying the most recent posts, the content area is also used for
presenting archives or search results. This functionality is provided by a query, a
set of written requirements that tell the blogging system which data to fetch from
the database. Queries are usually written in SQL (Sequenced Query Language), a
popular computer language used for interacting with databases.
3.6.3 Organization
Being founded in journaling, blogs typically rely upon the reverse
chronological information display format. Most systems have the functionality of
listing and grouping content into different organizational systems. Some of the
most common structures include:
? Archives ? a summary of all the posts within a given time period. Many
systems support returning posts grouped and paginated within sets of
weeks, months, or years.
? Categories ? a short and simple classification defining what area a post
applies to. For example, a post on a music blog describing a concert
happening in the future could be assigned to the ?Concerts? category. Most
systems that support categorization can generate category archives, which
are simply lists of all the posts in one category, over time.
36
? Tags ? a broader way of looking at categorization. Rather than attempting
to assign one category that represents the post, the blogger is able to ?tag?
the post with sets of words that describe its content. This can be especially
helpful if a post covers multiple topics.
3.6.4 Theming
One of the factors attributing to the widespread success of the blog format
is its ability to be styled with both system and user defined themes. Theming is
the process of changing the look of a blog while retaining its content. This process
is achieved by a mix of html markup, stylesheets, and template tags. The html
markup contains a skeleton of page elements. Within this skeleton the anatomy
of the layout is defined, and linked to a set of rules, which define that section?s
visual style, called a stylesheet. Inside the sections of the html markup are
template tags that tell the blogging system which information to fill within the
skeleton.
The following three screenshots in the figure below are of the same blog
styled with several different themes. Notice the how the content remains the
same while the rest of the interface is transformed by the theme. Below are
Vertigo Squared (A), Qwilm (B), and AndyBlue (C) ? three free, open source
themes available for WordPress.
37
ABC
Figure 14 - The same blog styled with three different themes.
The process of separating the visual style from the layout is what makes
theming portable. All of the files related to a theme can often be packaged and
distributed via the Internet, where others can both consume and modify them.
Several large repositories of themes and styles exist, one of the largest (albeit not
necessarily blog-focused) is the CSS Zen Garden
1
, an evolving, user-contributed
gallery of stylesheet-based design templates.
3.6.5 Community
Building upon its foundations as an open platform, blogging is driven by a
community of bloggers, collectively referred to as the blogosphere. It is this
community that is in a large part responsible for developing the format and
discovering new ways for managing and sharing information. As the blogosphere
continues to inflate, it proves increasingly more difficult to keep up with all of the
new information it generates. This large influx of information has necessitated
                                                  
1
 http://www.csszengarden.com
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the development of several standardized systems for inter-blog reference and
communication:
? Permalink ? a permanent link to a post. These are necessary since blogs
are commonly updated and posts may disappear from the front page
chronology. By providing a permalink for each post, others can more easily
access and reference content.
? Trackback ? combined with permalinks, trackbacks are a way for two
posts on different blogs to reference each other. When a post is published
that includes permalinks to another website, the blogging system will ping
the linked blogs and inform them of the reference. These trackbacks will
usually appear within the comments of a post and include a brief abstract
of what the other blog said about the referenced post.
? Newsfeed ? a syndicated list of updates to a site broadcast in a variety of
formats, with RSS and Atom being the most common. Newsfeeds allow
external feedreaders to grab and digest the content of blogs, making it
easier to review the most recent updates of a large number of blogs at one
time.
The colossal amount of information generated by blogs is overwhelming. With
blogging becoming commonplace, the daily batch of new content becomes more
difficult to comprehend without some sort of directory. Very similar to the
directories created during the infancy of the Internet, a new trend being applied
39
to blogging is social bookmarking, a method of storing, organizing, and sharing
links through the application of folksonomy, a collaborative method for
categorizing content based on human-assigned labels. By allowing the users of a
system to organize it, the information is more relevant, and can lead to the
development of new vocabularies for describing content. A few popular social
bookmarking services are del.icio.us
2
, digg
3
, and Technorati
4
, which claims an
index of over 70 million blogs.
The community-centric aspects of blogging are a crucial part of a broader
virtual space provided by blogs. Within this space, readers can communicate with
writers and other bloggers. This space for interaction is a vital difference from
newspapers, which are delivered to people's doorsteps and lack the feedback
model inherent to most blogs.
3.7 Emerging Design Patterns
As blogging proves itself more valuable, so does the research driving its
evolution and innovation. Research into how to better present information has
caused adaptations to occur in the information architecture behind blogs. New
visual styles and programming techniques have seen ?blog styling? become an
actual profession. Other new technologies have also found themselves linked
together with blogging to create new features and user experiences.
                                                  
2
 http://del.icio.us
3
 http://www.digg.com
4
 http://www.technorati.com
40
3.7.1 Architecture
Web developers are realizing that the line between blog, content
management system (CMS), and website isn?t as clear as it used to be.
Commonly, a blog can be modified to act as a CMS, powering complete websites
from one centralized system. Such developments have sought the addition of
more CMS features to blogging systems, such as the ?Pages? model of WordPress,
which allows posts to exist within a hierarchy outside of the normal blog
chronology.
The resistance of the typical reverse chronological style is also an emerging
theme. In order to make their content more relevant and useful to readers,
bloggers have begun to classify certain posts as ?Top Stories.? This practice gives
more visual importance to the specially tagged posts. Exactly opposite are
?Asides,? a strategy of marking less interesting posts. Asides are given less visual
importance. Notice the smaller asides above the larger blog post in the figure
below.
Figure 15 - ?Asides? are posts that are given less visual impact.
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Blogging invites discussion through commenting, and for popular posts
these lists of comments can accumulate to a giant mess, organized only by time.
The method of ?threading? comments initiates a hierarchy to the chronology,
allowing comments to be placed underneath other comments. A different strategy
is ?Inline Commenting,? which allows users to tie a comment directly in-line with
the content of the post:
Figure 16 - Inline commenting
3.7.2 Theming
The popularization of theming and visual programming has lead to the
development of several large theme projects, most notably k2, both a
modification and theme for WordPress. What makes k2 different from most
themes is its integration of dynamic tools such as LiveSearch and Rolling
Archives. LiveSearch is re-tooling of the searching methodology behind
WordPress that updates the search results without having to reload the page
altogether. Rolling Archives is a similarly dynamic feature, which allows a user to
move a slider ?back in time? to quickly update the posts being displayed, without
refreshing the page.
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Figure 17 - k2, an advanced theme for WordPress
Another advancement in theming is the use of semantic classes, which
extend the vocabulary assigned to page elements and allow more robust theming.
Semantic classes add more description to the page layout structure, which can be
linked to a stylesheet to allow for more context-sensitive styling. For example, a
block of content assigned semantic classes would not only include any user
defined styles but also styles related to the context of the post, for example time
and category. This proves useful when developing a robust theme, which might
assign the title of every post within a certain category a certain color, depending
on the time it was posted.
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3.7.3 Experience & Integration
Recent trends in web development have sought to redefine the ways in
which users interact with the Internet. One of the areas given a large amount of
research is user experience (UX), the overall experience and satisfaction a user
has when using a product or system. The application of UX design techniques to
blogs is an active area of research by both UX specialists and interaction
designers.
AJAX, shorthand for ?Asynchronous Javascript and Xml,? is a
collaboration of several technologies designed to dynamically update information
on a webpage without refreshing it. The LiveSearch and Rolling Archives
features of the k2 theme for WordPress rely upon AJAX to function. As the usage
of AJAX becomes more prevalent on the web, its functionality in blogging will
increase substantially.
Other technologies beginning to be fused with blogging are Flash, GPS,
and remote connectivity. Flash content is often used to create visually rich
interactions, and often blogging systems will act as a backend content
management system for a flash-based website. GPS is seeing its integration
through geotagging, a method of embedding location-sensitive content within
blog posts. Web services such as Flickr and Google have also released APIs for
passing data back and forth between themselves and external applications. An
example of API usage would be the inclusion of a recent photos section on the
sidebar of a blog, which communicates with a photo hosting service and returns
the most recent photographs posted by a user.
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IV. TRELLIS
Trellis seeks to help solve the problem of developing rapidly-changing,
scattered ideas by providing a scaffold onto which knowledge can be stored,
information organized, and feedback collected all within one centralized, secure
location. It is implemented as a collaboration of two technologies: blogging and
radial mapping.
4.1 Blogging
Trellis abstracts blogging into a tool for developing ideas by repurposing
its abilities to store, organize, and display information. Posting an entry is
equivocal to writing in a sketchbook, except the post can consist of any bloggable
media ? be it text, pictures, sounds, or video. The organizational structures of
blogging are also adapted to provide a system for codifying the collected
information. Commenting, a feature common to most blogs, is used as a way of
capturing feedback and promoting collaboration. Upon a foundation of blogging,
Trellis both inherits and extends its functionality.
The blogging element powering Trellis is WordPress, an open-source web
publishing software. Building upon WordPress? advanced plug-in and theming
architecture, Trellis is delivered as a modular theme, which transforms the
45
blogging environment into a virtual space for developing ideas and evolving
knowledge.
4.2 Radial Mapping
Radial maps are visualizations of hierarchical structures that place the
highest order node at the center of a circle, upon which concentric rings outward
represent children of ascending generations. Clicking on a node will re-center the
hierarchy with the selected node at the center of the circle. It is a very useful tool
for visualizing complex hierarchies of information within a small screen area.
Figure 18 - A radial map
As an idea accumulates information it will become more difficult to follow
without any organizational system. Trellis establishes a hierarchy to organize
46
information and implements a radial map for visualizing it. This radial map acts
as a sort of indexed notebook where, at a glance, one can gain an overall picture
of the growing knowledgebase of relevant information.
Trellis relies upon SpicyNodes, a flash-based radial tree mapping software,
to fulfill its radial mapping element.
4.3 Approach
Trellis facilitates idea development by establishing both a hierarchy and a
chronology for storing knowledge. The hierarchy simplifies the organization of
collected information by establishing a singular definition upon which a large
amount of information can be ordered. The user is free to apply this rule in any
form to organize relevant data. By maintaining an organized knowledgebase,
information related to the developing idea is stored within the same environment
as the idea itself. This organized, information-rich environment helps to
stimulate useful discussion through the chronology.
The chronology exists as a story of idea development, a location where new
thought processes can be stored and older ones reviewed. Such a method of
storing thought lends itself to being based on time, and a blog-like, reverse-
chronological display format is used to trace the course of idea development. By
maintaining a development blog, thought related to an idea can be outlined,
discussed, and reviewed, over time.
The combination of a knowledgebase and development blog creates a
virtual container for ideas. Such a method of capturing an idea could prove to be
47
valuable to those developing creative projects of any kind, as the system helps to
not only guide development but also record progress, from one centralized
container. Trellis could also be quite useful for demonstrating how one creatively
solves problems. A practical example is the process of hiring someone to be part
of a creative team. R?sum?s and portfolios are proof enough of achievement or
talent, but there is no real system for qualifying how someone creatively solves
problems. Trellis could facilitate a solution for this need, giving insight to the
creative habits of its users.
Trellis is not intended to replace existing ideation methodologies or act as
project management software. Its intention is to provide a centralized
environment for storing information related to developing ideas. Trellis
facilitates ideation by visualizing this information in a way that makes it easier to
understand the internal workings of a developing idea. As ideas become clearer
and more concrete, Trellis may no longer be needed for building ideas but can
still act as a historical resource and part of a broad personal knowledge base.
4.4 Design Process
When the idea for Trellis was conceived, a new blog was created to test the
concept. Since the best way to prove something works is to design and test it
within a real-world application, the goal of the blog was the development of itself
? therefore both testing and defining the methodology proposed by Trellis. In the
beginning, ideas were very abstract and through the practice of using the blog as
48
a research tool, modifications were made to the underlying blogging system and
results were logged and discussed within the blog.
4.4.1 Beginnings
One of the initial changes made to the blog was the integration of several
WordPress plugins. Plugins are prewritten chunks of code that perform an action
or modify the behavior of the parent blogging system. WordPress' plugin
architecture is very robust, as it allows plugin code to be tied to a specific action,
such as when a post is made, or act as a filter, such as returning posts that meet a
certain criteria. The first plugin added to Trellis was "Dunstan's Time Since," a
simple plugin that displays the date of a post as the difference from the point it
was written to the time it is viewed. This behavior was quite helpful in making the
post datestamps more relevant to the chronology of the blog:
Figure 19 - The Time Since plugin calculates datestamps on relative terms
A name for the approach was then developed. Given the nature of a system
for developing evolving knowledge, metaphors for growing, gardening, and
cultivation were selected as generators. In a brainstorming session, these
generators produced a massive list of possible names. The search produced an
excellent metaphor in the word 'trellis.' Just like the commonly seen companion
49
to a growing tomato plant, Trellis acts as a scaffold for cultivating ideas and
ripening knowledge. This same feeling was carried out in the logo used to
represent trellis, designed using the same garden metaphor.
Figure 20 - A brainstorm of name and idea generators
Figure 21 - The logo of Trellis.
4.4.2 Learning From Nature
As more posts were compiled, it was realized that an organizational system
was needed to structure the developing knowledge. Initially, this was
accomplished using WordPress' category system, and further supplemented by
50
the addition of a plugin to support tagging. Even though these methods allowed
posts to be better organized, it was lacking in how these posts were visualized.
Soon it was realized that simple categorization alone was not enough to facilitate
a developing idea ? a structure was needed that could both contain and visualize
the collected information.
This prompted research into the organization and visualization of
information. A survey of man-made and nature-based organizational systems
revealed that the most effective methodologies were usually the simplest and
most flexible. This was evident in the pattern of seeds in a sunflower pictured
below - a complex organization simplified by a singular rule. Further research
into nature revealed even more examples of self-sustaining, recursively designed
systems. It was learned from nature that by defining an implicit structure, ideas
and knowledge could be more easily mapped and understood.
51
Figure 22 - The seeds of a sunflower are ordered in a beautiful, compact spiral formation
Nature is an organized hierarchy. Just as this sunflower orders its seeds
upon a fractal-based hierarchical spiral, so do humans in the ways we are
structured (arms leading to fingers, arteries branching to capillaries), act (social
hierarchies, family trees, structures of government), and think (listing, outlining,
breaking down larger problems into smaller ones). Taking suggestion from
nature, it was decided that a hierarchical method was the most relevant and
perhaps even an instinctual approach for organizing information.
The initial implementation of a hierarchical structure within Trellis was
the adaptation of an open-source Tree class written for php. This class, like the
organic system it is based upon, uses a single recursive operation to organize and
52
traverse its own structure. This adaptation required some intensive modification
to WordPress, yet functioned as prescribed:
Figure 23 - A screenshot of the initial Trellis interface, visualizing the hierarchy
Using the implicit structure of hierarchy, new subsystems for organizing
knowledge could be developed. One such example is a method for organizing
citations from books. Within the hierarchy, a branch named 'Books' was created.
Within this branch, individual branches were developed for each book to be cited.
Within these posts, citations were recorded along with their respective page
53
numbers and reference information. The result is an organized citation library,
which has proved to be a helpful tool in the writing of this paper.
4.4.3 Iterative Simplicity
As the hierarchical structure inflated with information, a new problem
developed. Even though the structure was well organized, it was difficult to
interpret its development. This problem stemmed from the fact that the structure
was only visualized hierarchically. It was like a table of contents for a book which
has no story. The need for a system to visualize both the developing story and its
growing body of knowledge soon became apparent.
Research into how to solve this problem began a wave of simplification. It
was discovered that WordPress already supports a system of hierarchical
organization though Pages, which are static blog posts that exist outside of the
regular blog chronology. By using this system, the code-base of Trellis was
simplified drastically, as the custom-designed php Tree class was no longer
necessary. This simplification also provided clarity to the nature and definition of
Trellis.  The hierarchical knowledgebase could be used as an index for collecting
and organizing information, and the chronological blog could act as a story of the
developing ideas.
Through the synthesis of a hierarchy and chronology, the blog was
developing into a rich knowledgebase of research on ideation, organization, and
visualization. Ideas were becoming more solid as to what utility a blog can
provide when applied toward research and development. These thoughts were
54
stored inside the blog, and the conversations with friends, colleagues, and
collaborators were also recorded, directly in context with the content. The
historical ability of Trellis was beginning to make itself known, as the blog
archives provided details of what was going on and being worked on early in the
development process.
4.4.4 Organic Adaptation
The design of Trellis is self-sustaining in the way it systematically seeks to
better organize and visualize itself. The implicit research goal of Trellis set its
development into motion and accelerated exponentially as new methods were
conceived, tested, and implemented. Such a process isn't anything revolutionary,
as it has happened - and is happening now - actively throughout nature.
Being developed at the speed of growing knowledge, numerous
workarounds were made in order to keep the system evolving. Although many of
these workarounds began as simple proofs of concept, they soon saw themselves
being heavily used and relied upon so that the system could continue to evolve
onward.
4.4.5 The Activity Feed
As the core of the system became better defined, several of the
workarounds used to build it began to call attention to themselves. One of these
areas needing closer attention was the visualization of changes within the blog
and knowledgebase. By default, WordPress does not broadcast the addition of the
hierarchical pages within the chronology of the blog. This was a problem, as the
55
notice of additions or updates to the knowledgebase were not visible to the user
by default. Numerous ideas were developed as to how to trace the development of
a hierarchy within a chronological timeframe. Using what had been learned from
nature, several visualization concepts were developed that explored the concept
of an evolving hierarchy.
Figure 24 - The 'Clock' method. Ink on napkin.
56
Figure 25 - The 'Stack' method
These ideas, although visually interesting, lacked both usability and
function. In one of several moments of frustration, all research was cast aside to
spend time on Facebook, a popular social networking website among college
students. Facebook had recently undergone a major redesign and implemented
the 'newsfeed,' a dynamically generated reverse-chronological list of updates to
the profiles of friends within one's social network. The newsfeed concentrated
changes in a social network to one centralized area, rather than having to skip
from profile to profile, attempting to ascertain new information. This is
illustrated in the figure below, taken from my own newsfeed, just moments ago:
57
Figure 26 - The Facebook Newsfeed
It was realized that a similar concept could be modeled within Trellis. Just
as the Facebook newsfeed shows updates to a social network over time in a
bloglike reverse-chronological list, so could Trellis visualize updates to the blog
and knowledgebase. This approach was delightfully easy to implement, and only
required modifying a single database query that told the blog which posts to
display on the front page. The result is a list of updates, in reverse-chronological
order, which visualizes the result of developing knowledge over time:
58
Figure 27 ? A working prototype of the Activity Feed
4.4.6 Hierarchical Visualization
Another area needing attention was the visualization of the
knowledgebase. The knowledgebase had previously been displayed as a simple
hierarchical list, which works well for a small collection of posts. But as the
hierarchy expands, this method of visualization fails. This is demonstrated in the
figure below, which has been modified to wrap in multiple columns (the original
list spans over 5000 pixels in height):
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Figure 28 - The knowledgebase of Trellis rendered as a list.
In response to this stimulus, research was collected on methods for
interactively visualizing hierarchical systems. This search revealed many
plausible options, yet no system seemed flexible enough to handle dynamic data
or be embedded within a blog. Just as planning for a custom solution was
beginning, a post on a freelance programmer job board unveiled an
advertisement looking for developers for a flash-based radial map visualization
software. A series of searches tracked down the source. When approached with
the idea of Trellis and its need for a robust, flexible radial mapping solution,
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Michael Douma of the Institute for Dynamic Educational Advancement offered to
help, granting Trellis pre-release software, mentoring, and guidance. Much to the
same way that the Page system of WordPress prevented implementing a custom
hierarchical structuring algorithm, so had this software prevented the
development of a custom radial mapping software - a task which would have
surely taken months to plan and build.
Figure 29 - A section of the Trellis knowledgebase rendered in a radial map
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4.4.7 Interaction Wireframes
The following sequence depicts the sample interaction sequence of a
fictional design process using Trellis. Red outlines denote user mouse clicks.  The
sequence begins in Figure 30, showing the blank-state of the system and the user
creating a new blog post:
Figure 30 ? Wireframe Scene 1
The new post is added and the user is returned to the dashboard, which displays
the new post in the activity feed. The user then makes clicks the button to create a
new knowledgebase post:
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Figure 31 - Wireframe Scene 2
This new knowledgebase post pushes the radial map from its blank state. Another
knowledgebase post is added and the radial map becomes larger:
Figure 32 - Wireframe Scene 3
Figure 33 demonstrates user interaction with the hierarchical radial map. When
the ?Books? item is clicked, the node?s information is displayed.
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Figure 33 - Wireframe Scene 4
Likewise, the map can be re-ordered as displayed below in Figure 34. As the
number of nodes increases, the radial map becomes more organized and better
defined:
Figure 34 - Wireframe Scene 5
Figure 35 reveals how files may be uploaded and inserted into a post:
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Figure 35 - Wireframe Scene 6
This new post is placed in the knowledgebase. Clicking the node representing the
new post loads the images in the content area.
Figure 36 - Wireframe Scene 7
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4.4.8 Prototypes
Figure 37 - Preprototype in development
Figure 38 ? Similar layout with different mapping strategy
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4.4.9 Final Concept
Figure 39 - Final Design Concept: Main View
Figure 39 shows the main view of the interface. The top left corner contains the
title, tagline, and main navigation (1). The radial map sits below and displays the
post hierarchy over an axis of time (2). Clicking on a month in the time axis will
rewind or forward the blog to its respective point in time. This is visualized in the
activity feed (3), which displays updates to the blog in a reverse chronological list.
The top right corner contains the user management and search functions (4). To
the right of the activity feed is a project overview (5) and list of active users (6).
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Figure 40 ? Final Design Concept: Viewing a Post
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Figure 40 shows the read post view. The content is displayed underneath the
radial map and will reveal an edit button if the user is allowed to edit the post (1).
Below the content is a reverse chronological list of comments (2). Comments
placed by the author of the post are highlighted in a different color (second in
list), as well as comments placed by the currently logged in user (third in list).
Below the list is a form for submitting comments (3). To the right of the content
is post meta-information (4), tags associated with the post (5), and links to the
syndication feeds for both the post and its comments (6).
Figure 41 - Final Design Concept: Writing a Post
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Figure 41 shows the post authoring interface. Content may be entered and
formatted using the text fields in the main content display (1). To the right of the
form are meta options, allowing posts to be filed (2), tagged (3), or files to be
uploaded and attached to a post (4).
Figure 42 - Final Design Concept: Blank State
Figure 42 shows the blank state of the system. The blank state is shown when the
user creates an account or when no data can be found. It educates the user as to
what is to be expected, how to navigate the system, and how to get started. Since
displaying the radial map is impossible without any user data, the system shows
an outline of one along with a link to the writing interface (1).  The content area
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displays an introductory message and interface navigation tutorial (2). A brief
message also appears in the meta section, encouraging the user to invite his or
her friends and colleagues to signup.
4.5 Workflow
As Trellis is based upon a foundation of blogging, it adopts a similar workflow.
This process of posting, reviewing, sharing, and collaborating requires little
technical know-how, and integrates well into existing, more familiar workflows
and technologies.
Figure 43 - The iterative idea development workflow of Trellis
4.5.1 Posting
Trellis collects knowledge in individualized units called ?Posts.? These posts
are stored either within the chronology (for ideas) or the hierarchy (for collected
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information and research). Additionally, posts can be richly formatted with
HTML markup and contain uploaded files.
Figure 44 - The posting environment within Trellis
4.5.2 Reviewing
Trellis retools the typical blog layout to provide an immersive
environment, well suited for the description and analysis of ideas. This is
facilitated in part by a radial map, which visualizes the contents of the
hierarchical knowledgebase. The chronology is displayed in the typical reverse-
chronological format, showing additions to both the blog and knowledgebase
over a common axis of time. This ?feed-like? display acts as a historical record of
development, where progress can be reviewed, over time. Also during the review
process, posts can be edited or moved about within the hierarchy by clicking the
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?Edit? link, shown next to each post. The ?Activity Feed? is illustrated below, which
shows two, more recently published hierarchy items above an earlier added blog
post:
Figure 45 - The Activity Feed
4.5.3 Sharing
Posts can be shared via syndication, which broadcasts updates to the
chronology and hierarchy to those interested in the development process. Each
post is also assigned a permalink (permanent link), that can then be sent to a
friend or colleague. Permalinks provide an easy way to reference an individual
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post, as they may eventually get cycled out of the front-page chronology as time
elapses.
Figure 46 - Viewing a blog via a newsreader
4.5.4 Collaborating
Building upon the commenting systems native to most blogs, Trellis
enables collaboration by allowing comments to be collected on both chronology
and hierarchy items. These comments are stored within the context of the
content, and can, in turn, be syndicated to remotely inform those interested of a
conversation on a particular post.
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Figure 47 - Commenting on a Post
4.6 Implementation
Building upon its foundation, Trellis acts as a middle layer between the
user and the blogging system. This relationship gives Trellis access to the actions
and methods of its parent blogging system, and re-purposes its use. Another
advantage of this ?inherent implementation? is feature cascading. With each new
release of WordPress, its features become inherited through Trellis. This dynamic
ability keeps Trellis focused on its task, leaving the lower-level processes to be
handled by the blogging system. Such an open approach also helps Trellis scale
and adapt to future advances in blogging.
Rather than being written from scratch, Trellis is implemented as a
synthesis of several open source tools. A large portion of its code-base belongs to
another open source project for WordPress, called k2. k2 is a theme that offers
several dynamic interface elements, most notably LiveSearch, a method for
displaying search results without refreshing the page and Rolling Archives, a
similar method for going ?back in time? within the blog, again without requiring a
hard refresh of the page. Building upon this functionality, Trellis is able to handle
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the dynamic interaction of the radial map and the blog interface without having
to write a completely custom solution.
4.6.1 A Virtual Space
Building upon how blogging establishes a virtual space for global
information publication and exchange, Trellis extends this space into two
connected environments for collaboration and organization. The collaborative
features of blogging facilitate an environment where feedback can more easily be
shared within the context of the content, keeping the discussion focused and
overall more relevant. This space is extended through syndication, which allows
the information to be shared in a variety of standardized formats, making the
process much more adaptable to future changes in web technology.
The organizational space provided by Trellis aids in the rapid development
of ideas by simplifying the process of sorting and visualizing information. Being
based on both a hierarchy and chronology, Trellis extends the organizational
space with the added element of time, facilitating a historical record of progress.
These two spaces of collaboration and organization combine to form a
multidimensional virtual environment, well suited for the generation of ideas.
Such an approach would be difficult to implement within a non-virtual
environment, as the combination of blogging, radial mapping, and the Internet
within a physical realm (like paper) would be cumbersome, if not nearly
impossible to comprehend and maintain.
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4.7 Delivery
Trellis is to be delivered as a hosted service aimed at both individual
designers and creative teams. A hosted service runs on a remotely managed
system, from which users may purchase a subscription. The advantage of this
approach is that users have to install no local hardware or software, and requires
only a semi-modern web browser and decent Internet connection. These
subscriptions are to be available in different service tiers, outlined below:
? Free ? A free account for users to try out and decide if they feel the service
is worth purchasing. This approach is inline with many hosted web
services available. The free account will offer little upload space for files
and be ineligible for customer support. It would also be limited to
documenting a single idea or project.
? Personal ? A service tier suitable for use by an individual. Provides an
ample amount of storage space for tracking up to 100 projects or ideas.
Should the user need more space or projects, they will be offered an
upgrade to the advanced plan at a reduced cost.
? Advanced ? The highest tier of service, offering a large amount of storage
space and the ability to create and document an unlimited number of
ideas.
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The hosted service will run off of WordPress Mu, the multi-user version of
WordPress. WordPress Mu is similar to the standalone version of WordPress in
how it manages blogs, yet it adds the ability to create an unlimited number of
blogs and users through a single install. All of the plug-ins available for
standalone WordPress also work on the multi-user version, making client
customization easier to implement.
Figure 48 - Marketing and Service Portal
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4.7.1 Enterprise
Trellis will also deliver an enterprise-level software component. This
software could be installed upon an existing application server and customized to
meet a client?s specifications. The enterprise approach offers a more flexible
hardware setup and local data security at the cost of a simple setup and
installation procedure. Because it requires no special client-side software,
implementation throughout the enterprise is much easier than locally-hosted
knowledgebase solutions.
4.8 Testing
One of the difficulties encountered with the recursive design methodology
shaping Trellis was how to make the system adaptable to the methods of others.
A working model of Trellis was developed for interface and methodology testing.
At the time of this test, the radial mapping technology provided by the
SpicyNodes team was not yet embeddable within external applications like
Trellis. For the purposes of the testing exercise, a simple hierarchical list was
used.
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Figure 49 - A project being developed in the Trellis testbed
Students of the Industrial Design program at Auburn University were
invited to use this system for developing and documenting their studio projects.
At the time of writing, over 15 students have registered over 30 blogs, with
several of them still being actively used. Much of this testing is still underway, yet
it has already revealed several trends.
The current testing implementation continuity proves to be too
complicated for most users. The posting process is overwhelming for those
unfamiliar with the blogging process. These initial findings have necessitated a
simpler posting environment and condensed menu structure. The interface is key
in the successful workflow integration of Trellis the idea development process.
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4.9 Strengths
One of the greatest advantages provided by Trellis is its ability to centralize
ideation. By acting as both a scaffold and a container, it can store not only the
thoughts related to a developing idea, but also a comprehensive knowledgebase
of directly relevant information. Building upon its blog foundation, this
information can be easily organized, searched, and syndicated. A supplemental
benefit offered by blogging is its chronological nature, which allows Trellis to
generate a historical record of idea development.
The informal tone of blogging can be seen as a benefit when applied
toward idea management. Documentation may often be considered a chore, but
by breaking the process down a stream of smaller bits of information, it is
considerably easier to approach. Whereas a typical blog?s audience is global,
Trellis suggests that users attempt to make themselves their own audience. This
can help to overcome writing anxiety by providing a connected, yet privatized
virtual environment for the development of ideas.
Many emerging technologies can limit themselves by not providing
standardized interfaces for communicating with other applications. Such is not
the case for Trellis, as it is built upon an open-source platform that offers a
multitude of procedures for displaying and sharing the information it contains.
This open approach has other benefits, as Trellis can exist as a methodology, not
tied to any explicit implementation. Users are not only allowed but also
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encouraged to define their own rules and adapt the system to suit their needs,
while Trellis simply provides a scaffold for the development process.
4.10 Weaknesses
Trellis? approach to idea development relies upon the user adopting a blog-
like procedure of recording information. Often times this procedure may seem
like more a hindrance than help, as the structure provided by Trellis is not as
flexible as a blank sheet of paper. Because ideation may come in bursts, the act of
blogging may get in the way of making quantifiable progress. Technical obstacles
also exist, a prime example being waiting for large files to upload or simply not
having access to the Internet.
Just as blogging is an emerging technology, the process of adapting it
toward a new context can generate interruptions in familiar workflow. This is
evident as email has become a standardized form of remote communication, and
attempting to coerce users into commenting on a blog post rather than sending
an email may seem unnatural. The methodology may also prove to be
uncomfortable for those more accustomed to working with physical media, as
Trellis exists within a virtual environment.
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V. APPLICATIONS
Trellis? approach toward idea development promotes its adaptability to a
wide array of different applications. Following are several examples that
demonstrate its potential usage.
5.1 Developing a Project
An industrial design student is taking a product design studio class. In
some initial research, she finds some useful, albeit broad information on the
Internet. Within Trellis, she creates a post called ?Research,? under which she
posts summaries of the information found, along with pictures and links. These
posts are added to the hierarchy, which is visualized and explored with a radial
map. Each post is demarked with tags and placed in categories to organize and
maintain the content. As more information is collected, the hierarchy grows and
eventually evolves, as more is learned about the subject.
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Figure 50 - Collecting research
Once she is knowledgeable on the subject, she starts to define design
objectives within posts to the development blog, based on the knowledgebase she
has compiled. Soon she is ready to begin drawing concept sketches, which she
scans and uploads to the blog within several posts. She sends a link to these posts
to her friends and mentors, who leave feedback and criticism through the blog?s
commenting system. During the rest of the design phase, Trellis is used as a
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documentation tool, outlining the development of these sketches into a final
concept.
Figure 51 - Posting Concept Sketches
Months later, she begins the search for a design job. She develops an
online portfolio and adds links to all of her studio project blogs. Potential
employers are given insight to her research methodologies and creative design
process, making it much easier to decide how she would fit into their team.
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5.2 Collaborating on a Creative Project
While at lunch, two friends decide to collaborate on a book. That
afternoon, a new Trellis is created and a summary of their conversation is posted
within the development blog. This post is continually commented on and revised
until a more solid definition of their goal has been developed. Over the next few
weeks, they collect and organize their research within the hierarchy.
Figure 52 - Organizing Plotlines
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Soon the hierarchy grows to a fully indexed tree of information and it has
become time to outline the structure of the book. A sample outline is prepared
within a new blog post, and through the comments, a master outline is created.
This outline is translated into a new branch within the hierarchy called ?Book
Outline.? Inside this branch, they store and update the copy and page layouts
inside blog posts until it is edited and ready for production.
5.3 Managing a Group
A manager is in charge of a team of designers who are developing a new
identity for a large corporation. He makes a new instance of Trellis and creates
accounts for everyone on his team. Within the hierarchy, a structure is formed for
both storing and organizing color studies, sketches, and concepts. As the team
updates the development blog with progress, it is broadcast to his boss and the
Chief of Marketing through newsfeed syndication. Eventually the ideas become
more concrete and a concept is chosen and developed. As more designers are
added to the project, they are quickly brought ?up to speed? by reviewing the
information contained within the project blog.
5.4 Organizing Output
A multimedia artist finds it difficult to keep up with all of his output,
especially when a single project may involve many different media types. Trellis is
used to organize his work, creating branches within the hierarchy for his
individual projects and ideas. By using the organizational features of Trellis, he?s
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able to better organize his posts with labels like ?sketch,? ?poem,? or ?song.? His
entire body of creative output can be searched and filtered, becoming an
interactive, multimedia sketchbook.
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VI. Conclusion
The process of researching knowledge and developing Trellis has led to
understanding idea development as a recursive process. Ideas are the result of
new knowledge, developed upon the formalization of previous knowledge. Mark
Twain more eloquently describes this concept:
"There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot
of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them
a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning
and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old
pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages. [34]"
Just as Trellis proposes a new method of knowledge management, it is by
no means a new idea. Trellis relies upon its foundations of blogging and radial
mapping, from which exists an even larger base of knowledge. This recursive
design forms sustainable, self-documenting systems that help to guide the
development of evolving ideas.
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6.1 Blogging for Ideas
The blog that tracked the development of this thesis project became a
valuable resource in the writing of this document. The knowledgebase was used
to collect research, from which an outline was drafted and posted on the blog.
Through comments, this outline was modified and finally formalized with the
help of several collaborators. As drafts were completed, they were posted to the
blog, and these updates broadcast themselves via syndication to all of those
involved in the project.
Being centralized on the Internet, the blog could be accessed anywhere a
connection was available. This allowed the author to work at remote locations,
yet still have access to the large knowledgebase of compiled information. This
ability also provided a foundation for collaboration between the author and Mr.
Douma, which proved especially helpful during the initial stages of writing.
As the information architecture (IA) of Trellis became better defined, it
moved virtual locations. The first version was hosted at
trellis.heavyobjects.com, moving several times in the same domain until
becoming formalized at dev.mytrellis.com.  A better initial IA could have
prevented this mobility, but at that time the scope of Trellis had not yet been
realized.
6.2 Further Research
This paper investigated the application of blogging for the management of
the idea development process and developed a concept interface for user
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interaction. Testing of the concept was difficult, as the radial mapping technology
necessitated by Trellis was not yet fully implemented. Further research could
pursue the development of this concept into a working model and conduct more
user research and case studies.  More investigation could also be done into
different mapping strategies for the knowledgebase, and how this visualization
may be more deeply integrated into the interface.
Additional research into the development of a sustainable content
taxonomy could be performed.  The user could be presented with a set of
procedures for the management of their ideas based on different personal or
situational preferences. This research could also examine an adaptive approach,
which would evolve in complexity or structure as the scaffold grows.
The author intends on continuing this research post-graduation. The
mytrellis.com domain has been reserved further research and possibly for
hosting the commercial product, should the concept prove marketable.
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