One of the central elements of model-based interface design is the mapping of abstract task models into concrete interface designs. The mappings determine, for example, how the structure of a user task affects dialog and layout elements on an interface, or how the attributes of a domain object narrow down the possible widgets used in the interface to represent the object.
Mappings are one of the least understood parts of model-based technology.
Most previous solutions to this problem focused on determining automatically such mappings or on hardwiring the mappings into software. Our claim is that such mappings are loose or fuzzy at best. We propose an alternative solution in which we build interactive tools that allow developers to view and manipulate such mappings. The tools will then allow us to collect information and to explore the most plausible mappings between task and interface objects.