Patent ID: 8432400

Claim:
A computer-implemented method comprising: displaying a two-dimensional tree representation of a hierarchical data structure; using at least one processor, generating a first transitional animation that graphically represents a transition, being adjusted according to a tree-map algorithm, of a first node of the two-dimensional tree representation of the hierarchical data structure to a three-dimensional tree representation as a sequence of three-dimensional parallelograms, the sequence to be displayed between a first location with respect to the two-dimensional tree representation and a second location with respect to the three-dimensional tree representation of the hierarchical data structure; graphically rendering, according to the first transitional animation, the first node of the two-dimensional tree representation of the hierarchical data structure as a nested three-dimensional parallelogram at the second location; and displaying the nested three-dimensional parallelogram as a final form three-dimensional parallelogram included in the sequence of three-dimensional parallelograms at the second location with respect to the three-dimensional tree representation of the hierarchical data structure, wherein at least one three-dimensional parallelogram included in the sequence of three-dimensional parallelograms is adjusted to approximate the final form three-dimensional parallelogram, and the at least one three-dimensional parallelogram is rotated along at least one of an X axis or a Y axis.