HotSpotting

HotSpotting summarizes a general technique in UBIK^®, that allows to overlay data on the visual representation of other UBIK^® objects. The overlaid data can be of quite a variety, starting from Annotations (also known as Redlining or Inking) over Links/Cross-references between objects, to UBIK^® Properties in all their different possible types and appearances. While HotSpotting is an abstract approach that could be applied to any kind of UBIK^® object, the client currently only supports displaying and interacting with HotSpots on Document objects.

Overview

HotSpotting consists of 3 main elements, the Target, the Layer(s) and the HotSpots:

Target

A HotSpotting target can be basically any UBIK^® object that holds the classification HotSpotting target. In most of the use cases, this target will be file document or a derivative of that class.

Layer

A layer can be envisioned as a transparent film that is overlaid on the target and contains the actual HotSpots. Technically their can be as many layers as desired, overlaying each others. A layer covers the whole physical area of its target, i.e. the dimensions of the page of a document.

HotSpot/Annotation

A HotSpot is a single data object that sits on a layer and typically has a visual representation, such as the value of a property it represents.

HotSpots

All HotSpots have in common that they know

on which layer they sit
their offset relative to the Top/Left corner of the layer
their width and their height
their shape (angular or round/elliptical)

When it comes to their representations and capabilities, there are different types that support certain use-cases and/or types of backing UBIK^® objects or properties:

InputSpot

An InputSpot is a link to a property from a UBIK^® Object. It displays the value of the property and reacts to user interaction, e.g. with popping up the property editor when tapped on it. Any existing UBIK^® property can be represented as an InputSpot.

MediaSpot

A MediaSpot is a specialization of an InputSpot that works with properties that can hold media (Audio/Video) data.

SignatureSpot

A SignatureSpot is a specialization of an InputSpot that works with properties of type Signature. It allows for graphically signing of objects.

ScanSpot

A scan spot is a HotSpot that scans the area it covers using OCR. So when the user moves it around a document or resizes it, it will write the recognized OCR text to its value.

Annotations

An Annotation is a collection of Ink strokes that sits on a layer and typically represents redlining or additional information to a document, like a diagram or a photo.