¹University of Applied Sciences Gieen-Friedberg, Wilhelm-Leuschner-Strae 13, 61169 Friedberg, Germany

Received 25 November 2007; Revised 4 August 2008; Accepted 8 August 2008; Published online 29 January 2009.

Abstract

This paper deals with techniques for the design and production of appealing algorithmic animations and their use in computer science education. A good visual animation is both a technical artifact and a work of art that can greatly enhance the understanding of an algorithm's workings. In the first part of the paper, I show that awareness of the composition principles used by other animators and visual artists can help programmers to create better algorithmic animations. The second part shows how to incorporate those ideas in novel animation systems, which represent data structures in a visually intuitive manner. The animations described in this paper have been implemented and used in the classroom for courses at university level.