Imagine that you want to create a complex digital artifact, such as a document, spreadsheet, illustration, visualization, or Web application. As an expert, you know that programming is the way to go. But you also know that, by choosing this route, you will forgo the joys of direct manipulation, graphical user interfaces.

 

In this talk, I will describe a vision for programming systems with less keyboard-based text editing and more mouse-based manipulation. As a first step, I will present the Sketch-n-Sketch programming system for creating vector graphic illustrations, where semi-automated direct manipulation tools help prototype, repair, and refactor programs. I will also describe plans to extend these ideas to create and manipulate other kinds of digital artifacts, including even programs themselves.