Visual communication element: texture

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Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. Which best describes texture as a visual communication element?

A The darkness or lightness of a colour

B The look or feel of a surface

2. A designer fills the bars of a chart with diagonal stripes, dots and crosshatching so each can be told apart in a black-and-white print. What are they using?

A Patterns and fills as texture

B Proportion to resize the bars

3. A dashboard shows a button with a shaded, bumpy look that makes it seem raised. Which type of texture is this?

A Simulated texture

B Real texture

4. A printed poster is made on rough, embossed paper that you can feel with your fingers. Which type of texture is this?

A Real texture

B Simulated texture

5. Which is a good reason to use texture in a visualisation?

A To store data in the dataset

B To tell areas apart or add depth

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
1fill: url(#stripes)		Abar1.fill = "dots"; bar2.fill = "stripes";
2fill: #3366cc		BFills a shape with one flat colour and no texture
3Simulated texture only looks rough or patterned on a screen. You cannot feel it by touch.		CFills a chart shape with a striped pattern, adding texture so the area looks different from the others
4Using different patterns for bars helps people tell areas apart, even when printed in black and white		Dbackground-image: url("bricks.png");
5map.fill = "dots"; // texture used to show the map is felt by touch		EA dotted fill on a screen is simulated texture. It only looks textured and cannot be felt.
6chart.fill = "dots"; // texture changes the data values		FTexture does not change the data values. It only changes how the surface looks, to add depth or separate areas.

Definitions

texture

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

_______ ← "stripes"

if output = "print" then textureType ← "____" else textureType ← "simulated"

if output = "print" then textureType ← "real" ____ textureType ← "simulated"

if areaA.texture _ areaB.texture then print "Areas are easy to tell apart"

___ i from 1 to 3 bar[i].texture ← "dots"

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A areaA.fill ← "diagonal lines"

B areaB.fill ← "diagonal lines"

C areaC.fill ← "crosshatch"

Question 2

A medium ← "screen"

B if medium = "screen" then

C textureType ← "real"

D else

E textureType ← "real"

Question 3

A for i from 1 to 3

B bar[i].texture ← pattern[i]

C end if

Question 4

A textureOn ← true

B if textureOn = true

C bar.fill ← "grid"

D end if

Question 5

A define addTexture(shape, fill)

B shape.fill ← fill

C shape.depth ← "added"

D return fill

E end define

Answer Key

Visual communication element: texture

Section A: Quick Questions

B — The look or feel of a surface

A — Patterns and fills as texture

A — Simulated texture

A — Real texture

B — To tell areas apart or add depth

Section B: Match the Pairs

fill: url(#stripes) → Fills a chart shape with a striped pattern, adding texture so the area looks different from the others

fill: #3366cc → Fills a shape with one flat colour and no texture

Simulated texture only looks rough or patterned on a screen. You cannot feel it by touch. → background-image: url("bricks.png");

Using different patterns for bars helps people tell areas apart, even when printed in black and white → bar1.fill = "dots"; bar2.fill = "stripes";

map.fill = "dots"; // texture used to show the map is felt by touch → A dotted fill on a screen is simulated texture. It only looks textured and cannot be felt.

chart.fill = "dots"; // texture changes the data values → Texture does not change the data values. It only changes how the surface looks, to add depth or separate areas.

Section C: Definitions

texture — The look or feel of a surface, shown with patterns or fills, used to add depth or tell areas apart. It can be real (felt by touch) or simulated (only looks textured on screen).

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

texture ← "stripes"

if output = "print" then
  textureType ← "real"
else textureType ← "simulated"

if output = "print" then
  textureType ← "real"
else textureType ← "simulated"

if areaA.texture ≠ areaB.texture then
  print "Areas are easy to tell apart"

for i from 1 to 3
  bar[i].texture ← "dots"

Section E: Spot the Error

B — Texture is used to tell areas apart. Areas A and B now share the same pattern, so they look identical. Area B needs its own pattern, such as "dots".

C — On a screen, texture only looks textured and can't be felt. It is simulated, so this line should set textureType ← "simulated".

C — This block opens with a for loop, so it must close with end for. end if has no matching if.

B — An if statement needs the keyword then after its condition. The line should be if textureOn = true then.

D — The function adds a texture fill to the shape, so it should return the textured shape, not just the fill. The line should be return shape.