JP2012008721A - Information processor, display method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a user interface which is convenient for a user to use by preventing any significant information or information which should be necessarily displayed from being hidden.SOLUTION: An information processor is configured to, when the movement of a boarder line of an area of a picture having a plurality of areas is instructed, restrict the instructed movement of the boarder line so that it can be prevented from being made smaller than width or height determined with respect to the area. When there exists an area adjacent to the area, the processor restricts the instructed movement of a boarder line at the opposite side of the pertinent boarder line so that it can be prevented from being made smaller than width or height determined with respect to the adjacent area.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a display method, and a program that perform a process of moving boundaries of a plurality of display areas displayed on a screen.

  For example, in an electronic document management system that arranges and manages a plurality of documents in a plurality of folders, one user interface is displayed in one window, and a plurality of display areas (hereinafter referred to as panes) are included therein. It has been known (Patent Document 1). For example, a tree pane that displays a folder hierarchy, a content pane that displays documents and subfolders in a folder, and a property pane that displays attribute information of each folder and document are well known. The display width and height of each pane can be freely changed by dragging the border of each pane with the mouse.

JP 2007-334691 A

  However, in order to change the width and height in order to make the display state easy to use, it is necessary to drag and move the respective boundary lines, which requires complicated work.

  For example, if you drag the boundary line of each pane and move it, the display width of one pane will increase, but the adjacent pane may be hidden. Alternatively, for example, when the right boundary line is moved to the left boundary line, there is a problem that the pane is hidden and cannot be displayed. For this reason, important information and information that must be displayed may be hidden. In order to display necessary information, it is necessary to adjust the display width by repeatedly dragging a plurality of boundary lines, which is complicated and difficult for the user to use.

Display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas;
Storage means for storing information of a width or height determined for the region;
Limiting means for restricting movement of the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the area when movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed;
When there is an area adjacent to the area, the restricting means limits the movement of the boundary line on the opposite side of the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the adjacent area. A characteristic information processing apparatus.

  Important information and information that must be displayed are not hidden, and a user interface that is easy for the user to use can be provided.

System schematic Screen display examples A and B Screen display examples C, D Data table for each pane Flow chart of screen display processing Data table for each pane status, data table for setting priority for each pane Data table for changing the display state of each pane according to the display width Example of screen display

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing a PC (personal computer) functioning as an information processing apparatus having a document application, which is suitable for implementing the present invention. The PC 100 includes a display 101 for displaying the contents of a document and a keyboard / mouse 102 for inputting characters and fonts when editing the document. The keyboard / mouse 102 instructs to move by dragging the boundary line of the area. The PC 100 includes a hard disk 103, a RAM 104, and a CD-ROM 105 as locations for storing the document application 200 and documents, and a CPU 106 that executes programs. Further, the document file and the location where the document file is stored are not limited to within the PC, but may be a location outside the PC connected via a network.

  FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram of the system.

  This system is an electronic document management system and operates on a personal computer. The display setting storage unit 1010 stores setting information regarding screen display. Document data 1050 stores documents managed by this system. The attribute information 1060 stores attribute information related to each document stored in the document data 1050. The attribute information 1060 includes not only attributes directly related to the document, such as a document name and a creator name, but also information on a folder in which the document is placed. The screen configuration unit 1020 reads information to be displayed from the attribute information 1060, and then combines the display parts stored in the display part storage unit 1030 to create a screen to be displayed on the user interface. The display parts storage unit 1030 stores predetermined parts such as buttons, menus, and display character strings that can be displayed on the user interface. The screen display unit 1040 displays the display screen created by the screen configuration unit 1020 on the user interface on the computer.

  FIG. 2A shows an example of a screen in which the screen display unit 1040 is displayed on one window on the user interface of the computer.

  In the title pane 201, items necessary for displaying help and searching for documents are arranged.

  The tree view pane 202 visually displays the folder hierarchy as a tree. In this example, a library A 209 and a library B 110 exist under the root 208 of the present system, and folders are arranged in a hierarchical structure under the library A 209 and library B 110. The library is conceptually positioned above the folder, and is assigned, for example, in units of company departments. For example, a folder is created for each fiscal year, or a folder is created for each business type, and a document is placed under each folder. In the example shown in the figure, Folder C211 exists under the library B210, and FolderD is further arranged thereunder. The folder currently selected is FolderC211 and is displayed in a rectangle so that it can be recognized.

  In the content pane 203, folders and documents arranged under FolderC211 are displayed together with attribute information 1060 information such as a name 212 and an update date 213. The user can select which attribute information 1060 is displayed. A scroll bar 207 is displayed to display what is not displayed in the pane. Further, the currently selected folder or document is displayed in a rectangular shape so that it can be recognized. In the example shown in the figure, the delivery note 214 is being selected.

  The property pane 204 displays a list of attribute information 1060 related to the folder or document selected in the content pane 203. In the example shown in the figure, thumbnail image 215 of delivery note 214, document name 216, and other information such as URL and creator of the document are displayed. The attribute information 1060 includes information that can be arbitrarily set / edited by the user. In the example of the figure, the approver 217 and the delivery address 218 correspond to them, and are displayed with an underline so as to be understood. When the edit button 219 is pressed, editing is possible, and a character string input operation can be performed by a keyboard or mouse operation.

  A left boundary line 205 is a separation line that represents the boundary between the tree pane 202 and the content pane 203, and can be moved to the left and right by dragging with the mouse. Similarly, the right boundary line 206 is a separation line that represents the boundary between the content pane 203 and the property pane 204. When each boundary line is dragged and moved, the display width of each pane changes according to the position.

  FIG. 4 is a data table that defines the minimum display width of each pane. This table is information stored in the display setting storage unit 1010 and includes a pane name 301 and a minimum display width 302 of the pane. In the present embodiment, width information is provided, but height information may be provided, and both width and height information may be provided. Information defining the minimum width of each pane can be set by the keyboard / mouse 102. The pane name 301 includes the respective panes described with reference to FIG. 2. In the illustrated example, the minimum display width 302 of the tree pane 303 and the property pane 305 is 0, and the minimum display width 302 of the content pane 304 is 300. Yes. The unit is an arbitrary value determined by the program, for example, the number of display pixels. In the example of this figure, the tree pane 303 and the property pane 305 can be not displayed, while the content pane 304 always has a display width of 300 or more.

  An example of changing the display width of the pane will be described with reference to FIG.

  Assume that the left boundary line 205 is dragged from the display state of FIG. 2A and moved to the left edge of the window. In this case, the display width of the tree pane 203 is reduced.

  First, the program reads the minimum width 302 of the tree pane 303 with reference to the data table described with reference to FIG. Since the value is 0, the tree pane 203 is all hidden as a result, and the left border line 205 is displayed at the left end of the window. The display width of the content pane 203 is expanded, and information on the approver 217 and the delivery address 218 is displayed. Since only one folder or document information is displayed in the property pane 204, when the user wants to list information of a plurality of folders or documents, the user widens the display width of the content pane 203 as shown in FIG. Check each information.

  FIG. 3A shows a display state after two operations are performed. As a result, the same display state is obtained.

  First, it is assumed that the right boundary line 206 is moved from the state of FIG. 2B to the left edge of the window.

  The operation is such that the content pane 203 is not displayed, but the program reads the minimum width 302 of the content pane 304 with reference to the data table described with reference to FIG. Since the value is 300, as a result, the content pane 203 is displayed with the display width 300 without being hidden.

  Further, it is assumed that the right boundary line 206 is dragged from the state of FIG. 2A and moved to the left end of the window. Similarly, although the operation is such that the content pane 203 is not displayed, the program also refers to the data table described with reference to FIG. 4 and reads the minimum width 302 of the tree pane 202 and the content pane 304. Since the value of the tree pane 202 is 0, the tree pane is hidden. Since the value of the content pane 304 is 300, as a result, the content pane 203 is not hidden and displayed at the left end in the state of the display width 300.

  Next, an example in which the right boundary line 206 is dragged from the state of FIG. 2A and moved slightly to the left will be described with reference to FIG.

  The program refers to the data table described with reference to FIG. 4 and first reads the minimum width 302 of the content pane 304. When the right boundary line 206 is moved beyond the minimum value width, the program subsequently refers to the data table described in FIG. 4 and reads the minimum width 302 of the tree pane 202. As a result, when it is determined that the display of the tree pane 202 can be narrowed, the left boundary line 205 on the opposite side is automatically displayed so as to display only the minimum value width of the content pane 304 from the position of the moved right boundary line 206. Move to. As a result, the display width of the tree pane 202 is narrowed. In the example shown in the figure, the content pane 304 is displayed with the minimum width.

  Next, a method for calculating the display width of each pane will be specifically described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The program according to the flowchart of FIG. 5 is stored in the hard disk 103, read into the RAM 104, and executed by the CPU 106.

  When the left boundary line 205 or the right boundary line 206 is dragged and moved, the program executes a boundary line moving process. First, in S401, the movement amount of the dragged boundary line (a) is detected. Here, it is assumed that the right boundary line 206 in FIG. 2A has been moved to the left. Subsequently, in S402, the minimum width of the moving direction side pane (A), that is, the content pane 203 in FIG. 2A is read from the data table described in FIG. According to FIG. 4, the value is 300. Subsequently, the condition determination branch of S403 is performed. The detected amount of movement of the boundary line (a) is compared with the value obtained by subtracting the minimum width from the display width of the pane (A) before the movement, and if the amount of movement is smaller, the process proceeds to S404. The smaller movement amount means that there is still room in the display size of the pane (A) on the movement direction side, and in S404 the position is set as the new position of the boundary line (a). The display width of is reduced.

  If the movement amount is larger as a result of the condition determination in S403, the process proceeds to S405, and it is determined whether or not there is an adjacent pane (B) further ahead of the movement direction side pane (A). Here, the pane (B) corresponds to the tree pane 202 of FIG. Presence / absence can be determined from the state of the screen currently displayed on the screen display unit 1040. If it does not exist, that is, the pane (A) faces the edge of the window, and the boundary line (a) is placed at a position returned from the edge of the window by the position of the minimum width of the pane (A).

  If it is determined in S405 that the adjacent pane (B) exists, the process proceeds to S407, and processing for changing the display width of the pane (B) is performed.

  In S407, the boundary line (b) between the panes (A) and (B) is (movement amount of the boundary line (a) + minimum width of the pane (A)) − original width of the pane (A)). Only considered moved. Here, the boundary line (b) corresponds to the left boundary line 205 opposite to the right boundary line 206. The movement amount of the boundary line (b) is defined as the movement amount (b). Subsequently, in S408, the boundary line moving process is recursively executed. That is, it is considered that the boundary line (b) has been moved by the movement amount (b) in the direction in which the width of the pane (b) is narrowed, and the boundary line movement process is executed as a lower process. The position of the boundary line is determined in S404 or S406 in the lower process, and the position is returned to the present process. If it is necessary to move the boundary line in a direction that further narrows the width of the adjacent pane in the lower process, the boundary line moving process is recursively executed as a further lower process.

  When the lower processing is completed, the process proceeds to S409. In S409, the position of the boundary line returned from the lower processing is set as the position of the boundary line (b). Thereafter, in S410, the position of the boundary line (a) is set to the position returned from the boundary line (b) by the minimum width of the pane (A).

  In S411, it is determined whether or not the current process is recursively called in the upper boundary line movement process S408. If it has been recursively called, the position of the boundary line is returned to the upper process in S412. Specifically, S409 of the upper process is executed.

  If it has not been recursively called, the process advances to step S413, and a screen to be displayed on the user interface is created and displayed according to the procedure described with reference to FIG.

(Other Example 1)
An example of having a plurality of minimum display widths of the pane will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the above-described embodiment, the data table defining the minimum display width of each pane is the one shown in FIG. 4, but a minimum width 506 during document selection and a minimum width 507 during property editing are added thereto. . The higher the priority is on the right side of the table.

  The minimum width of the pane (A) is acquired in S602 in the flowchart of FIG. 6B of the above-described embodiment. At this time, the property pane, which is the rightmost condition of the data table of FIG. In 204, it is determined whether or not the property is being edited. If editing is in progress, it is read that the minimum width is 300 for the content pane 203, 500 for the property pane 204, and 0 for the tree pane 202. In this state, since the user is editing the property in the property pane 204, the editing operation is facilitated by increasing the minimum display width of this pane. Further, in this case, in order to make it easier for the user to check which document property is being edited, the minimum width of the content pane 203 is specified to be slightly smaller so that which document is currently selected at a glance. You can check it easily.

  If the property is not being edited, the process moves to the item on the left side of FIG. 6A, and it is determined whether or not the document is being selected in the content pane 203. If selected, the minimum width of the content pane 203 is 500, and the other panes are 0. When the document is being selected, the user may continue to copy, move, and download the document in the content pane 203. Therefore, the minimum display width of the content pane 203 is set a little wider.

  When the document is not being selected, the process moves to the left item after the figure, and it is read that the minimum width of the content pane 203 is 300 and the other panes are 0.

(Other Example 2)
An example in which only the priority order of the panes, not the minimum display width of the panes, will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the above-described embodiment, the data table that defines the minimum display width of each pane is the one shown in FIG. 4, but priority is set instead of the minimum display width. The lower the number, the higher the priority. This priority order determines which pane width is changed when, for example, the following operation is performed.

  For example, when the right boundary line 206 in FIG. 2A is dragged and moved to the left, the program refers to the data table in FIG. 6B and the tree pane 603 positioned to the left of the right boundary line 206 The priority order of the content pane 604 is acquired. Since the priority order of the content pane 604 is higher, the display width of the content pane 203 remains the same on the screen of FIG. 2A, and the left boundary line 205 moves to the left. As a result, the display width of the low-priority tree pane 202 is reduced.

  When the minimum display width of FIG. 4 is added to the table of FIG. 6B, the priority order of the panes for reducing the display width and the minimum width can be defined simultaneously. For example, when the display width of the lowest priority pane reaches the minimum display width, the process of reducing the display width of the next lowest priority pane to the minimum display width is continued thereafter.

(Other Example 3)
An example of changing the display state of the content in the pane according to the display width of the pane will be described using the pane view table of FIG.

  For example, when the right boundary line 206 in FIG. 2A is dragged and moved to the left, the program refers to the pane view table in FIG. Although the display width of the content pane 203 is narrowed by the movement of the right boundary line 206, the table is referred to from the value corresponding to the display width after the movement. For example, when the display width is 550, it is understood that the display width corresponds to the display width B703, and it can be read that the display state of the content pane at that time is “small thumbnail”. The program changes the display state of the content pane 203 to be displayed as a small thumbnail. The display state is shown in FIG. In the center content pane, the document name is displayed below the thumbnail image. The selected document is displayed with a rectangle. If the display width is A 702, the list is displayed. An example of the list display is the display state of the content pane in FIG. In the case of the display width A704, a large thumbnail is displayed and a thumbnail image larger than the thumbnail of FIG. 8 is displayed. However, since the display area occupied by one document increases, only a small number of documents can be displayed when the pane is narrow. Therefore, when the pane is narrow, it is possible to display without reducing the amount of information by automatically switching to a small thumbnail or list display, and it is possible to improve user convenience and work efficiency.

Claims (12)

Display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas;
Storage means for storing information of a width or height determined for the region;
Moving means for moving the designated boundary line so as not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the area when movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed;
The moving means, when there is a region adjacent to the region, moves a boundary line on the opposite side of the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the adjacent region. Information processing apparatus. Display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas;
Storage means for storing priority information determined for the area;
Moving means for moving the designated boundary line based on priority information determined for the area when movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed;
The moving means moves, when there is a region adjacent to the region, a boundary line on the opposite side of the specified boundary line based on priority information determined for the adjacent region. Processing equipment.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a setting unit configured to set information on the predetermined width or height.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a changing unit that changes a display state of the content according to the width of the area. A display method executed by an information processing apparatus having display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas, and storage means for storing information of a width or height determined for the areas,
When the movement of the boundary line of the region is instructed, the moving step moves the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than the width or height determined for the region;
In the moving step, when there is an area next to the area, the boundary line on the opposite side of the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the adjacent area is moved. How to display. A display method executed by an information processing apparatus having display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas, and storage means for storing priority information determined for the areas,
When the movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed, the moving step of moving the instructed boundary line based on the priority information determined for the area,
In the moving step, when there is an area adjacent to the area, the boundary line on the opposite side of the instructed boundary line is moved based on priority information determined for the adjacent area. Method.   The display method according to claim 5, further comprising a setting step of setting information on the predetermined width or height.   The display method according to claim 5, further comprising a changing step of changing a display state of the content in accordance with the width of the area. A program executed by a computer having display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas, and storage means for storing information of a width or height determined for the areas,
When the movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed, the computer functions as a moving unit that moves the instructed boundary line so as not to be smaller than the width or height determined for the area;
The moving means, when there is a region adjacent to the region, moves a boundary line on the opposite side of the boundary line instructed not to be smaller than a width or height determined for the adjacent region. Program to do. A program executed by a computer having display means for displaying a screen having a plurality of areas, and storage means for storing information of priority determined for the areas,
When the movement of the boundary line of the area is instructed, the computer functions as a moving means for moving the instructed boundary line based on the priority information determined for the area,
The moving means, when there is an area adjacent to the area, moves the boundary line on the opposite side of the instructed boundary line based on priority order information determined for the adjacent area. .   The program according to claim 9 or 10, wherein a computer is caused to function as setting means for setting information of the predetermined width or height.   The program according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the computer functions as changing means for changing a display state of content in accordance with the width of the area.

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