JPH0719195B2 - Multi-window display control method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION [Overview] In a multi-window display screen, a display area on a virtual screen can be moved by moving a cursor in the window without providing a specific area on the screen.

[Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a display control method in a computer system, and particularly to a display control method in a multi-window display screen.

[Conventional technology]

When executing a plurality of information processings in parallel, it is necessary to simultaneously display the results of each information processing on the screen of one display device. In such a case, a multi-screen display method using a so-called multi-window technique is often used.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a multi-window display screen.

In FIG. 4, 11 is a physical screen of the display device, 12a, 12b, 12c.
Represents the individual windows that make up the multi-window.

In the area where each window of the multi-window overlaps, the window located in the front is superior,
The display is performed. Further, the screen editing process is enabled only for the frontmost window (window 12a in the illustrated example) (called an active window).

By the way, since the window located at the rear is normally designed to be able to be forwarded cyclically by key control, if any of the windows located at the rear needs screen editing processing, that window will be moved forward. Is moved to the foreground before processing is performed.

Generally, the size of each window of the multi-window display screen is often smaller than the size of the virtual screen of each information processing corresponding to each window. Therefore, it is necessary to specify which part should be displayed in the window.

Conventionally, a specific command area (for example, a fixed area at the bottom of the window) is provided in the window, and the command area is pointed with a mouse cursor or the like.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

As described above, the conventional method of controlling the display area movement (scrolling) of the virtual screen by providing the command area in the window of the multi-window display screen determines the area that can be effectively used to display the virtual screen in the window. There was a problem of reducing only the command area.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention eliminates the need for a specific command area by providing means for automatically controlling the display area movement on the virtual screen in that direction when the cursor is positioned at either end (boundary) of the window. The problems of the conventional method described above are solved.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the principles of the present invention in an exemplary manner.

In FIG. 1, 11 is a physical screen, 12a, 12b and 12c are individual windows constituting a multi-window, 13 is a cursor (eg mouse cursor), 14 is a multi-window display controller, 15 is cursor position data, 16 is Window boundary data, 17 is a cursor position analysis unit, 18 is a display area movement control unit, 19a is a virtual screen corresponding to the window 12a, A1 is a current display area, and A2 is a movement target display area.

In the multi-window display controller 14, the cursor position data 15 is coordinate data (Xi, Yi) of the cursor 13 (which may be any cursor such as a mouse cursor), and changes as the cursor moves.

The window boundary data 16 includes the upper and lower areas of the frontmost window (active window) 12a to be operated,
Coordinate data (X ₀ , Y ₀ , X ₁ , Y ₁ ) that defines the left and right boundaries
Is.

The cursor position analysis unit 17 compares the cursor position data 15 with the window boundary data 16, and executes the display area movement when the cursor 13 is in the window 12a and a predetermined switch is pressed. Set a control state (called area movement mode) (note that this control state is released when the switch is released again), and then when the cursor position matches any of the upper, lower, left, or right boundaries of the window, The display area movement control unit 18 is instructed to move the display area in the direction of the coincident boundary. This directive is output only while the cursor is aligned with the boundary.

In the area movement mode, the display area movement control unit 18 sequentially moves the display area A1 on the virtual screen 19a toward the movement target display area A2 according to the area movement direction instructed by the cursor position analysis unit 17. Control is performed to stop at the position where there is no instruction to move the display area.

[Action]

FIG. 2 shows a specific example of the display area moving operation when the multi-window control method according to the present invention is applied.

In FIG. 2, each element of reference numbers 11, 12a, 12b, 19a is
It is the same as that shown in FIG. 1, 20 is a mouse, and 21 is a button switch used for instructing the setting and cancellation of the area movement mode.

FIG. 2A shows a state in which the cursor 13 is moved into the window 12a and the button switch 21 of the mouse 20 is pressed to set the area moving mode. At this time, the window
The display area A1 of the virtual screen 19a is displayed on 12a.

In FIG. 2B, the mouse 20 is moved with the button switch 21 held down, the cursor 13 is used to point the right boundary of the window 12a, and the display area of the virtual screen 19a displayed in the window 12a is changed from A1 to A2. It has been moved to.

In FIG. 2 (c), the mouse 20 is moved while the button switch 21 is being pressed, and the cursor 13 is moved to the window 12a.
The lower boundary is pointed and the display area of the virtual screen 19a is moved from A2 to A3.

FIG. 2 (d) shows a state in which the cursor 13 is returned to the window 12a, the button switch 21 of the mouse 20 is released, and the area moving mode is released.

As a result, the normal processing control mode is set, and screen editing processing and the like are possible.

In this way, the display area can be easily moved only by moving the cursor to the boundary in the desired direction in the operation target window.

〔Example〕

 FIG. 3 shows the configuration of one embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 3, 1 is a processing device, 2 is a memory, 3 is a display device, 1
1 is a physical screen of the display device 3, 12a, 12b and 12c are windows, 13 is a cursor, 14 is a multi-window display control unit, 15 is cursor position data, 16 is window boundary data, 17 is cursor position analysis unit, 18 Is the display area movement controller, 1
Reference numerals 9a, 19b and 19c are virtual screens, 20 is a mouse, 21 is a button switch, 22 is a mouse input section, 23 is a cursor control section, 24 is a mode control section, 25 is a movement control mode flag, and 26 is a window management section. is there.

Incidentally, in FIG. 3, the elements having the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 indicate the same elements, and therefore the explanation made about them also applies in FIG.

The physical screen 11 of the display device 3 is controlled by the multi-window display control unit 14, and each window 12a, 12b, 12c is
The window management unit 26 manages the information in association with each information processing.

In each of the windows 12a, 12b, 12c, the data of the display areas A, B, C cut out by the display area movement control unit 18 in the areas indicated by the virtual screens 19a, 19b, 19c in the memory 3 respectively. Is displayed.

The output of the mouse 20 is applied to the cursor control unit 23 and the mode control unit 24 via the mouse input unit 22 as movement amount data and button switch signals, respectively. The mouse input unit 22 performs a process of converting a moving amount of the mouse 20 into a moving amount of the cursor 13 and other interface processes.

The cursor control unit 23 controls the position (X coordinate, Y coordinate) of the cursor 13 based on the movement amount data from the mouse 20.

Cursor position data 15 output from the cursor control unit 23
Is a window management unit in the cursor position analysis unit 17.
When compared with the window boundary data 16 of the active window obtained from 26 and it is determined that the cursor is in the window, the mode control unit 24 is notified of the state of being in the window.

When the mode control unit 24 detects a button switch signal from the mouse 20 while the cursor 13 is in the window,
The area movement mode flag 25 is controlled to be reversed. That is, if the area movement mode flag 25 is in the OFF state, it is turned ON, while if it is in the ON state, it is turned OFF.

In the cursor position analysis unit 17, the area movement mode flag 25 is ON
In the case of, it is checked whether or not the changing cursor position data 15 matches the window boundary data 16, and while the cursor position data 15 matches, the display area movement control unit 18 is moved to any of the upward, downward, left, and right movement directions. Notice. At the same time, the cursor control unit 23 is controlled to lock the cursor in the window area so that the cursor does not move over the window boundary, and the cursor area movement operation is facilitated.

The display area movement control unit 18 uses the method described in FIG.
The display area is moved within the virtual screen according to the direction of movement.

〔The invention's effect〕

According to the present invention, the display area can be moved by an operation that the operator can easily perceive, and the effective area of the physical screen that can be used to display the processing result is increased. Can be avoided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the principle of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a specific example of a display area moving operation according to the present invention, FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. It is an explanatory view of a multi-window display screen. In Fig. 1, 11: physical screen 12a, 12b, 12c: window 14: multi-window display control unit 17: cursor position analysis unit 19a: virtual screen

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A computer system having multi-window display control means, wherein the multi-window display control means defines boundary coordinates for defining upper, lower, left and right boundaries of one window to be operated on a multi-window screen of a display device. And the current cursor position are compared, and if the predetermined switch is pressed while the cursor position is within the boundary of the window, the display area on the virtual screen is moved for that window. Set the control state, and in that control state,
When the position of the cursor coincides with any of the upper, lower, left and right boundaries of the window, the multi-window display control is characterized in that the display area on the virtual screen is moved in the direction of the coincident boundary. method.