JP2000172398A - Interface control for performing switching among display areas on display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tab control which can attain the optimum use of the smallest display screen and also can change its size by displaying all tab icons only of a non-seleted area among those subsets and accordingly displaying a control which is used to perform switching among plural display areas in a display system. SOLUTION: A relative display area 80 is prepared together with a tab bar display area 811 which includes the tabs 801, 802, 807 and 809. A selected tab has a size where its label and icon are displayed in its frame. When the tab is selected by tapping it by means of a stylus, the display area that is currently shown on a screen is eliminated and the tab related to the display area has a reduced size so as to display only the relative tab icon. Then a selected display area is shown on a screen.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention is directed to the field of display devices. The invention is specifically directed to display interface controls.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In many devices, the display screen size is limited, so that it is difficult to efficiently display a control for switching between a plurality of display areas. One approach to the problem of displaying display area controls in a limited display space is to use tabs with text labels as visual indicators of the display area and its contents, as a means to switch between display areas. Click on a tab. The size of these tabs is predetermined by the programmer (in this case, the display area label must fit within the predetermined tab size) or by the length of the label displayed on the tab. Will either be determined. If the number of display areas is greater than the number of tabs and labels that fit on the display screen, the tabs are scrolled by clicking the left and right arrows, which scroll the tabs left and right. You. In this case, the tab representing the display area and all of its labels are not simultaneously visible to the user. The strength of tabs is that they are clear and well understood by users to switch between different locations.
To provide an interface metaphor. Specifically, in the physical world, tabs allow switching between different documents or files in the same manner as tabs for files in the physical file system.

[0003] Another approach to this problem of providing control for switching between display areas is to use icons. Icons provide a pictorial representation of the object and can also be labeled. The icon, together with the corresponding label, makes a strong connection between the icon and what it represents. When you click the icon displayed on the screen,
The display is moved to a display area represented by the icon and the label. Icons can be placed in the icon bar and can be placed in fixed locations, which allows users with experience with the system to learn the spatial location of the icons, thus allowing for quick navigation So important. The advantage of the icons is that they are small, thus maximizing the use of the display space. The disadvantage of this solution is that the icons are generally used to switch between applications, rather than between display areas within the application. There is no metaphor that is strongly switched between different documents as in the case of the tab expression. Another disadvantage of icons is that they are often displayed with labels to give them meaning. This label can occupy a significant portion of the display screen. To reduce the amount of space occupied by the icon and its label, the label can be displayed only when the cursor is over the icon. The disadvantage of this approach is that the label is only displayed temporarily when the cursor is over the icon, and the label becomes invisible when the cursor leaves. Therefore,
The label becomes invisible when a display area is displayed on the screen and the user starts working in the display area.

[0004] Another approach is to use a menu that contains items whose labels and / or icons represent different display areas. The disadvantage of this approach is that the labels and / or icons representing the display area are not visible unless a menu is first selected. However, menus have the advantage that the order is fixed so that the user learns the position of the menu items as they become more familiar with the system. After this learning, the user will be able to easily navigate to the item he wants to select.

[0005]

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the problems associated with devices having a limited display size that makes it difficult to display controls, such as labeled icons, for switching between multiple display areas. , Apparatus and systems for the same. One aspect of the present invention provides a resizable tab control that optimally utilizes a minimal display screen. Although resizable tab controls are particularly advantageous for small displays on pervasive computing devices, they are not limited to use with only small devices. This control uses a tab metaphor to indicate different display areas.

In certain embodiments, tabs are displayed at the top, side, or bottom of the screen in a consistent order. Icons and labels are visually displayed in the tabs. The tab icon is a visual expression indicating the contents of the display area. The tab label is a text expression indicating the contents of the display area. Icons are defined to be always smaller than labels. Only one display area at a time can be shown on the screen. The display area currently shown on the screen is
The selected area. When the display area is not the currently selected area, its tab is sized to show only the icon. When the display area is the selected area, the tab is sized to show both the icon and the label.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The limited display size of pervasive computing devices, such as IBM Workpad, makes it difficult to display controls for switching between multiple display areas. The present invention provides a resizable tab control that efficiently uses a small display screen area. Although resizable controls are particularly advantageous for small displays on pervasive computing devices, the invention is not limited to use with only small devices. The invention is also advantageously used with displays that do not have space and / or tab size issues.

[0008] Resizable tab controls use a collection of tabs to visually represent different display areas. In certain embodiments, the tabs are advantageously displayed at the top, side, or bottom of the screen, or a combination thereof, in a consistent order. Icons and labels are visually displayed in the tabs. The tab icon is a visual expression indicating the contents of the display area. The tab label is a text expression indicating the contents of the display area. The size of a tab icon, by definition, is generally smaller than or equal to the size of the corresponding tab label. In general, it is assumed that an icon is always smaller than the corresponding label.
When the label is smaller, in the practice of the present invention,
Labels can be exchanged for icons and used instead. In some embodiments, multiple display areas are shown on the display screen by using display area partitioning, windowing, etc., but generally only one display area at a time is typically shown on the screen. The display area currently shown on the screen is the area currently selected.
When the display area is not the currently selected area, the tab is sized to show only the corresponding icon.
When the display area is the selected area, the tab
Next to the area information, the size is set to indicate both the icon and the label of the selected area.

Resizable tabs maintain the advantages of tabs as a user interface metaphor for switching between display areas, and thus have advantages over purely icon-based representations. Resizable tabs also overcome the disadvantage of tabs and their labels taking up too much space on a limited size display screen. This is done by using only icons to represent the contents of the currently unselected display area. In certain embodiments, resizable tabs also have the advantage of allowing a certain order to be maintained for a visual representation of the contents of the display area. This facilitates navigation as the user becomes accustomed to the application using tabs. Finally, resizable tabs are better than icons with labels that appear only when the cursor is over the icons, because the labels are always visible for the selected display area.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the method comprises operating an operating system of a pen-based computer system.
Included as part of the system, allowing for incorporation into multiple application programs. In an alternative embodiment, the invention is directly incorporated into the application of either a multi-purpose device or a single-purpose device. In a typical embodiment, the tabs are located horizontally at the top of the screen, but the tabs can be located anywhere. Advantageously, the tabs maintain order and the associated labels and icons are displayed as at least partially within the boundaries of the tabs. For example, tabs can be displayed on the side of the screen and labels can be displayed vertically.

The application in the pen-based system used in the example embodiment consists of a form. In this embodiment, the tab bar is defined to be the part of the screen that contains the visual representation of the tab (see tab bar display area 811 in FIG. 8). Referring to FIG.
When a form with a tab bar is created, the method of the present invention is started 100. In block 101, a tab bar area is initialized. After initialization, the system monitors 102 for input. The application form processes the event at block 103 when it receives input. The pen down event is a tab
103 that is processed by the bar event handler.

FIG. 2 shows the "initial setting" 200 of the tab bar.
Here is an example of the initial settings starting with. First, a tab is created (201). Set the currently selected tab (20
2) Finally, a tab is drawn (203).

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of tab creation starting from “tab creation” 300. A tab bar object is created (301). The tab bar object contains pointers to the linked list of tab objects, pointers to the first and last tab objects,
Contains information about the set of tab objects, including pointers to the first and last visible tab objects and pointers to the currently expanded tab object. The tab bar object also contains information that links the tab bar object to its outer container, i.e., the coordinates and width of the upper left corner of the surrounding rectangle. After creating the tab bar object,
Each of the tabs ranging from "1" to "n" is added to the tab list maintained by the tab bar object (302).

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a method of adding a tab to a tab bar. This begins with “Add Tab” 400. A tab object is created and initialized (401). Tab objects include tab labels,
The font of the label, the bitmap identifier (used to access the tab icon), the message ID (used to indicate which tab was clicked on to the application containing the tab), and the rectangle containing the tab object Contains information about individual tabs, including their current size. This latter value changes as a function of which tab is the currently selected tab, and the tab bar
When the object is rendered on the screen (203)
Is set to After the tab bar is created and initialized, the tab labels and icons are set (40).
2). This includes specifying the tab, label, and font. Next, at block 403, a message ID is set. Finally, the tab object is
Add to the tab list maintained by the object (404).

In the last step, the tab is drawn on the screen. An example of the “tab drawing” procedure will be described with reference to FIG. This procedure starts with “tab drawing” 500. Next, the area of the display screen where the tab bar is displayed is cleared (501). Thereafter, it is checked whether there are any more tabs to be drawn 502. If there is still a tab to be drawn, the ID of the next tab is obtained (503). Then, the size of the icon bitmap of the tab is calculated (504). At block 505, it is checked whether the tab to be drawn is marked as the selected tab. If so, block 507 calculates the size of the label. If it is not the selected tab, the label size is set to 0 (506). Then, before drawing the tab, the procedure first checks whether there is room to display it on the screen (508). If there ’s no room on the screen,
At block 509, a sign is drawn indicating that there are more tabs than are currently visible on the screen. If there is room on the screen, block 510 calculates the width, height, and origin of the rectangle that bounds the tab. After these coordinates have been set, block 511 outlines the tabs and block 512 includes the tab contents including the tab icon and, if the tab is the selected tab, the tab label. draw.

In one embodiment, when the user taps the screen, the application initiates a pen down event. The tab bar event handler scheme shown in FIG. 6 is called. This is accomplished by determining 601 whether the pen down is within the tab bar area of the display screen, resulting in a "tab bar handler event".
Start 600. If not in the tab bar area,
The procedure ends 614 and the pen down event is sent to the application. If the pen down is within the tab bar display area, then at 602, check whether the event is within the currently selected tab. Nothing is done within the currently selected tab.
If not in the currently selected tab, block 6
At 03, it is determined which tab the pen is in, and the ID of that tab is stored. The tab in which the pen is located is referred to herein as a down tab. Thereafter, the event handler checks at 604 whether the pen is still down. If the pen is down, block 60
At 7, the coordinates of the pen are obtained, and at 608, it is checked whether the pen is still in the down tab, and if so, 611 if the down tab is not already highlighted,
Highlight the down tab 612 and then return to 604 to check again whether the pen is still down. If the pen coordinates are not within the boundaries of the down tab, or if the down tab is highlighted (60
9) Unhighlight the down tab at block 610 and then return to 604 to check again whether the pen is still down. Pen coordinates down
If not within the boundaries of the tab (608) and the down tab is not highlighted, the procedure returns to 604 to check if the pen is still down.
If the pen was not already down when examined at 604 and the pen up point was within the boundaries of the down tab (605), a tab selection event notification is sent to the application. By this event, the drawing of the contents of the display area related to the tab and the redrawing of the tab bar, which are schematically shown in FIG. 5, are started. If the up point is not within the boundaries of the down tab, nothing happens and the handler exits.

An embodiment of the computer system of the present invention is shown in FIG. The invention can be implemented in either general purpose or special purpose pointer-based computer systems. This includes, for example, pen bases, mice,
Trackball and trackpad computer
System included. For purposes of illustration, the present invention will be described with reference to a pen-based system.

The computer system of the example embodiment described generally includes a bus 701 for communicating information.
Or another communication device, a processor 702 coupled to the bus 701 for processing information, and a processor 70
Read-only memory (ROM) or other static storage 703 for storing information and instructions for the processor 2 and random access memory (RAM) or RAM for storing information and instructions for the processor 702. A display 705 for displaying information to a computer user, such as another storage 704 and a cathode ray tube, a liquid crystal display,
A mouse, pen, trackball coupled to at least one user signal detection device, such as a mouse button, for pointing to a location on the screen of the display device 705 and communicating information and command selections to the processor 702. Or, a pointing device such as a track pad is included.

In an alternative embodiment, the display is a touch-sensitive display 705 for receiving position input from a user's finger or other pointing device and communicating information and command selections to processor 702.

In a software architecture implementation, a graphical user interface (GU)
I) The environment can be used. GUIs are well known in the art. The invention may be implemented as part of an application program, as part of a user interface of a single purpose system, or in any other suitable manner.

The GUI used in the preferred embodiment is based on a message driven architecture. Message driven architectures are well known in the art and are used in most GUI systems. In this architecture, any user input or system event is translated into a message that is sent to the object associated with that input or event.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a mechanism for switching between a display area and its contents. from now on,
4 shows a consideration for an object displayed in a display screen embodiment according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 8, tab 802
Has an associated display area 803 containing application specific data or content such as lists, buttons, text and other user interface objects. There is also a tab bar display area 811. A plurality of tabs 801 and 80 are displayed in the tab bar display area 811.
2, 807 and 809. Tab 802 has an associated tab label 806 and tab icon 805. Typically, only one display area can be visible at a time. The tab associated with the visible display area is referred to as the selected tab. In the preferred embodiment, the selected tab is sized so that both the tab label and the tab icon are displayed in the frame. But,
Generally, tab icons and tab labels are displayed on the screen in a manner related to the currently selected tab, and the selected tab is sized accordingly. Tabs associated with display areas that are not currently displayed on the screen are displayed in a reduced form with only tab icons shown. For example, tab 801 shows icon 804, tab 807 shows icon 808, and tab 809 shows icon 810. If there are multiple tabs, they are advantageously displayed in a fixed order. This order can be predetermined or determined algorithmically. In a preferred embodiment, the reduced tabs are displayed in a manner known to those skilled in the art so that they appear to be farther down the current tab.

If there are more tabs than will fit on the screen, one such as an arrow icon or "more" button
One or more visual indicators are placed on the screen. Tapping this visual indicator will cause all or a subset of the tabs not currently displayed on the screen to be displayed on the screen.

In the described embodiment, when a tab is selected by tapping it with a stylus,
The display area currently displayed on the screen is removed from the screen and its associated tab is reduced in size so that only the relevant tab icon is displayed. The display area associated with the selected tab is displayed on the screen, and the associated tab is enlarged in size to display both tab icons and tab labels.

An example of an implementation of the current procedure is centered on two data structures: a TabBarObject and a TabObject.

The TabBarObject has a link to the TabObject.
T, including pointers to list, pointers to first and last TabObject, pointers to first and last visible TabObject, and pointers to currently expanded TabObject
Contains information about the set of abObjects. TabBarObject
Contains the information that links the TabBarObject to its outer container, that is, the coordinates and size of the upper-left corner of the surrounding rectangle.

The TabObject contains a tab label, a label font, a bitmap identifier, a control ID (used to indicate to the containing application which tab was clicked), and the current size of the rectangle containing the tab. Contains information about individual tabs, including width. This latter value generally changes as a function of which tab is currently expanded, and is set when the TabBarObject is rendered to the screen.

The following two or more procedures are related to these two data structures.

CreateTabBarObject receives a pointer to the user interface object (form) containing the tab, the position and width of the tab bar in the form, and a source identifier, and is used in subsequent calls. Returns a pointer to the created TabBarObject. This procedure is called by the code responsible for creating and rendering the form containing the tab.

AddTabObject receives a pointer to a TabBarObject, a label character string, a bitmap ID, and a control ID. AddTabObject is the default Ta
Create a bObject and link it to the TabBarObject's list of TabObjects. AddTabObject is a new TabObject
Returns a pointer to This procedure is called by the code responsible for creating and rendering the form containing the tab. This procedure is called once for each tab.

SelectTabObject receives a pointer to a TabBarObject and a control ID. SelectTabObjec
t sets the currently expanded tab pointer of the TabBarObject. This procedure is called after a tab has been added to the tab bar and before rendering the tab.

UpdateTabObject receives a pointer to a TabBarObject. UpdateTabObject calculates the bounding rectangle of all visible tabs and displays the tab in either a collapsed or expanded form, as indicated by the TabBarObject. The bounding rectangle is stored in each TabBarObject so that it can determine which tab was clicked on subsequent user input events. This procedure is
Called as the last step in the code responsible for creating and rendering forms containing tabs.

TabObjectHandleInput receives a pointer to a TabBarObject, a pointer to a form containing tabs, and an event descriptor. This procedure determines which of the tabs, if any, are in the event descriptor (usually,
Click or pen down point). This procedure captures the mouse or pen input stream and tracks whether the event stays in the tab. During this event tracking, changes in containment are visually indicated within the tab itself. When an up event is received (usually at the point of a click or pen-up), the procedure dispatches an event containing the control ID of the "clicked" tab. This event is received by the application containing the tab and typically closes the current form and opens a new form (this creates a CreateTa
The process of tab bar creation by bBarObject starts.)
Will be.

DeleteTabBarObject receives a pointer to a TabBarObject and performs memory deallocation and cleanup. This procedure is called when the form containing the tab is closed.

Accordingly, one aspect of the present invention generates a set of tabs that visually represent at least a subset of a plurality of display areas on a display module; each tab is provided with a tab icon and a tab label; Displaying in the display system the tab icons, tab labels and data content for selected regions of the subset; and displaying only all tab icons of unselected regions of the subset. Displaying a control used to switch between a plurality of display areas.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects, or by clicking one of the selectable objects. The user selecting said one of said selectable objects, or forming each tab icon having an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size of each tab label;
Alternatively, a combination of these is included.

[0037] In some embodiments of the method, the step of providing includes, in a particular set order, the tabs.
Ordering the tab icons with respect to a label, or wherein the ordering step includes displaying the tab icons before the tab labels, or wherein the generating step is included in the subset. Or providing the function of changing the display area of the display system includes providing a directional tab movement arrow, or wherein the displaying comprises at least one edge of the display system. Including visually indicating a tab icon and a tab label nearby, or wherein the edge is an upper edge of the display system, or wherein the displaying includes information about only one tab icon. Or a combination thereof.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for switching between a plurality of display areas in a display module. The apparatus includes: a set of tabs; a generator for generating at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module and providing each tab of the set of tabs with a tab icon and a tab label; A display controller for controlling the display of the tab icons, tab labels and tab data content of at least one selected area taken from the subset and the tab icons of all unselected areas of the subset And

Some embodiments of the apparatus further comprise a user interface step for providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects, or wherein the user interface comprises: Clicking on an object allows the user to select one of the selectable objects.
Size to allow one to select one or to resize each tab icon so that the display controller has an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size for each tab label A change module, or the display controller includes an ordering module for ordering the tab icons with respect to the tab labels in a particular set order, or the ordering module displays a corresponding tab label. Before, the display of the tab icons is ordered; or the generator provides a function to change a specific display area included in the subset; or the display controller is configured to change the subset. Subset select that provides directional tabbing arrows Or the display controller visually indicates a tab icon and a tab label near at least one edge of the display module; or the edge is a horizontal edge of the display module. Or the display controller has one tab
The display content is limited so as to include information on only the icon, or a combination thereof.

According to another aspect of the invention, computer readable program code means for displaying controls used to switch between a plurality of display areas in a display system are embodied therein. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium, wherein the computer readable program code means in the computer program product includes a tab for visually representing at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module. Generating a set;
Providing each tab with a tab icon and a tab label; displaying, for a selected region of the subset, the tab icon, tab label and data content; selecting from the subset Displaying only all tab icons in the unremoved area; and computer readable program code means for causing the computer to perform the steps.
A program product is provided.

In some embodiments of the computer program product, the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further provides the tab data content with a plurality of user selectable objects. Or the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises: clicking on one of the selectable objects to cause a user to select one of the selectable objects. Including computer readable program code means for causing a computer to select said one; or said computer readable program code means within said computer program product further comprises: Including computer readable program code means for causing the computer to form each tab icon to have an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size of the bell; or the providing step Have the tab labels with respect to the tab labels in a particular set order.
Ordering icons; or the ordering step displays the tab icons before the tab labels; or the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises: Including computer readable program code means for causing a computer to generate a program that includes the step of providing a function of changing a particular display area included in said subset; or said providing step includes directional tabbing. Providing an arrow; or the displaying comprises tabs near at least one edge of the display module.
Visually indicating an icon and a tab label; or said edge is a lower edge of said display module; or said displaying said tab icon involves only one tab icon. The method includes a step of restricting the display content so as to include information, or a combination thereof.

[0042] In another aspect of the invention, a method is provided for switching between display areas on a device. The method includes the steps of providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields; tabs for each of the display areas.
Generating icons and tab labels; formulating an ordered tab list of all display areas; selecting a start area from the display area as a first area to be displayed; Displaying a region; displaying a tab icon for at least a subset of all other display regions.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further comprises the step of selecting another area to be the newly displayed area; or the step of displaying the start area comprises the step of selecting the start area. Indicating the tab icon, the tab label and the content; or the displaying the tab icon comprises displaying the tab icon to arrange the tab icon.
Using a list; or said another
Displaying the tab icon, the tab label, and the content associated with one region, or a combination thereof.

[0044] In some embodiments of the method, the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fit in a display area of the device; or the subset includes all of the display area. Including;
Or providing the ability to change the subset displayed; or the device comprises a handheld
It is a computer or a combination of these.

In another aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides:
An apparatus for switching between display areas on an apparatus is provided. In this device, each display area has a corresponding tab
A plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields having icons and tab labels; a generator for generating a starting area from the display area as a first area to be displayed; A display controller for displaying a start area and displaying the tab icons of at least a subset of all other areas, or the display controller selects another area to be a newly displayed area Or the display controller controls the device to indicate the tab icon, the tab label and the content of the start area; or the display controller arranges the tab icon. Form and use an ordered tab list; or A roller causing a display of the tab icon, the tab label and the content associated with the another area; or the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fit in a display area. Or said subset comprises all of said display area; or further comprising means for changing said displayed subset; or said device is a hand-held computer, or It is a combination.

In another aspect of the invention, providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields; generating a tab icon and a tab label for each of the displayed areas. Selecting a start area from the display area as the first area to be displayed; displaying the start area; and displaying a tab icon for a subset of all other areas. A computer program product is provided that includes a computer usable medium embodied therein computer readable program code means for switching between display areas on a device.

In another aspect of the invention, the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises the step of selecting another area to be a newly displayed area; Displaying the start area includes displaying the tab icon, the tab label and the content of the start area; or the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises: Formulating an ordered tab list for all display areas, and displaying the tab icons including using the ordered tab list to arrange the tab icons. Or the computer in the computer program product. Readable program code means further said tab icon associated with said another region, including the step of displaying the tab label and the contents, or a combination thereof.

[0048] In some embodiments of the computer program product, the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fits in a display area; or the subset includes all icons in the display area. Or said computer readable program code means within said computer program product further comprises the step of providing means for changing said displayed subset; or said apparatus comprises a handheld computer. Some or some combination of these.

It should be noted that the present invention can be provided as an apparatus or a computer product. This may be embodied as an article of manufacture comprising a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means for causing a computer to perform the methods of the present invention.

Additionally, while the description of the present invention has been made with reference to a particular arrangement of steps, it is noted that the spirit and concept of the present invention are suitable and applicable to other arrangements. Other modifications to the disclosed embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

In summary, the following matters are disclosed regarding the configuration of the present invention.

(1) A set of tabs that visually represent at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module is generated, a tab icon and a tab label are given to each tab, and a selected one of the subsets is selected. Displaying the tab icons, tab labels and data content for the selected area, and displaying only all the tab icons for unselected areas of the subset.
A method comprising displaying a control used to switch between a plurality of display areas in a display system. (2) The method of (1) above, further comprising providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects. (3) The method of (2) above, further comprising the step of the user selecting the one of the selectable objects by clicking on one of the selectable objects. (4) The method of (1) above, further comprising forming each tab icon having an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size of each tab label. (5) The providing step includes, in a specific set order,
The method of claim 1, including ordering the tab icons with respect to the tab labels. (6) The method according to (5), wherein the ordering step displays the tab icon before the tab label. (7) The method according to (1), wherein the generating step includes a step of providing a function of changing a specific display area included in the subset. (8) The method of (7), wherein the providing step comprises providing a directional tab movement arrow. (9) the step of displaying includes a tab icon and a tab icon near at least one edge of the display system;
The method according to (1), further comprising the step of visually indicating a label. (10) The method according to (9), wherein the edge is an upper edge of the display system. (11) The method according to (1), wherein the displaying step includes a step of restricting a display content to include information on only one tab icon. (12) An apparatus for switching between a plurality of display areas in a display module, the method comprising: generating a set of tabs and at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module; A generator for providing tabs with tab icons and tab labels, the tab icons, tab labels and tab data content of at least one selected area taken from the subset, and no selection of the subset A display controller for controlling the display of the tab icons in all areas and a display controller for switching between the plurality of display areas in the display module. (13) The apparatus of (12) above, further comprising a user interface for providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects. (14) The apparatus of (13), wherein the user interface allows a user to select one of the selectable objects by clicking on the object. (15) the display controller includes a resizing module for resizing each tab icon to have an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size for each tab label; Device according to 13). (16) The apparatus according to (12), wherein the display controller includes an ordering module for ordering the tab icons with respect to the tab labels in a particular set order. (17) The apparatus according to (16), wherein the ordering module orders the display of the tab icons before the display of the corresponding tab label. (18) The above (1), wherein the generator provides a function of changing a specific display area included in the subset.
The device according to 2). (19) The apparatus according to (12), wherein the display controller includes a subset selector that provides a directional tab navigation arrow to change the subset. (20) The display controller includes a tab icon and a tab icon near at least one edge of the display module.
The apparatus according to the above (12), which visually indicates a label. (21) The device according to (20), wherein the edge is a horizontal edge of the display module. (22) The apparatus according to (12), wherein the display controller restricts the display content to include information on only one tab icon. (23) A computer including a computer usable medium embodied therein computer readable program code means for displaying controls used to switch between a plurality of display areas in a display system.
A program product, wherein the computer readable program code means in the computer program product generates a set of tabs that visually represent at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module; Providing a tab with a tab icon and a tab label; displaying, for a selected region of the subset, the tab icon, tab label and data content; and selecting no of the subset. Displaying only all tab icons of the area; and computer readable program code means for causing the computer to perform the steps of:
Computer program product. (24) The computer program product of (23), wherein the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects. Program products. (25) The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises clicking on one of the selectable objects to cause the user to select one of the selectable objects. Computer program product according to (24), including computer readable program code means for causing a computer to select (26) The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further forms each tab icon such that it has an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size of each tab label. Computer program product according to (23), comprising computer readable program code means for causing a computer to provide: (27) The computer program product of (23), wherein the providing step includes ordering the tab icons with respect to the tab labels in a particular set order. (28) The computer program product of (27), wherein the ordering step displays the tab icon before the tab label. (29) A computer for causing a computer to generate the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprising the step of providing a function of changing a specific display area included in the subset. Computer program product according to (23), including readable program code means. (30) The computer program product of (29) above, wherein the providing step comprises providing a directional tab movement arrow. (31) The displaying step includes a tab icon and a tab icon near at least one edge of the display module.
(23) including a step of visually indicating a label.
A computer program product as described in. (32) the edge is a lower edge of the display module;
The computer program product according to the above (31). (33) The method according to (2), wherein the step of displaying the tab icon includes a step of restricting the display content to include information on only one tab icon.
The computer program product according to 3). (34) A method for switching between display areas on a device, providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields, and a tab icon for each of the display areas. Generating an ordered tab list of all display areas; selecting a start area from the display area as a first area to be displayed; and And displaying a tab icon for at least a subset of all other display areas. (35) The method according to (34), further including the step of selecting another area to be a newly displayed area. (36) The method according to (34), wherein displaying the start area includes indicating the tab icon, the tab label, and the content of the start area. (37) The display of the above (34), wherein the step of displaying the tab icons includes the step of using the ordered tab list to arrange the tab icons.
The method described in. (38) The method according to (35), further comprising the step of displaying the tab icon, the tab label, and the content associated with the another area. (39) The method according to (34), wherein the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fits in the display area of the device. (40) The method according to (39), wherein the subset includes all of the display area. (41) The method of (39), further comprising the step of providing the ability to change the subset displayed. (42) The method according to (34), wherein said device is a handheld computer. (43) A device for switching between display areas on a device, the display areas each having a corresponding tab icon and tab label, and a plurality of associated objects having a set of interface objects and content fields. Displaying the display area, a generator for generating a start area from the display area as a first area to be displayed, displaying the start area, and displaying the tab icons of at least a subset of all other areas And a display controller for the device. (44) The apparatus according to (43), wherein the display controller selects another area to be a newly displayed area. (45) The device according to (43), wherein the display controller controls the device to indicate the tab icon, the tab label, and the content of the start area. (46) The apparatus according to (43), wherein the display controller forms and uses an ordered tab list to arrange the tab icons. (47) The apparatus according to (44), wherein the display controller causes a display of the tab icon, the tab label, and the content associated with the another area. (48) The apparatus according to (43), wherein said subset includes all icons adjacent to said displayed area falling within a display area. (49) The apparatus according to (48), wherein the subset includes all of the display area. (50) The apparatus according to (48), further including means for changing the displayed subset. (51) The device according to the above (43), wherein the device is a hand-held computer. (52) providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields; and generating tab icons and tab labels for each of the displayed areas;
Selecting a start area from the display area as the first area to be displayed, displaying the start area, and displaying a tab icon for a subset of all other areas on the device. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium embodied therein computer readable program code means for switching between display areas. (53) The computer program product of (52), wherein the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises the step of selecting another area to be a newly displayed area. (54) The computer program product according to (52), wherein the step of displaying the start area includes a step of indicating the tab icon, the tab label, and the content of the start area. (55) the computer readable program code means within the computer program product further comprises formulating an ordered tab list of all display areas; and the ordered tab list to arrange the tab icons. Tabs, including using a tab list
Displaying the icon. The computer program product of (52), further comprising: (56) The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises: the tab icon, the tab icon associated with the another area.
The computer program product of (53), further comprising the step of displaying a label and said content. (57) The computer program product according to (52), wherein the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fits in a display area. (58) The computer program product according to (57), wherein the subset includes all of the display area. (59) The computer program product of (57), wherein the computer readable program code means within the computer program product further comprises the step of providing a means for changing the displayed subset. . (60) The computer program product according to (52), wherein the device is a handheld computer.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a method of an example embodiment according to the invention.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a method for initializing a tab bar according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a tab creation method according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a method for adding a tab to a tab bar according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a method for drawing a tab according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a method for handling pen down in a tab bar according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a computer system according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 701 bus 702 processor 703 static storage device 705 display device 801 tab 802 tab 803 related display area 804 icon 805 tab icon 806 tab label 807 tab 808 icon 809 tab 810 icon 811 tab bar display area

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Calvin Bruce Swart United States 12603 Pokekeepsie, NY Scenic Hills Drive 80 (72) Inventor John T. Richards United States 10514 Chiapakua Granite Road, NY 26 26

Claims (60)

[Claims] 1. A method comprising: generating a set of tabs visually representing at least a subset of a plurality of display areas on a display module; providing each tab with a tab icon and a tab label; Displaying the tab icons, tab labels, and data content for an area, by displaying only all tab icons in an unselected area of the subset, between a plurality of display areas in a display system. Displaying a control that is used to switch in the method. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects. 3. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of a user selecting said one of said selectable objects by clicking on one of said selectable objects. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of forming each tab icon having an icon display size smaller than or equal to the label display size of each tab label.
The method described in. 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said providing step includes ordering said tab icons with respect to said tab labels in a particular set order. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein said ordering step displays said tab icon before said tab label. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein said generating step includes providing a function of changing a particular display area included in said subset. 8. The method of claim 7, wherein said providing step comprises providing a directional tab movement arrow. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying includes visually indicating a tab icon and a tab label near at least one edge of said display system.
The method described in. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein said edge is an upper edge of said display system. 11. The method of claim 1 wherein said displaying step includes the step of restricting the display to include information about only one tab icon. 12. An apparatus for switching between a plurality of display areas in a display module, the method comprising: generating a set of tabs; and at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module; A tab icon and a tab label for each of the tabs; a tab icon, tab label and tab data content of at least one selected area taken from the subset; A display controller for controlling the display of all unselected areas with the tab icons. An apparatus for switching between the plurality of display areas in the display module. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising a user interface for providing said tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects. 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the user interface allows a user to select one of the selectable objects by clicking on an object. 15. The display controller includes a resizing module for resizing each tab icon to have an icon display size less than or equal to a label display size for each tab label.
An apparatus according to claim 13. 16. The display controller according to claim 1, wherein said display controller includes an ordering module for ordering said tab icons with respect to said tab labels in a particular set order.
3. The device according to 2. 17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the ordering module orders the display of the tab icons prior to the display of the corresponding tab label. 18. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said generator provides a function of changing a specific display area included in said subset. 19. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the display controller includes a subset selector that provides a directional tab navigation arrow to change the subset. 20. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said display controller visually indicates a tab icon and a tab label near at least one edge of said display module. 21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the edge is a lateral edge of the display module. 22. The display controller, comprising:
13. The device of claim 12, wherein the display content is restricted to include information about icons only. 23. A computer program including a computer usable medium embodied therein computer readable program code means for displaying controls used to switch between a plurality of display areas in a display system. An article of manufacture wherein the computer readable program code means within the computer program product generates a set of tabs that visually represent at least a subset of the plurality of display areas on the display module; Providing a tab icon and a tab label to; displaying, for a selected region of the subset, the tab icon, tab label and data content; and a non-selected region of the subset. Shows all tab icons only A computer program product comprising computer readable program code means for causing a computer to perform the steps shown. 24. The computer readable program code means within the computer program product further comprising the step of providing the tab data content with a plurality of user-selectable objects.
A computer program product as described in. 25. The computer readable program code means within the computer program product further comprising: clicking on one of the selectable objects to cause the user to select one of the selectable objects. 25. The computer program product of claim 24, comprising computer readable program code means for causing a computer to select one. 26. The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprising: an icon display size smaller than or equal to a label display size of each tab label.
24. The computer program product of claim 23, comprising computer readable program code means for causing a computer to form an icon. 27. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the providing step includes ordering the tab icons with respect to the tab labels in a particular set order. 28. The method according to claim 28, wherein the ordering step comprises:
3. The display of the tab icon before a label.
8. The computer program product according to 7. 29. The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further causing the computer to generate a program including the step of providing a function of changing a particular display area included in the subset. 24. The computer program product of claim 23, comprising: computer readable program code means. 30. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein said providing step comprises providing a directional tab movement arrow. 31. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein said displaying comprises visually indicating a tab icon and a tab label near at least one edge of said display module. 32. The computer program product according to claim 31, wherein the edge is a lower edge of the display module. 33. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein displaying the tab icons comprises restricting the display to include information about only one tab icon. 34. A method for switching between display areas on a device, comprising: providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields; and a tab for each of the display areas. Generating icons and tab labels; formulating an ordered tab list of all display areas; selecting a start area from the display area as a first area to be displayed; A method comprising: displaying a start area; and displaying tab icons for at least a subset of all other display areas. 35. The method of claim 34, further comprising the step of selecting another area to be the newly displayed area. 36. The method of claim 34, wherein displaying the start area includes displaying the tab icon, the tab label, and the content of the start area.
The method described in. 37. The method according to claim 3, wherein displaying the tab icons includes using the ordered tab list to position the tab icons.
4. The method according to 4. 38. The method of claim 35, further comprising displaying the tab icon, the tab label, and the content associated with the another area. 39. The method of claim 34, wherein the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fit in a display area of the device. 40. The method of claim 39, wherein said subset includes all of said display areas. 41. The method of claim 39, further comprising the step of providing the ability to change the subset displayed. 42. The method according to claim 34, wherein said device is a handheld computer. 43. A device for switching between display areas on a device, the display areas each having a corresponding tab icon and tab label, a plurality of having an interface object and a set of content fields. An associated display area; a generator for generating a start area from the display area as a first area to be displayed; and displaying the start area and displaying the tab icons of at least a subset of all other areas. A display controller for displaying. 44. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein said display controller selects another area to be a newly displayed area. 45. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein said display controller controls said apparatus to indicate said tab icon, said tab label and said content of said start area. 46. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein said display controller forms and uses an ordered tab list to arrange said tab icons. 47. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein said display controller causes a display of said tab icon, said tab label and said content associated with said another area. 48. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein said subset includes all icons adjacent to said displayed area that fall within a display area. 49. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein said subset includes all of said display area. 50. The apparatus of claim 48, further comprising means for changing the subset displayed. 51. The device according to claim 43, wherein said device is a handheld computer. 52. Providing a plurality of associated display areas having a set of interface objects and content fields; generating a tab icon and a tab label for each of the displayed areas; Selecting a start area from the display area as the first area; displaying the start area; and displaying a tab icon for a subset of all other areas, thereby providing a display area on the device. A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium embodied therein computer readable program code means for switching between. 53. The computer program product of claim 52, wherein said computer readable program code means in said computer program product further comprises the step of selecting another area to be a newly displayed area. . 54. The method of claim 52, wherein displaying the start area includes indicating the tab icon, the tab label, and the content of the start area.
A computer program product as described in. 55. The computer readable program code means within the computer program product further comprising: formulating an ordered tab list of all display areas; and placing the tab icons to place the tab icons. Displaying the tab icons including using an ordered tab list.
3. The computer program product according to 2. 56. The computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprising displaying the tab icon, the tab label, and the content associated with the another area. 54. A computer program product according to item 53. 57. The computer program product of claim 52, wherein the subset includes all icons adjacent to the displayed area that fit in a display area. 58. The computer program product according to claim 57, wherein said subset includes all of said display area. 59. The computer program of claim 57, wherein the computer readable program code means in the computer program product further comprises providing means for changing the displayed subset. Product. 60. The computer program product according to claim 52, wherein said device is a handheld computer.