JP2001243037A - Device and system for processing information and method for the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability to a printer by providing a user interface related with printer control even when a screen saver is operating. SOLUTION: An information processor connected to a printer starts a screen saver after its transition to a state that any normal key operation is inhibited in a step S901 when a prescribed condition is fulfilled. The operating state of the connected printer is monitored in this state (S902), and a user interface is displayed based on the obtained operating state (S903). Moreover, a key input for an operation instruction to a print job is accepted, and a corresponding processing is executed (S904-S906) in the display state of the screen saver.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a printer system including a printer and an information processing apparatus, an information processing apparatus, and a control method thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, it has become possible to construct a network printer system by connecting a plurality of client computers to a printer server (server computer) and a printer via a network.

In such a connection configuration of the network printer system, the pudding and the server use the printer driver and its peripheral software to connect to the connected printer and the status of the print job (“printing is in progress”, “printing is in progress”). … This is the 1st print. ”,“ Paper jam. ”,“ No paper. ”, Etc. is displayed on the screen (hereinafter referred to as“ printer status ”), and print job operations (pause, resume, forced) Print, stop, etc.). Some printers can display the printer status of the printer connected to the print server on the screen of the client computer as well as the printer server.

In a display device such as a CRT on a computer, if the same image remains displayed in the same place for a long time because there is no or little motion on the displayed screen, these images are not displayed. Is burned on the screen of the CRT device. For this reason, recently, when data input operation is not performed for a certain period of time, the screen is automatically switched to display a predetermined pattern,
In some cases, the displayed pattern is moved at appropriate time intervals to prevent burning on a display device such as a CRT. Such a function is generally called a screen saver. Further, some screen savers have a built-in lock function that prevents the screen saver from being unlocked without inputting a password for unlocking, and prevents data access by an unauthorized user.

[0005]

However, in the above conventional example, there are the following problems when the printer status is displayed on the printer server and the screen saver with the lock function is operated.

The contents of the status display on the printer server can be visually recognized during normal screen display.
When the screen saver is activated, the printer status display is hidden by the screen saver,
The content cannot be confirmed.

In particular, when a host computer functioning as a printer server is activated by a screen saver with a lock function, unless the administrator or user knows the password for unlocking the host computer, the status of the screen saver is not changed. The screen saver cannot be released. Then, while the screen saver is running, a person using the printer using a client computer connected to the printer server on the network cannot check the status of the printer, and cannot determine whether the printer can print. There is a problem.

[0008] Further, even if a printer status equivalent to that displayed on the print server can be displayed on the screen of the client computer, a printer error that can be canceled only by print job control by the administrator of the print server. Can not cope.
In other words, when such a printer error occurs, if the screen of the print server is in the activated state of the screen saver with the lock function, the operation of the print job (pause, resume, etc.) is performed only by the user who can unlock the screen saver. , Forced printing, cancellation, etc.). Until such an error is removed, printing from the client computer cannot be executed.

On the other hand, if anyone simply using the printer in the network printer system releases the lock state of the screen saver on the print server and permits access to the printer server host computer,
There is a problem that the function with the lock function is lost and the confidentiality on the print server cannot be protected.

[0010] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a user interface related to printer control even while a screen saver is operating.

[0011]

An information processing apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object has, for example, the following arrangement. That is, an information processing device connectable to a printer, a monitor for monitoring an operation state of the connected printer, and generating display data for a user interface based on the operation state obtained by the monitor. Generating means for performing the operation of the information processing apparatus, a shifting means for shifting the operation state of the information processing apparatus to a specific state in which normal key operation is prohibited, and Providing means for providing a user interface for the printer based on the generated display data.

An information processing system according to the present invention for achieving the above object has, for example, the following configuration.
That is, an information processing system including a printer and an information processing device connected to the printer, wherein a monitoring unit that monitors an operation state of the printer by the information processing device, and an operation state obtained by the monitoring unit Generating means for generating display data for a user interface based on the information processing apparatus; shifting means for shifting an operation state of the information processing apparatus to a specific state in which normal key operation is prohibited; and operating state of the information processing apparatus. And providing means for providing a user interface for the printer based on the display data generated by the generating means while the device is in the specific state.

[0013]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the following embodiment, the present invention is applied to a network printer system in which a plurality of client computers, a printer server (or a computer for a printer server) and a printer are connected via a network. A status display process for displaying the operating status of the shared printer on a computer will be described. Further, on the user interface screen of the printer status display process, operations (pause, resume, forced print, stop, etc.) for a print job being printed by the printer can be performed. Will be described.

Of course, the present invention may be applied to a configuration in which a host computer and a printer are connected one-to-one, or may be applied to a screen saver with a lock function.

Before describing the configuration of this embodiment, a configuration of a laser beam printer suitable for applying this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The printer to which this embodiment is applied is not limited to the laser beam printer and the ink jet printer, and it goes without saying that a printer of another printing method may be used.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an output device to which the present invention can be applied, for example, a case of a laser beam printer (LBP).

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1000 denotes an LBP main body, which inputs and analyzes PDL data supplied from an externally connected host computer, and processes the PDL data.
The data is converted into video data after bitmap development, and an image is formed on a recording paper as a recording medium. 1001
Is a printer controller that processes PDL data supplied from the host computer 100. The printer controller 1001 converts the input PDL data into a video signal having a corresponding pattern, outputs the video signal to the laser driver 1002, and notifies the host computer 100 of various LBP statuses.

The laser driver 1002 is a semiconductor laser 1
003 is a circuit for driving a laser beam 1004 that is emitted from the semiconductor laser 1003 in accordance with an input video signal. Laser light 10
Reference numeral 04 denotes a rotating polygon mirror 1005 which is swung in the left and right direction to scan and expose the electrostatic drum 1006. As a result, an electrostatic latent image of a character pattern or a graphic pattern is formed on the electrostatic drum 1006. This latent image is developed by a developing unit 1007 disposed around the electrostatic drum 1006, and then transferred to a recording sheet. A cut sheet is used as the recording paper, and the cut sheet recording paper is stored in a paper cassette 1008 mounted on the LBP 1000,
9, 1010 and 1011, are taken into the apparatus and supplied to the electrostatic drum 1006.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a network system constituting the printer system according to the present embodiment.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 10 denotes a network cable in the local area. Each device constituting the network system 110 is connected to a network cable 10.
Are communicably connected to each other via a. In FIG.
This shows a state where the host computers 100, 200, and 300 are connected to the network cable 10, respectively. The host computer 100 is connected to the printer 1000 via the printer cable 1100 and functions as a printer server. That is, the host computer 100 functions as a printer server that receives a print job using the printer 1000 from another host computer 200 or 300 that functions as a client and performs printing. The host computer 200 and the host computer 300 are client host computers that output a print job to the printer 1000.

The printer 1000 connected to the host computer 100 in this manner is connected to the network 11
0 is set to be shared. For example, the user of the host computer 200 or the host computer 300 uses an application program (not shown) to send a print job to the printer 1000 connected to the printer server (host computer 100) shared by the network 110. Issue and print. At this time, the print data spooled by the host computers 200 and 300 is sent to the host computer 100 via the network cable 10, and the print data sent to the host computer 100 is sent to the printer 1000 via the printer cable 1100. Sent and printed. The host computer 100 and the printer 1000 are connected by bidirectional communication. The host computer 100 can acquire the status of the printer 1000 and the status of the print job, and provide the acquired information to the host computers 200 and 300. Can be.
As a result, the host computers 100, 200 and 30
0 enables the status of the printer 1000 and the status of the print job to be displayed. Although FIG. 2 shows a configuration in which the printer 1000 is locally connected to the host computer 100, it is obvious that the configuration may be such that the printer 1000 is connected to the network 10. In this case, the print data sent to the host computer 100 is sent from the host computer 100 to the printer 1000 via the network 10.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the host computer 100 functioning as the printer server of the present embodiment.

Reference numeral 310 denotes a C such as a microprocessor.
The PU controls the entire operation of the host computer 100 (including the function of the printer server) according to a control program stored in the RAM 311 or the like. RAM311
Has a work area for storing various data when the CPU 310 executes the control processing. Three
Reference numeral 12 denotes an input unit having, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, and the like.
It is used to input various data and commands to the host computer 100 in response to a user operation. 313
Denotes a display unit, which is composed of, for example, a CRT or a liquid crystal, and is used to display a printer status described later.
A printer interface 314 controls a bidirectional interface between the host computer 100 and the printer 1000. A hard disk 315 stores a print job received via the network 110, various application programs and control programs executed by the CPU 310, and the like. Three
A network control unit (NCU) 16 controls communication with the network 110.

The configuration of the client host computers 200 and 300 in FIG. 2 is substantially the same as the configuration of the host computer 100 shown in FIG. 3 except for the printer interface 314 and the printer 1000. And explanations are omitted.

FIG. 4 shows a printer 1000 in the host computer 100 functioning as a printer server.
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen display (printer status window) on a display unit 313 by an application program for notifying a user of the status of a print job and the status of a print job.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the printer status window, the current status of the printer (in this case, waiting for printing) and the name of the machine related to the print job (the name of the machine processing the currently displayed print job) are displayed. In the example of FIG. 4, a printer named Printer connected to the device named Server) is displayed. In addition, other than this example, an application name, a file name of a print job, and the like may be displayed. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, buttons for operations (pause, resume, forced print, stop, etc.) on the print job are provided in the printer status window, and the print job can be controlled. is there.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a screen display by an application program for notifying a user of the status of the printer 1000 connected to the print server and the status of the print job on the display units of the host computers 200 and 300 functioning as clients. FIG.

In a normal use state, for example, even if a problem occurs during printing and an operation such as aborting processing for a print job must be performed, the user of the client can operate the printer server. It is possible to request the user to delete the print job, or to cancel the operation from the printer status window on the print server even when the user of the print server is not present.

However, if the user on the printer server sets a screen saver with a lock function to protect the confidentiality on the machine, and if the screen saver is activated and the user is absent, printing is performed. A user of the client host computer who wants to perform an operation on the job cannot perform the job operation on the print job.

Regarding the operation for the print job, any user of a client computer (in this example, host computers 200 and 300) connected to the host computer 100 and capable of printing on the printer 1000 can be operated from the client computer. It is also possible to allow. However, the number of client computers is not limited to one, and a plurality of client computers are generally connected to one print server at the same time. In this case, for example, if a user of the client B can perform an operation such as canceling a print job for a print job printed from the client A, an undesired situation such as deleting a job performed by another user. Can occur.

Also, any printer user other than the printer server administrator can perform operations on the host computer functioning as the printer server. You will not be able to protect any other secrets.

In the present embodiment, in consideration of the security on the printer server as described above, in order to enable any user of the client host computer, a screen saver with a lock function executed by the printer server is used. The status can be displayed, and an operation for a print job can be performed.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a screen display when a screen saver with a lock function is activated in the printer server 100. Shaded lines represent screen saver screens. Although the figure shows a form in which the printer status window is displayed on a white screen, any screen content other than the printer status window may be used.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an example of a screen display of the printer status in this embodiment. The printer status in the present embodiment describes a case where an error requiring an operation for a print job occurs and the status is being displayed on the printer status screen.

In FIG. 7, reference numeral 700 denotes an outer frame of a user interface screen provided in the printer status display unit, and corresponds to one window frame in an operating system (not shown). Reference numeral 701 denotes a caption portion of the printer status display unit, which displays the name of the server that has performed printing and the name of the printer. Reference numeral 702 denotes a printer status content display area, and in this example, an error that requires an operation on the print job, “There is a problem with printing. Please delete the print job.” Is displayed.

Reference numeral 703 denotes a "pause" button for operating a print job. Pressing this button (performing a click operation using a pointing device) allows the user to temporarily stop printing. The same operation can be performed by pressing the “F1” key 801 on the keyboard shown in FIG. Reference numeral 704 denotes a “resume” button for operating a print job. Pressing this button enables restarting the stopped printing. Note that "F" on the keyboard shown in FIG.
The same operation can be performed by pressing the "2" key 802. 7
Reference numeral 05 denotes a "forced print" button for operating the print job. When this button is pressed, it is possible to forcibly print a print job that is stopped due to a paper size mismatch or the like. The “F3” key 803 on the keyboard shown in FIG.
The same operation can be performed by pressing. Reference numeral 706 denotes a “cancel” button for operating the print job. Pressing this button enables deletion of the print job. The same operation can be performed by pressing the “F4” key 804 on the keyboard shown in FIG.

The function buttons 703 to 706 are
It is assumed that the combinations that can be pressed are changed according to the printer status displayed on the printer status content display unit 702. For example, in the case of the printer status display example shown in FIG. 7, only the operation 706 "Cancel" can be performed. Therefore, only the stop button 706 is displayed with a solid line, indicating that operation is possible. Further, in FIG. 7, corresponding keys (F1 to F4) on the keyboard are displayed on each of the function buttons 703 to 706, but this display may be omitted as shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the printer server according to the present embodiment. Hereinafter, a description will be given of processing for displaying the status of a printer and enabling a print job operation when the status of the printer server (host computer 100) is operating a screen saver with a lock function operating on the printer server. .

When the screen saver is activated on the printer server, when no access is made by the input unit 312 such as a mouse or a keyboard for a certain period of time, a timer (not shown) is operated. The display screen saver is activated (step S901), and a screen saver including a printer status display as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed.
Next, in step S902, printer status information necessary for displaying the status of the printer 1000 is acquired.
Then, the process proceeds to step S903, where the printer status is displayed on the printer status content display unit 702 during the screen saver. The printer status information obtained here is "printer status information" necessary for status display, and based on the obtained information, "printing is in progress",
A display such as "... the first print", "paper jam", "no paper", etc. is displayed.

In the example shown in FIG. 7, a printer status such as "There is a problem with printing. Please delete the print job" is displayed. Such a problem is a problem in which a print job is stopped, such as a case where a printer without a duplex function is designated for duplex printing. In this printer status state, the printer cannot return to the normal state unless the user of the printer deletes the print job, and cannot execute the next print job. At this time, if there is no printer server administrator who can release the screen saver operation status, the user of the client host computer who wants to use the printer connected to the print server must release the error (delete the print job). It must be made.

In step S904, the host computer 100 (printer server) detects an operation on the input unit 312 such as a keyboard and a mouse, and determines whether the operation was performed on the keyboard or the mouse. If the input is an operation input using a mouse, the process proceeds to step S907, where a screen (not shown) for inputting a password is displayed to prompt the user to input a password. At this time, if the user who operated the input unit is not a user who knows the release password, the passwords do not match, and after displaying a password error in step S909, the process returns to step S902 to continue the activation state of the screen saver. Become. Step S908
If the entered password is correct in step S910, the process advances to step S910 to cancel the screen saver and end the process.

On the other hand, if a key input operation using the keyboard is detected in step S908, the process proceeds to step S908.
The process proceeds to 905, where it is determined whether an operation key (one of F1 to F4 in this example) for print job control has been pressed. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a typical keyboard arrangement example. As described above, in this embodiment, the F1 to F4 keys at the top of the keyboard are assigned as print job operation keys. However, the key to be used is not limited to this, and any key that is not used for password input on the keyboard may be used. Also, SHIFT
It goes without saying that a combination of two or more keys may be employed, such as pressing the key and the A key two at a time. The input unit 312 described in the present embodiment is:
The input device may be any device other than the keyboard and the mouse as long as it can be operated on the host computer.

In step S905, the key assigned to the print job operation (in this embodiment, F1 to F4
If it is determined that the input is a key other than (key), the flow advances to step S907 to prompt the input of the password as described above, and the screen saver is canceled by inputting the password.

At this time, if the keys (F1 to F4 keys) assigned to the keys for controlling the print job are pressed, the process advances from step S905 to step S906 to perform an operation on the print job. Then, the process returns to step S902. For example, when the F4 key 804 is pressed to instruct “Cancel” indicating deletion, the print job is deleted in step S907. In this way, the error of the printer is released by deleting the print job. At this time, assuming that all the error states of the printer are released and the printer returns to the print standby state, the display of the printer status content display unit 702 is updated by the processing of steps S902 and S903, and the print standby state such as "printing is possible" It shows inside. If a key other than the key corresponding to the currently displayed printer status is pressed, the operation input is ignored.

Even if there is no key operation by the input unit 312, if the status of the printer changes, the printer status is obtained in step S902, and the status is displayed in the printer status display unit 702 in step S903. Will be displayed.

According to the processing shown in FIG.
When the mouse operation is performed, the process always moves to the screen saver release operation (steps S904, S907, S907).
908) is not limited to this. For example, when any of the buttons 703 to 706 in the printer status screen display shown in FIG.
Alternatively, the same processing as when 〜804 is pressed may be executed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the description has been made on the assumption that the lock function of the screen saver always operates. However, it may be possible to select on / off of the lock function of the screen saver. When the lock function is turned off, the screen saver is immediately released in response to a mouse operation or a key input operation. In this case, immediately before step S907, it is determined whether or not the lock function is in the ON state.
Steps S908 and S908 are executed.
07 and S908 may be skipped to jump to step S910. In this case, when the F1 to F4 keys are operated during the activation of the screen saver, the job operation for the printer is executed and the operation state of the screen saver is continued. When another key or mouse is operated, the screen saver is immediately released.

Alternatively, when the lock function of the screen saver is off, the screen saver can be released by an arbitrary key operation, so that only the status contents of the printer are displayed and the function keys and the like are not displayed during the activation of the screen saver. It may be. In this case, for example, a process as shown in FIG. 10 may be performed.

First, if there is no operation input for a predetermined period of time, it is determined before the screen saver for displaying the printer status is activated whether the lock function of the screen saver to be activated is on or off. If the lock function has been turned on, the process proceeds to step S901 in FIG. 9 to execute the above-described processing. On the other hand, if the lock function of the screen saver is off, the process advances from step S1001 to step S1002 to activate the screen saver for displaying printer status with the lock function off. In this case, a window for displaying only the printer status is prepared as the window for displaying the printer status as shown in FIG. Then, in step S1003, the printer 10
In step S1004, the printer status acquired in step S1003 is displayed. Then, upon detecting an operation on the input unit 312 (mouse, keyboard, etc.), the display immediately returns to the normal screen,
An operation for a print job can be performed from a printer status display screen (for example, the display shown in FIGS. 7 and 4) displayed on a normal screen.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, it is possible to display the printer status even when the screen saver with the lock function is activated on the host computer, and it is also possible to print a print job using a specific key. Can be operated by a printer.
For this reason, even if the screen saver with the lock function is operating, it is possible to check the printer status and perform an operation on the print job. Further, during the operation of the screen saver, only the operation relating to the printer can be performed by anyone other than the administrator of the print server, so that the confidentiality on the host computer can be protected.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, in a network printer system environment in which there are a plurality of users sharing a printer on the network system, even if a screen saver with a lock function is activated on the printer server, the printer can be used. Status display can be performed. Therefore, even when there is no printer server administrator or a person who can release the lock function, a user other than the printer server administrator, such as a user of the client host computer, can check the status of the printer. is there.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, in a network printer system environment in which a plurality of users share a printer on the network system, even if a screen saver with a lock function is activated on the printer server, the printer can be used. In addition to displaying the status, the print job can be operated by a specific key operation. For this reason, even if there is no printer server administrator or a person who can release the lock function, a user other than the printer server administrator such as a printer user of the client host computer checks the status of the printer,
In addition, there is an effect that an operation for a print job can be performed.

Further, according to the above embodiment, in a network printer system environment where a plurality of users share a printer on the network system, when the screen saver with the lock function is running on the print server, Only a screen saver release operation or a print job operation by a specific key is accepted.
For this reason, the user who cannot perform the operation of releasing the screen saver can check the printer status and operate the print job during the operation of the screen saver.
Further, confidentiality on the host computer functioning as a printer server can be maintained.

In the above-described embodiment, the key lock state is exemplified as the operation of the screen saver. However, it is apparent that the present invention can be applied to the case where the user sets the key lock state at an arbitrary timing by operating a predetermined key. .

An object of the present invention is to provide a storage medium storing a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or an apparatus, and to provide a computer (or CPU)
Or MPU) reads and executes the program code stored in the recording medium. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium implements the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, C
DR, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM
Etc. can be used.

When the computer executes the readout program code, not only the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized, but also the OS (Operating System) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. ) Performs part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments. Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.

[0059]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A user interface relating to printer control can be provided even during operation of the screen saver, and operability for the printer is improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an output device (LBP) according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a part of a configuration of a network connecting a client and a printer server according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a printer status display example (print standby state) on a printer server according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a view showing an example of a printer status display on a client computer in the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a printer status display when a screen saver is activated on the printer server according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an example of a printer status display (error state) on the printer server in the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of an input device (keyboard) according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing relating to display of a printer status on a screen saver with a lock function and print job control in the printer server of the present embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when a screen saver with a lock function is activated in a state where the lock function is released in the printer server of the embodiment.

Claims (21)

[Claims] 1. An information processing apparatus connectable to a printer, comprising: monitoring means for monitoring an operation state of the connected printer; and display for a user interface based on the operation state obtained by the monitoring means. Generating means for generating data, an operation state of the information processing apparatus, a transition means for shifting to a specific state in which normal key operation is prohibited, and while the operation state of the information processing apparatus is in the specific state,
Providing means for providing a user interface for the printer based on the display data generated by the generating means. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the user interface provided by the providing unit receives an operation input related to control of a print job of the printer and executes a corresponding process. . 3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the operation input is performed by inputting a predetermined key from a keyboard.
An information processing apparatus according to claim 1. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the user interface presented by the providing unit includes an association display between the predetermined key and a function to be executed. 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operation input is performed by instructing a button displayed on the user interface by a cursor operation using a pointing device. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the providing unit generates and displays a screen saver screen including a display of the user interface during the specific state. 7. An information processing system including a printer and an information processing device connected to the printer, wherein the information processing device monitors an operation state of the printer, and a monitoring unit obtains the operation state of the printer. Generating means for generating display data for a user interface based on the operating state, a shifting means for shifting the operating state of the information processing apparatus to a specific state in which normal key operations are prohibited, and the information processing apparatus. While the operation state of the in the specific state,
Providing means for providing a user interface for the printer based on the display data generated by the generating means. 8. The information processing system according to claim 7, wherein the user interface provided by the providing unit receives an operation input related to print processing of the printer and executes a corresponding process. 9. The information processing system according to claim 7, wherein the providing unit generates and displays a screen saver screen including a display of the user interface during the specific state. 10. An information processing apparatus which is communicably connected to the information processing apparatus and uses the printer via the information processing apparatus, and an operation state of the printer obtained by the monitoring means, Notifying means for notifying the other information processing apparatus from the information processing apparatus, and display means for performing a display related to the operating state of the printer based on the operating state notified by the notifying means in the other information processing apparatus. The information processing system according to claim 7, further comprising: 11. An information processing method in an information processing apparatus connectable to a printer, comprising: a monitoring step of monitoring an operation state of the connected printer; and a user interface based on the operation state obtained by the monitoring step. Generating a display data for the information processing apparatus, a transition step of transitioning the operation state of the information processing apparatus to a specific state in which normal key operation is prohibited, and an operation state of the information processing apparatus in the specific state. While
A providing step of providing a user interface for the printer based on the display data generated in the generating step. 12. The information processing method according to claim 11, wherein the user interface provided in the providing step receives an operation input related to control of a print job of the printer and executes a corresponding process. . 13. The information processing method according to claim 12, wherein the operation input is performed by inputting a predetermined key from a keyboard. 14. The information processing method according to claim 13, wherein the user interface presented in the providing step includes an association display between the predetermined key and a function to be executed. 15. The information processing method according to claim 12, wherein the operation input is performed by instructing a button displayed on the user interface by a cursor operation using a pointing device. 16. The providing step, during the specific state,
12. A screen saver screen including a display of the user interface is generated and displayed.
An information processing method according to claim 1. 17. A method for controlling an information processing system including a printer and an information processing apparatus connected to the printer, the method comprising: a monitoring step of monitoring an operation state of the printer by the information processing apparatus; A generation step of generating display data for a user interface based on the operation state obtained by the above, a transition step of transitioning an operation state of the information processing apparatus to a specific state in which normal key operations are prohibited, While the operation state of the information processing device is in the specific state,
A providing step of providing a user interface for the printer based on the display data generated in the generating step. 18. The control method according to claim 17, wherein the user interface provided in the providing step receives an operation input related to print processing of the printer and executes a corresponding process. . 19. The providing step, during the specific state,
18. A screen saver screen including a display of the user interface is generated and displayed.
The control method of an information processing system according to claim 1. 20. An information processing apparatus that is communicably connected to the information processing apparatus and uses the printer via the information processing apparatus, and the operation state of the printer obtained by the monitoring step is A notification step of notifying the other information processing apparatus from the information processing apparatus, and, in the other information processing apparatus, a display step of performing a display related to the operation state of the printer based on the operation state notified in the notification step. The method according to claim 17, further comprising: 21. A storage medium storing a control program for realizing a method according to claim 11 by a computer.