JP2001325296A - List display method provided with group identifying display function - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display item contents so as to discriminate whether they are same information in displaying a list. SOLUTION: When data of a data storage part 105 are re-arranged concerning a specified item by an instruction from an input device 101, an item to be the key is stored in a work storage part 104. The contents of the designated item are evaluated by setting stored in a setting storage part 102 to re-arrange display contents. They are re-arranged by a processing part 103 and display data for displaying the list are generated by a display data processing part 106. The data storage part 105 stores the contents of the key item of each kind of data, the display data processing part 106 sets a display method from a result which is obtained by performing evaluation with a value being the same as that of re-arrangement concerning the key item contents and a display device 108 displays it via a display controller 107. Data to be list-displayed are displayed in order of a re-arrangement result. That is, data with a common result after evaluation by an evaluation method being the same as that of re-arrangement concerning the key item contents are displayed by the same display setting and data with the common key item in re-arrangement are displayed as a group.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a method for displaying a list of recorded information in an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When searching for target information from a set of information, it is common to display a list and search for the target information from the list. For example, in a file system in which many files are recorded, a target file may be selected from a list of files. By using such a list display, it is often the case that only the conditions of a set including the information are known, and it is desired to find target information from the set. For example, from the file list display, you want to search for a file whose type is known but the exact file name is not known, or you want to search for e-mail software whose sender is known but whose subject is unknown Things are common.

Conventionally, in such a case, target information is searched for after narrowing down information by searching on the condition of a file type, a sender, and the like. In this method, many operations such as "input of search condition", "execution of search", and "search from list of results" are required, and there is a problem that the search cannot be performed by a simple operation. In addition, it is often the case that the type of the file and the sender are known, but the expression method in the list display is not known. For example, if you know the sender's name but do not know the exact email address. In such a case, since the search key cannot be specified, the search cannot be performed by the search, and the search must be performed from the list display. In addition, a method has been adopted in which the information to be displayed in a list is associated with the color in advance, and the information is displayed in different colors.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 7-182214 discloses that a file type is identified by a color in an environment where a plurality of types of files are mixed by associating colors with file types. I can do it. Also,
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 9-326822 discloses a method of distinguishing a mail by associating information such as the sender of the mail, the text of the mail, and the elapsed time with the color.

[0005]

There is a demand for supporting a search for target information from a plurality of types of information without prior setting or new operation. In the related art in which colors are made to correspond to such requests in accordance with the information displayed in the list, there are the following problems. (1) By associating colors with information registered in advance and displaying them in different colors, it is necessary to add a table when new information is added. (2) Because colors are associated depending on the information to be handled,
Other information cannot be used and cannot be used for other purposes as it is. (3) Since there is no relation between the display order and the color classification, the color-coded information may be displayed in a dispersed manner, and it may be difficult to find the target information. (4) Regardless of the display, color is assigned to each piece of information, so it is necessary to identify as many as the number of classifications, and the expression ability is equivalent to the number of classifications such as multi-color display and multiple character modifications. Is mandatory. (5) When a plurality of color coding methods (color coding by name, color coding by elapsed time, etc.) are switched and used, a special mechanism / user interface is required for switching. The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and provides a method of supporting information retrieval by displaying items in a list so that the same information can be identified. It is intended to be.

[0006]

Means for Solving the Problems As means for presenting information,
In general list display, to search for the desired information,
It is often performed by a user's operation to rearrange the displayed items as keys. When the user sorts by a specific item, it means that the user is paying attention to that item in the information displayed in the list. In particular, the content of this hot topic is
When the type of information or the like is indicated, it is highly likely that a specific type of information is being searched for.

For this reason, when a rearrangement operation is performed in the list display, information having the same key item content is displayed in the same display color and displayed as one group. Providing the function makes it easier for the user to search for information. The present invention provides a list display method utilizing such a phenomenon, in which means for storing data to be displayed in a list, an input device for instructing rearrangement using a display item as a key, and a rearrangement for a specific item are performed. A means for recording the key item, a means for evaluating the contents by using the designated item as a key to rearrange the display contents, a means for storing the evaluation method, Means for storing the contents of the key items of data, means for setting the display method based on the result of evaluating the contents of the key items by the same evaluation method as sorting, and means for displaying the sorted results according to the display setting The data to be displayed in the list are sorted in the order of the sorting result, and the contents of the sorting key items are evaluated by the same evaluation method as the sorting, and the same display setting (character color and Shading, Shaped ornaments, by displaying in the background of the colors and shades, the setting of the display method etc.), in which conjunction with the sort of key items in the sorting was to display a common data as a group.

In the case of determining whether or not each of the above data is common, "using the same evaluation method as that of sorting" means that whether or not the contents of the sorting key items are the same is determined by sorting the items. This is to use the same evaluation method as the evaluation of the judgment of the content. For example, for a string item,
If it is sorted in simple character code order, the display setting is also evaluated as a simple character code string, and if the numerical item is sorted as a numerical value, the display setting is also numeric That is, it is evaluated and performed. As a result, in conjunction with the sorting function, the data having the same sorting key item is always gathered in one place and grouped and displayed, so that the information displayed in the list can be easily identified and the search efficiency can be improved. Is improved. Since data having the same sort key is collected at one place in the list by sorting, it is sufficient to identify the group before and after the group, and to display a large number of colors and character modifications. A group display can be performed without the need for a display, and a display device with low expressive power can be used.

[0009] Whether the key item is common is not limited to the case where all the contents of the item are the same, but there is also a method of evaluating a part according to a sorting evaluation method and corresponding. Here, “evaluate a part according to the sorting evaluation method” means that in the sorting evaluation,
This means that only a part of the content is evaluated in a way that the results are gathered in one place. For example, if the sort item is a character string and sorting is performed by evaluation of a normal character string, if not all the character strings but some characters from the beginning are the same, is there. In this case, data in which a plurality of characters are the same from the beginning in the character string are adjacent to each other in the rearrangement (collected in one place),
Group identification display becomes possible. In addition, as for the key item, it is sufficient that sorting and matching can be performed based on a specific rule, and the key item may be not only a character string but also data such as a figure or a sound. In the rearrangement operation, a means for switching between rearrangement of the conventional display and rearrangement with the group identification display may be provided so as to be operable. In conjunction with the sorting operation, the identification display is performed when displaying the sorting result, but there is also a method of performing the identification display when displaying data that has already been sorted.

Further, according to the present invention, in the list display method, means for storing whether or not a user has selected data in the list display is provided, and the group identification display is performed only when data is selected. It was made.
This makes it possible to change the display only when the degree of attention of the user is considered to be higher, thereby improving the data search efficiency while minimizing the complexity of the display.

Further, according to the present invention, in the list display method, means for storing whether or not the user has selected data in the list display, and determining which data is selected when there is data selected. Is stored, and only when the data is selected, only the data having the same contents of the rearrangement items as the selected data are identified and displayed as a group. As a result, the range of the group including the selected data that is considered to be more noticeable by the user is more clearly defined, and the efficiency of searching for data in the group is improved.

Further, according to the present invention, in the above-mentioned list display method, means for storing whether or not to perform group identification display when each item of the list is rearranged using the item as a key is provided. The group identification display is performed only when rearrangement is performed for a specific item. In this case, a method of setting which item is to be set in advance may be a method of setting in advance, a method of allowing a user to set the item, or the like. As a result, by targeting only the items that are highly effective for grouping,
Retrieval efficiency is improved while avoiding display complexity associated with meaningless identification display.

Further, the present invention provides the list display method, further comprising: means for counting the number of data having the same sort key item; and means for storing a maximum value and a minimum value for performing group identification display. Only when the number of data in the same group as a result falls within the set range, group identification display is performed. This makes it possible to assist the user's judgment by changing the identification display for data that is too small or too large and has little merit to be displayed in a group, thereby improving search efficiency. in this case,
With respect to the range of the number, only the minimum value or the maximum value is stored, and when the number is equal to or more than the set number or equal to or less than the set number, group display can be performed. As the setting of the number range, a method of setting the number in advance, a method of setting by the user, a method of obtaining the number in conjunction with the number of data, and the like are conceivable. It is also conceivable that the range can be changed (set in advance or set by the user) by changing the range for each item. Further, regarding the display of data that is not subject to the group identification display, it is conceivable that all the data is displayed in the same manner, or the data is displayed separately in a small number and a large number.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a list display method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a configuration of a display device for realizing a list display method according to the present invention. 101
Is an input device such as a keyboard or a pointing device for instructing rearrangement or designating data by a user, and 102 stores an item for enabling identification display at the time of rearrangement and a setting such as an identification display method. Setting storage section,
Reference numeral 103 denotes a rearrangement processing unit that rearranges data in accordance with a user's instruction, 104 denotes a work storage unit that stores work information such as a rearrangement state, and 105 stores data to be displayed in a list. A display data processing unit 107 for generating display data for list display from data such as sorting results and information such as display settings;
Is a display control device that controls a display device 108, which will be described later, based on the result of the display data processing unit 106 to display characters and graphics. A display control device 108 displays characters and graphics on a screen.
A display device such as an RT or an LCD.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are flowcharts showing one embodiment of the processing procedure of the list display method according to the present invention. First, it is determined whether or not the displayed list is in a rearranged state (step S201). If the state is not the rearrangement state, the identification display is not performed, so that a normal list display is performed (step S216). In the case of the rearranged state, the item of the rearrangement key is stored (step S202), and then the data is rearranged by a single key (step S20).
3). Thereafter, it is determined whether or not to perform identification display regardless of the rearrangement key item (step S204). When it is set whether or not to perform the identification display by the sorting key item, it is determined whether or not the key item is the target item (step S205). If not, the normal list display is performed (step S205). S216).

If all items are to be identified unconditionally, the process proceeds to step S206, where it is determined whether or not there is selection data. In this example, when there is no selection data, a normal list display is performed (step S216). If identification display is to be performed regardless of the presence or absence of the selection data, step S20
Do not make the judgment of 6. Thereafter, the setting for performing the identification display is initialized (step S207). This display setting includes the current display color for identification,
This is a setting of a display state and the like, and is a setting relating to an identification display method (an identification display method and settings for the identification display, for example, in the case of color display, the number of colors and colors to be used). Next, the sorted data is read for display (step S208).

Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the contents of the key items of the read data rearrangement are different from those of the immediately preceding data item (step S209). In this case, the first data is determined to have no change. If there is no change, there is no need to change the display settings, and the process proceeds to the one-data display process in step S213. If there is a change, it is necessary to change the display state, so it is determined whether or not the content is the same as the content of the key item of the selected data (step S210). If they are the same, the setting of the display color and the like is changed for the data to be identified and displayed (step S211), and then the step S213 is performed.
The process proceeds to the one data display process.

In step S210, if they are not the same, it is not the data to be identified and displayed, so the display setting is initialized (step S212), and then the step S213 is performed.
The process proceeds to the one data display process. In this example, only the same data as the selected data is identified and displayed. However, when all the data are identified and displayed, the display setting is always changed without performing the determination in step S210. In step S213, the display method of the display setting,
One data is displayed using the color. Next, referring to the next data (step S214), it is determined whether or not the data is completed (step S215). Step S215
If it is determined in step S that the process is not to be terminated, the process proceeds to step S
Returning to step 208, the next data is processed.

FIG. 4 is a display example of a file list for explaining a list display according to the present invention. FIG. 4 (A)
FIG. 9 shows a list display before rearrangement in the present invention, and is a display in a state where identification display is not performed. FIG.
FIG. 4B shows a case where the sort is performed by the “type” item by a user operation or the like from the state of FIG.
At the same time, the data having the same “type” item is identified and displayed. here,
This is performed by graying the background as an identification method, and shows a case where all data are identified and displayed.

FIG. 4C shows a case where the sorting is performed by the user's operation or the like from the state of FIG. 4A by the item of “creator”, and the sorting is performed by the item of “creator”. The selected data (here, the selected data is indicated by “≫” on the left) and the “creator” item are identified and displayed. Here, the identification display method is
This is done by making the characters bold (bold). This example shows a case where not all data is identified and displayed, but only the same data as the selected data is identified and displayed.

[0021]

As described above, according to the present invention, desired data can be easily obtained from a list display of a plurality of types of data while using the same interface as that of the related art. According to the display method of the present invention, information that is the same as the key item at the time of sorting is collected in one place, and is linked to the sorting operation in the list display. Since information having the same content is not dispersed, information retrieval from the information is facilitated. Also, since information of the same group is gathered,
Only the boundaries between adjacent groups need to be identified,
If at least two states can be displayed, it can be realized,
Does not require multicolor display.

When the identification method such as color coding is not suitable for the user's purpose, the display may be complicated and rather difficult to see. , The possibility of performing a display suitable for the purpose of the user is increased. Furthermore,
As for the operation method, an operation which is a general function of rearranging the list display is used, and the user does not need to learn a new operation. In addition, since special information other than the displayed information is not used, if the list display is currently used, it can be applied as it is, and programming and settings according to the items are not required. All displayed items can be targeted.

By making it possible to set items for identification display at the time of rearrangement operation, identification display linked to rearrangement can be performed only for valid items such as data types. Thus, when the sorting is performed on items that do not have much meaning as the identification display, it is possible to easily search for the target item without complicating the display. Further, only when there is information selected by the user, by performing the identification display linked to the sorting, by performing the identification display in conjunction with the act that the user focused on the data, It is possible to easily search for a target item without complicated display.

Only when there is information selected by the user, the identification display is performed in conjunction with the sorting, so that the identification display is performed in conjunction with the act of the user paying attention to the data. , Without cluttering the display,
Since only data having the same key item as the selected data is identified and displayed, only the same classification as the data which the user is paying attention to can be more easily identified.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a display device that implements a list display method according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of a processing procedure of a list display method according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a part following the flowchart of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an example of a file list display screen of the display device displayed by the list display method according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 input device, 102 setting storage unit, 103 rearrangement processing unit, 104 work storage unit, 105 data storage unit, 106 display data processing unit, 107 display control unit, 108 display unit.

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A method for displaying a list of information, wherein when the display is rearranged by using an item designated by a user's operation as a key, the contents of the rearranged key items are changed to the rearrangement. A list display method characterized in that information determined to be common using the same evaluation method is displayed with the same settings, and displayed in groups. 2. A method for displaying a list of information, wherein the display is rearranged using an item designated by a user's operation as a key, and when specific information is selected by a user, the list is displayed. A list display method characterized by displaying information determined to be common using the same evaluation method as that of rearrangement with the same settings for the contents of the rearrangement key items, thereby displaying the information in groups. 3. A method for displaying a list of information, wherein the display is rearranged and displayed using an item designated by a user's operation as a key, and when specific information is selected by the user, the selected item is displayed. A list display method for identifying and displaying only information determined to be common between the information and the contents of the sorting key items using the same evaluation method as the sorting. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in the case of performing the identification display in conjunction with the rearrangement, the user stores in advance which item is to be rearranged. Display method described in section. 5. The group identification display by rearrangement when the contents of the rearrangement key items are the number of ranges in which the same information is set. Display method according to one paragraph. 6. An information processing apparatus, comprising: display means for realizing the display method according to claim 1. Description: 7. A computer-readable recording medium on which a program for causing a computer to execute the display method according to claim 1 is recorded.