JP2007323346A - Information processor and display method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To discriminate the content of an object indicated by an icon displayed on a screen without opening the object. <P>SOLUTION: When a pointer 211 is pointed on an icon 207 showing a file, a tool chip 212 including file information 213 such as update date or size of the object file and a preview 214 showing the content of the object file is displayed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus having a function of displaying an explanation assistance window, and a display method.

  In an operating system or the like having a graphical user interface, objects (data files, folders, etc.) stored in a storage device are represented by icons. In order to know the contents of the object represented by the icon, it is necessary to open the object by an application or the like.

  Depending on the operating system, a preview may be displayed in a part of the window representing the contents of the folder, or the icon design may be displayed as an image thumbnail if the object content is image data. However, the displayed preview and thumbnail images are small, and only the appearance of the object can be determined. Further, if the preview or the icon size is increased to such an extent that the contents can be discriminated, the number of icons displayed on the screen is reduced and the operability is deteriorated.

Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for displaying part of the contents of a file to be edited when a button on a task bar is selected in order to check the contents of a displayed window. .
JP 2000-105655 A

  As described above, in order to identify the contents of the object represented by the icon, it is necessary to open the object with an application or the like. However, when the application is not activated, it is necessary to activate the application, but it takes time to activate the application.

  In the technique of Patent Document 1, when an object is a document file, a part of the document is displayed. The user may not be able to determine the contents of the file just by looking at a part of the document.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus and a display method capable of determining the contents of an object without opening the object represented by the icon displayed on the screen.

  An information processing apparatus according to an example of the present invention includes means for displaying an icon on a screen of a display device, means for displaying a pointer in the screen in response to a user input, and whether the pointer points to the icon If it is determined that the icon is pointed to, the means for determining the type of the object represented by the icon, and whether the content of the object can be displayed from the determined type of the object Means for determining whether or not, and means for determining whether or not display of the contents of the object can be operated when it is determined that it can be displayed, and contents of the object and user when it is determined that it can be operated Has an operation window corresponding to the type of the object for operating the display of the contents of the object. Characterized by comprising the description window displaying means for displaying on the screen a window.

  The contents of the object can be determined without opening the object represented by the icon displayed on the screen.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a notebook personal computer as an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The personal computer 10 includes a computer main body 12 and a display unit 14. The display unit 14 incorporates an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 16 that is a display unit.

  The display unit 14 is provided at the end on the back side of the computer main body 12 so as to freely change between an open position that covers the upper surface of the computer main body 12 and a closed position where the upper surface of the computer main body 12 is exposed. It is attached to a hinge (support part) 18.

  The computer main body 12 has a thin box-shaped casing, and a keyboard 20 is provided at the center of the upper surface of the casing. A palm rest is formed on the upper surface of the housing portion on the near side of the computer main body 12. Near the center of the palm rest, a touch pad 22 as an operation means and a touch pad control button 26 are provided. A power button 28 for turning on / off the power of the computer main body 12 is disposed on the upper surface of the casing portion on the back side of the computer main body 12.

  Next, an example of the system configuration of the computer will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the computer includes a CPU 102, a north bridge 104, a main memory 114, a graphics controller 108, a south bridge 106, a BIOS-ROM 120, a hard disk drive (HDD) 126, an embedded controller / keyboard controller IC ( EC / KBC) 124, power supply 125, and the like.

  The CPU 102 is a processor provided to control the operation of the computer, and various application programs including an operating system (OS) 131 and a tool chip display program 132 that are loaded from the hard disk drive (HDD) 126 to the main memory 114. Execute. The tool tip display program 132 is a resident program for displaying a tool tip as an explanation auxiliary window, and operates by replacing a function for displaying the tool tip incorporated in the operating system 131. The tooltip display program 132 displays the contents of the folder and a preview of the data file created by the application in the tooltip. In order to display a preview of the data file created by the application, an add-in corresponding to the application is prepared. The add-in stores information necessary for displaying the data file. By reading data necessary for the tooltip display program 132 to display the data file from the add-in, it becomes possible to display a preview of the file created by the application.

  Further, the CPU 102 loads a system BIOS (Basic Input Output System) stored in the BIOS-ROM 120 to the main memory 114 and executes it. The system BIOS is a program for hardware control.

  The north bridge 104 is a bridge device that connects the local bus of the CPU 102 and the south bridge 106. The north bridge 104 also has a function of executing communication with the graphics controller 108 via an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus or the like.

  The graphics controller 108 is a display controller that controls the LCD 16 used as a display monitor of the computer. The graphics controller 108 has a video memory (VRAM), and generates a video signal that forms a display image to be displayed on the LCD 16 from display data drawn in the video memory by the OS / application program. The video signal generated by the graphics controller 108 is output to a line.

  The south bridge 106 is connected to a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus and an LPC (Low Pin Count) bus, respectively.

  The embedded controller / keyboard controller IC 124 controls the touch pad 22 and the touch pad control button 26 as input means. The embedded controller / keyboard controller IC 124 is a one-chip microcomputer that monitors and controls various devices (peripheral devices, sensors, power supply circuits, etc.) regardless of the system state of the computer 10.

  FIG. 3 shows a screen displayed on the LCD 16 when a specific folder is opened after the operating system 131 and the tooltip display program 132 are loaded into the memory 114. In the screen 201, a window 202 indicating the contents of the opened folder is displayed. In FIG. 3, eight icons (objects) 203 to 210 exist in the window 202.

  The user operates the pointer 211 using the touch pad 22 and selects an icon 207 indicating a file to be referenced or edited. Then, by performing an operation such as double-clicking, an application appropriate for the target file is activated, and reference and editing are possible.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state where the pointer 211 points to the file icon 207 in the operating system. The pointer 211 pointing to the icon means that the tip of the arrow-shaped pointer 211 overlaps the icon.

  In an existing operating system, file information 213 such as the file update date and size is displayed in the tooltip 212. In the computer 10, a preview 214 representing the contents of the target file is displayed in the tooltip 212 in addition to the file information 213 such as the update date and size of the target file.

  In FIG. 4, a preview of the document file created by the word processor is displayed on the tool tip. In the case of a document file, the tooltip display program 132 reads information such as character decoration, decoration, format, ruled line, etc. in the case of a document file, and is similar to the format displayed by the word processor of the creation source. Display the contents of a document file in style.

  FIG. 5 shows a state of the screen 201 when the pointer 211 is moved on the icon 208 representing a data file created by an application different from the case of FIG. Even when the type of the file represented by the icon is different, a preview of the content of the file represented by the icon is added to the tooltip 512 in addition to the file information 513 such as the update date and size of the target file as in the case of FIG. 514 is displayed.

  FIG. 6 shows a case where the contents of the preview 514 in the tooltip 512 are operated in the case of FIG.

  For example, the content displayed in the preview 514 in the tool tip 512 can be operated by operating the touch pad 22 while pressing a control key or the like in the keyboard 20. In FIG. 6, a scroll bar 515 as an operation object is displayed, and the display portion in the preview 514 is moved and scrolled by operating the scroll bar 515 with the pointer 211. Information on the operation panel such as a scroll bar is stored in the add-in described above. The tooltip display program 132 reads the operation panel information from the add-in corresponding to the object, so that the tooltip display program 132 can display the operation panel in the tooltip.

  FIG. 7 shows a case where the file information 713 and the video preview 714 are displayed in the tooltip 712 by pointing an icon 209 representing a video file with the pointer 211. When the icon 209 represents a video file, a video playback operation is performed by displaying an appropriate operation panel 715 for operating a video playback function (play, stop, pause, rewind, fast forward). Can be done. Thus, by displaying the operation panel 715 in accordance with the type of file for displaying the preview 714, the user can operate the preview 714.

  FIG. 8 shows the state of the screen 201 when the pointer is released from the icon. In this case, the preview ends immediately and the tooltip disappears.

  FIG. 9 shows a tool tip 912 displayed on the screen 201 when an icon 206 representing a folder is pointed with the pointer 211. In the tooltip 912, file information 213 and a preview 914 are displayed. In the preview 914, the file structure in the folder is displayed as a tree.

  In addition to changing the display position of the tooltip 212 depending on the position of the target icon, the display size of the tooltip 212 and the preview 214 can be set by the user through the window shown in FIG. The screen is easy to see and operate.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing for displaying a tool tip in the personal computer 10.

  After starting the operating system, the operating system starts monitoring the position of the pointer and the icon (step S11). The operating system 131 determines whether or not the pointer points to the icon at regular time intervals (step S12). If it is determined that the pointer points to the icon (Yes in step S12), the operating system 131 starts measuring the time during which the pointer points to the icon (step S13). Subsequently, the operating system 131 determines whether or not the pointer points to the icon (step S14). When it is determined that the user points, the operating system 131 determines whether the pointed time has passed the set time (step S15). The set time is set to 2 to 3 seconds, for example. When it is determined that the set time has not passed (No in step S15), the operating system 131 executes the process in step S14 again after the set time.

  If it is determined that the overlapped time has passed the set time (Yes in step S15), the operating system 131 displays a mouse event indicating that the pointer has been pointed on the icon for a predetermined time or longer as the tooltip display program 132. To issue. The reason for issuing the mouse event when the overlapping time has elapsed is to prevent the tooltip from being frequently displayed while the pointer is moving.

  Upon receiving the mouse event, the tooltip display program 132 identifies the type of object represented by the icon pointed to by the pointer (step S16). The icons represent objects such as data files, execution files, folders, shortcuts, and the like.

  The tool tip display program 132 determines whether or not the identified object type can be previewed (step S17). The tooltip display program 132 determines whether the preview is possible by detecting whether an add-in corresponding to the identified object type is registered. When it is determined that the preview is possible (Yes in step S17), the tooltip display program 132 displays a tooltip including a preview of the object on the screen of the LCD 16 (step S18). Preview is possible when the object represents a data file or folder supported by the tooltip display program 132.

  When it is determined that the preview display cannot be performed (No in step S17), the tooltip display program 132 displays a tooltip having only the file update date and time (step S19). The preview cannot be displayed when the object represents a data file, an execution file, a shortcut, or the like that is not supported by the tooltip display program 132.

  When the pointer no longer points to the icon after the preview display, the operating system 131 issues a mouse event to the tooltip display program 132 indicating that the pointer does not point to the icon. Then, the tooltip display program 132 ends the preview display.

  Next, processing for displaying a preview in the tooltip in step S18 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The tooltip display program 132 determines whether the type of the object represented by the icon can perform a preview operation (step S31). The tooltip display program 132 determines whether or not the preview operation can be performed by detecting whether or not operation panel information is stored in the add-in corresponding to the object type.

  When it is determined that the operation can be performed (Yes in step S21), by reading the operation panel information from the add-in, a tool tip including a preview of the contents of the file is displayed together with the operation panel corresponding to the object type (step S32). . For example, if the file is a document file, a scroll bar is displayed. If the file is a moving image file, an operation panel equipped with a play or stop button is displayed.

  When it is determined that the operation cannot be performed (No in step S31), a tool tip including a preview of the file contents is displayed without including the operation panel (step S33).

  In an existing operating system or the like, in order to know the contents of a file, it is necessary to start the corresponding application and open the file. Some operating systems display a preview in a part of a folder or display the contents of a file as an icon, but the displayed image is small and can only determine the appearance of the target file. Further, if the icon size is increased to such an extent that the contents can be discriminated, the number of icons displayed on the screen is reduced, and the operability is deteriorated.

  On the other hand, in the computer 10, a preview is displayed in a tooltip displayed when the pointer of the pointing device overlaps the icon of the target file. For this reason, it is not necessary to increase the size of the icon, and if the tip of the pointer is shifted from the icon, the tooltip on which the preview is displayed is erased from the screen, so that the operability is maintained.

  As a result, many parts of the screen can be used for displaying a preview, and can be referenced with almost the same quality as when the corresponding application is activated and referenced.

  Further, by providing an operation panel suitable for the target file, there is no need to start the corresponding application for reference purposes.

  The tool tip display program 132 described above replaces the tool tip display function prepared by the operating system 131, but may be incorporated into the operating system 131 as a standard function.

  Further, information for editing an object by the tooltip display program 132 may be stored in an add-in for displaying a preview so that the preview can be edited. As an editing function, it is preferable to have functions such as writing characters in the case of a document file, conversion / saving in a different image format in the case of an image file, saving after changing the compression rate, and the image size. .

  Since the tooltip display process of the present embodiment is all realized by a computer program, the same effect as that of the present embodiment can be easily achieved by simply installing this computer program on a normal computer through a computer-readable storage medium. Can be realized. Further, this computer program can be executed not only on a personal computer but also on various electronic devices incorporating a processor.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a personal computer as an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a circuit configuration of a personal computer according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows the icon in the window currently displayed on the screen. The figure which shows the state in which the pointer points to the icon in the window shown in FIG. 3, and the tooltip is displayed. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which a tooltip is displayed by pointing an icon different from the icon that the pointer points in FIG. 4. The figure which shows the state which is operating the scroll bar currently displayed in the tooltip shown in FIG. The figure which shows the tooltip displayed when a pointer points the icon showing the video file. The figure which shows the state which stopped the point of the icon by a pointer and a tooltip is no longer displayed. The figure which shows the tooltip displayed when a pointer points the icon showing the folder. The figure which shows the window for setting the size of the preview displayed in a tooltip. The flowchart which shows the flow of the process for displaying a tool tip. The flowchart which shows the flow of the process for displaying a tool tip.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Personal computer, 16 ... LCD, 20 ... Keyboard, 22 ... Touchpad, 26 ... Touchpad control button, 102 ... CPU, 108 ... Graphics controller, 114 ... Main memory, 131 ... Operating system, 132 ... Tooltip display program , 201 ... screen, 202 ... window, 203 to 210 ... icon, 211 ... pointer, 212, 512, 712, 912 ... tool tip, 214, 514, 714, 914 ... preview, 515 ... scroll bar, 715 ... operation panel, 914 ... Preview

Claims (11)

Means for displaying an icon on the screen of the display device;
Means for displaying a pointer in the screen in response to a user input;
Means for determining whether the pointer points to the icon;
If it is determined that the icon is pointing, means for determining the type of object represented by the icon;
Means for determining whether or not the content of the object can be displayed from the type of the determined object;
Means for determining whether the display of the contents of the object can be operated when it is determined that the display is possible;
When it is determined that the object can be operated, an explanation assistance window that displays an explanation assistance window having an operation icon corresponding to the content of the object and the type of the object for the user to manipulate the display of the content of the object is displayed on the screen. An information processing apparatus comprising window display means. When the determining means determines that the type of the object is a folder,
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the explanation auxiliary window display means displays the objects stored in the folder as a tree.   2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the explanation auxiliary window display means displays the explanation auxiliary window when the pointer points the icon over a set time.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for a user to set a display size of contents of the object displayed in the explanation assistance window.   When the determining means determines that the type of the object is a document file created by an application, the explanation auxiliary window creating means is configured to display the contents of the document file by the application in substantially the same format as the application. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contents of the document file are displayed. An auxiliary window display method for explaining an information storage device having a storage device in which file data is stored,
An icon is displayed on the screen of the display device,
In response to user input, display a pointer in the screen,
Determine whether the pointer points to the icon;
If it is determined that the icon is pointing, the type of object represented by the icon is determined,
Determine whether the content of the object can be displayed from the type of the determined object,
When it is determined that the display can be performed, it is determined whether the display of the content of the object can be operated,
When it is determined that the operation can be performed, the explanation auxiliary window having an operation icon corresponding to the content of the object and the type of the object for the user to operate the display of the content of the object is displayed in the screen. A display method characterized by that.   The display method according to claim 6, wherein when it is determined that the type of the object is a folder, the objects stored in the folder are displayed as a tree.   The display method according to claim 6, wherein the explanation auxiliary window is displayed when the pointer points the icon over a set time.   The display method according to claim 6, further comprising means for a user to set a display size of the contents of the object displayed in the explanation assistance window.   When it is determined that the type of the object is a document file created by an application, the application displays the content of the document file in a format substantially similar to the format of displaying the content of the document file. The display method according to claim 6. A program for causing a computer to execute an explanation auxiliary window display process,
When the pointer displayed on the screen of the display device in response to a user input points to the icon displayed on the screen, the computer executes a process of determining the type of the object represented by the icon And the procedure
A procedure for causing the computer to execute a process of determining whether or not the content of the object can be displayed from the determined type of the object;
A procedure for causing the computer to execute a process of determining whether or not the display of the content of the object can be operated when it is determined that the display is possible;
When it is determined that the computer can be operated, an explanation auxiliary window having an operation icon corresponding to the content of the object and the type of the object for the user to operate display of the content of the object is displayed on the screen. And a program for executing a process of displaying.

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