JP2010026808A - Information processor, information processing method, information processing program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically select display elements desired by a user from among a plurality of display elements for executing an application when the display elements for executing the application permanently reside on a display screen. <P>SOLUTION: This information processor for displaying display elements for executing an application having a specific function on a display screen includes: a storage part 305 for storing a plurality of display elements of the application; a setting means 301 for setting conditions related with the application; a decision means 303 for deciding the display elements to be displayed on the display screen on the basis of conditions set by the setting means; and a display means 305 for displaying only the display elements decided by the decision means on the display screen. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, a program, and a recording medium. More specifically, the present invention relates to an information processing system, an information processing method, an information processing program, and a storage medium that display an application called a gadget or a widget on a display screen. .

  In recent years, small accessory software (applications) called gadgets or widgets are used in Windows Vista (registered trademark) and Google (registered trademark). These softwares have a small display area and are not suitable for displaying a large amount of information. Some applications select an application to be used from several applications and operate the selected application. Here, various methods have been proposed as a method of selecting an application to be used from a plurality of applications.

  For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-058306 (Patent Document 1) automatically selects a printer suitable for a printing condition from a plurality of printers connected to a network only by the user setting the printing condition. A printer system is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-214976 (Patent Document 2) stores a plurality of display elements as elements of a one-dimensional list structure, and displays them when a user inputs a selection signal while the display elements are sequentially switched. A display element selection method in which an element is selected and a predetermined process is performed is disclosed.
JP 2004-058306 A JP 2000-214976 A

  However, in the technique of Patent Document 1, when a user uses a printer, it is necessary to set printing conditions every time, and complicated processing is required for the user. Moreover, in the technique of Patent Document 2, the display elements desired by the user must be finally selected while the display elements are displayed one after another.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and when a display element for executing an application resides on the display screen, the display area is not changed, and a plurality of display elements that execute the same application are executed. An object is to provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, an information processing program, and a recording medium that can select a display element desired by a user.

  An information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus that displays a display element for executing an application having a specific function on a display screen, and a storage unit that stores a plurality of display elements of the same application; Setting means for setting conditions relating to the application, determination means for determining display elements to be displayed on the display screen based on the conditions set by the setting means, and display only the display elements determined by the determination means Display means for displaying on a screen.

  An information processing method according to another aspect of the present invention includes a display unit that displays a display element for executing an application having a specific function on a display screen, and a storage unit that stores a plurality of display elements of the same application. An information processing method in an information processing apparatus, comprising: a setting step for setting a condition relating to the application; a determination step for determining a display element to be displayed on the display screen based on the condition set by the setting step; and the determination A display step of displaying only the display elements determined in the step on the display screen.

  The information processing apparatus and information processing method of the present invention can be realized by a computer and a program, and can also be realized by causing a computer to read a recording medium on which the program is recorded.

  According to the present invention, when a display element for executing an application resides on the display screen, the display element desired by the user is selected from a plurality of display elements that execute the same application without changing the display area. An information processing system, an information processing method, an information processing program, and a recording medium can be provided.

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

<General hardware configuration of information processing device>
First, a schematic hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus 100 according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic hardware configuration of an information processing apparatus 100 according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an information processing apparatus 100 according to the present invention includes an information processing apparatus 100, an MFP (MFP: image forming apparatus) 110, and an MFP 120 connected via a network. A CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 102, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 103, a network I / F 104, an input unit 105, and a display unit 106 are included.

  The CPU 101 is a CPU that controls each device, calculates and processes data in a computer. The CPU 101 is an arithmetic device that executes a program stored in the RAM 102. The CPU 101 receives data from the input device and the storage device, calculates and processes the data, and outputs the data to the output device and the storage device.

  The RAM 102 is a storage device that stores or temporarily stores programs and data such as an OS and application software that are basic software executed by the CPU 101.

  The HDD 103 is a storage device that stores data related to application software and the like.

  The network I / F 104 is an MFP 110 or 120 having a communication function connected via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network) constructed by a data transmission path such as a wired and / or wireless line. And an interface of the information processing apparatus.

  The input unit 105 and the display unit 106 include a key switch (hard key) and an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) having a touch panel function (including a GUI software key: Graphical User Interface). It is a display and / or input device that functions as a UI (User Interface) when using the function.

  An information processing apparatus 100, such as a PC (Personal Computer), is connected to one information processing apparatus and two MFPs in the example shown in FIG. 1, but the number of information processing apparatuses and MFPs is limited to these. Needless to say, you can't.

  In the information processing apparatus 100 configured as described above, such an application can be easily executed using a small-scale application called a gadget or a widget displayed on the display screen.

<About Gadgets>
The gadget used in the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a gadget displayed on the display screen (desktop) 201 of Windows Vista (registered trademark). In the example illustrated in FIG. 2, gadgets 202 and 203 that are small-scale applications are displayed at the right end of the display screen 201.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the printer gadget 204. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the printer gadget 204 includes a printer switching button, a printer icon 205, a printer name, a printer status, and an IP address.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of executing an application using a gadget. In the example illustrated in FIG. 4, printing is executed by dragging and dropping a print job onto the printer gadget 204 displayed on the display screen 201. In the example illustrated in FIG. 4, the size of the printer gadget 204 with respect to the display screen 201 is increased for easy understanding, but in actuality, the size is as illustrated in FIG. 2.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of gadget switching according to the present invention. In the example shown in FIG. 5, gadget switching will be described using a printer gadget. Although detailed switching of the printer gadget will be described later, a printer icon 205, a printer name, and the like are switched by clicking a printer switching button.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5, the printer gadget 204 is displayed on the display screen, and the printer icon 205 is switched to the printer icon 207 when the upper right switching button is clicked. Along with this switching, the printer name and the like are also changed.

  Further, the printer icon 207 is switched to the original printer icon 205 when the upper left switching button is clicked. Along with this switching, the printer name and the like are also changed.

<Main Functional Configuration of Information Processing Device According to Embodiment 1>
FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating the main functional configuration of the information processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the information processing apparatus 300 includes a condition setting unit 301, a storage unit 302, a condition determination unit 303, a storage unit 305, a display unit 306, and a switching unit 307.

  Hereinafter, the gadget displayed on the display screen is referred to as a display element. Also, a printer gadget will be described as an example of a gadget. However, the present invention can be applied to any apparatus that stores a plurality of the same applications and allows the user to select and execute the application each time.

  The condition setting unit 301 sets application conditions indicated by the display elements. There may be one condition or a plurality of conditions. In addition, the user may be able to change the setting of the conditions set in the initial setting.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a condition setting screen. In the example shown in FIG. 7, three conditions can be set on the condition setting screen. When setting conditions, pull-down menus are displayed and conditions are set by selecting one from a plurality of conditions. After selecting the conditions, click the OK button to confirm the conditions.

  At this time, a plurality of conditions are stored in the storage unit 302. As shown in FIG. 7, the condition setting unit 301 sets a predetermined condition from a plurality of conditions stored in the storage unit 302 by the user, and outputs the set condition to the storage unit 302.

  Returning to FIG. 6, the storage unit 302 stores a plurality of conditions, sets a flag for the condition (set condition) acquired from the condition setting unit 301, and sets a condition and an unset condition. Store separately. The condition stored by the storage unit 302 is read when the condition setting unit 301 resets the condition, or when the condition determination unit 303 determines the condition.

  The condition determination unit 303 reads out and acquires the condition set by the condition setting unit 301 from the storage unit 302, and determines the display element closest to or matching the condition among the display elements stored in the storage unit 305. . In addition, the condition determination unit 303 may be configured to directly acquire the condition set from the condition setting unit 301.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of determining a display element closest to or matching a condition from a plurality of display elements. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the storage unit 304 stores display elements indicating one color machine and two monochrome machines. Here, if “color machine” is set as a condition, a display element that satisfies the condition is determined, and only the display element that is closest to or matches the condition is displayed on the display screen 201. Other display elements can be displayed on the display screen 201 by clicking a switching button arranged on the display element.

  Returning to FIG. 6, the condition determination unit 303 includes a ranking unit 304, and the ranking unit 304 prioritizes the display elements in the order closer to the acquired conditions. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of assigning priorities to display elements.

  In the example shown in FIG. 9, the priority order of the display elements is assigned to the condition “high speed machine” using the printing speed stored in association with the display elements. For example, the priority order “1”, “2”... Is assigned in order from the device with the fastest printing speed. This priority order is used when switching display elements.

  At this time, if there are a plurality of display elements having the same printing speed, other functions may be determined, and a higher priority order may be assigned to higher-performance display elements. In addition, it is possible to increase the priority order of display elements that are closer to the place where the user is. Thus, even when there are a plurality of display elements that satisfy the conditions, the priority order can be uniquely assigned.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example in which priority is given to display elements when there are a plurality of conditions. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the first condition “color”, the second condition “high speed machine”, and the third condition “usable” are set, and the display element closest to these conditions is determined and given a priority order.

  At this time, as a method of assigning priority when there are a plurality of conditions, if the conditions can be expressed as “satisfying” or “not satisfying”, the higher the number of the conditions, the higher the priority order may be. A priority may be set for the condition itself so that a display element satisfying a higher priority may have a higher priority.

  Returning to FIG. 6, the condition determination unit 303 outputs the determined display target display element to the display unit 306. Also, the prioritized priority order is output to the switching unit 307.

  The storage unit 305 stores display elements displayed on the display screen in order to execute the application. In the display element, an icon, a name indicating an application, status information, address information, application function information, and the like are associated and stored. The information stored in the storage unit 305 varies depending on the type of display element.

  The display unit 306 displays display elements on the display screen. At this time, if there are a plurality of the same applications, only the display element that is closest to or matches the set condition is displayed. The display element that is closest to or matches the set condition is acquired from the condition determination unit 303.

  When the display unit 306 receives a display element display request from the user, the display unit 306 acquires the set condition from the storage unit 302 and outputs the acquired condition to the condition determination unit 303. Next, the display unit 306 acquires the display element that is closest to or matches the condition from the condition determination unit 303, and displays only the acquired display element on the display screen.

  In this embodiment, the condition determining unit 303 determines one display element that is closest to or matches the condition. However, when a set number, for example, two is set, two display elements are set. May be determined based on conditions. In this case, the display unit 306 displays the two display elements determined by the condition determination unit 303 on the display screen.

  The switching unit 307 arranges a switching button on the display element displayed on the display screen by the display unit 306, and switches the display element displayed on the display screen. At this time, the switching order of the display elements is switched based on the priority order acquired from the condition determination unit 303. As a result, display elements can be presented to the user in the order closer to the conditions set by the user.

<About the display process of the display element in Example 1>
FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of display element display processing according to the first embodiment. In step 101, the display unit 306 receives a display element display request, for example, when the display element display button is clicked by the user.

  Proceeding to step 102 following step 101, when the display unit 306 receives a display request, it makes a condition acquisition request to the storage unit 302. Progressing to step 103 following step 102, the storage unit 302 returns the stored condition to the display unit 306.

  Progressing to step 104 following step 103, the display unit 306 makes a display element acquisition request to the storage unit 305. Progressing to step 105 following step 104, the storage unit 305 returns the stored display element to the display unit 306.

  Proceeding to step 106 following step 105, the display unit 306 outputs the acquired condition and display element to the condition determination unit 303 so as to determine the display element closest to or matching the condition. Request. Proceeding to step 107 following step 106, the condition determination unit 303 outputs the display element closest to or matching the condition to the display unit 306. Proceeding to step 108 following step 107, the display unit 306 displays only the display elements acquired from the condition determination unit 303 on the display screen.

  By setting the application conditions that the user frequently uses in advance, it is possible to provide the user only with display elements that are closest to or match the conditions set by the user. It is possible to display the optimum display element for the user while maintaining it.

<About the switching process of the display element in Example 1>
Next, display element switching processing in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of display element switching processing according to the first embodiment.

  In step 201, the switching unit 307 determines whether or not a switching button arranged on a display element displayed on the display screen has been pressed. If the decision result in the step 201 is NO, the process returns to the step 101.

  If the decision result in the step 201 is YES, the process advances to a step 202, and the switching means 307 indicates that the pressed button is an UP switching button (meaning a button having a higher priority order, other plus notation, left arrow notation, etc. Or whatever).

  If the decision result in the step 202 is YES, the process advances to a step 203, and the switching unit 307 selects a display element having a higher priority order than the priority order of the displayed display elements and outputs it to the display means 306.

  If the decision result in the step 202 is NO, the process advances to a step 204, and the switching means 307 selects a display element having a priority order lower than the priority order of the displayed display elements and outputs it to the display means 306.

  Progressing to step 205 following step 203 or 204, the display unit 306 displays the display element acquired from the switching unit 307 on the display screen in place of the currently displayed display element.

  In this way, priority is given to display elements in the order that matches the conditions set by the user, and display elements are switched based on this priority order, so that display elements that meet the user's needs are provided accurately. can do.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, when a display element for executing an application resides on the display screen, the display element is changed from a plurality of display elements that execute the same application without changing the display area. The display element desired by the user can be selected.

  In addition, by assigning priorities in the order close to the set conditions, when the user switches the display elements, the display elements can be provided to the user in the order close to the conditions set by the user.

  In addition, by preparing a plurality of conditions set by the user, it is possible to easily select display elements desired by the user, and at the same time, a priority order can be uniquely assigned.

  In addition, when there are multiple display elements that satisfy the conditions set by the user, a unique priority order can be assigned if higher priority is given to higher-performance display elements by comparing functions other than the conditions. . Since there is only one display element to be displayed, the display-related processing can be smoothly advanced by assigning a unique priority order.

[Modification 1]
Next, an information processing apparatus according to Modification 1 will be described. The information processing apparatus according to Modification 1 continues to display the display elements to be displayed for a predetermined time.

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a main functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 400 according to the first modification. Constituent elements similar to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. In the example illustrated in FIG. 13, the continuation unit 401 will be described.

  The continuation unit 401 displays the displayed display element for a predetermined time when the display unit 306 newly displays the display screen or when an application related to the displayed display element is executed. Control as follows. Specifically, the continuation unit 401 can display the display element being displayed for a predetermined period of time by locking the switching unit 307 for a predetermined period of time (such as invalidating the pressing of the switching button).

  The “display element that is newly displayed on the display screen” refers to a display element that is switched by the switching unit 307 and displayed on the display screen. The predetermined time is, for example, 5 minutes.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of transition of the display screen due to a change in priority order in the first modification. In the example shown in FIG. 14, printing is initially performed using the display element of the leftmost printer. However, since the remaining paper is very small, the display is displayed even when the priority order is lowered. The display element continues to be displayed.

  At this time, for example, 5 minutes after printing is completed, “Printer C” having the highest priority at that time is automatically displayed on the display screen.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 400 according to the first modification, the display element once displayed on the display screen is not immediately switched, and the display element being executed is switched halfway. The convenience for the user can be improved.

[Modification 2]
Next, an information processing apparatus according to the second modification will be described. The information processing apparatus according to the modified example 2 includes means for assigning a priority order by the user.

  FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a main functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 500 according to the second modification. Constituent elements similar to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. In the example illustrated in FIG. 15, the condition determination unit 501 will be described.

  The condition determination unit 501 includes a ranking unit 304 and a grant unit 502. The assigning unit 502 allows the user to set a condition and a priority order for the condition. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting screen for setting conditions and priority order.

  In the example shown in FIG. 16, the user inputs “Near Printer” as a setting (condition) name using a keyboard or the like, and the priority order of display elements is set under this condition. The upper display element indicates higher priority. The user can rearrange the display elements and set the priority order of the display elements in the priority order desired by the user.

  The condition determining unit 501 may store the condition newly set by the assigning unit 502 in the storage unit 302. In addition, when the priority order is given by the granting means 502, the condition determining means 501 gives priority to the priority order given by the giving means 502 over the priority order ranked by the ranking means 304. Good.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus according to the modified example 2, by providing the assigning unit 502, it is possible to set user-desired conditions, and it is also possible to set a priority order for the conditions.

[Modification 3]
Next, an information processing apparatus 600 according to Modification 3 will be described. An information processing apparatus 600 according to Modification 3 includes an acquisition unit 601 that acquires information from another device.

  FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating the main functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 600 according to the third modification. Constituent elements similar to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. In the example illustrated in FIG. 17, the acquisition unit 601 and the condition determination unit 602 will be described.

  The acquisition unit 601 acquires device information from an external device (for example, MFP) via a network. When the external device is an MFP, the device information includes, for example, out-of-ink information, paper jam information, and power ON / OFF information. Further, the acquisition unit 601 outputs the acquired device information to the condition determination unit 602.

  At this time, the acquisition unit 601 may acquire the device information from each device when instructed by the display unit 306 to acquire the device information, or periodically acquire the device information from each device. Alternatively, device information transmitted from each device may be acquired when a change occurs in each device.

  When the condition determination unit 602 acquires the device information from the acquisition unit 601, the condition determination unit 602 outputs the acquired device information to the storage unit 305. The storage unit 305 saves (updates) the acquired device information by overwriting existing information.

  Thus, the condition setting unit 301 can set a condition that depends on the state of the device among the conditions stored in the storage unit 302.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example in which the state of the device is used as a condition. In the example shown in FIG. 18, it is assumed that “when available” is set as the condition. At this time, the ranking unit 304 acquires information such as “usable”, “energy saving”, “paper jam”, and “power OFF” in each device from the acquisition unit 601 or the storage unit 305, and prioritizes the items in the order closest to the conditions. Order. Thus, the ranking unit 304 can set the priority order based on the device information acquired from the devices.

  Next, an example will be described in which the display elements to be displayed are changed by changing the priority order when the state of the device is changed. For example, it is conceivable that the priority of the display element indicating the device is lowered when the state of the device related to the display element closest to the condition is changed. At this time, the displayed display element is changed.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a display element to be displayed is changed due to a change in the state of the device. In the example shown in FIG. 19, the display element of the “printer A” printer at the upper left corner is displayed on the display screen. At this time, a paper jam occurs in the “printer A” printer, and the acquisition unit 601 acquires the information. In addition, the acquisition unit 601 acquires “warm-up” information from the “printer B” printer and “usable” information from the “printer C” printer.

  Based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit 601, the ranking unit 304 performs a process of setting the priority order again. As a result of this processing, the display element closest to (matches) the condition is “printer C”, so that the switching element 307 switches the display elements. Thus, in accordance with the change in the state of the device, the display element closest to (matching) the condition can be displayed on the display screen each time.

<Display Element Display Processing in Modification 3>
FIG. 20 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of display element display processing according to the third modification. Components that perform the same processing as in FIG. 11 are assigned the same reference numerals as in FIG.

  In step 301, the display unit 306 requests the acquisition unit 601 to acquire device information. At this time, the display unit 306 may display a device information acquisition button or the like on the display screen, and may make this request when instructed to acquire the device information by the user, or may periodically request this request. May be performed.

  Progressing to step 302 following step 301, the acquisition unit 601 outputs the acquired information to the display unit 306. Thereafter, the display unit 306 outputs the acquired device information to the condition determination unit 303 and requests to determine the display element to be displayed. Here, the determination of the display element to display refers to determining the display element closest to the condition or matching the condition. The subsequent processing is the same as in FIG.

  In step 302, the acquisition unit 601 outputs the acquired device information to the display unit 306. However, the acquisition unit 601 may output the acquired device information to the condition determination unit 303. At this time, when the condition determination unit 303 acquires the device information from the acquisition unit 601, the condition determination unit 303 may determine the display element to be displayed.

  The acquisition unit 601 may not output the acquired device information to the storage unit 305 if there is no change compared to the information stored in the storage unit 305.

  Thus, when a condition based on device information is set, a display element closest to or matching the condition can be displayed based on device information acquired from each device.

  Next, processing for switching display elements that are already displayed will be described. FIG. 21 is a flowchart illustrating an example of display element switching processing when the state of each device changes.

  In step 401, the acquisition unit 601 acquires device information from each device (printer), and determines whether the status of the printer has changed. If the decision result in the step 401 is NO, the process returns to the step 401.

  If the decision result in the step 401 is YES, the process proceeds to a step 402, and the ranking unit 304 ranks the priority order again based on the device information acquired from the acquiring unit 601.

  Proceeding to step 403 following step 402, the switching means 307 determines whether or not the highest priority order is down. If the decision result in the step 403 is NO, the process ends.

  If the decision result in the step 403 is YES, the process advances to a step 404, and the switching unit 307 selects the display element with the highest priority order and outputs it to the display unit 306. Progressing to step 405 following step 404, the display unit 306 displays the display element acquired from the switching unit 307.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 600 according to the modification 3, by acquiring device information related to the state of an external device, when a condition related to device information is set, a priority order based on the device information can be set. it can. In addition, since the device information changes, the display element closest to or matching the condition can be displayed on the display screen each time by reassigning the priority order according to the changing device information.

[Modification 4]
Next, an information processing apparatus 700 according to Modification 4 will be described. The information processing apparatus 700 according to the modification 4 includes a usage count counting unit 701 that counts the usage count of the application related to the display element.

  FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrating a main functional configuration of the information processing apparatus 700 according to the fourth modification. Constituent elements similar to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. In the example illustrated in FIG. 22, the use count counting unit 701 will be described.

  The usage count counting unit 701 counts the usage count of the application relating to the display element for each display element and outputs the count to the storage unit 305. The storage unit 305 stores the usage count acquired from the usage count counting unit 701 for each display element.

  As a result, the condition setting unit 301 can set a condition regarding the number of times the application is used. For example, when “use count” is set as a condition by the condition setting unit 301, the priority order of the display elements can be set by the ordering unit 204 in the order of devices frequently used by the user.

  As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 700 according to the modification example 4, by counting the number of times the application related to the display element is counted, the condition regarding the number of times of use can be set, and the display element is selected according to a user-desired condition. be able to.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, but the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and each of the above modifications is within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. In addition to the above, various modifications and changes are possible. It is also possible to configure the information processing apparatus by combining all or a plurality of the above-described embodiments and modifications.

  Further, although the display element has been described as the “printer” in the above-described embodiments and modifications, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when multiple news items are registered as gadgets with “news” as the display element, by setting “update count” as a condition, only frequently updated “news” is always displayed. The present invention can be applied by making “news” switchable.

  It should be noted that the processing content described in the embodiment and each modification may be a program, and this program may be executed by a computer to cause the information processing apparatus to execute the processing described above. It is also possible to record the program on a recording medium, cause the computer to read the recording medium on which the program is recorded, and cause the processing device to execute the processing described above.

The figure which shows an example of schematic hardware constitutions of the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. The figure which shows an example of the gadget displayed on a display screen. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a printer gadget. The figure which shows the example which performs an application using a gadget. The figure which shows an example of switching of a gadget. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a main functional configuration of an information processing apparatus according to a first embodiment. The figure which shows an example of a condition setting screen. The figure which shows an example which determines the display element nearest to conditions from several display elements. The figure which shows an example which gives a priority order to a display element. The figure which shows an example which gives a priority order to a display element when there are two or more conditions. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of display element display processing according to the first embodiment. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of display element switching processing according to the first embodiment. The block diagram which shows the main function structure of the information processing apparatus 400 which concerns on the modification 1. FIG. The figure which shows an example of the transition of the display screen by the change of the priority order in the modification 1. The block diagram which shows the main function structure of the information processing apparatus 500 which concerns on the modification 2. As shown in FIG. The figure which shows an example of the setting screen which sets conditions and priority order. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a main functional configuration of an information processing apparatus 600 according to Modification 3. The figure which shows an example on condition of the state of an apparatus. The figure which shows an example in which the display element displayed is changed by the state change of an apparatus. The sequence diagram which shows an example of the display process of the display element in the modification 2. The flowchart which shows an example of the switching process of the display element by the state of each apparatus changing. FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a main functional configuration of an information processing apparatus 700 according to Modification 4.

Explanation of symbols

100, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700 Information processing apparatus 101 CPU
102 RAM
103 HDD
104 Network I / F unit 105 Input unit 106 Display unit 110, 120 MFP
201 Display screens 202, 203 Gadget 301 Condition setting means 302 Storage means 303, 501, 602 Condition determination means 304 Ranking means 305 Storage means 306 Display means 307 Switching means 401 Continuation means 502 Giving means 601 Acquisition means 701 Use frequency counting means

Claims (13)

An information processing apparatus for displaying a display element for executing an application having a specific function on a display screen,
Storage means for storing a plurality of display elements of the same application;
Setting means for setting conditions relating to the application;
Determining means for determining a display element to be displayed on the display screen based on the condition set by the setting means;
An information processing apparatus comprising: display means for displaying only display elements determined by the determination means on the display screen. The determination means includes
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when there is a display element that matches the condition, the display element is determined, and when there is no display element that matches, the display element closest to the condition is determined. The determination means includes
Ranking means for prioritizing the display elements in order of proximity to the conditions;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a switching unit configured to switch from a display element displayed on the display screen to another display element other than the display element based on the priority order. The switching means is
The information processing according to claim 3, wherein when the priority order of the display elements being displayed on the display screen is lowered, the display elements are switched in order to display the display element having the highest priority order on the display screen. apparatus.   When the display element is switched by the switching unit, or when an application related to the display element being displayed on the display screen is executed, the display element being displayed on the display screen is displayed for a predetermined time. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a continuation unit that continues. The determination means includes
The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a grant unit that gives the priority order by a user. An acquisition means for acquiring device information from an external device,
The setting means includes
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a condition based on device information acquired from the acquisition unit is set. A counting means for counting the number of times the application of the display element is executed;
The setting means includes
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a condition based on information relating to the number of times is set.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit sets a plurality of the conditions. The determination means includes
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 9, wherein when there are a plurality of display elements that match or are closest to the condition, a display element having a higher function is determined as a display element that matches or is closest to the condition. . An information processing method in an information processing apparatus comprising: display means for displaying a display element for executing an application having a specific function on a display screen; and storage means for storing a plurality of display elements of the same application,
A setting step for setting conditions relating to the application;
A determination step of determining a display element to be displayed on the display screen based on the condition set in the setting step;
A display step of displaying only the display elements determined in the determination step on the display screen.   An information processing program capable of executing the information processing method according to claim 11 on a computer.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the information processing program according to claim 12 is recorded.