JP2020074084A - Information processing apparatus and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problem in which, conventionally, a function of a second application was not able to be virtually added to a first application.SOLUTION: A function of a second application can be virtually added to a first application by an information processing apparatus including: a storage unit that stores a plurality of programs realizing a plurality of applications including the first application that displays a first window of a first size and the second application that displays a second window of a second size; a user instruction receiving unit that receives a first startup instruction for the first application from a user; a second startup instruction receiving unit that receives a second startup instruction for the second application when starting the first application or during the starting; a display unit that overlays the first window and displays the second window in response to the reception of the second startup instruction; a user instruction receiving unit that receives a user instruction for the second window; and an execution unit that performs processing according to the reception of the user instruction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus or the like in which a second application is overlay-displayed on a first application.

  Conventionally, various applications could be operated in information processing devices such as smartphones and tablet terminals (see Non-Patent Document 1, for example).

"[Saved version] 100 recommended iPhone (registered trademark) apps", [online], December 17, 2017, Internet [URL: http://appllio.com/the-best-iphone-apps-100]

  However, in the conventional technology, only a plurality of applications (hereinafter, appropriately referred to as “apps”) operate independently, and the first application is provided with the function of the second application that is different from the first application. It could not be added virtually.

  The information processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of programs that realize a plurality of applications including a first application that displays a first window of a first size and a second application that displays a second window of a second size. A storage unit to be stored, a user instruction receiving unit that receives a first activation instruction for the first application from the user, and a second activation instruction that receives a second activation instruction for the second application when the first application is activated or is being activated. A boot instruction receiving unit, a display unit that overlays the first window to display the second window in response to receiving the second boot instruction, and a user instruction receiving unit that receives a user instruction for the second window, The information processing apparatus includes: an execution unit that performs processing in response to acceptance of a user instruction.

  With this configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  The information processing apparatus of the second invention is the information processing apparatus according to the first invention, wherein the second activation instruction receiving unit receives the second activation instruction when a predetermined condition is satisfied. ..

  With such a configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application when appropriate.

  The information processing apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention is the information processing apparatus according to the second aspect, wherein the predetermined condition is that the operation event sent from the first application satisfies the predetermined condition. It is a device.

  With such a configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application when appropriate.

  Further, the information processing apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention is the same as the first size to the third aspect, and the second size and the first size are the same, and in the displaying step, the first window is completely It is an information processing apparatus that displays a second window in an overlapping manner.

  With this configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  The information processing apparatus according to the fifth aspect of the present invention is the information processing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, in which the second window partially includes a transparent region.

  With this configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  Further, the information processing apparatus of the sixth aspect of the present invention is different from the fifth aspect of the invention in that, when the user instruction receiving unit receives the user instruction in the transparent area, the user instruction is passed to the first application. The information processing apparatus further includes a unit, and when the execution unit receives a user instruction in an area other than the transparent area, realizes an application that performs processing according to the reception of the user instruction.

  With this configuration, the user can easily use both the function of the first application and the function of the second application.

  The information processing apparatus according to the seventh invention is the information processing apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth inventions, wherein the execution unit performs a process for realizing a chat function, a process for realizing a questionnaire function, or The information processing apparatus performs any one or more of the functions of displaying information in a pop-up.

  With this configuration, the chat function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  Further, the information processing apparatus of the eighth aspect of the present invention is different from the first to seventh aspects of the invention in that the storage unit stores two or more cooperative application information items having a first application identifier for identifying the first application. A second activation instruction is issued to the second application when the first application identified by the first application identifier included in the collaborative application information is started The second startup instruction issuing unit is further provided, and the second startup instruction receiving unit is an information processing device that receives the second startup instruction issued by the second startup instruction issuing unit.

  With this configuration, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  According to the information processing device of the present invention, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

Block diagram of information processing apparatus A in Embodiment 1 The flowchart explaining the operation example of the information processing apparatus A. Diagram showing the cooperative app information management table Figure showing the same screen example Figure showing the same screen example Figure showing the same screen example Diagram showing an example of the second window Figure showing the same screen example Figure showing the same user cooperative application management table Block diagram of the computer system

  Hereinafter, embodiments of an information processing apparatus and the like will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that, in the embodiments, the components denoted by the same reference numerals perform the same operation, and thus the repeated description may be omitted.

  (Embodiment 1)

  In the present embodiment, an information processing apparatus A in which a second application is overlaid and displayed on a first application will be described. The information processing apparatus A is, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, a so-called personal computer, or the like, but the type thereof does not matter.

  Further, in the present embodiment, for example, the second application displays a window partially including a transparent area, and the window is displayed so as to be superimposed on the window of the first application.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, for example, the second application is an application that realizes a chat function.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the information processing apparatus A in this embodiment. The information processing device A includes a storage unit 1, a reception unit 2, a processing unit 3, and an output unit 4.

  The storage unit 1 includes an application storage unit 11 and a cooperative application information storage unit 12. The reception unit 2 includes a user instruction reception unit 21 and a second activation instruction reception unit 22. The processing unit 3 includes an execution unit 31, a second activation instruction issuing unit 32, and a user instruction delivery unit 33. The output unit 4 includes a display unit 41.

  Various information is stored in the storage unit 1. The various types of information are, for example, a plurality of programs, collaborative application information described later, and the like. The various types of information are, for example, first window information and second window information (collectively, appropriately referred to as “window information”). The window information is information used for managing windows. The window information is a known technique. The first window information is information about a first window described later. The first window information includes, for example, one or more information of the size, shape, color, image information of the window, and position information of the first window of the first application being activated. The second window information is information about a second window described later. The second window information includes, for example, at least one of size, shape, color of the second window of the second application being activated, image information of the window, and position information.

  The application storage unit 11 stores a plurality of programs. The program is, for example, a program that realizes an application. The plurality of programs include a program that realizes one or more first applications and a program that realizes a second application. The first application is the first application. The first application is an application that displays a first window of a first size. The first application may be called the first application. The second application is an application that displays a second window of a second size. The second application may be called the second application. It is preferable that the application in the application storage unit 11 is platform-independent. That is, it is preferable that the second application can be displayed by overlaying the window of the second application on the first application without depending on the platform of the first application. For example, the first application runs on a first OS (for example, iOS (registered trademark)), and the second application is not the first OS but a second OS (for example, Android (registered trademark) or Linux (registered trademark)). (Trademark) etc.). Needless to say, the description language of each of the plurality of applications does not matter. Each of the plurality of applications may be capable of executing HTML, Java Script (registered trademark), CSS, or the like, for example.

  In addition, one or more of the first application and the second application may be functions in one application. That is, the first application and the second application are usually executable programs, but may be functions or methods.

  The first size may be fixed or may change dynamically. The first size is, for example, the same size as the screen size of the information processing apparatus A. The first size is, for example, the size of the area excluding the fixed area from the screen size of the information processing apparatus A. The second size may be fixed or may be changed dynamically. The second size is, for example, the same size as the screen size of the information processing apparatus A. The second size is, for example, the size of the area excluding the fixed area from the screen size of the information processing apparatus A. The first size and the second size are preferably the same size. However, the first size and the second size do not have to be the same.

  In addition, it is preferable that the second window is a window that partially includes a transparent region.

  The cooperative application information storage unit 12 stores one or more cooperative application information. The cooperative application information is information about the first application that cooperates with the second application. Here, the cooperation is a state in which the first application and the second application are simultaneously activated. It may be said that the cooperation means that the second window of the second application is displayed by being overlaid on the first window of the first application. The cooperative application information has a first application identifier that identifies the first application. The cooperative application information has, for example, a first application identifier and condition information.

  The condition information is a condition for starting the second application. The condition information is, for example, information that specifies the timing at which the second application is activated.

  The condition information includes, for example, start condition information indicating a condition for starting the first app, event condition information indicating a condition for an event given to the first app, and trigger condition information indicating a condition for an automatically generated trigger. It is either.

  The activation condition information is, for example, “immediately after activation”, “immediately before activation”, or “during activation”. The condition information “immediately after activation” is a condition that it is immediately after the activation of the first application. The condition information “immediately before activation” is a condition that it is immediately before activation of the first application. The condition information “starting processing” is a condition that the first application is being started.

  The event condition information is, for example, “when button A is pressed” and “when screen X is displayed”. The condition information “when button A is pressed” indicates that the second application is activated when an event occurs when “button A” of the first application is pressed. The condition information “when screen X is displayed” indicates that the second application is activated when an event in which “screen X” of the first application is displayed occurs.

  The trigger condition information is not a condition corresponding to any input from the user, but is, for example, a condition that an input from the user cannot be accepted for X seconds or more, a condition that a predetermined time has come, or the like.

  The reception unit 2 receives various instructions and information. The various instructions and information are, for example, a user instruction described later and a second activation instruction described later.

  The user instruction receiving unit 21 receives a first activation instruction for the first application from the user. The first activation instruction is an instruction to activate the first application. The first activation instruction is input, for example, by selecting (for example, clicking or double clicking) the icon of the first application. The first activation instruction may be considered as an example of a user instruction described later.

  Here, the input means for the first activation instruction may be anything such as a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, or a menu screen.

  Here, the acceptance is usually acceptance of information input from an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or a touch panel, but reception of information transmitted via a wired or wireless communication line, an optical disk or a magnetic disk, It may be considered as a concept including reception of information read from a recording medium such as a semiconductor memory.

  The user instruction receiving unit 21 receives a user instruction on the second window. The user instruction is an instruction based on a user operation. The user instruction is, for example, an instruction (for example, click, double click, selection of menu item, etc.) for a window (may be referred to as a screen).

  The user instruction receiving unit 21 normally receives a user instruction in the first window. That is, the user instruction receiving unit 21 normally receives a user instruction for the screen of the information processing apparatus A.

  Further, here, the input means of the user instruction may be anything such as a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse or a menu screen.

  Here, the acceptance is usually acceptance of information input from an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, or a touch panel, but reception of information transmitted via a wired or wireless communication line, an optical disk or a magnetic disk, It may be considered as a concept including reception of information read from a recording medium such as a semiconductor memory.

  The second activation instruction acceptance unit 22 accepts a second activation instruction for the second application when the first application is activated or is being activated. The second activation instruction is an instruction to activate the second application. The second activation instruction may be considered as an event activated by the second application. The second application may be started by receiving the second start instruction. Acceptance of the second activation instruction is usually not based on a user operation. The acceptance of the second activation instruction is, for example, acceptance of the second activation instruction from the first application. The acceptance of the second activation instruction is, for example, acceptance of the second activation instruction from the OS. In other words, the second activation instruction reception unit 22 is an instruction to activate the second application from software that is not the second application, such as the first application.

  The second activation instruction receiving unit 22 receives, for example, a second activation instruction issued by a second activation instruction issuing unit 32, which will be described later.

  In addition, the case where the first application is started means any one of immediately before the first application is started, during the start processing of the first application, and immediately after the first application is started. "Starting" means starting the first application.

  It is preferable that the second activation instruction receiving unit 22 receives the second activation instruction when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

  Here, the predetermined condition is, for example, a condition indicated by the condition information included in one or more of the cooperative application information stored in the cooperative application information storage unit 12. The predetermined condition is, for example, the case where the activation process of the first application is completed. Further, the predetermined condition is, for example, that the operation event sent from the first application satisfies the predetermined condition. That the operation event satisfies a predetermined condition means that the operation event is a predetermined specific event. The predetermined specific event is, for example, an event that occurs when a predetermined button is instructed (for example, clicked or double clicked). Such an event is, for example, "specific button identifier click", "specific button identifier DoubleClick", or the like.

  The processing unit 3 performs various kinds of processing. The various processes are, for example, processes performed by the execution unit 31, the second activation instruction issuing unit 32, the user instruction delivery unit 33, and the like.

  The execution unit 31 performs processing according to the reception of a user instruction. The execution unit 31 performs a process corresponding to the received user instruction. The process may be any process such as a process for realizing a chat function or a process for displaying information. The execution unit 31 performs a process for realizing a chat function, for example. The execution unit 31 performs, for example, a process for realizing a questionnaire function. The questionnaire function usually has a function of executing a questionnaire and totaling the answers of the questionnaire. The questionnaire function has, for example, a function of receiving answer information indicating an answer to the questionnaire from the information processing apparatus A or another apparatus, accumulating it, or transmitting it to an external apparatus. Then, the questionnaire function has, for example, a function of statistically processing the answer information of a plurality of persons and acquiring the statistical processing result. The execution unit 31 performs a process for realizing a function of displaying information by pop-up, for example. It is preferable that the execution unit 31 perform one or more of a process for realizing the chat function, a process for realizing the questionnaire function, and a function for displaying information in a popup. The execution unit 31 activates the first application in the application storage unit 11 in response to receiving the first activation instruction, for example. The execution unit 31 activates the second application, for example, in response to issuance of a second activation instruction described below.

  The second activation instruction issuing unit 32 issues a second activation instruction to the second application when the first application identified by the first application identifier included in the cooperative application information is activated or during activation. The issuance of the second activation instruction means giving the second activation instruction to the second application. Issuing the second activation instruction may be referred to as sending the second activation instruction. The issuance of the second activation instruction may result in that the second application is activated.

  The user instruction delivery unit 33 delivers the user instruction to the first application when the user instruction receiving unit 21 receives the user instruction in the transparent area.

  Specifically, the user instruction delivery part 33 operates as follows, for example. That is, when the user instruction delivery unit 33 receives the user instruction, the user instruction delivery unit 33 acquires, for example, position information (x, y) indicating the position of the user instruction. The position information (x, y) is, for example, the coordinate value of the point designated by the user (the coordinate value on the screen). Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 uses the information (for example, image information) indicating the color of the point at each position included in the second window information of the storage unit 1 to determine the position information (x, y). It is determined whether the color of the point at the corresponding second window position is transparent. Then, in the case of being transparent, the user instruction delivery unit 33 delivers the user instruction to the running first application. If it is not transparent, the user instruction delivery unit 33 delivers the user instruction to the second application. As a result, the process of passing the user instruction to the first application may be performed by the first application based on the user instruction. Further, as a result of the processing of passing the user instruction to the second application, the second application may perform the processing based on the user instruction.

  The output unit 4 outputs various kinds of information. The various information is, for example, a first window which is a screen of the first application, a second window which is a screen of the second application, and the like.

  Here, the output is usually a display on a display, but projection using a projector, printing by a printer, sound output, transmission to an external device, storage in a recording medium, other processing device or other It may be considered as a concept including delivery of the processing result to the program etc.

  The display unit 41 overlays the first window and displays the second window in response to the reception of the second activation instruction. Here, “overlay” usually means complete overlap, but it may be considered to include partial overlap. The overlay may be called superposition. The display of the second window is usually the result of starting the second application.

  The display unit 41 displays the first window in response to the reception of the first start instruction. The display of the first window is usually the result of starting the first application.

  The storage unit 1, the application storage unit 11, and the cooperative application information storage unit 12 are preferably non-volatile recording media, but can also be realized by volatile recording media.

  The process of storing information in the storage unit 1 or the like does not matter. For example, information may be stored in the storage unit 1 or the like via a recording medium, or information transmitted via a communication line or the like may be stored in the storage unit 1 or the like, Alternatively, the information input via the input device may be stored in the storage unit 1 or the like.

  The reception unit 2 and the user instruction reception unit 21 can be realized by a device driver of input means such as a touch panel or a keyboard, control software for a menu screen, or the like.

  The second activation instruction receiving unit 22, the processing unit 3, the execution unit 31, the second activation instruction issuing unit 32, and the user instruction delivery unit 33 can be usually realized by an MPU, a memory, or the like. The processing procedure of the processing unit 3 and the like is usually realized by software, and the software is recorded in a recording medium such as a ROM. However, it may be realized by hardware (dedicated circuit).

  The output unit 4 may or may not be considered to include an output device such as a display or a speaker. The output unit 4 can be realized by driver software of an output device or driver software of an output device and an output device.

  The display unit 41 may or may not include a display device. The display unit 41 can be realized by driver software of a display device, or driver software of a display device and a display device.

  Next, an operation example of the information processing apparatus A will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  (Step S201) The user instruction receiving unit 21 determines whether or not a first activation instruction for the first application has been received from the user. If the first activation instruction is received, the process proceeds to step S202, and if the first activation instruction is not received, the process proceeds to step S207.

  (Step S202) The execution unit 31 activates the first application in the application storage unit 11.

  (Step S203) The display unit 41 displays the first window. The display of the first window is the result of starting the first application.

  (Step S204) The processing unit 3 or the execution unit 31 determines whether or not the first application or the like matches the condition indicated by the condition information included in the one or more pieces of cooperative application information in the cooperative application information storage unit 12. If it is determined that the conditions are met, the process proceeds to step S205, and if it is determined that the conditions are not met, the process returns to step S201.

  (Step S205) The execution unit 31 activates the second application in the application storage unit 11.

  (Step S206) The display unit 41 overlays the first window and displays the second window. It returns to step S201. The display of the second window is the result of starting the second application.

  (Step S207) The user instruction receiving unit 21 determines whether or not a user instruction has been received. If the user instruction is received, the process proceeds to step S208, and if the user instruction is not received, the process proceeds to step S215.

  (Step S208) The user instruction delivery unit 33 determines whether the user instruction received in step S207 is an instruction for the second window. If the instruction is for the second window, the process proceeds to step S209. If the instruction is not for the second window, the process proceeds to step S214. Note that, when the software of the information processing apparatus A is realized by an object-oriented program, the object which is each window may accept the user instruction without such determination.

  (Step S209) The user instruction delivery part 33 determines whether the user instruction received in step S207 is an instruction to a transparent area of the second window. If it is an instruction to the transparent area, the process proceeds to step S210. If it is not the instruction to the transparent region, the process proceeds to step S212.

  (Step S210) The user instruction transfer unit 33 transfers the user instruction received in step S207 to the first application.

  (Step S211) The execution unit 31 performs an operation according to a user instruction from the first application. It returns to step S201.

  (Step S212) The user instruction transfer unit 33 transfers the user instruction received in step S207 to the second application.

  (Step S213) The execution unit 31 performs an operation according to a user instruction from the second application. It returns to step S201.

  (Step S214) The processing unit 3 or the execution unit 31 determines that the first application and the user instruction received in step S207 meet the condition indicated by the condition information included in the one or more pieces of cooperative application information in the cooperative application information storage unit 12. Determine if they match. If it is determined that the conditions are met, the process proceeds to step S205, and if it is determined that the conditions are not met, the process proceeds to step S210.

  (Step S215) The processing unit 3 or the execution unit 31 determines whether or not the first application or the like matches the condition indicated by the condition information included in the one or more pieces of cooperative application information in the cooperative application information storage unit 12. If it is determined that the conditions are met, the process proceeds to step S205, and if it is determined that the conditions are not met, the process returns to step S201.

  Note that in the flowchart of FIG. 2, the processing is ended by powering off or interruption for aborting the processing.

  Hereinafter, a specific operation of the information processing apparatus A according to this embodiment will be described. An external view of the information processing apparatus A is FIG.

  Now, the cooperative application information storage unit 12 stores the cooperative application information management table shown in FIG. The cooperative application information management table manages a plurality of cooperative application information. The cooperative application information management table includes a plurality of records having “ID” and “cooperative application information”. The “cooperative application information” has an “application identifier” and “condition information”. The “app identifier” is the file name of the app here. “Condition information” is information regarding conditions for starting the second application. “A1.exe” and “A2.exe” in the cooperative application information management table are examples of the first application.

  In addition, here, the second application is assumed to be an application that realizes a chat function. That is, this specific example is a case where the chat function can be added to the first application identified by the application identifier when the condition indicated by the condition information is met.

In this situation, the following two specific examples will be described. The first specific example is a case where the second application is activated when the operation event sent from the first application satisfies a predetermined condition. The second specific example is a case where the second application is started immediately after the first application is started.
(Specific example 1)

  Now, it is assumed that the user clicks the icon 401 of the application “A2.exe” in the state of the screen of the information processing apparatus A shown in FIG. Then, the user instruction receiving unit 21 of the information processing apparatus A receives the user instruction of the icon 401.

  Next, the user instruction delivery part 33 determines that the received user instruction is not an instruction for the second window. Next, the processing unit 3 determines that the user instruction does not match the condition indicated by the condition information included in the one or more pieces of cooperative application information in the cooperative application information management table.

  Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 transfers the user instruction to the application “A2.exe”. Then, the execution unit 31 activates the application “A2.exe”. Then, the display unit 41 displays the first window which is the screen of the application “A2.exe”. An example of such a first window is shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a screen for user registration. It should be noted that it is just after the start of the application “A2.exe”.

  Next, the processing unit 3 determines whether or not the application identifier “A2.exe” and “immediately after startup” match the condition indicated by the condition information included in each of the one or more pieces of cooperative app information in the cooperative app information management table. To do. Here, the processing unit 3 determines that the application identifier “A2.exe” and “immediately after startup” do not match the conditions indicated by the condition information included in any cooperative application information.

  Next, it is assumed that the user has instructed the button "Send View" 501 of the screen of FIG. Then, the user instruction receiving unit 21 receives the user instruction. It is assumed that this user instruction is "" Send View "Button ON".

  Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 determines that the received user instruction ““ Send View ”Button ON” is not the instruction for the second window. This is because the second application is not started and the second window is not displayed.

  Next, the processing unit 3 determines that the first application “A2.exe” and the received user instruction ““ Send View ”Button ON” include the condition information included in each of the one or more cooperative application information items in the cooperative application information management table. It is determined whether or not the conditions shown are met. Since the first application “A2.exe” and the received user instruction ““ Send View ”Button ON” match the record of “ID = 2” in the cooperative application information management table, the processing unit 3 It is determined that the condition indicated by the condition information “ID = 2” is met.

  Next, the execution unit 31 activates the second application in the application storage unit 11. Then, the display unit 41 overlays the first window and displays the second window. An example of such a display is shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is an example in which the second window of FIG. 7 is displayed by being overlaid on the first window of FIG. The area 701 in FIG. 7 is a transparent area. Reference numeral 702 in FIG. 7 is a button for calling the chat function.

  Then, it is assumed that the user has designated 601 in FIG. Then, the user instruction receiving unit 21 receives the user instruction. Such an instruction is an instruction for the second window.

  Next, the user instruction delivery part 33 determines that the received user instruction is an instruction for the second window.

  Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 uses the image information of the second window information in the storage unit 1 (for example, FIG. 7), and the received user instruction is not an instruction to the transparent area of the second window. To judge. The second window information in the storage unit 1 is accumulated by the execution unit 31 when the second application is activated. The second window information has, for example, the image information of FIG. 7, position information (0, 0) indicating the start point of the second window, and size (screen width w, screen height h). That is, the second window is a window that covers the entire screen. Note that the first window is also a window that covers the entire screen.

  Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 transfers the accepted user instruction to the second application. Then, the execution unit 31 performs an operation according to the user instruction from the second application. That is, the screen for realizing the chat function is displayed. An example of such a screen is shown in FIG. The chat function is a well-known technique, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  It is assumed that the user has instructed the button 602 while the screen of FIG. 6 is displayed. Then, the user instruction receiving unit 21 receives the user instruction.

  Next, the user instruction delivery part 33 determines that the received user instruction is an instruction for the second window.

  Next, the user instruction delivery unit 33 refers to the second window information in the storage unit 1 and determines that the received user instruction is an instruction to the transparent area of the second window.

  Next, the user instruction transfer unit 33 transfers the accepted user instruction to the first application. The user instruction has, for example, position information (x1, y1) indicating the instructed position.

  Next, the execution unit 31 performs an operation according to a user instruction given by the first application. That is, in the first application, the same processing as that when the position information (x1, y1) is pressed (processing when the button 602 is pressed) is performed.

As described above, in the present specific example, when the operation event sent from the first application satisfies the predetermined condition, the second application is activated so that the function of the second application ( Here, a chat function) can be added virtually.
(Specific example 2)

  Now, it is assumed that the user clicks the icon 402 of the application “A1.exe” in the state of the screen of the information processing apparatus A shown in FIG. Then, the user instruction receiving unit 21 of the information processing apparatus A receives the user instruction of the icon 401. Then, the execution unit 31 activates the application “A1.exe”. Then, the display unit 41 displays the first window which is the screen of the application “A1.exe”. An example of such a first window is shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a screen for user registration. Note that, at present, it is just after the application “A1.exe” is started. Note that the application “A2.exe” of the first specific example and the application “A1.exe” of the second specific example are usually different, but for convenience of explanation, the same screen is adopted as the screen of the first window.

  Next, the processing unit 3 determines whether or not the first application “A1.exe” and the state “immediately after startup” match the condition indicated by the condition information included in any of the cooperative application information in the cooperative application information management table. .. Here, the processing unit 3 determines that the condition is satisfied by the condition information “ID = 1” in the cooperative application information management table.

  Next, the execution unit 31 activates the second application in the application storage unit 11. Then, the display unit 41 overlays the first window and displays the second window. An example of such a display is shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is an example in which the second window of FIG. 7 is displayed by being overlaid on the first window of FIG.

  The subsequent processing is the same as the content described in the first specific example.

  As described above, in this specific example, the function of the second application (here, the chat function) is virtually added to the first application by activating the second application immediately after the first application is activated. You can

  As described above, according to this embodiment, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application when appropriate.

  In the present embodiment, the function of the first application and the function of the second application do not matter.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the function of activating the second application may be managed for each user. For example, in the present embodiment, the cooperative application information may be managed for each user. FIG. 9 shows such a user-specific cooperative application management table. The user-specific cooperative application management table is stored in the storage unit 1. The cooperative application management table for each user has “ID”, “user identifier”, and “cooperative application information identifier”. "ID" is information for identifying a record. The “user identifier” is information that identifies a user. The "user identifier" is, for example, a user ID, name, mail address, telephone number, IP address, or the like. The “user identifier” may be information that identifies the information processing device used by the user. The “cooperative application information identifier” is the ID of the cooperative application information management table. In FIG. 9, the user “U01” can use the second application immediately after the application “A1.exe” is started. Further, the user “U01” can use the second application when the “Send View” Button of the application “A2.exe” is instructed. Furthermore, the user “U02” can use the second application immediately after the application “A1.exe” is started. However, the user “U02” cannot use the second application even when the “Send View” Button of the application “A2.exe” is instructed.

  Further, the processing in this embodiment may be realized by software. Then, this software may be distributed by software download or the like. Further, this software may be recorded in a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and distributed. This also applies to other embodiments in this specification. The software that realizes the information processing apparatus A according to the present embodiment is the following program. That is, this program is, for example, a second activation instruction receiving step of receiving a second activation instruction for the second application when or when the first application that displays the first window of the first size is activated on the computer. A display step of overlaying the first window to display a second window in response to receiving the second start instruction; a user instruction receiving step of receiving a user instruction for the second window; It is a program for executing an execution step of performing processing according to acceptance of a user instruction.

  In the above program, it is preferable that the program is a program for receiving the second start instruction when a predetermined condition is satisfied in the second start instruction receiving step.

  Further, in the above program, it is preferable that the predetermined condition is a program in which an operation event sent from the first application satisfies a predetermined condition.

  Further, in the above program, it is preferable that the second window has the same size as the first window, and in the displaying step, the second window is completely overlapped with the first window to display the second window. ..

  Further, in the above program, it is preferable that the second window is a program that partially includes a transparent region.

  In the above program, when a user instruction is received in the transparent area in the user instruction receiving step, a user instruction passing step of passing the user instruction to the first application is further executed, and in the executing step, It is preferable that the program is a program that, when a user instruction is received in an area other than the transparent area, performs processing according to the reception of the user instruction.

  Further, in the above program, it is preferable that the execution step is a program for performing processing for realizing a chat function.

  Further, in the above program, a computer that can access a cooperative application information storage unit that stores two or more cooperative application information having a first application identifier for identifying the first application has a first application identifier included in the cooperative application information. In the case where the first application identified by is activated or is being activated, a second activation instruction issuing step of issuing a second activation instruction to the second application is further executed, and in the second activation instruction receiving step. It is preferable that the program is a program that receives the second startup instruction issued in the second startup instruction issuing step.

  In addition, for example, the above-mentioned program is received by a computer in response to a user start instruction receiving step of receiving a start instruction from a user Is a program that realizes the first application, which includes an application launching step of launching the second application realized by.

  Further, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the external appearance of a computer that executes the programs described in this specification to realize the information processing apparatus A of the various embodiments described above. The above-described embodiments can be realized by computer hardware and a computer program executed on the computer hardware. FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a system 300 that realizes the information processing apparatus A. The system 300 has a computer 301 and a display 304.

  In FIG. 10, the computer 301 is provided with a bus 3014 connected to the MPU 3013 and the like, a ROM 3015 for storing a program such as a boot-up program, and a temporary storage space for temporarily storing instructions of an application program. RAM 3016 and a hard disk 3017 for storing application programs, system programs, and data.

  A program that causes the computer system 300 to execute the functions of the information processing apparatus A according to the above-described embodiment is recorded in, for example, the hard disk 3017. The program may be transmitted to the computer 301 via a network (not shown) and stored in the hard disk 3017. The program is loaded into the RAM 3016 when it is executed. The program may be loaded directly from the network.

  The program does not necessarily include an operating system (OS) that causes the computer 301 to execute the functions of the information processing apparatus A according to the above-described embodiment, a third-party program, or the like. The program only needs to include a part of an instruction that calls an appropriate function (module) in a controlled manner and obtains a desired result. How the computer system 300 operates is well known and will not be described in detail.

  Moreover, the computer that executes the program may be a single computer or a plurality of computers. That is, centralized processing may be performed or distributed processing may be performed. Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, each process may be realized by centralized processing by a single device, or may be realized by distributed processing by a plurality of devices. That is, some or all of the functions of the information processing apparatus A may be performed by a server device (not shown). The server device may be of any type such as a so-called cloud server or ASP server. When the information processing device A is a server device, the reception unit 2 receives an instruction or information from a terminal device (not shown). The output unit 4 also transmits information and the like to a terminal device (not shown).

  Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made, which are also included in the scope of the present invention.

  As described above, the information processing apparatus according to the present invention has an effect that the function of the second application can be virtually added to the first application, and is useful as an information processing apparatus or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Storage section 2 Reception section 3 Processing section 4 Output section 11 Application storage section 12 Cooperative application information storage section 21 User instruction reception section 22 Second activation instruction reception section 31 Execution section 32 Second activation instruction issuing section 33 User instruction transfer section 41 Display

Claims (12)

Stores a plurality of programs that realize a plurality of applications including a first application that displays a first window of a first size and a second application that displays a second window of a second size that partially includes a transparent area. Storage part,
A user instruction receiving unit that receives a first activation instruction for the first application from a user;
When the first application is activated or during activation, a second activation instruction acceptance unit that accepts a second activation instruction for the second application,
A display unit that displays the second window by overlaying the first window in response to receiving the second startup instruction,
A user instruction receiving unit that receives a user instruction with respect to the second window;
An execution unit that performs processing according to the reception of the user instruction,
When the user instruction receiving unit receives the user instruction in the transparent region of the second window, the user instruction delivery unit that delivers the user instruction to the first application,
When the user instruction transfer unit passes the user instruction to the first application, the first application performs an operation corresponding to the user instruction, and the upper limit relationship between the first window and the second window is satisfied. Is unchanged,
An information processing apparatus, wherein when the user instruction receiving unit receives the user instruction in the non-transparent area of the second window, the second application performs an operation corresponding to the user instruction. The second activation instruction receiving unit,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second activation instruction is accepted when a predetermined condition is satisfied. The predetermined conditions are
The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the operation event sent from the first application satisfies a predetermined condition. The second size and the first size are the same,
In the display section,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second window is displayed so as to be completely overlapped with the first window. The second app is
5. The application according to claim 1, which is one or more of an application that realizes a chat function, an app that realizes a questionnaire function, and an app that realizes a function of displaying information in a pop-up. Information processing device. The storage section is
A cooperative application information storage unit for storing two or more cooperative application information having a first application identifier for identifying the first application;
The method further includes a second activation instruction issuing unit that issues a second activation instruction to the second application when or during activation of the first application identified by the first application identifier included in the cooperative application information. Then
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second activation instruction receiving unit receives the second activation instruction issued by the second activation instruction issuing unit. Stores a plurality of programs that realize a plurality of applications including a first application that displays a first window of a first size and a second application that displays a second window of a second size that partially includes a transparent area. A computer that can access the storage
A user instruction receiving unit that receives a first activation instruction for the first application from a user;
When the first application is activated or during activation, a second activation instruction acceptance unit that accepts a second activation instruction for the second application,
A display unit that displays the second window by overlaying the first window in response to receiving the second startup instruction,
A user instruction receiving unit that receives a user instruction with respect to the second window;
An execution unit that performs processing according to the reception of the user instruction,
A program that causes the user instruction receiving unit to function as a user instruction delivery unit that passes the user instruction to the first application when the user instruction is received in the transparent area of the second window.
When the user instruction transfer unit passes the user instruction to the first application, the first application performs an operation corresponding to the user instruction, and the upper limit relationship between the first window and the second window is satisfied. Is unchanged,
A program for causing the second application to perform an operation corresponding to the user instruction when the user instruction receiving unit receives the user instruction in the non-transparent region of the second window. The second activation instruction receiving unit,
The program according to claim 7, which causes the computer to function as receiving the second startup instruction when a predetermined condition is satisfied. The predetermined conditions are
The program according to claim 8, wherein the operation event sent from the first application satisfies a predetermined condition. The second window is the same size as the first window,
In the display section,
The program according to any one of claims 7 to 9 for causing the computer to function so as to completely display the second window on the first window. The second app is
The application according to any one of claims 7 to 10, which is one or more of an application realizing a chat function, an application realizing a questionnaire function, and an application realizing a function of displaying information by pop-up. program. The storage section is
A cooperative application information storage unit for storing two or more cooperative application information having a first application identifier for identifying the first application;
The computer,
Further functions as a second activation instruction issuing unit that issues a second activation instruction to the second application when or during activation of the first application identified by the first application identifier included in the cooperative application information. Let
The program according to any one of claims 7 to 11, wherein the second boot instruction receiving unit causes the computer to function as receiving a second boot instruction issued by the second boot instruction issuing unit. ..