JPH10207678A - Display switching method for window, and system for the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display a necessary window as a foreground window and to shorten the time up to a usable state by displaying normal windows at specific intervals with a selection start indication while changing priority, and selecting and making usable one window with a stop indication. SOLUTION: A window iconizing display indication means 11 indicates the iconizing and displaying of an object window set by a window priority setting means 13. A sequential display indicating means 12 indicates the displaying of higher-priority windows in order as a foreground window at specified time intervals according to the priority set by the window priority setting means 13. According to the contents of an indication for stopping the window selection, the window which is specified by the sequential display indicating means 12 and displayed currently as the foreground window is made usable and the deletion of a display of the icon indicating the display is made.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for switching the display of windows of a computer system such as a personal computer or a workstation having a multi-window environment and a system therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, computer systems such as personal computers and workstations having a multi-window environment have become widespread. In the multi-window environment, a plurality of windows running on a display are displayed, and a plurality of applications operating simultaneously are displayed on a single screen by associating a task with each window. . Each window displayed in the multi-window environment usually consists of a rectangular area of any size, and the user can simultaneously open a number of windows on the same screen as needed. Also, several windows can be displayed in an overlapping manner, and the order can be freely changed by the user.

However, when a window hidden under another window is displayed at the top and made available,
If a part of the window you want to display at the top is visible on the screen, move the mouse cursor to a part of the window, click the mouse button and select the window to display that window at the top Can be enabled. However, when the window to be displayed is completely hidden under other windows, an under (undease) is selected by a pull-down menu or the like.
r) An operation of selecting a function or the like and displaying windows one by one is required, and there is a problem that much time and labor are required to display the corresponding windows.

[0004] In order to solve this problem,
For example, there is one described in JP-A-3-214361. This is a sequential display instructing means for sequentially displaying windows at the highest order in a set order and at a set time interval, and a user for detecting an instruction to start and stop window selection by user input means such as a mouse button operation. This is a computer system including input detection means and window priority setting means. Here, when the user input detection means receives an instruction to start window selection from the user, the user input detection means sequentially notifies the instruction to the display instruction means. The sequential display instructing means is activated according to the instruction, and instructs the multi-window display device at a preset time interval. The multi-window display device sequentially displays the windows based on the designated time interval and the display order of the windows set by the window priority order setting means. When the user indicates that the window to be used is the window to be used when the window to be used is displayed at the top, the display instructing means is sequentially stopped, and the window becomes the top. It can be used in the state. In this way, a required window can be displayed at the top level with a simple operation.

[0005]

In the above-described computer system, the window to be displayed at the top level can be displayed at the top level by directly operating the mouse button without directly pressing the mouse button. When the number of windows to be displayed is large, the required windows are displayed at the top and can be used if the number of displayed windows is large. There was a problem that it took a lot of time to become. An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a window display switching method and a system therefor that can reduce the time required for displaying a required window at the top level and making it usable. It is in.

[0006]

According to the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, a window having a low display priority is displayed as an icon, and the other windows are displayed as ordinary windows, and a selection start instruction is issued. , The windows displayed as normal windows are sequentially changed in priority at predetermined time intervals and displayed, and one window is selected and made usable by a stop instruction (displayed at the top). At this time, which window is selected and made available depends on the position and timing of the mouse click at the time of the stop instruction.

More specifically, a priority order for sequentially displaying a plurality of windows, a time interval of each display, and the number of windows to be iconified among the plurality of windows are set, and the window selection is started. According to the instruction, based on the set priority order, time interval, and the number of windows to be displayed as icons, a part of the plurality of windows is displayed as icons, and the remaining windows are normally displayed. Normally displayed windows are displayed with their priorities changed sequentially. Thereafter, in response to the window selection stop instruction, one of the normally displayed window and the iconized window is selected. When an iconified window is clicked, it is normally displayed at the top and enabled, and the remaining iconified windows are normally displayed at the lowest position. If the iconified window has not been clicked, the topmost window at that time is selected and made available, and the iconified window is normally displayed at the lowest position.

As a specific means for this purpose, the user input detecting means notifies the window iconifying display means and the sequential display instructing means when the user instructs to start window selection. The window iconifying display means refers to the iconified display target window set by the window priority setting means, and instructs the window to be iconified and displayed. The sequential display instructing means instructs to sequentially display the windows in descending order of priority based on the priority set by the window priority setting means. However, there is no instruction to display a window that has been iconized and displayed. The user input detection means notifies the window redisplay means when the user instructs to stop the window selection. The window display means instructs to stop the sequential display of the windows.

Next, the window re-display means determines whether the stop of the window selection is the stop of the window selection due to the selection of the iconized window by the mouse. The window redisplaying means returns the window of the selected icon to the original window when the iconized window is selected, and displays the window at the top level,
Make it usable. The window of the icon that has not been selected is also returned to the original window, and an instruction to sequentially display the windows below the currently displayed window is displayed. The window redisplay means, if the stop of the window selection is not the selection of the iconized window,
Enables the window currently displayed at the top level. Further, the user instructs to return the iconized windows to the original windows and to sequentially display the windows below the lowest displayed window.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a window display switching system to which the present invention is applied. As shown in FIG. 1, a window display switching system according to the present invention includes a CRT 1 that is a multi-window display device that displays a plurality of windows in addition to characters and graphics on a screen and a CRT 1 that controls display on the CRT 1.
An RT driver 2, a keyboard 3 for inputting commands, character strings, numerical values, etc., a mouse 4 as a pointing device for inputting an instruction from a user to a window displayed on the CRT 1, and a keyboard 3 by a user. , A keyboard / mouse driver 5 for inputting various data, a disk device 6 storing various data, a disk device driver 7 for controlling input / output of data from / to the disk device 6, and a memory device 8
And a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 9.

The memory device 8 includes an operating system for managing basic operations of the computer system,
Various application programs such as a multi-window program and data such as characters and numerical values input from the keyboard 3 and the mouse 4 are stored. The memory device 8 stores information (display content, position, size, etc.) necessary for the multi-window system in a predetermined storage area.

The CPU 9 is a circuit that controls the entire system and performs arithmetic processing on predetermined data based on various commands. The CPU 9 reads a predetermined program from the memory device 8 in response to an instruction from the keyboard 3 or the mouse 4. Then, the arithmetic processing is performed on the input data.

Further, the CPU 9 sets a user input detecting means 10 for detecting an input by the mouse 4 from a user instructing start and stop of the window selection, and sets a priority order of the windows by a predetermined algorithm (for example, LRU algorithm). In addition, a window priority setting unit 13 for setting a window to be iconified for a window with a lower priority, and an instruction to iconify and display the window to be iconified set by the window priority setting unit 13 A window icon display instruction means 11 and a sequential display instruction for instructing that the windows with the highest priority be displayed at the top at successively designated time intervals based on the priority set by the window priority setting means 13 Means 12 and stop of window selection In accordance with the content of the instruction, the window currently displayed at the topmost level is sequentially used by the windows designated by the display instruction means 12, and the display of the icon designated by the window iconification display instruction means 11 is deleted. Give instructions. Alternatively, the iconized window for which the window iconification display instructing means 11 has instructed the display is returned to the original window and displayed at the top level,
It includes a window re-display means 14 for enabling use. Each of these means is actually realized by executing a corresponding program.

When starting the window selection, the user gives an instruction by pressing the button of the mouse 4 twice consecutively. When stopping the window selection, the user selects the iconized window with the mouse 4. Alternatively, an instruction is given by pressing a mouse button without selecting an iconified window. The setting of the display order of the windows and the setting of the priority of the window which is the evaluation criterion in order to set the window to be iconified are set by the window priority setting means 13. (Least Recent
lyUsed) algorithm to set the highest priority in order from the most recently used window. When setting iconification of windows, the priority is set from the lowest priority, but the number of windows to be iconified can be arbitrarily set by the window priority setting means 13. The time interval for sequentially displaying the windows can be arbitrarily set by the sequential display instruction means 12.

An example of a method for setting the number of windows to be iconified will now be described. As shown in FIG. 3, when the toolbar is displayed and “window switching” is selected by a mouse or an arrow key, pull-down menus such as “priority setting”, “number of displayed icons”, and “display time interval” are displayed. You. As shown in FIG. 4A, when "number of displayed icons" is selected from this pull-down menu,
As shown in FIG. 4B, an input field for the number of displayed icons and an OK / cancel button are displayed. Enter the number of windows to be iconified from the keyboard in the input field for the number of displayed icons, and click the OK button (if you make a mistake, click the Cancel button to start over). Priority setting and display time interval setting can be performed in the same manner.

Next, the processing by the display switching system of this window will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
A description will be given according to 12 multi-window display screen examples.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an initial state before switching windows. Here, a to e indicate windows. When the start of window selection is instructed (step 101: Y), the user input detection unit 10 notifies the window iconification display instructing unit 11 and the sequential display instructing unit 12 that the start of window selection is instructed. (Steps 102 and 103). Window iconification display instructing means 11 receiving an instruction to start window selection
Refers to the iconized display target window set by the window priority setting means 13, converts the set window into an icon, and instructs the CRT driver 2 to display the icon. The CRT driver 2 displays the specified icon in the icon display area of the CRT 1 (Step 104).

Upon receiving the instruction to start the window selection, the sequential display instructing means 12 sets the window priority setting means 13
Refer to the priority set by the CRT driver 2
Is instructed to display windows sequentially from the window with the highest priority at the set time interval. However, the sequential display instructing means 12 does not give an instruction for display because the window which has become the iconized display target window is already iconified and displayed.

The CRT driver 2 sequentially displays windows instructed to be displayed on the CRT 1 at designated time intervals. FIG. 6 shows a display example at the first point in time when the priority of windows set by the window priority setting means 13 is e>d>c>b> a and the number of windows to be iconified is 2. In FIG. 6, a window e having a higher priority is displayed at the top, a window d is displayed therebelow, a window c is further displayed therebelow, and windows b and a having a lower priority are displayed as icons. .

After the window shown in FIG. 6 is displayed,
When the set time interval elapses, as shown in FIG.
Window d is displayed at the top, window c under it, and window e, which was last at the top, is displayed at the bottom.
When the set time interval further elapses, as shown in FIG. 8, the window c is placed at the top and the window e is placed below it.
However, the window d, which was last at the top, is displayed at the bottom. The windows b and a that have been iconized remain as they are. Further, when the set time interval elapses, the window display of FIG. 6 is performed again. As described above, FIG.
8 are sequentially and repeatedly displayed at set time intervals (step 105).

When the windows start to be sequentially displayed in step 105, the user input detecting means 10 monitors whether or not the button of the mouse 4 has been pressed. When the button is pressed (step 106: Y), the window is redisplayed. The stop of the window selection is notified to the means 14 (step 107). The window redisplay unit 14 instructs the CRT driver 2 to stop displaying sequentially. The CRT driver 2 stops sequentially displaying the windows (step 10).
8).

The window redisplay means 14 determines whether the instruction to stop the window selection is an instruction due to the selection of the iconified window by pressing the button of the mouse 4 (step 109). When the window redisplay unit 14 determines that the instruction is a stop instruction due to the selection of the iconified window (see FIG. 9), the selected iconified window is returned to a normal window and displayed at the top. To make it usable
Instruct T driver 2. The CRT driver 2 displays the specified window at the top of the CRT 1 to make it usable (step 110).

The window redisplay means 14 returns the non-selected iconified windows to the original windows, and sequentially lowers the windows currently displayed according to the priority set by the priority setting means 13 from the lowest. The display is instructed to the CRT driver 2. The CRT driver 2 sequentially displays the windows instructed to be displayed on the CRT.
1 (step 111). FIG. 10 is a display example when the iconized window b is selected and the stop is instructed, and the selected window b is normally displayed at the top, and the unselected iconized window a is displayed at the top. The icon display of windows b and a, which are normally displayed at lower levels and converted to icons, is deleted.

If the window redisplay means 14 determines that the instruction to stop the window selection is an instruction based on the fact that the iconized window has not been selected (see FIG. 11), the window displayed at the top of the screen is displayed. Is instructed to make the CRT driver 2 usable. C
The RT driver 2 makes the window displayed at the highest level usable (step 112). The window redisplay unit 14 instructs the CRT driver 2 to delete the display of the window iconified by the CRT driver 2. The CRT driver 2 deletes the icon displayed on the CRT 1 (Step 113). The window redisplay means 14 instructs the CRT driver 2 to return the iconified window to a normal window and to display the windows in order from the bottom of the currently displayed window in order according to the order set by the priority order setting means 13. I do. CR
The T driver 2 sequentially displays the displayed windows on the CRT 1
(Step 114).

FIG. 12 shows a display example in the case where an instruction to stop the window selection is issued when the window d is displayed at the top (FIG. 11). The windows b and a are normally displayed according to the priority order, and the icon display of the windows b and a, which have been turned into icons, is deleted.

According to this embodiment, in the window display switching system, when the windows with higher priorities are sequentially selected by display, the windows with lower priorities are displayed as icons, so that the user can select the windows. Reduce the number of windows displayed sequentially,
Since the user can directly select a low-priority window by displaying it as an icon, the display can be switched to a window that the user wants to use efficiently.

[0026]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A window display switching system that can significantly reduce the time required for displaying a required window at the top level and making it usable can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing one embodiment of a display switching system of a multi-window display device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for switching display of a window in the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a setting example of a priority order setting, an icon display number, a display time interval, and the like using a pull-down menu.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen when the number of displayed icons is set.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a state of a window before switching display of the window.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining window display switching (part 1).

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining window display switching (part 2).

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining window display switching (part 3).

FIG. 9 is an example of a screen when a window b iconified is selected and a stop instruction is issued.

FIG. 10 is an example of a display screen when an iconized window b is selected and stopped.

FIG. 11 is an example of a screen when a stop instruction is given without selecting an iconified window.

FIG. 12 is an example of a display screen when a stop instruction is issued without selecting an iconified window.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: CRT (multi-window display device), 2: CRT
Driver: 3: Keyboard, 4: Mouse, 5: Keyboard / Mouse Driver, 6: Disk Device, 7: Disk Device Driver, 8: Memory Device, 9: CPU (Central Processing Unit), 10: User Input Detection Means, 11 : Window icon display instruction means, 12: sequential display instruction means, 1
3: window priority setting means, 14: window redisplay means

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A method for switching the display of windows of a multi-window display device, comprising: a priority order for sequentially displaying the plurality of windows;
Setting the time interval of each display and the number of windows to be iconified among the plurality of windows; and instructing start of window selection, the set priority, time interval, and setting of the window to be iconified. On the basis of the number, a part of the plurality of windows is normally displayed, and the remaining icons are displayed as icons.The steps of sequentially displaying the normally displayed windows are sequentially changed in priority. Selecting one of the normally displayed window and the window displayed as an icon. 2. The window display according to claim 1, wherein the window selection stop instruction is performed by clicking a mouse, and the window to be selected is determined by a position on the screen to be clicked and a timing thereof. Switching method. 3. A display switching system for a multi-window display device, comprising: a user input detecting means for detecting an input from a user instructing start and stop of window selection; and setting a priority for sequentially displaying each window. Window priority setting means for setting a window to be displayed as an icon based on the priority, and a window for instructing the window to be iconified and displayed by the window priority setting means to be iconified and displayed Icon display instruction means; sequential display instruction means for instructing windows to be sequentially displayed at a predetermined time interval based on the priority order set by the window priority order setting means; In the instruction, the user selects the iconified window In the case, the window iconifying display instructing means returns the iconized window to the original window, displays the window at the top level, and instructs that the window can be used. Window redisplay means for instructing that if the user does not select the converted window, the window iconification display instructing means returns the iconified window to the original window and displays it at a position below the bottom. Window redisplay means for instructing that the window currently at the top is made available, and window redisplay means for instructing that the icon designated by the window iconification display instruction means to delete the display is provided. A window display switching system characterized by the following.