Displaying a plurality of calendar entries

• US 10,282,706 B2
• Filed: 02/05/2016
• Issued: 05/07/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Lance, John M., Maher, Deborah E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kawsar, Abdullah Al
• Assistant Examiner(s): Duckworth, Jianmei F
• Application Number:
  US15/017,082
• Publication Number:
  US 20160155095A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,187 Days
• Field of Search: 715764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1095 Meeting or appointment

Abstract

Displaying multiple calendar entries includes dividing the calendar entries into multiple different priority levels in a computerized calendaring system implemented by at least one processor; displaying at least some of the calendar entries in each priority level in a separate strip associated with that priority level in a user interface of the computerized calendaring system; and advancing a position of each displayed calendar entry in each strip with the computerized calendaring system to reflect the passage of time.

Claims

1. A method of displaying a plurality of calendar entries, comprising:

dividing said calendar entries into a plurality of different priority levels in a computerized calendaring system implemented by at least one processor, wherein said calendar entries include both events scheduled on a calendar for a specific time and tasks to be performed with or without an associated deadline, and wherein both calendar entries associated with a specific timing and those with no deadline are sorted according to relative priority into the same plurality of different priority levels;

displaying at least some of the calendar entries of each said priority level in a separate strip associated with that priority level in a user interface of said computerized calendaring system, wherein each separate strip associated with a corresponding priority level is divided into two sections, a first section for calendar entries of the corresponding priority level associated with a deadline and a second section for calendar entries of the corresponding priority level without an associated deadline;

as time passes, automatically advancing a position of each displayed calendar entry in each said strip with said computerized calendaring system to reflect the passage of time;

displaying a persistent indication of unscheduled time in an additional separate strip of said user interface, the additional separate strip extending lengthwise perpendicular to vertical columns, wherein each vertical column of the vertical columns comprises a prioritized and chronologically ordered calendar entry group; and

prompting a user for a new date or time for a calendar entry that has been dragged from an existing location and dropped at another location.

2. The method of claim 1, in which automatically advancing said position of each displayed calendar entry in each strip to reflect the passage of time comprises:

moving a first of said calendar entries out of a field of view of said strip corresponding to said priority level of said first of said calendar entries in response to a scheduled time of said first of said calendar entries occurring in the past.

3. The method of claim 2, in which automatically advancing said position of each displayed calendar entry in each strip to reflect the passage of time comprises:

moving a second of said calendar entries having a next occurring date or time and having said priority level of said first of said calendar entries to a top of said strip corresponding to said priority level of said first of said calendar entries in response to said first of said calendar entries being moved out of said field of view.

4. The method of claim 1, in which advancing said position of each displayed calendar entry in each strip to reflect the passage of time comprises:

advancing said calendar entries displayed in each said strip based on the passage of time and the specific timing associated with calendar entries in that strip, wherein said advancing said calendar entries displayed in each strip occurs independently of calendar entry advancement based on the specific time associated with calendar entries within any other said strip.

5. The method of claim 1, in which displaying at least some of the calendar entries in each said priority level in a separate strip of said user interface comprises:

for at least one of said displayed calendar entries, displaying a shortcut to a file separate from and related to said at least one of said displayed calendar entries.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising, after a user has scrolled through calendar entries in any of said strips corresponding to priority level, automatically adjusting display of that strip such that a next scheduled calendar entry is positioned at a top of that strip in said user interface.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying in said user interface, for each said priority level, a separate strip comprising calendar entries of that priority level which have no scheduled deadline.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising rescheduling an existing calendar entry by dragging that entry from an existing location and dropping that entry at another location within a list of chronologically arranged calendar entries.

9. The method of claim 1, in which said calendar entries are divided into said plurality of different priority levels automatically based on at least one predefined rule, wherein said at least one predefined rule for automatically dividing said calendar entries into said plurality of different priority levels comprises any of attendance at an event represented by that calendar entry, a role of a user of the calendaring system in an event represented by that calendar entry, an identity of another person or entity organizing or directing an event represented by that calendar entry and a degree to which that calendar event conflicts with other calendar entries.

10. The method of claim 1, in which said calendar entries are divided into said plurality of different priority levels automatically based on at least one predefined rule.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising allowing a user to filter said calendar entries based on at least one parameter selected by said user.

12. A method of displaying a plurality of calendar entries for a user who must manage calendar entries that include both scheduled events and tasks, where tasks are both with and without an associated deadline, the method comprising:

in a user interface of a computerized calendaring system implemented by at least one processor, dividing said calendar entries into a plurality of different priority levels, wherein said calendar entries include both events scheduled on a calendar for a specific time and tasks to be performed that are with or without an associated deadline, and wherein both calendar entries associated with a specific timing and those with no deadline are sorted according to relative priority into the same plurality of different priority levels so that at least one of the priority levels includes both a calendar entry with an associated deadline and a calendar entry without an associated deadline;

providing a user with a priority-based management tool of the user interface to handle calendar entries both with and without an associated deadline by displaying at least some of the calendar entries of each said priority level in a separate strip associated with that priority level in a user interface of said computerized calendaring system, wherein each separate strip associated with a corresponding priority level is divided into two sections, a first section for calendar entries of the corresponding priority level associated with a deadline and a second section for calendar entries of the corresponding priority level without an associated deadline; and

,

providing the user with a dynamic time-based management tool of the user interface by, as time passes, automatically advancing a position of each displayed calendar entry in each said strip with said computerized calendaring system to reflect the passage of time;

displaying a persistent indication of unscheduled time in an additional separate strip of said user interface, the additional separate strip extending lengthwise perpendicular to vertical columns, wherein each vertical column of the vertical columns comprises a prioritized and chronologically ordered calendar entry group, and

prompting a user for a new date or time for a calendar entry that has been dragged from an existing location and dropped at another location.

13. A computerized calendar system, comprising:

a processor communicatively coupled to a memory, said memory comprising executable code stored thereon that, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to display a plurality of calendar entries each comprising a calendared event, wherein calendared events include both events scheduled on a calendar for a specific time and tasks to be performed with or without an associated deadline, the processor to;

divide said calendared events into a plurality of groups in a computerized calendaring system implemented by at least one processor, each said group being associated with a different priority level;

for each group, display a portion of the calendared events of that group in a separate strip of a user interface of said computerized calendaring system according to a chronological order, such that the displayed portions of the calendared events for the groups appear in separate vertical columns adjacent each other;

display a persistent indication of unscheduled time in an additional separate strip of said user interface, the additional separate strip extending lengthwise perpendicular to the vertical columns; and

control said user interface of said computerized calendaring system to cause each said strip to independently scroll through a display of the calendared events of said group associated with said strip according to both user input and the passage of time comprising;

moving a first of said calendar entries out of a field of view of said strip corresponding to said priority level of said first of said calendar entries in response to a scheduled time of said first of said calendar entries occurring in the past,

moving a second of said calendar entries having a next occurring date or time and having said priority level of said first of said calendar entries to a top of said strip corresponding to said priority level of said first of said calendar entries in response to said first of said calendar entries being moved out of said field of view wherein movement of calendar entries in any strip is independent of movement of calendar entries in any other strip; and

prompt a user for a new data or time for a calendar entry that has been dragged from an existing location and dropped at another location.