METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REPRESENTING A TABLE WITH MULTIPLE FOCAL LEVELS
First Claim
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1. A method of displaying a data set organized as a table of cells, the method comprising the steps of:
- designating a first range of cells in the table as belonging to a primary focal region;
designating a second range of cells in the table as belonging to a secondary focal region;
designating the cells in the table not within the first or second range of cells as belonging to a background focal region;
displaying the cells in the primary focal region using a first representation of cell value;
displaying the cells in the secondary focal region using a second representation of cell value in which each cell value corresponds to a single graphical unit; and
displaying the cells in the background focal region using a third representation of cell value in which a plurality of cell values are represented with a single graphical unit.
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Abstract
A multi-level focus software visualization tool uses a focus+context visualization technique for displaying tables in which multiple table cells may be mapped to a single pixel or a single pixel row. Three or more focus levels may be used instead of the conventional two-focus levels. Accordingly, the whole table presented can be seen on the screen, thus minimizing the mechanical overhead of user navigation and allowing the user to quickly spot trends and outlining data.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A method of displaying a data set organized as a table of cells, the method comprising the steps of:
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designating a first range of cells in the table as belonging to a primary focal region;
designating a second range of cells in the table as belonging to a secondary focal region;
designating the cells in the table not within the first or second range of cells as belonging to a background focal region;
displaying the cells in the primary focal region using a first representation of cell value;
displaying the cells in the secondary focal region using a second representation of cell value in which each cell value corresponds to a single graphical unit; and
displaying the cells in the background focal region using a third representation of cell value in which a plurality of cell values are represented with a single graphical unit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method of displaying a data set organized as a table of cells, the method comprising the steps of:
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designating a range of cells in the table as belonging to a primary focal region;
designating cells not belonging to the primary focal region as belonging to one of a plurality of focal spans;
displaying the cells in the primary focal region using a first representation of cell value;
displaying each focal span using a graphical representation of cell value in which the display space allotted to each cell in each span is based on the total size of the span. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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10. A computer system comprising:
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a processor;
a display coupled to the processor;
a memory coupled to the processor, the memory including computer instructions and computer data, the computer data including a data set organized as a table of cells, the computer instructions when executed on the processor causing the processor to perform the functions of designating a first range of cells in the table as belonging to a primary focal region;
designating a second range of cells in the table as belonging to a secondary focal region;
designating the cells in the table not within the first or second range of cells as belonging to a background focal region;
displaying the cells in the primary focal region using a first representation of cell value;
displaying the cells in the secondary focal region using a second representation of cell value in which each cell value corresponds to a single graphical unit; and
displaying the cells in the background focal region using a third representation of cell value in which a plurality of cell values are represented with a single graphical unit. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17)
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14. A computer system comprising:
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a processor;
a display coupled to the processor;
a memory coupled to the processor, the memory including computer instructions and computer data, the computer data including a data set organized as a table of cells, the computer instructions when executed on the processor causing the processor to perform the functions of designating a range of cells in the table as belonging to a primary focal region;
designating cells not belonging to the primary focal region as belonging to one of a plurality of focal spans;
displaying the cells in the primary focal region using a first representation of cell value;
displaying each focal span using a graphical representation of cell value in which the display space allotted to each cell in each span is based on the total size of the span.
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Specification