METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING RELEVANT TIPS TO A USER OF AN APPLICATION PROGRAM
First Claim
1. A method for automatically indicating a tip for a condition detected in an application program, using a computer, comprising:
- (a) detecting an occurrence of the condition in the application program;
(b) determining that the condition is associated with the tip;
(c) determining that the tip is relevant to the current usage of the application program; and
(d) displaying the relevant tip that is associated with the condition, so that the condition may be acknowledged.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention is a facility for a presentation program that provides unobtrusive, context-sensitive and customizable tips for a user of the program. Event and state are two types of tip conditions that will cause the facility to display a tip icon and/or a tip message window. Events are created by an action or series of actions. State conditions may be related to the state of the program and they are usually detected when the user has not used the application for a predetermined period of time. Only one tip icon is displayed to the user at a time and the tip icon is usually disposed adjacent to the object that triggered the tip condition. Generally, a tip message window (tip balloon) is only displayed if the user has selected the tip icon for the tip condition. However, if the tip condition has a high priority value, then the tip message window may be immediately displayed without the tip icon. The display of the tips and the detection of tip conditions may be customized based on a user profile that may include the user'"'"'s proficiency, previous use of the present invention, and the use of several different application programs.
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Citations
42 Claims
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1. A method for automatically indicating a tip for a condition detected in an application program, using a computer, comprising:
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(a) detecting an occurrence of the condition in the application program;
(b) determining that the condition is associated with the tip;
(c) determining that the tip is relevant to the current usage of the application program; and
(d) displaying the relevant tip that is associated with the condition, so that the condition may be acknowledged. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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42. A system for automatically indicating a tip for a condition detected in an application program, comprising:
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(a) a display for displaying the tip;
(b) a processor for implementing the logical instructions, including;
(i) detecting an occurrence of the condition in the application program;
(ii) determining that the condition is associated with the tip;
(iii) determining that the tip is relevant to the current usage of the application program; and
(iv) displaying the relevant tip that is associated with the condition, so that the condition may be acknowledged.
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Specification