Affinity group window management system and method
First Claim
1. A method of associating windows in a GUI environment into one or more affinity groups by a user and accessing the windows as a group, comprising:
- providing a GUI environment including a plurality of windows;
establishing, by a user, a first affinity group comprising a subset of two or more but less than all of said plurality of windows in said GUI environment, such that the windows comprising said first affinity group are related; and
raising the z-order of windows in said first affinity group above other windows in said GUI environment when any one window in said first affinity group is selected.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Windows in a GUI environment may be grouped by a user into one or more affinity groups. When one of the windows in the affinity group receives window focus, all of the windows in the affinity group shift to a z-order level above windows not in the affinity group. The windows may simultaneously shift to the highest z-order level, and optionally tile, or the selected window may shift to the highest z-order level, with other windows of the affinity group in z-order levels directly below the highest level. Affinity groups may be formed by the user by dragging and dropping windows into a window group icon on a group member window or by entering window group keystroke combinations into the windows to be grouped.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A method of associating windows in a GUI environment into one or more affinity groups by a user and accessing the windows as a group, comprising:
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providing a GUI environment including a plurality of windows;
establishing, by a user, a first affinity group comprising a subset of two or more but less than all of said plurality of windows in said GUI environment, such that the windows comprising said first affinity group are related; and
raising the z-order of windows in said first affinity group above other windows in said GUI environment when any one window in said first affinity group is selected. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of switching between two or more groups of windows in a GUI environment, comprising:
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providing a GUI environment including a plurality of windows, said windows divided into at least first and second affinity groups, each said affinity group comprising two or more but less than all of said plurality of windows;
raising the windows of said first affinity group to a z-order level above the windows of said second affinity group in said GUI environment in response to the user selecting a window in said first affinity group; and
raising the windows of the second affinity group to a z-order level above the windows of said first affinity group in said GUI environment in response to the user selecting a window in said second affinity group. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A computer system, comprising:
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a display device;
at least one input device; and
a processor programmed to display a GUI environment including a plurality of windows and a plurality of z-order levels on said display device, said GUI environment operative to allow a user to form affinity groups of said windows via said input device and to select one said window to receive a GUI environment window focus, such that when a window in an affinity group receives said window focus, all windows within said affinity group rise to one or more z-order levels higher than all windows not within said affinity group. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A computer readable medium which stores computer-executable process steps for a GUI environment including a plurality of windows and a plurality of z-order levels, said computer-executable process steps causing a computer to perform the steps of:
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displaying said GUI environment on a display device;
accepting, from a user, designation of a first affinity group comprising a subset of two or more but less than all of said plurality of windows in said GUI environment, such that the windows comprising said first affinity group are related; and
raising the z-order of windows in said first affinity group above other windows in said GUI environment when any one window in said first affinity group is selected. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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Specification