Methods and apparatus for visual application design
First Claim
1. A computer system comprising:
- a display component operable to display a visual application design;
a first visual programming component with an exposed first programming attribute;
a second visual programming component with an exposed second programming attribute; and
a wiring component operable to automatically generate a first visual connector between first visual programming component and said second visual programming component based on one or more relationships between said first visual programming component and said second visual programming component.
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Abstract
A preferred embodiment comprises a visual language configured to utilize the infrastructure of a mainstream platform and take advantage of economic effects associated with a large network of users and component providers. In various aspects, systems and methods of the present invention enable translation of the primitives of a modem object-oriented language into a visual form and provide component composition facilities through a graphic interface. A preferred language is based on Microsoft'"'"'s .NET platform, permits dataflow and event connections between .NET objects, and enables integration of a variety of disparate components such as query systems, browsers, and web services. Various aspects include the use of reflection to discover and expose object members, the use of the .NET type system to constrain and guide users'"'"' choices, and propagation algorithms that use heuristics to make the system conform to users'"'"' expectations.
144 Citations
55 Claims
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1. A computer system comprising:
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a display component operable to display a visual application design;
a first visual programming component with an exposed first programming attribute;
a second visual programming component with an exposed second programming attribute; and
a wiring component operable to automatically generate a first visual connector between first visual programming component and said second visual programming component based on one or more relationships between said first visual programming component and said second visual programming component. - 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)
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38. A system for modifying a visual application design comprising:
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a first visual programming component with an exposed first programming element, wherein said first visual programming component corresponds to a member of a first class;
a second visual programming component linked to said first visual programming component, wherein said second visual programming component corresponds to a member of a second class related to said first class;
a modifying component operable to modify said first visual programming component in response to data indicating that said second visual programming component has been modified. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44)
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45. A system for displaying database queries and results comprising:
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a display component operable to display a search history tree comprising one or more nodes and one or more arrows; and
a query component operable to add a first arrow pointing to a first node to said search history tree, said first arrow representing a first search query and said first node representing results of said first search query, wherein said first arrow and said first node are added to said search history tree in response to data indicating that a user has dragged a search element onto a second node representing results of a second search query, and wherein said results of said first search query are based in part on (a) said search element and (b) said results of said second search query. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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53. A computer system comprising:
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means for displaying a visual application design;
means for displaying a first visual programming component with an exposed first programming attribute;
means for displaying a second visual programming component with an exposed second programming attribute; and
means for automatically generating a first visual connector between first visual programming component and said second visual programming component based on one or more relationships between said first visual programming component and said second visual programming component.
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54. A computer system for modifying a visual application design comprising:
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means for displaying a first visual programming component with an exposed first programming element, wherein said first visual programming component corresponds to a member of a first class;
means for displaying a second visual programming component linked to said first visual programming component, wherein said second visual programming component corresponds to a member of a second class related to said first class;
means for modifying said first visual programming component in response to data indicating that said second visual programming component has been modified.
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55. A computer system for displaying database queries and results comprising:
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means for displaying a search history tree comprising one or more nodes and one or more arrows; and
means for adding a first arrow pointing to a first node to said search history tree, said first arrow representing a first search query and said first node representing results of said first search query, wherein said first arrow and said first node are added to said search history tree in response to data indicating that a user has dragged a search element onto a second node representing results of a second search query, and wherein said results of said first search query are based in part on said search element and said results of said second search query.
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Specification