Getting started experience

• US 20070106951A1
• Filed: 11/07/2005
• Published: 05/10/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Bryant, Christopher, McCormack, Michael, Covington, Clinton, Hough, Daniel, Fordham, George, McPherson, Jonathan, Gardner, Scott
• Granted Patent: US 7,484,180 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/186 Templates

Abstract

A one-screen entry point to a document management program (“program”) is provided to allow a user to browse templates associated with the program. The templates can be local templates and/or online templates provided by one or more Web services. The one-screen entry point allows a user to search, browse, or download online templates, and/or create documents using the templates. Each template is identified with a template category and displayed together with templates identified with the same template category. Local templates are presented along with online templates if the local templates and the online templates are identified with the same online template category. A user or an administrator of the program can create and/or customize local templates and local template categories. A blank template is provided so a user can create custom documents for the program.

Claims

1. In a computer system including a display and a user-interface selection device, a method for creating a getting started experience user interface of a document management program (“

program”

), comprising;

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a first user interface element (“

navigation pane”

) for navigating templates of the program,

wherein the templates include online templates supplied by at least one Web service if the program is connected to the Web service as well as local templates existing on the computer system,

wherein each of the templates is identified with a template category,

wherein the navigation pane displays an online templates section hosting at least one online template category if the program is connected to the Web service and a local templates section hosting at least one local template category that exists only on the computer system, and

wherein one of the local templates is displayed in an online template category if the local template is identified with the online template category.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a first button (“

Back button”

), the actuation of which returns the getting started user interface to a previous navigation sequence;

a second button (“

Create button”

), the actuation of which creates a document using a selected local template; and

a third button (“

Download button”

), the actuation of which downloads a selected online template to the computer system and creates a document using the downloaded online template.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a second user interface element (“

browse pane”

), which displays each of the templates identified with a template category, upon receiving a signal indicating that the template category is selected in the navigation pane by the user-interface selection device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the navigation pane further displays a featured templates section, the selection of which causes the browse pane to display featured local templates as well as featured online templates if the program is connected with the Web service.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the browse pane displays additional information provided by the Web service.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the browse pane further displays a blank template that can be used to create a custom document for the program.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating that one of the templates displayed in the browse pane is selected by the user-interface selection device, displaying on the display;

a third user interface element (“

preview panel”

) for presenting preview information about the template.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the preview information includes any item selected from the group consisting of:

name of the template, description of the template, location of the template, rating of the template if the template is an online template, size of the template, time needed to download the template if the template is an online template, file name of the template, file location of the template, and document sharing settings.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the document sharing settings allow a user to configure whether to create a document using the template on a knowledge management system that allows the document to be shared.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a fourth user interface element (“

MRU list”

) displaying links to documents that have been recently used.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the MRU list presents a warning message if file size of one of the documents is approaching a maximum limit.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the warning message is to highlight the link to the document in an alerting color.

13. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a fourth button (“

Cancel button”

), the actuation of which cancels any input by a user.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein whether the program is connected to the Web service is configurable using the user-interface selection device.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

upon receiving a signal indicating booting of the program, presenting on the display;

a fifth user interface element (“

search control”

) that allows a user to search the online templates for the program.

16. A computer-implemented method for categorizing a template for a document management program (“

program”

), wherein the template (“

local template”

) exists on a computer system hosting the program, wherein the program receives at least one template (“

online template”

) from a Web service, wherein each template is identified with a template category, and wherein the template category for an online template is an online template category, comprising;

identifying the template category for the local template;

determining if the template category for the local template is an online template category; and

if the template category for the local template is an online template category, displaying the local template in association of the online template category.