User Interface Having a Search Preview

• US 20070220447A1
• Filed: 03/15/2006
• Published: 09/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Ray, Ethan
• Granted Patent: US 7,752,237 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/822
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation

Abstract

A user interface having a search preview is described. In an implementation, one or more characters are received that are input via a search portion of a user interface. When a cursor is positioned proximally to one of a plurality of services in the user interface after the one or more characters are received, a preview is displayed of a search performed using the received one or more characters with the selected said service.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving one or more characters input via a search portion of a user interface; and

when a cursor is positioned proximally to one of a plurality of services in the user interface after the one or more characters are received, displaying a preview of a search performed using the received one or more characters with the one said service.

2. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the preview is an overly that is provided without reentering the one or more characters by a user in the search portion.

3. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the plurality of services that are output in the user interface is based on determined relevancy of the services to the one or more characters received via the search portion.

4. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the services are selected from a group consisting of:

email service;

instant messaging service;

Internet search service;

image search service;

web log service;

ecommerce service; and

news service.

5. A method as described in claim 1, further comprising displaying the plurality of services in the user interface in response to receipt of an initial said character via the search portion.

6. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the plurality of services is displayed as an overlay.

7. A method comprising:

outputting a user interface having a search portion and data for display; and

when one or more characters are received via the search portion, displaying a list of items having the one or more characters, wherein;

the list of items overlays at least a portion of the data; and

the displayed list is refined as each character is entered via the search portion.

8. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the list of items is not displayed until an initial said character is received.

9. A method as described in claim 7, further comprising when the one or more characters are received via the search portion, displaying a list of services that are available via a service provider in the user interface.

10. A method as described in claim 9, wherein the displaying is performed based on determined relevancy of the services to the one or more characters received via the search portion.

11. A method as described in claim 7, further comprising when an input is received selecting one of a plurality of services in the user interface after the one or more characters are received, searching the selected said service using the received one or more characters.

12. A method as described in claim 11, wherein the searching is performed without reentering the one or more characters by a user in the search portion after the input is received.

13. A method as described in claim 7, wherein:

each said item includes one or more search term suggestions based on the one or more characters; and

the one or more search term suggestions are selectable to cause an Internet search to be performed.

14. A method as described in claim 13, wherein at least one said search term suggestion is not a search query input by a user that was stored previous to the one or more characters by a client device that performs the outputting and the displaying.

15. A method as described in claim 13, wherein:

the search term suggestions do not include Uniform Resource Locators (URLs); and

the Internet search performed using the one or more search term suggestions produces a search result having URLs.

16. One or more computer-readable media comprising computer executable instruction that, when executed, direct a computer to output a user interface that includes:

a search portion configured to accept one or more characters; and

representations of a plurality of services available from a service provider over a network, wherein each said representation is configured to display a preview of a search performed using the one or more characters by a respective said service when a cursor is positioned proximally to the representation.

17. One or more computer-readable media as described in claim 16, wherein:

the representations are output with the search portion when the user interface displays data from each said service; and

the search portion is output in conjunction with each said service.

18. One or more computer-readable media as described in claim 16, wherein the computer executable instructions further configure the user interface to output one or more search term suggestions based on the one or more characters when the search portion is displayed in conjunction with a particular said service that is configured as an Internet search service.

19. One or more computer-readable media as described in claim 18, wherein the one or more search term suggestions are selectable to cause an Internet search to be preformed.

20. One or more computer-readable media as described in claim 16, wherein the representations are displayable within a bar in the user interface and the search portion is displayable proximally to the bar.