Method and System for Efficiently Adjusting a Timeline in a Time Window

• US 20090177998A1
• Filed: 01/09/2008
• Published: 07/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Xu, Xi, McBride, Kevin M., Barrios, Daiv S., Novak, Matthew W.
• Granted Patent: US 8,601,388 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/799
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 Interaction with scrollbars

Abstract

A method of efficiently adjusting a timeline in a time window. An application program displays a window that includes a graphical user interface (GUI), at least a portion of time-based data, a timeline, and a slider bar. If a click and drag occurs while a cursor is over the slider bar, the application moves the slider bar and changes a position of data displayed in the window by an amount corresponding to the movement. The application increases the timeline scale if the slider bar reaches an edge of the timeline. If a click and drag occurs while the cursor is over a handle on an edge of the slider bar, the application resizes the slider bar and adjusts the timeline scale to correspond to the slider bar scale. If additional time-based data is available and is not displayed, the application displays an indicator on a corresponding edge of the timeline.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

displaying a time window in a graphical user interface (GUI), wherein said time window includes at least a portion of time-based data, and wherein said time window includes a timeline and a slider bar;

in response to a click and drag input while a cursor is located over said slider bar;

moving said slider bar along said timeline;

changing a position of said portion of time-based data displayed in said time window by an amount corresponding to a movement of said slider bar; and

increasing a scale of said timeline when said slider bar reaches an edge of said timeline;

in response to a click and drag input while said cursor is located over a handle on an edge of said slider bar;

resizing said slider bar; and

adjusting said scale of said time window to correspond to a scale of said slider bar; and

in response to a determination that additional time-based data is available from a data source and said additional time-based data is not displayed in said time window, displaying a graphical indicator on an edge of said timeline that corresponds to a chronological position of said additional data with respect to said time window.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said timeline further comprises:

a numerical scale label located in close proximity to said slider bar, wherein said numerical scale label corresponds to an amount of time represented by a length of said slider bar with respect to a length of said timeline;

a numerical start timestamp label located in close proximity to a left handle of said slider bar;

a numerical end timestamp label located in close proximity to a right handle of said slider bar; and

a numerical timeline end label located in close proximity to a right edge of said timeline.

3. A computer system comprising:

a processor unit;

a memory coupled to said processor unit; and

an application program within said memory, wherein said application program displays a graphical user interface (GUI), and wherein said application program performs the functions of;

displaying a time window that includes at least a portion of time-based data, wherein said time window includes a timeline and a slider bar;

in response to a click and drag input while a cursor is located over said slider bar;

moving said slider bar along said timeline;

changing a position of said portion of time-based data displayed in said time window by an amount corresponding to a movement of said slider bar; and

increasing a scale of said timeline when said slider bar reaches an edge of said timeline;

in response to a click and drag input while said cursor is located over a handle on an edge of said slider bar;

resizing said slider bar; and

adjusting said scale of said time window to correspond to a scale of said slider bar; and

in response to a determination that additional time-based data is available from a data source and said additional time-based data is not displayed in said time window, displaying a graphical indicator on an edge of said timeline that corresponds to a chronological position of said additional data with respect to said time window.

4. The computer system of claim 3, wherein said timeline further comprises:

a numerical scale label located in close proximity to said slider bar, wherein said numerical scale label corresponds to an amount of time represented by a length of said slider bar with respect to a length of said timeline;

a numerical start timestamp label located in close proximity to a left handle of said slider bar;

a numerical end timestamp label located in close proximity to a right handle of said slider bar; and

a numerical timeline end label located in close proximity to a right edge of said timeline.

5. A computer program product comprising:

a computer storage medium; and

program code on said computer storage medium that that when executed provides the functions of;

displaying a time window in a graphical user interface (GUI), wherein said time window includes at least a portion of time-based data, and wherein said time window includes a timeline and a slider bar;

in response to a click and drag input while a cursor is located over said slider bar;

moving said slider bar along said timeline;

changing a position of said portion of time-based data displayed in said time window by an amount corresponding to a movement of said slider bar; and

increasing a scale of said timeline when said slider bar reaches an edge of said timeline;

in response to a click and drag input while said cursor is located over a handle on an edge of said slider bar;

resizing said slider bar; and

adjusting said scale of said time window to correspond to a scale of said slider bar; and

in response to a determination that additional time-based data is available from a data source and said additional time-based data is not displayed in said time window, displaying a graphical indicator on an edge of said timeline that corresponds to a chronological position of said additional data with respect to said time window.

6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein said code for said timeline further comprises code for:

a numerical scale label located in close proximity to said slider bar, wherein said numerical scale label corresponds to an amount of time represented by a length of said slider bar with respect to a length of said timeline;

a numerical start timestamp label located in close proximity to a left handle of said slider bar;

a numerical end timestamp label located in close proximity to a right handle of said slider bar; and

a numerical timeline end label located in close proximity to a right edge of said timeline.