Program Object Properties Defined By Object Space

• US 20110126140A1
• Filed: 08/09/2008
• Published: 05/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Danilov, Oleg Vladimirovich
• Granted Patent: US 8,918,732 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/767
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

A user-interface program includes a space that defines adoptable properties as a function of position in said logical space. Chameleon program objects adopt those properties as a function of their positions in the space. The chameleon objects on a display have appearances that correspond to their adopted properties.

Claims

1. A user-interface product comprising computer-readable storage media encoded with a program of computer-executable instructions, said program including:

an object space of positions, said space defining adoptable properties as a function of said positions; and

chameleon objects including object-specific properties and adopted properties, each of said objects having a respective position in said space, said adopted properties being determined at least in part by said adoptable properties and the respective positions of said objects.

2. A product as recited in claim 1 wherein said adopted properties are determined directly as a function of position in said space.

3. A product as recited in claim 1 wherein said adopted properties are determined as a function of properties of said space at a position of said object in said space.

4. A product as recited in claim 2 wherein said functions are defined by key-frame values associated with a subset of the positions in said space, said functions being evaluated at other positions by interpolation.

5. A product as recited in claim 1 further comprising a second object space, said program providing for switching between said first and said spaces as the active space, said second space having adoptable properties that are characterized by different functions of position than are the adoptable properties of said first logical space.

6. A method comprising:

causing a program object to move from a first position to a second position in an object space; and

changing values of adopted properties of said program object as a function of adoptable properties associated with said space, said adoptable properties being an indirect or direct function of said position.

7. A method as recited in claim 6 further comprising changing said adoptable properties by modifying or replacing said object space.

8. A method as recited in claim 6 wherein at least one of said adopted properties dominates or modifies an object-specific or inherited property of said object.

9. A method as recited in claim 6 wherein said adoptable properties are evaluated as a function of position in said space.

10. A method as recited in claim 6 wherein said adoptable properties are evaluated as a function of presentation space properties that are a function of position in said object space.