Managing Workspaces in a User Interface

• US 20120096396A1
• Filed: 10/19/2010
• Published: 04/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ording, Bas, Louch, John O.
• Granted Patent: US 9,658,732 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/799
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

Providing a bridge interface for managing virtual workspaces is disclosed. A plurality of workspace images is presented in a user interface, each workspace image corresponding to a different virtual workspace available to a user of a computer system. A plurality of application windows associated with one of the virtual workspaces is displayed. A user'"'"'s selection of at least one of the displayed application windows and dragging the selected application window in the user interface from a first location to a second location in the user interface is detected. A virtual workspace associated with the selected application window is changed based on the second location in the user interface.

Claims

1. A method performed by one or more processors executing on a computer system, the method comprising:

presenting a plurality of workspace images in a user interface, each workspace image corresponding to a different virtual workspace available to a user of the computer system;

displaying a plurality of application windows associated with one of the virtual workspaces;

detecting that the user has selected at least one of the displayed application windows and dragged the selected application window in the user interface from a first location to a second location in the user interface; and

changing a virtual workspace associated with the selected application window based on the second location in the user interface.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the second location in the user interface is a second workspace image different from the application window'"'"'s associated workspace image.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window is changed to a virtual workspace associated with the second workspace image.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the second location in the user interface is an area of the user interface between two workspace images.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising creating a new virtual workspace in response to dragging of the selected application window to the second location, the new virtual workspace including at least the selected application window.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window before the dragging of the selected application window to the second location is no longer associated with the selected application window.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window before the dragging of the selected application window to the second location is still associated with the selected application window.

8. A computer program product tangibly embodied in a computer-readable storage medium, the computer program product including instructions that, when executed, generate on a display device a graphical user interface for presenting virtual workspaces and perform the following operations:

present a plurality of workspace images in a user interface, each workspace image corresponding to a different virtual workspace available to a user of the computer system;

display a plurality of application windows associated with one of the virtual workspaces;

detect that the user has selected at least one of the displayed application windows and dragged the selected application window in the user interface from a first location to a second location in the user interface; and

change a virtual workspace associated with the selected application window based on the second location in the user interface.

9. The computer program product of claim 8 wherein the second location in the user interface is a second workspace image different from the application window'"'"'s associated workspace image.

10. The computer program product of claim 9 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window is changed to a virtual workspace associated with the second workspace image.

11. The computer program product of claim 8 wherein the second location in the user interface is an area of the user interface between two workspace images.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising creating a new virtual workspace in response to dragging of the selected application window to the second location, the new virtual workspace including at least the selected application window.

13. The computer program product of claim 12 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window before the dragging of the selected application window to the second location is no longer associated with the selected application window.

14. The computer program product of claim 12 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window before the dragging of the selected application window to the second location is still associated with the selected application window.

15. A system comprising:

a display device;

a computing device in communication with the display device, wherein the computing device is configured to perform at least the following;

present a plurality of workspace images in a user interface, each workspace image corresponding to a different virtual workspace available to a user of the computer system;

display a plurality of application windows associated with one of the virtual workspaces;

detect that the user has selected at least one of the displayed application windows and dragged the selected application window in the user interface from a first location to a second location in the user interface; and

change a virtual workspace associated with the selected application window based on the second location in the user interface.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the second location in the user interface is a second workspace image different from the application window'"'"'s associated workspace image.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window is changed to a virtual workspace associated with the second workspace image.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the second location in the user interface is an area of the user interface between two workspace images.

19. The system of claim 15, the computing device is further configured to create a new virtual workspace in response to dragging of the selected application window to the second location, the new virtual workspace including at least the selected application window.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the virtual workspace associated with the selected application window before the dragging of the selected application window to the second location is no longer associated with the selected application window.