CROSS WINDOW ANIMATION

• US 20130120444A1
• Filed: 11/14/2011
• Published: 05/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Allyn, Barry Christopher, Adams, Tyler Robert
• Granted Patent: US 9,135,022 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/629
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/00 Animation

Abstract

Animations may cross different windows. These cross window animations may include interwindow animations and/or window transition animations. Interwindow animations are used to animate elements across windows. Window transitions are used to animate moving/resizing/showing/hiding windows simultaneously. To perform these animations, an overlay window covers the animation area that includes at least a portion of two different windows. Layers may be used to represent images or visual elements that can be moved as part of an animation. These layers may be placed in the animation overlay window to move visual elements across the underlying windows. Supported underlying windows are directed to draw content directly to the overlay window during the animation. A picture of the underlying window is drawn to the animation overlay window when the underlying window is not-supported such that the underlying window is included within the animation. When the animation is complete, the animation overlay window is removed.

Claims

1. A method for cross window animation, comprising:

determining an animation area that covers a portion of different windows;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portion of the different windows;

performing an animation using the overlay window;

displaying the animation in the overlay window such that the animation appears to cross the different windows that are under the display of the overlay window; and

removing the overlay window when the animation is complete.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the animation is at least one of:

an interwindow animation that animates a visual element over the different windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the different windows and moving at least one of the different windows.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising changing a parent of layers of the different windows to the overlay window.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising changing the parent of layers back from the overlay window to the different windows after the animation is complete.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising registering the different windows that are affected by the animation such that content from the registered windows is rendered to the overlay window during the animation.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving hints that specify information about the different windows that are affected in the windows transition animation that comprises an initial window location, an initial window size, a final window location, a final window size, an initial window visibility, a final window visibility and a clipping region in the overlay window.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the hints further comprise at least one of:

a hint that specifies that the windows contents are a solid color, a hint that specifies that a window'"'"'s contents will not change between initial and final states, a hint that specifies that a window is a control, a hint that the window will not be seen, and a resize hint that adds extra area to the overlay region.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising blocking a user interface thread until at least one of:

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising adding a layer to the overlay window to move an element in the interwindow animation.

10. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for cross window animation, comprising:

determining an animation area that covers a portion of different windows;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portion of the different windows;

performing an animation using the overlay window, wherein the animation is at least one of;

an interwindow animation that animates a visual element over the different windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the different windows and moving at least one of the different windows; and

displaying the animation in the overlay window such that the animation appears to cross the different windows that are under the display of the overlay window.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising

removing the overlay window when the animation is complete.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising changing a parent of layers of the different windows to the overlay window before performing the animation and changing the parent of layers back from the overlay window to the different windows after the animation is complete.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising registering a window before performing the animation that is affected by the animation such that content from the registered windows is rendered to the overlay window during the animation and not rendering content from windows to the overlay window that are not registered.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising receiving hints that specify information about the different windows that are affected in the windows transition animation that comprise two or more of:

an initial window location, an initial window size, a final window location, a final window size, a window initial visibility, a window final visibility and a clipping region in the overlay window, a hint that specifies that the windows contents are a solid color, a hint that specifies that a window'"'"'s contents will not change between initial and final states, a hint that specifies that a window is a control, a hint that the window will not be seen, and a resize hint that adds extra area to the overlay region.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising blocking a user interface thread until at least one of:

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, further comprising adding a layer to the overlay window to move an element in the interwindow animation.

17. A system for cross window animation, comprising:

a display;

a network connection that is coupled to tenants of the multi-tenant service;

a processor and a computer-readable medium;

an operating environment stored on the computer-readable medium and executing on the processor; and

a process operating under the control of the operating environment and operative to perform actions, comprising;

determining an animation area that covers a portion of different windows;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portion of the different windows;

performing an animation using the overlay window, wherein the animation is at least one of;

an interwindow animation that animates a visual element over the different windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the different windows and moving at least one of the different windows; and

displaying the animation in the overlay window such that the animation appears to cross the different windows that are under the display of the overlay window.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising

removing the overlay window when the animation is complete.

19. The system of claim 17, further comprising changing a parent of layers of the different windows to the overlay window before performing the animation and changing the parent of layers back from the overlay window to the different windows after the animation is complete.

20. The system of claim 17, further comprising blocking a user interface thread until at least one of:

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.