INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, METHOD OF CONTROLLING DISPLAY AND STORAGE MEDIUM

• US 20130145321A1
• Filed: 08/01/2012
• Published: 06/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: HORIUCHI, Kensuke, OGURA, Makito, NAITO, Kenichi
• Application Number:
  US13/564,620
• Publication Number:
  US 20130145321A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/830
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

According to one embodiment, an information processing apparatus includes a first controller and a second controller. The first controller updates a display state of a list of images to collect a plurality of images of the contents including an identical attribute into a group image if a first operation is accepted. The second controller updates the display state of the list of images to unfold the plurality of images of the contents collected into the group image if a second operation is accepted.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a display configured to display a list of images representing contents; and

an input module configured to accept an operation for a display area where the display displays the list of images,

wherein the display comprises;

a first controller configured to update a display state of the list of images to collect a plurality of images of the contents comprising an identical attribute into a group image if the input module accepts a first operation for positions on the display area where images of contents comprising the identical attribute are displayed side-by-side, the group image allowing a user to identify that the contents comprising the identical attribute are grouped; and

a second controller configured to update the display state of the list of images to unfold the plurality of images of the contents collected into the group image and comprising the identical attribute if the input module accepts a second operation for a position on the display area where the group image is displayed.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first controller is configured to decide a display position of the group image on the display area by evaluating the display state of the list of images after the plurality of images of the contents comprising the identical attribute are collected into the group image.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein:

the list of images is scrollable in an arrangement direction of the images so that a first number of images are displayed on the display area; and

the first controller is configured to decide the display position of the group image so as not to form blank space at a first end portion on the display area in a state where an image is scrolled from a second end side of the display area.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the first controller is configured to decide the display position of the group image so as not to form blank space between a start image and a second end of the display area or between a last image and a first end of the display area.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the first controller is configured to decide the display position of the group image so as not to form blank space between the start image and the second end of the display area when a number of images after the plurality of images of the contents collected into the group image and comprising the identical attribute is less than the number of images that are allowed to be displayed on the display area.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the contents comprise e-books; and

the first controller and the second controller are configured to determine that e-books comprising identical title information in metadata of the e-books are the contents comprising the identical attribute.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the group image comprises an image representing a state where the e-books comprising the identical title information are folded in an order of dates of issue to display an e-book comprising a latest date of issue information in the metadata or an e-book comprising an oldest date of issue information at a top position, a cover of the e-book comprising the latest date of issue information or the e-book comprising the oldest date of issue information displayed.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the group image is selected from an image representing a folded state in descending order of date of issue information and an image representing a folded state in ascending order of date of issue information based on an order of arrangement when the e-books comprising the identical title information are unfolded and displayed in a list.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display further comprises a resume module configured to display the list of images so that an image of a content most recently used during a previous active period is displayed at a first position on the display area at a power ON timing.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the input module comprises a touch panel on a display surface of a display device;

the first operation comprises a pinch-in operation for bringing two contact points closer to each other on the touch panel; and

the second operation comprises a pinch-out operation for separating two contact points away from each other on the touch panel.

11. A method of controlling display for an information processing apparatus, the method comprising:

displaying a list of images representing contents;

accepting an operation for a display area where the list of images is displayed;

updating a display state of the list of images to collect a plurality of images of the contents comprising an identical attribute into a group image when a first operation for positions on the display area where images of contents comprising the identical attribute are displayed side-by-side is accepted, the group image allowing a user to identify that the contents comprising the identical attribute are grouped; and

updating the display state of the list of images to unfold the plurality of images of the contents collected into the group image and comprising the identical attribute if a second operation for a position on the display area where the group image is displayed is accepted.

12. A computer-readable, non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon a computer program executable by a computer, the computer program controlling the computer to function as:

a display configured to display a list of images representing contents; and

an input module configured to accept an operation for a display area where the display displays the list of images,

wherein the display comprises;

a first controller configured to update a display state of the list of images to collect a plurality of images of the contents comprising an identical attribute into a group image when the input module accepts a first operation for positions on the display area where images of contents comprising the identical attribute are displayed side-by-side, the group image allowing a user to identify that the contents comprising the identical attribute are grouped; and

a second controller configured to update the display state of the list of images to unfold the plurality of images of the contents collected into the group image and comprising the identical attribute if the input module accepts a second operation for a position on the display area where the group image is displayed.