HIGHLIGHTING ITEMS FOR SEARCH RESULTS
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Abstract
The present invention provides a search capability to allow a user to easily locate a preference control, file, folder, control, or other system resource or data item associated with a search result. In one embodiment, a user enters a search term (or a portion thereof) in a search field associated with one or more resource types that may be searched. The user may be presented with a pop-up menu containing a list of likely matches. The user selects the desired preference control from the pop-up menu, and the corresponding preference pane, or other container, containing the selected data item, control, or other resource is displayed. In one aspect, as the user enters the search term (or portion thereof), certain icons are highlighted. Specifically, those icons that represent containers containing matching data items (such as preference panes having controls that match the search term) are highlighted. Different types of highlighting can be used depending on the degree of certainty as to which container is likely to contain the correct match.
14 Citations
42 Claims
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1-20. -20. (canceled)
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21. A method for highlighting items corresponding to search results, comprising:
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receiving a first user input representing at least a portion of a search term; displaying a plurality of items in a user interface display; highlighting at least a subset of the plurality of items, wherein each highlighted item represents at least one item having metadata that at least partly matches the first user input; receiving a second user input representing an additional portion of the search term; and incrementally changing the displaying and highlighting of the plurality of items in response to the second user input, wherein each highlighted item represents at least one item having metadata that at least partially matches the first user input and the second input representing the additional portion of the search term. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 37, 38, 39)
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32. A method for highlighting items corresponding to search results, comprising:
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receiving a user input representing at least one keystroke, the user input representing an initial portion of a search term; generating, in response to receiving the user input, a first set of search results that include metadata that at least partially matches the initial portion of the search term; highlighting graphical representations of at least a portion of the first set of search results; receiving an additional user input comprising at least one keystroke, the user input representing an additional portion of the search term; updating, in response to receiving the user input, the first set of search results to generate a second set of search results, each search result in the second set of search results include metadata that at least partially matches the initial portion and additional user input; and updating the highlighting to include highlighting only graphical representations of at least a portion of the second set of search results.
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33. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed on a device, cause the device to:
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receive a first user input representing at least a portion of a search term;
displaying a plurality of items in a user interface display;highlight at least a subset of the plurality of items, wherein each highlighted item represents at least one item having metadata that at least partly matches the first user input; receive a second user input representing an additional portion of the search term; and incrementally change the display of items in response to the second user input to highlight at least one item having metadata that at least partially matches the first user input and the second input representing the additional portion of the search term. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 41)
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40. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of 37, further including instructions that, when executed on the device, cause the device to:
activate, in response to the user selecting one of the highlighted items, an operating system preference corresponding to the selected item.
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42. A system comprising:
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at least one processor; and a computer-readable medium storing one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes; receiving a user input representing at least one keystroke, the user input representing an initial portion of a search term; generating, in response to receiving the user input, a first set of search results that include metadata that at least partially matches the initial portion of the search term; highlighting graphical representations of at least a portion of the first set of search results; receiving an additional user input comprising at least one keystroke, the user input representing an additional portion of the search term; updating, in response to receiving the user input, the first set of search results to generate a second set of search results, each search result in the second set of search results include metadata that at least partially matches the initial portion and additional user input; and updating the highlighting to include highlighting only graphical representations of at least a portion of the second set of search results.
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Specification