GROUP SELECTION INITIATED FROM A SINGLE ITEM

• US 20150339003A1
• Filed: 05/23/2014
• Published: 11/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Rampson, Benjamin Edward
• Granted Patent: US 10,409,453 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

A user interacts with a predefined portion of a given data item in a set of structured data. All other items in the set of structured data, that have the same value as the given data item, in a corresponding portion, are selected and treated as a group.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving a user interaction input interacting with a first portion of a given data item in a displayed set of data items, the given data item having a plurality of different portions and the first portion of the given data item having a value;

in response to the user interaction input, identifying all data items in the displayed set of data items that have a given portion corresponding to the first portion of the given data item, wherein a value in the given portion is a same value as the value in the first portion of the given data item; and

selecting the identified data items as a group, along with the given data item.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein receiving a user interaction input comprises:

receiving a user selection input selecting the first portion of the given data item.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 and, prior to receiving the user interaction input, further comprising,

displaying the set of data items in a data structure comprising one of a list, a table, a hierarchical structure or a set.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein receiving a user interaction input comprises:

receiving a user action input performing an action on the first portion of the given data item.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4 and further comprising:

performing the action on the group of identified data items based on the user action input.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 wherein receiving a user action input comprises receiving a move input visually moving the given data item on a display screen and wherein performing the action, comprises:

visually moving the group of data items in response to the move input.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 wherein receiving a user action input comprises receiving a user input dragging the given data item onto a predefined visualization and wherein performing the action comprises:

displaying all of the data items in the group according to the predefined visualization.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7 wherein the predefined visualization comprises a details display that displays detailed information for each data item in the group and wherein performing the action comprises:

displaying the details display for each of the data items in the group

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 7 wherein the predefined visualization comprises a pivot table display that displays summary information for each data item in the group and wherein performing the action comprises:

displaying the pivot table display summarizing the data items in the group.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 7 wherein the predefined visualization comprises a chart display that displays information for each data item in the group and wherein performing the action comprises:

displaying the chart view charting the information for the data items in the group.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 and further comprising:

prior to identifying all of the data items, determining whether group select behavior is assigned to the first data portion of the given data item;

if so, performing the identifying step; and

if not, processing only the given data item based on the user interaction input.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11 the data items are tokenized to combine portions so the first portion of the given data item comprises a combination of two or more portions and the data items are identified as part of the group only if their corresponding two or more portions all have the same values as the two or more portions in the given data item.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11 wherein the data items are tokenized so they are identified as part of the group even if only a subset of data in the first portion of the given data item has the same value as a subset of data in the corresponding portions of the other data items in the set.

14. A computer system, comprising:

a program that displays a first data item and a second data items, the first data item having a plurality of visually separate portions, the second data item having a plurality of visually separate portions that correspond to the plurality of portions of the first data item, each portion in each data item having a value;

a data selection system that receives a user interaction input interacting with a given portion of the first data item and determines whether the portion of the second data item, corresponding to the given portion of the first data item, has the same value as the value in the given portion of the first data item and, if so, groups the first and second data items together as a selected group; and

a computer processor that is a functional part of the system and activated by the program and the data selection system and facilitates displaying, receiving the user interaction input, determining, and grouping.

15. The computer system of claim 14 wherein the data selection system receives, as the user interaction input, user selection of the given portion of the first data item.

16. The computer system of claim 14 wherein the data selection system is part of the program.

17. The computer system of claim 14 wherein the program receives a user action input on the first data item and performs the action on the first and second data items when the first and second data items are grouped together.

18. A computer readable storage medium that stores computer readable instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method, comprising:

displaying first and second data items, structured so the first data item has a plurality of portions and the second set of data items has a plurality of portions that correspond to the plurality of portions of the first data item, each of the plurality of portions in the first and second data items having a value;

receiving a user selection input selecting a given portion of the first data item;

in response to the user selection input, determining whether the given portion of the first data item and the portion of the second data item that corresponds to the given portion of the first data item have a same value; and

if so, selecting the first and second data items as a group.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 18 and further comprising:

receiving a user action input performing an action on the given portion of the first data item; and

performing the action on the group of data items based on the user action input.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 19 wherein receiving a user action input comprises receiving a move input visually moving the first data item on a display screen and wherein performing the action, comprises:

visually moving the group of data items in response to the move input.