System for supporting mouse button events of dependent workstation terminals connected to main processor executing multiple application programs
First Claim
1. A data-processing system, comprising:
- a main processor for executing multiple interactive user application programs;
at least one workstation controller, includingmeans for coupling said workstation controller to said main processor for transferring data streams between said workstation controller and respective ones of said application programs, certain of said data streams being mouse data streams responsive to mouse-button actuations by a user and actions defined by said application programs in response to said mouse-button actuations,memory means for storing workstation-controller data and program code,a communications adapter for sending and receiving data frames, certain of said data frames being mouse-button-event data frames,a microprocessor executing said workstation-controller program code for converting selected ones of said data streams into said data frames, and for converting selected ones of said mouse-button-event data frames into further ones of said data streams and transmitting them to said main processor;
a plurality of dependent workstation terminals all coupled to said one workstation controller, each of said terminals comprisinga display having specified rows and columns each capable of displaying one of a set of characters,a keyboard for receiving individual keystrokes from a user,a mouse having body means for producing data representing movement events and button means for producing button events when actuated by said user,a communications adapter for sending and receiving said data frames,a terminal microprocessor executing terminal program code for (a) processing received data frames so as to (b) display specified ones of said characters at specified rows and columns of said display, for (c) transmitting data frames representing said keystrokes, for (d) storing a current mouse position in response to said mouse-movement events, for (e) displaying on said display a mouse cursor at said mouse position directly in response to said current mouse position stored in said terminal memory means, and for (f) transmitting said mouse-button-event data frames to said workstation controller in response exclusively to said mouse-button events and not in response to said mouse-movement events, said mouse-event data frames containing both said current mouse position and an indication specifying said mouse-button event,memory means for storing said terminal program code, said terminal program code stored for at least functions (d) through (f) remaining the same with respect to all of said multiple application programs executing in said main processor wherein each of said mouse-button-event data frames contains a type of mouse-button event, and a specification of said current mouse position in terms of one of said rows and one of said columns in said display, said mouse-button-event data frames remaining the same with respect to all of said multiple application programs.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A dependent, nonprogrammable, character-based workstation terminal (DWS) supports a mouse. A terminal controller entirely within the DWS processes and displays mouse motions, but sends mouse button actuations, with the current mouse position, to a single workstation controller (WSC) handling many DWS'"'"'. The WSC processes the actuations according to a set of rules, and sends data streams to a main processor (MP) serving multiple WSCs. The MP executes user application programs, partially in response to data streams representing mouse events. The MP executes user application programs, partially in response to data streams representing mouse events. The MP may also send mouse rule sets to the WSCs in data streams.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A data-processing system, comprising:
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a main processor for executing multiple interactive user application programs; at least one workstation controller, including means for coupling said workstation controller to said main processor for transferring data streams between said workstation controller and respective ones of said application programs, certain of said data streams being mouse data streams responsive to mouse-button actuations by a user and actions defined by said application programs in response to said mouse-button actuations, memory means for storing workstation-controller data and program code, a communications adapter for sending and receiving data frames, certain of said data frames being mouse-button-event data frames, a microprocessor executing said workstation-controller program code for converting selected ones of said data streams into said data frames, and for converting selected ones of said mouse-button-event data frames into further ones of said data streams and transmitting them to said main processor; a plurality of dependent workstation terminals all coupled to said one workstation controller, each of said terminals comprising a display having specified rows and columns each capable of displaying one of a set of characters, a keyboard for receiving individual keystrokes from a user, a mouse having body means for producing data representing movement events and button means for producing button events when actuated by said user, a communications adapter for sending and receiving said data frames, a terminal microprocessor executing terminal program code for (a) processing received data frames so as to (b) display specified ones of said characters at specified rows and columns of said display, for (c) transmitting data frames representing said keystrokes, for (d) storing a current mouse position in response to said mouse-movement events, for (e) displaying on said display a mouse cursor at said mouse position directly in response to said current mouse position stored in said terminal memory means, and for (f) transmitting said mouse-button-event data frames to said workstation controller in response exclusively to said mouse-button events and not in response to said mouse-movement events, said mouse-event data frames containing both said current mouse position and an indication specifying said mouse-button event, memory means for storing said terminal program code, said terminal program code stored for at least functions (d) through (f) remaining the same with respect to all of said multiple application programs executing in said main processor wherein each of said mouse-button-event data frames contains a type of mouse-button event, and a specification of said current mouse position in terms of one of said rows and one of said columns in said display, said mouse-button-event data frames remaining the same with respect to all of said multiple application programs. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A data-processing system, comprising:
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a host processor for executing a plurality of interactive application programs;
at least one communication medium;
a plurality of dependent workstation terminals physically remote from said host processor and all connected thereto by said one communications medium, each said dependent workstation terminal includinga display having a limited number of discrete rows and columns each capable of displaying one of a set of characters, a keyboard for receiving individual keystrokes from a user, a mouse having body means for producing data representing movement events and button means for producing button events when actuated by said user, a communications adapter for exchanging said data frames with said host processor on said one communications medium, a terminal microprocessor executing terminal program code for (a) receiving said data frames so as to (b) display specified ones of said characters at specified rows and columns of said display, for (c) transmitting data frames representing said keystrokes, for (d) storing a current mouse position in response to said mouse-movement events, for (e) displaying on said display a mouse cursor at said mouse position directly in response to said current mouse position stored in said terminal memory means, and for (f) transmitting button-event data frames to said host processor exclusively in response to said button events and not in response to said movement events, said button-event data frames containing both said current mouse position and an indication specifying said mouse-button event, memory means for storing said terminal program code, said terminal program code stored for at least functions (d) through (f) remaining the same with respect to all of said plurality of application programs executing in said main processor wherein each of said mouse-button-event data frames contains a type of mouse-button event, and a specification of said current mouse position in terms of one of said rows and one of said columns in said display, said mouse-button-event data frames remaining the same with respect to all of said plurality application programs. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
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23. A character-based dependent workstation terminal for a data-processing system having a host processor for executing a plurality of application programs and for controlling a plurality of dependent workstation terminals simultaneously by means of data frames exchanged over a single communications medium, said dependent workstation terminal comprising:
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a display for displaying a plurality of individual characters from a set of characters at each of a limited plurality of locations; at least one enclosure physically separate and remote from said host processor; a communications adapter coupled to said single communications medium; a keyboard for receiving individual keystrokes from a user; a mouse movable by said user for producing data representing mouse-movement events, and containing at least one button actuable by said user for producing data representing mouse-button events; a terminal microprocessor executing terminal program code for (a) receiving said data frames from said host processor and (b) displaying characters represented therein at locations specified in said data frames, for (c) sending said individual keystrokes in to said host processor, for (d) storing in said memory means a current location of said mouse in response to said data representing said mouse-movement events, for (e) displaying on said display a mouse cursor at said mouse position directly in response to said current mouse position stored in said terminal memory means, and for (f) sending mouse-button-event data frames encoding said mouse-button events and said current mouse position exclusively in response to said data representing said mouse-button events and not in response to said mouse-movement events; memory means for storing said terminal program code, said terminal program code stored for at least functions (d) through (f) remaining the same with respect to all of said plurality of application programs executing in said main processor wherein each of said mouse-button-event data frames contains a type of mouse-button event, and a specification of said current mouse position in terms of one of said rows and one of said columns in said display, said mouse-button-event data frames remaining the same with respect to all of said plurality application programs. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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Specification