Object based system comprising user interface permitting manipulation of objects by users

• US 5,584,035 A
• Filed: 06/27/1995
• Issued: 12/10/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Duggan, Hugh, Morel, William
• Primary Examiner(s): Geckil, Mehmet B.
• Application Number:
  US08/495,038
• Time in Patent Office: 532 Days
• Field of Search: 395/800, 395/155, 395/159, 395/650, 395/157, 395/158, 395/62, 395/133
• US Class Current: 715/765
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548

Abstract

A distributed object based system includes primary and secondary objects. Primary objects can sustain containership links to other objects in the same storage domain and weak links can exist between objects in different storage domains.

Claims

1. A distributed object based computer system, comprising:

first and second storage domains;

a first host computer operatively coupled to said first storage domain and a second host computer operatively coupled to said second storage domain;

first and second input devices operatively coupled, respectively, to said first and second host computers, said input devices adapted for receiving input signals from users of said first and second computers;

first and second graphic display devices operatively coupled to said first and second host computers, respectively, for displaying representations of objects, said input devices and graphic display devices permitting manipulation of objects by said users;

a plurality of objects, said plurality of objects including first and second primary objects (P₁, P₂), first and second secondary objects (S₁, S₂), first and second window objects (P_1W, P_2W) for viewing said first and second primary objects, respectively, and third and fourth window objects (S_1W, S_2W) for viewing said first and second secondary objects, respectively, wherein each of said objects has its own data and associated processes and wherein said objects are discrete entities that may be individually movable, copyable, viewable and destroyable in response to signals from said input devices, and wherein said objects P₁, S₁, P_1W, and S_1W reside in said first storage domain and said objects P₂, S₂, P_2W, and S_2W reside in said second storage domain; and

linking means for sustaining the following object-object links;

a containership link between said first primary object (P₁) and said first secondary object (S₁), and

a primary-secondary weak link between said first primary object and said second secondary object (P₁ -S₂),

wherein each object P₁,S₂) in said weak link may exhibit different representations and

wherein said weak link (P₁ -S₂) indicates that, if either one of P₁ or S₂ is moved, copied, viewed or destroyed in response to a signal from an input device, the effect on all objects weakly linked to the moved, copied, viewed or destroyed object will be in accordance with a predetermined set of rules wherein

if P₁ or S₂ is moved, P₁ will remain weakly linked to S₂ ;

if P₁ is destroyed, S₂ will be unlinked; and

if S₂ is destroyed, P₁ will be unlinked.

2. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1, wherein said containership link indicates that P₁ and S₁ are in a common storage domain and that S₁ will be destroyed if P₁ is destroyed.

3. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1, further comprising an inactive object and activation means for automatically activating said inactive object in response to said inactive object being sent a message, wherein said inactive object comprises and is fully defined by a file stored in a storage medium.

4. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1, wherein said predetermined set of rules further comprises a rule wherein

if P₁ is copied, the copy of P₁ will not automatically be linked to S₂ ;

if S₂ is copied, P₁ will be automatically weakly linked to both S₂.

5. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1, further comprising selecting means for selecting said second secondary object S₂ in response to a select signal from an input device, and means for automatically displaying said first primary object P₁ in response to said select signal if P₁ is weakly linked to S₂.

8. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1, wherein said linking means includes means for linking only a part of an object to another object.

9. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1,

wherein said containership link indicates that P₁ and S₁ are in a common storage domain and that S₁ will be destroyed if P₁ is destroyed;

further comprising an inactive object and activation means for automatically activating said inactive object in response to said inactive object being sent a message, wherein said inactive object comprises and is fully defined by a file stored in a storage medium; and

wherein the following set of rules is associated with said primary-secondary weak link (P₁ -S₂);

if P₁ or S₂ is moved, P₁ will remain weakly linked to S₂ ;

if P₁ is copied, the copy of P₁ will not automatically be linked to S₂ ;

if S₂ is copied, P₁ will be automatically weakly linked to both S₂ and the copy of S₂ ;

if P₁ is destroyed, S₂ will be unlinked; and

if S₂ is destroyed, P₁ will be unlinked;

further comprising selecting means for selecting said second secondary object S₂ in response to a select signal from an input device, and means for automatically displaying said first primary object P₁ in response to said select signal if P₁ is weakly linked to S₂.

10. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 9, further comprising distributed storage means for storing a first link record for P₁, a second link record for S₁, a third link record for P₂, and a fourth link record for S₂, wherein said first link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said second link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said third link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s), and said fourth link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s);

wherein each of said link records is stored in the same storage domain as its corresponding object.

11. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 1,

wherein said containership link indicates that P₁ and S₁ are in a common storage domain and that S₁ will be destroyed if P₁ is destroyed;

further comprising an inactive object and activation means for automatically activating said inactive object in response to said inactive object being sent a message, wherein said inactive object comprises and is fully defined by a file stored in a storage medium; and

selecting means for selecting said second secondary object S₂ in response to a select signal from an input device, and means for automatically displaying said first primary object P₁ in response to said select signal if P₁ is weakly linked to S₂.

12. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 11, further comprising distributed storage means for storing a first link record for P₁, a second link record for S₁, a third link record for P₂, and a fourth link record for S₂, wherein said first link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said second link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said third link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s), and said fourth link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s);

wherein each of said link records is stored in the same storage domain as its corresponding object.

6. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 22, further comprising distributed storage means for storing a first link record for P₁, a second link record for S₁, a third link record for P₂, and a fourth link record for S₂, wherein said first link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said second link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said third link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s), and said fourth link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s).

7. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 6, wherein each of said link records is stored in the same storage domain as its corresponding object.

13. A distributed object based computer system, comprising:

first and second storage domains;

a first host computer operatively coupled to said first storage domain and a second host computer operatively coupled to said second storage domain;

first and second input devices operatively coupled, respectively, to said first and second host computers, said input devices adapted for receiving input signals from users of said first and second computers;

first and second graphic display devices operatively coupled to said first and second host computers, respectively, for displaying representations of objects, said input devices and graphic display devices permitting manipulation of objects by said users;

a plurality of objects, said plurality of objects including first and second primary objects (P₁, P₂), first and second secondary objects (S₁, S₂), first and second window objects (P_1W, P_2W) for viewing said first and second primary objects, respectively, and third and fourth window objects (S_1W, S_2W) for viewing said first and second secondary objects, respectively, wherein each of said objects has its own data and associated processes and wherein said objects are discrete entities that may be individually movable, copyable, viewable and destroyable in response to signals from said input devices, and wherein said objects P₁, S₁, P_1W, and S_1W reside in said first storage domain and said objects P₂, S₂, P_2W, and S_2W reside in said second storage domain; and

linking means for sustaining the following object-object links;

a containership link between said first primary object (P₁) and said first secondary object (S₁), and

a primary-secondary weak link between said first primary object and said second secondary object (P₁ -S₂), wherein said weak link (P₁ -S₂) indicates that, if either one of P₁ or S₂ is moved, copied, viewed or destroyed in response to a signal from an input device, the effect on all objects weakly linked to the moved, copied, viewed or destroyed object will be in accordance with a set of rules, wherein

if P₁ or S₂ is moved, P₁ will remain weakly linked to S₂ ;

if P₁ is copied, the copy of P₁ will not automatically be linked to S₂ ;

if S₂ is copied, P₁ will be automatically weakly linked to both S₂ and the copy of S₂ ;

if P₁ is destroyed, S₂ will be unlinked; and

if S₂ is destroyed, P₁ will be unlinked.

14. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 13, wherein said containership link indicates that P₁ and S₁ are in a common storage domain and that S₁ will be destroyed if P₁ is destroyed.

15. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 13, further comprising an inactive object and activation means for automatically activating said inactive object in response to said inactive object being sent a message, wherein said inactive object comprises and is fully defined by a file stored in a storage medium.

16. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 13, further comprising selecting means for selecting said second secondary object S₂ in response to a select signal from an input device, and means for automatically displaying said first primary object P₁ in response to said select signal if P₁ is weakly linked to S₂.

17. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 13, further comprising distributed storage means for storing a first link record for P₁, a second link record for S₁, a third link record for P₂, and a fourth link record for S₂, wherein said first link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said second link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₁ is linked and the nature of the link(s), said third link record indicates the identity of all objects to which P₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s), and said fourth link record indicates the identity of all objects to which S₂ is linked and the nature of the link(s).

18. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 17, wherein each of said link records is stored in the same storage domain as its corresponding object.

19. A distributed object based computer system as recited in claim 13, wherein said linking means includes means for linking only a part of an object to another object.