Data organization support method and program product therefor

• US 7,458,034 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2003
• Issued: 11/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakano, Takashi, Noguchi, Kunio, Kyoya, Yuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Thanh T
• Application Number:
  US10/429,858
• Publication Number:
  US 20030210278A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,030 Days
• Field of Search: 715/788, 715/779, 715/783, 715/781, 715/778
• US Class Current: 715/783
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance

Abstract

Proposed are a data-organization support method for efficient user-initiative on-screen data classification and a program product for achieving the data-organization support method. A data file, a correction of items to be classified is loaded to display a classification window having a group window and several item (contents-view) windows. An on-screen operation, such as, shifting an item over the item windows initiates item processing such as change in a group to which the item belong. An on-screen operation, such as, shifting a group in the group window initiates group processing such as displaying the contents of the group or change in group hierarchy. The results of classification are reflected on the group window and stored as a classification history.

Claims

1. A computer-aided data-organization support method for classifying data into a plurality of groups, the method comprising:

displaying a group window for displaying a hierarchy of all of the plurality of groups in a first display area on a computer screen, each of the groups having elements;

arraying and displaying a first number of contents-view windows in a second display area on the computer screen, each of the contents-view windows being capable of being set to display or not display a list of elements of each group;

classifying the data on the computer screen, including;

selecting an element displayed in a first contents-view window in which a list of elements is displayed;

shifting the element from the first contents-view window to a second contents-view window;

if the element is shifted to the second contents-view window, then processing data to decide a group to which the element belongs, the group corresponding to the second contents-view window;

selecting a group displayed in the group window;

if the group is selected, then setting a contents-view window corresponding to the group to be of contents-view-state where a list of elements of the group is displayed, and displaying the contents-view window in the second display area;

releasing selection of the group; and

if selection of the group is released, then setting the contents-view window corresponding to the group to be of non-contents-view-state where the list of elements of the group is not displayed, and displaying the contents-view window of non-contents-view-state with other contents-view windows of contents-view-state in the second display area; and

storing at least one result of the data classification.

2. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1, wherein the processing of data includes, if the second contents-view window is of non-contents-view state, then setting the second contents-view window to be of contents-view-state, creating a new group corresponding to the second contents-view window in the group window, and processing the element shifted to the second contents-view window to be included to the new group.

3. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 2, wherein the classifying of the data includes processing a group that is selected and shifted in the group window, the group being regarded as shifted to a particular level of the hierarchy corresponding to a location of the shifted group.

4. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 3, wherein the processing of the group includes switching one of the contents-view windows from being of contents-view-state to being of non-contents-view-state or vice versa or the displayed contents in accordance with an operation to the group displayed on the group window.

5. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 4, wherein the switching includes displaying a list of elements of a group that is selected on the group window and shifted to one of the contents-view windows, irrespective of whether the one of the contents-view windows is of contents-view-state or non-contents-view-state.

6. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 4, wherein the switching includes deleting a list of elements of a group of low priority in use, when a group is specified, among lists of elements displayed on the contents-view windows that are all opened, and displaying a list of elements of the specified group on a contents-view window from which the list of elements has been deleted.

7. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 3, wherein the classifying of the data includes switching data-classifying procedures according to whether targets to be subjected to the data classification is one or several elements, one or several groups, or both of the elements and groups.

8. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1, wherein the classifying of the data includes:

changing the first number of the contents-view windows to be displayed when a number of groups to be displayed on the windows is changed; and

displaying the changed first number of contents-view windows.

9. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1, wherein the classifying of the data includes:

changing the first number of the contents-view windows to be displayed when a number of groups to be displayed on the windows is specified; and

displaying the changed first number of contents-view windows.

10. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1, wherein the classifying of the data includes classifying the data in accordance with at least one attribute specified for the data.

11. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1, wherein the classifying of the data includes displaying lists of elements at once for all groups at a specified level of hierarchy.

12. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1 further comprising displaying the stored result of the data classification in a specific format, and wherein the displaying of the stored result includes displaying a tree-diagram screen for displaying a graph expressing a tree diagram of the result of the data classification.

13. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1 further comprising displaying the stored result of the data classification in a specific format, and wherein the displaying of the stored result includes switching and displaying a plurality of results of the data classification for each data.

14. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1 further comprising combining a plurality of results of the data classification with reforming several of the results of the data classification into a format of a specified result among the results of the data classification.

15. The computer-aided data-organization support method according to claim 1 further comprising combining a plurality of results of the data classification at same level of hierarchy, same group or same data while creating new groups for the results of the data classification at different levels of hierarchy, different groups or different data.

16. A computer-readable medium containing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause a computer to perform a method of classifying data into a plurality of groups, the method comprising:

displaying a group window for displaying a hierarchy of all of the plurality of groups in a first display area on a computer screen, each of the groups having elements;

arraying and displaying a first number of contents-view windows in a second display area on the computer screen, each of the contents-view windows being capable of being set to display or not display a list of elements of each group;

classifying the data on the computer screen, including;

selecting an element displayed in a first contents-view window in which a list of elements is displayed;

shifting the element from the first contents-view window to a second contents-view window;

if the element is shifted to the second contents-view window, then processing data to decide a group to which the element belongs, the group corresponding to the second contents-view window;

selecting a group displayed in the group window;

if the group is selected, then setting a contents-view window corresponding to the group to be of contents-view-state where a list of elements of the group is displayed, and displaying the contents-view window in the second display area;

releasing selection of the group; and

if selection of the group is released, then setting the contents-view window corresponding to the group to be of non-contents-view-state where the list of elements of the group is not displayed, and displaying the contents-view window of non-contents-view-state with other contents-view windows of contents-view-state in the second display area, and

storing at least one result of the data classification.

17. The computer-readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the processing of data includes, if the second contents-view window is of non-contents-view-state, then setting the second contents-view window to be of contents-view-state, creating a new group corresponding to the second contents-view window in the group window, and processing the element shifted to the second contents-view window to be included to the new group.