Creating an index page for user interface frames

• US 7,774,701 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2005
• Issued: 08/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Fischer, Ilja
• Primary Examiner(s): HUYNH, THU V
• Application Number:
  US11/208,803
• Publication Number:
  US 20070044027A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,814 Days
• Field of Search: 715/234, 715240-241
• US Class Current: 715/240
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing

Abstract

A method of creating an index page that identifies at least one of several user interface (UI) frames includes receiving, in a computer system, information that identifies a category for the index page. The index page is provided with at least one index name identifying a UI frame that is associated with the category. The computer system includes several UI frames, each of which is controlled at least in part by instruction code in a package having a package name. The package names of the several UI frames are read to identify at least one package name that matches the category. The at least one index name is displayed in the index page, the at least one index name being obtained from the at least one package name that matches the category.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of generating, as part of a process of configuring a customized portal page for a user, a visual display of an index of user interface (UI) frames available for configuring in the portal page for the user, the method comprising:

receiving, in a computer system, user input to generate a categorized visual display of available UI frames and that identifies a selected category type for the available UI frames, the computer system having defined therein several different preconfigured UI frames that are each available for the portal page being configured for the user, each of the preconfigured UI frames providing a frame for information display and program operation under the control of a specified one of multiple different executable software packages, wherein each of the executable software packages has a different software package name;

reading, from computer storage memory in the computer system, the package names for the corresponding executable software packages that control the information display and program operation for the available UI frames, and for each of the available UI frames, parsing the read name for the corresponding executable software package that controls the information display and program operation of the UI frame, to classify the available UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type; and

displaying, on a display device, an index page of the available UI frames organized by category, wherein the displayed index page includes i) multiple different displayed category names corresponding to categories of the selected category type, and ii) a displayed name for each of the classified available UI frames, wherein each of the displayed names is displayed on the displayed index page in association with the category name corresponding to the category into which the UI frame was classified.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the category type relates to a function that the system can perform through at least one of the several UI frames.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the category type relates to a provider of a software package that controls a UI frame.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the category type is input by a user at runtime.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving input that specifies at least one of an identity of a user and a role of the user, wherein the category type is identified based on the identity or the role of the user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the package names comprise a series of segments that are separated by a character.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the UI frames are configured to be displayed on a screen of a personal digital assistant.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing the displayed name for the classified available UI frame with a link to the available UI frame identified by the displayed name.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving user input that selects the link, and displaying the identified UI frame based on the received user input.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising extracting at least a portion of a package name that matches one of the categories of the category type in classifying the UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising retrieving, from a mapping table, a name that is associated with the extracted portion, the retrieved name to be included in the displayed name for the classified available UI frame.

12. A computer program product tangibly embodied in a storage medium, the computer program product including instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to perform operations for generating, as part of a process of configuring a customized portal page for a user, a visual display of an index of user interface (UI) frames available for configuring in the portal page for the user, the operations comprising:

receiving, in a computer system, user input to generate a categorized visual display of available UI frames and that identifies a selected category type for the available UI frames, the computer system having defined therein several different preconfigured UI frames that are each available for the portal page being configured for the user, each of the preconfigured UI frames providing a frame for information display and program operation under the control of a specified one of multiple different executable software packages, wherein each of the executable software packages has a different software package name;

reading, from computer storage memory in the computer system, the package names for the corresponding executable software packages that control the information display and program operation for the available UI frames, and for each of the available UI frames, parsing the read name for the corresponding executable software package that controls the information display and program operation of the UI frame, to classify the available UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type; and

displaying, on a display device, an index page of the available UI frames organized by category, wherein the displayed index page includes i) multiple different displayed category names corresponding to categories of the selected category type, and ii) a displayed name for each of the classified available UI frames, wherein each of the displayed names is displayed on the displayed index page in association with the category name corresponding to the category into which the UI frame was classified.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise receiving input that specifies at least one of an identity of a user and a role of the user, wherein the category type is identified based on the identity or the role of the user.

14. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise providing the displayed name for the classified available UI frame with a link to the UI frame identified by the displayed name.

15. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise receiving user input in that selects the link, and displaying the identified UI frame based on the received user input.

16. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise extracting at least a portion of the package name that matches one of the categories of the category type in classifying the UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type.

17. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise retrieving, from a mapping table, a name to be included in the displayed name for the classified available UI frame.

18. A computing system comprising:

a computer device through which a user can access a portal environment having a plurality of user interface frames, each of which is controlled by instruction code in a package having a package name;

a computer program product that can be stored in a storage medium and executed by the computer device, the computer program product including instructions that, when executed, cause the computer device to perform operations for generating, as part of a process of configuring a customized portal page for a user, a visual display of an index of user interface (UI) frames available for configuring in the portal page for the user, the operations comprising;

receiving, in a computer system, user input to generate a categorized visual display of available UI frames and that identifies a selected category type for the available UI frames, the computer system having defined therein several different preconfigured UI frames that are each available for the portal page being configured for the user, each of the preconfigured UI frames providing a frame for information display and program operation under the control of a specified one of multiple different executable software packages, wherein each of the executable software packages has a different software package name;

reading, from computer storage memory in the computer system, the package names for the corresponding executable software packages that control the information display and program operation for the available UI frames, and for each of the available UI frames, parsing the read name for the corresponding executable software package that controls the information display and program operation of the UI frame, to classify the available UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type; and

displaying, on a display device, an index page of the available UI frames organized by category, wherein the displayed index page includes i) multiple different displayed category names corresponding to categories of the selected category type, and ii) a displayed name for each of the classified available UI frames, wherein each of the displayed names is displayed on the displayed index page in association with the category name corresponding to the category into which the UI frame was classified.

19. The system of claim 18, where in the operations further comprise extracting at least a portion of the package name that matches one of the categories of the category type in classifying the UI frame into a specific one category of the selected category type.

20. The system of claim 18, where in the operations further comprise retrieving a name, from a mapping table to be included in the displayed name for the classified available UI frame.