.NET ribbon model for a ribbon user interface

• US 7,865,868 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2007
• Issued: 01/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Molina, Daniel A., Birov, Lubomir I., Styrchak, Stephen James, Falzone Schaw, Rachel M., Liu, Hao, Morozov, Vladimir, Crowser, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): DENG, ANNA CHEN
• Application Number:
  US11/692,825
• Publication Number:
  US 20080244443A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,378 Days
• Field of Search: 717104-109
• US Class Current: 717/104
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/38 for implementing user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

An object model is provided that allows .NET developers to customize the Office Ribbon user interface according to a .NET Ribbon model rather than the Ribbon XML/callback model of Office applications. The .NET Ribbon model implements the IRibbonExtensibility interface and provides properties and events for Ribbon components. At runtime, the .NET Ribbon model generates and provides an Office application or document with the XML needed to render the custom Ribbon user interface. A visual designer tool uses the .NET Ribbon model to provide .NET developers with a component view architecture that allows developers to set component properties and generate events.

Claims

1. A computer system including a processor and memory for providing an alternate model for a primary model for extending a user interface of a host application by custom code, the primary model using a non-programmatic description of the relationship between components of the user interface and using a callback mechanism to provide notifications to the custom code, the system comprising:

for each component type of the user interface, a class definition including an implementation of a get description method for dynamically generating a non-programmatic description of the component from a programmatic description of the component and its relationship to other components;

a specification of the relationship between components, wherein the specification of the relationship between components is a class definition for a user interface component with an initialize method for specifying the relationship between components;

an implementation of get user interface function to be invoked by the host application to get the non-programmatic description of the user interface, the get user interface function invoking the get description method of the user interface component for dynamically generating the non-programmatic description;

an implementation of an invoke function to be invoked by the host application to provide notifications to the custom code, the invoke function for converting an invocation to an event notification for a component of the extended user interface; and

a unique identifier generated for each component callback, the unique identifier passed by the custom code to the host application and returned from the host application to the custom code when the host application invokes the invoke function,

wherein the methods and functions are stored in the memory and executed by the processor.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the user interface is the Ribbon user interface of a Microsoft Office application.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the alternate model is the .NET Ribbon model and the primary model is the Ribbon XML/callback model.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the notifications are prompted by the custom code invoking an InvalidateControl function of an IRibbonUI interface of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein the get description method is a WriteXml method of a Ribbon object of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

6. The system of claim 3 wherein the get user interface function is a GetCustomUl function of an IRibbonExtensiblity interface of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

7. The system of claim 3 wherein the custom code executes in a .NET Framework and the invoke function is an Invoke function of an lDispatch interface provided by a COM model, which is converted to an InvokeMember function of an lReflect interface provided by the .NET Framework.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the notifications are prompted by a user interaction with a component.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the component types are selected from the group consisting of pointer, box, button, button group, check box, combo box, drop down, edit box, gallery, group, label, menu, notify icon, separator, split button, tab, toggle button, and tool tip.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the class definition includes properties for each component, the properties selected from the group consisting of label, name, size, image, and other properties.

11. A method in a computer system for providing an alternate model for a primary model for extending a user interface of a host application of the computer system by custom code, the primary model using a non-programmatic description of the relationship between components of the user interface and using a callback mechanism to provide notifications to the custom code, the method comprising:

for each component type of the user interface, implementing by the computer system a class definition including a get description method for dynamically generating a non-programmatic description of the component from a programmatic description of the component and its relationship to other components;

implementing by the computer system a class definition for a user interface component including an initialize method for specifying the relationship between components;

invoking by the host application a get user interface function get the non-programmatic description of the user interface, the get user interface function invoking the get description method of the user interface component for dynamically generating the non-programmatic description;

invoking by the host application an invoke function to provide notifications to the custom code, the invoke function for converting an invocation to an event notification for a component of the extended user interface; and

generating a unique identifier for each component callback, the unique identifier passed by the custom code to the host application and returned from the host application to the custom code when the host application invokes the invoke function.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the user interface is the Ribbon user interface of a Microsoft Office application.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the alternate model is the .NET Ribbon model and the primary model is the Ribbon XML/callback model.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the notifications are prompted by the custom code invoking an InvalidateControl function of an IRibbonUI interface of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the get description method is a WriteXml method of a Ribbon object of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the get user interface function is a GetCustomUI function of an IRibbonExtensiblity interface of the Ribbon XML/callback model.

17. The method of claim 13 wherein the custom code executes in a .NET Framework and the invoke function is an Invoke function of an IDispatch interface provided by a COM model, which is converted to an InvokeMember function of an IReflect interface provided by the .NET Framework.

18. The method of claim 11 wherein the notifications are prompted by a user interaction with a component.

19. The method of claim 11 wherein the component types are selected from the group consisting of pointer, box, button, button group, check box, combo box, drop down, edit box, gallery, group, label, menu, notify icon, separator, split button, tab, toggle button, and tool tip.

20. The method of claim 11 wherein the class definition includes properties for each component, the properties selected from the group consisting of label, name, size, image, and other properties.