Transparent windows methods and apparatus therefor

• US 7,904,823 B2
• Filed: 03/17/2003
• Issued: 03/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Nicholls, Geoffrey Deane Owen, Beauchamp, Tim
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Thanh T
• Application Number:
  US10/391,073
• Publication Number:
  US 20080046837A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,913 Days
• Field of Search: 715/768, 715/863, 715/864
• US Class Current: 715/768
• 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

A method for optimizing pen-based annotations on a non-pen enabled window. The method includes starting a visible non-pen-enabled window further including position indicia and size indicia; starting a transparent pen-enabled window; and associating the visible non-pen-enabled window with the transparent pen-enabled window based on the position indicia and size indicia. The method further includes aligning the transparent pen-enabled window with the visible non-pen-enabled window, and accepting user input comprising a message. If the message further includes pen indicia, the method also includes forwarding the message to the transparent pen-enabled window. Else, the method includes forwarding the message to the first application.

Claims

1. A method of optimizing pen-based annotations on a non-pen enabled window comprising:

providing a first application associated with a visible non-pen-enabled window including position indicia, size indicia, and order indicia;

providing a second application associated with a transparent pen-enabled window including position indicia, size indicia, and order indicia;

associating said visible non-pen-enabled window with said transparent pen-enabled window based on said position indicia and size indicia;

receiving a first user input from a first input source of a plurality of input sources, the plurality of input sources including a pen input device and a non-pen input device;

accepting the first user input;

determining a source of the first user input;

forwarding said first user input to said second application using the transparent pen-enabled window and adjusting the order indicia of at least one of the visible non-pen-enabled window or the transparent pen-enabled window to position the transparent pen-enabled window over the visible non-pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the first user input is the pen input device;

receiving a second user input from a second input source of the plurality of input sources;

accepting the second user input;

determining a source of the second user input; and

forwarding said second user input to the first application using the visible non-pen-enabled window and adjusting the order indicia of at least one of the visible non-pen-enabled window or the transparent pen-enabled window to position the visible non-pen-enabled window over the transparent pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the second user input is the non-pen input device.

2. The method of claim 1, where said transparent pen-enabled window comprises a transparent control.

3. The method of claim 2, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a non-transparent control of a collaborative application.

4. The method of claim 3, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a button.

5. The method of claim 4, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a browser.

6. The method of claim 4, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a menu.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising registering the second application with an operating system for receiving pen messages.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein pen messages describe pen angle, writing surface pressure, or pen speed.

9. A method of optimizing pen-based annotations on a non-pen enabled window comprising:

providing a visible non-pen-enabled window including position indicia and size indicia;

providing a transparent pen-enabled window including position indicia and size indicia;

accepting user input;

receiving a first user input from a first input source of a plurality of input sources, the plurality of input sources including a pen input device and a non-pen input device;

determining a source of the first user input;

aligning the transparent pen-enabled window over the visible non-pen-enabled window based on the position indicia and the size indicia;

forwarding the first user input to a first handler of an application, the first handler configured to process pen messages in response to determining that the source of the first user input is the pen input device;

receiving a second user input from a second input source of the plurality of input sources;

determining a source of the second user input; and

forwarding the second user input to a second handler of the application, the second handler configured to process non-pen messages and moving said transparent pen-enabled window such that said transparent pen-enabled window is no longer aligned over said visible non-pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the second user input is the non-pen input device.

10. The method of claim 9, where said transparent pen-enabled window comprises a transparent control.

11. The method of claim 9, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a non-transparent control of a collaborative application.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said moving said transparent pen-enabled window includes at least one of placing said transparent pen-enabled window in a lower Z-order than said visible non-pen-enabled window and removing said transparent pen-enabled window from a visible desktop.

13. The method of claim 12, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a browser.

14. The method of claim 13, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a menu.

15. An apparatus for optimizing pen-based annotations on a non-pen enabled window comprising:

a means of providing a first application associated with a visible non-pen-enabled window including position indicia, size indicia, and order indicia;

a means of providing a second application associated with a transparent pen-enabled window including position indicia, size indicia, and order indicia;

a means of associating said visible non-pen-enabled window with said transparent pen-enabled window based on said position indicia and size indicia;

a means of receiving a first user input from a first input source of a plurality of input sources, the plurality of input sources including a pen input device and a non-pen input device;

a means of accepting the first user input;

a means of determining a source of the first user input;

a means of forwarding said first user input to said second application using the transparent pen-enabled window and adjusting the order indicia of at least one of the visible non-pen-enabled window or the transparent pen-enabled window to position the transparent pen-enabled window over the visible non-pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the first user input is the pen input device;

a means of receiving a second user input from a second input source of the plurality of input sources;

a means of accepting the second user input;

a means of determining a source of the second user input; and

a means of forwarding said second user input to the first application using the visible non-pen-enabled window and adjusting the order indicia of at least one of the visible non-pen-enabled window or the transparent pen-enabled window to position the visible non-pen-enabled window over the transparent pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the second user input is the non-pen input device.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, where said transparent pen-enabled window comprises a transparent control.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a control.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a button.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a browser.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a menu.

21. An apparatus for optimizing pen-based annotations on a non-pen enabled window comprising:

a means of providing a visible non-pen-enabled window including position indicia and size indicia;

a means of providing a transparent pen-enabled window including position indicia and size indicia;

a means of accepting user input;

a means of receiving a first user input from a first input source of a plurality of input sources, the plurality of input sources including a pen input device and a non-pen input device;

a means of determining a source of the first user input;

a means of aligning the transparent pen-enabled window over the visible non-pen-enabled window based on the position indicia and the size indicia;

a means of forwarding the first user input to a first handler of an application, the first handler configured to process pen messages in response to determining that the source of the first user input is the pen input device;

a means of receiving a second user input from a second input source of the plurality of input sources;

a means of determining a source of the second user input; and

a means of forwarding the second user input to a second handler of the application, the second handler configured to process non-pen messages and moving said transparent pen-enabled window such that said transparent pen-enabled window is no longer aligned over said visible non-pen-enabled window in response to determining that the source of the second user input is the non-pen input device.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, where said transparent pen-enabled window comprises a transparent control.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, where said non-pen enabled window comprises a control.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein said moving means includes at least one of means for placing said transparent pen-enabled window in a lower Z-order than said visible non-pen-enabled window and means for removing said transparent pen-enabled window from a visible desktop.