Markup based extensibility for user interfaces

• US 8,239,882 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2005
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Dhanjal, Savraj Singh, Mogilevsky, Alex, Morton, David Andrew, Ramani, Preethi, Luu, Dien Trang, Faller, Eric Michael, Fomichev, Andrew, Chang, Andy Chung-An
• Primary Examiner(s): Cao, Diem K
• Application Number:
  US11/217,071
• Publication Number:
  US 20070055936A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,534 Days
• Field of Search: 715/765, 717/117, 719/320, 719/319
• US Class Current: 719/319
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/154 Tree transformation for tree-structured or markup documents, e.g. XSLT, XSL-FO or stylesheets
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer products are provided for exposing the programming of an application user interface to allow modification of the associated user interface to include adding, removing, disabling, enabling and repurposing new or existing user interface components.

Claims

1. A method for modifying a graphical user interface, comprising:

displaying, by a computing device, a user interface for a host software application, the user interface containing a ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface comprising a first tab, the first tab comprising a first logical group of controls, the first logical group of controls comprising a first set of one or more selectable controls for selecting one or more functionalities of the host software application, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface including a gallery that provides a second set of one or more selectable controls, each of the selectable controls in the gallery comprising an image that represents a functionality that is applied if the selectable control is selected;

providing an Extensible Markup Language (XML) representation of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the XML representation including a first XML element and a second XML element, the first XML element corresponding to the first tab of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the second XML element corresponding to the first logical group of controls;

receiving an add-in application at the computing device, the add-in application providing one or more additional functionalities to the host software application;

receiving a modification to the XML representation, the modification adding a first add-in XML element to the XML representation, the first add-in XML element corresponding to an add-in control;

after receiving the modification to the XML representation, receiving, from a user, a selection of an object in a document displayed in the user interface; and

exposing, by the computing device, the add-in control in the gallery in response to receiving the selection of the object, the add-in control comprising an image that represents a given functionality to be applied to the selected object if the add-in control is selected, the given functionality being one of the additional functionalities provided by the add-in application; and

after closing a document-based solution that modified the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, rendering the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface as the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface appeared prior to receiving the modification to the XML representation.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein, after the computing device receives the modification to XML representation, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface comprises a second tab, the second tab including one or more additional selectable controls associated with the one or more additional functionalities provided by the add-in application.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein after receiving the modification to the XML representation, the XML representation specifies a change to a behavior of a selectable control contained in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface.

4. The method of claim 1,

wherein a given selectable control contained in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface is enabled;

and

wherein after receiving the modification to the XML representation, the given selectable control is disabled in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

after receiving the modification to the XML representation and upon receiving a focus on a selectable control contained in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, displaying an identification of the add-in application.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein a XML schema restricts a given selectable control contained in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface from modification.

7. The method of claim 1,

wherein the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes a contextual user interface for displaying a third set of one or more selectable controls, the third set of selectable controls applicable to the selected object;

and

wherein after receiving the modification to the XML representation, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface comprises one or more additional selectable controls in the contextual user interface.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

after un-installation of the add-in application from the host software application, rendering the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface as the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface appeared prior to receiving the modification to the XML representation.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising after receiving the modification to the XML representation, automatically scaling any user interface components added in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface such that the any user interface components added in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface are scaled to fit a display space in which the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface is displayed.

10. The method of claim 1,

wherein after receiving the modification to the XML representation, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes a selectable control that was not in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface prior to receiving the modification to the XML representation, the selectable control associated with one of the additional functionalities provided by the add-in application, wherein the selectable control is associated with a first data;

and

upon receiving a change to the first data, refreshing the modified ribbon-shaped graphical user interface to automatically update the selectable control.

11. A computer storage medium containing computer executable instructions, which when executed by a computer, cause the computer to:

receive an add-in application for providing one or more additional functionalities to a host software application on the computer, wherein an initial XML file represents an initial version of a ribbon-shaped graphical user interface in a graphical user interface of the host software application, the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface including a first tab, the first tab comprising a gallery containing a first set of selectable controls, each of the selectable controls in the gallery comprising an image that represents a functionality that is applied if the selectable control is selected;

receive an amended XML file, the amended XML file being an amended version of the initial XML file, the amended XML file representing a modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, wherein in addition to the controls in the gallery in the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the gallery in the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes a contextual control;

after receiving the amended XML file, receive, from a user, a selection of an object in a document displayed in the graphical user interface; and

expose the contextual control in the gallery in the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface in response to receiving the selection of the selected object, the contextual control comprising an image that represents a given functionality to be applied to the selected object if the contextual control is selected, the given functionality being one of the additional functionalities provided by the add-in application; and

after closing a document-based solution that modified the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, rendering the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface as the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface appeared prior to receiving the modification to the XML representation.

12. The computer storage medium of claim 11, further comprising:

upon receiving a focus on the contextual control, displaying in the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface identification information about modifications to the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface.

13. The computer storage medium of claim 11,

wherein the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes a contextual user interface for displaying a second set of one or more selectable controls applicable to the selected object;

and

wherein the contextual control is in the contextual user interface.

14. The computer storage medium of claim 11,

wherein prior to receiving the amended XML file, the gallery in the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface provides a second set of one or more selectable controls for providing one or more functionalities to the selected object.

15. A method for modifying a graphical user interface, the method comprising:

displaying, by a computing device, a user interface for a host software application, the user interface including an initial version of a ribbon-shaped graphical user interface;

receiving, at the computing device, an add-in application that provides one or more additional functionalities to the host software application,

wherein an initial XML file represents the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface including a gallery that provides a first set of one or more selectable controls, each of the selectable controls in the gallery comprising an image that represents a functionality that is applied if the selectable control is selected,

receiving, at the computing device, an amended XML file, the amended XML file being an amended version of the initial XML file, the amended XML file representing a modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the amended XML file including a first add-in XML element, the first add-in XML element corresponding to a contextual control, wherein in addition to the selectable controls in the gallery in the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the gallery in the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes the contextual control;

after receiving the amended XML file, receiving, from a user, a selection of an object in a document in the user interface; and

exposing, by the computing device, the contextual control in the gallery in response to receiving the selection of the object, the contextual control comprising an image that represents a given functionality that is applied to the selected object if the contextual control is selected, the given functionality being one of the additional functionalities provided by the add-in application; and

in response to closing a document-based solution that modified the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, rendering the initial version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface instead of the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

receiving, at the computing device, a selection of the gallery.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

disabling a second set of one or more selectable controls in the modified version of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface.

18. A method for modifying a graphical user interface, the method comprising:

displaying, by a computing device, a user interface for a host software application, the user interface containing a ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface comprising a first tab, the first tab comprising a first logical group of controls, the first logical group of controls comprising a first set of one or more selectable controls for selecting one or more functionalities of the host software application;

providing an Extensible Markup Language (XML) representation of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the XML representation including a first XML element and a second XML element, the first XML element corresponding to the first tab of the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, the second XML element corresponding to the first logical group of controls;

receiving an add-in application for providing one or more additional functionalities to the host software application;

receiving a modification to the XML representation, the modification adding a first add-in XML element to the XML representation, the first add-in XML element corresponding to an add-in control;

after receiving the modification to the XML representation, receiving, from a user, a selection an object in a document displayed in the user interface;

exposing, by the computing device, the add-in control in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface in response to receiving the selection of the selected object;

applying a given functionality to the selected object in response to selection by the user of the add-in control, the given functionality being one of the additional functionalities provided by the add-in application; and

after un-installation of the add-in application from the host software application, rendering the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface as the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface appeared prior to receiving the modification to the XML representation; and

after closing a document-based solution that modified the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, rendering the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface as the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface appeared before opening the document-based solution.

19. The method of claim 18,

wherein after receiving the modification, the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface comprises a second tab, the second tab containing one or more additional selectable controls associated with the one or more additional functionalities provided by the add-in application.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

after receiving the modification to the XML representation, upon receiving a focus on a selectable control contained in the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface, displaying an identification of the add-in application.

21. The method of claim 18,

wherein the ribbon-shaped graphical user interface includes a gallery providing a second set of one or more selectable controls for providing one or more functionalities to the selected object;

and

wherein after receiving the modification, the gallery comprises one or more additional selectable controls in addition to the second set of selectable controls.