User task interface in a web application

• US 8,327,290 B2
• Filed: 04/06/2004
• Issued: 12/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Barta, Gary T., Bartek, Velda A., Bohn, Joseph A., Britton, Kathryn H., Brogan, Brock K., Choudhary, Samar, Koch, Stefan, Pandiarajan, Vijay, Petty, Douglas R., Saunders, Joseph L., Swanson, Carl S., Uthe, Robert T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): ORR, HENRY W
• Application Number:
  US10/819,053
• Publication Number:
  US 20060031849A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,164 Days
• Field of Search: 715/790
• US Class Current: 715/790
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/543 User-generated data transfer, e.g. clipboards, dynamic data exchange [DDE], object linking and embedding [OLE]

Abstract

A task-like user interface is provided for Web-based applications. Preferred embodiments enable users to initiate multiple instances of tasks within a single Web application, where independent state information is retained for each instance. Each user-initiated task also has a prescribed life cycle with a definite start and end. Resources allocated to perform various activities can therefore be released when the activity ends. Optionally, contextual information can be passed to a task upon invocation. Support for persisting a currently-viewable work unit as a user-selectable favorite may optionally be provided.

Claims

1. A method of dynamically adding content to a displayed work unit view in a task-based interface for a Web-based application, the task-based interface provided in a content aggregation framework, comprising:

responsive to a request to execute a selected task, initially creating a work unit view to display the selected task in the content aggregation framework, comprising;

locating a template page definition that corresponds to the selected task;

invoking each of at least one content-creating software entity identified in the template page definition, the located template page definition further specifying a layout of the work unit view to display the selected task; and

rendering, in the work unit view according to the specified layout, content created by each of the at least one invoked content-creating software entity;

displaying the work unit view in the content aggregation framework;

responsive to a request for dynamic invocation, from the displayed work unit view, of an additional content-creating software entity that is not identified in the template page definition, dynamically updating the work unit view to include content resulting from dynamically invoking the additional content-creating software entity, comprising;

creating a container, the container comprising a work unit view area and a row for the resulting content;

rendering, in the work unit view area of the container, the currently-displayed work unit view;

invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

rendering, in the row of the container, the content resulting from invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

displaying the dynamically-updated work unit view, as a replacement for the currently-displayed work unit view, using the container.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the row in the container is selectably closable to cause removing, from the dynamically-updated work unit view, the content resulting from invoking the additional content-creating software entity.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein an instance of the additional invoked content-creating software entity is destroyed responsive to closing the row in the dynamically-updated work unit view.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein resources associated with the additional invoked content-creating software entity are programmatically released responsive to closing the row in the dynamically-updated work unit view.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the row is selectably closable by selecting, from the dynamically-updated work unit view, a graphical control corresponding to the row.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising saving the new container and associated state information, along with contextual information associated with the additional invoked content-creating software entity, at least temporarily, for subsequent recall and display of the dynamically-updated work unit view.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content-creating software entities are portlets.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the content aggregation framework is a portal.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

updating contextual information used by the additional invoked content-creating software entity when initially creating the resulting content, responsive to receiving an update trigger;

rendering, in the row of the container, an updated version of the resulting content, the updated version created by subsequently invoking the additional content-creating software entity using the updated contextual information; and

re-displaying the dynamically-updated work unit view using the updated version of the resulting content rendered in the row of the container.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

the template page definition further specifies a number of columns to use when dynamically adding content to the row in the work unit view; and

the rendering, in the row of the container, the content resulting from invoking the additional content-creating software entity comprises rendering, in the row of the container, the resulting content into a first-available one of the specified number of columns within the row.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising saving, at least temporarily, contextual information associated with each of the at least one content-creating software entity identified in the template page definition and contextual information associated with the additional invoked content-creating software entity, thereby enabling each of the content-creating software entities to restore itself upon subsequent recall for display of the dynamically-updated work unit view.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the saving operates responsive to a request to close the displayed dynamically-updated work unit view.

13. A system for dynamically adding content to a displayed work unit view in a task-based interface for a Web-based application, the task-based interface provided in a content aggregation framework, comprising:

a computer comprising a processor; and

instructions which are executable, using the processor, to perform;

responsive to a request to execute a selected task, initially creating a work unit view to display the selected task in the content aggregation framework, comprising;

locating a template page definition that corresponds to the selected task;

invoking each of at least one content-creating software entity identified in the template page definition, the located template page definition further specifying a layout of the work unit view to display the selected task; and

rendering, in the work unit view according to the specified layout, content created by each of the at least one invoked content-creating software entity;

displaying the work unit view in the content aggregation framework;

responsive to a request for dynamic invocation, from the displayed work unit view, of an additional content-creating software entity that is not identified in the template page definition, dynamically updating the work unit view to include content resulting from dynamically invoking the additional content-creating software entity, comprising;

creating a container, the container comprising a work unit view area and a row for the resulting content;

rendering, in the work unit view area of the container, the currently-displayed work unit view;

invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

rendering, in the row of the container, the content resulting from invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

displaying the dynamically-updated work unit view, as a replacement for the currently-displayed work unit view, using the container.

14. A computer program product for dynamically adding content to a displayed work unit view in a task-based interface for a Web-based application, the task-based interface provided in a content aggregation framework, the computer program product embodied on at least one computer-usable storage media having computer-usable program code embodied therein for:

responsive to a request to execute a selected task, initially creating a work unit view to display the selected task in the content aggregation framework, comprising;

locating a template page definition that corresponds to the selected task;

invoking each of at least one content-creating software entity identified in the template page definition, the located template page definition further specifying a layout of the work unit view to display the selected task; and

rendering, in the work unit view according to the specified layout, content created by each of the at least one invoked content-creating software entity;

displaying the work unit view in the content aggregation framework;

responsive to a request for dynamic invocation, from the displayed work unit view, of an additional content-creating software entity that is not identified in the template page definition, dynamically updating the work unit view to include content resulting from dynamically invoking the additional content-creating software entity, comprising;

creating a container, the container comprising a work unit view area and a row for the resulting content;

rendering, in the work unit view area of the container, the currently-displayed work unit view;

invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

rendering, in the row of the container, the content resulting from invoking the additional content-creating software entity; and

displaying the dynamically-updated work unit view, as a replacement for the currently-displayed work unit view, using the container.