Automated user interface adjustment

• US 8,713,470 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2008
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Allen, Corville Orain, Chung, Albert Alexander, Truong, Binh, Yee, Kam Kan
• Primary Examiner(s): SONG, DAEHO D
• Application Number:
  US12/114,000
• Publication Number:
  US 20090276726A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,188 Days
• Field of Search: 715/784, 715/781, 715/785
• US Class Current: 715/784
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/543 Local
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/545 Gui
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/34 for rolling or scrolling

Abstract

An event associated with a viewable area of an encapsulated component that represents at least a portion of content associated with a user interface component is detected. A determination is made that the event will result in at least a portion of the viewable area of the encapsulated component being outside of a viewable area of the user interface component. The content associated with the user interface component is adjusted automatically to display at least the portion of the viewable area of the encapsulated component within the viewable area of the user interface component.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) container window comprising at least one container content control element that scrolls container content of the GUI container window;

displaying, as a portion of the container content of the GUI container window, an encapsulated GUI component comprising an encapsulated content control element;

detecting an event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes a viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component;

determining that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least a portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of at least one boundary of a viewable area of the GUI container window; and

adjusting both the container content associated with GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, where adjustment of the container content is controlled responsive to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

2. The method of claim 1, where detecting the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component comprises polling the encapsulated GUI component to identify the event.

3. The method of claim 1, where detecting the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component comprises receiving the event in response to the event being sent from the encapsulated GUI component.

4. The method of claim 1, where determining that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window comprises:

determining a length of a dimension of the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component relative to an origin of the encapsulated GUI component;

comparing the length of the dimension with a distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window; and

determining that the length of the dimension is larger than the distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

5. The method of claim 1, where adjusting both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, comprises scrolling the container content associated with the GUI container window to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

6. The method of claim 5, where scrolling the container content associated with the GUI container window comprises scrolling the container content associated with the GUI container window in at least one of a horizontal direction and a vertical direction.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising adjusting the at least one container content control element of the GUI container window within which the encapsulated GUI component is displayed to represent that the container content associated with the GUI container window has been adjusted in response to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

8. A system, comprising:

a display; and

a processor programmed to;

display a graphical user interface (GUI) container window comprising at least one container content control element that scrolls container content of the GUI container window on the display;

display, as a portion of the container content of the GUI container window, an encapsulated GUI component comprising an encapsulated content control element;

detect an event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes a viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component;

determine that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least a portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of at least one boundary of a viewable area of the GUI container window; and

adjust both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, where adjustment of the container content is controlled responsive to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

9. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed to detect the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component, the processor is programmed to poll the encapsulated GUI component to identify the event.

10. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed to detect the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component, the processor is programmed to receive the event in response to the event being sent from the encapsulated GUI component.

11. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed to determine that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, the processor is programmed to:

determine a length of a dimension of the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component relative to an origin of the encapsulated GUI component;

compare the length of the dimension with a distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window; and

determine that the length of the dimension is larger than the distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

12. The system of claim 8, where, in being programmed to adjust both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, the processor is programmed to scroll the container content associated with the GUI container window to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

13. The system of claim 12, where, in being programmed to scroll the container content associated with the GUI container window, the processor is programmed to scroll the container content associated with the GUI container window in at least one of a horizontal direction and a vertical direction.

14. The system of claim 8, where the processor is further programmed to adjust the at least one container content control element of the GUI container window within which the encapsulated GUI component is displayed to represent that the container content associated with the GUI container window has been adjusted in response to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

15. A system, comprising:

an input device adapted to generate input events in response to actuation by a user;

a display; and

a user interface component configured to provide coordinates associated with displayed components in response to the input events; and

a processor programmed to;

display a graphical user interface (GUI) container window comprising at least one container content control element that scrolls container content of the GUI container window on the display;

display, as a portion of the container content of the GUI container window, an encapsulated GUI component comprising an encapsulated content control element;

detect an event generated by the input device associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes a viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component;

determine a length of a dimension of the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component relative to an origin of the encapsulated GUI component based upon the coordinates provided by the user interface component;

compare the length of the dimension with a distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to at least one boundary of a viewable area of the GUI container window;

determine that the length of the dimension is larger than the distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window;

determine that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least a portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window; and

adjust both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, where adjustment of the container content is controlled responsive to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

16. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer useable storage medium including a computer readable program, where the computer readable program when executed on a computer causes the computer to:

display a graphical user interface (GUI) container window comprising at least one container content control element that scrolls container content of the GUI container window;

display, as a portion of the container content of the GUI container window, an encapsulated GUI component comprising an encapsulated content control element;

detect an event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes a viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component;

determine that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in at least a portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of at least one boundary of a viewable area of the GUI container window; and

adjust both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, where adjustment of the container content is controlled responsive to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, where, in causing the computer to detect the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component, the computer readable program when executed on the computer causes the computer to poll the encapsulated GUI component to identify the event.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, where, in causing the computer to detect the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component that changes the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component, the computer readable program when executed on the computer causes the computer to receive the event in response to the event being sent from the encapsulated GUI component.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, where, in causing the computer to determine that the event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component will result in the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component extending outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, the computer readable program when executed on the computer causes the computer to:

determine a length of a dimension of the viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component relative to an origin of the encapsulated GUI component;

compare the length of the dimension with a distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window; and

determine that the length of the dimension is larger than the distance from the origin of the encapsulated GUI component to the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

20. The computer program product of claim 16, where, in causing the computer to adjust both the container content associated with the GUI container window and the encapsulated GUI component automatically, in response to determining that the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component would extend outside of the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window, the computer readable program when executed on the computer causes the computer to scroll the container content associated with the GUI container window to display the at least the portion of the changed viewable area of the encapsulated GUI component within the at least one boundary of the viewable area of the GUI container window.

21. The computer program product of claim 16, where the computer readable program when executed on the computer further causes the computer to adjust the at least one container content control element of the GUI container window within which the encapsulated GUI component is displayed to represent that the container content associated with the GUI container window has been adjusted in response to the detected event associated with the encapsulated content control element of the encapsulated GUI component.