User interface indicators for changed user interface elements

• US 8,943,423 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2009
• Issued: 01/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Merrill, Ethan K., Bennett, Valerie M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): NABI, REZA U
• Application Number:
  US12/498,713
• Publication Number:
  US 20110010644A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,030 Days
• Field of Search: 715/761, 715/762, 715/859, 715/861
• US Class Current: 715/762
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/34 Graphical or visual programming

Abstract

Systems and methods for user interface (UI) flagging. The methods involve setting a first visual indicator on or adjacent to a first UI element of a UI when code that generates the first UI element has been added to an application or modified so as to change at least one functional characteristic of the first UI element. The methods also involve setting a second visual indicator on a first UI object of the application when code that generates the first UI object has been modified so as to remove a second UI element therefrom. The visual indicators are set by adding UI flagging code to the code that generates the first UI element and/or first UI object. Also, third visual indicators can be set on or adjacent to second UI objects that have “trails” to the first UI element and/or the first UI object.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for user interface flagging, comprising the acts of:

editing base language code for a software product by adding new base language code that generates a user interface element of a user interface or modifying existing base language code for changing at least one of a visual characteristic, an auditory characteristic, and a functional characteristic of said user interface element of said user interface;

setting at least one type of a UI flagging indicator to be used per-change and globally in a software project; and

adding first UI flagging code to said base language code for setting at least one first visual indicator on or adjacent to said user interface element of said user interface in response to said editing of said base language code, said first visual indicator indicating that a feature of said user interface element has been changed via a modification of said base language code or that said user interface element has been added to a software product via a modification of said base language code;

wherein said base language code comprises un-compiled code absent of machine language code which can be executed by a computing device.

2. The computer implemented method according to claim 1, wherein the UI flagging code is operative to cause at least one of (a) the user interface element to appear with a select border, (b) text of the user interface element to appear in a select font, (c) the text of the user interface element to flash, (d) the text of the user interface element to appear in a select color, and (e) a sound to be output when the user interface element is clicked.

3. The computer implemented method according to claim 1, further comprising the act of setting at least one second visual indicator on or adjacent to at least one first user interface object containing the user interface element.

4. The computer implemented method according to claim 3, wherein the act of setting at least one second visual indicator includes adding second UI flagging code to the base language code that generates the first user interface object.

5. The computer implemented method according to claim 3, further comprising the act of setting at least one third visual indicator on or adjacent to at least one second user interface object containing the first user interface object or having a trail to the first user interface object.

6. The computer implemented method according to claim 1, further comprising the act of removing a UI flagging setting from a software development project upon a determination that a UI flagging-remove operations have been accessed and run by a user of a computing device.

7. The computer implemented method according to claim 1, further comprising the act of collecting information that is useful for building a record of visual indicators for each build of an application.

8. A computer implemented method for user interface flagging, comprising the acts of:

editing base language code for a software product so as to remove a user interface element from a first user interface object thereof;

setting at least one type of a UI flagging indicator to be used per-change and globally in a software project; and

adding UI flagging code to said base language code for setting at least one first visual indicator on at least said first user interface object in response to said editing of said base language code, said UI flagging code indicating that said user interface element has been removed from said software product via a modification to said base language code thereof;

wherein said base language code comprises un-compiled code absent of machine language code which can be executed by a computing device.

9. The computer implemented method according to claim 8, wherein the UI flagging code is operative to cause at least one of (a) the first user interface object to appear with a select border, (b) text of the first user interface object to appear in a select font, (c) the text of the first user interface object to flash, (d) the text of the first user interface object to appear in a select color, and (e) a sound to be output when the first user interface object is displayed on a display screen.

10. The computer implemented method according to claim 8, further comprising the act of removing a UI flagging setting from a software development project.

11. The computer implemented method according to claim 8, further comprising the act of setting at least one second visual indicator on or adjacent to at least one second user interface object containing the first user interface object or having a trail to the first user interface object.

12. The computer implemented method according to claim 8, further comprising the act of collecting information that is useful for building a record of visual indicators for each build of an application.

13. A system, comprising:

at least one processing device configured to;

edit base language code for a software product by adding new base language code that generates a user interface element of a user interface or modifying existing base language code for changing at least one of a visual characteristic, an auditory characteristic, and a functional characteristic of said user interface element of said user interface;

setting at least one type of a UI flagging indicator to be used per-change and globally in a software project; and

adding first UI flagging code to said base language code for setting at least one first visual indicator on or adjacent to at least one user interface element of said user interface in response to editing of said base language code, said first visual indicator indicating that a feature of said user interface element has been changed via a modification of said base language code or that said user interface element has been added to a software product via a modification of said base language code;

wherein said base language code comprises un-compiled code absent of machine language code which can be executed by a computing device.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the processing device is further configured to set at least one second visual indicator on at least said first user interface object of the software application when base language code that generates the first user interface object has been modified so as to remove the user interface element from the first user interface object.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the second visual indicator is set by adding second UI flagging code to the base language code that generates the first user interface object.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the processing device is further configured to collect information that is useful for building a record of visual indicators for each build of an application.

17. The system according to claim 13, wherein the processing device is further configured to remove a UI flagging setting from a software development project.

18. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the following operations comprising:

editing base language code for a software product by adding new base language code that generates a user interface element of a user interface or modifying existing base language code for changing at least one of a visual characteristic, an auditory characteristic, and a functional characteristic of said user interface element of said user interface;

setting at least one type of a UI flagging indicator to be used per-change and globally in a software project; and

adding first UI flagging code to said base language code for setting at least one first visual indicator on or adjacent to at least said user interface element of said user interface in response to said editing of said base language code, said first visual indicator indicating that a feature of said user interface element has been changed via a modification of said base language code or that said user interface element has been added to a software product via a modification of said base language code;

wherein said base language code comprises un-compiled code absent of machine language code which can be executed by a computing device.