Annotation mode including multiple note types for paginated digital content

• US 9,424,241 B2
• Filed: 12/31/2013
• Issued: 08/23/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Barnes & Noble College Booksellers LLC (Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Barnes & Noble College Booksellers LLC (Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hicks, Kourtny M., Mesguich Havilio, Amir, Cueto, Gerald B.
• Primary Examiner(s): BLOOMQUIST, KEITH D
• Application Number:
  US14/145,168
• Publication Number:
  US 20150186351A1
• Time in Patent Office: 966 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes

Abstract

Features and techniques are disclosed for interacting with paginated digital content, including a multi-purpose tool and an annotation mode. The multi-purpose tool, which may be represented by a graphic (e.g., a movable interactive graphic), can provide access to multiple modes (e.g., copy, define, note, and/or highlight modes) that a user can invoke. The mode invoked determines the functions performed by the tool when interacting with the paginated digital content. The annotation mode, which may be invoked using the multi-purpose tool or independently thereof, can allow a user to create and edit annotations, such as highlights and notes (e.g., sticky notes, margin notes, and/or highlight notes), for paginated digital content. Editing the annotations may include selecting a desired color for the annotation, for example. The annotation mode may also allow a user to intuitively merge and delete annotations previously added to paginated digital content.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a display for presenting paginated digital content to a user; and

a user interface including an annotation mode, the annotation mode including multiple different note types for paginated digital content, the note types comprising;

i) a sticky note that can be created in response to a tap or mouse click or selection made on the paginated digital content when the annotation mode is invoked, wherein the sticky note is represented by a movable graphic and selection of the graphic causes contents of the sticky note to be presented; and

ii) a margin note that can be created by converting a previously created sticky note to a margin note, such that the margin note replaces the previously created sticky note and includes content from the previously created sticky note, wherein contents of the margin note are always presented and the margin note is configured to be placed anywhere on the paginated digital content.

2. The device of claim 1, the note types further comprising:

iii) a highlight note that can be created by dragging and dropping a previously created sticky note on highlighting previously added to text of the paginated digital content, wherein the highlight note becomes associated with the highlighting.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein a highlight note inherits the color of the sticky note used to create the highlight note.

4. The device of claim 2 wherein highlight notes and margin notes can be converted back to sticky notes.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the contents of a sticky note are presented in an edit box, the edit box allowing the contents of the sticky note to be edited.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein the edit box also includes a color picker tool, the color picker tool allowing the sticky note color to be selected.

7. The device of claim 5 wherein the edit box also includes a note toggle tool, the note toggle tool allowing the sticky note to be converted to a margin note.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein the presented contents of a margin note can be edited in a bounding box, the bounding box allowing the contents of the margin note to be rotated, resized, reflowed, and/or moved.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein the annotation mode is further configured to allow notes to be searched.

10. The device of claim 1 wherein the annotation mode is further configured to filter out notes from the paginated digital content such that the notes are presented in a filtered out view.

11. The device of claim 2 wherein a highlight note created from a previously created sticky note replaces the previously created sticky note and includes content from the previously created sticky note.

12. The device of claim 1 wherein the annotation mode can be invoked through a graphic presented on the paginated digital content.

13. The device of claim 12 wherein when invoking the annotation mode using the graphic presented on the paginated digital content, a desired color for sticky notes to be created can be simultaneously selected.

14. A mobile computing device, comprising:

a processor;

a touch screen display for displaying paginated digital content to a user and allowing user input; and

a user interface executable by the processor and including an annotation mode, the annotation mode including multiple different note types that can be added to paginated digital content when the annotation mode is invoked, the note types comprising;

i) a sticky note that can be created in response to a tap or mouse click or selection made on the paginated digital content when the annotation mode is invoked, wherein the sticky note is represented by a movable graphic and selection of the graphic causes contents of the sticky note to be presented;

ii) a margin note that can be created by converting a previously created sticky note to a margin note, such that the margin note replaces the previously created sticky note and includes content from the previously created sticky note, wherein contents of the margin note are always presented and the margin note is configured to be placed anywhere on the paginated digital content; and

iii) a highlight note that can be created by dragging and dropping a previously created sticky note on highlighting previously added to text of the paginated digital content, wherein the highlight note becomes associated with the highlighting.

15. The device of claim 14 wherein the contents of all of the note types are editable from an edit box presented in response to tapping on or selecting a note at least once.

16. The device of claim 15 wherein a virtual keyboard is simultaneously presented with the edit box, the virtual keyboard allowing a user to input text in the edit box to modify the contents of the note.

17. A computer program product comprising a plurality of instructions non-transiently encoded thereon that when executed by one or more processors cause the following process to be carried out:

in response to a tap or mouse click or selection made on paginated digital content when an annotation mode is invoked, create a sticky note that includes content and is represented by a movable graphic; and

in response to input, convert the sticky note to a margin note, such that the margin note replaces the converted sticky note and includes content from the converted sticky note, wherein contents of the margin note are always presented and the margin note is configured to be placed anywhere on the paginated digital content.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, the process further comprising:

in response to dragging and dropping a previously created sticky note graphic on highlighting previously added to text of the paginated digital content, convert the sticky note to a highlight note, wherein the highlight note is associated with the highlighting it was dropped on.

19. The computer program product of claim 18 wherein a highlight note inherits the color of the sticky note converted to create the highlight note.

20. The computer program product of claim 18 wherein highlight notes and margin notes can be converted back to sticky notes.