System and method for browsing tabbed-heterogeneous windows

• US 9,626,079 B2
• Filed: 04/04/2014
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Sauve, Aaron J., Van Dok, Cornelis K., Cummins, Charles, Schreiner, Tony E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shih, Haoshian
• Application Number:
  US14/245,810
• Publication Number:
  US 20140223356A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,110 Days
• Field of Search: 715738, 715759, 715804, 718100, 718103, 719329, 712216, 712225, 712226, 712227, 712228
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• 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

Abstract

The techniques and mechanisms described herein are directed to a method for managing multiple content windows. The content windows may host a web browser, a shell view, a word processing application, and the like. A set of content windows are grouped into a frame in a manner such that a taskbar shows one item for the set of content windows. Each content window is associated with a tab for the frame. A content-specific menu may be associated with each tab. The content-specific menu includes a set of commands based on the heterogeneous content hosted in the content window. The set of commands provide functionality to the heterogeneous content.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

displaying a user interface of a tabbed browser application including a first tabbed window;

receiving an add tab signal;

generating a second tabbed window; and

downloading content to the second tabbed window in a background in response to receiving the add tab signal,

wherein each tabbed window is processed by a separate thread, thread calls to each tabbed window are asynchronous, thread calls from each tabbed window are synchronous, and the synchronous calls are converted into asynchronous calls such that if one tab hangs other tabs will not hang.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first tabbed window includes a web page and the second tabbed window includes content other than a web page.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the second tabbed window includes a directory, a document, or a shell folder.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first tabbed window is active, and further comprising prioritizing the separate thread associated with the active first tabbed window, such that the active first tabbed window is prioritized over the second tabbed window in the background.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising, upon receiving a select tab signal, displaying a content-specific menu associated with the currently selected tabbed window, the content-specific menu including commands based on content of the currently selected tabbed window.

6. One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions that, when executed, configure a processor to perform a method comprising:

displaying a user interface of a tabbed browser application for switching between heterogeneous content;

upon receiving an add tab signal, displaying a new content window within the user interface; and

downloading heterogeneous content in a content area associated with the new content window,

wherein the downloading occurs in a background using a separate thread associated with the new content window, a thread call to the new content window is asynchronous, a thread call from the new content window is synchronous, and the synchronous call is converted to an asynchronous call.

7. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, further comprising upon receiving another add tab signal, displaying another new content window within the user interface.

8. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 7, further comprising downloading heterogeneous content in another content area associated with the other new content window, wherein the downloading occurs in the background using another separate thread different from the separate thread.

9. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 8, wherein the separate threads prevent, when one of the tabs hangs, the other tabs from hanging.

10. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, further comprising, upon receiving a select tab signal, displaying a content-specific menu associated with the currently selected content window, the content-specific menu including commands based on heterogeneous content in a content area associated with the currently selected content window.

11. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, further comprising prioritizing a separate thread associated with an active content window, such that the thread associated with the active content window is prioritized over a thread associated with a background content window.

12. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the heterogeneous content includes a web page.

13. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the heterogeneous content includes a directory.

14. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the heterogeneous content includes a document.

15. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the heterogeneous content includes a shell folder.

20. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 9, wherein thread calls to each new content window are asynchronous, thread call from each new content window are synchronous, and the synchronous calls are converted to asynchronous calls such that if one new content window hangs other new content windows will not hang.

16. One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions that, when executed, configure a processor to perform a method comprising:

displaying a user-interface of a browser application, the user-interface to accommodate a plurality of interface instances and their respective heterogeneous content; and

processing each interface instance by a separate thread, wherein thread calls to each interface instance are asynchronous, thread calls from each interface instance are synchronous, and the synchronous calls are converted into asynchronous calls such that if one interface instance hangs other interface instances will not hang.

17. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 16, further comprising prioritizing an individual thread associated with an active interface instance, such that the active interface instance is prioritized over a background interface instance.

18. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 16, further comprising, upon receiving a select interface instance signal, bring the interface instance associated with the selected interface instance signal into focus and displaying a content-specific menu for the selected interface instance, the content-specific menu providing commands specific to the heterogeneous content in the selected interface instance, the commands providing functionality for the heterogeneous content.

19. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 16, further comprising, upon receiving an add interface instance signal, displaying a new interface instance within the user interface.