Multiple window behavior system

• US 20060161860A1
• Filed: 01/18/2005
• Published: 07/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Stabb, Charles W., Pettiross, Jeffrey W., Cooperman, Hillel N., VedBrat, Kanwal, Ligameri, Mark R., Holecek, Ales
• Granted Patent: US 7,552,397 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/781
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

A method for displaying a plurality of windows on a display screen is described. The method includes steps of associating a first window with a second window, where the second window is independent of the first window, arranging the first window and the second window on a display screen, where the first window and the second window are configured to fit within a predetermined region of the display screen, and notifying an application program corresponding to the first window that the second window is associated with the first window. An indicator may appear on the display as a target region when a user desires to associate the first and the second windows. Subsequent operations performed on the first window are performed automatically on the second window. For example, when a user is comparing two documents, she can scroll down one document and have the second document automatically scroll as well.

Claims

6-1. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of notifying the application program corresponding to the first window that the at least one second window is associated with the first window no longer.

11. A method of associating multiple windows into a common window on a display screen, the method comprising steps of:

receiving a first input corresponding to a request to move a first open window by a mouse pointer;

determining whether the first open window has been moved within a predefined area of a region of a display screen;

upon determining that the first open window has been moved within the predefined area, displaying an indicator corresponding to a target region for associating windows;

receiving a second input corresponding to a request to drop the first open window by the mouse pointer over the indicator; and

associating the first open window with a second open window into a common open window.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the indicator includes a visual indicator displayed on a portion of the second open window.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of receiving a third input corresponding to a request to perform an operation on the common window, wherein the operation on the common window performs the operation on the first open window and the second open window.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of receiving a third input corresponding to a request to disassociate the first open window from the second open window.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the indicator includes a visual indicator displayed only when the first window has been moved within the predefined area.

16. A series of computer-executable instructions for displaying a plurality of windows on a display screen, the instructions performing steps of:

sending an instruction to display a first window corresponding to a first application program and a second window corresponding to a second application program into a predetermined arrangement;

sending a first notification message to the first application program that the second window corresponding to the second application program is associated with the first window;

sending a second notification message to the second application program that the first window corresponding to the first application program is associated with the second window; and

,

sending an instruction to automatically modify the second window in response to a modification of the first window.

17. The series of computer-readable instructions of claim 16, wherein the first application program and the second application program are the same application program.

18. The series of computer-readable instructions of claim 16, further comprising an instruction to perform a step of sending an instruction to group the first window and the second window into a common window.

19. The series of computer-readable instructions of claim 18, wherein the common window is configured to be accessed by the first application program.

20. The series of computer-readable instructions of claim 18, wherein the common window is configured to be modified by at least one of the first application program and the second application program.