Interface for managing search term importance relationships

• US 20070288498A1
• Filed: 06/07/2006
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhigu Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Dietz, Robert S., Herman, Douglas W.
• Granted Patent: US 8,555,182 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

A graphical user interface is disclosed for management and easy reorganization of graphical objects displayed over the graphical user interface. The graphical user interface may relate to prioritizing and organizing the results of a database search. The graphical user interface may alternatively relate to prioritizing and organizing graphic objects such as personalized topics on a homepage and formatting icons in a productivity application program, such as a word processing application program, a spreadsheet application program, a presentation application program and a drawing application program.

Claims

1. In a computer system having a graphical user interface including a display and a user interface selection device, a method of displaying content on the graphical user interface in a ranked order, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) displaying a reference position on the graphical user interface;

(b) receiving input from the user;

(c) displaying a movable graphical object, representative of the input received by the user in said step (b), on the graphical user interface;

(d) detecting a position of the graphical object on the graphical user interface; and

(e) positioning the content in ranked order on the graphical user interface, the ranked order based at least in part on a proximity of the graphical object to the reference position.

2. The method recited in claim 1, wherein said step (b) of receiving input comprises the step of receiving one or more search queries and said step (e) of positioning the content on the graphical user interface comprising the step of displaying the search results.

3. The method recited in claim 1, wherein said step (b) of receiving input comprises the step of receiving a selection of one or more content topics and said step (f) of positioning the content on the graphical user interface comprising the step of displaying the one or more selected content topics on a webpage.

4. The method recited in claim 3, wherein said step (e) of positioning the content in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of displaying a first selected content topic in a higher priority position on the graphical user interface than a second selected content topic where the graphical object representative of the first content topic is positioned closer to the reference position than the graphical object representative of the second content topic.

5. The method recited in claim 4, further comprising the step of repositioning the second selected content topic to a higher priority position on the graphical user interface than the first selected content topic where the graphical object representative of the second content topic is repositioned closer to the reference position than the graphical object representative of the first content topic.

6. The method recited in claim 3, wherein said step (e) of positioning the content in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of displaying a first selected content topic over a larger area on the graphical user interface than a second selected content topic where the graphical object representative of the first content topic is positioned closer to the reference position than the graphical object representative of the second content topic.

7. The method recited in claim 6, further comprising the step of changing the relative sizes of the areas over which the first and second selected topics are displayed on the graphical user interface where the graphical object representative of the second content topic is repositioned closer to the reference position than the graphical object representative of the first content topic.

8. The method recited in claim 1, wherein said step (b) of receiving input comprises the step of receiving a selection of one or more formatting options in a productivity application program, and said step (e) of positioning the content on the graphical user interface comprising the step of displaying a first selected formatting option in a higher priority position on the graphical user interface than a second selected formatting option where the graphical object representative of the first formatting option is positioned closer to the reference position than the graphical object representative of the second formatting option.

9. In a computer system having a graphical user interface including a display and a user interface selection device, a method of displaying results of a database search on the graphical user interface in a ranked order, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) displaying a reference position on the graphical user interface;

(b) receiving a query to be searched in the database;

(c) receiving the results generated based on the query;

(d) displaying a movable graphical object, representative of the query received by the user in said step (b), on the graphical user interface;

(e) detecting a position of the graphical object on the graphical user interface; and

(f) positioning the results in ranked order on the graphical user interface, the ranked order based at least in part on a proximity of the graphical object to the reference position and the frequency of the query in the results.

10. The method recited in claim 9, said step (a) of displaying a reference position on the graphical user interface comprising the step of displaying a first graphical object on the graphical user interface and displaying a second, smaller graphical object at at least the approximate center of first graphical object.

11. The method recited in claim 9, wherein said step (f) of positioning the results in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of increasing a ranking of a result including a query where the graphical object representative of the query is moved closer to the reference position.

12. The method recited in claim 9, wherein said step (f) of positioning the results in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of displaying a first group of results in a high priority viewing area on the graphical user interface where the ranking of the results in the first group is above a designated threshold, and displaying a second group of results in a low priority viewing area on the graphical user interface where the ranking of the results in the second group is below a designated threshold.

13. The method recited in claim 9, wherein said step (f) of positioning the results in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of displaying the highest ranked result in a highest priority position on the graphical user interface, and displaying a group of successively lower ranked results in successively lower priority positions on the graphical user interface.

14. The method recited in claim 9, wherein said step (f) of positioning the results in ranked order on the graphical user interface comprises the step of reordering the results displayed in the priority positions upon a repositioning of a search term relative to the reference position.

15. The method recited in claim 14, wherein said step of reordering the results displayed in the priority positions upon a repositioning of a search term relative to the reference position occurs without performing a new search of the database.

16. A computer implemented method of ranking results of a database search, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a plurality of terms to be searched;

(b) receiving an indication of an importance of the plurality of terms;

(c) receiving an indication of an importance of a first term of the plurality of terms relative to a second term of the plurality of terms;

(d) basing the ranking of the search results at least in part on the importance of the plurality of terms indicated in said step (b), and the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c).

17. A computer implemented method as recited in claim 16, wherein said step (c) of receiving an indication of an importance of a first term of the plurality of terms relative to a second term of the plurality of terms to be searched comprises the step of positioning a first graphical object displayed on a graphical user interface a desired distance from a second graphical object displayed on the graphical user interface, the first graphical object representing the first term and the second graphical object representing the second term, and the importance of the first term relative to the second term increasing as the first object is positioned closer to the second object.

18. A computer implemented method as recited in claim 16, wherein said step (d) of basing the ranking of the search results at least in part on the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c) comprises the step of increasing the ranking of a result including the first and second terms where the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c) is above a designated threshold.

19. A computer implemented method as recited in claim 16, wherein said step (d) of basing the ranking of the search results at least in part on the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c) comprises the step of increasing the ranking of a result including the first and second terms as the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c) increases.

20. A computer implemented method as recited in claim 16, wherein said step (d) of basing the ranking of the search results at least in part on the importance of the plurality of terms indicated in said step (b), and the importance of the first term relative to the second term indicated in said step (c) comprises the step of reordering the ranking of the search results, without performing a new search of the database, upon at least one of a change in the importance of a term of the plurality of terms in said step (b) or a change in the importance of the first term relative to the second term in said step (c).