Method and system for automatically fitting a graphical display of objects to the dimensions of a display window

• US 6,456,305 B1
• Filed: 03/18/1999
• Issued: 09/24/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Parker, Robert L. C., Qureshi, Imran I., Chin, Andy, Maithel, Seema
• Primary Examiner(s): Kincaid, Kristine
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thomas T.
• Application Number:
  US09/272,009
• Time in Patent Office: 1,286 Days
• Field of Search: 345/788, 345/798, 345/800, 345/801, 345/781, 345/720, 707/573, 707/517, 707/518
• US Class Current: 715/800
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents

Abstract

A method and system for automatically sizing and positioning a graphical display of HTML objects to fit the dimensions and video display resolution of a display window in a program such as a browser. A first facility translates slides in a slide show presentation program into a corresponding series of scalable Slide HTML pages. A scalable Slide HTML page has a SlideObj container that contains all of the objects in that page. Divisions in the scalable Slide HTML pages are created with nested DIV tags so that percentages related to default dimensions in the SlideObj container may be used to define the dimensions of a display space for a scalable Slide HTML page. Also, nested DIV tags are used to define percentage based positions, hyperlink areas and font sizes for HTML objects in the display space of the scalable Slide HTML page. The HTML objects include text, images, and image maps associated with hyperlinks. A scalar is calculated to retain the original aspect ratio when fitting a display space and HTML objects included in the scalable Slide HTML page to different display window dimensions and video display resolutions. This scalar is also used to calculate the font size of the text objects and the hyperlink area for the hyperlinks (imagemaps). User interface controls are provided to select options for automatically fitting the HTML objects in the scalable Slide HTML page to the size of the display window.

Claims

1. A method for automatically fitting the graphical display of an object in a display space to the size of a display window, comprising:

(a) saving a page that includes an object in a scalable page;

(b) generating a size for a display space of the scalable page, the size of the display space being related to a default size of a container for the scalable page;

(c) generating a size and a position for the object included in the scalable page, the size and the position of the object being related to the size of the display space of the scalable page;

(d) determining if a dimension of a display window is different than a corresponding dimension of the display space of the scalable page, and if so

(i) generating a scalar that is related to the difference in the dimension of the display window and the corresponding dimension of the display space of the scalable page, the scalar being employed to calculate another size for the display space of the scalable page that is related to the size of the display window and the default size of the master display space, the calculation of the other size of the display space causing the related size and position of the object to be changed in proportion to the other size of the display space; and

(ii) automatically relocating the graphical display of the display space of the scalable page and the changed size and position of the object in the display window, so that a user can view the object in the display space without having to scroll the display window.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the other type of page is a slide created with a presentation program.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the other type of page is a document created with an editor.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the scalable page, the master page and the object are encoded with a computer language selected from the group comprising HTML, DHTML, CGI, Javascript and VRHTML.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising employing a DIV tag to create sizes and positions for the scalable page, the display space and the object that are percent based.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically locating the graphical display of the scalable page'"'"'s display space and the changed size and position of the object in the display window further comprises graphically displaying the display space and the object after the display space and the object have been located in the display window.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the scalar further comprises determining a value for the scalar that will retain an original aspect ratio when sizing the display space and the object to fit the size of the display window.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the scalar further comprises selecting another aspect ratio that is used for sizing the display space and the object to fit the size of the display window.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining that the object is a text object, the text object being associated with a percent-based font size that is related to a default font included in the master page.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising calculating another percent font size for the text object, the other percent-based font size being proportionally resized with the scalar.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising identifying another text object that is nested in the text object, the other text object having a nested percent-based font size that is related to the percent-based font size of the text object.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein calculating the other percent-based font size for the text object is limited to calculating at least a minimum size of font, the minimum size of font being selectable.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein calculating the other percent-based font size for the text object is limited to calculating no more than a maximum size of font, the maximum size of font being selectable.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein determining that the object is the text object further comprises determining that the text object is selected for sizing to fit the size of the display window.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(a) determining the object included in the scalable page to be an image map object, the image map object being associated with a hyperlink; and

(b) storing a set of coordinates for the image map object in an array, the set of coordinates defining a size and a position of the image map object in the display space of the scalable page.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

(a) calculating another set of coordinates for the image map object that are proportional to the scalar; and

(b) employing another size and another position defined by the other set of coordinates to graphically display the image map object in the display space of the scalable page.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein determining that the object included in the scalable page is the image map object further comprises determining that the image map object is selected for sizing to fit the size of the display window.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining the object included in the display space of the scalable page to be an image object, the image object having a type that includes bitmap and vector graphic.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein determining that the object included in the scalable page is the image object further comprises determining that the image object is selected for sizing to fit the size of the display window.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the display window is associated with a program that comprises a browser and an editor.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprises a flag in the scalable page that must be set before the object and the display space for the scalable page are graphically displayable in the display window.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the dimensions of the display window, the display space, the master display space, and the dimensions and position of the object are measured in lines of resolution, so that the graphical display of the display space and the object in the display window will automatically adjust to the lines of resolution being employed to graphically display the display window in a video display.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the graphical display of the object in the display space is automatically fitted to the size of the display window when the lines of resolution used to graphically display the display window are changed.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein each line of resolution relates to one pixel in a video display.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein a width dimension for the display window is defined by a number of horizontal lines of resolution and a height dimension for the display window is defined by a number of vertical lines of resolution.

26. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical display of the object in the display space is automatically fitted to the size of the display window when at least one of the dimensions of the display window is dynamically changed.

27. A computer readable media having computer executable instructions for performing the method recited in any one of claims 1, 6, 8, 14 or 17.

28. A method for automatically fitting the graphical display of an object in a display space to the size of a display window, comprising:

(a) employing a first facility for generating a scalable page, the first facility implementing actions, including;

(i) saving a page that includes an object in a scalable page;

(ii) generating a size for the display space of the scalable page, the size of the display space being related as a percentage to a default size of a container for the scalable page;

(iii) generating a size and a position for the object included in the scalable page, the size and the position of the object being related as a percentage to the size of the display space of the scalable page; and

(b) employing a second facility to determine when a dimension of the display window is different than a corresponding dimension of the display space of the scalable page, if true the other facility implementing actions, including;

(i) generating a scalar that is related to the difference in the dimension of the display window and the corresponding dimension of the size of the display space of the scalable page, the scalar being employed to calculate another size for the display space of the scalable page that is related as a percentage to the size of the display window and the default size of the master display space, the calculation of the other size of the display space causing the related size and position of the object to be changed in proportion to the other size of the display space; and

(ii) automatically locating the graphical display of the display space of the scalable page and the changed size and position of the object in the display window, so that a user can view the object in the display space without having to scroll the display window.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the first facility is a module that is executed within a program that created the other type of page.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the second facility is a module that is executed by a program associated with the display window.

31. A computer system for automatically fitting the graphical display of an object to the size of a display window, comprising:

(a) a memory that stores a plurality of logical instructions;

(b) a display for graphically displaying the object to a user; and

(c) a processor coupled to the memory, the processor implementing the logical instructions, including;

(i) saving a page that includes the object in a scalable page;

(ii) generating a size for a display space of the scalable page, the size being related to a default size of a master display space of a master page that is provided as a container for the scalable page;

(iii) generating a size and a position for the object included in the scalable page, the size and the position of the object being related to the size of the display space of the scalable page; and

(iv) determining if a dimension of the display window is different than a corresponding dimension of the size of the display space of the scalable page, if so;

(aa) generating a scalar that is related to the difference in the dimension of the display window and the corresponding dimension of the size of the display space of the scalable page, the scalar being employed to calculate another size for the display space of the scalable page that is related to a size of the display window and the default size of the master display space, the calculation of the other size of the display space causing the related size and position of the object to be changed in proportion to the other size of the display space; and

(bb) automatically locating the graphical display of the scalable page'"'"'s display space and the changed size and position of the object in the display window, so that a user can view the object in the display space without having to scroll the display window.

32. A method for automatically fitting the graphical display of a scalable page to the size of a display window comprising:

(a) generating a size for a display space of a scalable page;

(b) generating a size and a position for an object included in the scalable page;

(c) determining if a dimension of a display window is different than a corresponding dimension of the display space of the scalable page, the size of the display space being related as a percentage to a default size of a container for the scalable page, the scalable page including the object that has the size and the position related as a percentage to the size of the display space of the scalable page and if the determination is true;

(i) generating a scalar that is related to the difference in the dimension of the display window and the corresponding dimension of the size of the display space of the scalable page, the scalar being employed to calculate another size for the display space of the scalable page that is related as a percentage to the size of the display window and the default size of the master display space, the calculation of the other size of the display space causing the related size and position of the object to be changed in proportion to the other size of the display space; and

(ii) automatically locating the graphical display of the display space of the scalable page and the changed size and position of the object in the display window, so that a user can view the object in the display space without having to scroll the display window.