Method and apparatus for application window grouping and management

• US 7,478,339 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2005
• Issued: 01/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Schrock, Sarah E., Stabb, Charles W., Van Dok, Cornelis K., Pettiross, Jeffrey W., Cooperman, Hillel N., Cummins, Charles, Lindsay, Donald J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Thanh T
• Application Number:
  US11/095,616
• Publication Number:
  US 20060224989A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,383 Days
• Field of Search: 715/755, 715/788, 715/789, 715/775, 715/779, 715/783
• US Class Current: 715/779
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor

Abstract

A method for managing a plurality of application window representations is described. The method includes steps of defining a set of application window representation positions in a predefined region, displaying a plurality of application window representations in the application window representation positions, receiving an input to open a first application window, creating a first application window representation in the predefined region, determining whether a second application window representation of the plurality needs to be repositioned into a hidden application window representation position, and repositioning the second application window representation into the hidden application window representation upon determining that the second application window representation needs to be repositioned, wherein the hidden application window representation position is within a glom.

Claims

1. One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method for managing a plurality of application window representations, the method comprising steps of:

defining a set of application window representation positions in a predefined region of a display;

displaying a first application window representation at one of the set of application window representation positions, wherein the first application window representation is associated with a first application window corresponding to a first application;

receiving an input to open a second application window;

determining that a second application window representation associated with the second application window should be located at a hidden application window representation position within a glom associated with the first application window representation, wherein the hidden application window representation is not within the set;

displaying the second application window;

responsive to displaying the second application window, maintaining a second application window representation associated with the second application window at a hidden application window representation position within a glom associated with the first application window representation;

receiving a first user input to the first application window representation; and

responsive to the first user input, providing access to the first application window without displaying the second application window representation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second application window corresponds to a second application that is related to the first application.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first application comprises a first document related to a project and the second application comprises a second document related to the project.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first application window comprises a multiple document interface parent application window and the second application window comprises a multiple document interface child application window.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a glom menu comprising at least the second application window representation when an input is received to display the glom menu.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a glom menu comprising at least the second application window representation upon receiving a notification of an occurrence of an event corresponding to the second application window, wherein the event comprises a change in state or condition associated with a second application corresponding to the second application window.

7. One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method for displaying a notification associated with an application, the method comprising steps of:

displaying a first application window representation at a first application window representation position within a predefined region of a display, wherein the first application window representation is associated with a first application window;

maintaining a second application window representation at a hidden application window representation position within a glom associated with the first application window representation, wherein the second application window representation is associated with a second application window;

receiving a notification of an occurrence of an event corresponding to the second application window, wherein the event comprises a change in state or condition associated with a second application corresponding to the second application window;

in response to receiving the notification, repositioning the second application window representation from the hidden application window representation position to a second application window representation position within the predefined region of the display; and

displaying the second application window representation at the second application window representation position.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first application window representation includes a visual indication comprising a counter representing a number of application window representations maintained within the glom.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising decrementing the counter by one.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the second application window representation includes a visual indication that a notification has been received.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the visual indication comprises a change in appearance of the second application window representation.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the second application window representation position is defined to display an application window representation associated with a most recently used application window.

13. One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method for managing a plurality of application window representations, the method comprising:

defining an ordered set of application window representation positions in a predefined region of a display, wherein the ordered set is configured to display application window representations at predetermined positions according to how recently associated application windows were used;

defining an overflow representation position in the predefined region;

displaying an application window representation at each of the set of application window representation positions, wherein each application window representation is associated with an open application window, and further wherein a first application window representation associated with a most recently used application window is displayed at a first position of the set;

receiving a user input to open a first application window;

repositioning the first application window representation from the first position to a second position within the set;

repositioning a second application window representation from a third position within the set to a hidden application window representation position within a glom associated with the overflow representation, wherein the hidden application window representation position is not within the set; and

displaying a third application window representation at the first position, wherein the third application window representation is associated with the first application window.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the second application window representation is associated with a least recently used application window.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the overflow representation includes a visual indication comprising a counter representing a number of application window representations maintained within the glom.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising incrementing the counter by one.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising displaying an overflow glom menu comprising at least the second application window representation when an input is received to display the glom menu.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising displaying a glom menu comprising at least the second application window representation position in response to receiving a notification of an occurrence of an event corresponding to a second application window that is associated with the second application window representation.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising repositioning the second application window representation from the hidden application window representation position to the first position in response to receiving a notification of an occurrence of an event corresponding to a second application window that is associated with the second application window representation.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising decrementing the counter by one.