System and method for adorning shapes with data driven objects

• US 7,747,946 B2
• Filed: 04/11/2005
• Issued: 06/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Leahy, Patrick, Woolf, Michael J., Nelson, Mark T., McBride, Cathy L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hutton; Doug
• Assistant Examiner(s): Debrow; James J
• Application Number:
  US11/105,115
• Publication Number:
  US 20060230342A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,905 Days
• Field of Search: 715/517, 715/243
• US Class Current: 715/243
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

Adornments are applied to shapes in a diagram that graphically displays data about those shapes. Once the adornments are applied to a shape, the information displayed is automatically updated as the underlying shape data changes. The appearance of the diagram is updated automatically when the user updates the data for their shapes. The set of adornments that may be applied to shapes is extensible. A mechanism and interface is defined for creating additional adornments that have customized looks or behaviors.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for adorning shapes, the computer-implemented method comprising:

obtaining a diagram document from a diagramming application, wherein the diagram document includes diagram shapes, wherein each of the diagram shapes includes a shape description;

importing value data, by the diagramming application, into a cache of the diagram application from a store of data of a source application different than the diagramming application, wherein the value data is organized by types, and wherein the value data imported into the cache of the diagram document is linked to the values in the store of data of the source application to provide synchronization between the store of data of the source application and the cache of the diagram document;

upon importing the value data into the cache of the diagram application, searching the types within the cache to determine any types of the value data that match the shape descriptions of the diagram shapes;

receiving a selection to display an initial adornment object with an initial diagram shape within the diagram document;

populating the initial adornment object with the value data in the cache that is implicated by any match of the type to the shape descriptions;

displaying the initial adornment object in the diagram application according to a display format;

identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that include a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape;

in response to identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that includes a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape, displaying other adornment objects for the other diagram shapes, wherein the other adornment objects have the same display format as the initial adornment object; and

upon receiving a modification of the value data in the store of data of the source application, automatically synchronizing the value data to the cache and, from the synchronized cache, automatically updating at least one member of a group comprising;

the display of the initial adornment object and the display of the other adornment objects.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the display format is a text based call out shape that is populated with text value data associated with the value data from the source application, wherein the text based call out shape is a separate object from the diagram shapes.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the display format is a color by value format, wherein the color populates at least one member of a group comprising:

the initial diagram shape and the other diagram shapes, wherein the color is determined by a value of the imported value data.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the display format is a graphic based call out shape that is populated with a value of the value data from the source application, wherein the value is represented by a fill level of the shape.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the display format is an icon set, wherein, based on the value data from the source application, an icon from the icon set is populated to at least one member of a group comprising:

the initial diagram shape and the other diagram shapes, wherein the icon from the icon set indicates a value from the source application.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the diagram document is displayed within a first pane of the diagram application, wherein display format options are displayed in a second pane of the diagram application, wherein source data is displayed in a third pane of the diagram application.

7. A computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions for adorning shapes, the instructions comprising:

obtaining a diagram document from a diagramming application, wherein the diagram document includes diagram shapes, wherein each of the diagram shapes includes a shape description;

importing value data into the diagramming application from a store of data a source application different than the diagramming application, wherein the value data is organized by types, and wherein the value data imported into the cache of the diagram application is linked to the values in the store of data of the source application to provide synchronization between the store of data of the source application and the cache of the diagram application;

upon importing the value data into the cache of the diagram application, searching the types within the cache to determine any types of the value data that match the shape descriptions of the diagram shapes;

receiving a selection to display an initial adornment object with an initial diagram shape within the diagram document;

populating the initial adornment object with the value data in the cache that is implicated by any match of the type to the shape descriptions;

displaying the initial adornment object in the diagram application according to a display format;

identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that include a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape; and

in response to identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that include a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape, generating other adornment objects for the other diagram shapes, wherein the other adornment objects have the same display format as the initial adornment object, wherein the other adornment objects include different information from the cache than the initial adornment object.

8. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein a modification to the data in the source application is automatically updated to at least one member of a group comprising:

the information populated in the initial adornment objection and the information included in the other adornment objects.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the display format is a text based call out shape that is populated with text value data associated with the value data from the source application, wherein the text based call out shape is a separate object from the diagram shapes.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the display format is a color by value format, wherein the color populates at least one member of a group comprising:

the initial diagram shape and the other diagram shapes, wherein the color is determined by a value of the imported value data.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the display format is a graphic based call out shape that is populated with a value of the value data from the source application, wherein the value is represented by a fill level of the shape.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the display format is an icon set, wherein, based on the value data from the source application, an icon from the icon set is populated to at least one member of a group comprising:

the initial diagram shape and the other diagram shapes, wherein the icon from the icon set indicates a value from the source application.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the diagram document is displayed within a first pane of the diagram application, wherein display format options are displayed in a second pane of the diagram application, wherein source data is displayed in a third pane of the diagram application.

14. A system for adorning shapes, the system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, the computer-executable instructions being configured for;

obtaining a diagram document from a diagramming application, wherein the diagram document includes diagram shapes, wherein each of the diagram shapes includes a shape description;

importing value data, by the diagramming application, into a cache of the diagram document from a store of data of a source application different than the diagramming application, wherein the value data is organized by types, and wherein the value data imported into the cache of the diagram application is linked to the values in the store of data of the source application to provide synchronization between the store of data of the source application and the cache of the diagram document;

upon importing the value data into the cache of the diagram application, searching the types to determine any types of the value data that match the shape descriptions of the diagram shapes;

displaying an initial adornment object with an initial diagram shape within the diagram document;

populating the initial adornment object with the value data in the cache that is implicated by any match of the type to the shape;

displaying the initial adornment object in the diagram application according to a display format;

identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that include a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape; and

in response to identifying other diagram shapes within the diagramming application that includes a same shape description as the shape description of the initial diagram shape, displaying other adornment objects for the other diagram shapes, wherein the other adornment objects have the same display format as the initial adornment object.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein a modification to the data in the source application is automatically updated to at least one member of a group comprising:

the information populated in the initial adornment objection and the information included in the other adornment objects.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the display format is at least one member of a group comprising:

a text based call out shape that is populated with text associated with the information from the source, a graphic based call out shape that is populated with a value associated with the information from the source, an icon set, and a color by value format.