Workspace management method, workspace management system, and computer readable medium

• US 8,607,157 B2
• Filed: 11/05/2008
• Issued: 12/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Business Innovation Corp. (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Shibata, Hirohito, Matsunaga, Yoshifumi, Komura, Akinori
• Primary Examiner(s): Abdul-Ali, Omar
• Assistant Examiner(s): BHARGAVA, ANIL K
• Application Number:
  US12/265,533
• Publication Number:
  US 20090064035A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,861 Days
• Field of Search: 715/781, 715/803
• US Class Current: 715/803
• 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

Abstract

A workspace management method for managing a plurality of windows displayed in response to start-up of an application as a workspace for user interface, the method including: managing management information regarding the windows; detecting a change in a state of each of the windows; detecting, in a case where a movement of one window of the windows is detected in the detecting of the change, the other windows positioned in the neighborhood of the one window or overlapping the one window by referring to the management information; displaying, in a case where the other windows are detected in the detecting of the other windows, a docking position to be docked in each of the one window and the other windows; and docking, in a case where a stop of the movement of the one window is detected in the detecting of the change, the one window with the other windows via the docking position.

Claims

1. A workspace management method for managing a first window and a second window displayed in response to start-up of an application as a workspace for user interface, the method comprising:

managing management information regarding the first window and the second window;

detecting a change in a state of the first window;

displaying, in response to detecting the change in state, a first docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window, the first docking position displayed on a specific side of the first window visually distinguishable from sides of the first window other than the specific side of the first window;

determining, in response to displaying the first docking position, the second window is a neighboring window positioned in the neighborhood of the first window or overlapping the first window by referring to the management information;

displaying, in response to determining the second window as the neighboring window, a modified first docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window visually distinguishable from the first docking position and a second docking position on the second window at which the second window is to be connected to the first window; and

docking the first window with the second window at the modified first docking position and the second docking position, in response to displaying the modified first docking position and second docking position.

2. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first window is started by a first application and the second window is started by a second application.

3. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first window and the second window are rectangular, the first window is docked in a size adapted to a size of one side of the second window, and the first window is a first sub-window of a docked window and the second window is a second sub-window of the docked window.

4. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the displaying the first modified docking position and the second docking position comprises displaying the first modified docking position on at least two sides of the first window and displaying the second docking position on at least two sides of the second window.

5. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

changing, in response an input to change a size of the first sub-window, a size of the second sub-window by referring to the management information.

6. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

moving, in response to an input for movement of the docked window, the docked window as a whole.

7. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

canceling the docking of the first window and the second window.

8. The workspace management method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first modified docking position faces the second docking position.

9. A workspace management system for managing a first window and a second window displayed in response to start-up of an application as a workspace for user interface, the system comprising:

a processor functioning as;

a window management unit that stores management information regarding the first window and the second window;

a detection unit that detects a change in a state of the first window;

a presentation unit that displays, in response to the detecting unit detecting the change in state of the first window, a docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window, the docking position displayed on a specific side of the first window visually distinguishable from sides of the first window other than the specific side of the first window;

a window detection unit that detects, in response to the presentation unit displaying the docking position, the second window is a neighboring window positioned in the neighborhood of the first window or overlapping the first window by referring to the management information, wherein the presentation unit displays a modified docking position on the first window at which the first window and the second window are to be docked visually distinguishable from the docking position; and

a docking unit that docks the first window with the second window at the modified docking position, in response to the presentation unit displaying the modified docking position.

10. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the presentation unit comprises a display unit.

11. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the detection unit periodically monitors a state of the first window to detect change in the state of the first window.

12. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the detection unit detects a type of change in a state of the first window.

13. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the first window is started by a first application and the second window is started by a second application.

14. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the management information comprises identification information that identifies the first window and the second window, positional information that indicates positions of the first window and the second window, and size information that indicates sizes of the first window and the second window.

15. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the first window and the second window are rectangular, the first window is docked in a size adapted to a side of the second window, and the first window is a first sub-window of a docked window second window is a second sub-window of the docked window.

16. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the presentation unit displays the modified docking position on at least two sides of the first window.

17. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a size change unit that changes, in response to an input to change a size of the first sub-window, a size of the second sub-window by referring to the management information.

18. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a movement unit that moves, in response to an input for movement of the docked window, the docked window as a whole.

19. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 15, further comprising:

a state saving unit that saves a state of the docked window; and

a state regeneration unit that regenerates the docked window based on the state saved by the state saving unit.

20. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the docking unit docks together the first window with the second window as a docked window that includes the first window as a first sub-window and the second window as a second sub-window, and

wherein the processor further functions as:

a use history holding unit that stores first operation history information of the first sub-window that indicates a first frequency of use of the first sub-window and second operation history information of the second sub-window that indicates a second frequency of use of the second sub-window; and

an arrangement recommendation unit that determines an arrangement of the first sub-window and the second sub-window in the docked window based on the first frequency of use of the first operation history information and the second frequency of use of the second operation history information.

21. The workspace management system as claimed in claim 20, wherein the arrangement recommendation unit calculates the first frequency of use, the second frequency of use, and a degree of similarity between the first sub-window and the second sub-window based on the first frequency of use and the second frequency of use, and determines the arrangement based on the determined degree of similarity.

22. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a program causing a computer to execute a process for managing a first window and a second window displayed in response to start-up of an application as a workspace for user interface, the process comprising:

storing management information regarding the first window and the second window;

detecting a change in a state of the first window;

displaying, in response to detecting the change in state, a first docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window, the first docking position displayed on a specific side of the first window visually distinguishable from sides of the first window other than the specific side of the first window;

detecting, in response displaying the first docking position, the second window is a neighboring window positioned in the neighborhood of the first window or overlapping the first window by referring to the management information;

displaying, in response to determining the second window as the neighboring window, a first modified docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window visually distinguishable from the first docking position and a second docking position on the second window at which the second window is to be connected to the first window; and

docking the first window with the second window at the modified first docking position and the second docking position, in response to displaying the modified first docking position and second docking position.

23. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 22, wherein the first window and the second window are rectangular, the first window is docked in a size adapted to a size of one side of the second window, and the first window is a first sub-window of a docked window and the window is a second sub-window of the docked window.

24. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 22, further comprising:

a movement unit that moves the docked window.

25. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 22, further comprising:

a state saving unit that saves a state of the docked window; and

a state regeneration unit that regenerates the docked window based on the state saved by the state saving unit.

26. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a program causing a computer to execute a process for managing a first window and a second window displayed in response to start-up of an application as a workspace for user interface, the process comprising:

displaying a docking position on the first window at which the first window is to be connected to the second window, the docking position displayed on a specific side of the first window visually distinguishable from sides of the first window other than the specific side of the first window;

detecting that first window is dragged to be closer to the second window;

displaying a modified docking position on the first window at which the first window and the second window are to be docked visually distinguishable from the docking position, in response to the detecting; and

docking the first window with the second window at the modified docking position to generate a docking window, in response to displaying the modified docking position.

27. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 26, wherein the displaying the modified docking position comprises displaying a specific side of the first window to be distinguishable from sides of the first window other than the specific side.

28. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 26, wherein the detecting comprises periodically monitoring a state of the first window to detect a change in the state of the first window.

29. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 26, wherein the detecting comprises detecting a type of change in a state of the first window.

30. The computer readable medium as claimed in claim 26, wherein the first window is started by a first application and the second window is started by a second application.