Multi-dimensional desktop

• US 8,745,535 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2007
• Issued: 06/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Chaudhri, Imran A., Louch, John O., Hynes, Christopher, Bumgarner, Timothy Wayne, Peyton, Eric Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, TUYETLIEN T
• Application Number:
  US11/760,595
• Publication Number:
  US 20080307360A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,552 Days
• Field of Search: 715/782, 715/835, 715/848, 715/850
• US Class Current: 715/850
• 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 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

A graphical user interface has a back surface disposed from viewing surface to define a depth, and one or more one or more side surfaces extend from the back surface to the viewing surface. An icon receptacle is disposed on one or more of the side surfaces, and one or more icons are disposed within the icon receptacle. The one or more icons correspond to one or more desktop items.

Claims

1. A memory device storing instructions, the instructions operable to cause one or more processing devices to perform operations comprising:

displaying a three dimensional graphical user interface, the graphical user interface including multiple surfaces;

displaying on one surface from among the multiple surfaces a stack item for accessing menus, the stack item for accessing menus including a plurality of stack elements, each of the stack elements corresponding to an associated menu, each of the associated menus having one or more menu items, wherein in response to an input selecting a stack element from the plurality of stack elements, a menu associated with the selected stack element is displayed, wherein the menu does not appear on any of the multiple surfaces before the input selecting the stack element;

receiving an input selecting the stack item for accessing menus and positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on another one of the multiple surfaces different from the one where the stack item for accessing menus is displayed; and

in response to the input positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on the other one of the multiple surfaces, modifying at least the other one of the multiple surfaces of the graphical user interface, by causing menus with which the stack elements are respectively associated to reappear on the surface being modified,

wherein the stack item for accessing menus is displayed on a floor surface from among the multiple surfaces, and

wherein the other surface referenced in the input selecting and repositioning the stack item for accessing menus is a back surface of the multiple surfaces.

2. The memory device of claim 1, the operations comprising applying a surface aspect to at least one of the surfaces, the surface aspect including a surface behavior, wherein:

the surface behavior is based on surface texture of the at least one of the multiple surfaces to which the surface aspect is applied.

3. The memory device of claim 2, wherein:

the surface texture comprises a grid aspect; and

the surface behavior comprises a grid snap.

4. The memory device of claim 2, wherein:

the surface texture comprises an equable texture; and

the surface behavior comprises a physics model.

5. The memory device of claim 1, wherein:

the multiple surfaces of the graphical user interface include, in addition to the back surface, at least one side surface that is scroll actuable.

6. The memory device of claim 5, wherein:

the at least one side surface is the floor surface; and

upon a scroll actuation, the stack item for accessing menus scrolls in a scroll direction.

7. The memory device of claim 6, wherein:

the floor surface includes a scroll ingress and a scroll egress and the scroll direction defines a transition from the scroll ingress to the scroll egress;

the stack item for accessing menus is displaced from the floor surface at the scroll egress; and

the stack item for accessing menus is emplaced on the floor surface at the scroll ingress.

8. The memory device of claim 7, wherein:

the scroll direction is left to right.

9. The memory device of claim 1, the operations comprising:

providing for display a selection indicator to indicate that the stack item for accessing menus is selected.

10. The memory device of claim 9, wherein:

the selection indicator comprises an under lighting effect.

11. The memory device of claim 10, wherein:

the selection indicator comprises an enlargement effect.

12. The memory device of claim 5, the operations comprising:

providing for display one or more desktop items on the at least one side surface; and

providing for display one or more desktop items disposed on the back surface.

13. The memory device of claim 12, wherein:

the one or more desktop items disposed on the back surface comprise icons.

14. The memory device of claim 5, the operations comprising

providing for display one or more stack items disposed on a first side surface;

providing for display one or more file items disposed on a second side surface; and

providing for display one or more program items disposed on a third side surface.

15. The memory device of claim 1, the operations comprising:

providing for display in the graphical user interface a plurality of desktop items;

receiving a selection of one of the desktop items; and

associating a physics aspect with the graphical user interface, the physics aspect configured to generate displacement of one or more non-selected desktop items relative to the selected desktop item.

16. The memory device of claim 1, the operations comprising:

associating a lighting aspect with the graphical user interface, the lighting aspect configured to generate a lighting effect corresponding to one or more desktop items displayed in the graphical user interface.

17. The memory device of claim 16, wherein:

the lighting effect comprises a reflection effect.

18. The memory device of claim 16, wherein:

the lighting effect comprises a shadow effect.

19. The memory device of claim 1, wherein:

application instances are rendered on the at least one of the multiple surfaces.

20. The memory device of claim 1, wherein:

the surfaces define an application environment; and

application instances are rendered within the application environment.

21. The memory device of claim 1, the operations comprising:

providing for display a visualization object receptacle in the graphical user interface, the visualization object receptacle defines a plurality of visualization object rows and a plurality of visualization object columns, and wherein multiple visualization objects are disposed within the visualization object receptacle according to the visualization object rows and visualization object columns.

22. The memory device of claim 1, wherein:

at least one of the surfaces is defined by a curvilinear geometry.

23. The memory device of claim 22, wherein:

at least one of the surfaces is defined by arcuate regions.

24. A method, comprising:

displaying, by a computer system, a three dimensional graphical user interface, the graphical user interface including multiple surfaces;

displaying, by the computer system, on one surface from among the multiple surfaces a stack item for accessing menus, the stack item for accessing menus including a plurality of stack elements, each of the stack elements corresponding to an associated menu, each of the associated menus having one or more menu items, wherein in response to an input selecting a stack element from the plurality of stack elements, a menu associated with the selected stack element is displayed, wherein the menu does not appear on any of the multiple surfaces before the input selecting the stack element;

receiving an input selecting the stack item for accessing menus and positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on another one of the multiple surfaces different from the one where the stack item for accessing menus is displayed; and

in response to the input positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on the other one of the multiple surfaces, modifying, by the computer system, at least the other one of the multiple surfaces of the graphical user interface, by causing menus with which the stack elements are respectively associated to reappear on the surface being modified,

wherein the stack item for accessing menus is displayed on a floor surface from among the multiple surfaces, and

wherein the other surface referenced in the input selecting and repositioning the stack item for accessing menus is a back surface of the multiple surfaces.

25. A system, comprising:

one or more hardware processors; and

non-transitory computer readable medium encoding instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors, cause the system to perform operations comprising;

displaying a three dimensional graphical user interface elements, the graphical user interface including multiple surfaces;

displaying on one surface from among the multiple surfaces a stack item, the stack item for accessing menus, the stack item for accessing menus including a plurality of stack elements, each of the stack elements corresponding to an associated menu, each of the associated menus having one or more menu items, wherein in response to an input selecting a stack element from the plurality of stack elements, a menu associated with the selected stack element is displayed, wherein the menu does not appear on any of the multiple surfaces before the input selecting the stack element;

receiving an input selecting the stack item for accessing menus and positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on another one of the multiple surfaces different from the one where the stack item for accessing menus is displayed; and

in response to the input positioning the selected stack item for accessing menus on the other one of the multiple surfaces, modifying at least the other one of the multiple surfaces of the graphical user interface, by causing menus with which the stack elements are respectively associated to reappear on the surface being modified,

wherein the stack item for accessing menus is displayed on a floor surface from among the multiple surfaces, and

wherein the other surface referenced in the input selecting and repositioning the stack item for accessing menus is a back surface of the multiple surfaces.