(PICTURE)(PICTURE) (PICTURE)Europäis hes Patentamt
(1 9) (PICTURE) European Patent Office
(PICTURE) Office euroPeen des brevets (1 1 ) E _ O 689 _ 33 B_
(1 2) EUROPEAN PATENT _PECIFICATlON
(45) Date of pUbliCation and mention (51 ) _nt C_.7_. _O6F 3JO33, _O6F 9/44
of the grant of the patent_.
O8.O8.2OO1 Bulletin 2OO1l32
(21 ) Application number_. 953O3789.2
(22) Date of filing_. O2.O6.1995
(PICTURE)(54) Method of displaying multiple sets of information in the same area of a _omputer s_reen
Verfahren zur Anzeige einer Mehrzahl an Informationsgruppen im gleichen Rechnerbildschirmbereich
Procédé d'affichage d'une pluralité de groupes d'information dans la même région d'un écran
(PICTURE)(PICTURE)
d'ordinateur
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OO N w. h. . h f h b_. . f h . f h f h E .
_ Ote'_ It In nIne mOnt S rOm t e PU ICatIOn O t e mentIOn O t e 9rant O t e UrOPean Patent_ an_ PerSOn ma_ 9IVe
o nOtiCe tO the EUrOpean Patent OffiCe Of OppOSitiOn tO the EUrOpean patent granted. NOtiCe Of OppOSitiOn Shall be filed in
ii a written reasoned statement. It shall not be deemed to have been filed until the opposition fee has been paid. (Art.
w (PICTURE)99(1 ) European Patent Convention). Printed by Jouve, 75OO1 PARIS (FR)
1 EP O 689 1 33 B1 2
Description program rapidly multiplies. Menus become larger and
Ionger; dialog boxes proliferate; and the number of re-
BACKG ROU ND OF TH E I NVENTION AN D P RIOR quired floating palettes grows. Thus, one of the most im-
(PICTURE)ART portant tasks of the software creator is to manage the
- 5 growing complexity of a program's user interface. The
[OOO1 _ As software programs become more complex, objective is to make all of a program's capabilities easily
one of the biggest issues that program designers face accessible and understandable, yet keep as much as
is making all of a software program's controls easily ac- possible of the document itself fully accessible and vis-
cessible to users within a user interface. Most software ible. This requires the minimization of the screen real
products act on a central depositoy called a document, 1O estate used for the user interface elements discussed
whose content a user creates and edits. A document is above, particularly those which remain on the screen for
typically displayed in a rectangular region of the display long periods.
screen called a document window. A spreadsheet user [OOO6_ In the screen example shown in Fig. 3 from the
arranges numbers and titles in a spreadsheet document Microsoft ExcelTM program, five of the nine possible
which acts like a 2-dimensional table. A word-process- 15 floating palettes 3, 4, 5, 6 and _, which Excel terms ''tool-
ing user edits a document which is designed to visually bars'', have been made accessible. Each of the icons
mimic a sheet of paper. An image software user works (pictorial representations of commands) situated in
on a document which looks like a photograph. these named palettes ''Utility'', ''Macro'', ''Drawing'', '' For-
[OOO2_ To create and perform actions on these docu- matting'' and ''Chart'', executes an Excel command
ments, programmers have used a variety of user inter- 2O when accessed by the mouse. Note, however, that
face elements such as menus, dialog boxes and floating these five palettes obscure a great deal of the document
palettes. Pull-down menus, such as the one shown in window, making it more difficult for the user to view and
Fig. 1 , are typically lists of commands which can be hid- manipulate data within the document. This illustrates the
den and activated or pulled down with a pointing or cur- problem of making commands easily accessible while
sor control device, such as a ''mouse'' or trackball, or a 25 maintaining as much as possible of the document ac-
keyboard command. In the example of Fig. 1 , a click on cessible at the same time.
command word ''View'' 1 in the menu at the top of the [OOO7_ There are several ways that software engi-
screen will cause the pull-down menu 2 to appear. neers have tried to resolve these conflicting goals. The
These single-word commands take up vey little screen most basic way is to switch the floating palettes from
real estate because the pull-down menu, in its collapsed 3O visible to invisible when specific menu commands are
state, has a vey compact form, such as a single com- chosen. For example, Adobe Photoshop has com-
mand word. mands that enable a user to selectively hide or show the
[OOO3_ Dialog boxes, such as the one shown in Fig. 2, ''Colors'' palette.
are interface elements that are typically composed of [OOO8_ Microsoft Excel, as shown in Fig. 3, imple-
rectangular regions that appear outside ofthe document 35 ments two other popular schemes. In the case of the
window. While a dialog box is active, action within the ''Macro'' palette 4, for example, movement ofthetiny box
document is usually halted while the user is requested 8 in the lower right hand corner allows the palette to be
to select one or more of a number of options identified reoriented. As shown in Fig. 4, the ''Macro'' palette can
within the dialog box. The dialog box is then dismissed be oriented either vertically or horizontally.
and disappears, and the document is updated based up- 4O [OOO9_ The second mechanism that Excel employs al-
on the selection which the user made from the dialog lows users to create custom palettes which contain the
box. user's own private selection of command icons. Each of
[OOO4_ Floating palettes (or simply ''palettes''), unlike the icons on these palettes symbolizes and activates a
dialog boxes, are typically rectangular regions that selected Excel command. In this fashion, a user can
''float'' above or near the document window or even in- 45 customize the program so the commands that are used
side it and contain commands or tools which are used most often can be made the most accessible.
in an interactive fashion. As opposed to dialog boxes, [OO1 O_ As will be apparent, all of these solutions solve
floating palettes are ''non-modal''. This means that, un- part of the problem. However, as the number and variety
like dialog boxes, actions occurring within the document of desirable floating palettes grow, additional real estate
are not halted while the palettes are being accessed by 5O saving techniques must be invented.
the user. Accordingly, floating palettes are most useful [OO1 1 _ Other examples of the prior art devices are dis-
for holding tools and commands that a user needs to cussed in l BM System Application Architecture ''Com-
access interactively in tandem with the document itself. mon User Access Advanced Interface Design Refer-
ln the example of Adobe PhotoshopTM , floating palettes ence'', First edition, SC 34-429O-OO, October 1 991 , pag-
are used to select colors, document layers or tools, 55 es 1 , 1 63, 1 64 and in l BM Technical Disclosure Bulletin
among other things. Volume 35, No. 5, October 1 992, pages 365 and 366,
[OOO5_ As software becomes more complex, the which references discuss techniques for organising and
number of possible actions and commands within each labelling pages in a book or for making copies of pages
2
3 EP O 689 133 B1 4
thereof. the invention with one palette overlapping another;
Fig. 6 shows two separate combinable palettes of
BRI EF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION the type used in the invention before they are com-
(PICTURE) bined_,
[OO12_ According to the present invention there is pro- 5 Figs. 7 and 8 showtwo examples of combined float-
vided a method for combining an additional set of infor- ing palettes in accordance with the invention; and
mation into a group of multiple sets of information, as Fig. 9 illustrates the control flow for the combinable
set forth in claim 1 . palettes of a preferred embodiment ofthe invention.
[OO13_ Also, there is provided a method for removing
a set of information from a group of multiple sets of in- 1O DETAILED DESCRI PTION OF THE PREFERRED
formation, as set forth in claim 6. (PICTURE)EMBODIMEN
[OO14_ Briefly, the method for displaying on a compu- (PICTURE)
ter screen multiple sets of information needed on a re- [OO17_ The invention works with floating palettes that
curring basis comprises the following steps_. (1 ) estab- may be used in accordance with prior art techniques.
lishing an area on the computerscreen in which the mul- 15 For example, the ''Scratch'', ''Swatches'' and ''Picker''
tiple sets of information are to be displayed, the area palettes, shown in Fig. 5 as palettes 1 O, 1 2 and 1 4, re-
having a size which is less than the entire area of the spectively, are three different sets of controls used for
screen; (2) providing within that area a plurality of se- selecting colors in the Adobe Photoshop program. As
Iection indicators, one for each of the multiple sets of with typical prior artfloating palettes, they can be moved
information; and (3) selecting one of the multiple sets of 2O anywhere on the screen. They can be overlapped, as is
information for display within the established area by shown in Fig. 5, where ''Picker'' palette 1 4 is partially
pointing to one of the selection indicators within the es- overlapped onto ''Swatch'' palette 1 2. And they can be
tablished area, whereby the selected set of information hidden by clicking on the ''close boxes'' 1 6, 1 8 and 2O,
will be substituted within the same area for the set of respectively located in the upper left corner of each of
information which previously had been displayed within 25 the three palettes 1 O, 1 2 and 1 4 in Fig. 5. Once hidden,
the established area. The user can combine an addi- a palette is re-activated, as is well known in the art, by
tional set of information into the multiple set from a dif- choosing an appropriate menu command which desig-
ferent area of the display, and the additional set may nates the hidden palette. As with normal Macintosh_
then be selected in the same manner as the other sets. software, clicking on any of boxes 1 6, 1 8 or 2O totally
When the user no longer wants the sets of information 3O removes the palette containingthat boxfrom the screen.
to be combined, he or she may point to one of the se- In accordance with this invention, any hidden palettes
Iection indicators within the selected area and move or underneath the top one would also be removed.
drag one of the selected sets of information away from [OO18_ The technique of the invention departs from
the established area. prior art solutions to the screen real estate saving prob-
[OO15_ The method described herein can work in con- 35 lem by allowing multiple palettes to be combined so that
junction with the prior art techniques, described above, they occupy the same screen real estate and move as
providing still more savings in screen real estate when a combined unit. In accordance with the invention, by
floating palettes are employed. Using the method, the clicking on the title control tabs 22, 24 or 26 of one of
same screen can be used for these multiple sets of in- palettes 1 O, 1 2 or 1 4, respectively, shown as foldertabs
formation, thereby freeing up more area of the docu- 4O entitled ''Scratch'', ''Swatches'' and ''Picker'' just under
ment for user access. Alternatively, this space saving the top left corner of each of these palettes 1 O, 1 2 and
technique can be employed to make available more 1 4, a particular palette is selected. For example, in Fig.
floating palettes than were previously possiblewith prior 6, if ''Scratch'' palette 1 O is selected (by clicking on the
art techniques. ''Scratch'' tab) and dragged to the left so as to partially
45 overlap the ''Swatches'' palette 1 2, as shown by the dot-
BRI EF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS ted box 1 1 in Fig. 6, instead of the palettes remaining
(PICTURE) partially overlapped, as shown by the dotted box 1 1 in
[OO16_ Fig. 6, they will be physically combined in area 4O, as
shown in Fig. 7.
Fig. 1 illustrates the use of pull-down menus in a 5O [OO19_ In their combined state, shown as screen area
computer program; 4O in both Figs. 7 and 8, the ''Scratch'' and ''Swatches''
Fig. 2 illustrates a typical dialog box in a computer palettes 1 O and 1 2 move as one and occupy the exact
program; same physical screen space 4O as a single palette.
Fig. 3 illustratesthe use offloating palettes in a com- Screen area 4O in Fig. 7 shows the ''Scratch'' palette 1 O
puter program_, 55 selected and visible, the ''Swatches'' palette 1 2 being
Fig. 4 illustrates the use of re-orientable palettes in hidden behind it with only its control tab 34 visible. The
a computer program; same screen area 4O in Fig. 8 shows the ''Scratch'' pal-
Fig. 5 shows an arrangement of floating palettes of ette 1 O hidden with only its control tab 36 visible and the
3
5 EP O 689 133 B1 6
''Swatches'' palette 1 2 is selected and fully visible. It is ettes in the selected palette group.
important to note that the tab controls of both palettes [OO23_ If the selected palette was determined in step
always remain accessible, as shown. When combined, 58 not to be combined with any others, then a determi-
the palette control tabs of the two unified palettes as- nation is made at step 6O whether the tab is now on top
sume one of two states_. active, as shown by ''Scratch'' 5 of another palette. If so, the palette which the selected
tab 3O in Fig. 7 and ''Swatches'' tab 32 in Fig. 8, or in- tab is on top of is highlighted. In addition, the palette
active, as shown by ''Swatches'' tab 34 in Fig. 7 and associated with the selected tab is combined with the
''Scratch'' tab 36 in Fig. 8. Only the active palette is dis- palette that it is on top of. If the determination in step 6O
played, not the inactive one. Clicking on an inactive pal- finds that the tab is not now on top of another palette,
ettecontroltab, which always remains displayed, makes 1O the selected palette is merely moved the distance that
that palette the active one, and makes the formerly ac- the tab was dragged, as was determined at step 56.
tive palette inactive. By clicking on tab 34 in screen area [OO24_ The technique of the invention provides a way
4O in Fig. 7, for example, the inactive ''Swatches'' palette of combining palette controls to allow multiple sets of
1 2 will replace the active and visible ''Scratch'' palette controls to occupy the same screen space. The inven-
1 O as the palette in view, as shown in screen area 4O in 15 tion allows any number of pale_es to be combined or
Fig. 8. separated at the use_s discretion.
[OO2O_ Virtually any number of palettes can be com- [OO25_ Ageneral description ofthe device and method
bined, one behind the other, by this sametechnique, not of the present invention as well as a preferred embodi-
just two. The only requisite is that the tabs of the hidden ment of the present invention has been set forth above.
palettes always be visible so an inactive palette can be 2O For example, the palettes could be somewhat different
identified and retrieved. Combined palettes may easily from each other in area, and a smaller one may be
be separated by the same technique as used for com- placed on top of a larger one (or vice-versa), where ei-
bining them, as illustrated in Fig. 6. Clicking on the title ther the smaller one would expand to fill the space of
control tab 34 in Fig. 7 ofthe inactive ''Swatches'' palette the larger, or the larger one shrink to conform to the
and dragging it outside of the combined screen area 4O 25 smaller, taking into account any size limitations imposed
will liberate the hidden ''Swatches'' palette 1 2 and place upon one or more palettes by the underlying program.
''Swatches'' palette 1 2 in an area of the screen where it
can be viewed.
[OO21_ The method of the invention is described in Claims
more detail using the flow chart of Fig. 9. The method 3O
starts at box 5O where the user clicks the pointer on the 1 . A method for combining on a computer display an
floating palette control tab. At step 52 a determination additional set of information displayed in a first area
is made whether the mouse button has been released. of the display and having associated with it a selec-
If the answer is yes, a second determination is made at tion indicator into a group of multiple sets of infor-
step 54 as to whether the selected palette control tab 35 mation needed on a recurring basis displayed in a
was behind other tabs. The tab will be ''behind'' other second area of the screen, comprising the steps of_.
tabs w_t belongs to an inactive palette which is com-
bined with an active palette. If the answer to that ques- establishing the second area (1 O) on the com-
tion is yes, the selected tab is made active, the other puter display in which the group of multiple sets
tabs with which it is combined are made inactive and its 4O of information is displayed, the second area
palette contents are made visible. If desired, the palette having a size which is less than the entire area
indicated by the selected tab also may be resized, as is of the computer display, the second area (1 O)
well known in the art, for example, in Microsoft ''Win- displaying a first of the multiple sets of informa-
dows''. The palette options are brought to the fore- tion;
ground at the same time. On the other hand, if the se- 45 providing within the second area (1 O) a plurality
Iectedtab was determined at step 54 notto be combined of selection indicators (3O,34), each one asso-
with othertabs, or is already active, then nothing further ciated with a corresponding one of the multiple
need be done. sets of information_,
[OO22_ If it was determined at step 52 that the mouse selecting a second of the multiple sets of infor-
button had not been released, a determination is made 5O mation for displaywithin the second area by ac-
at step 56 whether the selected tab was dragged past tivating a selection indicator (34) associated
the edge of the screen area of the palette controlled by with a second of the multiple sets of informa-
the selected tab (such as screen area 4O in Figs. 7 and tion, whereby the second of the multiple sets of
8). If not, nothing further is done. If so, however, at step information is substituted forthe first ofthe mul-
58 a determination is madewhetherthe selected palette 55 tiple sets of information within the area of the
is currently combined with any others. If so, the selected display; and
palette is highlighted. Moreover, the palette associated combining the additional set of information, dis-
with the selected tab is separated from the inactive pal- played in the first area of the display into the
4
7 EP O 689 1 33 B1 8
group of multiple sets of information so that the 8. The method of claim 6 wherein the established area
additional set of information may be selected is movable to another location on the display.
using its selection indicator (34) in the same
manner as the other sets of information in the
group. 5 Patentansprüche
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the established area 1 . Ein Verfahren zum Vereinigen, auf einem Compu-
is movable to various locations around the display. terdisplay, eines zusätzlichen Satzes von Informa-
tionen, die in einem ersten Bereich des Displays an-
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the additional set of 1O gezeigt werden und denen ein Auswahlindikatorzu-
information is combined by pointing to a selection geordnet ist, mit einer Gruppe mehrerer Sätze wie-
indicator for the additional set of information and derholt benötigter Informationen, die in einem zwei-
dragging that selection indicator into the second ar- ten Bereich des Bildschirm angezeigt werden, um-
ea. fassend die Schritte_.
15
4. The method of claim 1 wherein one of the multiple Bilden des zweiten Bereichs (1 O) auf dem Com-
sets of information in the established area is moved puterdisplay, in dem die Gruppe mehrerer Sät-
away from the second area. ze von Informationen angezeigt wird, wobei der
zweite Bereich ein Größe aufweist, die geringer
5. The method of claim 4 wherein the move is accom- 2O ist als die vollständige Fläche des Computer-
plished by activating a selection indicatorfor the set displays, wobei der zweite Bereich (1 O) einen
of information to be moved and dragging that selec- ersten der mehreren Sätze von Informationen
tion indicator away from the second area. anzeigt;
Bereitstellen einer Mehrzahl von Auswahlindi-
6. A method for removing a set of information from a 25 katoren (3O, 34), von denen jeder einem zuge-
group of multiple sets of information on a computer hörigen der mehreren Sätze von Informationen
display, comprising the steps of_. zugeordnet ist, in dem zweiten Bereich (1 O) ;
Auswählen eines zweiten der mehreren Sätze
establishing an area (1 O) on the computer dis- von Informationen zur Anzeige in dem zweiten
play in which the group of multiple sets of infor- 3O Bereich durch Aktivieren eines Auswahlindika-
mation is to be displayed, the area having a size tors (34), der einem zweiten der mehreren Sät-
which is less than the entire area of the com- ze von Informationen zugeordnet ist, wodurch
puter display; der erste der mehreren Sätze von Informatio-
displaying within the area a first of the multiple nen in dem Bereich des Displays durch den
sets of information from the group of multiple 35 zweiten der mehreren Sätze von Informationen
sets of information; ausgetauscht wird; und
providing within the area a plurality of selection Vereinigen des zusätzlichen Satzes von Infor-
indicators (3O,34), each being associated with mationen, der in dem ersten Bereich des Dis-
one of the multiple sets of information; plays angezeigt wird, mit der Gruppe mehrerer
selecting a second of the multiple sets of infor- 4O Sätze von Informationen derart, daß der zu-
mation from the group of multiple sets of infor- sätzliche Satz von Informationen unter Verwen-
mation for displaying within the area by activat- dung seines Auswahlindikators (34) auf die
ing a selection indicator (34) associated with gleiche Weise wie die anderen Sätze von Infor-
the second of the multiple sets of information, mationen in der Gruppe ausgewählt werden
whereby the second of the multiple sets of in- 45 kann.
formation is substituted on the display for the
first of the multiple sets of information; and 2. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 1 , wobei der gebil-
removing and liberating a set of information dete Bereich zu verschiedenen Orten auf dem Dis-
from the group of multiple sets of information play bewegbar ist.
so that the removed set of information is no 5O
Ionger associated with group and displaying the 3. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 1 , wobei der zusätz-
removed set of information in a different area liche Satz von Informationen vereinigt wird, indem
of the display from the established area. auf einen Auswahlindikator für den zusätzlichen
Satz von Informationen gezeigt und dieser Aus-
_. The method of claim 6 wherein the set of informa- 55 wahlindikator in den zweiten Bereich gezogen wird.
tion is removed by pointing to the selection indicator
associated with that set of information and dragging 4. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 1 , wobei einer der
the set of information out of the established area. mehreren Sätze von Informationen in dem gebilde-
5
9 EP O 689 1 33 B1 1 O
ten Bereich aus dem zweiten Bereich herausbe- Revendications
wegt wird. 1 . Procédé de combinaison sur un affichage d'ordina-
5. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 4, wobei das Bewe- teur d'un ensemble additionnel d'information affiché
gen ausgeführt wird, indem ein Auswahlindikator 5 dans une première zone de l'affichage et possédant
für den zu bewegenden Satz von Informationen ak- en association un indicateur de sélection dans un
tiviert wird und der Auswahlindikator aus dem zwei- groupe de plusieurs ensembles d'information re-
ten Bereich herausgezogen wird. quis sur une base récurrente affiché dans une se-
conde zone de l'écran, comprenant les étapes
6. Ein Ve_ahren zum Entfernen eines Satzes von ln- 1O suivantes _.
formationen aus einer Gruppe mehrerer Sätze von
Informationen auf einem Computerdisplay, umfas- _ l'établissement de la seconde zone (1 O) sur l'af-
send die Schritte_. fichage d'ordinateur dans laquelle le groupe de
plusieurs ensembles d'information est affiché,
Bilden eines Bereichs (1 O) auf dem Computer- 15 la seconde zone ayant une dimension qui est
display, in welchem die Gruppe mehrerer Sätze inférieure à la zone total de l'affichage d'ordina-
von Informationen angezeigt werden soll, wo- teur, la seconde zone (1 O) affichant un premier
bei der Bereich eine Größe aufweist, die gerin- parmi plusieurs ensembles d'information ;
ger als die vollständige Fläche des Computer-
displays ist; 2O _ la prévision dans la seconde zone (1 O) d'une
Anzeigen eines ersten der mehreren Sätze von pluralité d'indicateurs de sélection (3O, 34),
Informationen aus der Gruppe mehrerer Sätze chacun d'eux étant associé à un ensemble cor-
von Informationen in dem Bereich; respondant de la pluralité d'ensembles
Bereitstellen einer Mehrzahl von Auswahlindi- d'information _,
katoren (3O, 34) in dem Bereich, von denen je- 25
der einem der mehreren Sätze von Informatio- _ la sélection d'un second ensemble de la plura-
nen zugeordnet ist; lité d'ensembles d'information pour un afficha-
Auswählen eines zweiten der mehreren Sätze ge dans la seconde zone par activation d'un in-
von Informationen aus der Gruppe mehrerer dicateur de sélection (34) associé à un second
Sätze von Informationen zur Anzeige in dem 3O ensemble de la pluralité d'ensembles d'infor-
Bereich durch Aktivieren eines Auswahlindika- mation, le second ensemble de la pluralité d'en-
tors (34), der dem zweiten der mehreren Sätze sembles d'information étant ainsi substitué au
von Informationen zugeordnet ist, wodurch der premier de la pluralité d'ensembles d'informa-
erste der mehreren Sätze von Informationen tion dans la zone de l'affichage ; et
auf der Anzeige durch den zweiten der mehre- 35
ren Sätze von Informationen ausgetauscht _ la combinaison d'un ensemble additionnel d'in-
wird; und formation, affiché dans la première zone de l'af-
Entfernen und Freisetzen eines Satzes von In- fichage dans le groupe des multiples ensem-
formationen aus der Gruppe mehrerer Sätze bles d'information detelle façon que l'ensemble
von Informationen derart, daß der entfernte 4O additionnel d'information puisse être sélection-
Satz von Informationen nicht mehr der Gruppe né à l'aide de son indicateur de sélection (34)
zugeordnet ist, und der entfernte Satz von In- de la même façon que les autres ensembles du
formationen in einem von dem gebildeten Be- groupe.
reich abweichenden Bereich des Displays an-
gezeigt wird. 45 2. Procédé selon la revendication 1 , selon lequel la zo-
ne établie est mobile en divers points autour de l'af-
7. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 6, wobei der Satz fichage.
von Informationen entfernt wird, indem auf den die-
sem Satz von Informationen zugeordneten Aus- 3. Procédé selon la revendication 1 , selon lequel l'en-
wahlindikator gezeigt und der Satz von lnformatio- 5O semble additionnel d'information est combiné par
nen aus dem gebildeten Bereich herausgezogen pointage sur un indicateur de sélection pour l'en-
wird. semble additionnel d'information et partirage de cet
indicateur de sélection dans la seconde zone.
8. Das Verfahren nach Anspruch 6, wobei der gebil-
dete Bereich an einen anderen O_ auf dem Display 55 4. Procédé selon la revendication 1 , selon lequel un
bewegbar ist. parmi la pluralité d'ensembles d'information de la
zone établie est écarté de la seconde zone.
6
1 1 EP O 689 1 33 B1 1 2
5. Procédé selon la revendication 4, selon lequel le
déplacement est effectué par activation d'un indica-
teur de sélection pour l'ensemble d'information de-
vant être déplacé et par tirage de cet indicateur de
sélection à l'éca_ de la seconde zone. 5
6. Procédé pour enlever un ensemble d'information
d'un groupe de plusieurs ensembles d'information
sur un écran d'ordinateur, comprenant les étapes
suivantes _. 1O
_ l'établissement d'une zone (1 O) sur l'affichage
d'ordinateur dans laquelle le groupe de plu-
sieurs ensembles d'information doit être affi-
ché, la zone ayant une dimension qui est infé- 15
rieure à la zone total de l'affichage
d'ordinateur _,
_ l'affichage dans la zone d'un premier des mul-
tiples ensembles d'information à pa_ir du grou- 2O
pe de plusieurs ensembles d'information ;
_ la prévision dans la zone d'une pluralité d'indi-
cateurs de sélection (3O, 34), chacun d'eux
étant associé à un ensemble correspondant de 25
Ia pluralité d'ensembles d'information ;
_ la sélection d'un second ensemble de la plura-
lité d'ensembles d'information à partir du grou-
pe de plusieurs ensembles d'information pour 3O
un affichage dans la zone par activation d'un
indicateur de sélection (34) associé à un se-
cond ensemble de la pluralité d'ensembles d'in-
formation, le second ensemble de la pluralité
d'ensembles d'information étant ainsi substitué 35
sur l'affichage au premier de la pluralité d'en-
sembles d'information _, et
_ l'enlèvement et la libération d'un ensemble d'in-
formation à partir du groupe de plusieurs en- 4O
sembles d'information de telle façon que l'en-
semble d'information enlevé ne soit plus asso-
cié au groupe et l'affichage de l'ensemble d'in-
formation enlevé dans un zone de l'affichage
différente de la zone établie. 45
7. Procédé selon la revendication 6, selon lequel l'en-
semble d'information est enlevé par pointage sur
l'indicateur de sélection associé à cet ensemble
d'information et par tirage de l'ensemble d'informa- 5O
tion en dehors de la zone établie.
8. Procédé selon la revendication 6, selon lequel la zo-
ne établie est mobilevers une autre position sur l'af-
fichage. 55
7
(PICTURE)
EP O 689 133 B1
FIGU_E 1
8
(PICTURE)
(PICTURE)
EP O 689 133 B1
FIGU_E _ 5
6
9
(PICTURE)
(PICTURE)___
(PICTURE)
EP O 689 133 B1
F(_URf 4
1 8
2 1 4
Fl_URE 5
1 O
_
(PICTURE)(PICTURE)
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__ _
EP O 689 1 33 B1
(PICTURE) 1 2 FIG U__E 6
(PICTURE)
38
_4O
FIG U__E 7
_4O
FIG U__E 8
(PICTURE)
EP O 689 133 B1 te
dragged Palette
associated with
the active tab
wìth the paIette
it is on top of
FIGU_E _
12