JP2003271432A - Device and method for presenting file information and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique for efficiently presenting much file information even on a small display screen and a technique for efficiently displaying folder contents on the same hierarchy or in the neighborhood. <P>SOLUTION: A priority for a display time is given to files within the folder according to information on an update date and time or the kinds of the files. The display files are divided into a plurality of display group units in the priority order to perform a determination. By setting a display attribute such as a transmissivity degree of an icon and a display form around the icon or an operation form of the icon for every group, file information having high priority can be visually discriminated, while presenting more file information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a mobile phone, a PDA.
The present invention relates to a file information presentation device and method and a program in a portable information terminal such as (Personal Digital Assistant), a personal computer, a car navigation system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a tool for graphically supporting display, selection and execution of file and directory information existing in a computer, a window of Microsoft Corporation is available.
Explorer installed in s (R) OS is widely used. There, there are a screen area that displays the directory structure inside the computer in a tree shape and a screen area that graphically enumerates and displays the file information contained in the folder selected there with a bitmap image called an icon and a file name. It is composed of two areas.

However, even if the information of the focused folder is displayed on the screen, the information of the adjacent folder or the relatively close folder information such as the upper folder or the lower folder is not presented. I had to brute force the folders.

Also, as the directory structure becomes more complicated and the directory depth becomes deeper, it often becomes difficult to find a file placed by the user. In particular, when a file is placed in a location across the branches of a directory tree, it is troublesome to repeat the search from the selection of the directory. PDA such as Pocket PC has similar file browsing software called File Explorer,
All the display screens are used to display the folder contents, and the directory selection requires a two-step process of selecting a folder after the tree-shaped directory screen pop-up is displayed, which is intuitively difficult to operate. .

[0005]

When a high-resolution display screen such as a desktop PC can be used, a two-screen configuration of a directory screen like an explorer and a file screen in a folder is no problem, but a mobile phone or a PD.
When trying to realize the same thing on a device with a small display screen such as A, it is difficult to construct an interface that is easy for the user to use, such as a smaller character and a smaller display screen.

On a PDA such as PocketPC, a file explorer is provided with a function similar to that of the Windows (R) OS explorer, but folders and files are selected only on the file selection screen. Here, because the hierarchical structure of folders does not look like a tree, it is difficult to grasp the entire structure of the directory tree.If you want to search the contents of multiple folders existing in the same hierarchical directory, check the contents of the lower folders once, and then There was a lot of waste in the processing procedure such as returning to the original directory, which made usability worse.

In view of the above situation, the present invention intends to provide a method for efficiently presenting a large amount of file information even on a small display screen and a method for efficiently displaying the contents of folders on the same level or in the vicinity. To do.

[0008]

A file information presenting apparatus of the present invention is a file information presenting apparatus for presenting file information in a computer on a display screen, and a display priority for determining a display priority of a file. Degree determining means, and a display file determining means for determining a file to be displayed based on the determination of the display priority determining means, and a display file determined by the display file determining means.
Display form determining means for selecting an icon image according to a file extension and display priority, and determining a display form such as transparency, and an operating form determination for determining an animation operation form on the screen of the display file Means and
And a display file drawing means for drawing file information on a screen based on the display form determined by the display form determining means and the operation form determined by the operation form determining means.

[0009] With this, it is possible to efficiently make the user aware of a high priority file or attribute information of a file while presenting more file information.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of a file information presentation method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a file information presentation method according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the file information presentation method according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows a configuration example of a display screen using the file information presentation method according to the present embodiment.

The display screen according to the present embodiment is roughly divided into four screen areas of a folder name display window, an icon window, a navigation frame, and a display layer switching button. The folder name display window is an area for displaying the name of the currently displayed folder and the position of the displayed folder in the directory hierarchy. In the folder hierarchy, the root is represented by 0 and incremented by one each time the folder becomes one step lower than the root.

The icon window is an area for displaying the file information contained in the folder as an icon. By tapping or clicking the target icon, when the target is a file, the application associated with the extension is executed, and when the target is a folder, the display folder is switched. The navigation frame is a screen area provided for facilitating folder selection, and the display layer switching button is a button for switching a display layer for each file grouping unit called a layer.

The procedure for actually selecting a folder and displaying the file information contained in the folder will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

First, folder selection is realized by a switching operation according to a relative positional relationship with respect to the current folder (step S202). For example, in the case of the screen configuration as shown in FIG. 3, a higher level folder in the directory tree is moved by tapping the navigation frame (area A) at the top of the screen, and the display screen is moved to the next folder in the same hierarchy. When switching, the navigation frame (area B or area C) on the left or right of the screen is tapped to move. To move to a lower folder in the directory tree, tap the folder icon displayed in the icon window. Further, the folder selection is not limited to the method based on the relative orientation such as the navigation frame described here, and may be a method of switching to the directory tree screen and selecting a display folder like a file explorer. Absent.

Next, the display priority determining unit 101 determines the display priority of the files included in the folder selected above. Here, the date and time when the file was accessed,
That is, priority is given to the update date and time, files with newer access dates and times are given priority on the screen, and files included in the folder are sorted by update date and time (step S203). If the update date and time is the same, sort by file name and rank. However, since folders are expected to appear on the initial screen of the icon window, they are given the highest priority separately from files.

Here, the screen in the icon window is composed of a group (file) of grouped files, and the screen is composed of three layers as shown in FIG.
Shown in. By unifying the display form and operation form of the files included in the layer, it is possible to prioritize and display the file information even on a limited display screen.

In particular, layer 0 constitutes a background screen and does not include file information. An arbitrary image file is read and drawn by the display file drawing unit as a background image on the screen (step S204).

Then, in the display file determining section 102,
From the files ranked by the display priority determination unit 101, the files to be displayed on the screen are registered in the order of higher display priority for each layer (step S205).
Here, it should be noted that the layer registration of the files according to the priority is in ascending order with respect to the layer identifier, that is, the file with the highest priority is registered from layer 1, and the file to be registered with layer 2 is subsequently determined To be done.

On the other hand, in the drawing process described below, it is assumed that the layer 1 registration icon is drawn after the layer identifier is drawn, that is, after the layer 2 registration icon is drawn. When the maximum number of icons included in one layer is 12, 12 files with high display priority are registered as display targets in each layer.

First, the display form determining unit 103 determines the display form of a file (step S206). Specifically, the icon / bitmap representing the file is selected, the file name is displayed / hidden, the display form around the icon / bitmap is selected, and the icon transparency is determined.

The icon bitmap image uses a bitmap icon registered in the system corresponding to the file extension. In addition to such a static bitmap image, a moving image icon that is a collection of a series of multiple bitmap images may be registered.
The icon / bitmap or the moving picture icon corresponding to the extension of the file may be associated not only with the information registered in the system but also in this application. The display / non-display of the file name can be switched.

As the display form around the icon / bitmap, in addition to the normal icon form, there is a form (framed icon) composed of a frame covering the icon / bitmap and the file name as shown in FIG. be able to. In the normal icon form, only a two-dimensional and flat impression can be given, but by adopting the frame form (framed icon), the user can get the impression that the entire icon / bitmap is “excited” or “dented”. Can be given to.

Especially in layer 1 where there is a high possibility that folders and other files will coexist, the distinction is important.
In the normal bitmap format, it is necessary to identify only by the bitmap image of the icon, whereas by adopting the "raised" frame format for folders and the "dented" frame format for other files, The folder can be expected to stand out in three dimensions from the surroundings, and the user's identification load can be reduced.
On the contrary, the layer 2 registration icon is displayed in the normal icon form and the file name is hidden in order to reduce the degree of attention.

Finally, the transparency between the background image and the icon or the framed icon is determined. The layer 1 registration icon has the highest display priority and is always displayed in the foreground, so the transparency is set to 0 (opaque). On the other hand, layer 2
The registered icon has a transparency of 0.5 and is displayed semi-transparently.

Similarly, the operation mode determining unit 104 determines the operation mode when the file is displayed (step S207). Here, it defines how the icon representing the file or the framed icon moves on the screen, and is expressed by the moving direction and speed. Motion vector V =
By setting (0, -1), "up screen", V =
By setting (0, 1) to "down screen", V = (1, -1) to "up right screen", and V = (1, 1) to "down screen right", etc. It is possible to specify the movement of the icon included in (FIGS. 6 and 7).

The variation of the operation defined here is not limited to such a two-dimensional parallel movement pattern, but an enlarged icon or iconified frame
It may be defined such as reduction, in-screen rotation, or modification processing (an affine modification, non-linear expansion / contraction, crushing, etc.) of a rectangular area covering an icon or a frame icon.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-10 is applicable to such a rectangular area transformation process.
The modification methods described in JP-A-261102 and JP-A-11-7539 can be used.

The layer 1 registration icon is in a stationary state in order to raise the degree of attention. On the contrary, the layer 2 registration icon is set to the operation mode of “downward of the screen” (motion vector V = (0, 1)) in order to distinguish it from the layer 1.

Finally, the display file drawing unit 105 draws a file included in each layer on the screen based on the display mode determined by the display mode determination unit 103 and the operation mode determined by the operation mode determination unit 104. Will be done.

Then, it is judged whether all layers have ended (step S2).
09), the display file determination process (step S205) is repeated until all layer processes are completed.

According to the above embodiment, a file with a newer update date (higher priority) can be always displayed in the foreground, and a file with an older update date (lower priority) can be discriminated uniformly. You can now use expressions and movement expressions. In addition, distinguishing between folders and other files is facilitated by using a frame form that provides a visual stereoscopic perception. In addition, when the pointer is included in the icon, for example, it is possible to emphasize the difference by adding feedback with another medium, for example, sound.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a file information display screen when the layer 2 registration icon is not frame-deformed and the layer 2 registration icon is translated in the "downward direction of the screen".
In addition, an example of a file information display screen when the layer 1 registration icon is frame-deformed and the layer 2 registration icon is moved in a circular path centering on the center of the screen is shown in FIG.
Shown in. At the same time, the screen background image corresponding to layer 0 and the color scheme of the navigation frame are also changed. By changing the color arrangement of the navigation frame according to the depth of the directory hierarchy of the displayed folder, it is possible to emphasize the difference in folder movement.

The number of display layers is not limited to three, and if the number of layers is increased and movement variations and transmittances are individually set by the same processing procedure as above,
It is possible to efficiently display more files on a limited screen.

Further, in the above embodiment, a specific folder is selected and files included in the folder are displayed by being divided into a plurality of layers. However, only files with a high priority included in the plurality of folders are displayed in units of folders. It is also possible to divide the layers into layers and manage them, and display them on the same screen by the same processing as in the above embodiment. In this case, the information in the folder located in the vicinity of the currently focused folder can be displayed on the same screen, which facilitates the prospect of file search when the directory structure is complicated.

Further, it is possible to switch and display all folders with one display layer switching button shown in FIG. 3, which is suitable for mounting on a device such as a PDA or a mobile phone having a limited display screen and interface means.

It is also possible to realize the processing in the embodiments of the present invention by a computer-executable program and realize the program as a computer-readable storage medium.

The storage medium in the present invention is a magnetic disk, flexible disk, hard disk, optical disk (CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD).
Etc.), a magneto-optical disk (MO etc.), a semiconductor memory, etc., as long as it is a storage medium which can store a program and can be read by a computer, the storage format may be any form.

Further, an OS (operation system) running on the computer, database management software, MW (middleware) such as a network, etc., realizes the present embodiment based on the instructions of the program installed in the computer from the storage medium. You may perform a part of each process for doing.

Further, the storage medium in the present invention is not limited to a medium independent of a computer, but includes a storage medium in which a program transmitted via a LAN or the Internet is downloaded and stored or temporarily stored.

Further, the number of storage media is not limited to one, and even when the processing in this embodiment is executed from a plurality of media, it is included in the storage media of the present invention, and the structure of the medium may be any one. Good.

The computer according to the present invention is
Each processing is executed in the present embodiment based on a program stored in a storage medium, which has any configuration such as a device such as a personal computer or a system in which a plurality of devices are network-connected. Good.

Further, the computer in the present invention is not limited to a personal computer but also includes an arithmetic processing unit, a microcomputer and the like included in information processing equipment, and is a generic term for equipment and devices capable of realizing the functions of the present invention by a program. is doing.

[0042]

As described above, according to the present invention, the user can use the limited display screen of a mobile phone, a PDA, etc.
Since it becomes possible to pay attention to only the file with high priority while paying attention to the attributes of the files included in the folder, it becomes possible to efficiently select the file suitable for the purpose. Also, since the contents of folders in the vicinity can be presented on the same screen with the directory tree structure, the prospect of file search is improved and a simple operation interface can be realized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a file information presentation method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a screen configuration example of a file information presentation method according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an icon window including a plurality of layers according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining two display forms in the display form determining unit for file information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a vertical parallel operation in an operation mode determination unit of file information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining an oblique parallel operation in the operation mode determining unit of the file information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an example of a final display screen displaying all layers in a state where the framed icon is not deformed in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an example of a final display screen displaying all layers in a state where the framed icon is deformed according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols] 101 ... Display priority determination unit 102 ... Display file determination unit 103 ... Display form determination unit 104 ... Operation form determination unit 105 ... Display file drawing unit

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    F-term (reference) 5B082 EA10 GC01 GC02                 5E501 AC20 BA03 CA02 CB09 EA05                       EB05 FA04 FA23

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A file information presenting apparatus for presenting file information in a computer on a display screen, wherein display priority determining means for determining display priority of a file and determination of the display priority determining means. Display file determining means for determining a file to be displayed based on the above, and for each display file determined by this display file determining means, selection of an icon image according to file extension and display priority, and transparency. Display mode determining means for determining a display mode such as, a motion mode determining means for determining an animation motion mode on the screen of the display file, a display mode determined by the display mode determining means, and the motion A display file drawing means for drawing file information on the screen based on the operation form determined by the form determining means. File information presentation device which is characterized the door. 2. The display file determining means determines and manages the display files by dividing them into at least one or more groups based on the display priority of the files or the folder information to which the files belong. 2. The file information presenting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation mode determining means sets the configuration file of each group to the same display mode and operation mode. 3. The display form deciding means, based on the file type corresponding to the extension of the display file or the file attribute such as a folder, the display attribute of the icon or the moving image icon for displaying the file and the display form around it. 3. The file information presentation device according to claim 1, wherein the file information presentation device is switched. 4. The operation mode determining means switches the animation operation mode of an icon for expressing a file or a movie icon based on a file type corresponding to an extension of a display file or a file attribute such as a folder. Claims 1 to 3
The file information presentation device according to any one of the above. 5. A file information presentation method for presenting file information in a computer on a display screen, wherein display priority of a file is determined, a file to be displayed is determined based on this determination, and this determination is made. For each display file, select the icon image according to the file extension and display priority, and determine the display mode such as transparency, determine the animation operation mode on the screen of the display file, And a file information presentation method characterized in that the file information is drawn on the screen based on the operation mode determined by the operation mode determination means. 6. A program for causing a computer to execute as a file information presenting device for presenting file information in a computer on a display screen, the step of deciding display priority of files, and displaying based on this decision. On the screen of the display file, the step of deciding the file, the step of deciding the display form such as the selection of the icon image according to the file extension and the display priority, and the transparency for each of the decided display files. A program for executing a step of determining an animation operation mode, and a step of drawing file information on a screen based on the determined display mode and the operation mode determined by the operation mode determination means.