JPH0644251A - Menu display method - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To provide a menu display method that enables an illustration display corresponding to the format information of a registered document, improves the visibility of menu items on the initial screen, and can perform swift work. [Structure] A document name or format information of a registered document is called from the storage element and displayed on the display at the same time when an initial screen is displayed for displaying processing functions such as new document creation or document update.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the name and content of a process that can be executed in a document creating apparatus having functions of inputting, editing, and printing a document, such as a Japanese word processor or a personal computer, and document editing. Related to a menu display method for displaying a list of various document names and selecting a desired process from the list.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a menu display called an icon menu in a word processor or the like displays a list of processing names and illustrations with which the processing contents can be associated, and a processing is selected from the displayed icon menu. It is a thing.

In order to edit a document, the operator must select the document editing target document from the icon menu screen and then select the document editing target document. It required several input operations from the input device before starting editing.

[0004]

In the above prior art, when a document created by a document creating device such as a word processor or a personal computer is to be updated and a document edit is to be executed, it is necessary to select the target document as described above. Since the input operation was required several times, there was a problem that it was not possible to immediately shift to the document editing and it took a considerable time to start the document editing.

Further, for example, if the target document to be edited exists in a lower layer of a HDD (fixed disk), which is layered in multiple layers, if the operator does not remember the position, it will be smooth. It also has a problem that the target document cannot be selected.

Since a plurality of menu items are displayed in the icon menu, the illustration display showing each process is indispensable for facilitating the operator's selection of the process.

However, conventionally, there is no one that directly selects a specific document from the icon menu screen and shifts to the document editing process. That is, none of the conventional arts considers the illustration display method when displaying a specific document on the icon menu screen.

An object of the present invention is to enable a document registered as a menu item to be directly selected from the icon menu screen and immediately shift to a document editing process, and to correspond to the document information (for example, format information) of the document. It is an object of the present invention to provide a menu display method capable of improving the visibility on the icon menu screen, facilitating the selection, and improving the operability by performing the illustrated illustration.

[0009]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The above-mentioned object is to provide a display for displaying a processing function such as new document creation or document update, and a document name already registered, on the display screen displayed on the display. In the menu display method for displaying the processing function or the document which can be selected with, the contents of the document already registered and the format information of the document are stored in the storage element, and the processing function display such as new document creation or document update is displayed. This is achieved by calling the document name and format information of the registered document from the storage element and displaying them simultaneously on the display when the initial screen is displayed.

[0010]

According to the above method, when the document registered in the menu item is displayed in the menu, it is displayed together with the format information of the registered document, so that the illustration image information can be correctly selected, and the actual document processing work can be performed. It works so that you can move quickly.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A method of an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows the configuration of an information processing apparatus for executing the menu display selection method. In the figure,
1 is a central processing unit (CPU) that controls the entire system,
RAM 2 is a readable / writable memory for storing document name information and format information of menu items, 3 is a program memory for storing programs and data, and 4 is dictionary data used for kana-kanji conversion. The dictionary memory 5 is a character generator (hereinafter referred to as CG) for storing character patterns to be displayed on the display 8, illustration image patterns of menu items, etc., and 6 is control for reading out pattern information stored in the image memory 7. A display controller for performing the operation, 7 is an image memory for storing pattern information to be displayed on the display 8, 8 is a display for displaying character information, 9 is a mouse, 10 is a keyboard (K / B), 11 Are input devices such as mouse 9 and keyboard (K / B) 10.
And a CPU bus 20 between the K / B 10 and the mouse 9, the key input controller controls the CPU 1 to detect the information, and the floppy disk 12 is an external storage device for storing document information and the like. A disk drive device (hereinafter referred to as FDD) 13 is located between the FDD 12 and the CPU bus 20 and is a floppy disk controller (F) for controlling the access of the FDD 12 by the CPU 1.
DC), 14 is a hard disk drive device (hereinafter referred to as HDD) which is a high-speed external storage device for storing programs, document information, character pattern information for printing, and the like, and 15 is between the HDD 14 and the CPU bus 20 and the HDD 14 A hard disk controller (hereinafter referred to as HDC) that controls when the CPU 1 accesses
Reference numeral 6 is a CDROM which is a large-capacity external storage device for storing document information and the like, and 17 is a CDROM 16 and a CPU bus 2.
A CD controller for controlling the access of the CDROM 16 by the CPU 1 between 0, 18 is a printer as an output device, 19 is a printer 18 and a CPU bus 20.
And a printer controller 20 for controlling the transfer of data by the CPU 1 to the printer 18 between
CPU bus 20 connecting between U1 and each of the above components
And constitutes an apparatus in which the method of the present invention is implemented.

When the information processing apparatus having the above configuration is activated, the programs stored in the program memory 3 or the HDD 12 are sequentially read by the CPU 1, the processing is executed according to the program procedure, and the information processing apparatus is executed. And the menu screen is displayed on the display 8. After that, the input device K /
A necessary program is executed based on the information input from B10 or the mouse 9, and the input editing character information and the like which are being edited are stored in the RAM 2.
Furthermore, when the document editing is finished and the document is saved, F
Processing such as registration and storage in the DD 12, HDD 14 or CDROM 16 is performed.

FIG. 3 shows a display example of the menu screen.

FIG. 3 is a menu screen on which a maximum of 15 menu items can be displayed on one screen.

Menu items No. 01 to No. 04 are
It shows the processing required for document editing, and is always displayed as a menu. In addition, menu items No. 06 to N
O.09 indicates a document registered as a menu item according to the present invention, and the menu items NO. 05 and NO.
No. 10 to No. 15 indicate that the process or the document is not registered.

Here, the operator selects the desired menu item from the menu screen displayed on the display by K / B10.
Alternatively, the mouse 9 is selected to shift to the next processing.

FIG. 4 shows the display contents of the menu items.

The menu items to be displayed are menu item NO in the upper right part, document name or process name in the lower part, and format information of each document or an illustration corresponding to each process in the center part as image information. Hereinafter, this is referred to as illustration image information.

5 and 6 show illustration image information corresponding to the format information of the document registered in the menu item, which is a feature of the present invention.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, it is divided into four pieces of illustration image information on the basis of the paper direction and the character direction which are format information. When the format information is vertically long and vertically written, the illustration image information of FIG. 6A corresponds, when vertically and horizontally written, the illustration image information of FIG. 6B corresponds, and when vertically and vertically written, the image information of FIG. 6) corresponds, and in the case of horizontal landscape writing, the illustration image information of FIG. 6 (4) corresponds. Format information is RAM
2, the information stored in all the documents registered in the FDD 12, the HDD 14, the CDROM 16, etc., and the four illustration image information shown in FIG. 6 are stored in the CG 5. The illustration image information may be stored in the program memory 3, the HDD 14, the CDROM 16 or the like.

Further, as the format information corresponding to the illustration image information, a paper size and the like shown in FIG. 5 can be considered. An example of the illustration image information at that time is shown in FIG.
It is shown in (1) or (2). By displaying the paper size as illustrated in FIG. 7, the visibility of the paper size by the operator can be improved.

As described above, by displaying the illustration image information corresponding to the format information in the menu item, when selecting the desired document edit from the menu screen, the menu item of the desired document is located at which position on the menu screen. It is possible to improve the visibility of whether it is displayed in.

FIG. 1 shows a processing flow when a registered document according to the present invention is registered in a menu item.

First, when the input of the designation of the document to be registered in the menu item is received in process 21, the process proceeds to process 22. In process 22, the document name information, the format information and the storage position information are read from the document registered in the menu item and temporarily stored in the RAM 2.

Next, the process proceeds to step 23, and the menu item list shown in FIG. 8 is displayed. The menu item list of FIG. 8 displays the menu item NO and the corresponding document name or process name. Note that FIG. 8 is an example of a menu item list when a maximum of 30 items of documents or processes can be registered in a menu item. In this case, there are two menu screens, and the operator can Item N
Select the desired menu item by switching between the first menu screen displaying O.01 to NO.15 and the second menu screen displaying menu items NO.16 to NO.30. The document will be edited.

After displaying the menu item list, the process proceeds to step 24, and the input device such as the K / B 10 or the mouse 9
When the menu item NO to be registered is input, the process 22
The document name information stored in the RAM 2 is read out and the document name is displayed in the name field of the designated menu item NO.

Next, in process 25, the process waits for the input indicating the start of registration from the input device to the menu item, and when the input indicating the start of registration is received, the process proceeds to process 26.

The process 26 according to the present invention is performed by R in the process 22.
The format information stored in AM2 is read out, and the format information shown in FIGS.
As described above, the sheet orientation and the character orientation, which are the format information, are recognized, and the storage position of the illustration image information corresponding to the format information is determined.

In the next processing 27, menu item information including the document name information of the document to be registered, the illustration image information read from the storage location of the illustration image information determined in the processing 26, and the storage location information in which the registered document is stored are displayed as menu items. The information is registered in the RAM 2 or the HDD 14 or the like. When the registration of the menu item information is completed, the process proceeds to step 28, and the menu screen which is the initial screen is displayed. At this time, the document registered in the menu item is displayed based on the menu item information registered in the RAM 2 or the HDD 14.

As described above, according to the present invention, the document can be registered in the menu item on the menu screen, and the document editing process can be directly performed from the menu screen. At this time, by displaying the illustration corresponding to the format information of the registered document, it is possible to display the illustration prompting the image of the menu item contents, improving the visibility of the menu item of the registered document and improving the operability. It will be possible to improve.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this example, an illustration image of a document to be registered in a menu item is not selected and displayed based on format information, but the layout of each registered document is displayed in the menu item. Therefore, the illustration image of the menu item becomes unique for each registered document, the visibility of the menu item of the registered document is further improved, and the operability can be improved.

For example, the layout of the first page of the document to be registered is reduced so that it can be displayed in the menu item area, and the reduced image information is used as the illustration image information of the menu item. Similarly R
When the menu screen is displayed by registering in the AM 2 or the HDD 14, etc., the menu items are displayed based on the menu item information (illustration image information, etc.) registered in the RAM 2 or the HDD 14.

Further, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this example, it is determined whether or not the document currently registered in the menu item is accessible based on the storage location information of the document, which is one of the menu item information.

Here, access means a document editing process, and is hereinafter referred to as access.

The process flow of FIG. 9 will be described below.

First, in step 31, it is determined whether or not the determination as to whether or not all the documents registered in the menu item can be accessed is completed.

Here, if the discrimination for all the documents is not completed, the process proceeds to step 32.

In the process 32, it is judged whether or not the place where the document registered in the menu item is stored can be accessed. For example, the document registered in the menu item is CDRO
If it is stored in the M16 and the CDROM 16 is not currently connected, it is determined that it is inaccessible.
In this process 32, if the document is accessible, process 31
Return to. If the access is impossible, the process proceeds to step 33.

In the next process 33, the display of the document name and the illustration image information displayed in the menu item area is prohibited for the inaccessible document. When the process 33 is completed, the process moves to the process 31.

When the discrimination for all the documents is completed in the process 31, the process proceeds to the process 34, and only the menu items other than the display prohibited in the process 33 are displayed on the menu screen.

As described above, the operator can improve the operability by displaying only the currently accessible menu item when the menu screen is displayed.

The display processing for the inaccessible menu item area is not limited to the change of the display color, the shading processing, the message display, the whole area or a part of the menu item. Clearly not lost.

Further, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this example, the storage position is identified based on the storage position information of the document, which is one of the menu item information, and the storage position of the document is displayed in the menu item area.

As described above, when the document is registered in the menu item, the storage location information is registered as one of the menu item information.

In this example, the document registered in the menu item based on the storage position information is, for example, FDD12, HD.
It is determined which of the D14 and the CDROM 16 etc. is stored, and the storage position is displayed on the menu item screen.

From the above, the operator can confirm the storage position of the document registered in the menu item. So, for example,
When the document registered in the menu item is stored in the floppy disk, it can be recognized that the floppy disk needs to be inserted into the FDD 12, and the operability can be improved. As described above, by confirming the display of the storage position in the menu item screen before access, it is possible to grasp the necessity of inserting the floppy or connecting each device.

[0048]

As described above, the invention of the present application is provided with a display capable of displaying a processing function such as new document creation or document update and a document name that has already been registered. In the menu display method for displaying the processing function or the document that can be selected on the display screen, the contents of the document already registered and the format information of the document are stored in the storage element, and the new document creation or the document update, etc. When the initial screen displaying the processing function is displayed, the document name and format information of the registered document is called from the storage element and displayed on the display at the same time, so the document can be registered in the menu item of the menu screen. Then, it becomes possible to directly shift to the document editing process from the menu screen. At this time, by displaying the illustration corresponding to the format information or the document information of the registered document, it is possible to display the illustration prompting the image of the contents of the menu item and improve the visibility of the menu item of the registered document. The operability can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a process flow for registering a registered document in a menu item according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an information processing device.

FIG. 3 is a display example of a menu screen.

FIG. 4 is a display configuration diagram of menu items.

FIG. 5 shows an example of format information of a document registered in a menu item and an example of display of illustration image information corresponding to the format information.

FIG. 6 shows an example of format information of a document registered in a menu item and an example of display of illustration image information corresponding to the format information.

FIG. 7 is a display example of illustration image information when the paper size is displayed as an illustration.

FIG. 8 is a display example of a menu item list.

FIG. 9 is a process flow for changing the display contents of the menu item screen.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Central processing unit, 2 ... RAM, 5 ... Character generator (CG), 7 ... Image memory, 8 ... Display, 1
2 ... FDD, 14 ... HDD, 16 ... CDROM.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A display for displaying a processing function such as a new document creation or a document update and a registered document name is provided, and the processing function or the document is selected on the display screen displayed on the display. In the menu display method for performing possible display, the contents of the already registered document and the format information of the document are stored in the storage element, and the storage is performed when the initial screen is displayed to display the processing function such as new document creation or document update. A menu display method in which the document name and format information of a registered document is called from an element and displayed simultaneously on the display. 2. A display for displaying a processing function such as new document creation or document update and a registered document name etc. is provided, and the processing function or document is selected on the display screen displayed on the display. In the menu display method that enables display, the contents of a document that has already been registered and the format information of the document are stored in a storage element, and illustration image information is generated based on these format information to create a new document or a document. A menu display method for displaying an illustration image of a registered document on the display at the same time by calling the document name of the registered document and illustration image information from the storage element at the time of displaying an initial screen for displaying processing functions such as updating. 3. A display for displaying a processing function such as new document creation or document update and a registered document name etc. is provided, and the processing function or document is selected on the display screen displayed on the display. In the menu display method that enables display, the contents of a document that has already been registered and the format information of the document are stored in the storage element, and the format information such as the paper size of the document, the character size of any page or the character arrangement is displayed. Generates illustration image information based on the above, and calls the document name of the registered document and the illustration image information of any page of the document from the storage element at the time of initial screen display for displaying processing functions such as new document creation or document update. A menu display method for simultaneously displaying a page illustration image of a registered document on the display. 4. The document according to claim 1, wherein the document of the menu item is in an editable state,
A menu display method in which the display screen information of a part or the whole of the menu item area is changed based on the information based on this determination result, and the menu item display of the document registered in the menu item is changed. 5. A menu display according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a position where the processing program or the document is stored is identified, and the processing program or the storage position of the document is displayed in the menu item area. Method.