Patent Application
20070180402
The present invention generally relates to managing dynamic objects. More specifically, the invention relates to managing chat objects by inserting and removing them from chat application management systems.
Many people communicate using chat or instant messaging applications. These applications enable individuals to communicate privately or publicly with other individuals with minimal communication latency regardless of the location of each individual. Each chat window is a dynamic object, and subject to real time changes.
However, users of these technologies often encounter difficulties managing these communications as the number of simultaneous chat communications increases. Each dynamic window receives and sends communications in substantial real time (i.e. with minimal latency). As additional chat sessions are created, the user's screen becomes more cluttered and difficult to manage.
It is therefore a challenge to develop a method to manage dynamic chat objects to overcome these, and other, disadvantages.
A method of managing chat objects includes receiving a chat object command associated with a chat object that has been dragged-and-dropped into a chat management system and subsequently determining space availability within the chat management system. The method further includes determining at least one spatial characteristic of at least one dropped chat management system object, and adjusting at least one object display characteristic of the dropped chat management system object based on the determined space availability and determined chat management system object spatial characteristic
A computer usable medium including computer readable code for managing chat objects includes computer readable code for receiving a dropped chat object command associated with a chat object at a chat management system and computer readable code for determining space availability of the chat management system. The medium further includes computer readable code for determining at least one spatial characteristic of at least one chat object dropped into a chat management system, and computer readable code for adjusting at least one object display characteristic of the chat management system object based on the determined space availability and determined dropped chat management system object spatial characteristic.
A system for managing chat objects includes means for receiving a dropped chat object command associated with a chat object at a chat management system and means for determining space availability of the chat management system. The system further includes means for determining at least one spatial characteristic of at least one chat management system object, and means for adjusting at least one object display characteristic of the chat management system object based on the determined space availability and determined chat management system object spatial characteristic.
The foregoing embodiment and other embodiments, objects, and aspects as well as features and advantages of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description of various embodiments of the present invention. The detailed description and drawings are merely illustrative of the present invention, rather than limiting the scope of the present invention being defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof
An operating system runs on processor 152 to coordinate and provide control of various components within computer system 150. The operating system may be any appropriate available operating system such as Windows, Macintosh, UNIX, LINUX, or OS/2, which is available from International Business Machines Corporation. “OS/2” is a trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. Instructions for the operating system, an object-oriented operating system, and applications or programs are located on storage devices, such as hard disk drive 176 and may be loaded into main memory 154 for execution by processor 152.
Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware in
The application determines space availability of the chat management system at step 320. The space availability is the area defined by the borders of the application window. In one embodiment, determining space availability includes determining unoccupied space and occupied space. In another embodiment, the determination includes a determination of a proportion of occupied space to total space availability. The determination includes, in one embodiment, a determination of at least one chat management system object. A chat management system object is an object displayed by the chat management system and/or controlled by the chat management system.
The application determines at least one spatial characteristic of at least one chat management system object at step 330. A spatial characteristic is data indicative of the footprint or other physical representation of a chat management system object. For example, a chat management system object can include a vertical dimension and horizontal dimension as spatial characteristics.
In order to absorb a dropped chat object, the application adjusts at least one object display characteristic of at least one chat management system object based on the determined space availability and determined chat management system object spatial characteristics at step 340. For example, the vertical and horizontal dimensions of objects contained within the chat management system are adjusted by shortening each dimension. Alternatively, only a single dimension or characteristic is adjusted based on the spatial characteristics. In another example, the position of the chat management system object is adjusted, either with or without adjusting the dimensional characteristics. In one embodiment, the size of at least one secondary chat management system object is proportionally adjusted to accommodate a spatial characteristic of an additional dropped chat object based on receiving the designation of the primary chat management system object. A primary chat management system object is a chat management system object that is segregated from the remaining, secondary, chat management system objects and is the active object currently receiving and sending inputs and outputs.
The application places the dragged chat object on the chat management system at step 350. The dragged chat object is positioned on the chat management system based on the spatial characteristics of the chat management system and the number of other chat management system objects. Once the chat object is placed on the chat management system, the dragged chat object is further grouped with at least one other chat management system object, in one embodiment In another embodiment, objects on the chat management system, including the chat object and chat management system objects, remain independent and ungrouped. In one embodiment, placing the chat object on the chat management system comprises making adjustments to the graphical look and feel of the chat object In another embodiment, the graphical look and feel of the chat objects remains unchanged based on placement on the chat management system.
At step 410, a drag chat object command associated with a chat object is received at the chat management system. Based on the received drag chat object command, the chat management system releases any groupings or associations from the associated chat object.
The chat object is removed from the chat management system at step 420 based on receiving commands responsive to a user dragging-and-dropping the chat object from the chat management system to a desktop or other application not under the control of the chat management system.
The application determines a number of chat management system objects n at step 510. The spatial characteristics of each of the n chat management system objects is further determined, in one embodiment
Each of the n chat management system objects is resized to free up 1/n+1 of the chat management system space at step 520. For example, one chat management system includes 3 chat management system objects, and therefore each of the 3 chat management system objects is resized to free up ¼ of the chat management system space. In one embodiment, the proportion of each chat management system object to the total size is maintained during the resizing. In another embodiment, each chat management system object is resized to occupy 1/n+1 of the chat management system so that each chat management system object features the same vertical and horizontal dimensions.
Based on the 1/n+1 free space, the application places the chat object in the 1/n+1 space at step 530. In one embodiment, step 530 is implemented in similar fashion as step 350. The 1/n+1 space that receives the chat object can be determined as either a top or bottom space, occupying the upper portion or lower portion, respectively, of the chat management system, in one embodiment. Alternatively, the chat object is placed in a user-determined position in another embodiment. The user-determined position can be indicated by receiving a drop command responsive to a mouse click, for example.
In one embodiment, the application readjusts the visual characteristics of any chat objects remaining under control of the application after an object is removed from control of the application, such as following execution of method 400. For example, the application reverses at least one previous adjustment. In another embodiment, the application determines a number m objects remaining under control of the application, and resizes each, so that each object occupies 1/m of the available space. In another embodiment, the application does not resize the m objects, and an “empty” space remains where the removed chat object had been located prior to removal.
Based on the designation, the chat management system maintains the spatial characteristics of the primary chat management system object, such as during step 340, regardless of any adjustments to the spatial characteristics of any secondary chat management system object at step 620. In one embodiment, the size of at least one secondary chat management system object is proportionally adjusted to accommodate a spatial characteristic of a chat object based on receiving the designation of the primary chat management system object.
The invention can take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an embodiment containing both hardware and software elements. In a preferred embodiment, the invention is implemented in software, which includes but is not limited to firmware, resident software, microcode, etc. Furthermore, the invention can take the form of a computer program product accessible from a computer-usable or computer-readable medium providing program code for use by or in connection with a computer or any instruction execution system. For the purposes of this description, a computer-usable or computer readable medium can be any apparatus that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The medium can be an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system (or apparatus or device), or a propagation medium such as a carrier wave. Examples of a computer-readable medium include a semiconductor or solid state memory, magnetic tape, a removable computer diskette, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a rigid magnetic disk and an optical disk.
While the embodiments of the present invention disclosed herein are presently considered to be preferred embodiments, various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of the invention is indicated in the appended claims, and all changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalents are intended to be embraced therein.
