Apple Exhibit 1009 Page 00001
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`U.S. Patent
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`Dec. 12, 2000
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`6,160,554
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`EC]
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`EIJEIJEIJ
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`DRIVE-DIRECTORY
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`DIRECTORY CONTENTS
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`Directory 3 131
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`147148147
`LIL
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`Page 00002
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`FIG.
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`RECEIVE COMMAND T0
`T0 DISPLAY META—DATA
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`META- DATA FROM DISPLAY
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`REMOVE META—DATA FROM DISPLAY
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`FIG. 2
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`6,160,554
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`1
`COMPUTER FILE CONTENT PREVIEW
`WINDOW
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`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`
`The present invention relates generally to computers, and
`more particularly to the display of information from files
`stored on computer systems.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`Ascertaining the intended use or contents of a file has
`been a difficult problem for the computer operator to solve.
`Previously the operator has had only two ways in which to
`make this determination. The easiest and fastest means
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`available has been to assign a descriptive name to the file.
`This technique has presented the operator with several
`difficulties. Among these difficulties is the fact that on some
`systems file names may be limited to only 8 characters with
`a three character extension. Other, more flexible systems
`now permit up to 255 characters. If an operator does not use
`a file often, it is easy to forget the connection between the
`file’s name and the file’s content or intended use, especially
`in systems having the lessor number of characters available
`for naming a file. However, even with 255 characters
`available, relying on the name of a file as the only means by
`which one can determine content is dependent upon how
`well the file was named in the first place. If the naming was
`done poorly or if the content of the file changes, the only
`recourse which the operator has is to rename the file. Other
`drawbacks to using a long file name as a memory aid include
`the effort required and the lack of reliably encountered when
`entering the file’s name.
`Another option available to the computer operator is to
`launch an application capable of interpreting the format of
`the file he wishes to use or view. This solution consumes
`
`both time and resources. The operator has to wait for the
`application to load and run before he can view the file. It is
`also possible for the operator to launch the wrong applica-
`tion. And thus, he may have to close that application and
`launch another, before he is able to determine the contents
`of that particular file. Of course,
`if the file itself is
`executable, it could be executed in an effort to determine
`what it contains.
`
`Thus, there is a great need for a fast, convenient, and
`reliable technique for determining the contents or intended
`use of a file without depending upon the name of the file and
`without depending upon launching an application capable of
`reading the file.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides the
`ability to view an abbreviated description of a file’s content
`or intended use without the operator having to explicitly
`open it using an application designed to interpret the file’s
`contents or to execute it. As an example, for systems
`employing a Graphical User Interface (GUI) a preview
`window could be invoked by various means, such as by
`placing a mouse cursor over the file name or icon, by
`performing a particular mouse click or series of mouse
`clicks, by selecting a context menu, or by some other means.
`Representative embodiments described in the present patent
`document provided for a faster, more convenient, and more
`reliable technique for determining the contents or intended
`use of a file than has been previously available.
`Using the teachings of the present patent document, the
`operator does not have to remember interpretations associ-
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`ated with cryptic file names or to use long, unwieldy file
`names. Also, he does not have to read the contents of the file
`by launching an application program for that purpose or, if
`the file is executable, to actually launch the file itself.
`A software program constructed in conformance to a
`preferred embodiment of the invention includes the ability to
`obtain meta-data which describes a file’s content or use, to
`display that information on a computer monitor, and to
`remove that data when appropriate.
`The operator of a GUI such as Microsoft Windows,
`Macintosh OS, or X-Windows can choose to generate the
`file content preview window as stated above by placing the
`mouse cursor over the file icon, by performing a particular
`mouse click or series of mouse clicks, by selecting a context
`menu, or by some other means. The file content preview
`window may be customized to the type of file being pre-
`viewed and the type of meta-data information available for
`the file. The file content preview window may be an add-on
`piece of functionality for any system in which files are
`presented to the operator in a graphical form such as in many
`graphical operating systems that display icons with file
`names.
`
`When the file content preview window is invoked, it may
`appear close to and/or connected to the object to which it
`refers and may overlay the object. The meta data may be
`textual or graphical. If the operator chooses to preview a
`graphical file, such as a jpg formatted file,
`the content
`preview window could display a thumbnail of the image and
`other meta-data associated with the file.
`
`the file
`In a preferred embodiment described herein,
`content preview window offers an automatic and almost
`instantaneous method for previewing the contents of a file
`without having to launch an application. Other aspects and
`advantages of the present invention will become apparent
`from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction
`with the accompanying drawings,
`illustrating by way of
`example the principles of the invention.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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`The accompanying drawings provide visual representa-
`tions which will be used to more fully describe the invention
`and can be used by those skilled in the art
`to better
`understand it and its inherent advantages. In these drawings,
`like reference numerals identify corresponding elements
`and:
`
`FIG. 1 is a sketch of a content preview window displayed
`on the screen of a computer monitor as described in various
`representative embodiments of the present patent document.
`FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a computer software program
`for retrieving, displaying, and removing meta-data from the
`display of a computer monitor.
`
`DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENT
`
`As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the
`present invention relates to a method for quickly and easily
`displaying information regarding the contents or intended
`use of a file. In the following detailed description and in the
`several figures of the drawings, like elements are identified
`with like reference numerals.
`
`FIG. 1 is a sketch of a monitor window 110, also referred
`to herein as a Graphical User Interface 110, on a computer
`monitor 105. As an example, for illustrative purposes, the
`monitor window 110 contains a drive-directory window 115
`and a directory content window 120. In a typical application,
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`a drive 125, not shown but represented by a drive indicator
`126, or a directory 130, also not shown but represented by
`a directory indicator 131, on the drive 125 is selected in the
`drive-directory window 115 by using the mouse or arrow
`keys. The contents of that directory 130 are then displayed
`in the directory content window 120.
`Shown on the monitor window 110 is a file content
`preview window 140, also referred to herein as a display
`window 140, which provides the ability to view an abbre-
`viation of the contents of a file 134, not shown and also
`referred to herein as a first file 134 but represented by a file
`icon 135, also referred to herein as an icon 135, without the
`operator having to explicitly open it. This is accomplished
`by accessing meta-data 145 associated with the file 134 or
`generating meta-data 145 for the file 134 on the fly when the
`operator wants to preview content or intended use. Meta-
`data 145 is information which describes other information,
`and in a preferred embodiment
`it
`is information which
`describes the file 134.
`It can either be automatically
`extracted from the file 134 or manually entered. If automati-
`cally extracted and the file 134 is textual, the file 134 may
`be scanned to determine if it contains certain preselected
`words, phrases or constructs. On the other hand if the file
`134 is a graphical one, other types of metadata 145, such as
`thumbnail sketches, faces, color compositions, frames from
`a video file, etc. may be extracted. If manually entered, a
`second file 136, also not shown but manually created and
`associated with the first file 134, is read in order to extract
`the meta-data 145.
`
`The operator of a Graphical User Interface 110 such as
`Microsoft Windows, Macintosh OS, or X-Windows can
`choose to generate the file content preview window 140 by
`placing the mouse cursor over the file icon 135, by perform-
`ing a particular mouse click or series of mouse clicks, by
`selecting a context menu, or by some other means. The
`action invoking the file contact preview window 140 may
`vary from operating system to operating system. The file
`content preview window 140 provides an overview of the
`file’s contents which may be customized to the type of file
`134 being previewed and the type of information available
`as meta-data 145 for the file 134. The file content preview
`window 140 may be an add-on piece of functionality for the
`computer system.
`When the file content preview window 140 is invoked, it
`may appear close to and/or connected to the object to which
`it refers and may overlay that object.
`In a preferred
`embodiment, an indicating geometry 141 is created on the
`computer monitor 105 between the file content preview
`window 140 and the file icon 135 in order to draw attention
`
`to their relationship to each other. In FIG. 1, the indicating
`geometry 141 is shown touching both the file content
`preview window 140 and the file icon 135. However, in
`other embodiments the indicating geometry 141 may not
`touch either the file content preview window 140 or the file
`icon 135 and may or may not be an integral part of the file
`content preview window 140. In other embodiments, the
`indicating geometry 141 may be a line or any character or
`characters created on the computer monitor 105. In yet
`another embodiment the indicating geometry 141 may be
`omitted.
`
`The format of the file content preview window 140 varies
`depending upon the type of file 134 being previewed. The
`meta-data 145 may contain text meta-data 147, graphical
`meta-data 148, and/or other types of meta-data 145, as for
`example color compositions. If the operator chooses to
`preview a jpg file, i.e., graphical meta-data 148, the file
`content preview window 140 can display a thumbnail of the
`image and other abbreviated meta-data 145 associated with
`the file 134.
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`FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a representative embodiment of a
`software computer program 250 that creates and displays the
`file content preview window 140 on the computer monitor
`105 as shown in FIG. 1. The software computer program 250
`retrieves meta-data 145 associated with the file 134, displays
`that meta-data 145 on the monitor window 110, and removes
`the meta-data 145 from the monitor window 110. Block 255
`is the entry block to the software computer program 250 and
`receives the command to display the meta-data 145. Block
`255 transfers control to block 260.
`Block 260 retrieves the meta-data 145 from either the file
`134 itself or the associated file, the second file 136. Block
`260 then transfers control to block 265.
`
`Block 265 prepares for display the meta-data 145 which
`could consist of text meta-data 147, graphical meta-data
`148, and/or other types of meta-data 145. Block 265 then
`transfers control to block 270.
`
`Block 270 displays the meta-data 145 on the monitor
`window 110. Block 270 then transfers control to block 275.
`Block 275 receives the command to remove meta-data
`from the monitor window 110. Block 275 then transfers
`control to block 280.
`Block 280 removes the meta-data 145 from the monitor
`window 110.
`
`In the preferred embodiments described herein, the file
`content preview window 140 offers an automatic and almost
`instantaneous method for previewing the contents of a file
`without having to launch an application. Although specific
`embodiments of the invention have been described and
`
`illustrated, the invention is not to be limited to the specific
`forms or arrangements of parts so described and illustrated.
`The invention is limited only by the claims.
`What is claimed is:
`
`1. A display window on a computer monitor, comprising:
`meta-data displayed in the display window, wherein the
`meta-data comprises a brief description of a first file,
`wherein the display window is placed in proximity of
`the first file indicator, wherein the display window
`appears when the cursor of the computer monitor is
`placed in the proximity of the icon representing the first
`file, and wherein the display window disappears when
`the cursor is removed from the proximity of the icon
`representing the first file.
`2. The display window as in claim 1, wherein the meta-
`data is obtained from the first file.
`
`3. The display window as in claim 1, wherein the meta-
`data is data selected from the group consisting of text
`meta-data and graphical meta-data.
`4. The display window as in claim 1, wherein the meta-
`data is generated from the first file.
`5. The display window as in claim 1, wherein the meta-
`data is obtained from a second file.
`
`6. The display window as in claim 1, wherein the meta-
`data is generated from a second file.
`7. The display window as in claim 1, further comprising:
`an indicating geometry, wherein the indicating geometry
`is a feature on the computer monitor connecting the
`display window to the proximity of the icon represent-
`ing the first file.
`8. A method for displaying a display window on a
`computer monitor, comprising the steps of:
`receiving instruction to display meta-data, wherein the
`meta-data comprises a brief description of a first file;
`retrieving the meta-data;
`displaying the meta-data on the computer monitor,
`wherein the display window is placed in proximity of
`the first file indicator;
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`when the cursor of the computer monitor is placed in the
`proximity of the icon representing the first file, display-
`ing the display window on the computer monitor; and
`when the cursor of the computer monitor is removed from
`the proximity of the icon representing the first file,
`removing the display of the display window from the
`computer monitor.
`9. The method as in claim 8, wherein the meta-data is
`obtained from the first file.
`10. The method as in claim 8, wherein the meta-data is
`data detected from the group consisting of text meta-data
`and graphical meta-data.
`11. The method as in claim 8, wherein the meta-data is
`generated from the first file.
`12. The method as in claim 8, wherein the meta-data is
`obtained from a second file.
`13. The method as in claim 8, wherein the meta-data is
`generated from a second file.
`14. The method as in claim 8, the method steps further
`comprising:
`displaying an indicating geometry on the computer
`monitor, providing the indicating geometry is a feature
`on the computer monitor connecting the display win-
`dow to the proximity of the icon representing the first
`file.
`
`15. A program storage medium readable by a computer,
`tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by
`a computer to perform method steps for displaying a display
`window on a computer monitor, said method steps compris-
`ing:
`receiving instruction to display meta-data, wherein the
`meta-data comprises a brief description of a first file;
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`retrieving the meta-data;
`displaying the meta-data on the computer monitor,
`wherein the display window is placed in proximity of
`the first file indicator;
`when the cursor of the computer monitor is placed in the
`proximity of the icon representing the first file, display-
`ing the display window on the computer monitor; and
`when the cursor of the computer monitor is removed from
`the proximity of the icon representing the first file,
`removing the display of the display window from the
`computer monitor.
`16. The program storage medium as in claim 15, wherein
`the meta-data is obtained from the first file.
`
`17. The program storage medium as in claim 15, wherein
`the meta-data is data selected from the group consisting of
`text meta-data and graphical meta-data.
`18. The program storage medium as in claim 15, wherein
`the meta-data is generated from the first file.
`19. The program storage medium as in claim 15, wherein
`the meta-data is obtained from a second file.
`
`20. The program storage medium as in claim 15, wherein
`the meta-data is generated from a second file.
`21. The program storage medium as in claim 15,
`method steps further comprising:
`displaying an indicating geometry on the computer
`monitor, providing the indicating geometry is a feature
`on the computer monitor connecting the display win-
`dow to the proximity of the icon representing the first
`file.
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