1111111111111111 IIIIII IIIII 11111 1111111111 1111111111 111111111111111 IIIII 1111111111 11111111
`US 20090183120Al
`
`c19) United States
`c12) Patent Application Publication
`Ording et al.
`
`c10) Pub. No.: US 2009/0183120 Al
`Jul. 16, 2009
`(43) Pub. Date:
`
`(54) USER INTERFACE FOR PROVIDING
`CONSOLIDATION AND ACCESS
`
`(22) Filed:
`
`Mar. 24, 2009
`Related U.S. Application Data
`
`(75)
`
`Inventors:
`
`Bas Ording, Sunnyvale, CA (US);
`Steven P. Jobs, Palo Alto, CA (US);
`Donald J. Lindsay, Mountain View,
`CA (US)
`
`Correspondence Address:
`BUCHANAN, INGERSOLL & ROONEY PC
`POST OFFICE BOX 1404
`ALEXANDRIA, VA 22313-1404 (US)
`
`(73) Assignee:
`
`APPLE INC., Cupertino, CA (US)
`
`(21) Appl. No.:
`
`12/410,354
`
`(63) Continuation of application No. 11/892,153, filed on
`Aug. 20, 2007, now Pat. No. 7,526,738, which is a
`continuation of application No. 09/467,074, filed on
`Dec. 20, 1999, now Pat. No. 7,434,177.
`Publication Classification
`
`(51)
`
`Int. Cl.
`G06F 3/048
`(2006.01)
`(52) U.S. Cl. ........................................................ 715/823
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`
`Methods and systems for providing graphical user interfaces
`are described. To provide greater access and consolidation to
`frequently used items in the graphical user interface, a userbar
`is established which includes a plurality of item representa(cid:173)
`tions. To permit a greater number of items to reside in the
`userbar, a magnification function can be provided which mag(cid:173)
`nifies items within the userbar when they are proximate the
`cursor associated with the graphical user interface.
`
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`Patent Application Publication
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`Jul. 16, 2009 Sheet 1 of 6
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`Patent Application Publication
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`Jul. 16, 2009 Sheet 2 of 6
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`Jul. 16, 2009 Sheet 3 of 6
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`APPL-1016
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`Patent Application Publication
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`US 2009/0183120 Al
`
`Jul. 16, 2009
`
`1
`
`USER INTERFACE FOR PROVIDING
`CONSOLIDATION AND ACCESS
`
`[0001] This is a continuation of application Ser. No.
`11/892,153, filed Aug. 20, 2007, now allowed, which is a
`continuation of application Ser. No. 09/467,074, filed Dec.
`20, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,434,177, the contents of which
`are incorporated by reference herein.
`
`BACKGROUND
`
`[0002] The present invention relates generally to graphical
`user interfaces for computer systems. More particularly, the
`present invention relates to systems and methods for interfac(cid:173)
`ing applications and operating systems which provide for
`flexible customization of graphical user interfaces.
`[0003] The evolution of the computer industry is unparal(cid:173)
`leled in its rate of growth and complexity. Personal comput(cid:173)
`ers, for example, which began as little more than feeble cal(cid:173)
`culators with limited memory,
`tape-driven
`input and
`monochrome displays are now able to tackle almost any data
`processing task. While this meteoric increase in power was
`almost sufficient to satisfy the demand of application design(cid:173)
`ers and end users alike, the corresponding increase in com(cid:173)
`plexity created an ease-of-use problem which the industry
`was somewhat slower in solving. Thus, designers were faced
`with a new challenge: to harness this computing power in a
`form usable by even those with relatively little computer
`training to smooth the transition of other industries into a
`computer-based information paradigm.
`[0004] As a result, in the early to mid-l 980's many new I/0
`philosophies, such as "user friendly", "WYSIWYG" and
`"menu driven" came to the forefront of the industry. These
`concepts are particularly applicable to microcomputers, also
`known as personal computers, which are intended to appeal to
`a broad audience of computer users, including those who
`previously feared and mistrusted computers. An important
`aspect of computers which employ these concepts was, and
`continues to be, the interface which allows the user to input
`commands and data and receive results, which is commonly
`referred to as a graphical user interface (GUI).
`[0005] The success of this type of interface is evident from
`the number of companies which have emulated the desktop
`environment. Even successful concepts, however, must con(cid:173)
`tinually be improved in order to keep pace with the rapid
`growth in this industry. The advent of multimedia, especially
`CD-ROM devices, has provided vast quantities of secondary
`storage which have been used to provide video capabilities,
`e.g., live animation and video clips, as regular components of
`application displays. With these and other new resources at
`their disposal, application designers and users alike, demand
`additional functionality and greater ease of use from the desk(cid:173)
`top environment.
`[0006] To consider the challenges associated with continu(cid:173)
`ing GUI design, consider as an example of a GUI which has
`evolved over time the Finder™ user interface and information
`management system (simply "Finder™ user interface" here(cid:173)
`after) which runs on the Apple Macintosh™ computer. The
`Finder™ user interface is based on the aforedescribed display
`principles using "windows" and "icons" to help manage com(cid:173)
`puter information. The main or root window is called the
`"desktop" area, or more generally the primary display region.
`The desktop, or primary display region, is always open ( dis(cid:173)
`played on the screen with its contents accessible or at least
`
`partially accessible), and takes up substantially the full dis(cid:173)
`play screen area when other windows are not open. The
`desktop is usually visible in the background when other win(cid:173)
`dows are open.
`[0007] Existing inside any particular window, including the
`desktop itself, are other information identifiers called "icons."
`An icon is a screen identifier associated with a particular
`collection of computer information. Typically an icon may
`represent a "file" which is either a collection of data or a
`program or program segment. An icon also may represent the
`closed state of a window. Icons are graphic images displayed
`on the computer screen and usually correspond to the type of
`information stored within the file. Icons give the user access
`to the particular file represented by the graphic image when
`the icon is visible. The use of icons and windows is well
`known in the art.
`[0008] The "file" is the information packet that the user
`wishes to utilize, create or modify; each particular file has an
`associated name identifying the file. Therefore, any given file
`may be located in the information management system by
`knowing a file name, an iconographic representation associ(cid:173)
`ated with the name, or a window locator name. All informa(cid:173)
`tion (files) situated within a particular window are identified
`with that particular window's own identification location
`within the computer information management system. There(cid:173)
`fore, any particular file information can be retrieved knowing
`its particular identification name and its window name.
`Accordingly, the resulting screen display utilizing the
`Finder™ user interface may be broken down into multiple
`windows and graphic icons.
`[0009] Another important element of this (and other) con(cid:173)
`ventional user interfaces is a screen cursor. The cursor allows
`direct user control over the user interface as described above.
`The Finder™ user interface is complemented with a "mouse"
`and a corresponding "pointer" which makes up the cursor
`control device. The user has control over the mouse, which is
`an electro-mechanical device that translates two-dimensional
`mouse movement into a two-dimensional screen position
`movement represented by, for example, a pointer or arrow(cid:173)
`head. The user contacts and directs the mouse. When the
`mouse is moved freely on a table top, then the pointer on the
`screen will move in a similar and proportional manner. The
`mouse also contains one or more push buttons which can be
`used to effectuate control over the cursor pointer by selecting
`or deselecting specific icons or other display tools. It is said
`that the cursor pointer is "activated" when the mouse button is
`depressed and the pointer remains active until the button is
`released. Pointer activation may also be initiated by
`sequences of mouse button presses, such as a "double click"
`interaction which involves rapidly pressing the mouse button
`press twice in sequence.
`[0010] Access to information in a conventional user inter(cid:173)
`face system for a display management system is therefore
`based on windows, icons and pointer movement of the cursor.
`To access a file, the cursor pointer is placed on the visible icon
`or visible file name and the pointer is activated. A closed
`window may be represented by an icon or a window name. A
`window opens when the pointer of the cursor rests on the
`visible icon or visible name representing the closed state of
`the window and the pointer is activated. Within the open
`window, files may be displayed by icon or by name. An open
`window, of various geometries, may be rectangular and will
`exist within the display area of the main viewing screen on the
`desktop. Multiple windows may be open at one time, typi-
`
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`cally with the most foreground window corresponding to the
`most recently opened window and the background windows
`representing those opened previously. In the organization
`scheme described, it is appreciated that files are nested within
`windows and windows can be nested within other windows;
`the main or root window being the desktop area, or primary
`display region.
`[0011] During a session using a window-based information
`system, many windows can be open at one time with many
`displayed icons within. Windows may overlap and partially,
`or entirely, hide other windows or icons. What results is that
`the particular information the user wants to obtain may be
`hidden behind several layers of windows and may be difficult
`to access; when an icon is hidden by another window it is
`temporarily not accessible. This has been referred to in the
`industry as the "window overlap" problem. There are several
`instances where window overlap problems routinely arise in
`the usage of conventional user interfaces. A few of the more
`troublesome scenarios are described below.
`[0012]
`In order to complete a task, often the user must
`access a single icon within an open window that exists in the
`background, that is, covered or partially covered by other
`windows. The desired icon ("target" icon) within the window
`is no longer visible, and therefore not presently accessible.
`The overlapping windows or those that lay "on top of' the
`target window must be closed or moved away ("shuffled") so
`that the target window and target icon are visible and thus
`accessible. Window shuffling is time consuming, confusing
`and often very tedious for the user. If multiple routine icons
`need to be systematically accessed in sequence then multiple
`window shuffling procedures may be required.
`[0013] Another window overlap problem plaguing conven(cid:173)
`tional user interfaces arises when the user requires two icons
`to complete a task and each icon is within a different window.
`The resulting screen display may contain several open win(cid:173)
`dows from past tasks that may clutter the screen display with
`unwanted information. This information may obscure the
`desired windows and icons. In many instances the overlap(cid:173)
`ping windows are not unwanted, but hold the first of the
`desired icons in displayable view. In order to access the sec(cid:173)
`ond desired icon, the user may close the overlapping window
`that holds the first icon, then gain access to the second desired
`icon. Since the previously closed window holds the first
`desired icon it must be opened again so that the present task
`can be completed. Again, this process is often time consum(cid:173)
`ing and confusing for the user-especially when the hidden
`second icon is one that is routinely required. In this case the
`user is engaged in constant "window shuffling" as described
`above.
`[0014] Not surprisingly, these types of problems have
`received a significant amount of attention in recent years.
`Several user interface products have been developed which
`provide different solutions to the manner in which frequently
`used and currently active desktop objects are handled by the
`GUI. For example, consider the conventional GUI depicted in
`FIGS. l(a) and l(b). Therein, a "Desk Drawer" concept is
`implemented to provide selectively hideable access to fre(cid:173)
`quently used desktop objects. FIG. l(a) depicts the screen 75
`having a desktop area 20 with the Desk Drawer closed,
`wherein only the handle 10 of the Desk Drawer is visible. An
`open window 60 containing several document icons 55-58
`which are, therefore, accessible for operations by the user via
`cursor 50. The window 60 also includes a window title field
`65 and window select region 74.
`
`[0015] When activated, e.g., by placing cursor 50 over
`handle 10, the Desk Drawer "opens" to reveal its contents. In
`this case, icons 41, 42, 51 and 59 become visible. Now that
`these icons are visible, they too are available for manipulation
`by the user via cursor 50. Thus, the Desk Drawer concept
`provides a mechanism for placing frequently used icons in an
`out of the way, yet easily accessible location. The interested
`reader is directed to U.S. Pat. No. 5,657,049, entitled "Desk
`Drawer User Interface" for a more in depth discussion of this
`technique, the disclosure of which is incorporated here by
`reference.
`[0016] Another conventional GUI, i.e., that provided with
`the WINDOWS 95 Operating System, tackles the problem of
`desktop clutter by the provision of a taskbar to organize
`concurrently running applications as shown in FIG. 2.
`Therein, the desktop window 200 includes a plurality of icons
`210 as well as the taskbar 220. The icons 210 provide "short(cid:173)
`cuts" to applications or documents which can be invoked,
`e.g., by "double-clicking" on the desired icon. The taskbar
`220 identifies windows which are active including both those
`which are maxinized and "minimized", i.e., are not currently
`displayed on the desktop 200. Each such active application is
`represented on the taskbar 220 by a corresponding button,
`which typically has an iconic representation of the applica(cid:173)
`tion as well as some descriptive text. As new applications are
`launched, representative buttons will be added to the taskbar
`220, from left to right. Each existing button will be scaled in
`length to permit the taskbar to accommodate new buttons. To
`"maximize" an application residing on the taskbar 220, the
`user can single click on the representative button. Another
`feature sometimes seen in this type of conventional GUI are
`application bars, e.g., appbar 230. Appbar 230 typically
`includes a number of smaller buttons (relative to the length of
`buttons on the taskbar when only a few applications are resi(cid:173)
`dent there), which buttons can be depressed to launch a cur(cid:173)
`rently inactive application.
`[0017] This conventional GUI, however, suffers from the
`drawbacks of having a rather rigidly structured layout (e.g.,
`the user cannot select or organize the order of the buttons on
`the taskbar 220) and from difficulties in handling the repre(cid:173)
`sentation of a large number of applications. As more buttons
`are added to the taskbar 220, each individual button becomes
`smaller. When, for example, between 20-30 applications have
`been launched and minimized, the taskbar 220 begins to add
`new buttons as a second layer rather than continuing the line
`of buttons illustrated in FIG. 2. To reach the second layer, the
`user must toggle the taskbar 220, i.e., not all of the buttons are
`visible simultaneously on the GUI. As the power of comput(cid:173)
`ers and number of interesting applications, documents and
`other objects increases, it is anticipated that users will wish to
`have ready access to a growing number of objects and, there(cid:173)
`fore, will find the approach depicted in FIG. 2 to be annoying
`and ineffective.
`[0018] Another conventional GUI which attempts to solve
`this particular problem can be found in the NeXTTM Operat(cid:173)
`ing System. As illustrated in FIG. 3, and further described in
`U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,556, entitled "System and Method for
`Managing Graphic Images" (the disclosure of which is also
`expressly incorporated here by reference), this GUI provides
`an application "dock" 300 including a colunm of icons on the
`right side of the screen 310. The dock 300 is described as
`providing a visible mechanism for starting applications. Icons
`can be added and deleted to the application dock 300 by
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`dragging them into a desired location proximate the docking
`area, at which time the operating system will integrate them
`into the dock 300.
`[0019] Although somewhat more flexible in terms of allow(cid:173)
`ing the user to organize its content than the taskbar/appbar of
`FIG. 2, the application dock 300 still suffers from its limita(cid:173)
`tions in terms of the number of applications which can be
`docked at any one time. The icons in the dock are of a fixed
`size and, according to the user manual, are therefore limited to
`a maximum of 13 which can be included in the dock at any
`onetime.
`[0020] Thus, it can be seen that there remains a need in the
`art to design a GUI which provides the user with a larger
`degree of flexibility in terms of both the layout of the tool
`which manages these types of frequently used objects, as well
`as permitting a larger number of such objects to be managed
`and simultaneously displayed.
`
`SUMMARY
`
`[0021] According to exemplary embodiments of the
`present invention, these and other drawbacks and difficulties
`of conventional GUis are overcome by providing a simple,
`consolidated and easily extensible facility for handling, for
`example, frequently used objects. For example, user inter(cid:173)
`faces according to the present invention provide a tool (re(cid:173)
`ferred to herein as the "userbar") which consolidates features
`including: launching and managing running applications;
`opening and managing documents and their associated win(cid:173)
`dows; accessing control strip functionality; navigation to all
`types of uniform resource locators (URLs ); and status and
`notification on running processes.
`[0022] As mentioned above, existing tools of this type, such
`as taskbars and docks, are constrained in one or more of at
`least two ways: having a rigidly structured layout and being
`limited in the number of objects that they can represent in the
`available screen space. With respect to layout, the userbar
`according to the present invention is designed so that the
`organization of the userbar is in the hands of the user. For
`example, the tiles that represent the individual items in the
`userbar can be reorganized at will. There is virtually no struc(cid:173)
`ture enforced on the user, with the exception of two "book(cid:173)
`ends" which define boundaries of the facility.
`[0023] With respect to screen space, the userbar according
`to the present invention provides a method for scaling the
`entire contents of the object handling facility such that liter(cid:173)
`ally upwards of fifty objects ( or more) can be accommodated
`in a single, visible structure. As the objects handled by the
`userbar become rather small, e.g., due to the size set by the
`user or due to a large number of objects being added thereto,
`it naturally becomes more difficult to distinguish between
`different tiles. Accordingly, exemplary embodiments of the
`present invention provide a magnification effect, also referred
`to herein as a fisheye effect, for browsing the scaled contents
`of the userbar. This mechanism allows specified contents of
`the userbar, in particular minimized windows, to be presented
`at a larger size and in greater detail and legibility than other
`objects in the userbar. This feature permits, among other
`things, the individual tiles of the tool to retain their legibility
`and prevents the user interaction with the tool from being
`compromised by the scaled contents.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`[0024] These and other objects, features and advantages of
`the present invention will be readily understood by those
`
`skilled in the art by reading the following detailed description
`in conjunction with the drawings, in which:
`[0025] FIGS. l(a) and l(b) depict a first, conventional user
`interface;
`[0026] FIG. 2 depicts a second, conventional user interface
`which employs a taskbar and an appbar to handle objects;
`[0027] FIG. 3 depicts a third, conventional user interface
`which employs an application dock;
`[0028] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary system in
`which the present invention can be implemented;
`[0029] FIG. 5 is an exemplary computer system which may
`contain the functional blocks of FIG. 4 and in which the
`present invention can be implemented;
`[0030] FIG. 6 illustrates a user interface including a userbar
`according to an exemplary embodiment of the present inven(cid:173)
`tion;
`[0031] FIG. 7 depicts the user interface of FIG. 6 with the
`cursor disposed at another location within the userbar region
`on the screen; and
`[0032] FIGS. 8(a)-8(d) describe an exemplary magnifica(cid:173)
`tion effect mechanism according to an exemplary embodi(cid:173)
`ment of the present invention.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`
`[0033]
`In the following description, for purposes of expla(cid:173)
`nation and not limitation, specific details are set forth, such as
`particular circuits, circuit components, techniques, etc. in
`order to provide a thorough understanding of the present
`invention. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art
`that the present invention may be practiced in other embodi(cid:173)
`ments that depart from these specific details. In other
`instances, detailed descriptions of well-known methods,
`devices, and circuits are omitted so as not to obscure the
`description of the present invention.
`[0034] Exemplary embodiments of the present invention
`can be implemented on an Apple Macintosh™ computer
`system using the Finder™ user interface. However, it will be
`readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that user inter(cid:173)
`faces and elements of user interfaces according to the present
`invention can be used in combination with any system having
`a processor and a display. In general, such computer systems,
`as illustrated in block diagram form by FIG. 4, comprise a bus
`400 for communicating information, a processor 401 coupled
`with the bus for processing information and instructions, a
`random access memory 402 coupled with the bus 400 for
`storing information and instructions for the processor 401, a
`read only memory 403 coupled with the bus 400 for storing
`static information and instructions for the processor 401, a
`data storage device 404 such as a magnetic disk and disk drive
`or CD ROM drive coupled with the bus 400 for storing infor(cid:173)
`mation and instructions, a display device 405 coupled to the
`bus 400 for displaying information to the computer user, an
`alphanumeric input device 406 including alphanumeric and
`function keys coupled to the bus 400 for communicating
`information and command selections to the processor 401, a
`cursor control device 407 coupled to the bus for communi(cid:173)
`cating information and command selections to the processor
`401, and a signal generating device 408 coupled to the bus
`400 for communicating command selections to the processor
`401.
`[0035] The display device 405 utilized with the computer
`system and the present invention may be a liquid crystal
`device, cathode ray tube, or other display device suitable for
`creating images and alphanumeric characters (and idea-
`
`APPL-1016
`APPLE INC. / Page 10 of 16
`
`

`

`US 2009/0183120 Al
`
`Jul. 16, 2009
`
`4
`
`graphic character sets) recognizable to the user. The cursor
`control device 407 allows the computer user to dynamically
`signal the two dimensional movement of a visible symbol
`(cursor) on a display screen of the display device 405. Many
`implementations of the cursor control device are known in the
`art including a trackball, mouse, joystick or special keys on
`the alphanumeric input device 406 capable of signaling
`movement of a given direction or manner of displacement. It
`is to be appreciated that the cursor also may be directed and/or
`activated via input from the keyboard using special keys and
`key sequence commands. Alternatively, the cursor may be
`directed and/or activated via input from a number of specially
`adapted cursor directing devices, including those uniquely
`developed for the disabled. In the discussions regarding cur(cid:173)
`sor movement and/or activation within the preferred embodi(cid:173)
`ment, it is to be assumed that the input cursor directing device
`or push button may consist any of those described above and
`specifically is not limited to the mouse cursor device.
`[0036] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary computer system
`that in which the present invention can be implemented. It
`will be appreciated that this computer system is one of many
`computer systems that may can include the present invention.
`Therein, a keyboard 500 with keys 502 and keypad 504 is
`attached to the computer 506 along with a mouse device 508
`and mouse push button(s) 510 for controlling the cursor. The
`mouse device 508 and push button 510 make up a cursor
`control device 407. It will be appreciated that many other
`devices may be used as the cursor control device 407, for
`instance the keyboard 500 may be substituted for the mouse
`device 508 and button(s) 510 as just discussed above. The
`computer 506 also typically contains a one or more media
`drives 511 (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk or CD ROM) and a
`display screen 512.
`[0037] Having described exemplary computer systems in
`which user interfaces according to the present invention can
`be implemented, the discussion now turns to a description of
`such user interfaces. According to exemplary embodiments
`of the present invention, a userbar is provided to the user
`interface which solves many of the problems described above
`with respect to conventional user interface tools and facilities
`by providing extensibility, scalability and flexibility which
`are lacking in prior systems.
`
`U serbar Contents
`
`[0038] An example of the userbar according to the present
`invention can be seen in the user interface of FIG. 6. Other
`examples are seen in subsequent figures which will be further
`described below. Therein, the userbar 600 includes a number
`(in this example sixteen) of tiles aligned along a bottom
`portion of a user interface, the magnification level of which
`varies based on the position of the cursor 610 in a manner to
`be described below in the section entitled "Userbar Appear(cid:173)
`ance". The contents of the userbar 600 may represent a user(cid:173)
`selected ( or alternatively, an application or operating system
`selected) set of"super-favorite" items, i.e., items that the user
`has determined deserve greater ease-of-access than their
`broader collection of favorite items, which could be numer(cid:173)
`ous. The straightforward configuration mechanism of the
`userbar 600 according to the present invention facilitates
`frequent changes to its contents, which contents are based on
`a user's preferences and will, therefore, naturally vary from
`one user to the next. Any type of item or object may be
`handled by the userbar 600, however a few examples, includ(cid:173)
`ing applications, document files and windows will now be
`
`described in order to illustrate how exemplary userbars
`according to the present invention may represent and manipu(cid:173)
`late various items.
`[0039] Applications can be presented on the userbar 600 by,
`for example, one of two methods. First, the application's icon
`can be added to the userbar 600 as a permanent fixture, e.g.,
`for most frequently launched applications. Alternatively, the
`application may not be a permanent fixture of the userbar 600,
`but may be added thereto because it is currently running. Such
`non-permanent applications may be represented in the user(cid:173)
`bar 600 only while the application remains running and may
`be removed automatically by the GUI when the application is
`terminated. Faceless background applications, e.g., virus pro(cid:173)
`tection applications, if not launched from the userbar 600,
`need not be represented on the userbar 600 while they are
`running. Similarly, application sub-processes, such as a
`Finder copy, need not appear as a separate application tile on
`the userbar 600.
`[0040] Document files can also be placed on the userbar
`600. This includes, for example, editable, non-editable (i.e.,
`read only) and stationary files. An application's "set" files
`( e.g., Location Manager sets) can also be placed on the user(cid:173)
`bar 600, but may only be useful to the user as part of the
`userbar 600 if selecting one of these tiles would initiate a set
`change. A user may choose to place multiple copies of a
`document onto the userbar 600, but the userbar 600 will
`preferably only include a single representation of each object
`in a particular state. For example, ifa tile representing a folder
`is disposed on the userbar 600 and the user opens that folder,
`this can result in the file management system (e.g., Finder)
`opening ( or navigating to) the directory represented by the
`folder. If the user then minimizes that file management sys(cid:173)
`tem window, the originating userbar object is then presented
`on the userb