Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Bret P Anderson

Chaitanya Dev Sareen

Robert J Jarrett

Nils Anders Sundelin

Jesse Clay Satterfield

David Andrew Matthews

Matthew Isaac Worley

Patrice Lynn Miner

Tsz Yan Wong

Jennifer Nan

Miron Vranjes

Song Zou

Stephan Hoefnagels

Matthew Rubin Lerner

Alice Pritikin Steinglass

Richard Fang

Jensen Michael Harris

Alex G Snitkovskiy

Daniel J Shapiro

Robert Disano

Kelly Elizabeth Rollin

Brian S LeVee

Anna Marion Pfoertsch

Stacy Carson

Eric Alexander Papamarcos

Jared C Simpson

Charles Cummins

Joseph H Matthews, Iii

David George De Vorchik

Pasquale DeMaio

Jan-Kristian Markiewicz

Gerrit H Hofmeester

Christopher Doan

Jeffrey E Stall

Jason Glenn Silvis

Benjamin Salim Srour

Albert Peter Yih

Isabelo V De Los Reyes

Stuart Sechrest

Adam Edward Barrus

Clinton Edward Rutkas

Michael Seibert

Pai-Hung Chen

Evan Russell Koschik

Karina Jennifer Chang

Selena Feng

Howard Hughes

Benjamin B Stolovitz

Harold S Gomez

Scott David Schenone

Aleksandar Uzelac

Rolf Arnold Ebeling

Patrick Joseph Derks

Gregory Thomas Mattox, Jr

Rebecca J Deutsch

Shawn Michael Brown

Benjamin Betz

Joshua Clow

Gabriel S DeBacker

Yaou Wei

Matthew P Duignan

Steven James Frederickson

Latika Kirtane

Leo Tian Yue

Alan Stephenson

Qixing Zheng

Rob Jarrett

Abhishek Malani

Samuel George Gates

Kenneth Martin Tubbs, Jr

Peter Josef Kreiseder

Steven Welch

Sammy Chiu

Jason Michael Deakins

Sailesh Dahal

Neil Agarwal

Yash Misra

Darcie Alison Gurley

Max Michael Benat

James David Peter Drage

Gabriel S Debacker

Michael A Seibert

Brian S Levee

Jared Simpson

Systems and methods for reconfiguring application windows in a display. An example method includes displaying a first application window and a second application window; receiving a drag input for moving the first application window; based on the drag input entering an invocation region, displaying a layout menu with a plurality of display layouts, each of the display layouts including one or more snap zones; receiving a hover of the first application window over a particular snap zone of a particular display layout of the plurality of display layouts; based on the hover of the first application window over the particular snap zone, displaying a zone-indicator pane corresponding to the particular snap zone; receiving a drop input of the first application window over the particular snap zone; and in response to the drop input, resizing and repositioning the first application window according the particular snap zone.

Just-in-time snap layouts

The present disclosure provides techniques for management of user interface elements based on historical configuration data. Use of historical configuration data to render user interface elements improves usability of graphical user interfaces by maintaining a consistent user experience. The states of user interface objects in a hosting environment are retained as historical configuration data and linked to a hosting environment profile. When the same or similar hosting environment is detected, the user interface elements are rendered based on the historical configuration data. For example, the last positions of windows in a particular monitor topology are stored as historical configuration data linked to that monitor topology. The windows are returned to their previous positions when a computing device is next configured with the same or similar monitor topology.

Management of user interface elements based on historical configuration data

This document describes techniques and apparatuses for managing an immersive interface in a multi-application immersive environment. In some embodiments, these techniques and apparatuses enable a user to alter sizes and/or a layout of multiple immersive interfaces with as little as one selection.

Managing an immersive interface in a multi-application immersive environment

Methods and systems for controlling window arrangements for tabbed user interface elements. An example method includes displaying a plurality of application windows including at least one application window for a web browser application having multiple open tabs, the multiple open tabs including at least one active tab and multiple inactive tabs, receiving an input to invoke a snap assist mode; in response to the input, display a snap assist user interface to reconfigure the display of one or more the plurality of the application windows, the snap assist user interface including tab representations and an application-window representation. In response to receiving a selection of a tab representation, a web browser application window is displayed with the corresponding tab as the active tab.

Window arrangements using tabbed user interface elements

A system for generating windows arrangements for a display is disclosed, which includes a processor and a computer-readable medium storing instructions for controlling the system to perform receiving a first user input requesting to generate windows arrangements for a display; in response to receiving the first user input, identifying, based on contextual information with respect to applications, a group of the applications to be included in the windows arrangements for the display; generating, based on display information of the display and the contextual information with respect to the applications, the windows arrangements, each windows arrangement providing a different on-screen arrangement of a plurality of windows associated with two or more applications of the group and defining a size and position of each of the windows on the display; and displaying a selectable list of the windows arrangements for the display.

Automated on-screen windows arrangements

Described herein are techniques for automatically forming groups of application windows. The techniques may be performed with a computing device executing a windowing system, the windowing system having a user interface element that can be interacted with by a user to manage applications executing on the computing device. Each application may correspond to a separate process and application window. It may be determined that an operation has occurred that will evict the application windows of target applications from the display, and in response an application group may be automatically formed. The application group may have indicia of the evicted target applications. The application group may be provided to the user interface element, and when the user interface element is interacted with by the user the user interface element displays user-selectable graphic application indicators for both the application group and applications other than the target applications.

Auto-grouping of application windows

Embodiments disclosed herein are related to systems and methods for implementing a customizable compact overlay window in a display. In one embodiment, a computing system includes one or more processors and a storage device that stores computer executable instructions that can be executed by the processors to cause the computing system to perform the following. The system receives from an application running on the computing system customization parameters that define how the application is to be configured in a compact overlay window. The system generates the compact overlay window so that the compact overlay window is customizable according to the customization parameters. The system positions the compact overlay window in a portion of a display of the computing system.

Customizable compact overlay window

A technique is described herein for managing the manner in which a computing device transitions from one user interface (UI) mode to another. The technique stores state information that describes prior states of UI features that have appeared in previous UI presentations, with respect to different UI modes. When transitioning from a first UI presentation (associated with a first UI mode) to a second UI presentation (associated with a second UI mode), the technique leverages the state information to restore one or more aspects of a prior-encountered state associated with the second UI mode.

Transitioning between interface modes based on stored state information

Techniques are described herein that are capable of containing an application in an immersive non-windowed environment. For instance, the application may be configured for use in a windowed environment. Containing the application in the immersive non-windowed environment may involve selectively implementing functionality that is associated with the application based at least in part on whether the functionality is applicable to the immersive non-windowed environment. For example, when a request to implement functionality that is not applicable to the immersive non-windowed environment is received, functionality that is applicable to the immersive non-windowed environment may be implemented in lieu of the functionality that is not applicable to the immersive non-windowed environment. In another example, no action may be taken with regard to the request.

Containing an application in an immersive non-windowed environment

The functionality traditionally provided by an application program through a window presented as part of a window-based user interface can be accessed while the window remains hidden. A toolbar, or similar collection of user interface elements, can be presented when a user indicates an intention to interact with an application program whose window is hidden. The toolbar can comprise elements associated with functions specific to the hidden window. The user's selection can be communicated to the application program so that it can perform the requested function. If the user no longer indicates an intention to interact with the application program, the toolbar can be removed. In one embodiment, the toolbar can be presented together with a thumbnail of the relevant window in a floating display element.

Surfacing and management of window-specific controls

Growing community of inventors

Kirkland, WA, United States of America

Bret P Anderson