Bentley Systems, Inc.

R Brien Bastings

Gino Cortesi

Barry J Bentley

William A Wandersleben

In one embodiment, techniques are used to create a customized 3-D menu for controlling an application (e.g., a CAD application) leveraging the application's native storage format to describe the menu's appearance and function. The menu is defined using elements of a model to which commands are associated within the storage format. The elements, upon later display, operate as menu items, whose selection activates the associated command. The application's (e.g., the CAD application's) visualization capabilities may be used to rotate, zoom, or otherwise manipulated the model in in 3-D space to create a desired appearance. A view of the model is then stored within the storage format to defined an initial appearance of the 3-D menu. Upon later display, the view of the 3-D menu is loaded to provide the defined initial appearance.

3-D screen menus

The invention pertains to a method for displaying option information on a computer display screen. The method includes displaying a workspace and at least one icon, presenting a non-modal dialog box when a predetermined icon is chosen, providing a preference option that may hide or shrink the non-modal dialog box, and providing a means for restoring the non-modal dialog box. The dialog box may subsequently be restored in a manner and a location chosen by the user.

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Glenmoore, PA, United States of America

R Brien Bastings