The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 16, 2003
Filed:
Jan. 16, 2001
Frank Ludolph, Menlo Park, CA (US);
Sun Microsystems, Inc., Santa Clara, CA (US);
Abstract
A graphical user interface (GUI) is configurable in an embodiment of the invention. A user configures sliding panels located on the edges of the GUI. A sliding panel is configured with an application that runs in the sliding panel. The sliding panel is present in the GUI in either a closed or an open representation. The sliding panel's GUI representation is determined based on the position of the user's cursor. When the cursor is within a closed sliding panel's closed representation, the sliding panel is expanded to its open representation. By moving the cursor outside the sliding panel, the user can close the panel. There is no need for the user to consciously manage the elements in the GUI. The elements are managed based on the configuration information supplied by the user and the information available at runtime.