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AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation
InventorsCharlton E. Lui, Kathryn L. Parker, Dan W. Altman
Estimating the term…
A method and system for automatically determining when an application should switch from a writing mode to a text entry mode, and vice-versa. When a soft input panel (SIP) or input method (IM) is selected, the application is notified and enters a text entry mode. Inputting via the IM while in this mode causes a character to be sent to the application, while pen events in the application window enable text editing and the selection of text and ink data in the application widow. When the SIP is deselected, the application is notified and enters a pen (writing) mode, whereby the pen events are interpreted as digital ink strokes instead of characters. Sub-modes of the pen mode are also available, via which the pen events are used to manipulate existing ink in the application window. Visual feedback may be provided to remind the user of the current mode and/or sub-mode.
In a computer system, a method comprising:
In a computer system, a system for providing data to a program, comprising:
In a computer system, a method for providing data to a program, comprising the steps of:
A computer implemented method, comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
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Using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures: by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the…
Using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures: for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
Computing and data processing
Term end not estimated
The invention relates generally to computer systems, and more particularly to the input of data into a computer system.
Small, mobile computing devices, including hand-held and palm-size computers and the like, are becoming important and popular user tools. In general, they are becoming small enough to be extremely convenient while consuming less and less battery power, and at the same time becoming capable of running more powerful applications.
Although such devices continue to shrink in size, size limitations are being reached as a result of human limitations. For example, a full character keyboard that enables user data input cannot be so small that human fingers cannot depress the individual keys thereon. As a result, such devices (e.g., palm-size computers) may eliminate the full size physical keyboard and provide a representation of a keyboard on a touch-sensitive display. To this end, the user enters characters by touching the screen with a stylus at locations corresponding to the displayed keys. Of course, touch-screen devices can also be used simultaneously with devices having physical keyboards, whereby characters can also be entered by manually pressing the keys of the physical keyboard.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram representing a computer system into which the present invention may be incorporated;
FIG. 2 is a block diagram representing an underlying system architecture into which the present invention may be incorporated;
FIG. 3 is a flow diagram generally representing a process for getting user input from an input method to a selected application;
Exemplary Operating Environment
FIG. 1 and the following discussion are intended to provide a brief, general description of a suitable computing environment in which the invention may be implemented. Although not required, the invention will be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, being executed by a hand-held computing device such as a mobile device. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures and the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types.
Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention may be practiced with other computer system configurations, including palm-sized, desktop or laptop personal computers, mobile devices such as pagers and telephones, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers and the like. The invention may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.