Providing access to database objects

A computer program product containing executable instructions that when executed cause a processor to perform operations comprising:

• display in a computer user interface an object selection area capable of presenting representations of a plurality of database objects for selection by a user, each of the database objects being associated with one of a plurality of predetermined contexts, the user interface comprising a plurality of panels for presenting portions of data belonging to database objects selected in the object selection area, some of which panels are relevant to more than one of the contexts;
• receive an input from the user selecting a database object presented in the object selection area;
• and
• display in the user interface a panel selection control associated with the context of the selected database object, the panel selection control providing that the user can select for display any of the panels that are relevant to the context of the selected database object, wherein any of the selectable panels that are relevant also to a different context can also be selected in a panel selection control associated with the different context.

A computer system providing access to database objects, the computer system comprising:

• database objects that comprise data portions, each database object being associated with one of a plurality of predetermined contexts;
• panels that can be displayed in a user interface, each panel being capable of presenting at least one data portion belonging to a selected object, at least a first panel being relevant to only one of the contexts and at least a second panel being relevant to more than one of the contexts;
• and
• panel selection controls that can be displayed in the user interface, each panel selection control being associated with one of the contexts, wherein the first panel can be selected in a panel selection control associated with the context to which the first panel is relevant and wherein the second panel can be selected in any of the panel selection controls associated with the contexts to which the second panel is relevant.