Method and apparatus for setting a graphical object's position and orientation with viscous dragging

In a computer system, a method of controlling movement of an N-dimensional cursor on a display having a plurality of coordinate values, comprising:

• displaying said cursor at a selected location and orientation on said display;
• preselecting a center of mass point on said cursor;
• positioning said cursor at a desired location on said display with a cursor movement device;
• moving said cursor along a desired path of motion on said display with said cursor movement device, where said location and path of motion are defined by N variables, such that said location and orientation of said cursor are modified in dependance on said preselected center of mass point and said path of motion.

A computer system, comprising:

• a central processing unit;
• a display having a plurality of coordinate values and coupled to said central processing unit, said display capable of displaying an N-dimensional graphical object at a selected location and orientation of said display;
• and
• a cursor movement device coupled to said central processing unit said cursor movement device controlling positioning of a cursor on said display, said cursor movement device positioning said cursor at a desired location on said graphical object and moving said cursor along a desired path of motion on said display, where said location and path of motion are defined by N variables, such that said location and orientation of said graphical object are modified in dependance on said desired location and said desired path of motion.

A computer system, comprising:

• a central processing unit;
• a display having a plurality of coordinate values and coupled to said central processing unit, said display capable of displaying a cursor at a selected location and orientation of said display;
• and
• a cursor movement device coupled to said central processing unit said cursor movement device controlling positioning of a N-dimensional cursor on said display, said cursor movement device moving said cursor along a desired path of motion on said display, where said location and path of motion are defined by N variables, such that said location and orientation of said cursor are modified in dependance on a preselected center of mass point on said cursor and said path of motion.