Information search apparatus and information search control method

An information search control method comprising the steps of:

• storing character information, wherein the character information is organized in a database arrangement;
• detecting a position at which an input pen touches a display tablet, the display tablet having a function of displaying at least one character information and a function of inputting data;
• displaying a function cursor at the detected position of the input pen, wherein the cursor is used for searching for arbitrary character information in a non-continuous list of character information;
• and
• extracting a plurality of characters from the character information for searching for the arbitrary character information from the database of character information, wherein the extracted characters are similar to a character pointed to by the function cursor.

A method for searching a database using a computer system having a processor, touch-sensitive display, and a memory storing a database of character information in a searchable arrangement, wherein the method comprises the steps of:

• a. selecting character information from the database for display, wherein the selected character information is is arranged for display as a non-contiguous list of character information;
• b. displaying the selected character information as the non-contiguous list of character information on the display;
• c. displaying a functional cursor on the display and pointing the cursor to a particular character information of the displayed selected character information using a pen input to move the cursor;
• d. touching a zoom-in area of the functional cursor to cause the display of additional character information from the database, wherein the additional character information was not previously displayed in step (b), and
• e. the additional character information is more similar to the particular character information of step (c) than to other selected character information displayed in step (b).