Bi-directional update of displays in portable electronic device

A portable visual display system capable of receiving instructions from an operator, the system comprising:

• at least one input device configured to allow the operator to enter instructions;
• a display unit having a particular screen setup at a first time, the screen setup being updated at a second time, such that the screen setup is updated at a particular update rate;
• and
• a processor configured to receive the operator instructions to move a cursor in a desired direction from the at least one input device and to generate an update command to the display unit, where the update command refreshes the screen setup according to the operator instructions in a direction determined by the desired direction of cursor movement to give the operator visual impressions of the update rate being higher than actual.

A method for updating a screen setup of a portable visual display unit, the method comprising:

• receiving instructions to scroll a screen cursor in a certain direction;
• and
• operating to update the screen setup at a particular rate from bottom to top if the instruction is to scroll up, and
• operating to update the screen setup at a particular rate from top to bottom if the instruction is to scroll down whereby the screen setup is operated to give a visual impression of updating at a higher rate than the particular rate.

A computer program, residing on a computer-readable medium, for use in updating a screen setup of a portable visual display unit, the program comprising executable instructions that enable the computer to:

• receive instructions to scroll a screen cursor in a certain direction;
• and
• operate to update the screen setup at a particular rate from bottom to top if the instruction is to scroll up, and
• operate to update the screen setup at a particular rate from top to bottom if the instruction is to scroll down whereby the screen setup is operated to give a visual impression of updating at a higher rate than the particular rate.

A cellular telephone system comprising:

• at least one input device for receiving instructions;
• a portable display unit having some screen setup at any instant in time, the display unit capable of modifying the screen setup at a particular rate in response to the instructions to move a cursor in a desired direction from the at least one input device, where the modification is made by updating the screen setup in a direction determined by the desired direction of cursor movement to give a visual impression of the updates running at a higher rate than the particular rate;
• and
• a plurality of communication electronics operating to establish a communication link with remote users, the plurality of communication electronics configured to interface with the at least one input device and the display unit to communicate the received instruction to the remote users, and to update the display unit with information about the communication link.

A portable communication device comprising:

• at least one input device for receiving instructions;
• a display unit having some screen setup at any instant in time, the display unit capable of modifying the screen setup at a particular rate in response to the instructions to move a cursor in a desired direction from the at least one input device, where the modification is made by updating the screen setup in a direction determined by the desired direction of cursor movement to give a visual impression of the updates running at a higher rate than the particular rate;
• and
• a plurality of communication electronics operating to establish communication link with remote users, the plurality of communication electronics configured to interface with the at least one input device and the display unit to communicate the received instructions to the remote users, and to update the display unit with information about the communication link.