Apple's Mac OS X may gain multi-sized icon interface
Apple Inc. has developed an enhancement to its Mac OS X Finder user interface that will allow for different-sized icons within the same window as a means of representing their importance, a recent patent application has revealed.
In the filing, made last December and published for the first time Thursday, the Cupertino-based Mac maker notes that conventional graphical user interfaces already allow users to alter all icons of a display system or window from one size to another size based upon their preference.
"However, such difference in size does not indicate the relative importance of the files or program represented by the icon, since the change in icon size is performed universally for all icons in a container, such as a folder or window," the company wrote. "Accordingly, in order to present a more informative and personalized user interface, a manner of describing to a user relative importance of an icon in relation to other icons in a system is desirable."
Apple said it has developed a user interface which allows a user to adjust the size of icons based upon the user's preference or based upon a characteristic of the objects that the icons represent. The filing states that, "When the icon sizing is performed according to a user preference, a relative sizing scheme or an arbitrary icon sizing scheme can be employed to variably size icons."
The Mac maker's invention includes a method and associated apparatus for efficiently employing arbitrarily sized icons to represent objects within a display device. "To this end," Apple wrote, "a user's arbitrary sizing of various icons in accordance with the present invention generates icon representations that can advantageously represent categorization of application or file importance, and/or the size of a file represented by an icon."
Additionally, the new icon interface would make way for the user to designate one preference value for a plurality of grouped icons to be sized accordingly. For example, as shown in the image above, icons 46 and 48 labeled "BBEdit Startup Items" and "BBEdit FTP Temp", respectively, illustrate multiple icons that are grouped and sized equally. This is also shown for the smallest icons 50-57.
Once a user has chosen the relative size of each of the icons that are to be sized, Apple's icon sizing application will calculate the relative size of each icon to be displayed on display device, the company said.
The filing, titled "Graphical user interface for computers having variable size icons," is credited to Apple User Interface Design Team members Arnaud Gourdol and Donald Lindsay.
In the filing, made last December and published for the first time Thursday, the Cupertino-based Mac maker notes that conventional graphical user interfaces already allow users to alter all icons of a display system or window from one size to another size based upon their preference.
"However, such difference in size does not indicate the relative importance of the files or program represented by the icon, since the change in icon size is performed universally for all icons in a container, such as a folder or window," the company wrote. "Accordingly, in order to present a more informative and personalized user interface, a manner of describing to a user relative importance of an icon in relation to other icons in a system is desirable."
Apple said it has developed a user interface which allows a user to adjust the size of icons based upon the user's preference or based upon a characteristic of the objects that the icons represent. The filing states that, "When the icon sizing is performed according to a user preference, a relative sizing scheme or an arbitrary icon sizing scheme can be employed to variably size icons."
The Mac maker's invention includes a method and associated apparatus for efficiently employing arbitrarily sized icons to represent objects within a display device. "To this end," Apple wrote, "a user's arbitrary sizing of various icons in accordance with the present invention generates icon representations that can advantageously represent categorization of application or file importance, and/or the size of a file represented by an icon."
Additionally, the new icon interface would make way for the user to designate one preference value for a plurality of grouped icons to be sized accordingly. For example, as shown in the image above, icons 46 and 48 labeled "BBEdit Startup Items" and "BBEdit FTP Temp", respectively, illustrate multiple icons that are grouped and sized equally. This is also shown for the smallest icons 50-57.
Once a user has chosen the relative size of each of the icons that are to be sized, Apple's icon sizing application will calculate the relative size of each icon to be displayed on display device, the company said.
The filing, titled "Graphical user interface for computers having variable size icons," is credited to Apple User Interface Design Team members Arnaud Gourdol and Donald Lindsay.
Comments
Ahh... AmigaDOS. Fond memories.
Playing Pong all day in the University bar. Those were the days
Stripping away the technical jargon, it comes down to "multiple sized objects on screen simultaneously." Hardly a revolutionary concept.
Is it just me or does it seem pretty asinine that you this concept can be patented?
Stripping away the technical jargon, it comes down to "multiple sized objects on screen simultaneously." Hardly a revolutionary concept.
I guess once Steve experienced the shock of seeing Windows 1.0 after allowing Gates access to the pre release first Mac OS under a confidentiality agreement to develop Steve's concept (Office) Word, MutltPlan, Chart and File for the Mac Plus (I still have them by the way) he's been a little more careful
Honestly, I don't see this particular idea as very promising. Seems messy, confusing, and awkward. I don't want a folder to be absolutely enormous just because it, say, contains 100 or even 500 items.
Does it determine size by the counting the number of items directly in the directory or by adding the amount of space used within that folder?
Instead of giving us multi-sized icons, which NOBODY needs or wants, why doesn't Apple learn something from Path Finder and update the damn Finder?
Sometimes Steve Jobs hits a homerun and is a brilliant man, other times he's just an arrogant stubborn child.
*YAWN.*
Instead of giving us multi-sized icons, which NOBODY needs or wants, why doesn't Apple learn something from Path Finder and update the damn Finder?
Sometimes Steve Jobs hits a homerun and is a brilliant man, other times he's just an arrogant stubborn child.
You should get in touch with him, I bet he would welcome your genius to help him on his bad days
they need update the finder before adding stuff like this. until the finder is fixed, ideas like this will make things worse instead of better
Is it just me or does it seem pretty asinine that you this concept can be patented?
Stripping away the technical jargon, it comes down to "multiple sized objects on screen simultaneously." Hardly a revolutionary concept.
bass [beer] has trademarked the triangle. i don't think it's ridiculous. neither is this.
jobs should have trademarked *gets instead of widgets. then vista would have to call it's gadgets "doo-hickeys"
bass [beer] has trademarked the triangle. i don't think it's ridiculous. neither is this.
jobs should have trademarked *gets instead of widgets. then vista would have to call it's gadgets "doo-hickeys"
One can trademark certain specific shapes and color combinations, and I don't have a problem with that. That just prevents a competitor or a knock-off company from trying to use that, because there's a lot invested in making the brand and trademark, I really don't have a problem with trademark law as it is.
But still, I'm just not seeing what's so special about varying icon sizes. It's a good idea, but I'm just not seeing how there is so much invested in this idea that a patent is necessary. I think the patent filing was probably more work than updating a file management program to take advantage of the idea. I don't see this as being the result of a lot of expensive research either, maybe the time spent sketching it on a dinner napkin is it.
Notice that the windows in the drawings are from the Classic OS - in fact, they look like System 7 or earlier due to the drawing. I wonder, as others have suggested, if this idea is just as old. It does seem like it would be simple and useful, however.
Actually it's Mac OS 8.