Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 7
Claim 1
Independent Claim
235 words
A data display system in which input-output display devices are connected to a central processor and users select application programs that are run on the central processor and including in the control system of the central processor; a display manager control system and a windowing control mechanism which allows a plurality of tasks to be performed concurrently and the results displayed in areas of a display screen, characterised in that the windowing control mechanism includes, a task manager control program which runs as an application in the display manager control system and includes, means to interact, via the display manager, with the operator to allow applications to be initiated, means to create tasks to control the processing of the application in such a way that the applications can be suspended or resumed according to whether operator input is available for them, means to identify to the display manager a coordination controller that the display manager can call to allow the task manager to suspend and resume applications, said display manager including, means to combine data from each application and build a display representation that shows many windows into the various applications onto a single screen and, means to call the coordination controller identified by the task management application so that the task manager can suspend applications that are waiting for input and resume those applications which have input available so that it can be resumed.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
235 words
A data display system in which input-output display devices are connected to a central processor and users select application programs that are run on the central processor and including in the control system of the central processor; a display manager control system and a windowing control mechanism which allows a plurality of tasks to be performed concurrently and the results displayed in areas of a display screen, characterised in that the windowing control mechanism includes, a task manager control program which runs as an application in the display manager control system and includes, means to interact, via the display manager, with the operator to allow applications to be initiated, means to create tasks to control the processing of the application in such a way that the applications can be suspended or resumed according to whether operator input is available for them, means to identify to the display manager a coordination controller that the display manager can call to allow the task manager to suspend and resume applications, said display manager including, means to combine data from each application and build a display representation that shows many windows into the various applications onto a single screen and, means to call the coordination controller identified by the task management application so that the task manager can suspend applications that are waiting for input and resume those applications which have input available so that it can be resumed.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
53 words
A system as claimed in claim 1, in which application programs are given access to a virtual display device interface and applications assume they have full use of a display device and in which the applications have no requirement to be aware of the presenece of a task manager or the windowing environment.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
25 words
A system as claimed in claim 2 in which the display manager provides functions to allow the operator to manipulate the windows on the display.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
139 words
A data display system as claimed in claim 1 in which input-output display devices are connected to a CPU and users select application programs that are run on the CPU and including a windowing control system which allows a plurality of tasks to be performed concurrently and the results displayed in areas of a display screen, characterised in that the windowing control system may include a window manager which interacts with the operator to allow applications to be initiated, create tasks to control the processing of the application in such a way that the applications can be suspended or resumed according to whether operator is available for them, and further characterised by the fact that an application which the window manager controls may itself be a window manager which itself performs the application and tasking control functions described above.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
67 words
A system as claimed in claim 4, in which a window manager which controls another window manager as an application need have no awareness of whether an application is a window manager or not or have any awareness of window created by the hierarchically dependent window manager and where conversely the dependent window manager need have no awareness that it is being controlled by another window manager.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
27 words
A data display system as claimed in any one of the preceeding claims in which more than one window area displayed on a display screen may overlap.