Method for windowing using mainframe hosted CICS

Claim 1

A method of managing a plurality of video display windows which partially or completely overlap each other as manifested by native-mode 3270 data streams originating from the execution of BMS maps, relying solely on the standard video display facilities of BMS plus support for extended attributes, as a representation of nested or cascaded user interface input/output contexts within a CICS application program, said method comprising: preventing a video display image of a base pane from interfering with a video display of an overlay pane; preserving critical field attribute values of a base map created from said overlay panes; managing a data entry cursor so that it is active on either said base pane or said overlay pane in accordance with a switching of user interface contexts during creation and subsequent destruction of said overlay pane; representing BMS field attribute values and processing control variable values as bit patterns; means for storing said bit patterns as bit map files in accordance with a specific ordering of overlay panes and their associated user interface contexts; means for restoring said bit patterns as bit map files in accordance with a specific ordering of overlay panes and their associated user interface contexts; allowing dynamic changes to the contents of said overlay pane as performed by users of the CICS application program and for said overlay pane changes to be stored for subsequent retrieval; means for sequencing BMS maps which maintains a synchronization of a native-mode 3270 data streams produced by the execution of said maps and the corresponding user interface contexts as presented to the user during windowing which employs said method for managing the data entry cursor, said methods of bit map file construction and their subsequent rapid storage and retrieval and accommodates changes to the contents of overlay panes for producing, storing and retrieving such changes.

Claim 2

A method of managing a plurality of video display windows which partially or completely overlap each other as manifested by native-mode 3270 data streams originating from the execution of BMS maps, relying solely on the standard video display facilities of BMS plus support for extended attributes, as a representation of nested or cascaded user interface input/output contexts within a CICS application program, said method comprising: preventing a video display image of a base pane from interfering with a video display of an overlay pane; preserving critical field attribute values of a base map created from said overlay panes; managing a data entry cursor so that it is active on either said base pane or said overlay pane in accordance with a switching of user interface contexts during creation and subsequent destruction of said overlay pane; representing BMS field attribute values and processing control variable values as bit patterns; means for storing said bit patterns as bit map files in accordance with a specific ordering of overlay panes and their associated user interface contexts; means for restoring said bit patterns as bit map files in accordance with a specific ordering of overlay panes and their associated user interface contexts; allowing dynamic changes to the contents of said overlay pane as performed by users of the CICS application program and for said overlay pane changes to be stored for subsequent retrieval; means for sequencing BMS maps which maintains a synchronization of a native-mode 3270 data streams produced by the execution of said maps and the corresponding user interface contexts as presented to the user during windowing which employs said method for managing the data entry cursor, said methods of bit map file construction and their subsequent rapid storage and retrieval and accommodates changes to the contents of overlay panes for producing, storing and retrieving such changes.