Method for providing help information for nested functions
US5949416A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 28, 1991 |
| Grant date | Sep 7, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 28, 2011 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F9/453
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A system and method for producing context sensitive prompts to assist the user with entry and editing of formulae in an electronic spreadsheet comprises a display device, a processing unit, an input device and memory. The display device preferably has a plurality of segregated viewports for displaying a general prompt and a context sensitive prompt. The memory further comprises function tables, a prompt generator, a prompt stack, and other routines. The prompt generator uses the function tables, the prompt stack, the cursor position and the string on the edit line to construct prompts for presentation on the display device. The preferred method for creating and displaying context sensitive prompts comprises the steps of: detecting movement of the cursor; scanning the string on the edit line until the cursor position is reached; pushing a function record on the prompt stack for each function invocation identified in the edit line; popping a function record from the prompt stack as the end of each function invocation is identified; producing a context sensitive and general prompt string; displaying the prompt strings in viewports on the display device.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.