INDICATING STATUS OF APPLICATION PROGRAM WITH ICONS

摘要

A computing device (100) and computing environment displays a graphical user interface (110) that presents a plurality of icons (260). Each icon is related to a different aspect of a resident software application. The icons are used to indicate the status of their associated aspects of the software application. Changes of state of the aspects of the software application represented by the displayed icons are determined and used to update the displayed icons so that the displayed icons present current status information concerning the associated aspects of the software application.

主权项

1. A method of updating a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising:
loading a GUI for an operating system into memory of a handheld computing device and displaying the GUI in a display of the handheld computing device, the operating system hosting the operation of a plurality of different computer programs; rendering in the GUI a first set of icons, each icon of the first set configured upon activation to launch execution in the operating system of a corresponding one of the computer programs; and, rendering in the GUI a second set of icons, the icons of the second set including a first email icon and a second email icon, each of the icons in the second set further being associated with a numeric indication displayed in the GUI and corresponding to a number of respectively unread email messages.