Patent ID: 7681150
Filing Date: 2010-03-16
Classification: G06F,G11B

Abstract:
1. An electronic device for displaying and selecting information, comprising a memory, an input unit, a processor, and a display unit, wherein: the memory stores a plurality of files and images, the files are classified into a plurality of groups, and each group is represented by one or more displayable images; the input unit generates control signals according to operations of a user; the processor designates each group according to a hierarchy of the groups; images of one or more groups in a same level of the hierarchy are each displayed in the form of a first virtual ellipse on the display unit, centers of the displayed first virtual ellipses are located along a path of a second virtual ellipse; a selected one of the groups in the same level of the hierarchy has its first virtual ellipse displayed in a size larger than that of any other displayed first virtual ellipse, the selected group can be changed to a new selected group according to corresponding control signals and the new selected group is moved along the second virtual ellipse to a position where is occupied by the previously selected group; images of the first virtual ellipse of the selected group are movable along the first virtual ellipse, wherein when one of the images is moved toward an active area, dimension of the one of the images becomes larger; when one of the images is moved away from the active area and toward a furthest position, dimension of the one of the images becomes smaller; after one of the images is moved out of the furthest position, the one of the images vanishes; after the user selects an image in the active area of the selected group, files corresponding to each of the images of the selected group are displayed in the form of the first virtual ellipse; and the display unit displays at least a part of the images.