Patent ID: 6628304
Filing Date: 2003-09-30
Classification: G06F,H04L

Abstract:
A computer system comprising:at least one input device; an output device; a memory device; and a processing unit coupled to the input device, the output device and the memory device, the processing unit executing a computer program stored in the memory device, the computer program controlling the output device to display a graphical user interface and controlling the at least one input device to accept input to manipulate a view of objects displayed within the graphical user interface; the graphical user interface displaying objects derived from hierarchically arranged data corresponding to network devices in a network environment, the data gathered through the use of a network management protocol that remotely queries the network devices and, in turn, the network devices provide status information, wherein each object displayed is graphically scaled in size and proportion and positioned in relation to other objects within a hierarchy of the data, and wherein the number of objects displayed are limited to within a predetermined number in which, if the data exceeds the predetermined number, at least one object represents multiple objects.