Patent ID: 7614010
Filing Date: 2009-11-03
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
1. An interface apparatus stored in a computer storage medium that controls at least activation and termination of one or more registered application programs in accordance with user operations, the apparatus comprising: first holding means configured to hold information of the one or more registered application programs; user operation acceptance means configured to accept the user operations; second holding means configured to receive and hold status information sent from each of the one or more application programs when that application program is activated or terminated; list presentation means configured to present on a display screen an application program list window showing a list of the one or more application programs based on the information held in the first holding means when the user operation acceptance means has accepted a user operation directing that the interface apparatus be activated, and to indicate in the application program list window at least whether a status of each application program is a running status or a terminated status based on the status information held in the second holding means, the status of each application program being indicated by a color of a respective status indicator bar associated with that program, a first color indicating a terminated status and a second and a third color indicating a running status, the color of the respective status indicator bar changing when the status of the associated application program changes from the running status to the terminated status or from the terminated status to the running status; selection means configured to select an application program to be controlled from among the one or more application programs shown in the application program list window in accordance with a predetermined first user operation accepted by the user operation acceptance means; and control means configured to control the status of the selected application program based on the status information held in the second holding means when the user operation acceptance means has accepted a predetermined second user operation, wherein a plurality of the one or more application programs are capable of being run concurrently, and of the plurality of running application programs, an application program whose operation window is arranged on a foreground of the display screen is capable of accepting the user operations via the user operation acceptance means, the running status of each application program includes a foremost status and a rearward status, the foremost status indicating that the operation window of the corresponding application program is arranged on the foreground of the display screen and the rearward status indicating that the operation window of the corresponding application program is arranged rearward on the display screen, the second holding means holds information indicating whether the status of each running application program is the foremost status or the rearward status, and the list presentation means indicates whether the status of each running application program is the foremost status or the rearward status, the foremost or rearward status of each application program being indicated by the color of its associated status indicator bar, the second color indicating one of the foremost or rearward status and the third color indicating another of the foremost or rearward status, the color of the respective status indicator bar changing when the status of the associated application program changes from the foremost status to the rearward status or from the rearward status to the foremost status.