Abstract:
An enhancement to graphical user interface software adds training and customization features that allow users to select between levels of interface sophistication according to skill level. While pull-down menu functions and toolbar functions are commonly presented independently, the List-Bar interface control allows a user to present a menu and a toolbar together, including positional cues to further speed user familiarization with the toolbar&#39;s symbolic abstraction of menu terminology. A novice or occasional user can choose to use a menu alone, while an expert may prefer a toolbar alone. For a progressing user, having both modes displayed, active, and positioned in parallel can speed and reinforce learning. In addition to allowing direct arrow-key-class, mouse-class, and stylus-class pointing and selection tools, List-Bar interface control further directly supports touchscreen-controlled user interface, for which variable and generally more widely spaced selection element presentation on the display is accommodated.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims priority to provisional U.S. patent application entitled, “LIST-BAR INTERFACE CONTROL APPARATUS AND METHOD,” filed Jun. 2, 2004, having a Ser. No. 60/575,816, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates generally to user interface software for use in computing equipment. More particularly, the present invention relates to graphical user interface display methods for training and normal use.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     It is known in computer user interface software to employ a variety of methods to provide access to computer functions. Because users with a broad range of skills may need to use particular software, greater or lesser levels of function integration may be included in software tools. Function integration can allow novice and occasional users as well as expert users to access computers as aids in the performance of tasks. Function integration can be provided in order to avoid errors, speed completion of tasks, and advance user proficiency.  
         [0004]     It is further known in computer-based, graphical user interface (GUI) software to provide user access to functions via interface elements termed menus, by analogy to familiar functions such as restaurant service. Menus in some applications are known as pull-down or pop-up menus, in reference to the appearance of a display device in response to activation of a displayed category summary item that causes a normally hidden menu to be displayed. The pull-down or pop-up menu is in many configurations hidden again after the selection process is finished.  
         [0005]     It is further known in computer-based, graphical user interface (GUI) software to provide user access to executable software functions via interface elements termed toolbars. In a toolbar, a region of a display, which may be organized as an oblong and contiguous region, presents one or more symbols representing the functions. User execution of a function represented on the toolbar can be realized in some systems by pointing, wherein a location selector such as a mouse-directed cursor is placed within a display zone associated with one symbol, and by subsequently providing an execution command, such as by clicking a switch on the mouse.  
         [0006]     The two implementations, toolbars and menus, can meet operational requirements for software-based, hardware-dependent applications, but can each exhibit significant shortcomings. For example, a typical toolbar presents the functions with which it is associated in an extremely terse, even abstract, format, often with a single word, an abbreviation, or a symbolic picture known as an icon. As a consequence, the toolbar&#39;s functions may be readily available only to users sufficiently proficient to recognize an abstract symbol. A typical pull-down menu, in contrast, is likely to be slow and tedious for a proficient user, even though the same pull-down menu may be dauntingly complex to a novice or occasional user. Transition from pull-down menu use to toolbar use can be slow for a progressing user, since the two presentations can be furnished without reference to each other.  
         [0007]     Accordingly, it is desirable to provide user interface software that coordinates and integrates toolbar and pull-down/pop-up menu functions, allowing users to accelerate their performance as they advance in proficiency.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]     The above and other features and advantages are achieved in some embodiments by a novel combined toolbar and pull-down/pop-up menu or list function selection methodology, termed List-Bar User Interface Control, or list-bar, as herein disclosed. List-bar provides, when so selected by a user, one of a menu and a toolbar, wherein the two may in some embodiments have substantially similar or identical order and spacing in a display. A third user option is simultaneous, adjacent presentation of both the menu and the toolbar, so that a user can readily infer correlation between the two.  
         [0009]     In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a method of displaying and processing information is presented. The method includes providing a group of elements for display on a display component of an interface subsystem of a computing device, wherein each of the elements represents an executable function in a program associated with the computing device, identifying a first class of elements within the provided group of elements, wherein the elements in the first class comprise a menu, identifying a second class of elements within the provided group of elements, wherein the elements in the second class comprise a toolbar, allowing function execution by element selection from either class by a user, and selectably concealing from presentation on the display component a class of selectable elements.  
         [0010]     In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, an information acquisition, maintenance, and display system is presented. The system includes means for displaying a group of elements on a display component of an interface subsystem of a computing device, wherein each of the elements represents an executable function associated with the computing device, means for selecting for execution an element from the group, means for differentiating between two display classes of executable elements, means for formatting a first display class as a menu, means for formatting a second display class as a toolbar, and means for choosing between displaying only the first display class, displaying only the second display class, and displaying both display classes.  
         [0011]     In accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention, a computer readable medium with program instructions for displaying and processing information is presented. The medium includes instructions for presenting a display image on a display component of an interface device whereupon are conditionally displayed at least two display elements, supporting selection-locus positioning and selection-locus activation hardware components of the interface device, and commanding execution of a function associated with a display element by selecting and activating the display element. The medium further includes instructions for identifying within the display image a menu display element, identifying within the display image a toolbar display element, establishing logic conditions enabling display of the menu element, establishing logic conditions enabling display of the toolbar element, providing user control of logic conditions for enablement of display of menu and toolbar elements independently of each other, and providing a mode in which menu and toolbar elements are displayed and enabled simultaneously.  
         [0012]     In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention, an information acquisition, maintenance, and display system is presented. The system includes a processing device, an input/output interface unit for the processing device, an information storage and retrieval unit providing modifiable record keeping for the processing device, and a processor-based instruction sequence actuating the processing device to control the interface unit and the information storage and retrieval unit. The system further includes an instruction sequence functioning as a user interface, wherein a group of user executable functions consisting of at least one of a menu having at least one item and a toolbar having at least one item is presented for user selection of a function to execute, wherein the menu and the toolbar provide substantially duplicated executable functions, and wherein placement of corresponding menu items and toolbar items is substantially parallel.  
         [0013]     The input/output interface unit in the above information acquisition, maintenance, and display system further includes a processor-compatible touch-sensitive surface superimposed on the visible image presented on the display output device, wherein the touch-sensitive surface is configured to provide a data output signal representing a location on the surface on which a touch occurs, and wherein a mapping correlates the set of display elements and a set of touch-sensitive locations on the surface, whereby a touch applied to the surface is interpretable as both a position indication and an activation signal.  
         [0014]     There have thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described below and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.  
         [0015]     In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein, as well as the abstract included below, are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.  
         [0016]     As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be used as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0017]      FIG. 1  is a screen display with a toolbar in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0018]      FIG. 2  is a screen display with a pull-down menu in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0019]      FIG. 3  is a screen display combining a toolbar and a menu in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0020]      FIG. 4  is a screen display like  FIG. 1 , adding a cursor, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0021]      FIG. 5  is a setup screen display in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0022]      FIG. 6  is a secondary setup screen display in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0023]      FIG. 7  is a touchbar screen display in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0024]      FIG. 8  is a touchbar setup screen display in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0025]      FIG. 9  is a cascading screen display in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0026]     The invention will now be described with reference to the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout. A preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention provides a software interface that furnishes at least one pull-down menu for selection of a function to be executed, using a presentation format appropriate to a menu, and further furnishes a pull-down toolbar in which the functions presented in each menu are repeated in substantially the same sequence, using a presentation format appropriate to a toolbar. This concept admits of several embodiments, each of which may be preferred in a specific operational environment.  
         [0027]     The computer software indicates, in menu, toolbar, or combined mode, disablement of functions. Disablement is indicated by changing the representation from a fully functional default representation to a second, less prominent representation. For example, “graying out” a command can show that a function is unavailable, while continuing to display the unavailable function. “Graying out,” i.e., lowering foreground-background contrast, as well as other display variations, can be used to indicate that selection and activation of specific items has no meaning or is otherwise not permitted at a step and is therefore disabled.  
         [0028]     List-Bar user interface enhancement is dynamic at least in the sense that a user can, by selecting access and control options consistent with a self-described level of proficiency, cause particular classes of controls to be presented or hidden.  
         [0029]      FIG. 1  is a representation of a screen display  10  within a graphical user interface (GUI), in which execution of a specific application by a microcomputer is shown. In the application, a representative vertically-oriented toolbar  12  associated with the application is displayed near the left edge of the display  10 . The individual elements within the example toolbar  12  are presented tersely, in text abbreviation form. Abbreviation, whether in the manner shown, through the use of icons, or using a combination of text abbreviations and icons, can reduce the horizontal extent of a toolbar  12 , when compared to presenting whole words or word strings to identify elements, for example. However, such display terseness provides an inexperienced user with little insight into the meaning of each element. Nonetheless, the operability of the toolbar  12  is complete, i.e., all functions that are not “grayed out” exist and can be executed, and a proficient user will likely find this configuration fully functional  
         [0030]      FIG. 2  shows a screen display  18  equivalent to that of  FIG. 1 , with the toolbar  12  of  FIG. 1  hidden and a pull-down menu  20  displayed. The menu  20  of the example in  FIG. 2  includes the same elements as the toolbar  12 , in the same order, and at substantially the same vertical spacing. Having words or word strings for each element may be observed to obstruct view of more of the display, while offering little benefit to a proficient user. The menu  20  is a standard dropdown list, meaning that the menu  20  is in some embodiments hidden again after an item is selected for execution.  
         [0031]     It is to be understood that hiding of a menu  20 , as shown in  FIG. 2 , after selection of a command therefrom, is not a required property, but a characteristic of individual embodiments. Such a display presentation alternative may be established as a user-selectable option or fixed by a programmer.  
         [0032]      FIG. 3  shows a screen display  22  in which both the toolbar  12  and the pull-down menu  20  are displayed. Using the toolbar  12  or the menu  20  may thus be seen to be strongly operationally similar, with the equivalence of the two classes emphasized by the parallel organization of their respective presentations. The term “class” as used herein refers to access to software commands in a GUI environment, wherein user proficiency is a criterion, and use of a pull-down menu  20  involves a presumption of a lower requirement for user proficiency than access to the same commands by a toolbar  12 . Thus, assignment of menu access to commands to a first class and assignment of toolbar access to commands to a second class allows display strategies to be differentiated according to user proficiency.  
         [0033]      FIG. 4  shows a screen display  24  similar to the display in  FIG. 1 , in which only a toolbar  12  was activated. A GUI-compatible positioning input device, such as a mouse, trackball, joystick, and the like, can be used to position a cursor and thereby to control the selection of an item having a display position and an associated selection box, preparatory to issuing an activation command. A display position is the item&#39;s occupied region on the visible field of a display device, whether denoted in terms of center and geometric extent, starting coordinates and extent, starting and ending coordinates, or other denotation system. A selection box is the range of a positioning input device&#39;s focus over which the item is interpreted as being selected. In  FIG. 4 , a positioning input device has been used to cause a selection-locus indicator (“cursor”)  26  on the display to be positioned at and superimposed on (“hover over”) a location within the selection box  28  for a particular entry  92  in the toolbar  12 .  
         [0034]     The above event may conditionally allow a “screen tip”  30  to be displayed in the vicinity of the cursor  26 , where the term “screen tip”  30  refers to an informational item such as a text display related to the element  92  hovered over. The user interface software, in the embodiment shown, is structured so that, if available, a screen tip  30  can be superimposed on the screen display  24  in the vicinity of the cursor  26  when the cursor&#39;s focus falls within the selection box  28  for an item.  
         [0035]     It is to be understood that a visible item requires, within the display device, a display position large enough to allow a user to identify the item, and it is further to be understood that a selection box  28  generally corresponds to the display position of the item. Positioning of a cursor  26  so that its focus falls within the selection box  28  can, in some embodiments, be interpreted as constituting selection, although not activation, of the item.  
         [0036]      FIG. 5  shows an initial screen display  32  that can be presented to a user prior to the screen display  22  of  FIG. 3 . Here, the user is presented with a single icon-style soft key  34  (i.e., a simulated pushbutton within the GUI) showing, in this embodiment, a picture of a hand with an extended index finger, and further showing a down-arrow  36  adjacent to the soft key  34 . The particular style of down-arrow  36  shown is known in some GUI systems for indicating access to a pull-down menu; in the embodiment shown, the down-arrow  36  provides access to a “user proficiency” pull-down menu, shown in the next figure.  
         [0037]     In  FIG. 6 , the screen display  38  shows a user proficiency pull-down menu  40 , in which multiple items are presented. The top item is a title, OPERATION WIZARD TOOLS  42 , not subject to activation. The next item, following a divider bar  44  in the embodiment shown, is a similarly nonactivatable subhead, BEGINNER  46 , beneath which are two selectable items, Show List  48  and Hide Bars  50 . For a novice user, toolbars may be confusing and thus undesirable, so that activating the Hide Bars  50  menu item may be preferred. Note that the Show List  48  menu item is “grayed out”—that is, the ostensibly selectable item is currently disabled, but is defined and may be enabled for selection in another operating mode. This is true in  FIG. 6  because showing of the pull-down menu or list  12  in  FIG. 3  has been selected previously. In other embodiments, functions already activated, such as the Show List  48  entry shown here, may be left in a normal display mode, if preferred.  
         [0038]     Continuing down the list, following another divider bar  52 , the nonactivateable subhead INTERMEDIATE  54  is followed by a single menu item, Show Tool Bar  56 . This item is the reverse of the Hide Bars item  50 ; in the embodiment shown, this item is neither collocated with Hide Bars  50  nor provided in a toggle modality, again with a goal of making the process as obvious as possible for beginners. Toggling between Show Bar and Hide Bar in a single menu item—that is, providing a single menu item location, of which the meaning, and, in some embodiments, the displayed label, change between at least two values when activated—may be preferred in some embodiments, but can be less obvious, particularly to inexperienced or infrequent users. In the presentation shown, a self-recognizing BEGINNER is implicitly encouraged to select among items that are plausible, while a self-recognizing INTERMEDIATE user is similarly presented with and implicitly encouraged to select from items of a moderately advanced nature.  
         [0039]     A third group in the list, following yet another divider bar  58  and another nonactivatable subhead, ADVANCED  60 , includes selections Hide List  62 , Customize Tool Bar  64 , and Disappearing Tool Bar  66 . Hide List  62  reverses Show List  48  under BEGINNER  46 . The rationale for separation of the Show Bars/Hide Tool Bar menu pair applies to the Show List/Hide List menu pair as well, with the menu item more likely for the ADVANCED user positioned away from that intended for the BEGINNER. The second ADVANCED menu item, Customize Tool Bar  64 , is offered to allow a sufficiently proficient user to arrange the content of tool bars to support personal preference. The final ADVANCED item, Disappearing Tool Bar  66 , supports an additional mode in which a tool bar is hidden until the activation soft key  34  is selected, after which the tool bar is displayed only until an immediate need for it, such as to select one function, is finished.  
         [0040]     Alternate terms may be preferred in some embodiments in place of BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE, and ADVANCED, although the substance of providing menus alone, menus combined with toolbars, or toolbars alone can be retained with such alternate terms. It is to be understood that the presentation options of menus and toolbars as herein described are not limiting, but that other presentation options are possible. Presentation options for item selection can include display formats such as brief declarative statements for items and graphical examples corresponding to items, where sufficient display area exists to support such presentations. It is to be further understood that the display items can be shown individually, such as in response to a user&#39;s hovering a cursor over an option in a menu, where such presentation is preferable to continuous display of all items in a menu.  
         [0041]     A fourth group in the list follows yet another divider bar  68  and another nonactivatable subhead, TOUCHSCREEN OPTIONS  70 . This group addresses a specific hardware capability, namely support for touchscreen technology, which can be used in place of or in addition to keyboards, mice, touchpads, trackballs, joysticks, and other input devices.  
         [0042]     As used herein, touchscreen technology refers to a data input technology in which a typical display device, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid-crystal display (LCD) configured to support a GUI, is further configured to detect physical contact on its display surface, for example by provision of a substantially transparent and somewhat electrically conductive overlay grid. A typical touchscreen can detect finger position with a particular level of precision. The touchscreen may be somewhat affected by pressure, so that acquiring a signal level sufficient for activation may require that the user&#39;s fingertip be deflected (i.e., flattened) slightly, which can in turn provide tactile feedback to the user.  
         [0043]     Other methods of integrating two-dimensional display and data input position grids are known, such as light pens, and various detection methods are known, including capacitance- and resistance-based sensing, acoustical ranging, and the like. Any method for superimposing an activation input directly on a region of a display rather than using a pointing device located away from the display is intended to be included under the general terms “touchscreen” and “touch-sensitive display device” for purposes of this disclosure.  
         [0044]     A user&#39;s finger is an example of a “specified activating entity,” that is, a physical object or entity complying with a specification established by a vendor for applying an activating signal to a location on the display device. Like a menu or a toolbar, a touchbar associates a physical mapping of a display with a software mapping, so that at least one discretely detectable location on the touchscreen is mapped to a location listed in the software mapping, and activation of that location on the touchscreen results in issuance of an activation command by the software. Although alignment of a mouse-based system, for example, is relatively straightforward, alignment of touchscreen positioning with display positioning may be more complex, and may be less stable over time than mouse-based systems, as the display and the touch surface have independent sources of position error. Such disadvantages may be offset by advantages in some systems, so that use of touchscreen hardware in a system can be desirable.  
         [0045]     The basis for discussion herein is that at least some touchscreen input devices may exhibit lower effective precision than some other types of pointing devices. Further, by relying on hand contact by users, some touchscreen devices occasionally operate with portions of the display obscured from view. While not true in all cases, these attributes, along with the usefulness of integrating display and input functions in a single interface element, reveal a desirable aspect of list-bar-capable software applications, namely accommodation of lower-resolution position input.  
         [0046]     The TOUCHSCREEN OPTIONS  70  group in the embodiment shown includes Show Touch Bar  72 , Customize Touch Bar  74 , and Disappearing Touch Bar  76 . Activation of Show Touch Bar  72  can replace a standard toolbar with a touchbar, on which substantially the same elements are displayed, but with different (typically wider) spacing between elements. This will be shown in  FIG. 7 . Cancellation of Show Touch Bar  72  is provided in the embodiment shown by activation of the Hide Bars  50  menu item in the BEGINNER  46  group, shown in  FIG. 6 . Activation of Customize Touch Bar  74  has substantially the same sense as Customize Tool Bar  64  in the ADVANCED  60  group, with additional customization capability based on the differing attributes of various touchscreen hardware embodiments. The final option in the TOUCHSCREEN OPTIONS  70  group is Disappearing Touch Bar  76 , which is analogous to the Disappearing Tool Bar  66  function under ADVANCED  60 .  
         [0047]     The examples discussed below are related to a single case application for list-bar capability. As such, the examples illustrate the characteristics of the inventive technology and imply the software requirements for incorporating list-bar capability into a GUI-based software application.  
         [0048]     It is to be understood that the term “vertically oriented” as used herein refers to a pull-down or pop-up menu, toolbar, or touchbar in which executable items from a list are presented for selection as successive entries in a display field, where a next list item is positioned below a previous list item, with successive list items in a range simultaneously visible. Such a presentation is suited to languages such as English, Urdu, Russian, Arabic, and other writing systems that are left-to-right or right-to-left reading by default. Vertically-oriented writing systems such as Mandarin may be preferentially supported with horizontally-oriented menu systems. In both orientations of writing systems, toolbars may be oriented vertically or horizontally according to preference. A “pull-down” is commonly associated with an identifying element at or near the top of a display or of a GUI process within a display, wherein selection of the identifying element causes the pull-down to be displayed, and wherein the upper extent of the pull-down is typically located approximately at the location of the identifying element, whereas a “pop-up” may be located elsewhere in a display, such as with its first or last element adjacent to the pointing device symbol on the display.  
         [0049]     The toolbars and touchbars shown in the figures herein are vertically oriented for compatibility with menus, and use text abbreviations rather than icons to represent functions. It is to be understood that alternative orientations and function representations may be present in some embodiments. Placement of a menu and an associated toolbar adjacent and parallel to one another, with spacings between corresponding items in the menu and toolbar that are approximately equal, can aid in learning the equivalence between the two representations, and may thus be preferable. The use of icons—that is, graphical images that can function as “visual mnemonics”—rather than text abbreviations for one or more functions in a toolbar, may likewise be preferable in some embodiments.  
         [0050]     Returning to  FIG. 2 , the screen display  18  shows that a user has started an application, the purpose of which is to perform, by way of example, hospital administration at the level of creating, altering, viewing, and executing work shifts. Note that the term “shift” may apply to a one-time event or an event that repeats, for example, every week, which would be clear to a user in context but need have no effect on the example. The application is used for assigning and deassigning staff members by shift, associating and disassociating beds with those staff members, and a variety of other functions. The screen display  18  shows only a pulldown menu  20 , so it may be inferred that the function Operation Wizard Tools  42 , shown in  FIG. 6 , is currently functioning in the BEGINNER  46  mode discussed above. In  FIG. 2 , functions within the application include SHIFT  84  functions, EDIT  86  functions, and others, along with a continuation function MORE . . .  88 . Each of the executable menu entries, such as -Create a New Shift  90 , is typically more descriptive than a toolbar  12  entry, as shown in  FIG. 1 . Particularly when presented in conjunction with group subheads  84 ,  86 ,  80 , and the like, list-formatted groups of menu  20  items may provide contextualized meaning, rendering the presentation more effective than that of individual screen tips  30 , shown in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0051]     Returning to  FIG. 3 , the screen display  22  shows the same application as  FIGS. 1 and 2 , but the pull-down menu  20  is now augmented with a vertically-oriented toolbar  12 , in which executable pull-down menu entries, such as -Create a New Shift  90 , are aligned with corresponding toolbar items, such as CS  92 . It may be inferred that the function Operation Wizard Tools  42 , shown in  FIG. 6 , is currently functioning in the INTERMEDIATE  54  mode discussed above. In  FIG. 3 , it is evident that the toolbar  12  entry CS  92 , corresponding to -Create a New Shift  90 , is sufficiently terse that a learning cycle may be required. Nonetheless, repeated use is likely to render the pull-down menu  20  redundant for at least some users.  
         [0052]     Returning to  FIG. 4 , the screen display  24  shows the same application, with only the vertically-oriented toolbar  12  visible. With a cursor  26  hovering over CS  92  as shown, the screen tip Create Shift  30  is displayed. Thus it may be inferred that the function Operation Wizard Tools  42 , shown in  FIG. 6 , is currently functioning in the ADVANCED  60  mode discussed above, and that the display of screen tips is enabled.  
         [0053]      FIG. 7  shows a screen display  96  on which a touchbar  98  is presented in place of the toolbar  12  of  FIG. 4 . It is evident that a noticeable difference between the screen displays is spacing between elements. Thus it may be inferred that the function Operation Wizard Tools  42 , shown in  FIG. 6 , is currently functioning in the TOUCHSCREEN OPTIONS  70  mode discussed above, with Show Touch Bar  72  activated.  
         [0054]      FIG. 8  shows a screen display for TOUCHSCREEN SETUP  100 , in which the options in the Customize Touch Bar  74  function of  FIG. 6  can be set. Here, layout of each touchbar displayed on a touchscreen can be adjusted, with individual or group options available as appropriate in an embodiment. Under BAR SETUP  102 , tools -Show Items  104 , -Remove Items  106 , -Menu Order  108 , and -Insert Space  110  can be provided to allow selectable functions corresponding to menu items to be presented in an alternative order, concealed, or separated to a different extent than in the menu on which the touchbar is based. In typical embodiments, menu items can be assigned attributes of visibility, default order, edited order, and the like, so that changes under BAR SETUP  102  can be made readily. Under TOUCH OPTIONS  112 , tools -Item Spacing  114  and -Item Size  116  can be provided to accommodate a number of selectable menu items to a specific display size and resolution, either globally or for each menu. The Restore Defaults  118  tool can be provided to return to the menu selection originally provided, using the above-referenced assigned attributes.  
         [0055]      FIG. 9  shows a list-bar presentation  120  using a portion of the list-bar presentation of  FIG. 3 , modified to illustrate a pull-down menu  122  and a corresponding toolbar  124  that have cascaded elements. As shown, menu sub-elements  126  and toolbar sub-elements  128  each cascade to a respective default side if sufficient display space exists. Cascading to an opposite side or displacement of the entire cascading list-bar is possible if a proximal display edge prevents default display  120 .  
         [0056]     List-bar user interface control may be most readily applied to computer systems intended for users who are fully able to access typical resources, including at least a video display device, a keyboard, and a mouse or touch screen, as well as a sound generator. For users with reduced visual or aural acuity, range of motion, reading comprehension, and the like, the concept of list-bar user interface control may be nonetheless usable when appropriately adapted.  
         [0057]     For a low-mobility user, for example, jumping to a preferred selection group in  FIG. 6  may be simplified to a combination of user pauses and actuations of a “puff-and-sip” input device. For such a user, choosing an entry within a selection group may be simplified to a sequence in which the user steps through highlighted options, pauses at a particular option, receives a visual or audible prompt from the system, and confirms the selection by responding within a time window. Similar adaptation to other user functional limitations is equally possible.  
         [0058]     Affirming user identity in a privacy or security sensitive environment restricted to trusted users may be similarly enhanced by comparing a present-session pattern of use to one or more patterns of use stored from previous sessions. Such an application of list-bar user interface control could, for example, begin execution of a session using a list-bar aware application as though list-bar capability were not supported, for example using BEGINNER mode, and a pattern of menu use could be compared to a user&#39;s previously established preferences while the session proceeded, in order to establish a confidence score regarding the identity of the user.  
         [0059]     List-bar user interface control as shown is useful in improving and maintaining user proficiency with many types of software, including such tasks as the creation, interrogation, and modification of databases by health care facilities, schools, repair shops, and other users who may be concerned with ease of use and prevention of mistakes. List-bar capability can be used in many environments, such as manufacturing, warehousing, and food service, where speed and reliability may be principal considerations. It can find further application in military, law enforcement, courthouse, airline passenger support, and other environments where security may be a determining factor.  
         [0060]     The many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification, and, thus, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to that fall within the scope of the invention.