Patent ID: 8656304

Claim:
An information processing apparatus in which a maximum number of executable programs at the same time is limited to a predetermined number, the information processing apparatus comprising: program storage means for storing a plurality of programs; activation means for sequentially activating the plurality of programs in response to a user's instruction; and symbol image display means for displaying a same number of symbol images as the maximum number of executable programs, wherein, for each activated program, a symbol image is displayed in a first manner, wherein the symbol images that do not correspond to the activated programs are displayed in a second manner that is different than the first manner, wherein when a new instruction is given to execute a new program in a case where the same number of programs as the maximum number are already activated, the activation means terminates execution of a program activated least recently of the same number of the programs as the maximum number that are already activated and activates the new program, and wherein the activation means outputs, before terminating the execution of the program, a message for confirming the terminator of the execution of the program and executes the termination of the program based on a response given from the user to the message.