Patent ID: 7793226

Claim:
A method of providing a graphical user interface, comprising: displaying a tab row in said graphical user interface, wherein said tab row provides a user with control over a separate viewing area in said graphical user interface, wherein a currently active one of a plurality of visible tab display objects within said tab row is displayed in front of other ones of said plurality of visible tab display objects within said tab row, and wherein only one of said plurality of visible tab display objects within said tab row is currently active at any time; displaying, as one of said plurality of visible tab display objects in said tab row, a top tab display object representing a group of tab display objects, wherein each of said tab display objects in said group of tab display objects represented by said top tab display object has associated therewith a display object for display in said viewing area, wherein only said top tab display object visually represents said group of said tab display objects within said tab row, and wherein only a display object associated with a currently selected one of said tab display objects in said group of tab display objects is displayed in said viewing area responsive to said user making said top tab display object currently active within said tab row by clicking on said top tab display object; and displaying a plurality of icons within said top tab display object, each of said plurality of icons associated with a corresponding one of said tab display objects in said group of tab display objects, wherein each of said plurality of icons visually indicates, both when said top tab display object is currently active within said tab row and when another of said visible tab display objects in said tab row is currently active within said tab row, whether said corresponding one of said tab display objects in said group of tab display objects is currently selected within said group of tab display objects, and wherein each of said plurality of icons also visually indicates a status associated with said display object associated with said corresponding one of said tab display objects in said group of tab display objects.