Patent ID: 8471873

Claim:
A method for manipulating properties of a piece of software running on a computer and whose user interface (UI) is displayed on a computer screen, the method comprising: defining a virtual three-dimensional (3D) space mapped in the display area of the computer screen; using a computer to display the software UI in the virtual 3D space based on a 3D coordinate system associated with the virtual 3D space; deriving an image from the software UI; displaying the derived image within a virtual two-dimensional (2D) plane substantially parallel to a Z-axis of the 3D space, wherein the Z-axis is along a direction perpendicular to the computer screen; and allowing a user to manipulate properties of the software by manipulating the derived image within the virtual 2D plane, wherein allowing the user to manipulate the properties comprises allowing the user to move the software UI along the Z-axis by dragging the derived image along the virtual 2D plane.