Graphical user interface facilitating uploading of electronic documents to shared storage

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10154078-B2
Application number	US-201514788761-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 30, 2015
Priority date	Jun 30, 2015
Publication date	Dec 11, 2018
Grant date	Dec 11, 2018

Abstract

In an end user application running on a computer, for the purpose of collaborative modification of shared electronic documents, a graphical user interface is provided that facilitates storing an electronic document in shared storage. This graphical user interface includes a graphical element that conveys information about shared status of the currently accessed electronic document to the end user. Through input devices of the end user computer, an end user can manipulate this graphical element. Certain manipulations of this graphical element instruct the end user computer to store the currently accessed electronic document in shared storage if that electronic document has not yet been stored in shared storage. After the electronic document is stored in shared storage, the graphical user interface facilitates sharing of the electronic document with others. A graphical user interface that allows an electronic document to be quickly shared improves user efficiency and productivity in collaborative authoring.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A computer, comprising:
a network interface connected between the computer and a computer network, the computer network being connected to a shared storage system, the shared storage system comprising a file system configured to store a plurality of electronic documents and to make the plurality of electronic documents available to a plurality of users; and
a processing system comprising one or more processing units and storage, the storage comprising computer program code that, when executed by the processing system, configures the processing system to be comprising:
an application comprising computer program instructions stored in the storage and executed by the processing system to process user input to modify an electronic document, the application comprising a graphical user interface including a document pane comprising display data representing an electronic document being edited and a graphical element representing sharing status of the electronic document being edited;
the application, in response to a selection of the graphical element representing sharing status and an instruction to share the electronic document being edited:
determining whether the electronic document being edited is stored only in a local file in local storage or is already stored in the shared storage;
in response to a determination that the electronic document being edited is stored only in the local file in the local storage:
displaying a sharing interface in the graphical user interface of the application and adjacent to the document pane presenting the electronic document being edited, the sharing interface presenting one or more available shared storage systems to store the electronic document being edited,
receiving an indication of a selected shared storage system from among the one or more available shared storage systems,
storing the electronic document being edited in a file in the selected shared storage system,
after storing the electronic document being edited in the file in the selected shared storage system, closing the local file, and
changing context of the application for editing the electronic document to indicate the electronic document being edited is using the file in the selected shared storage system; and

in response to a determination that the electronic document being edited is already stored in shared storage, or after otherwise ensuring the electronic document being edited is stored in the selected shared storage system, presenting in the sharing interface a graphical element in which a user can enter an indication of a user for sharing the electronic document being edited.

2. The computer of claim 1 , wherein the application is further configured to store the electronic document in a default directory in the shared storage system.

3. The computer of claim 2 wherein the application is further configured to automatically resolve naming conflicts of the electronic document and other electronic documents stored in the default directory of the shared storage system.

4. The computer of claim 1 wherein the application is further configured to interactively update the sharing interface in the graphical user interface with sharing status information for the currently accessed electronic document while the electronic document is accessed by the application and displayed in the graphical user interface.

5. The computer of claim 1 , wherein the application is further configured to prompt a user to enter, in the sharing interface, one or more user identifiers for one or more other users.

6. The computer of claim 5 , wherein the application is further configured to receive the one or more user identifiers for the one or more other users for sharing the electronic document.

7. An article of manufacture comprising:
at least one computer storage medium,
computer program instructions stored on the at least one computer storage medium for processing by a processing system of a computer, wherein the computer comprises a network interface connected between the computer and a computer network, the computer network being connected to a shared storage system, the shared storage system comprising a file system configured to store a plurality of electronic documents and to make the plurality of electronic documents available to a plurality of users, wherein the processing system of the computer comprises one or more processing units and storage, wherein the computer program instructions, when processed by the processing system of the computer, configures the computer to be comprising:
an application comprising computer program instructions stored in the storage and executed by the processing system to process user input to modify an electronic document, the application comprising a graphical user interface including a document pane comprising display data representing an electronic document being edited and a graphical element representing sharing status of the electronic document being edited; and
the application, in response to a selection of the graphical element representing sharing status and an instruction to share the electronic document being edited:
determining whether the electronic document being edited is stored only in a local file in local storage or is already stored in the shared storage;
in response to a determination that the electronic document being edited is stored only in the local file in the local storage:
displaying a sharing interface in the graphical user interface of the application adjacent to the document pane presenting the electronic document being edited, the sharing interface presenting one or more available shared storage systems to store the electronic document being edited,
receiving an indication of a selected shared storage system from among the one or more available shared storage systems,
storing the electronic document being edited in a file in the selected shared storage system,
after storing the electronic document being edited in the file in the selected shared storage system, closing the local file, and
changing context of the application for editing the electronic document to indicate the electronic document being edited is using the file in the selected shared storage system; and

in response to a determination that the electronic document being edited is already stored in shared storage, or after otherwise ensuring the electronic document being edited is stored in the selected shared storage system, presenting in the sharing interface a graphical element in which a user can enter an indication of a user for sharing the electronic document being edited.

8. The article of manufacture of claim 7 , wherein the application is further configured to store the electronic document in a default directory in the shared storage system.

9. The article of manufacture of claim 8 , wherein the application is further configured to automatically resolve naming conflicts of the electronic document and other electronic documents stored in the default directory of the shared storage system.

10. The article of manufacture of claim 7 , wherein the application is further configured to interactively update the sharing interface in the graphical user interface with sharing status information for the currently accessed electronic document while the electronic document is accessed by the application and displayed in the graphical user interface.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 7 , wherein the application is further configured to prompt a user to enter in the sharing interface one or more user identifiers for one or more other users.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 11 , wherein the application is further configur

Assignees

• Microsoft Technology Licensing Llc

Inventors

• Kessler Jade
• Shaffer Ryan
• Wilde Benjamin
• Cherston Juliana

Classifications

• H04L67/06 Primary

  specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP] · CPC title

• G06F3/04842

  Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements (G06F3/0482 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04L67/125

  involving control of end-device applications over a network · CPC title

• H04L67/1097

  for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS] · CPC title