Imagine a user interface where all of your applications and widgets are in cards, and switching between those cards is as simple as a quick flick. Now, imagine if instead of cards, all of your applications lived in pages of a book. And if you're doing that, you're probably HTC, and you've probably filed a Patent application on a User Interface that:
organizes applications, widgets, and web pages into pages of a virtual book. Each page of the virtual book is the UI of a service or function of the handheld electronic device. Flipping the pages of the virtual book means browsing and selecting the services and functions provided by the handheld electronic device. This book-like UI enables the user to use and manage these applications, widgets, and web pages in an easy and intuitive way like browsing a conventional printed book. The book-like UI hides the differences among applications, widgets, and web pages so that the handheld electronic device can be accessed through a uniform and convenient UI.
Sounds awfully familiar, eh? HTC's TouchFLO interfaces have gone quite a long way towards improving Windows Mobile and their Sense UI has done the same for Android. This new patent looks awfully nice too, extending webOS's card metaphor just a bit further. What UI refinements do you think should be next for webOS?.
[via gizmodo]
Comments
Wow, that's completely stupid. Why would I want a phone, that changes applications by flipping a page? I don't want my phone to act like a book!
Yeah, Palm really nailed it. While the Card system can be improved, it can't be improved much.
And this is just crappy by comparison.
if they have the actual image of a book on the screen wouldn't look just a little bit childish? And what if you want to get to an application towards the back, do you have to flip all the pages to get there? Hmm sounds upsetting.
Eat your heart out HTC.
What's a book?
Epic!
FTW!
I don't really think that's the same. Some of those pages are always available. in webos you can throw away ALL your cards
It's a gimmick. Why lose screen space so I can see virtual edges of a virtual book? Maybe they can even build in some margins so it looks even more like a book and I have even less screen. There maybe a way to streamline the card interface more, but this isn't it.
Isn't this KINDA the way sense ui works now? For example, if you're on the "leftmost" screen of the available 7, to get to the "rightmost" screen requires "flipping" (ok, maybe more like flicking) the screen 6 times.... so the "pages" don't look like pages but I don't see a huge difference at least in navigation.
Concepturally I think Card metaphore makes more sense than pages in a book. The reason is that cards can be placed and removed. Pages are more static, you have a predefined number of pages. The page metaphore may fit the Sense UI better, because the number screens per scene is defined to be 7. But this is hard to be adopted as a generic solution.
On the other hand, if WebOS ever to add widges, it make sense to have widge cards. It would end up more like the agenda apps out there, but WebOS could make its usage more generic.
I agree with your first point. It makes sense when there are a set number of pages to flip between.
I thin Palm really nailed it with the cards metaphor.
Go Go gadget-style computing!
Sounds a little like the Go OS used on the EO tablets from the early 90's.
Well, it's just another way to organize information, and it sounds kind of cool. I doubt it'll look like a dusty book. It's probably a slick page-turn animation and a visible stack of apps is what give it the "book" look (like some nice flash sites).
I actually really like the cards in WebOS. They are more intuitive and useful to me than I thought. Though I still think the multiple-apps open feature is a bit overrated. I rarely ever have more than one or two things opening at once. Some users probably appreciate the multi-tasking more than I do so I could be taking it for granted.
I personally like the WebOS card system. Believe it or not, I usually have about 4-5 applications running at the same time. The book idea would be good if you had like a table of contents... or did I miss something :P. Though it would be awesome to have the card system have rows instead of one single row to slide through.
I personally like the WebOS card system. Believe it or not, I usually have about 4-5 applications running at the same time. The book idea would be good if you had like a table of contents... or did I miss something :P. Though it would be awesome to have the card system have rows instead of one single row to slide through.
Woops just reread that... there is a table of contents... hmmmm well I still ike the webos layout better :P
You know, this brings up a cool idea - what if when you turned on your Pre you could quickly go to an "index" page that would just be a list of all your open cards? Rather than having to scroll through them all, you just click the index entry you need.
You can tap out side of the card on the background to zoom out to make 3 or so cards be seen on the screen at a time why would you want another annoying index card?
This seems to me like it falls more under the category of the customization of the launcher pages. maybe they could make those look like pages in a book. but cards have been the best idea so far.
See the Table of Contents page above. This could easily show open apps and allow for quick navigation to later pages.
Metaphor's not working for me. I can reshuffle a deck to have the cards I want at the top. I can add cards, remove cards, etc. A book is static. The pages are there, in a fixed order. You can add more pages (in theory, and if you're a book maker) but you can't reshuffle the pages, etc. Seems silly.
It says right in the description .. It's a virtual book (i.e., not constrained to traditional book limitations ... you can't flick a real playing card up and make it disappear).
You can easily move app icons between pages and rearrange how you want them organized. The iPhone does this very well, and iTunes now lets you organize your apps on the computer and then sync the details later.
EPIC BOOK FAIL!! No one can match the Pre's app card UI. NO ONE!
I think the Card style on my Pre is amazing. I also have a number of things open @ once & love being able to see them all & re-order them I don't actually know how to make it better. Though I occasionally have lag issues w/ the phone app when I end a call & 'flick' the card away it sometimes pops back up to 'end' the call again. That's the only problem I've had w/ card view so far & I bet it's got more to do w/ the phone app than the card UI, though I really don't know.
Lovin my Pre & aint interested in the Android or iPhone at all.
Can't wait for 11/15 to get my wife on the Web OS train w/ the Pixie!!!
HTC has so missed the boat w/ this - and it isn't even original! Has anyone here ever seen a Newton UI?
It uses a notebook metaphor with object based "stationary" which can contain voice recorders, graphing paper, note paper, outliners, todo lists, etc. It was based on the ever popular "DayTimer" model and I still use my 2100 as a "DayTimer" daily. I'm personally waiting for the Folio II - a steno pad ("DayTimer") sized touch tablet w/ WebOS which would be the first technology to rival the Newton as a daily replacement.
Ever since the advent of the Kindle and now the Nook, I've hoped the general public would be looking for this form factor and the time is now right for the Folio II!
looks lame.
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