Abstract: The Brain system employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. The Brain system offers a solution that facilitates the capture of information from a company's repositories and showcases it in an engaging and dynamic visual interface. The Brain accomplishes this by providing a connector system that serves as an interface between the Brain server and whatever repositories are employed to store data. By use of a special type of connector, the Brain can permit a single user to collaborate with a number of different repositories at different locations and of different sorts under a single associative interface. A client can also interface directly with multiple data stores that are configured for interaction with the associative interface described herein.

Abstract: The invention employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. Each of the thoughts may be affiliated with one or more application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility, or an Internet browser. Users are able to conveniently select a current thought along with any applications or content associated with that thought by interacting with the graphical representation. That representation is automatically reoriented about the selected thought, and is revised to reflect only those thoughts having predetermined relations to that current thought. Users can easily modify the matrix by interactively redefining relations between thoughts. In addition, the system provides functionality that lets the user filter the matrix based on certain filter criteria.

Abstract: Taught is a way of adding predictability, organization, and reducing the confusion inherent in user interfaces to shared collections of data items accessible or modified by numbers of different users independently. A group of users can predefine categories of data items, relationships between data items, and rules governing the creation and modification of those relationships based on those categories. The predefined model includes interactive triggers presented to users in the context of certain data items or data item relationships. Those triggers cause new data items or data relationships to be entered or existing ones modified according to the group's pre-defined practices. User-based permissions can be attached not only to data items, but to relationships between data items. Accordingly, two or more users may view a first data item, yet each views a different set of other data items directly related to that first data item based on those relationship permissions.

Abstract: The Brain system employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. Generally, ways are provided for interacting with the Brain by means of unidirectional messaging, including without limitation e-mail, instant message, paging, SMS, phone calls or even computer-generated postal mail. The system can update users of changes or other events by those means, and users can input queries, navigation, new data or other commands to the system by those means. Sending new users unidirectional messages that display interactive views of the Brain fosters viral propagation of an alternative user interface.

Abstract: The Brain system employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. The Brain system offers a solution that facilitates the capture of information from a company's repositories and showcases it in an engaging and dynamic visual interface. The Brain accomplishes this by providing a connector system that serves as an interface between the Brain server and whatever repositories are employed to store data. By use of a special type of connector, the Brain can permit a single user to collaborate with a number of different repositories at different locations and of different sorts under a single associative interface. A client can also interface directly with multiple data stores that are configured for interaction with the associative interface described herein.

Abstract: The Brain system employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. The Brain system offers a solution that facilitates the capture of information from a company's repositories and showcases it in an engaging and dynamic visual interface. The Brain accomplishes this by providing a connector system that serves as an interface between the Brain server and whatever repositories are employed to store data. The connector system utilizes a common API that allows users to communicate with any type of repository. Finally, permission and access control information can be set for individual thoughts in the matrix. This permission and access control information may also be propagated throughout a portion of the matrix.

Abstract: An effect method and apparatus for organizing and processing chunks of interrelated information (or “thoughts”) using a digital computer is disclosed. The invention utilizes highly flexible, associative thought networks to organize and represents digitally-stored thoughts. A thought network specifies a plurality of thoughts, as well as network relationship among the thoughts. A graphical representation of the thought network is displayed, including a plurality of display icons corresponding to the thoughts, and a plurality of connecting lines corresponding to the relationships among the thoughts. Each of the thought is associated with one or more software application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility. Users are able to select a current thought conveniently by interacting with the graphical representation, and the current thought is processed by automatically invoking the application program associated with the current thought in a transparent manner.

Abstract: The invention employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users to conveniently organize digitally-stored “thoughts” (inter-related information) and their network of inter-relationships. Each of the thoughts may be affiliated with one or more application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility, or an Internet browser. Users are able to conveniently select a current thought along with any applications or content associated with that thought by interacting with the graphical representation. That representation is automatically reoriented about the selected thought, and is revised to reflect only those thoughts having predetermined relations to that current thought. Users can easily modify the matrix by interactively redefining relations between thoughts. In addition, the system provides functionality that lets the user filter the matrix based on certain filter criteria.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for organizing and processing pieces of interrelated information (or “thoughts”) using a digital computer is disclosed. The invention employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative “matrices” that enable users conveniently to organize digitally-stored thoughts and their network of interrelationships. Each of the thoughts may be affiliated with one or more application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility, or an Internet browser. Users are able conveniently to select a current thought along with any applications or content associated with that thought by interacting with the graphical representation. That representation is automatically reoriented about the selected thought, and is revised to reflect only those thoughts having predetermined relations to that current thought. Users can easily modify the matrix by interactively redefining relations between thoughts.

Abstract: An effect method and apparatus for organizing and processing chunks of interrelated information (or "thoughts") using a digital computer is disclosed. The invention utilizes highly flexible, associative thought networks to organize and represents digitally-stored thoughts. A thought network specifies a plurality of thoughts, as well as network relationship among the thoughts. A graphical representation of the thought network is displayed, including a plurality of display icons corresponding to the thoughts, and a plurality of connecting lines corresponding to the relationships among the thoughts. Each of the thought is associated with one or more software application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility. Users are able to select a current thought conveniently by interacting with the graphical representation, and the current thought is processed by automatically invoking the application program associated with the current thought in a transparent manner.

Abstract: An effective method for the display of a plurality of useful windows within the display of a digital information device. A form of tabbed window, called a "MetaView" permits users define the location and size of a window by a single interaction with a MetaView tab. The invention offers improved utilization of screen real estate, and increased user convenience in accessing multiple window displays.

Abstract: An effective method and apparatus for organizing and processing chunks of interrelated information (or "thoughts") using a digital computer is disclosed. The invention utilizes highly flexible, associative thought networks to organize and represent digitally-stored thoughts. A thought network specifies a plurality of thoughts, as well as network relationships among the thoughts. A graphical representation of the thought network is displayed, including a plurality of display icons corresponding to the thoughts, and a plurality of connecting lines corresponding to the relationships among the thoughts. Each of the thoughts is associated with one or more software application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility. Users are able to select a current thought conveniently by interacting with the graphical representation, and the current thought is processed by automatically invoking the application program associated with the current thought in a transparent manner.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for organizing and processing pieces of interrelated information (or "thoughts") is used with a digital computer. The invention employs a graphical user interface to facilitate user interaction with highly flexible, associative "matrices" that enable users conveniently to organize digitally-stored thoughts and their network of interrelationships. Each of the thoughts may be affiliated with one or more application programs, such as a word processing or spreadsheet utility, or an Internet browser. Users are able conveniently to select a current thought along with any applications or content associated with that thought by interacting with the graphical representation. That representation is automatically reoriented about the selected thought, and is revised to reflect only those thoughts having predetermined relations to that current thought. Users can easily modify the matrix by interactively redefining relations between thoughts.