{
  "patent_number": "US 5754176",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Interactive Pop-up Help Windows Work in Computer Interfaces",
  "original_title": "Pop-up help system for a computer graphical user interface",
  "summary": "A 1995 patent describing how computer interfaces can automatically show helpful, rich-text pop-up windows when a user hovers their mouse over an icon or button.",
  "what_it_does": "This patent describes a method for displaying context-sensitive help windows that appear when a user hovers a mouse pointer over a graphical display element, such as an icon or button. Unlike static text labels, these windows support rich text formatting, multimedia content, and interactive buttons that trigger specific actions. The system includes logic to keep the window visible as long as the mouse is over either the original icon or the help window itself, and it includes a user-definable delay to prevent the window from flickering or appearing too quickly. It also features a safety mechanism to reposition the help window if it would otherwise be cut off by the edge of the screen.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover help systems that require a physical click to activate the help window.",
    "Does not cover help displays that are limited to plain, unformatted text strings.",
    "Does not cover systems that lack the ability to reposition the window based on screen boundaries.",
    "Does not cover help systems that do not allow for interactive buttons or multimedia execution within the help window itself."
  ],
  "filed": "1995-10-02",
  "granted": "1998-05-19",
  "expires": null,
  "status": "active",
  "holder": "AST Research Inc",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/ast-research-inc",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Chris Crawford",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/chris-crawford"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 119,
  "tags": [
    "software",
    "consumer_electronics"
  ],
  "abstract": "A system for implementing a pop-up help system for a computer graphical user interface is disclosed. In a departure from the art, the pop-up help system provides help information on graphical display elements (GDEs), such as icons and text instructions, in the form of a help window that is not character or format limited and that is displayed when the associated GDE is selected. The pop-up help system also allows direct access to additional help information and provides for the display of graphics and the execution of multimedia objects. The pop-up help system comprises a GDE (a \"help window\"), which is displayed when the mouse pointer is moved over a GDE associated therewith. The help window comprises information regarding the associated GDE and may comprise multimedia objects or user activated buttons for accessing additional help information or for performing other actions. The help window is displayed until the neither the help window or GDE are selected and a user-specified time period has elapsed.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/5754176/windows-taskbar",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/5754176/windows-taskbar/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US5754176",
  "relatedPatents": []
}