Information processing device and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing device and a program which, even when a selection point gets out of a range of display of second indexes, perform selection of the second indexes without requiring performance of the selection of the indexes over again from selection of a first index.SOLUTION: In an information processing device, a plurality of first indexes in a database stored in a storage unit is displayed in a first direction in a display region of a display unit. When selection operation for a first index by a user is detected, a plurality of second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index selected in a second direction crossing or perpendicular to the selected first index is displayed linearly. It is determined that the second indexes 50 are selected when it is detected that a second index display region 51 displaying the second indexes 50 is selected and, in addition, even when it is detected that a selection region set other than the second index display region 51 is selected.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an information processing device comprising: a storage unit for storing a database; a display unit having a list display area for displaying a list of data registered in the database and an index display area for displaying an index of the database; an operation unit for receiving user operations; and a control unit for displaying a part of the list of data registered in the database in the list display area and displaying the index in the index display area, and for displaying a list of data corresponding to the selected index in the list display area when a selection operation of any of the indexes displayed in the index display area is received, wherein the control unit does not display in the index display area any of the pre-set indexes that correspond to data not registered in the database. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-88833 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There is a technology that displays indexes of data registered in a database in the display area of ​​a display unit and enables access to the data by selecting the index. However, since the space available for displaying the indexes is limited, there is a technology that displays second indexes from the first index after selecting the first index. To select such a second index, it is necessary to select the desired second index by moving the selection point along the display direction of the second index, while the selection point is still in the state where the first index is selected. However, if the selection point moves out of the range of the display of the second index, it is necessary to start over from the first index and select the index again.

[0005] The present invention aims to provide an information processing device and a program that can select a second index without having to reselect an index from the first index, even if the selected location is outside the range of the second index display. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An information processing device according to a first aspect includes a processor that displays a plurality of first indexes of a database stored in a memory unit in a first direction in a display area of ​​a display unit, and, upon detecting a user's selection operation on the first index, displays a plurality of second indexes corresponding to the selected first index in a straight line in a second direction that intersects with or is parallel to the selected first index, and determines that the second index has been selected not only when it detects that the second index display area displaying the second index has been selected, but also when it detects that a selection area set other than the second index display area has been selected.

[0007] In the information processing device according to a second aspect, the processor is configured such that the selection area is provided for each of the plurality of second indexes.

[0008] In the information processing device of the third aspect, the processor determines that the second index corresponding to the divided selection area has been selected when a divided selection area is selected by dividing the selection area into multiple second indexes in a direction intersecting the second direction.

[0009] In an information processing device according to a fourth aspect, the second indexes at both ends of the plurality of second indexes detect the selection of the area up to the edge of the display area on the side of the split selection area corresponding to the other adjacent second indexes as the corresponding split selection area.

[0010] In an information processing device according to a fifth aspect, the processor displays the second indexes in a predetermined order from the first index side.

[0011] In an information processing device according to a sixth aspect, the processor can select whether to display the first index at the right end of the display area and the second index to the left of the first index, or to display the first index at the left end of the display area and the second index to the right of the first index.

[0012] In an information processing device according to a seventh aspect, the processor determines that the second index has been selected if the second index display area in which the second index is displayed is selected, even before the second index is displayed.

[0013] In an information processing device according to an eighth aspect, the processor displays the second index when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

[0014] In an information processing device according to a ninth aspect, the predetermined condition is to continue selecting one of the first indexes for a predetermined time.

[0015] In an information processing device according to a tenth aspect, the predetermined condition is that, after one of the first indexes is selected, the selected first index is slid to the second index display area where the second index is displayed.

[0016] In an information processing device according to an eleventh aspect, if another first index is selected after the processor displays the second index, the processor displays the second index corresponding to the other first index without the predetermined condition.

[0017] In an information processing device according to a twelfth aspect, the processor displays a third index associated with the second index in one or both directions intersecting the second direction of the second index when the second index is selected.

[0018] In an information processing device according to a thirteenth aspect, when the processor continues to select a second index for a predetermined time, the processor displays a third index associated with the second index in either or both directions intersecting the second direction of the second index.

[0019] In an information processing device according to a fourteenth aspect, the database is an address book in which information about destinations is registered.

[0020] In the information processing device according to a fifteenth aspect, the first index is a character in the A row of the gojūon chart, and the second index is a character in a row of the gojūon chart corresponding to the character in the A row.

[0021] A program according to a sixteenth aspect causes a computer to execute a process of displaying a plurality of first indexes from a database stored in a memory unit in a first direction in a display area of ​​a display unit, and, upon detecting a user's selection operation on the first index, displaying a plurality of second indexes corresponding to the selected first index in a straight line in a second direction intersecting or parallel to the selected first index, and determining that the second index has been selected not only when it is detected that the second index display area displaying the second index has been selected, but also when it is detected that a selection area set other than the second index display area has been selected. [Effects of the Invention]

[0022] According to the first aspect, even if the selected location is outside the range of the display of the second index, it is possible to select the second index without having to reselect the index from the selection of the first index.

[0023] According to the second aspect, there is an effect that the second index can be selected by selecting a selection area provided for each second index.

[0024] According to the third aspect, there is an effect that the second index can be selected by selecting the selection areas above and below the second index display area.

[0025] According to the fourth aspect, it is possible to detect the selection of the second index by using a wider display area of ​​the display unit, compared to when the selection of the second index is detected only in the area in the first direction of the second index display area.

[0026] The fifth aspect has the advantage that the distance traveled from the selected first index to the second index to be selected can be made shorter compared to when the second index is displayed on the opposite side of the selected first index.

[0027] According to the sixth aspect, there is an effect that the positions at which the first index and the second index are displayed can be changed.

[0028] According to the seventh aspect, there is an advantage that the second index can be selected quickly compared to the case where the second index can be selected only after the second index is displayed.

[0029] According to the eighth aspect, there is an effect that the second index can be prevented from being displayed by simply selecting the first index.

[0030] According to the ninth aspect, there is an effect that it is possible to require the user to perform a predetermined operation in order to display the second index.

[0031] According to the tenth aspect, there is an effect that it is possible to require the user to perform a predetermined operation in order to display the second index.

[0032] According to the eleventh aspect, there is an effect that the second index can be displayed without waiting for a predetermined condition for displaying the second index to be satisfied.

[0033] According to the twelfth aspect, there is an effect that the data desired by the user can be accessed more easily than when the data is accessed via the second index.

[0034] The thirteenth aspect has the advantage of being able to prevent a third index that is not intended by the user from being displayed, compared to when the second index is not required to be selected for a predetermined period of time.

[0035] According to the 14th aspect, even if the selected location is outside the display range of the destination of the second index, it is possible to select the destination of the second index without having to reselect the destination from the destination of the first index.

[0036] According to the 15th aspect, even if the selected location is outside the display range of a row of the 50-sound chart, it is possible to select a row of the 50-sound chart without having to reselect an index from the selection of that row of the 50-sound chart.

[0037] According to the 16th aspect, a program can be provided that allows the selection of the second index without having to reselect an index from the selection of the first index, even if the selected location is outside the range of the display of the second index. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0038] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic block diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a display on a display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, following FIG. 2; FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, following FIG. 3; FIG. [Figure 5] 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, following FIG. 4; FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a divided selection region according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining selection of a divided selection area according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a display of a second index according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example of a display of a third index according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of a display on the display unit of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of display of the second index according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0039] (Embodiment) An example of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to designate identical or equivalent components and parts. The dimensional proportions of the drawings are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from the actual proportions.

[0040] 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 20, which is an example of an information processing apparatus according to this embodiment. Here, the image forming apparatus 20 is capable of printing, copying, faxing (facsimile), etc. Note that the example of the information processing apparatus is not limited to an image forming apparatus. For example, it may be a telephone, a fax machine, a smartphone, etc.

[0041] 1, the image forming device 20 includes a CPU 21, which is an example of a processor, a ROM 22, a RAM 23, a storage 24, an input unit 25, a display unit 26, a document reading unit 27, an image forming unit 28, and a communication I / F 29. Each component is connected to each other via a bus so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0042] The CPU 21 is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each component. That is, the CPU 21 reads programs from the ROM 22 or the storage 24 and executes the programs using the RAM 23 as a work area. The CPU 21 controls the above components and performs various arithmetic processing in accordance with the programs recorded in the ROM 22 or the storage 24. In this embodiment, the programs are stored in the ROM 22 or the storage 24.

[0043] The ROM 22 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 23 serves as a working area and temporarily stores programs or data. The storage 24 is configured with an HDD, SSD, or the like, and stores various programs including the operating system and various data.

[0044] In this embodiment, the storage 24 also stores an address book in which destination information is registered. The destination information includes, in addition to the destination, the telephone number and fax number for each destination, an email address, and the management number of a folder in the storage 24 that saves data captured using the scanner function of the image forming apparatus 20. When a telephone number or the like is registered in the address book, the initials of the name registered as the destination become indexes (first index 40, second index 50, third index 60) that are headings of the address book. Here, the address book is an example of a database. However, the example of a database is not limited to an address book.

[0045] The input unit 25 includes a pointing device such as a mouse and a keyboard, and is used to perform various input operations. The input unit 25 is used, for example, when selecting a destination from an address book. In this embodiment, the touch panel display unit 26 functions as the input unit 25.

[0046] The display unit 26 is, for example, a liquid crystal display. The display unit 26 displays various information under the control of the CPU 21. The display unit 26 also functions as the input unit 25 by adopting a touch panel system.

[0047] The document reading unit 27 takes in documents placed on a paper feed tray of an automatic feeder (not shown) provided above the image forming apparatus 20, one by one, and optically reads the documents to obtain image information. Alternatively, the document reading unit 27 optically reads a document placed on a tray such as a platen glass to obtain image information.

[0048] Here, the image information of the document read by the document reading unit 27 is printed by the image forming unit 28 described later, or sent to another image forming device having a facsimile function via the communication I / F 29 described later.

[0049] The image forming unit 28 forms, ie, prints, an image based on the image information obtained by reading by the document reading unit 27 onto a recording medium such as paper.

[0050] The communication I / F 29 has a function of connecting the image forming apparatus 20 to a public line and transmitting and receiving image information obtained by reading by the document reading unit 27 to and from other image forming apparatuses having a FAX function.

[0051] Next, the display of the address book and the operation of the index in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0052] FIG. 2 shows an example of an initial screen display when the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 displays an address book on the display unit 26. In FIG.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 2, the multiple first indexes 40 are displayed vertically on the right edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26. The vertical direction is an example of the first direction. In this embodiment, the first indexes 40 are characters in the A-row of the Japanese syllabary. As shown in FIG. 2, the multiple first indexes 40, "A," "KA," "SA," "TA," "NA," "HA," "MA," "YA," "RA," and "WA," are displayed. Information of destinations registered in the address book is then displayed in alphabetical order in the display area 30 of the display unit 26. Note that if there are any first indexes 40 that are not registered in the address book, they may not be displayed. For example, if information of destinations in the N-row is not registered in the address book, that is, if information of destinations starting with "NA," "NI," "NU," "NE," or "NO" is not registered in the address book, "NA" may not be displayed as the first index 40.

[0054] 3 is an example of the display when the user selects "ka" from among the multiple first indexes 40 in the display state of FIG. 2, that is, touches it with a finger. Here, as with the other drawings, the area touched with the finger is indicated by diagonal lines in the drawing. Also, which of the multiple first indexes 40 is selected is determined by the coordinate of the vertical axis of the display area 30 of the display unit 26.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 3 , the first index 40, “ka” (or “ka”), is selected, and destination information beginning with “ka” is displayed in the display area 30 of the display unit 26. Then, when a predetermined condition is met, the second index 50 is displayed. In this way, the indices that cannot be displayed in the first index 40 are displayed as second indexes. Here, the predetermined condition is, for example, continuing to select one of the first indexes 40 for a predetermined time, i.e., pressing and holding. Specifically, by continuing to select the first index 40, i.e., pressing and holding for a predetermined time, as shown in FIG. 4 , multiple second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index 40, “ka” (or “ka”), are displayed in a straight line to the left of the first index 40, intersecting the first index 40, “ka.” Requiring the user to perform a long press prevents other second indexes 50 from being unintentionally displayed. Furthermore, the display of the second index 50 before the long press prevents the visibility of destination information that would otherwise be hidden behind the second index 50 from being obstructed. The leftward direction is an example of a second direction. In this embodiment, the second index 50 is a character in a row of the Japanese syllabary that corresponds to a character in the "a" row of the Japanese syllabary, which is an example of the first index 40. As shown in FIG. 4, when the first index 40 is "ka," the second index 50 for each of the characters in the "ka" row, "ka," "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko," are displayed. The second indexes 50 are displayed in a predetermined order from the first index 40 side. That is, from the right side of the first index 40 to the left side, the characters in the "ka" row are displayed in the order of "ka," "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko." Note that if there is a second index 50 that is not registered in the address book, it may not be displayed. For example, if information on a destination starting with "ku" is not registered in the address book, it may not be displayed as the second index 50. In this embodiment, the same index as the selected first index 40 ("ka" in the example of FIG. 4) is also displayed as the second index 50, but this is not limiting.For example, the index that is the same as the first index 40 ("ka" in the example of Figure 4) may not be displayed as the second index 50, and only the second index 50 for "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko" other than "ka" may be displayed.

[0056] FIG. 5 shows an example of a display in which, from the state in which "ka" in the first index 40 in FIG. 4 is selected, the user slides his / her finger touching the display unit 26 to the left where the second index 50 is displayed, thereby selecting the second index display area 51 in which "ki" is displayed among the multiple second indexes 50. In other words, by selecting the second index display area 51 in which each second index 50 is displayed, the second index 40 corresponding to that second index display area 51 is selected. Therefore, information about destinations registered in the address book that start with "ki" is displayed in the display area 30 of the display unit 26. Furthermore, which second index 50 among the multiple second indexes 50 is selected is determined by the coordinate on the horizontal axis of the display area 30 of the display unit 26.

[0057] Here, the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 determines that a second index 50 has been selected not only when it detects that a second index display area 51 in which the second index 50 is displayed has been selected, but also when it detects that a selection area 52 set outside the second index display area 51 has been selected. More specifically, a selection area 52 is provided for each of the plurality of second indexes 50. The selection area 52 is divided into split selection areas 53 for each of the plurality of second indexes 50 in the vertical direction, which intersects with the horizontal direction in which the second indexes 50 are displayed. When this split selection area 53 is selected, it is determined that the second index 50 corresponding to the split selection area 53 has been selected.

[0058] The split selection area 53 will be described with reference to FIG. 6 . FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the split selection area 53. As shown in FIG. 6 , the display area 30 of the display unit 26 other than the second-index display area 51 in which the second index 50 is displayed is the selection area 52. The selection area 52 is then divided into split selection areas 53, which are vertically separated by boundary lines 54 for each second index 50 in the second-index display area 51. That is, even if the user touches the area above or below the second-index display area 51 with a finger, the second-index display area 51 is selected. For example, even if the user touches the area below the second-index display area 51 in which the character "ki" is displayed as shown in FIG. 6, the character "ki" is selected. That is, after the second index 50 is displayed, if the user's finger moves to a location outside the second-index display area 51 in which the second index 50 is displayed, the displayed second index 50 generally disappears. It is also common for the user's finger to move to a location outside the second-index display area 51. In such a case, it becomes necessary to start over from selecting the first index 40, which reduces user convenience. This embodiment eliminates the need to start over from selecting the first index 40. Furthermore, by configuring in this manner, the position touched by the user's finger is determined based only on the horizontal axis coordinate of the display area of ​​the display unit 26, which reduces the processing load compared to determining the position based on the vertical axis coordinate as well.

[0059] Furthermore, even before the second index 50 is displayed, if the area in which the second index 50 is displayed is selected, the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 determines that the second index 50 has been selected. That is, as shown in FIG. 7 , after selecting "ka" in the first index 40, even before the predetermined condition for displaying the second index 50 is met, for example, before the second index 50 is displayed before the first index 40 is pressed and held down, the CPU 21 determines that the corresponding second index 50 has been selected from the position touched by the user's finger, and displays information about the destination corresponding to the second index 50. In the example of FIG. 7 , although the second index 50 is not displayed, the split selection area 53 of "ki" in the second index 50 is touched, so that the "ki" in the second index 50 is selected.

[0060] Furthermore, the second indexes 50 at both ends of the multiple second indexes 50 detect selection not only in the areas above and below the second index display area 51 but also in the area up to the edge of the display area on the side of the split selection area 53 corresponding to the adjacent second index 50 as the corresponding split selection area 53. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6 , the rightmost second index 50 of the multiple second indexes 50, "ka," has the area from the right edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26 to the edge of the display area on the side of the split selection area 53 corresponding to the adjacent second index 50, "ki." Furthermore, the leftmost second index 50 of the multiple second indexes 50, "ko," has the area from the left edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26 to the edge of the display area on the side of the split selection area 53 corresponding to the adjacent second index 50, "ke." In other words, the split selection areas 53 of the second indexes 50 at both ends of the multiple second indexes 50 are wider than those of the other second indexes 50.

[0061] Furthermore, even if the finger moves to a location outside the second index display area where the second index is displayed after the second index is displayed, the display of the second index is maintained as is.

[0062] Furthermore, if another first index 40 is selected after displaying the second index 50, the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 displays the second index 50 corresponding to the other first index 40 without any predetermined conditions. That is, if the user presses and holds the "ka" character of the first index 40 shown in FIG. 4 to display the second index 50, and then slides his or her finger downward to select the "sa" character of another first index 40, the second indexes 50 "sa," "shi," "su," "se," and "so" corresponding to the "sa" character of the first index 40 are displayed without the need for the long press, as shown in FIG. 8. As a result, even if the first index 40 is reselected, the second index 50 is displayed without waiting for the predetermined conditions to be met. Note that the present invention is not limited to the case where, after displaying the second index 50, another first index 40 is selected, the second index 50 corresponding to the other first index 40 is displayed without any predetermined conditions. Once a second index 50 is displayed, even if the user slides their finger to another first index 40, the display of the displayed second index 50 may be maintained, and the second index 50 corresponding to the moved first index 40 may not be displayed.

[0063] Furthermore, when any one of the multiple second indexes 50 is selected, the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 displays a third index 60 associated with the selected second index 50 above or below the selected second index 50. In this embodiment, the third index 60 is a voiced or semi-voiced character of the second index 50. For example, as shown in FIG. 9 , when "ki" is selected from the second indexes 50, "gi" (voiced consonant of "ki") is displayed above the selected second index 50 as the third index 60. While "ki" is selected, the user slides their finger upward to select "gi." The third index 60 "gi" may be displayed below the second index 50. When a second index 50 for which no third index 60 is registered is selected, the third index 60 is not displayed. Furthermore, when there are multiple third indexes 60, for example, when the second index 50 is "ha," the voiced consonant "ba" is displayed on the upper side as the third index 60, and the semi-voiced consonant "pa" is displayed on the lower side. Accessing destination information via the third index 60 makes it easier for the user to access destination information desired by the user than accessing destination information via the second index 50. Furthermore, the CPU 21 of the image forming apparatus 20 may be configured to display the third index 60 above or below the second index 50, or both, when the second index 50 is continuously selected for a predetermined time, i.e., pressed and held, for a predetermined period of time. By requiring a long press to display the third index 60 in this way, it is possible to prevent a third index 60 from being displayed unintended by the user.

[0064] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and applications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0065] Although not shown, a predetermined condition for displaying the second index 50 may be that, after selecting one of the first indexes 40, the user slides the finger that is selecting one of the first indexes 40 toward the second index display area 51 where the second index 50 is displayed. Specifically, the second index 50 may be displayed by the user sliding the finger that is selecting one of the first indexes 40 toward the second index display area 51. By having the user slide the finger, unintentional display of the second index 50 is prevented. Furthermore, it is possible to display the second index 50 more quickly than by long pressing the first index 40 described above.

[0066] 10, multiple first indexes 40 may be displayed at the left edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26. In this case, the second indexes 50 are displayed in a straight line extending to the right from the first index 40. The user may be able to select whether to display the first index 40 at the right edge of the display area 30 and the second index 50 to the left of the first index 40, or to display the first index 40 at the left edge of the display area 30 and the second index 50 to the right of the first index 40. This allows the display to be tailored to the user's preferences. In particular, to prevent the display area 30 displaying destination information from being obscured by the operating finger, right-handed users may select to display the first index 40 at the right edge, while left-handed users may select to display the first index 40 at the left edge.

[0067] Furthermore, the choice of whether to display the second index 50 on the right or left side of the display area 30 may be determined by the language setting of the image forming apparatus 20. That is, particularly when a right-to-left (RTL) language is set in the language setting, the second index 50 may be displayed on the left edge of the display area 30. In this way, the second index 50 is displayed in a direction that is easy for the user to read.

[0068] In the above-described embodiment, the first index 40 is displayed vertically at the right or left edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26, and the second index 50 is displayed horizontally in the display area 30 of the display unit 26, but this is not limiting. For example, although not shown, the first index 40 may be displayed horizontally at the top or bottom edge of the display area 30 of the display unit 26, and the second index 50 may be displayed vertically.

[0069] In the above-described embodiment, the first index 40 is displayed vertically in the display area 30 of the display unit 26, and the second index 50 is displayed horizontally in the display area 30 of the display unit 26, intersecting the vertical direction. However, this is not limiting. For example, as shown in FIG. 11 , the first index 40 and the second index 50 may be displayed parallel to each other. Specifically, when the first index 40 displayed vertically is selected, the second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index 40, such as "ka," "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko," are displayed vertically to the left of the first index 40 and parallel to the first index 40. When the first index 40 and the second index 50 are displayed parallel to each other, the split selection area 53 is an area separated horizontally, which intersects with the vertical direction in which the second index 50 is displayed. When the first index 40 is displayed horizontally at the top or bottom of the display area of ​​the display unit 26, the second index 50 is also displayed horizontally.

[0070] 12, the first index 40 and the second index 50 may be alphabetic characters. In this case, since displaying all of the alphabetic characters vertically in the display area 30 would result in a too small display, the alphabetic characters are abbreviated at predetermined intervals and displayed as the first index 40. The abbreviated indexes are then displayed as the second index 50. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, the first indexes 40 may be "A," "D," "G," "J," "M," "P," "S," "V," and "Z," and the second indexes 50 may be "D," "E," and "F," which are located between the first indexes "D" and "G." If the first index 40 and the second index 50 are alphabetic characters, characters with accents may be displayed as the third index 60. The alphabetic characters to be displayed as the first index 40 may be selected by the user from among the 26 alphabetic characters.

[0071] Although not shown, the first index 40 and the second index 50 may be something other than the Japanese syllabary or the alphabet, such as numbers or symbols.

[0072] Furthermore, in addition to the case where the user operates by touching the display area 30 of the display unit 26 with a finger, the user may operate by eye-gaze input, gesture input, a mouse, or the like.

[0073] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, after the first index 40 is selected, the second index 50 is displayed, and when a split selection area 53 other than the second index display area 51 is selected, the display of the second index is maintained as is, and it is determined that the second index 50 corresponding to the selected split selection area 53 among the displayed second indexes 50 is selected (see FIG. 6 ). However, this is not limiting. When a split selection area 53 other than the second index display area 51 is selected, the display of the displayed second index 50 is switched to the second index 50 corresponding to the first index 40 at the coordinate of the vertical axis of the display area 30 of the selected display unit 26. Then, it may be determined that the switched and displayed second index 50 is selected. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 13 , when the second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index 40 ("ka"), "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko" are displayed, if the user moves their finger to select another second index display area 51 corresponding to another first index 40, for example, "ha," the second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index 40 ("ka") that were displayed ("ka"), "ki," "ku," "ke," and "ko" are erased, and the second indexes 50 corresponding to the first index 40 ("ha") are displayed ("ha," "hi," "fu," "he," and "ho"). Then, the selected split selection area 53, in this example, the second index 50 corresponding to "hi" is determined to have been selected. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the second index 50 ("ki") is selected, while in the example shown in FIG. 13, the second index 50 ("hi") is selected. That is, after the second index 50 is displayed, if a split selection area 53 other than the second index display area 51 is selected, and if the selected split selection area 53 is the second index display area 51 of a second index 40 corresponding to another first index 40, it is determined that the second index 50 corresponding to that other first index 40 has been selected. Here, which of the first indexes 40 is selected is determined by the coordinate of the vertical axis of the display area 30 of the display unit 26.

[0074] In the above embodiment, the program is pre-stored (installed) in a ROM or storage device, but the present invention is not limited to this. The program may be provided in a form recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disk Read Only Memory), or a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory. The program may also be downloaded from an external device via a network.

[0075] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, the term "processor" refers to a processor in a broad sense, and includes general-purpose processors (e.g., CPU: Central Processing Unit, etc.) and dedicated processors (e.g., GPU: Graphics Processing Unit, ASIC: Application Specific Integrated Circuit, FPGA: Field Programmable Gate Array, programmable logic device, etc.).

[0076] Furthermore, the operations of the processors in the above-described embodiments may not only be performed by a single processor, but may also be performed by multiple processors located at physically separate locations working together. Furthermore, the order of the operations of the processors is not limited to the order described in the above-described embodiments, and may be changed as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 20 Image forming device 30 display area 40 First Index 50 Second Index 51 Second index display area 52 Selection Area 53 Split Selection Area 54 Borderline 60 Third Index

Claims

1. a processor; The processor: displaying a plurality of first indexes of the database stored in the storage unit in a first direction of a display area of ​​the display unit; Upon detecting a selection operation by a user on the first index, displaying a plurality of second indexes corresponding to the selected first index on a straight line in a second direction intersecting or parallel to the selected first index; The second index is displayed, and when it is detected that a second index display area that is displayed as a partition in the display area has been selected, the second index is determined to have been selected even when it is detected that a selection area that is set outside the second index display area and is a partition from the second index display area has been selected; The processor: When a divided selection area is selected by dividing the selection area for each of the second indexes in a direction intersecting with the second direction up to an end of the display area, it is determined that the second index corresponding to the divided selection area has been selected. Information processing device.

2. The processor: The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the selection area is provided for each of a plurality of the second indexes.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the second indexes at both ends of the plurality of second indexes detect a selection of an area up to an end of the display area on the side of the split selection area corresponding to another adjacent second index as the corresponding split selection area.

4. The processor:

4. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the second indexes are displayed in a predetermined order from the first index side.

5. The processor: The first index is displayed at the right end of the display area, and the second index is displayed to the left of the first index, or Or, 5. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the display device is capable of selecting whether to display the first index at the left end of the display area and the second index to the right of the first index.

6. The processor: An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein after detecting a selection operation by a user on the first index, even before the second index is displayed, if the second index display area in which the second index is displayed is selected, the second index is determined to have been selected.

7. The processor:

7. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the second index is displayed when a predetermined condition is satisfied.

8. The information processing device according to claim 7 , wherein the predetermined condition is to continue selecting one of the first indexes for a predetermined time period.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the predetermined condition is that, after one of the first indexes is selected, the selected second index is slid to the second index display area where the selected second index is displayed.

10. The processor:

10. The information processing device according to claim 7, wherein, after the second index is displayed, if another first index is selected, the second index corresponding to the other first index is displayed without the predetermined condition.

11. The processor:

11. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein, when a second index is selected, a third index related to the second index is displayed in either or both directions intersecting the second direction of the second index.

12. The processor: An information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein when a second index is continuously selected for a predetermined time, a third index associated with the second index is displayed in either or both directions intersecting the second direction of the second index.

13. 13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the database is an address book in which destination information is registered.

14. the first index is a character in the "A" row of the Japanese syllabary; 14. The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the second index is a character in a row of the Japanese syllabary that corresponds to the character in the A row.

15. On the computer, displaying a plurality of first indexes of the database stored in the storage unit in a first direction of a display area of ​​the display unit; Upon detecting a selection operation by a user on the first index, displaying a plurality of second indexes corresponding to the selected first index on a straight line in a second direction intersecting or parallel to the selected first index; The second index is displayed, and when it is detected that a second index display area that is displayed as a partition in the display area has been selected, the second index is determined to have been selected even when it is detected that a selection area that is set outside the second index display area and is a partition from the second index display area has been selected; When a divided selection area is selected by dividing the selection area for each of the second indexes in a direction intersecting with the second direction up to an end of the display area, it is determined that the second index corresponding to the divided selection area has been selected. A program that executes a process.

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