Rapid retrieval user interface designed around small displays and few buttons for searching long lists

摘要

In a user interface application, the computing device has a user interface that aids the user in searching for information from the data array. In an embodiment according to the present invention, the data array is an ordered list of addresses. In such a mounted UI, the user experiences a specific sequence of events. The user starts at a point on the list of addresses. After the user presses the scroll key, the list goes down at low speed. As the user continues to keep the scroll verton down, the scrolling is accelerated. After a predetermined time, a helper character is displayed. This character may represent the first letter of the name or the first digit of the telephone number. The UI displays the helper characters to the user. The user continues to maintain the scroll verton until a helper character corresponding to the desired choice is displayed. The user can slowly browse in a smaller group of data to locate a particular selection by placing the scroll verton.