JP2007241369A - Information processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus capable of providing a better output result as a result intended by the user by providing information to the user from the contents and settings of the document at the time of output.
Comparing means for comparing output document information, output conditions, and output environment information, and means for presenting a predetermined message according to the result of the comparing means are provided. In addition, after presenting a predetermined message, the apparatus further includes means for presenting and selecting a message regarding countermeasures for subsequent operations to the user. The document information includes confidentiality information of the document to be output, and the output environment information includes a place where the output is executed, and is a suitable output location for confidentiality by comparing the confidentiality information with the location. And a means for presenting and selecting a message related to the result and a countermeasure for the subsequent operation to the user.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus that displays and outputs various types of information to a user.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an information processing apparatus having various apparatus functions has a function of displaying and providing various types of provided information to a user. For example, operation guidance is displayed to the user or help information is displayed so that the user can smoothly operate the device.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, the amount of data is inspected, and a warning is displayed when a predetermined threshold value is exceeded. In Patent Document 2, a voice response type help system is realized in an online help system in which help information can be referred to when faced with a situation in which an operation method or a solution method of a problem is not known during use of a processing device. .

In Patent Document 3, the context of help information is appropriately estimated when help is requested, and the desired information is efficiently provided when the user requests help. Patent Document 4 prevents useless printing by displaying a warning that avoids only a specific case where a printing error will occur.
JP-A-11-203809 JP 2002-147551 A JP 2000-231429 A JP-A-11-203809

  However, in such a conventional technique, when a document is not output, if the intended output result is not obtained, it is necessary for the user to adjust the output result by changing the setting that is considered to be applicable by referring to help or the like. In addition, there is no means to know when there is a setting that can perform better output.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus capable of providing a better output result as a result intended by the user by providing information to the user from the contents and settings of the document at the time of output.

  The present invention includes comparison means for comparing output document information, output conditions, and output environment information, and means for presenting a predetermined message according to the result of the comparison means.

  In addition, after presenting a predetermined message, the apparatus further includes means for presenting and selecting a message regarding countermeasures for subsequent operations to the user.

  The document information includes confidentiality information of the document to be output, and the output environment information includes a place where the output is executed, and is a suitable output location for confidentiality by comparing the confidentiality information with the location. And a means for presenting and selecting a message related to the result and a countermeasure for the subsequent operation to the user.

  The output environment information includes application information for executing output, and compares the document information, output conditions, and application information to determine whether the output is appropriate for the application. The apparatus further includes means for presenting and selecting a message regarding a countermeasure for the operation of the user.

  In addition, a message storage unit that holds a plurality of conditions and a message corresponding to the conditions, a recording unit that records the number of outputs that match the conditions in the message storage unit, and a message that satisfies the conditions that match the stored record Is provided with recording analysis means for displaying.

  Also, a recording means for recording the document information instructed for output and the number of successes / failures at the time of output, a storage means for storing the record for a long period of time, and a message storage for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions And a record analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for the stored record.

  Also, a recording means for recording the output progress status, a storage means for storing the record for a long period of time, a message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, and a message having a condition that matches the stored records Is provided with recording analysis means for displaying.

  In addition, the recording means for recording the document information instructed to output and the output progress status, the storage means for storing the record for a long time, the message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, and the stored A recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for recording is provided.

  Also, a recording unit that records the document information, user information, and output condition for which output is instructed, a storage unit that stores the record for a long period of time, a message storage unit that holds a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, and storage Recording analysis means for displaying a message of a condition suitable for the recorded record.

  The recording analysis means for displaying the message includes means for determining help display by a help display determination formula that can be dynamically changed.

  In addition, the information processing apparatus further includes selection means for presenting and selecting a message regarding countermeasures for subsequent operations after presenting a predetermined message.

  In addition, a message storage unit that holds a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, and a recording unit that records the number of outputs that meet the conditions in the message storage unit, and compares the stored records The message of the condition and the matching condition as a result is displayed.

  Further, the message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions further includes priority recording means for recording the priority order for the plurality of conditions in accordance with the importance, and displays based on the priority order. The message is determined.

  In addition, priority storage means for recording priorities for a plurality of conditions in a message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, and setting different priorities from a plurality of viewpoints. It is.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, by providing means for presenting or providing a predetermined message according to the result, it is possible to provide an opportunity to provide a better output result as a result intended by the user. Get.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Example 1

  FIG. 1 shows an example of a network printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  In this case, the two information processing apparatuses WS1 and WS2 and the printer apparatuses FX1 and FX2 are connected via the local area network LAN. The information processing apparatuses WS1 and WS2 are installed with application software for creating print information and software such as a network compatible printer driver for transmitting a print job to the printer apparatuses FX1 and FX2 via the local area network LAN. ing.

  The printer devices FX1 and FX2 record and output the printed matter of the print job received from the information processing devices WS1 and WS2 via the local area network LAN.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the configuration of the information processing device WS (WS1, WS2). In this embodiment, it is assumed that the information processing apparatus WS has Windows (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation installed as an operating system.

  In the figure, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 1 controls the operation of the information processing device WS, and a ROM (Read Only Memory) 2 is a program executed when the CPU 1 starts up, necessary data, etc. RAM (Random Access Memory) 3 is for configuring the work area of the CPU 1 and the like.

  The character generator 4 is for generating graphic character display data, the clock circuit 5 is for outputting the current date and time information, and the local area network interface circuit 6 is for the information processing device WS. The local area network transmission control unit 7 is used for connection to a local area network LAN, and the local area network transmission control unit 7 performs various predetermined data exchanges with other data terminal devices via the local area network LAN. This is for executing the communication control processing of the protocol suite.

  The magnetic disk device 8 is for storing various application programs such as document creation software, system software such as a network compatible printer driver, various data such as work data, file data, and image information data, and a CRT screen. The display device 9 is for displaying a screen for operating the information processing device WS, and the display control unit 10 is for controlling the display contents of the CRT screen display device 9.

  The keyboard device 11 is for performing various key operations on the information processing device WS, and the screen instruction device 12 is for performing operation operations such as instructing an arbitrary point of the CRT screen display device 9. The input control unit 13 is for capturing input information of the keyboard device 11 and the screen instruction device 12.

  These CPU 1, ROM 2, RAM 3, character generator 4, clock circuit 5, local area network transmission control unit 7, magnetic disk device 8, display control unit 10, and input control unit 13 are connected to a bus 14. Data exchange between these elements is mainly performed via the bus 14.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a software system that creates print data for the information processing apparatus WS.

  In this case, the application program AP is software for creating document data to be printed, and the network compatible printer driver DV creates print data to be transmitted to the printer apparatus FX based on the document data, and the network processing unit NP. To send through.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the network compatible printer printer driver DV includes a display control unit MD1 for displaying various information to the user, and a document information inspection unit MD2 for inspecting the type of designated document information. , An output condition inspection unit MD3 for inspecting the output condition to the printer device FX, an output environment information inspection unit MD4 for inspecting output environment information such as the printer device FX, and a data receiving unit for receiving print data from the application program AP MD5, a data transmission unit MD6 for transmitting the created print data to the printer apparatus FX, a drawing unit MD7 for converting the print data into corresponding drawing data, and a condition for displaying various help information The help display condition determination unit MD8.

  FIGS. 5A to 5C show an example of help information formed as one element of the help information database stored in the magnetic disk device 8.

  The help information includes a help ID for identifying each help information, a help text storing a text to be provided to the user, a response after displaying the help storing the user's corresponding content after displaying the help, and displaying the help. It consists of a condition determination process for determining whether or not to do so.

  For example, in the help information # 1 with the help ID “H001”, the help text is “I am trying to print a document that is presumed to be confidential by a public printing service.” "Redo execution / print setting" and the condition determination process is the condition determination process 001.

  Also, in the help information # 2 of the help ID “H001”, the help text is “I am trying to print with an application such as DTP. It is recommended that the DTP mode print settings be used with a DTP application.” The response after the help display is “execute as it is / change print settings / redo print settings”, and the condition determination process is the condition determination process 002.

  In this case, an example of processing when displaying help information is shown in FIG.

  First, print data is transmitted from the application program AP to the network compatible printer driver DV. Document information, output environment information, and output conditions, which are logical information, are extracted from the transmitted print data (processing 101). Here, the document information is extracted by the document information inspection unit MD2. The document information is, for example, whether the document sent from the application software AP includes information indicating that the document is confidential. Further, the output condition is extracted by the output condition inspection unit MD3. The output condition is, for example, a print mode (DTP mode, CAD mode) set by the user. In addition, the output environment information inspection unit MD4 extracts the output environment. The output environment information is, for example, location information of the printer apparatus FX.

  Next, the help display condition determination unit MD8 retrieves information related to each document-dependent help item from the help database, and executes the processes of determinations 102 to 106.

  First, it is checked whether there is unprocessed help information for all items stored in the help database (decision 102). When the result of determination 102 is YES, any unprocessed help information is selected, a condition determination process for the selected help information is acquired (process 103), and the acquired help condition determination process is executed (step 103). Process 104).

  As a result of this process, it is checked whether or not the print data at that time satisfies the help display condition (determination 105). If the result of determination 105 is YES, a document-dependent help display process (process 106) is executed. Return to decision 102.

  Further, when the result of determination 105 is NO, processing 106 is not executed.

  If the result of determination 102 is NO, the processing for all the help information stored in the help database has been completed, so the printing process is started.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of the help display condition determination process 001.

  First, the contents of the document are analyzed to detect whether the document is confidential. For example, the text included in the document is searched to determine whether or not the character string “confidential” is included (processing 111). If it is confidential (the result of determination 112 is YES), the installation location of the printer apparatus FX is detected based on the output environment information (process 113), and it is checked whether it is a public service (determination 114). For example, it is determined from the location information of the printer apparatus FX whether the name matches the public printing service.

  When the result of determination 114 is YES, it is determined that the condition for displaying the help information # 001 is met, and when the result of determination 114 is NO and when the result of determination 112 is NO, help information # 001. It is determined that the condition for displaying is not met.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of the document-dependent help display process (process 106). In this case, help information # 001 is displayed.

  First, the contents of the character string of the help text as shown in FIG. 10A are displayed on the help display screen (document dependent help display; processing 121). Then, it is determined which option the user has operated for the help display. Since the help information # 001 is “execute as it is” or “redo print setting”, it is checked whether “NO” is selected on the screen and setting redo is designated (determination 122).

  When the result of determination 122 is YES, the print setting screen is displayed again (process 133), and the setting value is changed to the reset content (process 124).

  If “YES” is selected on the screen, the result of determination 122 is NO, so it is checked whether “print with recommended settings” has been selected (determination 125). In this case, since there is no item “print with recommended settings” in the options, the result of determination 125 is NO, and thus this processing is terminated.

  If the option includes “print with recommended settings” and the result of determination 125 is YES, the set value is changed to a predetermined recommended value (process 126), and this process is performed. finish.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of the help display condition determination process 002.

  First, the application name is acquired from the output environment information (process 131), and the application usage is acquired from the application name (process 132). In this case, an application name acquisition function and an application usage acquisition function of the operating system can be used.

  It is checked whether or not the usage is DTP (determination 133). When the result of determination 133 is YES, the print mode is acquired from the output condition (process 134), and it is checked whether or not the print mode is the DTP mode (determination). 135). When the result of determination 135 is YES, it is determined that the help display condition is satisfied, and when the result of determination 135 is NO and when the result of determination 133 is NO, it is determined that the help display condition is not satisfied. .

  FIG. 10B shows an example of a help screen displayed when it is determined in the help display condition determination processing 002 that the help display condition is met.

In this way, in this embodiment, by providing a means for presenting / providing a predetermined message according to the result, it is possible to provide an opportunity to provide a better output result as a result intended by the user. . Further, since the subsequent countermeasures can be presented to the user before outputting the document, it is not necessary to redo the output operation. In addition, when a highly confidential document is printed by a public facility without the user's intention, the risk of information leakage can be prevented. In addition, by notifying the user that the print setting according to the application to be output is not performed, it is possible to suppress the output of an unintentional printed matter.
(Example 2)

  FIGS. 11A to 11D show examples of help information according to another embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus configuration of the present embodiment is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the help information, the help text is a help message displayed when a condition described later in the record analysis is met. The countermeasure after the help display is a message used when it is necessary to inquire about how to continue the processing after displaying the help message. The statistical condition determination calculation expression is an expression for evaluating whether or not the condition is satisfied for each printing process. The help display determination timing defines the timing for performing the periodic check. The previous help display determination date and time is the date and time when the record analysis (or check at an arbitrary timing) was performed last time. The help display threshold is a number that is compared with the value of the above-described statistical condition determination calculation formula. If the calculated value is larger than the help display threshold, the message is displayed as being conforming to the condition. The threshold (unit) is a threshold unit.

  The content of the help information is stored as an initial value by the printer driver, but can be added / modified by the administrator after being installed in the system.

Further, the following variables can be used in the statistical condition determination calculation formula of the help information.
“App” = application name (currently processed) “instructions” = (currently processed) output condition set (a set of output condition settings such as double-sided, number of copies, stapling)
“DocName” = Output document name (currently processed) “prevJob” = Output process performed immediately before “prevJob.app” = Application name of the output process performed immediately before “prevJob.instructions” = Output process performed immediately before Output condition set (set of output condition settings such as double-sided presence / absence, number of copies, stapling presence / absence “prevJob.docName” = output document name of the last output process “printerStatus” = printer status

  For example, in the help information # 000 of the help ID “H000”, the help text is “blank”, the response after displaying the help is “blank”, the statistical condition determination calculation formula is “ALL”, the help display determination timing is “blank”, The previous help display determination date and time is “blank”, the help display threshold is “blank”, the threshold unit is “blank”, and the number of occurrences of statistical conditions is “100”. The help information # 000 is for counting the number of times all help information is displayed (the number of occurrences of statistical conditions), and thus has such contents.

  Further, for example, the content of the help information # 101 shown in FIG. 11C is displayed on a help screen as shown in FIG.

  With the above configuration, the application program AP sends the document name and print data to the network compatible printer driver DV.

  When the network compatible printer driver DV performs the printing process, the network processing printer driver DV records the number of processes in the help database by performing the process of FIG. That is, the statistical condition occurrence count of the help information # 000 is incremented, the application name is determined (process 201), and each statistical condition determination calculation formula for each entry whose help ID in the help database is H101 or later (NO loop of determination 202). (Process 203), and if the result is TRUE (the result of determination 204 is YES), the value in the statistical condition occurrence number column of that line is incremented, and finally the determined application name and document name The output condition sets of the output process are saved as “prevJob.app”, “prevJob.docName”, and “prevJob.instructions”, respectively (process 206).

  FIG. 14 shows an example of the application name identification process.

  First, the application program AP checks whether the application name is set in the data to be passed to the network compatible printer driver DV (decision 211). If it is set (the result of determination 211 is YES), this is used as the application name and the determination ends.

  Next, the document name is checked and its extension is extracted (process 212). If the extension cannot be extracted, it is determined that the extension cannot be determined, and the determination ends (the result of determination 213 is NO). An inquiry is made to the database of the operating system with the extracted extension (process 214), and if there is an application registered in the file with this extension (decision 215), the discrimination is ended with that as the application name. If no extension is registered (the result of determination 215 is NO), an extension table built in the network compatible printer driver DV is searched. If an extension is registered in the extension table (the result of determination 216 is YES), the determination ends with the corresponding application name. If no extension is registered (the result of determination 216 is NO), the determination is made. The determination is terminated as impossible.

  Now, the recording analysis is started when the user activates the recording analysis software. There are a method of starting by pressing a “printing state analysis” button of a printer driver (network-compatible printer driver DV), a method of starting a “recording analysis tool”, and a method of starting a recording analysis tool periodically.

  The recording analysis starting method from the network compatible printer driver DV includes a “print status analysis” button and a “history saving” check box on a screen managed by the user interface control unit of the network compatible printer driver DV. The “save history” check box is ON by default.

  On this screen, when the user presses the “print status analysis” button, the recording analysis software is activated. At this time, if “history saving” is ON, the recording analysis software is started in the history saving mode.

  In addition, the recording analysis starting method as a normal software by the user is the same method as that for starting the normal application software, and thus will not be described in particular.

  In addition, the method of periodically starting the recording analysis software starts the periodic startup software at an arbitrary periodic cycle.

  When this periodic startup software starts the record analysis unit, it is possible to pass an option command to the start analysis unit.If you want to delete the history after record analysis, specify clearJobLog.If you do not want to delete the history, Specify retainJobLog.

  FIG. 15 shows an example of processing for starting the recording analysis software.

  The record analysis software checks the entries in the help database in order from the help ID H101 (decision 221). First, it is determined whether the entry corresponds to the help display determination timing of each entry in the help database (determination 222) and is later than the previous help display determination date (determination 223). If the help display determination timing is not appropriate (the result of determination 222 is NO / the result of determination 223 is YES), the process proceeds to the next entry check.

  If the help display determination timing is appropriate (the result of determination 223 is NO), it is determined whether or not a message should be displayed.

For this, if the threshold (unit) is “%” (the result of decision 224 is YES),
(Statistical condition occurrence count) / (H000 statistical condition occurrence count) * 100> Calculated with help display threshold, and if threshold (unit) is “times”
If the number of occurrences of statistical conditions> the help display threshold value is calculated and both are determined to be TRUE, a help message is displayed (processing 225 to processing 227).

  In addition, when started in the “history saving mode” (the result of the determination 228 is YES), the numerical value of the number of occurrences of the statistical condition is not changed, but when not in the “history saving mode” (the result of the determination 228 is NO), The numerical value of the number of occurrences of statistical conditions is changed to 0 (processing 229).

  FIGS. 16A to 16C show other examples of help information in this embodiment. The contents of each item are the same as those in FIG.

  In this case, the output processing record database shown in FIG. 17 is provided. The meaning of each column will be described below.

  The job ID is a unique ID set by the printer driver for each job. The host name is the host name of the computer that performed printing. The user name is the user name (login name) of the user who performed printing. The logical printer is the name of the printer selected by the application. The physical printer is the name of the actual printer that the logical printer selected by the application used to actually process the output process. This is important in an environment where a plurality of physical printers are connected to one logical printer, but in an environment where one physical printer corresponds to one logical printer, both have the same value. Become. The document name is the name of the document to be printed. This is part of the data that the app passes to the driver. The application name is the application that started printing. The start time and the printer status at the start are the time when the output process is started and the status of the printer at that time. The end time and the end printer state are the time when the output process is ended and the state of the printer at that time. Transition n: time and transition n: state are the time when the status of the printer or the output process has changed and the state newly generated at that time.

  In this case, printing is started from the application program AP.

  The application program AP sends the document name and print data to the network compatible printer driver DV.

  The network compatible printer driver DV records the output process in the output process record database by performing the process of FIG. 18 when executing the print process.

  First, a job ID is set (processes 241 and 242), and the host name, user name, logical and physical printer name are acquired from the operating system and stored (process 243).

  Next, the document name and application name are stored from the data passed from the application program AP (process 244). Note that the app name determination method is the same as the method described above.

  Then, the output process start time and the printer state at that time are stored in the start printer state (process 245), and the normal output process is continued (process 246). However, if the printer status changes or the output processing status changes before the output processing ends, the status change is recorded at the time and status of transition n.

  Then, the time when the output is finally completed is recorded as the end time, and the printer state at that time is recorded in the printer state at the end (process 247).

  Also in this case, the recording analysis is started when the user starts the recording analysis software. The activation method includes a method of starting by pressing a “printing state analysis” button of the printer driver, a method of starting a “recording analysis tool”, and a method of periodically starting the recording analysis tool. Since these are the same as the above-mentioned starting method, description is omitted.

  The startup analysis process is as follows (see FIG. 19).

  In the startup analysis process, first, an analysis target period can be set. By default, all job histories are subject to analysis, but when analysis start time and analysis end time are specified, only job history within that range is subject to analysis.

  First, the record analysis software examines help database entries in order from the help database H101 (decision 251). First, it is determined whether the entry corresponds to the help display determination timing of each entry in the help database (decision 252) and is later than the previous help display determination date (determination 235). If the help display determination timing is not appropriate, the next entry is checked (the result of determination 253 is YES / the result of determination 252 is NO).

  Next, the number of times the output process suitable for the help entry has occurred is totaled by analyzing the job history database.

  For each entry in the help database, if the threshold (unit) is “%” (the result of determination 254 is YES), the occurrence rate is calculated (processing 255 to 261), and if “times”, the number of occurrences is calculated (processing 262). Decision 266).

  Incidence rate is the total number of jobs recorded in the job history, that is, the total number of jobs. The percentage is calculated by multiplying 100 by the numerical value divided by (process 259).

  The number of occurrences is calculated by counting the number of job history database entries that meet the statistical conditions using the statistical condition judgment formula registered in the help database entry.

  If the occurrence rate or occurrence frequency calculated in this way is larger than the help display threshold of the help database entry, a help message is displayed. (Example is shown in Figure 14)

  Perform the above determination on all help database entries.

  When the “history save button” is pressed, all the job information stored in the job history database is deleted.

In this way, in this embodiment, a message corresponding to the print instruction status can be displayed. In addition, a message corresponding to the print instruction status for each usage period can be provided. In addition, a message corresponding to the processing of the output device can be provided. In addition, a message corresponding to both the print instruction status and the processing of the output device can be provided.
(Example 3)

  FIGS. 21A to 21D show examples of help information according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus configuration of the present embodiment is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  The help ID is the ID of each item. The ID of H000 is a special help ID for recording the number of times of all jobs. The help text is a help message displayed when a condition described later in the record analysis is met. The countermeasure after the help display is a message used when it is necessary to inquire about how to continue the processing after displaying the help message. The statistical condition determination calculation expression is an expression for evaluating whether or not the condition is satisfied for each printing process. The number of occurrences of statistical conditions is the number of times incremented by the above-described statistical condition determination calculation formula in the next help display determination timing period from the previous help display determination date and time. In addition, the number of occurrences of statistical conditions for H000 is the total number of outputs in the period. The help display determination timing defines the timing for performing the periodic check. The previous help display determination date and time is the date and time when the record analysis (or check at an arbitrary timing) was performed last time. The help display user is a user who displays help. The help display threshold is a number that is compared with the number of occurrences of statistical conditions at the help display determination timing, and is used in the help display determination formula to determine whether to display help. The help display determination expression is an expression for evaluating whether to display help based on the number of occurrences of statistical conditions and the help display threshold.

  The contents of the help database are stored as initial values by the printer driver, but can be added / modified by the administrator after being installed in the system.

The meanings of the commands and variables used in this help database are as follows.
order:
“Count ((A) (B))” = Increment A condition in parentheses by B value in parentheses “class ()” = Count the types of items in parentheses. (Multiple items can be specified and combined patterns can be counted)
variable:
“User” = (currently processed) user “layout” = (currently processed) print layout “duplex” = (currently processed) duplex “jobsheets” = (currently processed) number of output per job “Docsheets” = Number of output pages per document (currently processed) “staple” = Staple (currently processed) “Help ID (T)” = Number of occurrences of statistical conditions for the help ID “Help ID (R)” = Help display threshold of the help ID “Help ID (S)” = Result value of the statistical condition judgment calculation formula of the help ID

  Printing is started from the application program AP.

  The network compatible printer driver DV records the number of processes in the help database by performing the processes of FIGS. 22 and 23 when performing the printing process. That is, increment the number of occurrences of H000, identify the output conditions such as user, layout, and jobsheets, calculate the statistical condition judgment formula for each entry after H101 in the help database, and if the result is TRUE The value in the statistical condition occurrence count column of that line is incremented by the specified value (decision 301, process 302 / determination 311 to process 314).

  The recording analysis is started when the user activates the recording analysis software. There are a method of starting a printer driver by pressing a “printing state analysis” button, a method of starting a “recording analysis tool”, and a method of starting a recording analysis tool periodically.

  The method for starting recording analysis from the driver includes a “print status analysis” button and a “save history” check box on the driver screen. The “save history” check box is ON by default.

  On this screen, when the user presses the “print status analysis” button, the recording analysis software is activated. At this time, if “history saving” is ON, the recording analysis software is started in the history saving mode.

  Since this is the same method as starting normal application software, it will not be described in particular.

  This starts the recording analysis software on a resident basis (see FIG. 24).

  The record analysis software examines the help database entries in order from H101 (decision 321). First, it is determined whether the entry corresponds to the help display determination timing of each entry in the help database (determination 322) and is later than the previous help display determination date (determination 323). If the help display determination timing is not appropriate, the next entry is checked (the result of determination 323 is YES / the result of determination 322 is NO).

  If the help display determination timing is appropriate (the result of determination 323 is NO), it is determined whether or not the user is a help display user (determination 324).

  If the user is a help display user (determination 324), it is determined whether a message should be displayed according to the help display determination formula (determination 325). If the determination is TRUE, a help message (see FIG. 25) is displayed.

  In addition, when started in the “history saving mode” (the result of the determination 327 is YES), the numerical value of the number of occurrences of the statistical condition is not changed, but when not in the “history saving mode” (the result of the determination 327 is NO), The numerical value of the number of occurrences of statistical conditions is changed to 0 (processing 328).

  FIGS. 26A to 26C show other examples of help information in this embodiment. The contents of each item are the same as those in FIG.

  Moreover, it has the output process recording database of FIG. The meaning of each column will be described below.

  The job ID is a unique ID set by the printer driver for each job. The host name is the host name of the computer that performed printing. The user name is the user name (login name) of the user who performed printing. The number of output sheets / job is the physical output number of prints per job. The number of output sheets / document is the physical output number of prints per document. The layout is a print aggregation condition. Double-sided is a double-sided condition for printing. Staple is a staple condition for printing. The paper size is the size of printing. The paper type is a paper type for printing.

  In this case, printing is started from an application.

  When executing the printing process, the network compatible printer driver DV records the output process in the output process record database by performing the process of FIG. 28 (process 331).

  That is, first, the job ID is set, and the host name / user name is acquired from the operating system and stored. Next, output conditions such as the layout, double-sided, staple, paper size, and paper type set by the printer driver are stored.

  Then, the physical output number of one job is calculated and stored.

  Further, the physical output number of one document is calculated and stored from the page number, layout, and both sides of one document.

  The recording analysis is started when the user activates the recording analysis software. The activation method includes a method of starting by pressing a “printing state analysis” button of the printer driver, a method of starting a “recording analysis tool”, and a method of periodically starting the recording analysis tool. Since these are the same as the above-mentioned starting method, description is omitted.

  An example of the startup analysis process is shown in FIG.

  First, the record analysis software examines help database entries in order from the help database H101 (decision 341).

  First, it is determined whether the entry corresponds to the help display determination timing of each entry in the help database and is later than the previous help display determination date (determination 342, 343).

  If the help display determination timing is not appropriate, the next entry is checked (the result of determination 343 is YES / the result of determination 342 is NO).

  If the help display determination timing is appropriate, it is determined whether or not the user is a help display user (determination 344).

  If the user is a help display user, the job history database is analyzed and aggregated according to the statistical condition determination calculation formula suitable for the help entry (process 345; see FIG. 30).

  Then, a help message is displayed by a help display determination formula using a help display threshold value (determination 346, process 347).

  Perform the above determination on all help database entries.

  If the “history save button” is pressed, all job information stored in the job history database is deleted.

  An example of the statistical condition determination formula calculation process is shown in FIG.

  In this case, first, it is checked whether or not the calculation formula is count (decision 351). When the result of determination 351 is YES, the value of the job counter is set to 0 (processing 352), and the job history entry remains in the statistical condition until the job history entry is completed (until the result of determination 353 is YES). If it is satisfied, the job counter is incremented (determination 354, processing 355). When all entries have been processed, the statistical condition occurrence count is incremented (process 356).

  If the calculation formula is ALL (the result of the determination 351 is NO), the value of the job counter is set to 0 (processing 357), and the job history entry is completed (until the result of the determination 358 becomes YES). If a new combination pattern is generated under the statistical conditions, the job counter is incremented (decision 359, process 360). When all entries have been processed, the statistical condition occurrence count is incremented (process 356).

In this way, in this embodiment, a message corresponding to the number of output condition patterns for each job can be provided. In addition, help display conditions can be determined as desired. Even if the administrator (user) forgets to check the status of the printer, it is automatically displayed, so the administrator (user) notices. You can also show people who want to show messages and people who don't want to show them. In addition, it can be proposed to save the user who outputs a large number of sheets. In addition, it is possible to propose paper savings due to frequently used settings, layout, double-sided use, and the like. In addition, depending on the number of output sheets of one document at the time of stapling, stapling may not be possible. However, if there are many restrictions, it can be proposed to introduce a printer capable of stapling a large number of sheets. In addition, when there are many usage patterns of paper types and paper sizes, it can be proposed that a large number of trays is convenient.
Example 4

  FIG. 31 shows an example of help information according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus configuration of the present embodiment is the same as that of the above-described embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

  Here, the help ID represents identification information, the help text represents a message to be displayed, the condition represents a condition for whether or not to display a message, and priorities A, B, and C represent priorities (importances) based on arbitrary indices, respectively. The effectiveness is a measure of how effective the displayed message is, and the number of replies is the cumulative number of replies that indicate whether the displayed message is effective.

  The help database is not only composed of the components listed here, but also has a help text that adapts based on various conditions. Needless to say.

  Now, as an example, the flow of the present invention when a user who desires printing issues a 4-page document with Layout 16 in 1 and issues a print instruction without specifying both sides will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.

  The priorities A, B, and C in FIG. 31 are indicators of “output beautifully”, “output while saving paper (cost)”, and “output anyway”, respectively. When the user prints with the above settings, the printer driver in this example grasps each setting value held by the driver, and adjusts each setting to the help database directly through the recording analysis means or via the recording analysis software. A search is performed to find whether there is a match for the condition.

  If there is a match, a plurality of help IDs (help texts) are listed for each condition. In this example, since the 16-in-1 layout of a 4-page document is set without specifying both sides, for example, help IDs H0002, H0005, H0006, H0007, H0008, H0009, and HD0010 are candidates in the help database of FIG. Become.

  At this time, the priorities A, B, and C are inputted with numerical values of importance for each help ID. Here, 0 is the lowest and 10 is the strongest. This value is referred to here as the respective weight. A, B, and C are weights based on the above-mentioned indexes, and the index itself may be an importance level between the indexes.

  FIG. 32A shows the degree of importance between the indexes in numerical form.

  The right priority A, B, and C contain numerical values distributed so as to be 10 in total. Top user group: Let's take the default as an example. This numerical value represents a weighting coefficient for each index.

By multiplying this coefficient and the numerical values of the priorities A, B, and C, the difference with respect to each index can be expressed as a numerical value. Therefore, here, for example, simply multiplying H0002 in FIG. 31 by the user group: default coefficient in FIG. 32A to give a numerical value.
A (1x3) + B (5x10) + C (4x3) = 65
Thus, the calculation result is 65. The former of multiplication is a weighting coefficient, and the latter is importance for each index. This value is referred to herein as a weighting value.

  The record analysis unit calculates the weight values of all the help IDs of these candidates, and determines and displays that a message is displayed when the value exceeds a certain threshold value.

  This threshold value may be variable instead of a fixed value. In this example, when the same calculation is performed, a weighting value as shown in FIG. 32B is obtained.

  If the threshold value is set to 50, the recording analysis unit determines that H0002, H0009, and H0010 in FIG. 31 are over 50, and H0009 and H0010 have the same condition. Therefore, it is recognized that H0009 having a large weighting value is more important.

  FIG. 33A shows an example of a display message screen.

  At this time, the user can select the message, and if Yes is selected, the setting becomes valid. No means no change. Data is generated according to the user's selection, and the actual printing operation is transferred.

  An example of the above processing is shown in FIG. FIG. 34 shows an example of processing from when a printing instruction is given until the printing operation is started.

  It is assumed that the output result of the user in the above embodiment is more beautiful and easier to see than when the paper is saved and output by, for example, a company officer.

  When printing is performed with the same settings based on FIGS. 31 and 32A, the user group: officer group weighting coefficient in FIG. 32A is used.

  This table can be configured by dividing a group for each user, and an appropriate message corresponding to the user can be displayed by changing the weighting coefficient for each group. FIG. 36 is a flow at this time.

  When the current user belongs to this officer group, the weighting value is a numerical value as shown in FIG. As a result, H0005, H0006, and H0007 exceeding the threshold value 50 are to be displayed, but the recording analysis unit determines that H0005 having the largest weight value is displayed and is actually displayed. .

  In addition, it is also described that the present invention can select whether or not to display the next candidate if No is selected by the user at the time of display.

  When a message is displayed, it is determined whether the user has helped the message, and the result is fed back to the help database, so that the effectiveness of the message is accumulated in the database, and the result is also used to determine the weight. An example in which it is possible to display a message that suits or suits the user will be described.

  FIG. 37 shows the simple flow. FIG. 33B shows an example of this display message screen. In FIG. 33 (b), the user who receives the message display can input a personal opinion about the effect at any stage.

  In this example, when the “effect input” button is pressed, the screen shown in FIG. 33C is displayed and input is made with a five-level slider bar.

  Although there is a method of direct input in FIG. 33B, the method is not particularly limited. By inputting here before making a Yes / No decision, it is reflected in the help database.

In FIG. 31, as an example, the value of H0005 is 3 and the number of responses is 10. When the user closes the message by entering 5 because it is judged that the user is very useful this time, the value changes as follows.
(3x10 + 5x1) / (10 + 1) = 3.182 (rounded off to the last 4 digits)

  This is a recalculation of the average value obtained by finding the total value up to this time by the effectiveness x the number of responses and adding this result. There are various ways of holding data, such as having a value multiplied by 1000, but this is not mentioned here.

  When this result is used, the weighting value can be calculated by multiplying the current effect level by an arbitrary coefficient and calculating the sum.

  It is self-evident that the larger the coefficient, the higher the influence of the effectiveness, but this coefficient can be arbitrarily set by a system administrator or the like.

  If the effect is always high, the importance of the help ID will increase according to the frequency of use. Conversely, if the effect is low, the importance will decrease.

  Accordingly, messages that are relatively desirable to the user are displayed preferentially, and the number of cases in which unnecessary messages are displayed to the user can be reduced.

  Although the printer driver is mainly given here as an example, the information processing method related to this document-dependent help can be provided with the same functions in other information processing devices. It provides very meaningful information to managers and has an effect from the standpoint of indicators.

  In this way, in this embodiment, the user can know whether the output result is what he intended before viewing the output result. Further, when it is found before output that the output result is not intended by the user, the output result can be changed so as to obtain the intended result. In addition, a message according to a specified situation can be provided. It is also possible to provide an appropriate message according to external factors, detailed conditions, special conditions, and the like. In addition, it is possible to provide an appropriate message based on a flexible setting according to the necessity and importance of conditions. Further, it is possible to provide a message with contents and expressions corresponding to the recipient to the recipient of the message. In addition, it is possible to provide an optimal message viewed from both the user's standpoint and the licensed use standpoint. Moreover, by classifying users and belonging to them, appropriate advice according to the group can be flexibly given. In addition, the user's opinions and wishes are reflected, so that the information accuracy according to the user is improved, and convenience can be improved. Further, appropriate contents suitable for the user can be displayed according to the frequency of use, and a highly useful message can be displayed.

1 is a block diagram showing an example of a network printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram which showed an example of the structure of information processing apparatus WS (WS1, WS2). The block diagram which showed an example of the software system which produces print data. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of a network compatible printer printer driver DV. Schematic which showed an example of help information. The flowchart which showed an example of the process at the time of displaying help information. The flowchart which showed an example of the help display condition determination process 001. The flowchart which showed an example of the document dependence help display process (process 106). The flowchart which showed an example of the help display condition determination process 002. Schematic which showed an example of a help screen. Schematic which showed the other example of help information. Schematic which showed the other example of the help screen. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a printing process start part. The flowchart which showed an example of the application name identification process. The flowchart which showed an example of the recording analysis software process. Schematic which showed the further another example of help information. Schematic which showed an example of one entry of a job history database. 10 is a flowchart illustrating another example of a printing process start part. 21 is a flowchart showing another example of the recording analysis software process (continuing to FIG. 20). Flowchart showing another example of recording analysis software processing (continued from FIG. 19) Schematic which showed another example of help information. 10 is a flowchart illustrating another example of a printing process start portion. The flowchart which showed an example of statistical condition judgment formula calculation processing. The flowchart which showed another example of recording analysis software processing. Schematic which showed the other example of the help screen. Schematic which showed another example of help information. Schematic which showed the other example of one entry of the job history database. 10 is a flowchart showing still another example of a printing process start part. The flowchart which showed another example of recording analysis software processing. The flowchart which showed the other example of statistical condition determination formula calculation processing. Schematic which showed another example of help information. Schematic which showed an example of various information. Schematic which showed another example of the help screen. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of a printing start part. The flowchart which showed an example of the analysis process. The flowchart which showed the other example of the analysis process. 10 is a flowchart showing still another example of processing of a printing start part.

Explanation of symbols

WS1 to WSn workstation device FX1, FX2 printer device

Claims (14)

A comparison means for comparing the output instructed document information, the output condition, and the output environment information;
An information processing apparatus comprising means for presenting a predetermined message according to the result of the comparison means.   2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for presenting and selecting a message regarding countermeasures for subsequent operations after presenting a predetermined message.   The document information includes confidentiality information of the document to be output, the output environment information includes a place where the output is executed, and the confidential information is compared with the location to determine whether the output location is appropriate for confidentiality. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising means for making a determination and presenting a user with a message regarding a result of the determination and a countermeasure for the subsequent operation.   The output environment information includes application information for executing output, and compares the document information, output conditions, and application information to determine whether the output is appropriate for the application. As a result, and the subsequent operation The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising means for presenting and selecting a message related to the countermeasure to the user. Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
Recording means for recording in the message storage means the number of outputs that meet the conditions;
An information processing apparatus comprising recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for a stored record. A recording means for recording the document information instructed to output and the number of successes / failures during output;
Storage means to store records for a long time;
Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
An information processing apparatus comprising recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for a stored record. Recording means for recording the output progress;
Storage means to store records for a long time;
Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
An information processing apparatus comprising recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for a stored record. A recording means for recording the document information instructed to be output and the output progress status;
Storage means to store records for a long time;
Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
An information processing apparatus comprising recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for a stored record. Recording means for recording the document information, the user information, and the output conditions for which output is instructed;
Storage means to store records for a long time;
Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
An information processing apparatus comprising recording analysis means for displaying a message having a condition suitable for a stored record.   10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising means capable of determining help display by a help display determination formula that can be dynamically changed as the recording analysis means for displaying the message.   6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising selection means for presenting and selecting a message regarding countermeasures for subsequent operations after presenting a predetermined message. Message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions;
Recording means for recording in the message storage means the number of outputs that meet the conditions;
12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a comparison means for comparing the stored records and a message having a matching condition as a result are displayed. A message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, further comprising a priority recording means for recording a priority order according to the importance for the plurality of conditions;
13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein a message to be displayed is determined based on the priority order.   In the priority recording means for recording priorities for a plurality of conditions in a message storage means for holding a plurality of conditions and messages corresponding to the conditions, different priorities are set respectively from a plurality of viewpoints. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13.

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