Dynamic configuration of the application menu based on the “top-down” principle

A computer with software installed on it is a universal technical system designed for information processing and allowing to solve a wide range of problems, the specificity of which is determined by the functionality of the programs used. The operation of this system, as a rule, is carried out in an interactive mode, i.e. in interaction with the user. The performance of a user with a software application significantly depends on the user interface and the degree of its adaptability to the needs of specific users. Modern software is constantly becoming more complex, its functionality is increasing. Accordingly, its interface becomes more complicated, which often becomes overloaded and poorly visible to the user. Despite the efforts of many developers, the problem of building a convenient, easily perceived interface, satisfying a specific user, facilitating and accelerating it. The process of creating a responsive interface assumes the support of an adaptable menu, which is an integral part of the interface. The article presents an approach to solving the problem of constructing a software menu that adapts to the needs of a particular user based on the results of monitoring user actions, in which the number of user calls to menu items is recorded. The menu is a tree-like structure containing many levels, including sets of submenus. A mathematical model and an algorithm for online adaptation of the menu for a specific user are described, taking into account the frequency of activation of menu items. The algorithm adjusts the menu for the user so that the access time to menu items that are activated more often is minimal. Menu customization is accomplished by adding links to the menu items that are more frequently used at the top level of the menu and moving less frequently used links to the lower levels of the menu. The link is a copy of the menu item. The proposed algorithm improves the efficiency of the user by reducing the time spent accessing menu items.