| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20080294299 | CONSTRAINED NAVIGATION IN A THREE-DIMENSIONAL (3D) VIRTUAL ARENA - This disclosure describes a method for camera/user view navigation about enclosed 3D environment (e.g., the inside of a sports stadium or arena). The navigation system constrains the user view (camera) to a (pre-defined) guide based on the shape and size of the interior area which is the focus of the 3D virtual world. In the case of an arena this would generally be the playing surface. The user can easily control the camera movement on this guide with traditional up/down and left/right controls. These controls could be implemented as buttons within the application, keyboard controls, or mouse controls. | 11-27-2008 |
| 20080294904 | METHOD TO PREVENT ACCESS OF WEB APPLICATIONS FROM BOOKMARKED LINKS - An improved solution for accessing a web application is provided. In an embodiment of the invention, a method for controlling access to a web application includes: receiving a request for a first web page application, wherein the first web application is connected to a second web page application via a link at the second web page application; determining if the request is likely from a book marked link to the first web page application or from the link at the second web page application; and providing one of the second web page application and the first web page application based on the determining | 11-27-2008 |
| 20090189864 | SELF-ADAPTING VIRTUAL SMALL KEYBOARD APPARATUS AND METHOD - A method, apparatus and computer-usable medium for implementing a virtual keyboard for use with small input devices. A circular keyboard can be graphically displayed, in response to a user input by a user via a small input device. A circular and centrally located key can be graphically located and displayed within the center of the circular keyboard, wherein character keys radiate outward from the centrally located key (i.e., the “central key”). Character keys that are most commonly utilized by the user are preferably located closed to the circular and centrally located key within the circular keyboard. Character keys least commonly utilized by the user are preferably located at the edges of the keyboard, thereby permitting the circular keyboard to function as a self-adapting virtual keyboard for use with small input devices based on the usage of the keyboard by the user. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090287614 | DYNAMIC TRANSFERRING OF AVATARS BETWEEN VIRTUAL UNIVERSES - Interruption and degradation of service within a virtual universe leads to an unsatisfactory experience for users of the virtual universe. Dissatisfaction with service of a virtual universe may lead users to see alternate universes providing higher levels of service. Functionality can be implemented to identify alternate virtual universes that meet a user's service requirements and dynamically move the user's avatar from one virtual universe to another. | 11-19-2009 |
| 20100050180 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR GREEN COMPUTING INTERCHANGE SWITCHING FUNCTION - Systems, methods, devices and program products are provided for enabling users of a computing system to measure and compare the green efficiency of a set of resources used in a computing task. With the use of this information, the user can select a desired set of resources to be employed in the computing task to minimize the environmental impact of computing tasks in relation to requirements. In some embodiments, the invention creates metrics for measuring the greenness of a computing task. The metrics are calculated through analysis of the resource computation, energy consumption, consequence of computation, and dimensional characteristics of a computing task. The metrics could be beneficial or other metrics that permit the user or a processing system to make scheduling and execution decisions. | 02-25-2010 |
| 20100054193 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING THE DELIVERY OF MESSAGES TO A MOBILE CLIENT - A method, system and computer usable-medium for prioritizing and controlling the delivery of messages to a mobile client capable of connecting to a network. Data can be collected utilizing an agent associated with a messaging application for the delivery of a message to the mobile client, wherein the data is indicative of one or more characteristics of a network to which the mobile client is currently connected, one or more characteristics of the message itself, and one or more characteristics of the mobile client. The data can be then analyzed, and thereafter a delivery decision is rendered with respect to the message, in response to analyzing such data in order to efficiently control the delivery of the message to the mobile client. | 03-04-2010 |
| 20100067718 | MODIFICATIONS OF AUDIO COMMUNICATIONS IN AN ONLINE ENVIRONMENT - A system and method to modify audio communications in an online environment and, in particular, to modifying audio communications using one or more parameters. The system includes a module configured to detect one or more parameters applicable to an incoming audio communication and a weighing engine configured to weigh the one or more parameters and obtain a weighted volume. The system further includes a module configured to transmit the weighted volume to a user participating in a virtual universe. The method determines whether one or more parameters apply to an incoming communication, weighs the incoming communication based on the one or more parameters to determine a weighted volume of the incoming communication, and transmits the incoming communication to a user at the weighted volume. | 03-18-2010 |
| 20100088291 | METHOD, SYSTEM AND COMPUTER-USABLE MEDIUM FOR EARLY NOTIFICATION OF A PENDING DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDER DELETION EVENT - A method, system and computer-usable medium for early notification of a pending deletion event by a digital playback device. Programs associated with the digital playback device can be scheduled for deletion in advance by a digital playback device interface manually and/or automatically. A deletion event can be notified through a remote delivery by analyzing scheduled recordings and hard drive space if the digital playback device recognizes a recording is close to the deletion event. The notification of the deletion event can be enabled by configuring a number of notification options maintained for each user profile by the digital playback device at a predefined time. The deletion event can be modified through the remote means, which allows a user to send information back to the digital playback device after a deletion notification is received. The deleted files can be moved to a deleted programs folder from which the program can be recovered and the recording can be irrevocably removed after a time period. | 04-08-2010 |
| 20100092160 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING MULTIPLE USER LOCKS AND DELETION REQUESTS FOR A DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDER - A method and system for managing multiple user locks and deletion requests on a digital video recorder (DVR) is disclosed. Files associated with the DVR can be protected from deletion by allowing users to lock a recorded file utilizing a number of locking strategies. The recorded file can also be locked by multiple users and the recording can be deleted when the users specifically remove the lock. A simpler interface for each user can be provided to prevent other users from deleting recorded files, which have not yet been viewed. Such an approach allows for an administrative override to prevent users from locking recordings and never unlocking in order to prevent the DVR exhausting disk space. | 04-15-2010 |
| 20100104005 | VIDEO SCENE MATCHING ON RETURN FROM VIRTUAL RENDERING IN A CONSUMER DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDING DEVICE - A method, system and computer program provide a mechanism for smoothing the transition back from a virtual (computer generated) scene to a related video stream. An event such as a user input or timeout is received triggering a return to display of the video stream from a virtual scene related to content of the video stream. A number of time points and/or camera angles are either presented to the user or are automatically searched for the best match. The list may be presented in order according to an automatically detected matching criteria. The virtual scene may a scene constructed locally within a computer or digital video recorder (DVR) and the matching performed locally based on angle and time information provided from a content provider such as a server, or the virtual scene generation and matching may be performed at a remote location such as the content server. | 04-29-2010 |
| 20100104258 | USER-SPECIFIED EVENT-BASED REMOTE TRIGGERING OF A CONSUMER DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDING DEVICE - A method, digital video recording (DVR) device/system and computer program provide a mechanism for recording video content associated with unpredictable events. A user specifies particular event classifications, keywords, or other control parameters from which the occurrence of an event can be determined, and when such event is detected, the DVR is triggered to record content from a specified channel/location. The events can be detected from feeds such as RSS feeds, websites, video content scans or other mechanisms. The event detection may be provided by a remote service that is accessible for user-configuration via a network, or the event detection may be performed in a DVR device or local computer system. | 04-29-2010 |
| 20100107171 | COMPUTING TASK CARBON OFFSETING - Methods, systems, services and program products are provided for implementing carbon offset computing. During performance of a specified computing task data concerning resource consumption regarding that specified computing task is gathered and stored. Upon completion of the specified computing task, the amount of carbon offset required to compensate for resource consumption associated with performance of the completed specified computing task is calculated based upon stored or known resource consumption data. The calculated amount of carbon offset information may be transmitted to a carbon offset function provider, and a carbon offset function provider implements the specified amount of carbon offset based upon the calculated amounts communicated for the completed specified computing task. | 04-29-2010 |
| 20100115282 | METHOD FOR WATERMARK HIDING IN DESIGNATED APPLICATIONS - A method, service, and product for hiding a watermark existing in a digital media within a software application, comprising creating a set pattern of pixels represented by coordinates which represent a red, a green, a blue, and an alpha level of color, where the set pattern of pixels covers a set of original pixels within the digital media. The method including determining whether the transparency level of color should be removed from the set pattern of pixels based on a known pixel transparency removal parameter; and modifying the set pattern of pixels to remove the transparency level of color coordinates, wherein an original pixel color can be seen because the set pattern of pixels are made transparent; or not modifying the set of pixels to remove the transparency level of color coordinates, wherein the original pixel color cannot be seen because the set of original pixels is made transparent. | 05-06-2010 |
| 20100146408 | SYSTEM AND METHOD TO MODIFY AUDIO COMPONENTS IN AN ONLINE ENVIRONMENT - A system and method to modify audio components in an online environment based on avatar characteristics and/or inventory items. The system includes a component to allow one or more audio modification algorithms to be selected. The system also includes a component to identify one or more avatar characteristics and a component to identify one or more avatar inventory items. The system further comprises a component to modify an audio communication in a virtual universe based on at least one of the one or more audio modification algorithms, the one or more avatar characteristics, and the one or more avatar inventory items. | 06-10-2010 |
| 20100161413 | VIRTUAL UNIVERSE EXCHANGES BASED ON REAL-WORLD TRANSACTIONS - An invention that establishes a virtual universe benefit based on a real-world transaction is provided. In one embodiment, there is a benefit establishing tool, including a linking component configured to link a user of a virtual universe with a business entity. The benefit establishing tool further includes a benefit component configured to establish a virtual universe benefit to the user based on a real-world transaction between the user and the business entity. | 06-24-2010 |
