Abstract: Traditional home-automation systems utilize a single hub for controlling secondary devices within a home. The techniques described herein, meanwhile, utilize multiple hubs within the environment and/or located remotely from the environment. For instance, an environment may include multiple electronic devices, each configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. In addition, a remote service may be configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. As such, each controlling device stores and executes an instance of a control engine, rather than relying on a single instance of a control engine located at a single controlling hub.

Abstract: Systems and methods for device time synchronization by networking devices are disclosed. For example, a networking device may be configured to perform one or more operations to synchronize time as between the networking device and one or more computing devices in an environment. The networking device may be selected from multiple networking devices to be the time master based on one or more factors and/or operations, such as the number of devices in communication with the networking devices, the device types of those devices, device-communication amounts, communication abilities of the devices, and/or which networking device has a wired connection to a modem, for example.

Abstract: Traditional home-automation systems utilize a single hub for controlling secondary devices within a home. The techniques described herein, meanwhile, utilize multiple hubs within the environment and/or located remotely from the environment. For instance, an environment may include multiple electronic devices, each configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. In addition, a remote service may be configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. As such, each controlling device stores and executes an instance of a control engine, rather than relying on a single instance of a control engine located at a single controlling hub.

Abstract: Described herein are techniques for rendering additional keys on a display of an electronic device based on one or more characteristics of a user's selection of another key. After rendering the additional keys, the user may thereafter select one of the additional keys now available and rendered on the display.

Abstract: Traditional home-automation systems utilize a single hub for controlling secondary devices within a home. The techniques described herein, meanwhile, utilize multiple hubs within the environment and/or located remotely from the environment. For instance, an environment may include multiple electronic devices, each configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. In addition, a remote service may be configured to control one or more secondary devices within the environment. As such, each controlling device stores and executes an instance of a control engine, rather than relying on a single instance of a control engine located at a single controlling hub.

Abstract: Techniques are described for updating applications installed on devices. The applications may include native applications having a web view component to handle interpreted language instructions. The applications may also include web applications executable within a browser. A message may be sent to a computing device, the message including update information specifying one or more updates to the state or the features of an application. The update information may be described using interpreted language instructions. To handle the updates to an application in instances when the application is inactive, a stand-alone interpreter engine may be employed instead of the web view component or instead of the interpreter engine included in a browser. Use of the stand-alone interpreter engine may mitigate possible performance effects or intrusive user interface elements from launching the web view component or the browser-based interpreter engine to perform update operations.

Abstract: Some examples determine when to accumulate updates to a display device. In some implementations, a display manager may determine that a graphical user interface element, such as a user interface window, has opened or closed. The display manager may accumulate updates to a display device for a period of time or until a predetermined number of the updates have been received. After the period of time has elapsed or after the predetermined number of the updates have been received, the display manager may send a single update to the display device. The single update may include or may be equivalent to the one or more updates.

Abstract: Described herein are techniques for rendering additional keys on a display of an electronic device based on one or more characteristics of a user's selection of another key. After rendering the additional keys, the user may thereafter select one of the additional keys now available and rendered on the display.