Abstract: Technology related to an activity feed service is disclosed. In one example of the disclosed technology, a method can include receiving updates to activity streams, where a respective activity stream indicates an engagement of a respective user with applications executing on a respective client device connected to a network. The different activity streams associated with a particular user can be merged to generate a merged activity stream associated with the particular user. The different received activity streams can correspond to different respective client devices. The merged activity stream associated with the particular user can be transmitted over the network.

Abstract: Technology related to determining a user engagement with software programs is disclosed. In one example of the disclosed technology, a method can include receiving a plurality of signals indicating states of the computer and a software application executing on the computer. The method can include combining the signals to determine a user engagement with the software application. The method can include storing a user engagement log based on the determined user engagement with the software application.

Abstract: Techniques are described for creating and modifying task records and for controlling information displayed to a user in corresponding task representations. The task records are associated with more or more user activities, where each activity is associated with a record having an identifier for the activity, an application identifier that indicates a software application associated with the activity, and a content identifier identifying content associated with the software application and the activity. The activity records can include activation information. A user can select a task representation and resume one or more activities associated with the task. Tasks records can be shared between different computer devices of the user, and with different users. Task and activity records can be associated with navigational mnemonics. Representations of task and activity records can be displayed proximate representations of associated navigational mnemonics to help a user locate tasks and activities of interest.

Abstract: Techniques are described for obtaining user activity information and navigational mnemonic information. The activity information and navigational mnemonic information can be used to control information presented in displays in a manner that can assist a user in locating an activity using displayed navigational mnemonics. User activity information can include an application identifier and a content identifier. Navigational mnemonic information can include a resource identifier and a relevance identifier. A user can search for activities based on a relationship between a navigational mnemonic and an activity, such as a temporal relationship. Applications can register both activity information and navigational mnemonic information through an interface, and a navigational mnemonic feed service can provide navigation mnemonics that are not directly related to user activity on user computer devices.

Abstract: Techniques are described for obtaining and displaying user activity information. For example, user activity information can include an application identifier, a content identifier, and a relevance identifier. A summary display is rendered for display that presents user activity information for user activities meeting relevance criteria. A user can select to view an activity details view, presenting information regarding all of their activity over a time period. A user can search for activities meeting particular criteria, and can view past activities along with applications currently being executed by the user.

Abstract: Storage virtualization techniques allow files and directories to be stored remotely, for example, by a cloud storage provider, but in a manner that appears to a user or application running on a local computing device as if the files are stored locally—even though the data of those files and directories may not be resident on the local computing device. That is, the contents of files and directories that may exist in the cloud look and behave as if they were stored locally on a computing device. The level of hydration of placeholders may be monitored and operations may be performed to reduce the impact of excessive hydration on the resources of the computing device.

Abstract: Methods and systems for creating and rendering skins are described. In one described embodiment skins can be defined as sets of script files, art files, media files, and text files. These files can be used to create new and different skin appearances, layouts and functionalities. The files are organized for use using a hierarchical tag-based data structure, an example of which is an XML data structure. The data structure is processed to provide an object model. The object model can be a scriptable object model that enables script to execute to provide an interactive, dynamic skin that can respond to internal and external events. In one embodiment, a computer architecture used for rendering the skin includes a layout manager that processes an intermediate representation of the XML data structure to provide the scriptable object model. Various components of the scriptable object model can include a script engine for receiving and executing script, and one or more rendering elements.

Abstract: A synchronization engine detects a notification of a change to a file. It determines whether an application associated with the file has indicated that the file is to be synchronized by the application. If so, the changes to the file are synchronized between a cloud-based storage system and a local disk by the application. Collaborative metadata, associated with the synchronized file, is updated to indicate a state of a copy of the file on the local disk and a copy of the file in the cloud-based storage system. The collaborative metadata is stored by the synchronization engine.

Abstract: Methods and systems provide a tool for prioritizing the ordering of outstanding indexing work in order to bring a particular portion of an indexing source up to date quickly and to reduce the likelihood of inconsistencies between an index-backed view and a direct view of a source. In accordance with the described embodiments, indexing of items can be prioritized based upon a user's view or metadata contained within a query. Further, in at least some embodiments, the tool can decide the order to index items based upon multiple prioritization requests.

Abstract: Methods and systems provide a tool for prioritizing the ordering of outstanding indexing work in order to bring a particular portion of an indexing source up to date quickly and to reduce the likelihood of inconsistencies between an index-backed view and a direct view of a source. In accordance with the described embodiments, indexing of items can be prioritized based upon a user's view or metadata contained within a query. Further, in at least some embodiments, the tool can decide the order to index items based upon multiple prioritization requests.

Abstract: Methods and systems provide a tool for prioritizing the ordering of outstanding indexing work in order to bring a particular portion of an indexing source up to date quickly and to reduce the likelihood of inconsistencies between an index-backed view and a direct view of a source. In accordance with the described embodiments, indexing of items can be prioritized based upon a user's view or metadata contained within a query. Further, in at least some embodiments, the tool can decide the order to index items based upon multiple prioritization requests.

Abstract: A method for managing a group of owned and for-purchase media items in response to a single user action. The method treats the owned media items and the for-purchase media items similarly with respect to the user's interaction with them, facilitating a user paradigm-shift from thinking about two stores of media items to a single store of media items available for use. A media item grouping generic to both types of media items is provided, permitting sharing of media item collections between users having different access rights with respect to the media items.

Abstract: A media timeline is described. In an implementation, a method includes receiving a request from an application at an application programming interface (API) to interact with a plurality of media. Based on the request, a media timeline is generated. The media timeline is for exposure via the API to the application and includes a plurality of nodes. The media timeline defines a presentation of a first media referenced by a first node with respect to a second media referenced by a second node.

Abstract: Integrated management of local and remote media files. A playlist of media files adapted for rendering by a media player application are located in either a local media library stored at the computer or a remote media library accessible by the computer via a data communication network or both. Media player operations may be performed on the playlist. A first identifier identifies each of the media files in the playlist and a second identifier represents a source of each of the media files in the playlist. A streaming locator defined by the first and second identifiers locates each of the media files in the playlist in the local media library and then in the remote library.

Abstract: A method for generating a subgroup of one or more media items from a library of media items. The method monitors user playback control actions during a playback experience with the library on a media player. The method chooses a selecting filter based upon the monitored user playback control action and generates a subgroup of media items selected from the library of media items by applying the selecting filter to the library of media items. The method may further order the subgroup of media items. A system also generates a subgroup of one or more media items from a library of media items. The system comprises a processor for monitoring a user playback control action during a playback experience with the library, a selecting filter adapted to generate a subgroup of media items from the library of media items, and a user interface adapted for presenting the user with the subgroup of media items for playing on a media player.

Abstract: Methods and systems provide a tool for prioritizing the ordering of outstanding indexing work in order to bring a particular portion of an indexing source up to date quickly and to reduce the likelihood of inconsistencies between an index-backed view and a direct view of a source. In accordance with the described embodiments, indexing of items can be prioritized based upon a user's view or metadata contained within a query. Further, in at least some embodiments, the tool can decide the order to index items based upon multiple prioritization requests.

Abstract: A media player monitors user playback control actions, such as skip commands, during a playback experience associated with a playlist. Based on these actions, the media player sets one or more media files to an inactive state. The media player defines a subgroup, or modified playlist excluding the inactive media files for further processing.

Abstract: Automatic rules-based synchronization of digital files on a source device and a target device coupled to it. A source computer executes a synchronization engine for managing transfer of files from a source database to a target device coupled to the computer as a function of a defined storage capacity of the device. The synchronization engine is configured to receive user-defined rules for selecting which of the files are to be transferred to the device and assigning priorities to the files. The synchronization engine builds a designated list of the files to be transferred according to the priorities defined by the rules.

Abstract: Generating a difference (DIFF) file for catalog files. A second catalog file is compared with a first catalog file to identify at least a modified portion in the second catalog file. The modified portion indicates a difference between the content of the first catalog file and the second catalog file. A location of the modified portion is identified in the content of the second catalog file. A reference marker is assigned to the identified location with respect to the second catalog file. The DIFF file is generated indicating the modified portion and indicating the reference marker.

Abstract: Methods and systems provide a tool for assisting media players in rendering visualizations and synchronizing those visualizations with audio samples. In one embodiment, visualizations are synchronized with an audio stream using a technique that builds and maintains various data structures. Each data structure can maintain data that is associated with a particular pre-processed audio sample. The maintained data can include a timestamp that is associated with a time when the audio sample is to be rendered. The maintained data can also include various characteristic data that is associated with the audio stream. When a particular audio sample is being rendered, its timestamp is used to locate a data structure having characteristic data. The characteristic data is then used in a visualization rendering process to render a visualization.