Abstract: Methods and apparatuses for maintaining customization information for an electronic device in an operating system independent component that may be accessed prior to completion of a boot up process to be used to provide customized functionality of the electronic device.

Abstract: Apparatus and systems, as well as methods and articles, may operate to receive status from an operating system (OS)-independent module capable of providing OS-independent geolocation information associated with a device to a network at some time before executing an operating system.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for on-demand CPU licensing. An embodiment of a processor license system includes an agent to determine that a computer processing element in a computer system is faulty or unreliable. The system further includes an activation license manager. The activation license manager provides automatic activation of a spare computer processing element for the computer system upon a determination by the agent that the computer processing element is faulty or unreliable.

Abstract: An embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus, comprising a wireless device capable of integrating a cellular phone stack in an extended firmware interface (EFI) layer, wherein the cellular phone stack within the EFI layer may include TDMA or CDMA-based technology. An embodiment of the present invention may further provide at least one agent running under an OS/EFI continuously monitoring said wireless device status, OS availability and remaining power and wherein anytime events occur where said OS is unavailable, missing, infected, corrupted or when the remaining power is less than threshold, the wireless device may switch itself to the low power secure EFI mode where it may continue to use basic cell phone services and applications seamlessly.

Abstract: Methods and apparatuses for maintaining customization information for an electronic device in an operating system independent component that may be accessed prior to completion of a boot up process to be used to provide customized functionality of the electronic device.

Abstract: Apparatus and systems, as well as methods and articles, may operate to receive status from an operating system (OS)-independent module capable of providing OS-independent geolocation information associated with a device to a network at some time before executing an operating system.

Abstract: Telescopes may be accessible and may be controlled by users around the world. Those users may communicate with network stations over a peer-to-peer network. The network station, in turn, may communicate with the telescope over a wireless interface. In this way, remote control over the telescope may be achieved by a variety of users around the world.

Abstract: A master controller for managing items tagged with radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags includes a transceiver to transmit interrogation signals to the RFID tags and to receive response signals from the RFID tags. The master controller may also include a processor to determine the proximity of tagged items based on signal levels of the response signals, and to notify a user when certain ones of the tagged items are in a predetermine relation to a proximity threshold.

Abstract: Apparatus and systems, as well as methods and articles, may operate to provide operating system-independent geolocation information.