Abstract: The exemplary embodiment of the present invention relates to the dynamic activation and deactivation of a spell check feature option for instant message chat session features within a virtual environment. As such, the spell check feature can be activated and deactivated within the virtual environment based upon the identity of an engaged party to chat session or the identities of other parties that are in proximity to the chat session parties within the virtual environment.

Abstract: Control of multiple display screens associated with a computer, wherein the auxiliary screen display content that depends on conditions of the computer. During some times the auxiliary screen displays content associated with the presently executing program, and during other times the auxiliary screen displays history information. The rules can be automatically changed or manually changed.

Abstract: Systems and methods are presented for utilizing multiple communication channels to determine whether a media device is nearby and whether the nearby media device is a media device associated with a user request. In some embodiments, user input devices may be equipped with IR and RF transceivers. IR signals may be used to determine whether the user input device is in the vicinity of a media device. When a user requests an application or screen sharing of a media device different from the local media device, the user input device may activate the RF transceiver to handle the communications with the other media device. In some embodiments, access to a media device may be prevented for one user when the media device is already providing access to a different user.

Abstract: A real time communication session can be defined in which more than two participants communicate with each other using at least two different types of bidirectional communication. In one embodiment, the different types of bidirectional communication can include audio and video. During communication session, demoting one of the participants can be demoted so that the demoted participant is still a participant of communication session but communicates using at least one less than the two different types. Responsive to the demoting, one of the participants can be promoted so that the promoted participant is permitted to participate in the communication session using at least two different types of bidirectional communication. The promoting would not be permitted due to a system constraint on the real time communication session in absence of the demoting.

Abstract: An audio/video communication system displays the status of participants in a video chat session. The system includes multiple video chat capable (VCC) information handling systems (IHSs) that display video images of the participants. In this manner, each user may see the user's own video image as well as the video images of other users in the video chat session. When a user speaks, that user's VCC IHS detects audio, thus designating a speaker participant. This user's VCC IHS includes a gaze direction detector that determines at which particular user video image the user gazes, thus determining a target participant. The VCC IHS sends speaker participant ID information and target participant ID information to other VCC IHSs in the video chat session. In response, the other VCC IHSs display an indicator that designates one user video image as the speaker participant and another user video image as the target participant.

Abstract: There is provided a program creation apparatus with improved operability in checking an operation of a created control program, including: a program generating section for acquiring a camera image from a camera based upon an image pick-up trigger signal, to extract a measurement result from the acquired camera image as a control program for the image processing controller; a simulation part for executing the control program; and a communication section for transferring the control program to the image processing controller, wherein the simulation part includes an offline simulation section for extracting a measurement result from a camera image previously held as a registration image, and an online simulation section for acquiring a camera image from the camera through the image processing controller when executing the control program, to extract the measurement result from the acquired camera image.

Abstract: An electronic device can include a display and a controller. The controller identifies a location within a displayable area of video frames which has movement, and controls panning/zooming of a sub-area within the video frames that is displayed on the display in response to the identified location of the movement. Some configurations of the controller detect movement of a person's mouth within the video frames while the person is speaking, identifies the associated location of the person speaking, identifies characteristics of voice in the video frames that is concurrently occurring with the detected movement of the person's mouth, and correlates the identified voice characteristics with the identified location of the person speaking.

Abstract: A communication server implements a method that minimizes bandwidth usage between a media device and the communication server in a communication system where separate session and floor control protocols are used. Where multiple clients have established separate sessions to access a media source at a media device and upon determining that the multiple clients are attempting to access the same media source, the communication server implements floor control logic to tie multiple floor arbiters together across the separate sessions to cause a single media stream to be sent from the media source and received at the communication server for distribution to the clients, thereby minimizing the bandwidth on the uplink between the media device and the communication server.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for dynamic field-level access control in shared documents. The method comprises: providing a field in a shared document, wherein the field is not owned by a user and can be edited by any user; and assigning sole ownership of the field to a user who first edits the field, wherein the owner of the field controls access to the field using at least one access control list.

Abstract: An approach is provided for performing collaborative graphical creation. It is determined that a plurality of modifications are made within a collaborative environment to an area of an image. The modifications are initiated by a plurality of members of a social network service. A conflict rule specified by the social network service is retrieved. One of the modifications is selected based on the conflict rule.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program for dynamically setting up collaborative associations between a group of users, computing resources, and/or communication devices, where the constituents of the collaborative association are chosen based on a variety of contextual criteria. The dynamic collaboration enabler component determines the explicit identities of the parties that should be a part of the collaboration. The group of individual entities involved in the collaboration can change dynamically during the lifetime of the collaboration, based on appropriate changes in the contextual data. Such contextual data refers to both state variables associated with the collaboration software or infrastructure itself, or to the state of entities external to the collaboration. The duration of the collaborative association is specified either explicitly or through a set of context related conditions.

Abstract: A computer-readable medium including instructions for performing a method for implementing a reusable template entity within a software system. The method includes retrieving a template entity from a repository in response to a request, wherein the template entity contains a plurality of elements related to a plurality of roles associated with the template entity and determining, based on metadata related to the at least one template entity and the request, a list of elements from the plurality of elements to undergo state modification. The method further includes adapting the template entity according to the list of elements to yield a projected entity and providing an instance of the projected entity.

Abstract: A method, system, and apparatus are provided for collaborating on an electronic document. According to the method, a data structure may be maintained at each of the computer systems participating in the collaborative session that represents the contents of a shared document. When user input is received at one of the computer systems modifying the document, the data structure is updated to reflect the modification. In response to the modification, the changes to the data structure are periodically identified and collected as a revision that identifies only the changes made to the data structure as a result of the edits made since the previous revision was taken. The revision is packaged and transmitted to each of the participants in the sharing session. The revisions are merged into the copy of the data structure stored at the participating computer systems.

Abstract: A call request message is sent from an access terminal to an application server in order to request initiation of a group communication session to a communication group and to request that an allocation of the floor to the given access terminal for the duration of the given group communication session remain uninterrupted by call targets of the session. The application server announces the session, and sends a floor-grant to the access terminal after the session is accepted by at least one target. The access terminal forwards media to the application server which is then forwarded to the at least one target. The floor is not transferred away from the access terminal during the session. For example, floor requests are suppressed at the at least one target, or floor requests are sent by the at least one target but are then ignored or denied by the application server.

Abstract: A system for interactively displaying and distributing information. The information may relate to consumer products, any type of article of commerce, marketing and advertising layouts, floor plans, planograms or any other type of information that is capable of being illustrated graphically. A consumer engages in an Interactive Information Session with an attendant, such a help desk attendant. During the Interactive Information Session, the attendant and consumer see synchronized displays of images or animations of the information, which may be manipulated by either one of them. The attendant and the user can communicate interactively by voice or text during at least part of the Interactive Information Session. In another embodiment, two or more users of a system according to the invention can collaboratively design a product, marketing or advertising layouts, planograms, floor plans or other graphical information in an Interactive Design Session.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products for tracking real-time communication data within a single contact tracking application for diverse communication providers and applications. A global data store is synchronized with real-time communication data, such as presence, status, unread messages, and unread notifications, from each application/provider. Real-time communication data for contacts dynamically determined to be recent contacts is retrieved from the data store, based on properties such as a most recent communication time, a communication count, and the like. Real-time communication data corresponding to contacts identified as pinned contacts for which display of real-time communication data is preferred, also may be retrieved. A user interface is generated for displaying the one or more recent and/or pinned contacts, which may vary in size based on the number of contacts identified as pinned contacts, from which a contact may be selected for real-time conversation or e-mail.

Abstract: A method and system for managing a remote control session (RCS) during which control of input mechanisms of authorized users for manipulating a shared computer screen is time-sliced among the authorized users. No more than one authorized user has control of the input mechanisms at each time during the RCS. Each authorized user is able to view the shared portion of the computer screen throughout the RCS and has been assigned a priority, a control time slice (CTS), and an inactivity threshold. Sole control of the input mechanisms is provided to a first authorized user who requested control of the input mechanisms. Sole control of the input mechanisms is transferred from the first authorized user to a second authorized user who requested control of the input mechanisms. The first and second authorized user are each scheduled to have sole control of the input mechanisms for a specified time duration.

Abstract: A method for handling a user request in a multi-user interactive input system comprises receiving a user request to perform an action from one user area defined on a display surface of the interactive input system and prompting for input from at least one other user via at least one other user area. In the event that input concurring with the user request is received from another user area, the action is performed.

Abstract: A novel application and user interface for facilitating group interactions over a network integrates messaging, file sharing, media playing, journaling, profiles, and gaming into a cohesive environment. The groups facilitated by the invention are persistent and mobile in that a user does not have to recollect and reconfigure the group each time he or she wants to interact with the group online and, while online, the group may be taken from one activity to another without having to disband and reconnect at the second activity. The application is modular so as to be extensible to include other activities and functionalities. In an embodiment, the group interaction application utilizes a peer-to-peer network environment to facilitate network communications between group members.

Abstract: A system and method for collaborative call management are disclosed. A particular method includes displaying a host graphical user interface (GUI) on a device associated with a call host of a collaborative call. The host GUI includes a listing of names of call participants of the collaborative call and one or more controls. The method also includes updating the host GUI after at least one other call participant indicates a desire to speak during the collaborative call by displaying an indicator next to the name of the at least one other call participant.

Abstract: A system for interactively displaying and distributing information. The information may relate to consumer products, any type of article of commerce, marketing and advertising layouts, floor plans, planograms or any other type of information that is capable of being illustrated graphically. A consumer engages in an Interactive Information Session with an attendant, such a help desk attendant. During the Interactive Information Session, the attendant and consumer see synchronized displays of images or animations of the information, which may be manipulated by either one of them. The attendant and the user can communicate interactively by voice or text during at least part of the Interactive Information Session. In another embodiment, two or more users of a system according to the invention can collaboratively design a product, marketing or advertising layouts, planograms, floor plans or other graphical information in an Interactive Design Session.

Abstract: A system and method for collaborative call management are disclosed. In one embodiment of a method incorporating teachings of the present disclosure, a graphical user interface (GUI) element may be presented in connection with a collaborative call. The GUI element may display a listing of call participants and a status of each participant. Example participant states may include an on-call state, an off-call state, a currently speaking state, a waiting to speak state, and a paused-call state. In operation, information presented in the GUI element may change in response to a status change of a call participant. The method may also involve recognizing that a caller has joined the collaborative call and updating the GUI element to add the joining caller to the list of participants.

Abstract: A messaging system is provided whereby a message indicative of an invitation to collaboratively execute an application can be sent from one of the computing object to an intermediary system whereby the message is multicast to the other ones of the plurality of computing objects. The invitation message can be accepted by the other computing objects to cause the first object to launch the corresponding application. The other computing objects also launch versions of the application and exchange addressing information with the first application so that a multiparty application execution can be established.

Abstract: A system that enables communication and collaboration among individuals using rich media environments. A system according to the present techniques includes a set of rich media environments each having a corresponding arrangement of sensing and rendering components for sensing of and rendering to a corresponding set of individuals. A system according to the present techniques includes an interest thread detector that uses the sensing and rendering components to detect formation of multiple communication interactions among the individuals and that creates an interest thread for each detected communication interaction and further includes a communication provider that for each interest thread captures a set of media data from a corresponding subset of the sensing components and that combines the captured media data in response to the activities of the corresponding individuals and that communicates the combined media data to a corresponding subset of the rendering components.

Abstract: An information equipment remote operating system includes an operated-side information equipment and an operating-side information equipment. The operated-side information equipment includes a view region storing unit for storing view information regarding a view region correlated with an window, a screen information processing unit for generating an image to be displayed on an operating-side display unit as an initial state based on the view information, a communication unit, and a control information processing unit for operating an application. The operating-side information equipment includes a communication unit, a view region storing unit for storing the view information, a screen information processing unit for displaying images on multiple display regions in high to low display priority order, and a control information processing unit for transmitting application operating information to the operated-side information equipment.

Abstract: A user interface (UI), which reflects exchanges in the past and the future between a user and entities. The UI includes a background having a user defined granularity, a plurality of dots, which each represent at least one collaborative exchange of a user and which are each arranged on the background, a graphic connection between any two or more dots which each represent exchanges between the user and similar entities, a first graphic which includes first level information, and a second graphic which includes second level information. For any set of one or more dots which each represent exchanges between the user and similar entities, the dot closest to or within the central area includes a graphical identifier that indicates whether the entity is currently available for a new exchange.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, determine whether a user at a first client has a chat session already active at a second client with a third client in response to a request for initiation of a chat session for the user at the first client. If the user does already have a chat session active, the third client is notified that the first client replaces the second client in the chat session. Then chat data from the second client is copied to the first client, and a disconnect message is sent to the second client from first client. In various embodiments, the determination may be made by sending a query to a plurality of clients connected via a network or by sending a query to a server that serves the first client, the second client, and the third client. The copied chat data, which may include messages sent between the second client and the third client, is presented at the first client.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for handling instant messages. In response to receiving an instant message, a determination is made as to whether a picture of a sender of the instant message is associated with the instant message, wherein the picture is located in a preexisting database of pictures. The picture with the message is displayed on a display in the data processing system, if the picture is associated with the message.

Abstract: The present invention provides a software system, PointRight, that allows for smooth and effortless control of pointing and input devices among multiple displays. With PointRight, a single free-floating mouse and keyboard can be used to control multiple screens. When the cursor reaches the edge of a screen it seamlessly moves to the adjacent screen and keyboard control is simultaneously redirected to the appropriate machine. Laptops may also redirect their keyboard and pointing device, and multiple pointers are supported simultaneously. The system automatically reconfigures itself as displays go on, go off, or change the machine they display.

Abstract: A user interface (UI), which reflects exchanges in the past and the future between a user and entities. The UI includes a background having a user defined granularity, a plurality of dots, which can represent at least one collaborative exchange of a user and which are each arranged on the background, a graphic connection between any two or more dots which each represent exchanges between the user and similar entities, a first graphic which includes first level information, and a second graphic which includes second level information. For any set of one or more dots which each represent exchanges between the user and similar entities, the dot closest to or within the central area includes a graphical identifier that indicates whether the entity is currently available for a new exchange.

Abstract: An interactive presentation environment for eMeetings or the like that provides participants with more control over what they see and hear. One embodiment of the interactive presentation environment comprises a meeting recorder adapted to create a recording of a live meeting and a navigation control for selecting a portion of the recording to view during the live meeting. Some embodiment may further comprise a timeline control containing a first graphical indicator associated with a live position and a second graphical indicator associated with a current position, a bookmark control adapted to mark a portion of the recording for archiving, and a display operatively connected to the meeting recorder and the navigation control.

Abstract: In a duplex chat conversational trading system, trader terminals monitor for new incoming messages from the time a trader starts to input a new message to the time it is sent. If an incoming message is detected, sending of the message is inhibited and the trader is alerted to the new incoming message whereupon he can confirm his message, modify it or resend it. Messages are exchanged via a chat server which assigns a unique reference number to each message. Where a message received at the server is sent in reply to an earlier message it carries the reference of the earlier message. The server compares this reference to the most recent reference it has logged and notifies the parties of a crossover if the references are not the same.

Abstract: A workflow, enterprise, and mail-enabled application server and platform supports distributed computing and remote execution of web applications. Lotus Domino online services (DOLS) is used by a web site administrator to configure Internet Notes (iNotes) clients to auto download from server, thus providing iNotes clients with web access using HTTP with various browsers, and with local processing and replication. A local run time model comprises a hierarchy of models including object data store model, security model, indexing model, replication model, agent workflow model and mail model. DOLS provides a layered security model that allows flexibility for controlling access to all or part of an application. The highest level of security is managed through a database access control list (ACL). Further refinements within the security model provide access to specific documents, and their views, forms or folders, and include read access lists, write access lists, form access lists and readers and authors fields.

Abstract: A system for knowledge transfer in a group setting comprises a plurality of participant work areas and a moderator work area. Each of the plurality of participant work areas has at least one corresponding participant input-device, and each of the participant input-devices is adapted to define participant images that are then included on the corresponding participant work area. The moderator work area comprises at least one moderator input-device. The at least one moderator input-device is adapted to define moderator images that are then included on the moderator work area and to select moderator images that are then simultaneously included on each of plurality of participant work areas. The moderator input-device is further adapted to select participant images from any of the plurality of participant work areas that are then included on the moderator work area.

Abstract: A system and method for conducting market research studies on online content utilizing moderator and respondent computers connected over a network. A moderator at the moderator computer directs a plurality of respondents at the respondent computers to view preselected subject matter displayed on the respondent computers and collects comments and reactions on the subject matter from the respondents in a database for later review and for benchmarking. Software resident in the respondent computers enables the respondents to view a plurality of screens showing different aspects of the online content and, in a preferred embodiment, provides buttons that can be activated by the respondents to indicate a reaction to the content. In addition, the preferred embodiment enables the respondents to provide text comments to the content.

Abstract: A method of decoding using a log posterior probability ratio L(uk), which is a function of forward variable ? (.) and backward variable ? (.). The method comprises dividing the forward variable ? (.) and the backward variable ? (.) into, for example, two segments p and q, where p plus q equal the length of the code word U. The forward segments ? (.) are parallel calculated, and the backward segments ? (.) are parallel calculated. The ratio L(uk) is calculated using the parallel calculated segments of ? (.) and ? (.).

Abstract: In a method for deinterleaving a data signal interleaved in blocks in accordance with a prescribed interleaving specification, deinterleaving target addresses are calculated for a first prescribed segment of the data symbols to be deinterleaved, and are stored in a target address memory. The relevant segment of the data symbols is then deinterleaved by using the calculated target addresses. Subsequently, these two steps are repeated until the entire data block has been segmentally deinterleaved.

Abstract: A method is provided to represent a product development to a plurality of users. The product development comprises a collection of heterogeneous product development data elements manipulable by a plurality of heterogeneous application processes. A rendered three-dimensional virtual room is displayed to the user. The virtual room includes a plurality of walls. The displaying step includes displaying iconic images on the walls. The iconic images correspond to at least some of the product development elements with the visual organization of the displayed iconic images corresponding to a desired visual organization of the product development. Selection input is accepted from the users to select the iconic images and an indication of the input is provided to appropriate ones of the application processes to access and manipulate the product development elements to which the iconic images correspond.

Abstract: The terminal operation apparatus of the present invention is used for an electronic conference and the like, in which an operated terminal having a shared screen is remotely operated through a network, the amount of information flowing through the network is adjusted, and continuity of an operation between the operated terminal and the operating terminal is kept, whereby operability is enhanced. Timers 72 and 73 or a point information detection counter 74 are used to transmit detailed point information with a decreased thinning ratio to the operated terminal for a predetermined period of time after the point information is inputted. A thinning ratio is set in accordance with a pointer movement speed and priorities (the order of connection, a CPU use ratio, whether or not an operation authority is obtained, etc.) among operators.