Abstract: A method and apparatus for intelligently routing and managing audio signals within an electronic device is disclosed. The routing is responsive to a set of logical and physical policies which are stored in data tables which can be updated as needed.

Abstract: An apparatus and method as described for constructing a repair path for use in the event of failure of an inter-routing domain connection between respective components in first and second routing domains of a data communications network. The apparatus is arranged to assign a propagatable repair address for use in the event of failure of the inter-routing domain connection and to propagate the repair address via data communications network components other than the inter-routing domain connection.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for implementing the WS-DeviceProfile standard as a multi-threaded process (“DFM”) executing on a multi-function peripheral (“MFP”). The DFM takes care of the discovery of devices and services on a network. The DFM also acts as a facility manager. The DFM implements various web services in a single component that applications can re-use. The DFM insulates these applications from some of the more complex details of the web services that the DFM implements. The MFP may comprise several different applications, each with a different specialized function. Each of these applications uses the web services provided by the DFM. The multi-threaded nature of the DFM permits new services to be added to the MFP dynamically. The threads can handle separate tasks concurrently. For example, one thread can handle communications with processes outside the MFP, while another thread can simultaneously handle communications with processes and applications inside the MFP.

Abstract: Keyword based audio data comparison. A method comprises extracting at least one feature from audio content of an audio data set to form feature arrays. The feature arrays may comprise a pitch array and a rhythm array. A set of keywords is formed for each feature array by performing the following for each feature array. Keywords are formed from overlapping sequences of values in the feature array, wherein each successive keyword comprises at least one value of a previous keyword and further comprises at least one value from the feature array that is not in the previous keyword. Another aspect audio is keyword-based audio data searching. Search keywords are formed from audio content. An index comprising sets of keywords formed from audio content of respective ones of audio data sets is searched using the search keywords formed from audio content of the specified audio data to identify audio data having similar audio content.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for computing efficiency score of a page is provided and using the efficiency score to optimize page design. Eye tracking study is performed on a group of subjects where eye fixation data, gaze plot data, and qualitative information data are collected. Fixation information data for page is aggregated over the subjects in the study. The fixation information data is divided into a grid. Number of fixations is computed for every grid element. Seen and noticed thresholds are established for every grid element. Seen and noticed area of a page is computed by counting number of grid elements falling into either threshold. Ratio of area noticed over area seen is computed to yield efficiency score. Page fixation data are compared for alternate page designs. Areas of large difference are correlated with gaze plots and qualitative data to identify distinguishing features.

Abstract: A multimedia visual progress indication system that provides a cache bar that is overlaid onto the program material or displayed on a dedicated display. A cache bar indicates the length of a recording session or the length of stored program material and expands to the right when material is being recorded. Index and/or bookmark indicators are displayed next to the cache bar. A position indicator moves within the cache bar and tells the user visually where his current position is within the program material. Numeric time or counter mark of the current position is displayed in the vicinity of the cache bar. The trick play bar and its associated components are displayed for a predetermined time period.

Abstract: A statement is provided having a clause that can specify an aggregate function that is performed on a set of data. The statement may alter the data in the data set by deleting or updating the data. The clause may be a returning clause that accepts one or more aggregate functions for its arguments, operates on the set of data, and returns the result of the aggregate function without returning the entire set of data. Alternatively, a statement is provided for changing multiple sets of data without the need to place the multiple sets in a single array.

Abstract: An approach is provided for printing policy-enabled electronic documents using locked printing. A client device includes a user interface, an application program and a print driver. The application program allows a user to generate an electronic document. The print driver corresponds to a particular printing device and is configured to cause a graphical user interface to be displayed on the user interface. The graphical user interface allows a user to specify one or more access policies to be applied to the electronic document. The print driver is configured to generate print data that includes a plurality of print commands which, when processed by the particular printing device, cause a printed version of the electronic document to be generated at the printing device. The print data includes data that indicates the one or more attributes of the one or more access policies that are to be applied to the electronic document.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for synchronizing a database related to a first node in a network with multiple nodes. Each node includes a database different from a database on a different node. An inquiry control message is sent to each node in a candidate set of one or more nodes on the network, which are different from the first node. In response to the inquiry control message, the first node receives a first set of one or more messages from a particular node different from the first node. The first set indicates a portion from the database of the particular node. The portion is relevant for the first node. A particular portion of a first database for the first node is derived from the first set of messages. The particular portion is less than all of the first database. These techniques allow the first node to derive its full database from multiple adjacent nodes.

Abstract: A method for achieving uninterrupted interactivity for user watching a video yet clicking on an advertisement is provided. A method for delayed interactivity is provided herein. Delayed interactivity is implemented in the form of delayed insertions. When a user clicks on an object in hypervideo, presentation of or any action on the related information is deferred rather than played immediately. Delayed interactivity also is implemented in the form of video bookmarks. When a user clicks on an actual advertisement, related information is stored, i.e., bookmarked, along with video content. In this way, the user can pursue the related information at a later time and at the user's convenience.

Abstract: Systems and methods, including user interfaces, are provided for implementing searches using contextual information associated with a Web page (or other document) that a user is viewing when a query is entered. The page includes a contextual search interface that has an associated context vector representing content of the page. When the user submits a search query via the contextual search interface, the query and the context vector are both provided to the query processor and used in responding to the query.

Abstract: Processes in a cluster maintain a historical record of problem events as those events occur in the cluster. The record may describe (a) attributes of each event and (b) the resolution action that was performed to resolve each event. Whenever a new event occurs, a process determines whether any entries in the record reflect occurrences of an event with attributes like those of the new event. If a “matching” entry exists, then the process increments that entry's counter. If the historical record indicates that similar events have previously occurred more than a specified number of times, then the process may select and perform a resolution action that differs from the resolution action that is indicated in the entry. Additionally, patterns in the attributes of a recurring problem may be used to predict when the problem is likely to recur. Preventative actions may be taken to avoid recurrence of the problem.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for improving efficiency of database systems, and in particular, to refreshing materialized views maintained by database systems and rewriting queries to access the materialized views. According to the approaches, a ranked materialized view is incrementally refreshed, and during the incremental refresh operation, rows in the partitions of the materialized view are ranked within the partitions.

Abstract: An approach for managing mobile agents in a network generally involves configuring a mobile agent in a secure manner such that the mobile agent will automatically terminate itself if the mobile agent cannot communicate with a specified entity before moving or the mobile agent cannot successfully communicate with a specified entity within a specified period of time. According to another embodiment, if a management process cannot communicate with a mobile agent within a specified period of time, then the management process attempts to cause the termination of the mobile agent. The management process may contact another management process that has the ability to terminate the mobile agent and request that other management process to cause the termination of the mobile agent. According to another embodiment, the management process may cause the creation and dispatch of a “hunter-killer” mobile agent configured to locate and cause the termination of other mobile agents.

Abstract: Techniques are described herein for automatically generating multiple interrelated database tables to store XML data, while ensuring that each such table has no more than the maximum DBMS-allowed number of columns. In response to the registration of an XML schema with a database server, the server determines whether any of the elements specified in the XML schema are complex elements that have more than a threshold number of descendant elements. If a complex element has more than the threshold number of descendant elements, then the server automatically generates one or more separate “out-of-line” database tables for storing at least some of those descendant elements, so that the table created to store the complex element will have no more than the permitted number of columns. Each of the out-of-line database tables is similarly generated so as to have no more than the permitted number of columns.

Abstract: A data processing apparatus, comprising a metadata store storing information about files that are stored in a distributed data storage system, and comprising a class database; one or more processing units; logic configured for receiving and storing in the class database a definition of a class of data storage servers comprising one or more subclasses each comprising one or more server selection criteria; associating the class with one or more directories of the data storage system; in response to a data client storing a data file in a directory, binding the class to the data file, determining and storing a set of identifiers of one or more data storage servers in the system that match the server selection criteria, and providing the set of identifiers to the data client.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for authorizing a user is provided. A requestor submits a request for challenge data to a device. The device generates the challenge data and provides the challenge data to the requestor. The requestor obtains response data that is responsive to the challenge data. The requestor may obtain the response data by providing, to a third party, the challenge data and identification information for the requestor. Upon the third party successfully validating the identity of the requestor, the third party provides the response data to the requestor. The requestor thereafter submits the response data to the device. In response to receiving the response data from the requestor, the device verifies the response data. Upon the device successfully verifying the response data, the device grants access to the requestor.

Abstract: Transactional application processing in a distributed environment using an application-aware network infrastructure element is described. In an embodiment, an apparatus comprises a plurality of network interfaces, forwarding logic, and transaction manager logic. The plurality of network interfaces are operable to communicatively connect to one or more packet-switched networks. The forwarding logic is coupled to the plurality of network interfaces and, when executed, is operable to receive packet flows therefrom and to forward the packet flows thereto. The transaction manager logic is encoded in one or more tangible media for execution and when executed is operable to: receive first information that specifies one or more remote resources associated with an extended transaction, where the extended transaction comprises a plurality of child transactions; and reserve the one or more remote resources by sending out one or more reservation requests over a network management protocol.

Abstract: Techniques described herein perform an index backbone join of data that is contained within two or more tables. Significantly, key data are selected from the indices constructed on the tables, and such data are filtered by the query-indicated criteria, before any data is selected from the tables themselves. Row identifiers of the rows remaining after the index filtering has been performed are then used to select the qualifying rows (only) from the tables. Data selected from the tables is joined to produce query results. Because all of the filtering is performed based on index entries prior to any table access, and because index access is typically much faster than table access, queries whose results require very large quantities of data from multiple tables can be performed much more quickly.

Abstract: A motion picture soundtrack reproduction system has a center front soundtrack channel and a plurality of other soundtrack channels. A volume control adjusts the gain of all the channels. The volume control has a range of settings from a minimum to a maximum, the gain of the center front channel having substantially a first relationship to the volume control settings and the gain of the other channels having substantially a second relationship to the volume control settings, the relationships being such that for a range of volume control settings less than a first setting the gain of the center front channel remains substantially constant while the gain of the other channels decreases as the setting decreases or decreases more gradually than the gain of the other channels as the setting decreases.