Abstract: Various embodiments enable a user to navigate within an application where features of the navigation vary depending on a context of the user or particular features of the application. For example, a user could request directions, in a turn-by-turn mode of the computing device, to a destination. Accordingly, mapping information for a region and a route to the destination through the region can be displayed. Along with the mapping information, a navigation element can be displayed that enables the user to navigate through the mapping information. In one example, the navigation element is displayed off-center from the mapping information such that it does not obscure the mapping information while the user provides touch inputs to navigate within the same.

Abstract: A merchant system is disclosed that can provide multiple online marketplaces that utilize marketplace product catalog layering. Product catalogs associated with each marketplace may be defined and layered such that products sold by one marketplace may be displayed on and purchased by way of another marketplace. The merchant system might also provide a unified electronic shopping cart for storing purchases made at multiple marketplaces, a unified checkout user interface for completing the purchase of items from multiple marketplaces, and a unified order management user interface for managing purchases made from multiple marketplaces.

Abstract: Systems and methods for implementing location-based security protocols for information and/or data files are disclosed. The location-based security protocols may be enforced by an organization to protect and/or provide additional levels of security for information and/or data files associated with the organization and stored and/or used by agents of the organization on their user devices, such as personal user devices. Location-based security protocols may be applied to data file functions that include generating, receiving, transmitting, sharing, backing-up, or rendering a data file. Data files that are to adhere to one or more location-based security protocols may be tagged, such as in metadata associated with the data file to indicate that it is subject to adherence to the one or more location-based security protocols.

Abstract: A voice interaction architecture that compiles multiple audio signals captured at different locations within an environment, determines a time offset between a primary audio signal and other captured audio signals and identifies differences between the primary signal and the other signal(s). Thereafter, the architecture may provide the primary audio signal, an indication of the determined time offset(s) and the identified differences to remote computing resources for further processing. For instance, the architecture may send this information to a network-accessible distributed computing platform that performs beamforming and/or automatic speech recognition (ASR) on the received audio. The distributed computing platform may in turn determine a response to provide based upon the beamforming and/or ASR.

Abstract: A method for assisting in the recovery of a lost electronic device is described. When an electronic device determines that it is at rest, it automatically captures an image using a built-in camera and transmits the image to a server. A user, having lost the electronic device, may access the image via a web interface to determine the location of the electronic device.

Abstract: Techniques for optimizing data storage are disclosed herein. In particular, methods and systems for implementing redundancy encoding schemes with data storage systems are described. The redundancy encoding schemes may be scheduled according to system and data characteristics. The schemes may span multiple tiers or layers of a storage system. The schemes may be generated, for example, in accordance with a transaction rate requirement, a data durability requirement or in the context of the age of the stored data. The schemes may be designed to rectify entropy-related effects upon data storage. The schemes may include one or more erasure codes or erasure coding schemes. Additionally, methods and systems for improving and/or accounting for failure correlation of various components of the storage system, including that of storage devices such as hard disk drives, are described.

Abstract: A method for detecting and correcting skew in scanned vertical text includes identifying an image of vertically oriented characters, and identifying a plurality of vertical lines corresponding to character positions of the vertically oriented characters in the image. The method further includes generating an average slope of a subset of the plurality of lines, and causing the image to be deskewed based on the average slope.

Abstract: A single dual-sided image sensor simultaneously captures discrete images from two different perspectives using both a front-side and a back-side of the image sensor. The two different perspectives are extracted from a composite image for processing. The two cameras, as configured in a device, face in a same direction and are spatially offset.

Abstract: Disclosed are various embodiments for reducing input processing latency for remotely executed applications. An application is executed in a hosted environment, and a video signal generated by the application is encoded into a media stream. The media stream is sent to a client by way of a network. Unprocessed user input data for the application is obtained from the client computing device by way of the network. The unprocessed user input data is processed at a first processing rate that is above a second processing rate associated with a normal processing of the unprocessed user input data in the client.

Abstract: Various embodiments of a system and method for assignment and switching of content sources for a streaming content session are described. Embodiments may include the generation and use of content source rankings for improving playback quality of content streams. In embodiments, a merchant system may collect and aggregate multiple quality metrics for different content streams that various content sources provide to various clients. The merchant system may utilize the quality metrics to generate rankings of content sources for clients. The merchant system may provide such rankings to clients to improve the content stream playback experience on the client. For instance, at content acquisition time, a client may request a content stream from a content resource ranked highest on a content source ranking provided by the merchant. If the content stream degrades, the client may source subsequent portions of the content stream from another highly ranked content source of the ranking.

Abstract: Techniques for driving higher quality of code may be provided. For example, code may be received for hosting on a computing resource. A computing service may be implemented to analyze the code prior to the hosting. The analysis may include assessing components of the code against criteria associated with code performance. Based on the analysis, the computing service may determine a quality of the code, provide recommended changes to the code that may improve the quality, and identify a proper computing resource for hosting the code at the quality.

Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed which facilitate the management of host computing devices through the utilization of a host computing device control component. The host computing device control component includes a state monitoring component that monitors operating states of the control component and a group of associated host computing devices. Based on a determination of a power event, the state monitoring component causes the initiation of a reboot of the grouping of host computing devices based on exchange priority information and additional reboot parameters.

Abstract: Disclosed are various embodiments for presenting a timeline interface in association with video content features. A video content feature may be rendered on a display. A current scene in the video content feature is determined. A user interface is rendered on the display, where the user interface includes a timeline component. The timeline component represents the video content feature and visually segments the video content feature into scenes. The current scene may be visually indicated on the timeline component.

Abstract: An electrowetting element comprising: a first fluid and a second fluid immiscible with the first fluid; and a surface. The first and second fluids are switchable to a first configuration by application of a voltage, the first fluid adjoining a first area of the surface and the second fluid adjoining a second area of the surface in the first configuration. The electrowetting element includes at least one reconfiguration reducer for reducing a reconfiguration of the first and second fluids from the first configuration to a second configuration. The second configuration has the first fluid adjoining the second area and the second fluid adjoining the first area, there being a tendency for said reconfiguration to occur when maintaining said applied voltage.

Abstract: An inventory system has mobile drive units that freely and independently move about a facility to transport inventory holders. The mobile drive units may operate through communications with other drive units, or under a more centralized control of a management module. For various operating scenarios, the mobile drive units are directed to shuffle the inventory holders in a manner that minimizes travel of the mobile drive units, thereby improving overall system efficiency. One or more single mobile drive units may be used to transport inventory holders to and from a region, and one or more other mobile drive units may be used to reposition or slide each of the inventory holders back and forth within the region to efficiently place inventory holders before an operator on an as-needed basis.

Abstract: Methods and systems for deploying software packages are provided. In an example, a deployment service allows users to deploy software packages to target sets of computing devices where the target sets may overlap. The deployment service prevents software packages from being deployed to target sets that would conflict with a software package deployed to at least some of the target set as a result of the target set overlapping with another set.

Abstract: A network resource, such as a page, may be loaded or rendered in different manners on a plurality of different browsers. Data and information regarding the loading and/or rendering of various network resources on a variety of browsers, including data or information regarding errors, latencies or customer ratings of the loading or rendering of such resources on such browsers, may be evaluated in order to identify the most appropriate browser for viewing a requested network resource. If that network resource is available to a user who requests the network resource, then a recommendation or an instruction to view the network resource in the most appropriate browser may be provided to the user.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention relate to knowledge representation systems which include a knowledge base in which knowledge is represented in a structured, machine-readable format that encodes meaning. Techniques for extracting structured knowledge from unstructured text and for determining the reliability of such extracted knowledge are also described.

Abstract: Touch-based input to a computing device can be improved by providing a mechanism to lock or reduce the effects of motion in unintended directions. In one example, a user can navigate in two dimensions, then provide a gesture-based locking action through motion in a third dimension. If a computing device analyzing the gesture is able to detect the locking action, the device can limit motion outside the corresponding third dimension, or lock an interface object for selection, in order to ensure that the proper touch-based input selection is received. Various thresholds, values, or motions can be used to limit motion in one or more axes for any appropriate purpose as discussed herein.

Abstract: A data volume may be shelved based at least in part on statistical triggers associated with the data, a user of the data, or a system configured to store and/or manage the data. Upon receiving a request to detach a data volume from a computing device, a determination of whether the data volume should be shelved may be made. In some aspects, the data volume may be shelved by moving the data to another storage system, storing an identifier of the data volume, and de-allocating space associated with the shelved data such that the shelved data is no longer maintained in the storage system. Further, in some aspects, upon a request to attach the data volume, the data may be moved back, the original identifier may be re-assigned to the data volume, and the data volume may be re-attached to the computing device.