Abstract: Described are embodiments directed to enabling the retrieval of content from a peer-to-peer network. In embodiments, a client requesting content from a server can indicate in an HTTP request that it is capable of retrieving content from a peer-to-peer network. When the server receives the HTTP request it will recognize the indication that the client is capable of retrieving content from a peer-to-peer network and may send content information instead of sending the requested content. The content information allows the client to retrieve the content from the peer-to-peer network.

Abstract: Described herein is a system that includes a receiver component that receives gesture data from a sensor unit that is coupled to a body of a gloveless user, wherein the gesture data is indicative of a bodily gesture of the user, wherein the bodily gesture comprises movement pertaining to at least one limb of the gloveless user. The system further includes a location determiner component that determines location of the bodily gesture with respect to a touch-sensitive display apparatus. The system also includes a display component that causes the touch-sensitive display apparatus to display an image based at least in part upon the received gesture data and the determined location of the bodily gesture with respect to the touch-sensitive display apparatus.

Abstract: Alternative routes to an optimal route may be determined and presented to a user via a computing device. Alternative routes are selected from candidate routes that meet admissibility criteria. In an implementation, admissibility of a candidate route (in order for it to be considered an alternative route) may be determined based on three criteria: “limited sharing”, “local optimality”, and “stretch” such as “uniformly bounded stretch”. Limited sharing refers to the amount of difference between the alternative route and the optimal route, local optimality refers to lack of unnecessary detours, and uniformly bounded stretch refers to a length of the shortest path to travel between two points on the alternative route.

Abstract: Skill scores represent a ranking or other indication of the skill of the player based on the outcome of the game in a gaming environment. Skills scores can be used in matching compatible players on the same team and matching opposing players or teams to obtain an evenly-matched competition. An initial skill score of a player in a new gaming environment may be based in whole or in part on the skill score of that player in another game environment. The influence that the skill scores for these other game environments may have in the skill score seeding for the new game environment may be weighted based on a defined compatibility factor with the new game environment. The compatibility factor can be determined based on a game-to-game basis, compatible categories or features, game developer defined parameters, or any combination of considerations.

Abstract: One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for transitioning between representations of an electronic document. Elements, such as visual elements, common between a first set of elements from a first representation of the document and a second set of elements from a second representation of the document are identified. The non-intersecting elements from the first and second sets are respectively ranked in accordance with a representation relevance. First set non-intersecting elements are removed from an intermediate representation of the document, and second set non-intersecting elements are added to the intermediate representation, while the intermediate representation is not equivalent to the second representation; and respective iterations of the intermediate representation are output, such as to a display to depict a transition from the first representation of the document to the second representation of the document.

Abstract: Resources of a video presenting network having plural outputs can be configured. A provisional configuration can be supported. Configuration of inputs can be performed separately from configuration of outputs. Interdependencies between network resources can be considered to restrict provided options to those co-functional with a provisional configuration. A client can use a set of functions provided by a service to traverse the configuration solution space. The functions can support a transactional configuration approach. Responsibility for considering interdependencies can be delegated to a video driver, such as a video miniport.

Abstract: Static user information such as address, title, phone number(s), email address(es) and dynamic user information such as location, calendar, current phone number(s), etc. are combined in a dynamically updateable subscriber contact card for publishing to other applications. The subscriber contact card also includes user defined access controls for restricting access to portions of the information by select users. Other applications provide services such as communication services based on up-to-date information through the subscriber contact card.

Abstract: Recommending a media item may include, for example, a statistical model of media consumption is applied to media session consumption data from a community of users to infer parameters of the model. The model comprises a first probability distribution for each user defining a likelihood of the user having a latent characteristic for a session, and a second probability distribution for each latent characteristic defining a likelihood of a user selecting a media item given the latent characteristic. In another example, the inferred parameters are provided to a recommendation engine arranged to recommend media items. The recommendation engine uses the model with inferred parameters and data describing media items newly consumed by a user to infer a current latent characteristic for a current session of the user, and uses them to generate recommended media items for the user in the current session based on the current latent characteristic.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method for determining the placement of ITAPs in wireless neighborhood networks. The method disclosed provides for efficient integration of multi-hop wireless networks with the Internet by placing ITAPs at strategic locations. Initially the method provides for the formulation of the ITAP placement problem under three wireless models. For each model, methods are developed to efficiently place ITAPs in the networks. The methods aim to minimize the number of required ITAPs while guaranteeing users' bandwidth requirements. Next, a fault tolerance version of the placement method is presented that provides bandwidth guarantees in the presence of failures. Finally the methods are extended to take into account variable traffic demands by developing an approximation algorithm to simultaneously optimize ITAP placement based on demands over multiple periods.

Abstract: An illuminator for a flat-panel display comprises a tapered slab waveguide 1 co-extensive with the display, a light source 2-4 arranged to inject light into an edge of the waveguide so that it emerges over the face of the waveguide, and means for scanning the light injected into the wedge so that different areas of the panel are illuminated in turn. Preferably the light source is a set of rows of LEDs, each row injecting light at a different range of angles so that it emerges over different areas of the waveguide 1.

Abstract: Described is a technology for constructing kd-trees on GPUs, in a manner that is sufficiently fast to achieve real-time performance by exploiting GPU-based parallelism during the kd-tree construction. Tree nodes are built in breadth-first search order, e.g., to use a thread for each node at each level. For large nodes at upper tree levels, computations are parallelized over geometric primitives (instead of nodes). To this end, large nodes are split into child nodes by cutting off empty space based until an empty space ratio is achieved, and thereafter performing spatial splitting. Small nodes are split based on split candidate costs, e.g., computed by a surface area heuristic or a voxel volume heuristic (VVH).

Abstract: Embodiments are disclosed that relate to social context for inter-media objects. One embodiment provides a method comprising receiving preference data indicating user preferences of each of the plurality of socially networked users regarding the inter-media object, and aggregating the preference data across the social graph to form social graph aggregate data. The method further comprises providing the content item to a selected user of the plurality of socially networked users, and based upon a location of the selected user within the social graph, generating a selected set of the social graph aggregate data for the inter-media object from the social graph aggregate data for the selected user. The method further comprises providing to the selected user a representation of social context for the inter-media object based on the selected set of the social graph aggregate data.

Abstract: Alternative representations are generated from a user's audible or visual data submission (e.g., user's picture) for use as part of an online account profile or user identification in an online service (e.g., online gaming user profile) or computer device. A specific representation is selected for use with the online account or computing device. Furthermore, a specific representation of the user's audible or visual data that is suitable for a particular display device (e.g., television, cellular telephone) can be generated and presented.

Abstract: By adjusting visual settings on a display behind a section of a background to emphasize menu options, a user can determine the status in the series of menus and sub-menus and can better read the menu options.

Abstract: The claimed subject matter relates to an architecture that can provide configurable entities in connection with electronic archival of print-based media. In accordance therewith, print-based media can be archived electronically (e.g., by imaging or scanning the print-based media) in a remastered form that provides for displaying the original work with readily modifiable entities, such as advertisements. Media or entities can be selected based upon the original advertiser, the original product, or another element or feature of the print-based media, and can also be selected based upon a profile associated with the media consumer.

Abstract: Technologies, systems, and methods for exploring a virtual space without cluttering or obscuring a field of view of the virtual space with overlaid names, labels, symbols, markers, and the like. Instead, a user may select objects of interest presented in a context bar to locate them in the field of view. Further, the user can make use of various forms of selection to zoom in on objects or points in the field of view and access information regarding the virtual space and objects without adding persistent clutter to the field of view.

Abstract: Described is a technology by which synthesized speech generated from text is evaluated against a prosody model (trained offline) to determine whether the speech will sound unnatural. If so, the speech is regenerated with modified data. The evaluation and regeneration may be iterative until deemed natural sounding. For example, text is built into a lattice that is then (e.g., Viterbi) searched to find a best path. The sections (e.g., units) of data on the path are evaluated via a prosody model. If the evaluation deems a section to correspond to unnatural prosody, that section is replaced, e.g., by modifying/pruning the lattice and re-performing the search. Replacement may be iterative until all sections pass the evaluation. Unnatural prosody detection may be biased such that during evaluation, unnatural prosody is falsely detected at a higher rate relative to a rate at which unnatural prosody is missed.