Abstract: Various technologies described herein pertain to prefetching content units. A prefetch request is transmitted to a server from a client device. The prefetch request includes data indicative of probabilities of slots for content units being available during an upcoming time period. The probabilities can be based on likely interaction with application(s) executed by the client device during the upcoming time period. Prefetched content units assigned to the client device for the upcoming time period can be received from the server responsive to the prefetch request. One or more of the prefetched content units can be served for display on a display screen of the client device during execution the application(s). Further, statuses of the prefetched content units can be monitored, and information that specifies a subset of the prefetched content units that are unlikely to be displayed on the display screen prior to corresponding deadlines for expiration can be transmitted.

Abstract: A classification system classifies different aspects of content of an input image stream, such as faces, landmarks, events, and so forth. The classification system includes a general classifier and at least one specialized classifier template. The general classifier is trained to classify a large number of different aspects of content, and a specialized classifier can be trained based on a specialized classifier template during operation of the classification system to classify a particular subset of the multiple different aspects of content. The classification system determines when to use the general classifier and when to use a specialized classifier based on class skew, which refers to the temporal locality of a subset of aspects of content in the image stream.

Abstract: Machine learning techniques are used to determine the viability of user data measuring the behavior of a new version of the program when compared with user data that measured the behavior of a previous version of the program. The machine learning techniques utilize statistical techniques in a non-conventional manner to train a system to learn from data obtained from the usage of both a new version of the program and a previous version that accounts for the variability in the user population, time variability of the results of the previous version, and feature coverage between the two test results in order to ensure the suitability of the user data in making estimations or predictions about the performance and reliability of the new version.

Abstract: Presented herein are techniques for invoking user interfaces in graphical computing environments involving “hooking” gestures applicable to an edge of a display. These gestures involve positioning a pointer near an edge of the display depicting the environment, and then moving the cursor to a second location that is distanced from but near the first location (e.g., moving the pointer into a corner of the display, and then toward the center of the display, or to a midpoint of an adjacent edge of the display), resulting in the presentation of the user interface under the pointer at the second location. Variations include presenting a preview of the user interface (e.g., a subset of a user interface menu) at the second location while the pointer is in the first location, and refraining from presenting the user interface upon failing to complete the gesture or receiving extraneous input before completing the gesture.

Abstract: Systems, methods, and software are disclosed herein that enhance drawing technology in application user interfaces. In an implementation, a guide object is disclosed herein that allows a user to draw against the guide object, position other objects against, and otherwise interact with the guide object as-if it were a stencil. The guide object may be presented as a drawing tool in a user interface to an application that a user may invoke by user input to assist with the creation of content on a canvas. As a line is drawn proximate to the guide object, for example, or as a shape is positioned nearby the guide object, the application obtains guidance information from the guide object that allows the application to render the interaction between line or shape and the guide object as-if it were an actual stencil.

Abstract: In the field of computing, many scenarios involve the execution of an application within a virtual environment of a device (e.g., web applications executing within a web browser). Interactions between applications and device components are often enabled through hardware abstractions or component application programming interfaces (API), but such interactions may provide more limited and/or inconsistent access to component capabilities for virtually executing applications than for native applications. Instead, the device may provide hardware interaction as a service to the virtual environment utilizing a callback model, wherein applications within the virtual environment initiate component request specifying a callback, and the device initiates the component requests with the components and invokes associated callbacks upon completion of a component request.

Abstract: Representative embodiments disclose mechanisms for discovering, synthesizing, presenting and interacting with multiple chat bots. A broker system can interact with a user and receive a query which is passed to a search engine. The search results are evaluated for bots provided by domains. The query can be submitted to the discovered bots. For domains that do not provide a bot, a bot can be synthesized if desired and the query submitted to the synthesized bots. Answers from the bots are retrieved. Answer are directly presented for bots that are directly surfaced to the user in the search results page. Answers can be fused for bots that are not directly surfaced to the user and presented via a broker bot. Answers from the one bot can be fed to other bots so that the bots can participate in a group chat between bots and the user.

Abstract: A method for nonintrusive network load generation may include determining available resources in a distributed computing system, where the distributed computing system includes a plurality of computing devices and a target deployment. Based on an amount of available resources between the target deployment and a plurality of source computing devices, the plurality of source computing devices may be selected to generate a network load directed from the plurality of source computing devices to the target deployment. The plurality of source computing devices may be a subset of the plurality of computing devices in the distributed computing system. A network-traffic generator service may be provided to the plurality of source computing devices in order to generate the network load directed from the plurality of source computing devices to the target deployment. The performance of the distributed computing system in response to the generated network load may be monitored.

Abstract: Described herein are embodiments for managing policies of a mobile device. In embodiments, a mobile device receives policy containers from a plurality of disparate management agents. Each policy container has one or more policies. Each policy corresponds to a particular category that governs various aspects of the device. The policies described herein may be device wide policies corresponding to various features on the device. The policies may also be data specific policies which dictate how data is stored on and transferred to and from the device. Once the policies are received, a determination is made as to which policy in each category is the most secure policy. The most secure policy for each category is merged to create a global policy that is applied to the mobile device.

Abstract: This document relates to camera calibration. One example uses real-world distances and image coordinates of object features in images to determine multiple candidate camera calibrations for a camera.

Abstract: A system includes determination of a resource stored in a cloud storage service, identification of a first cloud service associated with the resource, determination of a first pre-backup callback and a first post-backup callback associated with the first cloud service, transmission of the first pre-backup callback to the first cloud service, reception of a return of the first pre-backup callback from the first cloud service, transmission, in response to receipt of the return, of an instruction to the cloud storage service to backup the resource, and transmission of the first post-backup callback to the first cloud service.

Abstract: Generally discussed herein are devices, systems, and methods for task routing. A method can include receiving, from a resource, a request for a task, in response to receiving the request, determining whether to retrieve a new task of new tasks stored in a first queue or a backlog task of backlog tasks stored in a second queue based on a combined amount of backlog tasks and new tasks relative to a capacity of the resource or the resources, retrieving the new task or the backlog task from the determined first queue or second queue, respectively, based on the determination, and providing the retrieved task to the resource.

Abstract: Registration of a person with an intelligent assistant computer includes obtaining one or more image frames captured via one or more cameras that depict an initially unregistered person. Facial recognition data for the initially unregistered person is extracted from the one or more image frames. A spoken command to register the initially unregistered person is received via one or more microphones. Upon determining that the spoken command originated from the registered person having the pre-established registration privilege, the initially unregistered person is registered as a newly registered person by associating one or more additional privileges with the facial recognition data in a person profile for the newly registered person.

Abstract: A method for enabling data classification and or enforcement of Information Rights Management (IRM) capabilities and or encryption in a software application according to which, an agent is installed on each terminal device that runs the application and a central management module which includes the IRM, encryption and classification policy to be enforced, communicates with agents that are installed on each terminal device. The central management module distributes the appropriate IRM and or classification policy to each agent and applies the policy to any application that runs on the terminal device.

Abstract: A method for transmitting a downlink control channel in a mobile communication system and a method for mapping the control channel to physical resources using a block interleaver are provided. In order to transmit a downlink control channel in a mobile communication system, information bits are modulated to generate one or more modulation symbols according to a specific modulation scheme, the modulation symbols are interleaved using a block interleaver, and the interleaved modulated symbols are mapped to resource elements allocated for transmission of at least one control channel in a subframe, thereby transmitting the at least one control channel.

Abstract: Allowing a user to navigate data in a user interface when a modal dialog box has been activated. A method includes displaying a graphical user interface window. The method further includes allowing user input for modifying a particular data in the graphical user interface window. Thereafter, the method further includes displaying a modal dialog superimposed and obscuring at least a portion of the graphical user interface window, including obscuring at least a portion of the data, and to prevent user input for modifying the data in the graphical user interface window so long as the modal dialog remains active. The method further includes identifying information indicating that the modal dialog should be hidden. The method further includes at least partially hiding the modal dialog revealing at least a portion of the obscured data, while continuing to prevent user input for modifying the data in the graphical user interface window.

Abstract: A system may receive, at least in part from an update database, a plurality of updates to a plurality of profiles that individually describe ones of a plurality of users of a social network. The system may process, using a batch processor, at least some of the plurality of updates to generate a consolidated update indicative of a status of at least some of the plurality of profiles. The system may transmit the consolidated update to the update database. The system may display the consolidated update on an update stream of the social network corresponding to at least one of the plurality of users.

Abstract: Systems and methods for controlling an intentional crash of a software application. One system includes a computing device including an electronic processor. The electronic processor is configured to receive a crash setting for the software application from a configuration server. The crash setting has a first value or a second value. The electronic processor is also configured to detect an unexpected use of the software application during execution. The electronic processor is configured to, in response to detecting the unexpected use and the crash setting having the first value, intentionally crash the software application causing a generation of a crash report describing a state of the software application when the unexpected use occurred. The electronic processor is configured to, in response detecting the unexpected use and the crash setting having the second value, not intentionally crash the software application.

Abstract: Generally discussed herein are devices, systems, and methods for scheduling tasks to be completed by resources. A method can include identifying features of the task, the features including a time-dependent feature and a time-independent feature, the time-dependent feature indicating a time the task is more likely to be successfully completed by the resource, converting the features to feature values based on a predefined mapping of features to feature values in a first memory device, determining, by a gradient boost tree model and based on a first current time and the feature values, a likelihood the resource will successfully complete the task, and scheduling the task to be performed by the resource based on the determined likelihood.

Abstract: A JIT compiler is debugged by comparing the native code it generates with the native code generated from a reliable JIT compiler. The different compilations are performed using the same input data. The input data is recorded by intercepting the communication exchanges between a runtime environment and the reliable JIT compiler during the compilation of a program. The input data of each communication is stored using a key based on at least one parameter in an API call from a JIT compiler to the runtime environment. A debugging tool is then used to initiate the compilation of a method using a JIT compiler under test using the previously recorded input data.