Abstract: A system and method of character input using a virtual keyboard, which may have a reduced number of keys. The virtual keyboard may be displayed on a touch screen and may include a plurality of keys. The virtual keyboard may have a plurality of keys, each key having a number of characters or symbols. Characters associated with a particular key may be selected through a series of related touch screen inputs.

Abstract: A system and method for speculatively parallelizing non-countable loops in a multi-threaded application. A multi-core processor receives instructions for a multi-threaded application. The application may contain non-countable loops. Non-countable loops have an iteration count value that cannot be determined prior to the execution of the non-countable loop, a loop index value that cannot be non-speculatively determined prior to the execution of an iteration of the non-countable loop, and control that is not transferred out of the loop body by a code line in the loop body. The compiler replaces the non-countable loop with a parallelized loop pattern that uses outlined function calls defined in a parallelization library (PL) in order to speculatively execute iterations of the parallelized loop. The parallelized loop pattern is configured to squash and re-execute any speculative thread of the parallelized loop pattern that is signaled to have a transaction failure.

Abstract: A method for low-overhead data transfer. The method includes initiating, by a first application, TCP connection with a second application, establishing, in response to the initiation, the TCP connection between the first application and the second application, providing, by the first application, pre-post buffer information to the second application, where the pre-post buffer information corresponds to a location in a physical memory of the first computer and where the location in physical memory corresponds to a virtual memory address of the first application. The method further comprising transferring data, by the second application, to the first application using the pre-post buffer information, where transferring the data comprises writing the data directly into a location in the physical memory of the first computer.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention execute an anti-prefetch instruction. These embodiments start by decoding instructions in a decode unit in a processor to prepare the instructions for execution. Upon decoding an anti-prefetch instruction, these embodiments stall the decode unit to prevent decoding subsequent instructions. These embodiments then execute the anti-prefetch instruction, wherein executing the anti-prefetch instruction involves: (1) sending a prefetch request for a cache line in an L1 cache; (2) determining if the prefetch request hits in the L1 cache; (3) if the prefetch request hits in the L1 cache, determining if the cache line contains a predetermined value; and (4) conditionally performing subsequent operations based on whether the prefetch request hits in the L1 cache or the value of the data in the cache line.

Abstract: A method for managing data, including obtaining a first instruction for moving a first data item from a first source to a first destination, determining a data type of the first data item, determining a data type supported by the first destination, comparing the data type of the first data item with the data type supported by the first destination to test a validity of the first instruction, and moving the first data item from the first source to the first destination based on the validity of the first instruction.

Abstract: A system that displays content on a computer display. During operation, the system displays the content items within a display area on the computer display, wherein content items surrounding a current point of interest are displayed within a visible region of the display area. If the visible region has insufficient space to display some of the content items, the system selects a portion of the content items to be collapsed. Next, the system collapses the selected content items into one or more folds within the display area, wherein a fold is a compact representation of a contiguous group of adjacent content items and is located in place of the contiguous group of adjacent content items. For each fold, the system then displays a summary of the collapsed content items in the fold.

Abstract: A method for transporting telemetry data involves receiving a request from a client in a first network. The client is registered with a data transport service executing in a second network. The request includes an authentication credential for the client, a message including telemetry data, and a message priority. The method further involves authenticating the request using the authentication credential. The method further involves parsing the request to obtain and subsequently execute a command for storing the message in a physical queue of the second network. The physical queue is associated with a back-end service executing in the second network. A virtual queue maintains entries for messages stored in the physical queue that were sent from the first network to the second network. Another virtual queue maintains entries for messages stored in the physical queue that were sent from the second network to the first network.

Abstract: Systems and methods for performing single instruction multiple data (SIMD) operations on a data set. The methods may include examining a structure of the data set to determine what reorganization may be necessary to facilitate SIMD processing. The method may include selecting a stored bit mask corresponding to the organization of the data set and loading the bit mask into an application specific register (ASR). Subsequently, the data may be reorganized inline according to the ASR as the data is loaded into the SIMD functional unit such that the SIMD functional unit may operate on the data set. The results of the SIMD operation may be written to a results register.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that avoids deadlock while attempting to acquire store-marks on cache lines. During operation, the system keeps track of store-mark requests that arise during execution of a thread, wherein a store-mark on a cache line indicates that one or more associated store buffer entries are waiting to be committed to the cache line. In this system, store-mark requests are processed in a pipelined manner, which allows a store-mark request to be initiated before preceding store-mark requests for the same thread complete. Next, if a store-mark request fails, within a bounded amount of time, the system removes or prevents store-marks associated with younger store-mark requests for the same thread, thereby avoiding a potential deadlock that can arise when one or more other threads attempt to store-mark the same cache lines.

Abstract: A system for maintaining direct hardware access in the event of PNIC failure. A host for the system includes: a processor; a first and a second PNIC, where the first PNIC is activated and all other PNICs are deactivated; a host operating system; a virtual machine; and a hypervisor for transferring packets between the host operating system and the virtual machine. The host operating system includes a link aggregator, multiple host VNICs, and a virtual switch associated with the VNICs. The first virtual machine includes a virtual network protocol stack and a guest VNIC. The link aggregator is configured to determine whether the first PNIC has failed. Based on a determination that the first PNIC has failed, the link aggregator is further configured to: remove a virtual function mapping between the first PNIC and the virtual machine; determine the second PNIC; deactivate the first PNIC; and activate the second PNIC.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and articles of manufacture consistent with the present invention provide for managing privacy in a data processing system having an offering platform. A privacy policy is mapped to a data elements that are transmitted to remote offering platforms. The remote offering platform complies with the privacy policy to ensure data security.

Abstract: A method for showing a display panel in a graphical user interface involves associating a client-side script variable with a display panel wrapper, where the display panel is embedded in the display panel wrapper, and where the client-side script variable indicates that the display panel is hidden. The method further involves modifying the client-side script variable to show the display panel in the graphical user interface, where showing the display panel involves showing an input control for manipulating a data area in the graphical user interface.

Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer program product for providing page-protection based memory access barrier traps is presented. A value for a user-mode bit (u-bit) is computed for each extant virtual page in an address space, the u-bit indicative that an object on the virtual page is being moved by a Garbage Collector process. An instruction is executed which causes an access protection fault. The state of the u-bit for the virtual page associated with the access protection fault is consulted when the access protection fault is encountered. Additionally, the access protection fault is translated into a user-trap (utrap) and the utrap is serviced when the u-bit is set.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that improves program performance by enregistering memory locations. During operation, the system receives program object code which has been generated to use a specified number of registers that are available for a given target hardware implementation. Next, the system translates this object code to execute on a second hardware implementation which includes more registers than the first hardware implementation. The system uses these additional registers to improve the performance of the translated object code for the second hardware implementation. More specifically, the system identifies a memory access in the object code, and then rewrites an instruction associated with this memory access to access an available register instead of the original target memory location. To preserve program semantics, the system subsequently moderates accesses to the memory location to ensure that no threads access a stale value in the enregistered memory location.

Abstract: A virtual installation map, and method involving installing a software functionality using the same, the virtual installation map including a first software installation map including a plurality of software elements representative of a related software file, the software elements also including at least one dependency to another software element. The virtual installation map further including a second software installation map also including a second plurality of software elements representative of related software file along with related dependencies. The first and second software installation maps may be hosted in separate databases and may relate to software products provided by different vendors. One or both software installation maps may include a pointer or other reference to the other installation map thereby providing a virtual installation map, in one example.

Abstract: A method for changing network configuration parameters that includes generating a request to change a network configuration parameter, where the request is generated by a virtual machine, sending the request to a virtual network interface card (VNIC) associated with the virtual machine, sending the request to a VNIC configuration database associated with the VNIC, determining whether the virtual machine is allowed to change the network configuration parameter, if the virtual machine is allowed to change the network configuration parameter, updating the VNIC configuration database and VNIC to reflect the change in the network configuration parameter, and notifying the virtual machine that the change in network configuration parameter is allowed, and if the virtual machine is not allowed to change the network configuration parameter, dropping the request.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method and apparatus for collaborative data redundancy for configuration management database is disclosed. The method includes requesting, by a server of a configuration tracking system, an agent of the configuration tracking system to retrieve asset data when a copy of the asset data located in the server becomes corrupted, retrieving by the agent the requested asset data from one or more assets, and transferring by the agent the asset data to the server without utilizing data redundancy services performed outside of the configuration tracking system. Other embodiments are also disclosed.

Abstract: An improved lookup service is provided that allows for the dynamic addition and deletion of services. This lookup service allows for the addition and deletion of services automatically, without user intervention. As a result, clients of the lookup service may continue using the lookup service and its associated services while the updates occur. Additionally, the lookup service provides a notification mechanism that can be used by clients to receive a notification when the lookup service is updated. By receiving such a notification, clients can avoid attempting to access a service that is no longer available and can make use of new services as soon as they are added to the lookup service.

Abstract: A system for characterizing vibration of a rack structure having at least one hard disk drive disposed therein and a vibration exciter operatively associated with the rack structure includes one or more computers. The one or more computers are configured to command the vibration exciter to provide vibration input to the rack structure and to command a plurality of reads from the at least one hard disk drive such that, for each of the plurality of reads, data stored on the at least one hard disk drive is retrieved from the at least one hard disk drive. The one or more computers are also configured to obtain read rate information related to the plurality of reads and to identify at least one resonant frequency of the rack structure based on the read rate information.

Abstract: A computer-based method configures a hardware circuit to transfer a message to a message queue in an operating system. The hardware circuit is used to transfer a message to the message queue in the operating system without requiring use of either the operating system or a hypervisor associated with the operating system. The using the hardware circuit uses a logical identifier associated with the message to select an entry in a mapping table of the hardware circuit. A value in the entry in the mapping table is used to select an entry in an action table. The entry in the action table is used to determine a tail pointer for the message queue. The hardware circuit appends the message to a location indicted by the tail pointer without requiring cycles of a hypervisor associated with the strand.