Abstract: A method and system for controlling user interaction in a digital imaging device that includes a display screen. The method and system include providing the digital imaging device with a directed image capture sequence that comprises a set of program instructions, which when executed, display interactive instructions on the display screen that prompt the user to perform specific operations. In response to the user performing those operations, the interactive instructions are automatically updated to thereby guide the user through a series of related image captures. The directed image capture sequence is preferable written in an interpreted scripting language and loaded into the camera from an external source to add functionality to the digital imaging device.

Abstract: A computer system architecture in which each processor has its own memory, strategically distributed along the stages of an execution pipeline of the processor, to provide fast access to often used information, such as the contents of the address and data registers, the program counter, etc. Memory storage is strategically located in close physical proximity to a stage in an execution pipeline at which memory is commonly or repeatedly accessed. Coupled to the pipeline at various stages are small memory cells for storing information that is consistently and repeatedly requested at that stage in the execution pipeline. The speed of the execution pipeline in a processor is critical to overall performance of the processor and the computer architecture of the present invention as a whole. To that end, the clock cycle time at which the pipeline is operated is increased as much as the operating characteristics of the logic and associated circuitry will allow.

Abstract: Disclosed are methods and apparatuses for attaching a letter to a contact in an organizer contact list. The method includes the operations of selecting a contact from the organizer contact list that is controlled by an organizer program. The method then stores a plurality of identifying information associated with the selected contact into a temporary memory location. Next, a letter is selected from a plurality of standard letters provided by the organizer. The plurality of identifying information associated with the selected contact is then integrated into the selected letter.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided which eliminate the need for an active traffic flow control protocol to manage request transaction flow between the nodes of a directory-based, scaleable, shared-memory, multi-processor computer system. This is accomplished by determining the maximum number of requests that any node can receive at any given time, providing an input buffer at each node which can store at least the maximum number of requests that any node can receive at any given time and transferring stored requests from the buffer as the node completes requests in process and is able to process additional incoming requests. As each node may have only a certain finite number of pending requests, this is the maximum number of requests that can be received by a node acting in slave capacity from any another node acting in requester capacity. In addition, each node may also issue requests that must be processed within that node.

Abstract: A multimedia editing apparatus including a template manager, a material information manager, a template operator, a logic structure synthesizer, a layout structure synthesizer, and a physical operation determiner. The template manager manages a template describing therein a logic structure, a layout structure, and a physical operation common to a diversity of multimedia content. The material information manager manages material information such as text, photo, and video. The template operator combines material information extracted from the material manager with a template extracted from the template manager. The logic structure synthesizer synthesizes a logic structure in a template with material information. The layout structure synthesizer synthesizes a layout structure in a template with material information. The physical operation determiner determines physical operations of material based on the synthesized logic structure which material information a physical operation in a template should use.

Abstract: A polar controller takes user-input to specify the creation of graphic shapes. An interface of the polar controller receives from a user a start angle, a stop angle, a step angle and a radius length for the graphic shape. A polar execution engine of the polar controller generates the graphic shape based on the start angle, the stop angle, the step angle and the radius length. For example, when the radius length is expressed as a function of angle, the polar controller is able to draw spiral-like shapes.

Abstract: A computer animation method for creating computer generated animated characters which realistically perform human-like actions. Actions of an animated character are produced as a combination of motions of a plurality of joints. A number of gesture actions are displayed and defined as a series of frames generated by specifying rotational ranges and speeds of rotation on a number of rotational axes of each joint for each gesture action. The actions of each animated character appear as a weighted average of gesture actions. Gesture actions may also be combined and displayed simultaneously. By gradually varying the weight of active gesture actions, transitions between gestures are smooth and realistic.

Abstract: A device that can be integrated into an integrated circuit dedicated to a microprocessor, this circuit comprising a direct memory access circuit and a communications cell, the communications cell comprising a state register and a sequencer that contain first information elements, the direct memory access circuit comprising a control register that contains second information elements, wherein said device comprises action means to enable the communications cell to act directly on bits of the control register in order to make certain of the second information elements identical to certain of the first information elements. Also disclosed is a method designed to eliminate possible conflicts between a direct memory access circuit and a communications cell that are due to information elements of the same nature.

Abstract: A computer workstation supports speech recognition software 50 and conferencing software 45, and is involved in an audio conference with one or more other workstations. Speech from the user at that workstation is transmitted to the other workstation(s), and also converted into text by the speech recognition software. The conferencing software then transmits the text to the other workstation(s). Likewise, the conferencing software also receives the text equivalent of spoken contributions from the other workstation(s). This received text, together with the locally generated text, is stored in a text file so as to produce a set of minutes for the audio conference.

Abstract: A means for prefetching linked document objects in a document workspace. A document object may be a document or a document collection. Such document objects have links to other document objects. The prefetching process of the present invention enables a user to obtain document objects linked to a document that they are interacting with before they are needed. Typically, such linked document objects are related so it is likely that they would be needed. The retrieved document objects are displayed so that their linking is indicated using a cone tree visualization. Various controls are provided which enable the user to stop and start the retrieval process, specify the scope and depth of retrieval, and to specify documents for which linked documents should not be retrieved. A history stack area is provided in the document workspace to place prior instances of cone tree visualizations of retrieved document objects.

Abstract: A display has sufficient resolution to present images as they would appear on other types of image output devices, such as types of printers or displays. In response to a user signal indicating a type of image output devices, data defining an image is used to automatically obtain version data defining a version of the image. The version can be presented on the display to show the image as it would appear when presented by an image output device of the indicated type. The user can indicate a type by selecting a menu item or a button or by providing a sequence of keystrokes. In response to a user signal indicating a parameter value, a version can be presented showing the image as it would appear when presented with the value. When a satisfactory image is displayed, the user can then request presentation of the image by a device of the indicated type.

Abstract: A single-frame multimedia title contains all of the multimedia elements required for a given multimedia title or type of multimedia title. External Data Files, External Content Files, and External Program Files are stored external to the single-frame and are read into the single-frame when needed. Because data and content files are external to the single-frame, the single-frame has very limited or no linking requirements since the multimedia title does not require the association of any particular appearance, function, navigation, or content characteristics with multimedia elements in the single-frame. Also, the external storage of data, content, and programming files allows changes to the content of the multimedia title to be quickly and easily implemented by simply changing the appropriate External Data Files, External Content Files, or External Program Files, whether the changes be local or global in nature.

Abstract: An apparatus for presenting picture and sound with harmony or correspondence therebetween in which first and second pictures are displayed at the same time on the same display screen and sound related to the first and second pictures is concurrently produced with a volume corresponding to the respective display areas of the pictures. When the first picture partially overlaps the second picture, the produced sound corresponds to the actual display areas of the respective pictures.

Abstract: A method and system for modeling rooms or chambers in a structure for intuitive and accurate estimation of process parameters (e.g., material and labor costs for performing the process) associated with the rooms. A graphical user interface to an estimation program enables an estimator to insert a model of a room and thereafter morph and mold the model to approximate the room undergoing estimation. The model is represented as a polyhedron having a plurality of planes that may be assigned attributes such as floors, walls and ceilings. During the morphing process, the modified and other affected planes of the polyhedron are continually revised to maintain the integrity of the closed volume represented by the polyhedron.

Abstract: A plurality of elements of a document is classified into a plurality of services respectively relating to a meaning, and a plurality of nodes respectively indicating one element are prepared in a node preparing unit. Therefore, each of services is a partial set of nodes. Also, a plurality of inner-service links respectively connecting a pair of nodes of the same service are prepared by an inner-service link preparing unit, so that a reference relationship between the nodes is indicated by one inner-service link. Also, a plurality of inter-service links respectively connecting a pair of nodes of different services are prepared by an inter-service link preparing unit, so that a reference relationship between the nodes of different services is indicated by one inter-service link. A hyper-text document is prepared by connecting the nodes prepared by the node preparing unit through the inner-service links for each service and connecting the nodes of the services through the inter-service links.

Abstract: In an electronic word processing system environment, a system and method for verifying the accuracy of the grammatical composition of a sentence in the background. While the word processor is in edit mode, i.e., the user is entering data or commands, it is determined when there is an idle period. An idle period is when the user is not entering data or commands. During an idle period, a sentence is extracted from the electronic document. It is determined whether the sentence is of proper grammatical composition. If the sentence does not have proper grammatical composition, then an error indication is displayed to the user in the context of the electronic document. These tasks may be repeated for each sentence in the document until the entire document has been proofed or the idle period ends. When the user selects the error indication in the document, a pop-up menu is displayed beneath the sentence containing the error.

Abstract: A method for constructing a sequentially arranged machine readable binary code for each of a plurality of ideographic characters adaptable for processes by a data handling and transfer system is disclosed in this invention.

Abstract: A system and method for creating at least one intelligent chart is shown comprising a computer having indicia means and a comparator line generator which are capable of generating intelligent, indicia-coded charts which are coded based on performance relative to pre-established thresholds. The system and method further comprise a comparator line generator for generating comparator lines which represent, for example, industry standard data or information. The system and method enable a user to quickly and accurately interpret and review data represented by the visual objects in the chart, as well as a company's performance relative to, for example, an industry standard.

Abstract: Techniques are developed for defining an engine which has as its input two-dimensional drawing views, wherein the engine produces a three-dimensional geometric solid. The engine comprises, among other things, a set of rules for identifying particular elements within the various two-dimensional views, and for determining the useful relationships between elements (e.g., arcs, lines, and the like) in one view vis-a-vis related elements in another view, to thereby ascertain the three-dimensional form defined by these elements and their corresponding relations to other elements.

Abstract: It is judged that a vertex exists within a view volume when values stored in registers (231 to 236) are all "1". In other words, whether the vertex exists within or beyond the view volume can be judged by whether the values stored in the registers (231 to 236) are all "1" or not. To meet this requirement, a clip code generation/judgment unit (20) comprises a 6-input AND gate (24) which obtains a logical product of the values stored in the registers (231 to 236) to output a judgment signal (M1). With this configuration, a first step for clipping, i.e., the judgment on whether a primitive exists within or beyond a view volume is implemented in hardware, and thereby the operating speed is improved.