Patents by Inventor Donald Dale Melton

Donald Dale Melton has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8612844
    Abstract: Correct detection of embedded content type enables an operating system to launch the correct program to handle the embedded content. A page retrieval module retrieves an HTML page from a server, the contents of which are parsed by a parsing module. An embedded content analyzer gathers information from the parsed page about content embedded within the web page and proceeds to determine the type of content that is embedded. Content type is determined by analyzing various parameters such as a type specified by the web page, content type provided by an HTTP response, known file extensions present in a URL associated with the content or with the name of the file itself, and by sniffing the file. In one embodiment, the results of each analysis are weighted and a determination is made based upon the weighted total of results.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 17, 2013
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Donald Dale Melton, Darin Benjamin Adler, Christopher Blumenberg
  • Patent number: 8407574
    Abstract: A user interface and methods for accessing document presentations are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method of the invention allows a user to directly snapback to a previous accessed document presentation without having to select from a menu of items or go through the intermediate pages. In this method, when a first document presentation is accessed, a first location of the first document presentation is recorded, automatically or manually. Subsequently, when a sequence of additional document presentations originated from the first document presentation is accessed, in response to a first input, without having to select from a menu of items, the first document presentation is directly retrieved from a recorded first location and displayed in a window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott Forstall, Donald Dale Melton, John William Sullivan
  • Publication number: 20120054864
    Abstract: The present invention describes methods for improving security when accessing applications and other executable programs. In one exemplary method, a user is warned if an application that has never been previously run is being launched by the user. Other methods, as well as data processing systems and machine readable media, are also described.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 3, 2011
    Publication date: March 1, 2012
    Inventors: Christopher Scott Linn, Darin Benjamin Adler, Donald Dale Melton, Christopher Blumenberg
  • Patent number: 8060830
    Abstract: Techniques for detecting, managing, and presenting syndication XML (feeds) are disclosed. In one embodiment, a web browser automatically determines that a web site is publishing feeds and notifies the user, who can then access the feed easily. In another embodiment, a browser determines that a web page or feed is advertising relationship XML, and displays information about the people identified in the relationship XML. In yet another embodiment, a browser determines that a file contains a feed and enables the user to view it in a user-friendly way. In yet another embodiment, feed state information is stored in a repository that is accessible by applications that are used to view the feed. In yet another embodiment, if a feed's state changes, an application notifies the repository, and the state is updated. In yet another embodiment, a feed is parsed and stored in a structured way.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2011
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jessica Kahn, Jens Alfke, Steven P. Jobs, Scott James Forstall, Gregory N. Christie, Stephen O. Lemay, Donald Dale Melton
  • Patent number: 8060860
    Abstract: The present invention describes methods for improving security when accessing applications and other executable programs. In one exemplary method, a user is warned if an application that has never been previously run is being launched by the user. Other methods, as well as data processing systems and machine readable media, are also described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2011
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Christopher Scott Linn, Darin Benjamin Adler, Donald Dale Melton, Christopher Blumenberg
  • Patent number: 7865511
    Abstract: Techniques for detecting, managing, and presenting syndication XML (feeds) are disclosed. In one embodiment, a web browser automatically determines that a web site is publishing feeds and notifies the user, who can then access the feed easily. In another embodiment, a browser determines that a web page or feed is advertising relationship XML, and displays information about the people identified in the relationship XML. In yet another embodiment, a browser determines that a file contains a feed and enables the user to view it in a user-friendly way. In yet another embodiment, feed state information is stored in a repository that is accessible by applications that are used to view the feed. In yet another embodiment, if a feed's state changes, an application notifies the repository, and the state is updated. In yet another embodiment, a feed is parsed and stored in a structured way.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2011
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jessica Kahn, Jens Alfke, Sarah Anne Wilkin, Scott James Forstall, Gregory N. Christie, Donald Dale Melton
  • Patent number: 7823054
    Abstract: A user interface and methods for accessing document presentations are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method of the invention allows a user to directly snapback to a previous accessed document presentation without having to select from a menu of items or go through the intermediate pages. In this method, when a first document presentation is accessed, a first location of the first document presentation is recorded, automatically or manually. Subsequently, when a sequence of additional document presentations originated from the first document presentation is accessed, in response to a first input, without having to select from a menu of items, the first document presentation is directly retrieved from a recorded first location and displayed in a window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 26, 2010
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott Forstall, Donald Dale Melton, John William Sullivan
  • Patent number: 7818659
    Abstract: Techniques for presenting and managing syndication XML (feeds) are disclosed. In one embodiment, a user can modify how a feed is displayed, such as which content (and how much) is displayed, in what order, and how it is formatted. In another embodiment, a modification regarding how a feed is displayed is stored so that it can be used again at a later time. In yet another embodiment, a user can create a custom feed through aggregation and/or filtering of existing feeds. Aggregation includes, for example, merging the articles of multiple feeds to form a new feed. Filtering includes, for example, selecting a subset of articles of a feed based on whether they satisfy a search query. In yet another embodiment, a user can find articles by entering a search query into a search engine that searches feeds, which will identify one or more articles that satisfy the query.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2010
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jessica Kahn, Jens Alfke, Sarah Anne Wilkin, Albert Riley Howard, Jr., Scott James Forstall, Stephen O. Lemay, Donald Dale Melton, Wayne Russell Loofbourrow
  • Patent number: 7581164
    Abstract: A user interface and methods for accessing document presentations are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method of the invention allows a user to directly snapback to a previous accessed document presentation without having to select from a menu of items or go through the intermediate pages. In this method, when a first document presentation is accessed, a first location of the first document presentation is recorded, automatically or manually. Subsequently, when a sequence of additional document presentations originated from the first document presentation is accessed, in response to a first input, without having to select from a menu of items, the first document presentation is directly retrieved from a recorded first location and displayed in a window.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2003
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2009
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott Forstall, Donald Dale Melton, John William Sullivan
  • Patent number: 7428709
    Abstract: In a scrollable user interface window including two or more panels, a single scroll bar scrolls all of the panels. Panels move in lock-step with one another at certain times, but not at other times, depending on whether the lock-step scrolling would cause blank areas to be displayed. If the user's scroll commands would result in a blank area of a panel being displayed, the scroll command is not performed; rather, the panel remains frozen in its current position, even while other panel(s) do scroll. Thus, the present invention ensures that useful content is displayed at all times in all panels, and no screen real estate is wasted due to scrolling operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: September 23, 2008
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott James Forstall, Gregory N. Christie, Kevin John Tiene, Donald Dale Melton, Stephen Lemay, Wayne Russell Loofbourrow, Jessica Kahn, David Hyatt
  • Publication number: 20040133845
    Abstract: A user interface and methods for accessing document presentations are described herein. In one aspect of the invention, an exemplary method of the invention allows a user to directly snapback to a previous accessed document presentation without having to select from a menu of items or go through the intermediate pages. In this method, when a first document presentation is accessed, a first location of the first document presentation is recorded, automatically or manually. Subsequently, when a sequence of additional document presentations originated from the first document presentation is accessed, in response to a first input, without having to select from a menu of items, the first document presentation is directly retrieved from a recorded first location and displayed in a window.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 6, 2003
    Publication date: July 8, 2004
    Inventors: Scott Forstall, Donald Dale Melton, John William Sullivan