Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: A system, method, and graphical user interface for playing games and/or executing applications on a tablet-based client. One embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) for playing a video game on a tablet-based client device comprises: a virtual controller rendered on a display of the tablet computer, the virtual controller substantially mimicking the control provided by a thumb stick of a physical game controller and providing omnidirectional, free-form movement in a synchronous direction in which a user moves a finger on the display of the tablet-based client.

Abstract: One or more hardware components identify a bottleneck stage within a processor pipeline that processes frames of a video stream. The bottleneck stage has a first clock. An upstream stage receives a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage. The upstream stage has a second clock and the feedback signal includes information as to time required by the bottleneck stage to operate on data and information as to time the data spent queued. The upstream stage adjusts the speed at which the upstream stage operates and queues data to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is operating and queuing data.

Abstract: A system and method for efficiently processing a video stream using limited hardware and/or software resources. For example, one embodiment of a computer-implemented method for efficiently processing a video stream with a processor pipeline having a plurality of pipeline stages, comprises: identifying a bottleneck stage within the processor pipeline the bottleneck stage processing frames of the video stream; receiving a feedback signal from the bottleneck stage at one or more upstream stages, the feedback signal providing an indication of the speed at which the bottleneck stage is processing the frames of the video stream; and responsively adjusting the speed at which the one or more upstream stages are processing frames of the video stream to approximate the speed at which the bottleneck stage is processing the frames of the video stream.

Abstract: An application/game server comprising a central processing unit to process application/video game program code and a graphics processing unit (GPU) to process graphics commands and generate a series of video frames for the application/video game; one or more back buffers to store video frames as the video frames are being created in response to the execution of the graphics commands; a front buffer-outputting the video frame for display one scan line at a time at a designated scan out frequency, a subset of scan lines stored in the front buffer being associated with a vertical blanking interval (VBI); and a frame processing module to begin copying a newly completed frame from the back buffer to the front buffer before the video data for a prior video frame stored in the front buffer has not been fully scanned out.

Abstract: A game server comprising a central processing unit to process video game program code and a graphics processing unit (GPU) to process graphics commands; back buffers to store video frames in response to the execution of the graphics commands; a front buffer to receive a video frame for rendering on a display after the video frame has been completed in one of the one or more back buffers, the front buffer outputting the video frame for display one scan line at a time at a designated scan out frequency, a subset of scan lines stored in the front buffer being associated with a VBI; a frame processing module to increase the number of scan lines to increase the likelihood that a new frame will be completed in a back buffer and ready for transfer to the front buffer at a time during the VBI.

Abstract: An application/game server comprising a central processing unit to process application/video game program code and a graphics processing unit (GPU) to process graphics commands and generate a series of video frames for the application/video game; one or more back buffers to store video frames as the video frames are being created in response to the execution of the graphics commands; a front buffer-outputting the video frame for display one scan line at a time at a designated scan out frequency, a subset of scan lines stored in the front buffer being associated with a vertical blanking interval (VBI); and a frame processing module to begin copying a newly completed frame from the back buffer to the front buffer before the video data for a prior video frame stored in the front buffer has not been fully scanned out.