Abstract: Techniques for modifying and presenting instructions for traversing a route include obtaining original instructions and receiving input to modify the instructions. The instructions may be modified and/or annotated based on the input received to provide more intuitive and helpful instructions for traversing a route. The modified instructions may be presented to a user of a computing device as the computing device traverses the route. The modifications and/or annotations to the original instructions may be presented as the computing device traverses the route based at least in part on the location and/or speed of the computing device on the route.

Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for facilitating a download of a specific portion of a map onto a computing device based on information received from a location-aware service. Location information, a start date, and an end date associated with travel plans of a user are received from, for example, a location-aware application or service. A download time corresponding to when to download a map portion corresponding to the received location information is determined. At or prior to the download time, it is determined whether the map portion can be downloaded at that particular time based on one or more factors. If the map portion can be downloaded at that time, the map portion is downloaded to a device associated with the user. The map portion is then removed from the device associated with the user on or after the end date.

Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for facilitating a download of a specific portion of a map onto a computing device based on information received from a location-aware service. Location information, a start date, and an end date associated with travel plans of a user are received from, for example, a location-aware application or service. A download time corresponding to when to download a map portion corresponding to the received location information is determined. At or prior to the download time, it is determined whether the map portion can be downloaded at that particular time based on one or more factors. If the map portion can be downloaded at that time, the map portion is downloaded to a device associated with the user. The map portion is then removed from the device associated with the user on or after the end date.

Abstract: Techniques for modifying and presenting instructions for traversing a route include obtaining original instructions and receiving input to modify the instructions. The instructions may be modified and/or annotated based on the input received to provide more intuitive and helpful instructions for traversing a route. The modified instructions may be presented to a user of a computing device as the computing device traverses the route. The modifications and/or annotations to the original instructions may be presented as the computing device traverses the route based at least in part on the location and/or speed of the computing device on the route.

Abstract: Examples are provided that relate to inking inputs made to a map displayed on a computing device. One example provides, on a computing device, a method comprising displaying a map on a display device operatively coupled to the computing device, receiving user input of one or more inking inputs on the displayed map and displaying an annotation for each inking input received, determining a map location of each of the one or more inking inputs, determining an intended meaning of each of the one or more inking inputs based upon one or more features of the inking inputs, and performing an action on the computing device based at least on the map location and the intended meaning determined for each of the one or more inking inputs.

Abstract: An application programming interface is provided by an operating system that includes a direct composition engine. The composition engine maintains a data structure that represents the display objects to be rendered on a desktop display. The application programming interface allows an application to write data to the data structure to update the display object, such as a window, for the application. Thus, multiple applications can update their respective display objects in this data structure. The direct composition engine is an operating system level process, presented to user-level processes as a service of the operating system. By having an operating system level process, performance standards can be maintained. The application programming interface also allows applications to provide display information that can be rendered more efficiently by the operating system than by the application.