Abstract: In one implementation, a computer-implemented method includes transmitting data over a first wireless connection with a first wireless access point; detecting, by the computing device, a wireless signal from a second wireless access point; accessing, for an account that is associated with a data service, information that identifies a portion of a budget for the account that has already been spent, wherein the budget identifies an amount of data that is available for transmission over a period of time in association with the account; determining whether the account currently has a budget deficit based on a comparison of i) the portion of the budget that has been spent and ii) a usage pattern; determining whether to switch to a second wireless connection with the second wireless access point; and establishing the second wireless connection as a result of the determining.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing definitions to a user. The provision embodies the context of a text in which the defined term appears. In one aspect, a system includes an electronic device that includes one or more data processing devices programmed to respond to receipt of the user selection of the first term by performing operations. The operations include accessing, from the one or more persistent data storage devices, the characterizations of the contexts of the texts, comparing the accessed characterizations of the contexts of the texts with one or more characteristics of the context of the textual content of a media file, and ranking the definitions of the first term according to respective likelihoods that the definitions appropriately characterize the usage of the first term within the textual content of the media file.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing definitions to a user. The provision embodies the context of a text in which the defined term appears. In one aspect, a system includes an electronic device that includes one or more data processing devices programmed to respond to receipt of the user selection of the first term by performing operations. The operations include accessing, from the one or more persistent data storage devices, the characterizations of the contexts of the texts, comparing the accessed characterizations of the contexts of the texts with one or more characteristics of the context of the textual content of a media file, and ranking the definitions of the first term according to respective likelihoods that the definitions appropriately characterize the usage of the first term within the textual content of the media file.

Abstract: In one implementation, a computer-implemented method includes transmitting data over a first wireless connection with a first wireless access point; detecting, by the computing device, a wireless signal from a second wireless access point; accessing, for an account that is associated with a data service, information that identifies a portion of a budget for the account that has already been spent, wherein the budget identifies an amount of data that is available for transmission over a period of time in association with the account; determining whether the account currently has a budget deficit based on a comparison of i) the portion of the budget that has been spent and ii) a usage pattern; determining whether to switch to a second wireless connection with the second wireless access point; and establishing the second wireless connection as a result of the determining.

Abstract: A feature of a computing device application may be selected by user or other input and then demonstrated using a demonstration application. The demonstration application may select simulated user inputs from a script or other source that, when input to the computing device application, drive it to demonstrate the selected feature. The demonstration application may then begin to input the one or more simulated user inputs to the computing device application. Before all of the simulated user inputs have been input, the demonstration application may determine that the user has interrupted the demonstration. In response to the determination, the demonstration application may cease inputting the simulated inputs, leaving the computing device application in the state it was in at the time of interruption, thereby enabling the user to explore the application or feature of the application being demonstrated at a time and in a manner of the user's choosing.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing definitions to a user. The provision embodies the context of a text in which the defined term appears. In one aspect, a system includes an electronic device that includes one or more data processing devices programmed to respond to receipt of the user selection of the first term by performing operations. The operations include accessing, from the one or more persistent data storage devices, the characterizations of the contexts of the texts, comparing the accessed characterizations of the contexts of the texts with one or more characteristics of the context of the textual content of a media file, and ranking the definitions of the first term according to respective likelihoods that the definitions appropriately characterize the usage of the first term within the textual content of the media file.

Abstract: A method for identifying anti aliased images of two or three colors makes use of the fact that in most anti-aliasing techniques, the color values of the source images are known with sub-pixel accuracy, e.g., the boundaries of text characters are described with arbitrary high precision and averaging ensures that the destination pixel values are interpolations of the two source colors so that all of the color values of the image lie on a single line, or a single plane, in 3-dimensional color space.

Abstract: A feature of a computing device application may be selected by user or other input and then demonstrated using a demonstration application. The demonstration application may select simulated user inputs from a script or other source that, when input to the computing device application, drive it to demonstrate the selected feature. The demonstration application may then begin to input the one or more simulated user inputs to the computing device application. Before all of the simulated user inputs have been input, the demonstration application may determine that the user has interrupted the demonstration. In response to the determination, the demonstration application may cease inputting the simulated inputs, leaving the computing device application in the state it was in at the time of interruption, thereby enabling the user to explore the application or feature of the application being demonstrated at a time and in a manner of the user's choosing.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing definitions to a user. The provision embodies the context of a text in which the defined term appears. In one aspect, a system includes an electronic device that includes one or more data processing devices programmed to respond to receipt of the user selection of the first term by performing operations. The operations include accessing, from the one or more persistent data storage devices, the characterizations of the contexts of the texts, comparing the accessed characterizations of the contexts of the texts with one or more characteristics of the context of the textual content of a media file, and ranking the definitions of the first term according to respective likelihoods that the definitions appropriately characterize the usage of the first term within the textual content of the media file.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing definitions to a user. The provision embodies the context of a text in which the defined term appears. In one aspect, a system includes an electronic device that includes one or more data processing devices programmed to respond to receipt of the user selection of the first term by performing operations. The operations include accessing, from the one or more persistent data storage devices, the characterizations of the contexts of the texts, comparing the accessed characterizations of the contexts of the texts with one or more characteristics of the context of the textual content of a media file, and ranking the definitions of the first term according to respective likelihoods that the definitions appropriately characterize the usage of the first term within the textual content of the media file.

Abstract: A system, including: a first current mirror having a first current, formed of multiple devices disposed on a substrate, where, when a stress is present, a behavior of a device of the multiple devices forming the first current mirror depends on a direction in which the device of the multiple devices forming the first current mirror is disposed on the substrate; a second current mirror having a second current, formed of multiple devices disposed on the substrate, where, when the stress is present, a behavior of a device of the multiple devices forming the second current mirror depends on a direction in which the device of the multiple devices forming the second current mirror is disposed on the substrate; and a device for measuring a ratio of a difference between the first current and the second current to a sum of the first current and the second current.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for performing on-chip voltage sampling of a weakly-driven node of a semiconductor device are disclosed. In some embodiments, the node is a floating node or is capacitively-driven. In some embodiments, it is involved in proximity-based communication. Sampling the node may include isolating the signal to be sampled using a source-follower amplifier before passing it to the sampling circuit. Sampling the node may include biasing the node to a desired voltage using a leaky transistor or other biasing circuit. In some embodiments, the biasing circuit may also be used to calibrate the sampler by coupling one or more calibration voltages to the node in place of a biasing voltage and measuring the sampler output. The sampler may be suitable for sub-sampling high frequency signals to produce a time-expanded, lower frequency version of the signals. The output of the sampler may be a current communicated off-chip for testing.

Abstract: A method for identifying anti aliased images of two or three colors makes use of the fact that in most anti-aliasing techniques, the color values of the source images are known with sub-pixel accuracy, e.g., the boundaries of text characters are described with arbitrary high precision and averaging ensures that the destination pixel values are interpolations of the two source colors so that all of the color values of the image lie on a single line, or a single plane, in 3-dimensional color space.

Abstract: A system, including: a first current mirror having a first current, formed of multiple devices disposed on a substrate, where, when a stress is present, a behavior of a device of the multiple devices forming the first current mirror depends on a direction in which the device of the multiple devices forming the first current mirror is disposed on the substrate; a second current mirror having a second current, formed of multiple devices disposed on the substrate, where, when the stress is present, a behavior of a device of the multiple devices forming the second current mirror depends on a direction in which the device of the multiple devices forming the second current mirror is disposed on the substrate; and a device for measuring a ratio of a difference between the first current and the second current to a sum of the first current and the second current.

Abstract: A method for identifying anti aliased images of two or three colors makes use of the fact that in most anti-aliasing techniques, the color values of the source images are known with sub-pixel accuracy, e.g., the boundaries of text characters are described with arbitrary high precision and averaging ensures that the destination pixel values are interpolations of the two source colors so that all of the color values of the image lie on a single line, or a single plane, in 3-dimensional color space.

Abstract: A method for compressing two color anti-aliased images takes advantage of the fact that when two color anti-aliased images are present, it is often the case that the two base colors appear in adjacent or continuous series or “runs” of pixels representing the same color. According to one embodiment to the present invention, these runs are identified and then the color and run length are encoded to produce increased compression efficiency.

Abstract: A device is described, including a first diffusion region having a first terminal, a second diffusion region having a second terminal, and a channel region disposed between the first diffusion region and the second diffusion region. Further, the first terminal and the second terminal are offset to enable a non-Manhattan current flow. A system is also described, including the previously described device and a second transistor. The pathway for the flow of the majority of the current carriers in the device defines a first direction. The second transistor also has at least two terminals, and a pathway for a majority of current carriers between the two terminals defines a second direction. The angle between the first direction and the second direction is nonzero and acute.

Abstract: A computer system includes a substrate on which a first current mirror and a second current mirror are disposed. When a stress is present, a behavior, e.g., carrier mobility, of at least one of the devices in each of the first current mirror and the second current mirror is dependent on a direction in which that device is disposed on the substrate. Further, one of the devices in the first current mirror is disposed in a non-parallel orientation with respect to one of the devices in the second current mirror.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for performing on-chip voltage sampling of a weakly-driven node of a semiconductor device are disclosed. In some embodiments, the node is a floating node or is capacitively-driven. In some embodiments, it is involved in proximity-based communication. Sampling the node may include isolating the signal to be sampled using a source-follower amplifier before passing it to the sampling circuit. Sampling the node may include biasing the node to a desired voltage using a leaky transistor or other biasing circuit. In some embodiments, the biasing circuit may also be used to calibrate the sampler by coupling one or more calibration voltages to the node in place of a biasing voltage and measuring the sampler output. The sampler may be suitable for sub-sampling high frequency signals to produce a time-expanded, lower frequency version of the signals. The output of the sampler may be a current communicated off-chip for testing.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for performing on-chip voltage sampling of a weakly-driven node of a semiconductor device are disclosed. In some embodiments, the node is a floating node or is capacitively-driven. In some embodiments, it is involved in proximity-based communication. Sampling the node may include isolating the signal to be sampled using a source-follower amplifier before passing it to the sampling circuit. Sampling the node may include biasing the node to a desired voltage using a leaky transistor or other biasing circuit. In some embodiments, the biasing circuit may also be used to calibrate the sampler by coupling one or more calibration voltages to the node in place of a biasing voltage and measuring the sampler output. The sampler may be suitable for sub-sampling high frequency signals to produce a time-expanded, lower frequency version of the signals. The output of the sampler may be a current communicated off-chip for testing.