Abstract: An online service provider is equipped to receive a request from a client to access a subscribed online service of a subscriber at the online service provider. Comprising the request is a globally unique identifier (GUID) of the subscriber. Once the request is received, the online service provider, determines if the GUID is associated with the subscriber, and if the GUID is associated with the subscriber, the online service provider facilitates access to the subscribed online service of the subscriber. As a result, a user is able to access online services without having to manage several a logon Id and password pair. In one embodiment, the GUID is also caused to be stored in an email with an email service provider. The novel storage enables the subscriber to access his/her subscribed services from another location, or even after the subscriber has reconfigured the original location.

Abstract: A recursive scheme is employed to compress image data, wherein areas of a pixel grid corresponding to the image data are divided into increasingly smaller triangles based on the level of detail contained within each triangle. Data is stored defining each of the triangles and actual/predicted component values corresponding to pixels within each triangle. For each triangle, a set of predicted component values are determined, based on actual component values at the vertices of the triangle or actual component values on or proximate to the edges of the triangle. The predicted component values for the pixels are compared with the corresponding actual component values to see if a similarity threshold is met. If met, the processing of a current triangle is complete and the processing of a next triangle begins. If not, the current triangle is divided, and the foregoing process is then repeated. Texture mapping may also be applied.