Alternate display content controller
First Claim
1. A method for displaying an image on a video display system in an area outside of a display area generated with a video mode having two dimensions, each dimension having a number of pixels, in a computer system running an operating system which presents a user interface fully occupying said display area, comprising:
- a. adjusting parameters for said video display system to increase the number of pixels in a dimension of said video display system by a number of pixels less than or equal to the difference between the number of pixels specified in said video mode and a maximum number of pixels which said video display system can effectively display;
b. within said computer system, addressing video display memory for said pixels;
c. writing said image to said video display memory; and
d. displaying said image from said video display memory onto said video display system along side said display area.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An alternate display content controller provides a technique for controlling a video display separately from and in addition to the content displayed on the operating system monitor. Where the display is a computer monitor, the alternate display content controller interacts with the computer utility operating system and hardware drivers to control allocation of display space and create and control one or more parallel graphical user interfaces adjacent the operating system desktop. An alternate display content controller may be incorporated in either hardware or software. As software, an alternate display content controller may be an application running on the computer operating system, or may include an operating system kernel of varying complexity ranging from dependent on the utility operating system for hardware system services to a parallel system independent of the utility operating system and capable of supporting dedicated applications. The alternate display content controller may also include content and operating software delivered over the internet or any other LAN. The alternate display content controller may also be included in a television decoder/settop box to permit two or more parallel graphical user interfaces to be displayed simultaneously.
-
Citations
1 Claim
-
1. A method for displaying an image on a video display system in an area outside of a display area generated with a video mode having two dimensions, each dimension having a number of pixels, in a computer system running an operating system which presents a user interface fully occupying said display area, comprising:
-
a. adjusting parameters for said video display system to increase the number of pixels in a dimension of said video display system by a number of pixels less than or equal to the difference between the number of pixels specified in said video mode and a maximum number of pixels which said video display system can effectively display;
b. within said computer system, addressing video display memory for said pixels;
c. writing said image to said video display memory; and
d. displaying said image from said video display memory onto said video display system along side said display area.
-
Specification