METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PANOPLEX GENERATION AND GRYPHING

• US 20070150889A1
• Filed: 06/30/2006
• Published: 06/28/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alan Shapiro
• Original Assignee: Alan Shapiro
• Inventors: Shapiro, Alan
• Application Number:
  US11/428,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20070150889A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/13 File access structures, e.g. distributed indices arrangements of input from, or output to, record carriers G06F3/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/162 Delete operations erasing in storage systems G06F3/0652
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/164 File meta data generation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/62 Uninstallation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/63 Image based installation; Cloning; Build to order
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/123 Shopping for digital content
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99953 Recoverability
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99956 File allocation

Abstract

An apparatus and method for obtaining a storage medium with a deeply customizable set of installed content. Soft assets (e.g., programs, songs, videos, etc.) that form the content are selected from among a much larger set of preinstalled soft assets previously stored on storage media, such as disk drives. In some embodiments, based on a user'"'"'s selections, the non-selected assets are permanently erased from a storage medium, while the remaining assets are available as installed (wherein substantially no further processing is required to install them). In some embodiments, a new device uses the storage medium to provide its user with a fully functional device without the need to separately install the soft assets from a plurality of sources (e.g., from program-distribution CDROMS and the like). Some embodiments include the storage medium having the soft assets installed, and including a program that elicits selections from a user and erases non-selected assets.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for distributing ready-to-use soft assets in an end-user device, the method comprising:

producing a prewritten superset of ready-to-use, pre-loaded, but obscured soft assets on an intransient signal carrier, wherein the prewritten superset includes a plurality of pre-loaded soft assets in an obscured state;

subsequently displaying a set of choices of the pre-loaded soft assets from which a customized first subset of the installed soft assets that are to be retained are chosen, and wherein the set of choices from which a customer can arbitrarily choose includes substantially all those pre-loaded soft assets that are contained in the superset of prewritten pre-loaded soft assets already on the intransient signal carrier;

subsequently receiving selection data provided by the customer that distinguishes the first subset of the pre-loaded soft assets that are to be retained from a second subset of the pre-loaded soft assets that are not to be retained; and

automatically modifying the intransient signal carrier based on the selection data, wherein the modifying includes;

automatically culling the second subset such that erased space is available in place of the second subset of installed soft assets that are not to be retained, and

unobscuring the first subset of soft assets that are to be retained so the first subset of soft assets are available on the intransient signal carrier to an end user as installed and substantially ready-to-use.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier includes a rotating storage medium.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier includes a magnetic disk storage system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier includes an electrically erasable solid-state memory.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the modifying of the intransient signal carrier includes erasing one or more blocks of data containing at least some of the non-selected installed soft assets.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the one or more blocks of data that are erased are located in a first storage space in an electrically erasable solid-state memory, and the first storage space becomes available for storage of other data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of installed soft assets on the intransient signal carrier forms part of a panoplex, wherein the non-selected soft assets form relicta, and wherein the panoplex further includes a first data structure having digital-asset-identification information and location information configured to facilitate erasure of the relicta.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier further includes a first data structure, and wherein the first data structure includes a registry in a location other than a location used by an operating system as a registry.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier further includes a first data structure, and wherein the first data structure includes data indicating an order in which the soft assets were installed.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier further includes a first data structure, wherein the non-selected soft assets form relicta, and wherein the first data structure includes data indicating an order in which the relicta are to be uninstalled.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the intransient signal carrier includes a first end-user storage medium, and the providing of the intransient signal carrier further comprises:

connecting a first installation storage medium to a computer;

installing the plurality of installed soft assets onto the first installation storage medium to create a first panoplex in which the plurality of installed soft assets are substantially ready to use by the end user;

copying the first panoplex to the first end-user storage medium in which the installed soft assets are substantially ready to use by the end user operating a device that includes and uses the storage medium.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the copying of the first panoplex to the first end-user storage medium further comprises:

copying the first panoplex from the first installation storage medium to a master storage medium having at least one other panoplex stored thereon; and

copying the first panoplex from the master storage medium to the first end-user storage medium.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the first panoplex further includes a directory data structure having identification information and location information of the plurality of installed soft assets, a registry data structure having operational information necessary to run a plurality of computer programs contained within the plurality of installed soft assets, and a gryphing-order data structure having information concerning an order for removing relicta information from the directory data structure and the registry data structure.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the modifying of the intransient signal carrier such that erased space is available in place of non-selected installed soft assets is performed before the intransient signal carrier is installed in an end-user'"'"'s information processing device.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the modifying of the intransient signal carrier such that erased space is available in place of non-selected installed soft assets is performed after the intransient signal carrier is installed in an end-user'"'"'s information processing device.

8. A computer-implemented method comprising:

providing an intransient signal carrier having a prewritten plurality of installed soft assets, wherein the prewritten plurality of installed soft assets constitutes a set of choices of soft assets from which a subset of the installed soft assets that are to be retained is chosen, wherein the plurality of installed soft assets on the intransient signal carrier form part of a panoplex, and wherein the panoplex further includes a directory data structure in a location other than a location used by an operating system as a directory;

obtaining selection data distinguishing the subset of installed soft assets that is to be retained from a subset that is not to be retained; and

modifying the intransient signal carrier based on the selection data, including writing the directory data structure to the location used by the operating system for the directory such that erased space is available in place of the non-selected subset of installed soft assets that is not to be retained and the selected subset of installed soft assets that is to be retained is available to an end user as installed and substantially ready-to-use.

9. A computer-implemented method comprising:

providing an intransient signal carrier having a prewritten plurality of installed soft assets, wherein the prewritten plurality of installed soft assets constitute a set of choices of soft assets from which a subset of the installed soft assets that are to be retained are chosen, wherein the intransient signal carrier further includes a first data structure, and wherein the first data structure includes directory information in a location other than a location used by an operating system for a directory;

obtaining selection data distinguishing the subset of installed soft assets that is to be retained from a subset that is not to be retained; and

modifying the intransient signal carrier based on the selection data, including writing directory information to the location used by the operating system for the directory such that erased space is available in place of the non-selected subset of installed soft assets that is not to be retained and the selected subset of installed soft assets that are to be retained is available to an end user as installed and substantially ready-to-use.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a functional container that includes;

an end-user storage medium to which data can be written and from which data can be read, and configured to retain the data, and further having an interface operable to couple the storage medium to an end-user functional device;

a file structure mediating logical information to and from physical locations within the storage medium;

a collection of individually end-user-accessible pre-loaded soft assets stored on the end-user storage medium, wherein the end-user storage medium is not yet connected to the end-user functional device; and

wherein the storage medium serves as both an inventory of selectable pre-loaded soft assets and a vehicle to deliver and sideload the selected installed soft assets to the end-user functional device.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the storage medium has been gryphed and culled such that the selected installed soft assets are available for use by and for an end user, and the non-selected soft assets are removed.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising a functional electronic device operatively coupled to the functional container after the storage medium has been gryphed and culled, such that the device is customized and ready-to-use.

19. An apparatus comprising:

a new readable and writable gryphed end-user digital storage medium device containing a customized plurality of user-specified installed soft assets selected from a set of soft assets;

wherein the gryphed end-user storage medium is not yet connected to an end-user functional device, and

residual indicia of other soft assets that are in an erased state, wherein the other soft assets are also selected from the set of soft assets.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the storage medium device provides a dispensing unit having a pre-installed plurality of soft assets and including a computer program to transform the assets into a first subset that is dispensed and a second subset that is not dispensed.