Systems and Methods for Managing Multimedia Operations in Remote Sessions

• US 20090248802A1
• Filed: 04/01/2008
• Published: 10/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Stoyanov, Vladimir, Mahajan, Rajneesh
• Granted Patent: US 8,433,812 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/544 Remote
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/545 Gui
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/452 Remote windowing, e.g. X-Window System, desktop virtualisation protocols for virtual reality H04L67/131
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/363 Graphics controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4015 where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

Techniques relating to managing multimedia transmissions in terminal services scenarios are described. In an example, a method sends a user-interface component from a server to a remote client. The exemplary method further streams a media component for presentation on the remote client in combination with the user-interface component and the media presentation is tracked but not displayed by the server.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage media comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, perform acts, comprising:

receive a media playback command specific to a media platform supported on a server in a collaboration session; and

,

translate the platform specific media playback command into a generic media playback command for transmission to a client.

2. A method as recited in claim 1 further comprising presenting a user interface at the client, in a media presentation window, and tracking changes to the media presentation window.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein a media application is instantiated as a media presentation window on a user-interface component and wherein said tracking comprises assigning a unique identifier to the media presentation window and wherein changes to the media presentation window are relayed to the client to allow the media presentation window to be oriented relative to the user-interface component.

4. A method as recited in claim 1 further comprising sending commands over a first network channel established by the collaboration session, and streaming data over a second different channel.

5. A method as recited in claim 4, wherein the second different channel is established by the collaboration session.

6. A method as recited in claim 1 further comprising prior to said streaming:

determining a format of the media;

evaluating a capacity of the client to decode and render the media in the format.

7. A method as recited in claim 6, in an event that the client lacks a capacity to decode and render the media in the existing format, further comprising decoding the media and re-encoding the media in a second different format which the client is configured to handle.

8. A method as recited in claim 1 further comprising, responsive to the presentation command:

establishing a virtual channel connection with the client,

negotiating formats which are supported by both the source and the client; and

,

setting up a distributed topology with the client.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, wherein the setting-up a distributed topology comprises inserting a network transmitter at the source and a network receiver at the client.

10. A server comprising:

a user-interface-component that includes graphics and images that compose a user-interface; and

a media component that includes media presentation data to be played through the user-interface-component, wherein a platform specific command is translated to a generic media playback command or a media platform supported on a remote terminal session client.

11. The server as recited in claim 10, wherein the user-interface component comprises a media application window.

12. The server as recited in claim 11, wherein the media component is configured to be presented in a media presentation target window within the media application window.

13. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein the media presentation data is tracked by tracking the media presentation target window relative to the media application window.

14. The server as recited in claim 13, wherein the tracking comprises relaying the relative position of the media presentation target window relative to the media application window to the remote client.

15. The server as recited in claim 13, wherein the tracking comprises inserting a placeholder on the server desktop which represents the media presentation target window and tracking any changes affecting the placeholder.

16. The server as recited in claim 10 further comprising determining what media formats are supported by the remote client.

17. The server as recited in claim 10 further comprising establishing a distributed topology with the remote client.

18. The server as recited in claim 10, wherein the sending and the streaming occur in a terminal services session.

19. A system, comprising:

a mechanism for receiving a platform specific media playback command generated responsive to a user-entered media playback command in a collaboration session; and

,

a mechanism for abstracting the platform specific media playback command into a platform generic media playback command.