SYSTEM HAVING MOVIE CLIP OBJECT CONTROLLING AN EXTERNAL NATIVE APPLICATION

• US 20100040346A1
• Filed: 08/12/2008
• Published: 02/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: 8758271 Canada Inc. (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Streatch, Paul, Maclean, Roger, Dodge, Dan
• Granted Patent: US 9,014,530 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/248
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1415 with means for detecting differences between the image stored in the host and the images displayed on the displays
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0247 Flicker reduction other than flicker reduction circuits used for single beam cathode-ray tubes
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/04 Changes in size, position or resolution of an image
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/02 Graphics controller able to handle multiple formats, e.g. input or output formats
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/12 Synchronisation between the display unit and other units, e.g. other display units, video-disc players
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 19/025 'Virtual' control panels, e.g. Graphical User Interface [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

A system comprises a movie clip environment in which a movie clip object is defined, and a native application that is external to the movie clip environment. The native application renders an image to an off-screen surface of the system. A composition manager is responsive to communications from the movie clip object to control where the off-screen surface is to be rendered on a display screen. The composition manager may be responsive to communications from the movie clip object to direct the native application to control one or more properties of the image of the off-screen surface.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a movie clip environment in which a movie clip object is defined;

a native application that is external to the movie clip environment, where the native application renders an image to an off-screen surface of the system; and

a composition manager responsive to communications from the movie clip object to control where the image of the off-screen surface is rendered on a display screen.

2. The system of claim 1, where the composition manager is responsive to communications from the movie clip object to direct the native application to control a property of the off-screen surface.

3. The system of claim 2, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises rotation of the image of the off-screen surface.

4. The system of claim 1, where the native application provides information about the off-screen surface to the composition manager.

5. The system of claim 1, where the movie clip object shadows the native application to pass mouse movement, mouse selection, and text input to the shadowed native application through the composition manager.

6. The system of claim 1, where the composition manager is responsive to communications from the movie clip object to determine whether the off-screen surface is visible on the display screen.

7. The system of claim 2, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a size of the off-screen surface.

8. The system of claim 2, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a resolution of the off-screen surface.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of movie clip objects associated with a plurality of off-screen surfaces rendered by respective native applications, where each movie clip is respectively associated with an off-screen surface.

10. The system of claim 1, where the native application comprises a web browser.

11. The system of claim 1, where the native application comprises a DVD player application.

12. The system of claim 1, where the native application comprises a navigation application.

13. A system comprising:

movie clip environment means for generating a movie clip object;

native application means for rendering an image to an off-screen surface of the system that is external to the movie clip environment; and

composition manager means for controlling where the off-screen surface is rendered on a display in response to communications from the movie clip object.

14. The system of claim 13, where the composition manager means is responsive to communications from the movie clip object to direct the native application means to control a property of the off-screen surface.

15. The system of claim 14, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a resolution of the off-screen surface.

16. The system of claim 13, where the native application means provides information about the off-screen surface to the composition manager means.

17. The system of claim 13, where the movie clip object shadows the native application means to pass mouse movement, mouse selection, and text input to the shadowed native application means through the composition manager means.

18. The system of claim 14, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a size of the off-screen surface.

19. The system of claim 14, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises rotation of the image of the off-screen surface.

20. The system of claim 14, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a color characteristic of the image of the off-screen surface.

21. The system of claim 13, further comprising a plurality of movie clip objects associated with a plurality of off-screen surfaces rendered by respective native application means, where each movie clip is respectively associated with an off-screen surface.

22. The system of claim 13, where the native application means comprises a web browser.

23. The system of claim 13, where the native application means comprises a DVD player application.

24. The system of claim 13, where the native application means comprises a navigation application.

25. A method for operating a processing system comprising:

defining a movie clip object in a movie clip environment;

using a native application associated with a movie clip object to render an image to an off-screen surface; and

using the movie clip object to control a property of the off-screen surface rendered by the native application, where the property corresponds to a property associated with rendering of the off-screen surface to a display screen.

26. The method of claim 25, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises rotation of an image of the off-screen surface.

27. The method of claim 25, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a resolution of the off-screen surface.

28. The method of claim 25, further comprising using the movie clip object to shadow the image application to pass mouse movement, mouse selection, and text input to the shadowed image application.

29. The method of claim 25, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a position of the off-screen surface with respect to the display screen.

30. The method of claim 25, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a size of the off-screen surface.

31. A system comprising:

a movie clip environment in which a movie clip object is defined;

a native application that is external to the movie clip environment, where the native application renders an image to an off-screen surface of the system; and

a composition manager responsive to communications from the movie clip object to direct the native application to control a property of the off-screen surface.

32. The system of claim 31, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises rotation of the image of the off-screen surface.

33. The system of claim 31, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a resolution of the off-screen surface.

34. The system of claim 31, where the native application provides information about the off-screen surface to the composition manager.

35. The system of claim 31, where the movie clip object shadows the native application to pass mouse movement, mouse selection, and text input to the shadowed native application.

36. The system of claim 31, where the composition manager is responsive to communications from the movie clip object to determine whether the off-screen surface is to be visible on the display screen.

37. The system of claim 31, where the property of the off-screen surface comprises a size of the off-screen surface.

38. The system of claim 31, further comprising a plurality of movie clip objects associated with a plurality of off-screen surfaces rendered by respective native applications, where each movie clip is respectively associated with an off-screen surface.

39. The system of claim 31, where the native application comprises a web browser.

40. The system of claim 31, where the native application comprises a DVD player application.

41. The system of claim 31, where the native application comprises a navigation application.