APPLICATIONS INCLUDING MULTIPLE EXPERIENCE MODULES

• US 20110321028A1
• Filed: 06/23/2010
• Published: 12/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Evans, Christopher A., Pearce, Jeffrey T., Elsbree, John, Neff, Chad C., Minwalla, Nosherwan, Sather, Dale A., Jensen, Scott, Mengle, Advay V., Kahn, Louis M., Osmanovic, Nermin, Rajakumar, Rajadurai Isaac, Schröder, Manuel A., Temereanca, Ovidiu G.
• Granted Patent: US 9,672,022 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1873 Versioning file systems, temporal file systems, e.g. file system supporting different historic versions of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/658 Incremental updates; Differential updates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44536 Selecting among different versions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues

Abstract

An application on a device includes multiple experience modules that each implement a set of features when the application is running on the device. Each of the multiple experience modules includes a first component that includes code specific to a particular type of the device, and a second component that includes code that is common across multiple types of devices. Update packages changing individual ones of the multiple experience modules can be received from a deployment service and installed on the device.

Claims

1. A method in a device, the method comprising:

installing, on the device, an application that includes multiple experience modules that each implement a set of features when the application is running, each of the multiple experience modules including a first component that includes code specific to a particular type of the device, and a second component that includes code that is common across multiple types of devices; and

running, on the device, the application in response to a request to run the application.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the application is run in an application shell on the device, and wherein the first component includes presentation logic and resources specific to one or more types of devices including the particular type of the device, and the code that is common across multiple types of devices comprises business logic that is common across the particular type of device as well as other types of devices.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the multiple types of devices include a computer type of device, a mobile type of device, and a television based type of device, and wherein the particular type of the device is one of the multiple types of devices.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising isolating the multiple experience modules from one another to prevent each of the multiple experience modules from directly accessing the other of the multiple experience modules.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from a first of the multiple experience modules, a message including a requested action;

sending the message to a second of the multiple experience modules;

receiving, from the second of the multiple experience modules, a response message that includes a response to the message including the requested action; and

sending the response message to the first of the multiple experience modules.

6. A method as recited in claim 5, further comprising:

receiving, from each of the multiple experience modules, an indication of one or more actions that the experience module can perform;

receiving, from one or more of the multiple experience modules, a request to identify one of the multiple experience modules that can perform a particular action; and

returning, to the one or more of the multiple experience modules, an indication of one of the multiple experience modules that can perform the particular action.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from a first of the multiple experience modules, a request;

sending the request to an additional device on which the application is installed;

receiving, from the additional device, a response to the request; and

sending the response to the first of the multiple experience modules.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

sending, to a deployment service, a request to check for updates;

receiving, from the deployment service, an indication of one or more update packages for one or more of the multiple experience modules;

receiving, from the deployment service, the one or more update packages for the one or more of the multiple experience modules; and

installing, on the device, the one or more update packages.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

determining, based on the indication of the one or more update packages, whether the one or more update packages are to be installed immediately; and

installing the one or more update packages prior to running the application a next time if it is determined that the one or more update packages are to be installed immediately.

10. One or more computer storage media having stored thereon multiple instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:

maintain a catalog of different update packages for different experience modules of an application, the application including multiple experience modules that each implement a set of features when the application is running on a device, each of the multiple experience modules including a first component that includes presentation logic and resources specific to a particular type of the device, and a second component that includes business logic that is common across multiple types of devices;

determine, whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device; and

send, to the device, the update package if there is an update package that applies to the application on the device.

11. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple types of devices include a computer type of device, a mobile type of device, and a television based type of device, and wherein the particular type of the device is one of the multiple types of devices.

12. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the update package for one of the multiple experience modules identifies a change to a component in the one of the multiple experience modules.

13. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to:

receive a request to check whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device, the request including a current master version number of the application on the device; and

determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device based at least in part on whether a master version number in the catalog indicates a newer version of the application exists.

14. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to maintain multiple different update packages for the application, and determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device based at least in part on the particular type of the device.

15. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to maintain multiple different update packages for the application, and determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device based at least in part on a user of the device.

16. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to maintain multiple different update packages for the application, and determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device based at least in part on a geographic location of the device.

17. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein to determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device is to determine whether there is an update package that applies to the application on the device in response to an update check request received from the device.

18. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to:

send an indication of the update package to the device;

receive a request for the update package from the device; and

return the update package to the device in response to the request for the update package.

19. One or more computer storage media as recited in claim 10, wherein the multiple instructions further cause the one or more processors to send to the device an indication of the update package, the indication of the update package including:

a master version number of the application;

an experience module identifier indicating one of the multiple experience modules that is changed by the update package;

an experience module version number of the changed one of the multiple experience modules; and

an indication of whether the update package is to be installed by the device immediately or can be deferred.

20. A method in a deployment service, the method comprising:

maintaining a repository of multiple update packages for different experience modules of an application, the application including multiple experience modules that each implement a set of features when the application is running on a device, each of the multiple experience modules including a first component that includes presentation logic and resources specific to a particular type of the device, and a second component that includes business logic that is common across multiple types of devices;

maintaining a catalog of information describing the multiple update packages, the catalog including, for each of the multiple update packages;

a master version number of the application,

an experience module identifier indicating one of the multiple experience modules that is changed by the update package,

an experience module version number of the changed one of the multiple experience modules,

a device type mask indicating one or more types of devices to which the update package applies, and

an indication of whether the update package is to be installed by the device immediately or can be deferred;

determining, based on the catalog, whether one or more of the multiple update packages applies to the application on the device; and

sending, to the device, each of the multiple update packages that applies to the application on the device.