CONTENT COMPILATION

• US 20140075314A1
• Filed: 05/13/2013
• Published: 03/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Bachman, William M., Frick, Brian R., Martin, Timothy B., Robbin, Jeffrey L., Sanders, Christopher J.
• Granted Patent: US 9,218,118 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/716
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/61 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to techniques for enabling easy generation, editing, and access to digital content compilations, such as playlists, etc. Specifically, embodiments of the present disclosure employ one or more graphical user-interfaces that provide a playlist toolbar (e.g., a sidebar) after determining a user wishes to access a digital content compilation. Further, predictions may be made to determine potential activities associated with these compilations based upon previous actions performed by the user.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, comprising computer-readable instructions to:

provide a graphical user-interface of a digital content player, the graphical user-interface configured to display content in a content view;

analyze an activity performed by a user in the graphical user-interface to determine when a user request to access a digital content compilation is provided; and

provide a playlist tool in the graphical user-interface, without switching from the content view, when the user request is provided, wherein the playlist tool is configured to;

enable the content to be dragged from a currently displayed view of the graphical user-interface to the playlist tool; and

associate the content with a playlist provided in the playlist tool after the content is dragged to the playlist tool.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, comprising computer-readable instructions to:

provide a playlist configuration menu with an edit option, the edit option representing a request to edit a playlist;

wherein the request to access a digital content compilation is provided via the edit option.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, comprising computer readable instructions to:

display images related to the associated content in the playlist tool, after the content is associated with the playlist.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 3, comprising computer readable instructions to:

display the images related to the associated content in a title bar of the playlist tool, the images comprising cover artwork related to the associated content.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, comprising computer readable instructions to:

detect a drag of the content associated with the playlist in the playlist tool and re-order the dragged content based upon a position where the content is dragged to.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 5, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide a positioning bar between pieces of content associated with the playlist as the content is dragged, the positioning bar representing a location where the dragged content will be re-ordered when the dragged content is released.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide a library bar in the graphical user-interface configured to present a list of stored playlists;

provide a new playlist menu configured to enable creation of new playlists; and

provide an edit playlist menu configured to enable editing of playlists;

wherein new playlists may be generated by selecting options of the new playlist menu and any of the stored playlists may be selected and edited upon selecting options of the edit playlist menu.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide a new manually configured playlist option in the new playlist menu, configured to enable manual creation of a new manually configured playlist;

provide a new playlist from selection option in the new playlist menu, configured to enable automatic creation of a playlist based upon content selected in the content view;

or provide a smart playlist option, configured to enable automatic creation of a smart playlist based upon attributes of the content, activities associated with the content that are known by the digital content player, or both;

or

any combination thereof.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide a new playlist folder option in the new playlist menu, configured to enable creation of a folder configured to store one or more of the stored playlists or any new playlists that are generated after the folder is created.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide a duplicate option in the edit playlist menu, configured to duplicate one of the stored playlists that is currently selected;

provide a burn option in the edit playlist menu, configured to enable one of the stored playlists that is currently selected to be copied to an external location;

provide a share option, configured to enable one of the stored playlists that is currently selected to be shared;

provide an edit option, configured to enable content of one of the stored playlists that is currently selected to be modified;

provide a rename option, configured to enable a name of one of the stored playlists that is currently selected to be modified;

provide a delete option, configured to enable one of the stored playlists that is currently selected to be removed from the digital content player;

or

any combination thereof.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, comprising computer readable instructions to:

detect the selection of one of the stored playlists via the library bar;

provide a playlist screen in the graphical user-interface when the selection is detected, wherein the playlist screen comprises a listing of content associated with the selected one of the stored playlists; and

provide images associated with the listing of content in the playlist screen.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, comprising computer readable instructions to:

provide the images in a title bar of the playlist screen, wherein the images are progressively faded in the title bar.

13. A system comprising:

a computer comprising a processor configured to execute computer-readable instructions;

a storage device configured to store one or more pieces of digital content; and

a digital content player, executed via the processor of the computer, configured to;

present a listing of the one or more pieces of digital content in a content view;

detect a request to perform a playlist activity;

provide a playlist toolbar based upon the detected request, wherein the playlist toolbar is configured to provide information regarding a particular playlist without switching from the content view.

14. The system of claim 13, comprising an “

Add to”

menu configured to provide one or more options of available locations where the one or more pieces of digital content may be placed.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more options of available locations comprise:

content storage of an electronic device associated with the digital content player, a playlist storage area of the electronic device, one or more manually configured playlists associated with the digital content player, or a combination thereof.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the “

Add to”

menu is presented in the graphical user-interface when the digital content player detects a desire to add content to a new location.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the digital content player detects the desire to add content to the new location based upon dragging of the content from the content view or elsewhere in the graphical user-interface.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the “

Add to”

menu is provided as a sidebar that is revealed from the right side of the graphical user-interface.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the digital content player is configured to associate dragged digital content with the one or more options of available locations when the dragged digital content is released over one of the one or more options of available locations.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein at least one of the one or more options of available locations comprises a manually configured playlist, and the digital content player is configured to provide the playlist toolbar to enable ordering of dragged content within a playlist associated with the manually configured playlist when dragged content is hovered over the one or more options comprising the manually configured playlist.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the digital content player is configured to remove the playlist toolbar, re-presenting the “

Add to”

menu, when the dragged content is dragged outside the playlist toolbar.

22. The system of claim 13, wherein the playlist toolbar is configured to present a sorting menu, the sorting menu comprising:

a manual order option configured to enable manual selection of an order of content within a playlist;

a name option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist alphabetically by name associated with the content within the playlist;

a time option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist by time length;

an artist option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist alphabetically by an artist name associated with the content within the playlist;

an album option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist alphabetically by an album name associated with the content within the playlist;

a rating option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist by ratings associated with the content within the playlist; and

a genre option configured to automatically sort the content in the playlist alphabetically by a genre associated with the content within the playlist.

23. A system comprising:

a computer comprising a processor configured to execute computer-readable instructions;

a storage device configured to store one or more pieces of digital content; and

a digital content player, executed via the processor of the computer, configured to;

present a listing of the one or more pieces of digital content in a content view;

monitor previous activities related to playlists of the one or more pieces of digital content;

provide one or more options for subsequent playlist activities based upon the previous playlist activities; and

provide a playlist toolbar based upon a detected selection of the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities, wherein the playlist toolbar is configured to provide information regarding a particular playlist without switching from the content view.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the digital content player is configured to provide the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities via a quick menu that is populated by providing an alternative selection input click on the one or more pieces of digital content in the content view.

25. The system of claim 23, wherein the digital content player is configured to provide the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities via a toolbar.

26. The system of claim 23, wherein the digital content player is configured to determine whether one or more of the pieces of digital content is selected;

and wherein, when one or more of the pieces of digital content is selected, the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities comprises an option to add the selected one or more pieces of digital content to a playlist that does not currently contain the one or more pieces of digital content or the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities comprises an option to remove the selected one or more pieces of digital content to a playlist that does currently contain the one or more pieces of digital content.

27. The system of claim 23, wherein the digital content player is configured to determine whether one or more of the pieces of digital content is selected;

and wherein, when one or more of the pieces of digital content is not selected, the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities comprises an option to edit a playlist.

28. The system of claim 23, wherein the previous activities comprise creation of a first playlist, editing of the first playlist, or a combination thereof, and the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities comprises an option to add new content to the first playlist, removing content from the first playlist, or editing the first playlist.

29. The system of claim 28, comprising providing the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities based upon the creation of the first playlist, the editing of the first playlist, or the combination thereof occurring within a threshold time period.

30. The system of claim 28, comprising providing the one or more options for subsequent playlist activities based upon the creation of the first playlist, the editing of the first playlist, or the combination thereof occurring as one of the more recent playlist activities.