SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CREATING AND SHARING NONLINEAR SLIDE-BASED MUTLIMEDIA PRESENTATIONS AND VISUAL DISCUSSIONS COMPRISING COMPLEX STORY PATHS AND DYNAMIC SLIDE OBJECTS

• US 20140282013A1
• Filed: 12/09/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Afzal Amijee
• Original Assignee: Afzal Amijee
• Inventors: Amijee, Afzal
• Granted Patent: US 9,477,380 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/732
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus

Abstract

The invention provides computer-implemented means for engaging in visual discussions of slide-based multimedia content comprising nonlinear and complex, multidimensional data structures which convey narratives to one or more members of an audience, said data structures comprising visual depictions of slide content displayed as discrete pages linked according to spatial and temporal relationships and portrayed in a virtual discussion space, wherein said visual depictions comprise proportional and accurate, interactive graphical representations of said data structures. Multiple parties using mobile devices and individually distinguishable identities may participate in the generation and editing of said data structures in said visual discussion space, thereby participating in said virtual discussions; and a plurality of advantageous means for navigating among and controlling the behavior of virtual slides therein are provided.

Claims

1. A system for making and using non-linear slide-based multimedia presentations, the system comprising:

a computer comprising at least one processor and at least one memory means and at least one output means, where said output means comprises a means for displaying video output; and

a computer-implemented presentation software program, the program comprising logic encoding a plurality of program features, said program features comprising;

a graphical user interface comprising a plurality of control means for interacting with one or more of a slide object of a slide collection,

wherein said slide object comprises a container means for containing a plurality of slide content data and wherein said slide object also comprises a linking means,

wherein said linking means comprises means for designating one or more additional slide objects as being adjacently connected by a story link to said slide object; and

,

a slide collection mode, wherein the slide collection comprises a story map corresponding to one or more of a story data structure, said story data structure comprising at least one slide object and at least one story path,

wherein the at least one story path comprises a contiguous series of linked slide objects, such that a first slide object is contiguously connected by one or more intervening story links to a last slide object,

and wherein said story map comprises an interactive graphical representation of said story data structure such that each of said slide objects and each of said story links is represented by a corresponding page image and a corresponding story link image, respectively, and such that one or more of said control means enables at least one user to functionally interact with said story data structure; and

,

means for engaging in a visual discussion comprising a visual discussion space for portraying the interactive graphical representation of said story data structure; and

,

means for generating a presentation output and means for displaying said presentation output via the at least one output means of the system; and

,

at least one of an embedded media library, said media library comprising means for organizing, viewing, searching, and sharing one or a plurality of user-generated content.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said linking means further comprises means for assigning one or more of a link descriptors to any of said story links, where said link descriptor comprises at least one direction value parameter, where said direction value parameter corresponds to a directional orientation of the link in a coordinate grid having a plurality of coordinate axes corresponding to a plurality of directions, said directions comprising at least an x-axis-dimension and a y-axis-dimension, within said coordinate grid.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a navigation control means for navigating among slide objects in the visual discussion space, wherein said navigation control means comprises a graphical control object resembling a compass having arms extending in a plurality of directions, said directions corresponding to axes within said coordinate grid.

4. The navigation control means of claim 3, further comprising graphical position-indicating means for indicating at least one depth parameter pertaining to a relative position of an active slide object among a plurality of other slide objects arranged along any of said directions within said coordinate grid.

5. The navigation control means of claim 4, wherein said graphical position indicating means comprises a linear series of punctae wherein a quantity of said punctae in said linear series indicates a value of said depth parameter and a fill status of any of said punctae in said linear series indicates said relative position of the active slide object within said coordinate grid.

6. The navigation control means of claim 5, wherein a first linear series of punctae is depicted in association with a second linear series of punctae, such that the depth parameter of a first dimension is depicted near the depth parameter of a second dimension, respectively.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the logic further comprises means for rapid page creation comprising means for capturing informative data derived from a source outside of the platform of the invention and means for automatically converting a quantum of said captured informative data into the slide content of a newly generated slide object.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said program features further comprises at least one commercial transaction mode, said commercial transaction mode comprising one or more of a means for buying, selling, and licensing one or more of said user-generated content.

9. The commercial transaction mode of claim 8, further comprising a forum hosted on a network wherein one or more forum participants may advertise, discuss, provide, and request the provision of, one or more of said user-generated content.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said program features further comprises a web browsing mode comprising means for seeking informative data derived from a source on the Internet, said means comprising the depiction of a web browser panel in the graphical user interface.

11. The system of claim 1, further comprising a touch-responsive input means.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein said logic further comprises at least one of a problem-solving means for solving a data structure conflict arising from a rearrangement of one or more of said slide objects within said story map, wherein said rearrangement comprises any of moving, adding, and deleting said one or more of said slide objects.

13. The problem-solving means of claim 12, further comprising logic encoding means for automatically generating and inserting one or more of a placeholder slide object into a placeholder position.

14. The problem-solving means of claim 12, further comprising logic encoding one or more of a conflict-resolution routine for assisting the user in making a decision in order to circumvent the data structure conflict, wherein said conflict-resolution routine comprises a method comprising the steps of:

displaying one or more of an alert message to a user informing the user of the conflict caused by said rearrangement;

presenting the user with one or more of a selectable option for circumventing said conflict;

receiving an input from the user identifying a user-selected option from among said one or more of a selectable option; and

,

instructing an application of the system to execute one or more instructions impinging upon the story map, said instructions corresponding to the user-selected option,

thereby circumventing the data structure conflict.

15. A computer-implemented business method for providing a platform on which one or more users may create, manage, and publish non-linear slide-based multimedia presentations, the method comprising the steps of:

providing the presentation software program of the system of claim 1;

providing a conditional access means for enabling one or more of an authorized user to access and use said presentation program; and

,

providing means for executing financial transactions by one or more of an authorized users,

providing a means for assigning a price value to a plurality of goods and services provided to the authorized user of the platform,

providing a means on behalf of an owner of the platform for assessing a fee from said authorized users for one or more uses of the platform,

thereby generating revenue for the owner.

16. The computer-implemented business method of claim 15, wherein said presentation software program is hosted on a server and wherein said authorized user accesses said program on said server via a network.

17. The computer-implemented business method of claim 15, wherein said fee corresponds to at least one usage parameter, wherein said usage parameter comprises a measure of use by the user of any of said program features.

18. The system of claim 1, further comprising means for enabling audience participation in the visual discussion, where said audience participation comprises means for providing at least the graphical user interface of the system and the visual discussion space of a presentation output to one or more electronic devices.

19. The system of claim 18, where said means for enabling audience participation further comprises means for acquiring feedback data from one or more of a participating audience member.

20. The system of claim 18, where said means for enabling audience participation further comprises means for integrating feedback data into the slide collection.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein said program features further comprises at least one annotation mode, said annotation mode comprising means for receiving and storing at least one quantum of text data that corresponds to a particular slide object in a particular story path, and means for displaying a set of speaker notes comprising a plurality of said quantum of text data in association with a particular story map.

22. A system providing computer-implemented means for engaging in visual discussions of any topics among one or more human users, the system comprising:

at least one touch-responsive input means for enabling a presenting person to interact with a graphical user interface of a presentation software program comprising a plurality of control means for managing a slide collection,

wherein said slide collection comprises one or more slide objects, and wherein each of said slide objects comprises a container means for containing a plurality of slide content data and wherein said slide object also comprises a linking means, wherein said linking means comprises means for designating one or more additional slide objects as being adjacently connected by a story link to said slide object; and

,

logic encoding means for displaying a virtual graphical environment via one or more of a video output means, said virtual graphical environment comprising a visual discussion space that corresponds to a multidimensional coordinate grid; and

,

logic encoding means for portraying in said visual discussion space an interactive graphical representation of the slide collection, and means for deriving a geometric simulation of a data structure corresponding to the slide collection, which simulation accurately and proportionally recapitulates a plurality of spatio-temporal relationships among the slide objects and the story links of the data structure, and means for superimposing each of said slide objects and each of its story links upon the coordinate grid of the visual discussion space, such that one page is depicted for each slide object, and such that every story link is portrayed by a story link image connecting two pages;

where said page comprises a page image representing the slide content data of a corresponding slide object, said page image being a product of a logic encoding means for generating page images from slide objects; and

,

navigation control means for navigating among the pages and story links of the interactive graphical representation of the slide collection in the visual discussion space, said navigation control means comprising a graphical control object resembling a compass,

whereby the system is able to visually convey at least two distinct forms of narrative information simultaneously, said forms of narrative information comprising a first direct form conveyed by the sequentially displayed pages of one or more of a story path, and a second inherent form conveyed by said accurately and proportionally recapitulated geometric simulation; and

,

one or more sharing means for enabling at least one other person to view and to interact with one or more features of the presentation software program in the virtual graphical environment; and

,

means for rapid page creation comprising means for capturing narrative data contributed by one or more of said users and means for automatically converting a quantum of said captured narrative data into the slide content data of one ore more slide objects.

23. The system of claim 22, said sharing means further comprising means for enabling said at least one other person to view and to interact with one or more features of the presentation software program in the virtual graphical environment via a mobile personal electronic device.

24. The system of claim 22, said sharing means further comprising means for acquiring feedback data from said at least one other person and means for integrating said feedback data into the slide collection.