Displaying a vendor provided information screen in response to a log-in experience

• US 7,694,295 B2
• Filed: 01/28/2004
• Issued: 04/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Greenberg, Rob, Badaoui-Najjar, Ramez, Jones, Curtis R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kendall; Chuck O
• Application Number:
  US10/766,064
• Publication Number:
  US 20050132355A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,260 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/175
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

A screen driver is included with other drivers provided by a vendor with a computer system The screen driver is picked up by the OS along with the other drivers at the beginning of the installation of the OS. The screen driver remains dormant until the first time a user logs into the computer system. At that time, the driver executes and retrieves screen data along with a program that displays the screen. The program also maintains the displayed screen on top of any other screens that might be generated subsequent to completion of the first log-in to maintain visibility to the user until the user has an opportunity to act on the display screen.

Claims

1. A method of displaying a vendor provided information screen in response to a log-in experience, said method comprising:

initiating installation of an operating system (OS);

providing a screen driver to the OS during the installation;

completing installation of the OS;

executing the screen driver upon initiation of the log-in experience, said executing the screen driver further comprising;

displaying the information screen; and

maintaining visibility of the information screen over subsequently generated display screens until occurrence of a predetermined event; and

completing the log-in experience.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said providing a screen driver further comprises storing the screen driver with other drivers to be retrieved by the OS during the installation of the OS.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the screen driver is stored in and retrieved from a virtual installation disk (VID).

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the screen driver is stored on and retrieved from an external storage medium.

5. The method claim 2 wherein said executing the screen driver further comprises:

retrieving one or more screen data files representative of the information screen; and

retrieving a screen program, the screen program comprising a process for displaying the information screen based on the data files and a process for maintaining the information screen on top of any other subsequently generated display screens until the predetermined event is detected.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said executing the screen driver further comprises setting up the retrieved screen program to run at the very end of a particular phase of the log-in experience.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein said executing the screen driver further comprises setting up the retrieved screen program to execute only once.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein said executing the screen driver further comprises setting up the retrieved program to execute only in response to a first log-in experience.

9. The method of claim 5 wherein said executing the screen driver further comprises setting up the retrieved program to execute in response to a plurality of log-in experiences.

10. The method of claim 5 wherein the process for displaying instantiates a browser program for displaying the information screen based on the screen data files comprise.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the process for maintaining alters display window attributes of the browser.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the information screen comprises hypertext links to one or more additional information screens define by the screen data files.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the predetermined event is the generation of a particular display window by the OS after completion of the log-in experience.

14. The method of claim 5 wherein the OS is a version of Microsoft Windows having a registry;

and wherein the method further comprises modifying the registry to execute the retrieved screen file.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining;

and wherein the batch file is executed under an entry of the registry that runs its programs once.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining;

and wherein the batch file is executed under an entry of the registry that runs its programs sequentially.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining;

and wherein the batch file is executed under an entry of the registry identified as HKEY_LOCALMACHINE\Software\Windows\Current Version\RunOnceEX.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein:

the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining;

the batch file is executed to initiate the process of displaying and the process of maintaining, the log-in experience is completed when execution of the batch file is completed; and

the process for displaying remains extant until closed by the user.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein:

the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining;

the batch file is executed to initiate the process of displaying and the process of maintaining;

the log-in experience is completed when execution of the batch file is completed; and

the process for maintaining remains extant until occurrence of a predetermined event.

20. A computer program product for displaying a vendor provided information screen in response to a log-in experience, said computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium; and

program instructions stored on said storage medium for;

initiating installation of an operating system (OS);

providing a screen driver to the OS during the installation;

completing installation of the OS;

executing the screen driver upon initiation of the log-in experience, said executing the screen driver further comprising;

displaying the information screen; and

maintaining visibility of the information screen over any subsequently generated display screens until occurrence of a predetermined event; and

completing the log-in experience.

21. The computer program product of claim 20 wherein said program instructions further for retrieving the screen driver from a virtual installation disk (VID).

22. The computer program product of claim 21 wherein the program instructions further for:

retrieving one or more screen data files representative of the information screen; and

retrieving a screen program, the screen program comprising a process for displaying the information screen based on the data files and a process for maintaining the information screen on top of any other subsequently generated display screens until the predetermined event is detected.

23. The computer program product of claim 22 wherein the OS is a version of Microsoft Windows, said program instructions further for modifying the registry to execute the retrieved screen file.

24. The computer program product of claim 23 wherein the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining, said program instructions further for executed under an entry of the registry identified as HKEY_LOCALMACHINE\Software\Windows\Current Version\RunOnceEX.

25. A computer system capable of displaying a vendor provided information screen in response to a log-in experience, said computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium; and

program instructions stored on said storage medium for;

initiating installation of an operating system (OS);

providing a screen driver to the OS during the installation;

completing installation of the OS;

executing the screen driver upon initiation of the log-in experience, said executing the screen driver further comprising;

displaying the information screen; and

maintaining visibility of the information screen over any subsequently generated display screens until occurrence of a predetermined event; and

completing the log-in experience.

26. The computer system of claim 25 wherein said program instructions further for retrieving the screen driver from a virtual installation disk (VID).

27. The computer system of claim 26 wherein the program instructions further for:

retrieving one or more screen data files representative of the information screen; and

retrieving a screen program, the screen program comprising a process for displaying the information screen based on the data files and a process for maintaining the information screen on top of any other subsequently generated display screens until the predetermined event is detected.

28. The computer system of claim 27 wherein the OS is a version of Microsoft Windows, said program instructions further for modifying the registry to execute the retrieved screen file.

29. The computer system of claim 28 wherein the retrieved screen program is a batch file comprising the process for displaying and the process for maintaining, said program instructions further for executed under an entry of the registry identified as HKEY_LOCALMACHINE\Software\Windows\Current Version\RunOnceEX.