Exclusive use display surface areas and persistently visible display of contents including advertisements

• US 7,890,884 B2
• Filed: 11/01/2006
• Issued: 02/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cedar Lane Technologies Inc.
• Original Assignee: Hall Aluminum LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Porter, Swain W.
• Primary Examiner(s): SAX, STEVEN PAUL
• Application Number:
  US11/592,040
• Publication Number:
  US 20070106954A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,567 Days
• Field of Search: 704/276, 345/619, 725/37, 751/806, 751/807, 751/802, 751/805, 751/767, 751/966, 751/965
• US Class Current: 715/806
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports

Abstract

In a computer system having a display surface; a portion of the display surface is reserved to allow contents rendered by a program to be persistently visible. In one embodiment, a shared portion of the display surface managed by a window manager may be reduced. In another embodiment, the window manager may work with a pixel resolution smaller than the operative pixel resolution of a display device driver. In one embodiment, HTML advertisements may be rendered in the reserved portion by an advertising rendering program, such as through a direct draw component. The direct draw component may be provided with an unreduced surface area to support direct drawing of displays. A cursor control device driver may likewise be provided with an unreduced surface area to monitor for cursor movements and events. In other embodiments, multiple portions of the display surface may be reserved and/or full screen applications may be accommodated.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

an operating system operated by the processor, the operating system including an exclusive use manager to

facilitate exclusive use of at least a first sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area of a display device for control by a program that is not part of the operating system and which is executed remotely from the operating system, wherein the display device has an overscan area not controllable by the operating system and which is a region separate from the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area, and

render persistently visible contents in the reserved first sub-portion of said operating system controllable primary display area, excluding all other programs, including the operating system, from using or controlling the reserved first sub-portion of said operating system controllable primary display area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the exclusive use manager is equipped to receive an alert of a display mode change request from a window manager to said display device driver, and in response, upon intercepting said display mode change request, aborting said display mode change request.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the exclusive use manager is equipped to monitor for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and in response, notifying applications associated with said exclusive use display areas to temporarily suspend rendering contents into said exclusive use display areas.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the exclusive use manager is equipped to monitor for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and interact with said application to at least partially maintain said exclusive use display areas.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the exclusive use manager is further equipped to intercept page flipping calls by said application, and facilitating rendering of contents into said exclusive use display areas by applications associated with the exclusive use display areas prior to forwarding the intercepted page flipping calls.

6. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said display mode change request is a request to change to a selected one of a smaller and a larger pixel configuration.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the exclusive use manager is equipped to monitor for a display mode change request to enter a normal screen mode of operation from the full screen mode of operation, the request received from an application, and in response, notifying applications associated with said exclusive use display areas to resume rendering contents into said exclusive use display areas.

21. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a display device driver to render displays on the operating system controllable primary display area of the display device.

8. A method comprising:

reserving, by an exclusive use manager of an operating system, a sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area of a display surface for control by a program that is not part of said operating system and which is executed remotely from the operating system, wherein the display surface has an overscan area not controllable by the operating system; and

facilitating, by the exclusive use manager, the program in rendering contents in said reserved sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area, excluding all other programs, including the operating system, from using or controlling the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said facilitating further comprises

receiving, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, an alert of a display mode change request from a window manager to a display device driver, and

in response, aborting, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, the display mode change request.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said display mode change request is a request to change to a selected one of a smaller and a larger pixel configuration.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein said facilitating further comprises

monitoring, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and

in response, notifying, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, the program associated with the sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area to temporarily suspend rendering contents into the sub-portion.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said facilitating further comprises

monitoring, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, for another display mode change request to enter a normal screen mode of operation from the full screen mode of operation, and

in response, notifying, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, the program associated with the sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area to resume rendering contents into the sub-portion.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein said facilitating further comprises monitoring, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and interacting with said application, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, to at least partially maintain the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said facilitating further comprises intercepting, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, page flipping calls by said application, and

facilitating, by the exclusive use manager of the operating system, rendering of contents into said sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area by the program associated with the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area prior to forwarding the intercepted page flipping calls.

15. An article of manufacture comprising:

a non-transitory storage medium; and

a plurality of programming instructions stored on the storage medium, the programming instructions configured to instantiate an operating system having an exclusive use manager to

reserve, by the exclusive use manager, a sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area of a display surface for exclusive use and control by a program that is not part of said operating system, wherein the display surface has an overscan area not controllable by the operating system and which is a region separate from the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area; and

facilitate, by the exclusive use manager, the program in rendering contents in said reserved sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area, excluding all other programs, including the operating system, from using or controlling the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area.

16. The article of claim 15, wherein the programming instructions are further configured to instantiate an operating system having an exclusive use manager to

receive, by the exclusive use manager, an alert of a display mode change request from a window manager to a display device driver, and

in response, abort, by the exclusive use manager, the display mode change request.

17. The article of claim 15, wherein said display mode change request is a request to change to a selected one of a smaller and a larger pixel configuration.

18. The article of claim 15, wherein the programming instructions are further configured to instantiate an operating system having an exclusive use manager to

monitor, by the exclusive use manager, for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and

in response, notify, by the exclusive use manager, the program associated with the sub-portion of an operating system controllable primary display area to temporarily suspend rendering contents into the sub-portion.

19. The article of claim 15, wherein the programming instructions are further configured to instantiate an operating system having an exclusive use manager to

monitor, by the exclusive use manager, for a display mode change request to enter a full screen mode of operation from an application, and

interact with said application, by the exclusive use manager, to at least partially maintain the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area.

20. The article of claim 19, wherein the programming instructions are further configured to instantiate an operating system having an exclusive use manager to

intercept, by the exclusive use manager, page flipping calls by said application, and

facilitate, by the exclusive use manager, rendering of contents into said sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area by the program associated with the sub-portion of the operating system controllable primary display area prior to forwarding the intercepted page flipping calls.