Information processing system, apparatus and method for information processing, and recording medium

• US 8,321,452 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2008
• Issued: 11/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Masahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): DANG, THANH HA T
• Application Number:
  US12/109,840
• Publication Number:
  US 20080275852A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,677 Days
• Field of Search: 707/913, 707/706, 707/712, 707/999.107, 707/770
• US Class Current: 707/770
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation

Abstract

An information processing system includes a plurality of first information processing apparatuses, each of the plurality of first information processing apparatuses being configured to add search information and post content, and a second information processing apparatus for holding the search information matching the content posted from at least one of the plurality of first information processing apparatuses. Upon receipt of a request to provide the content which is previously retrieved from one of the first information processing apparatus, the second information processing apparatus performs another search based on a search condition stored at a last search by the second information processing apparatus itself or by the one of the first information processing apparatuses, and provides the content which is newly retrieved to the one of the first information processing apparatus in response to the request.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

means for registering specific information specifying a previously specified search condition;

means for transmitting, when the registered specific information is selected, the specific information or the search condition to another information processing apparatus which executes an additional search based on the previously specified search condition;

means for receiving a list of content matching search information retrieved based on the additional search from the another information processing apparatus;

means for successively playing back an arbitrary number of a plurality of content included in the received list in a sequential manner;

means for changing an order of playing back the plurality of content included in the received list by changing a display order of symbolic information representing the content included in the received list, the order of playing back and the display order being changed during playback of one of the plurality of content, the symbolic information each representing a different one of the plurality of content; and

means for displaying the symbolic information while playing back the one of the plurality of content.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for selecting a rule of an order in which the symbolic information is displayed.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the symbolic information includes a thumbnail of the content.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the means for displaying automatically moves without user input a position of a cursor such that the cursor is positioned on the thumbnail in a process of playing back.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein if a thumbnail is to be newly displayed, the means for displaying automatically moves without user input the position of the cursor one thumbnail at a time such that the cursor is positioned on the thumbnail in the process of playing back until a predetermined position is reached, and automatically scrolls without user input the thumbnail until there is no thumbnail to be newly displayed when the predetermined position is reached, and

if no thumbnail is to be newly displayed, the means for displaying automatically moves without user input a display position of the cursor by one thumbnail at each playback ending until a playback order reaches a last thumbnail.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the means for receiving receives a list of the content matching the newly searched search information based on the previously specified search condition.

7. An information processing method of an information processing apparatus, the information processing method comprising:

registering specific information specifying a previously specified search condition;

transmitting the specific information or the search condition to another information processing apparatus which executes an additional search based on the previously specified search condition;

receiving from the another information processing apparatus a list of content matching search information searched based on the additional search;

playing back successively an arbitrary number of a plurality of content included in the received list in a sequential manner;

changing an order of playing back the plurality of content included in the received list by changing a display order of symbolic information representing the content included in the received list, the order of playing back and the display order being changed during playback of one of the plurality of content, the symbolic information each representing a different one of the plurality of content; and

displaying the symbolic information while playing back the one of the plurality of content.

8. The information processing method according to claim 7, further comprising:

automatically moving without user input a position of a cursor such that the cursor is positioned on a thumbnail representing content currently in a process of being playing back.

9. The information processing method according to claim 8, further comprising:

if a thumbnail is to be newly displayed, automatically moving without user input the position of the cursor one thumbnail at a time such that the cursor is positioned on the thumbnail in the process of playing back until a predetermined position is reached, and automatically scrolling without user input the thumbnail until there is no thumbnail to be newly displayed when the predetermined position is reached, and

if no thumbnail is to be newly displayed, automatically moving without user input a display position of the cursor by one thumbnail at each playback ending until a playback order reaches a last thumbnail.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 9, wherein the method further comprises:

if a thumbnail is to be newly displayed, automatically moving without user input the position of the cursor one thumbnail at a time such that the cursor is positioned on the thumbnail in the process of playing back until a predetermined position is reached, and automatically scrolling without user input the thumbnail until there is no thumbnail to be newly displayed when the predetermined position is reached, and

if no thumbnail is to be newly displayed, automatically moving without user input a display position of the cursor by one thumbnail at each playback ending until a playback order reaches a last thumbnail.

10. A non-transitory computer readable medium recorded with a program for use in an information processing apparatus, the program causing a computer to execute a method comprising:

registering specific information specifying a previously specified search condition;

transmitting the specific information or the search condition to another information processing apparatus which executes an additional search based on the previously specified search condition;

receiving from the another information processing apparatus a list of content matching search information searched based on the additional search;

playing back successively an arbitrary number of a plurality of content included in the received list in a sequential manner;

changing an order of playing back the plurality of content included in the received list by changing a display order of symbolic information representing the content included in the received list, the order of playing back and the display order being changed during playback of one of the plurality of content, the symbolic information each representing a different one of the plurality of content; and

displaying the symbolic information while playing back the one of the plurality of content.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

automatically moving without user input a position of a cursor such that the cursor is positioned on a thumbnail representing content currently in a process of being playing back.

13. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a registration unit configured to register specific information specifying a previously specified search condition;

a transmitter configured to transmit, when the registered specific information is selected, the specific information or the search condition to another information processing apparatus which executes an additional search based on the previously specified search condition;

a receiver configured to receive a list of a plurality of content matching search information retrieved based on the additional search from the another information processing apparatus;

a playback unit, including a processor, configured to play back an arbitrary number of the plurality of content included in the received list in a sequential manner;

an order changing unit configured to change an order of playing back the plurality of content included in the received list by changing a display order of symbolic information representing the content included in the received list, the order of playing back and the display order being changed during playback of one of the plurality of content, the symbolic information each representing a different one of the plurality of content; and

a display unit configured to display the symbolic information while playing back the one of the plurality of content.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the display unit automatically moves without user input a position of a cursor such that the cursor is positioned on a thumbnail representing content currently in a process of being playing back.

15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 14, wherein if a thumbnail is to be newly displayed, the display unit automatically moves without user input the position of the cursor one thumbnail at a time such that the cursor is positioned on the thumbnail in the process of playing back until a predetermined position is reached, and automatically scrolls without user input the thumbnail until there is no thumbnail to be newly displayed when the predetermined position is reached, and

if no thumbnail is to be newly displayed, the display unit automatically moves without user input a display position of the cursor by one thumbnail at each playback ending until a playback order reaches a last thumbnail.