Enhancing user experience by presenting past application usage

• US 8,622,839 B1
• Filed: 12/09/2010
• Issued: 01/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: McKenzie, Bruce J., Overton, Adam J., Fisher, Brian D., Shepard, Isaac J., Jenks, Jason C., McCuller, Patrick G., JnBaptiste, Eden Ashley, Zhang, Eric M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau, Ronald
• Assistant Examiner(s): MYHR, JUSTIN L
• Application Number:
  US12/964,225
• Time in Patent Office: 1,125 Days
• Field of Search: 463 7- 9
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/355 Performing operations on behalf of clients with restricted processing capabilities, e.g. servers transform changing game scene into an encoded video stream for transmitting to a mobile phone or a thin client
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/497 Partially or entirely replaying previous game actions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5375 for graphically or textually suggesting an action, e.g. by displaying an arrow indicating a turn in a driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/67 adaptively or by learning from player actions, e.g. skill level adjustment or by storing successful combat sequences for re-use
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/69 by enabling or updating specific game elements, e.g. unlocking hidden features, items, levels or versions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/86 Watching games played by other players
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0489 using dedicated keyboard keys or combinations thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066

Abstract

Disclosed are various embodiments for enhancing the experience of a user with an application by presenting past usage of the application. An application is executed in a hosted environment in one or more computing devices. Multiple input commands are obtained from a client, and the input commands are provided to the application. A video signal generated by the application is encoded into real-time content, which is sent to the client. Recorded content from a library of recorded content is sent to the client. Each recorded content presents a past usage of the application.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying a program executable in a computing device, the program comprising:

code that executes a game application in a virtual environment in a cloud computing resource, the game application being selected from a library of game applications;

code that obtains a plurality of input commands from a client and provides the input commands to the game application through at least one virtual input device of the virtual environment;

code that obtains a video signal generated by the game application, encodes the video signal into a media stream, sends the media stream to the client, and records a portion of the media stream in a library of recorded media streams, an input command history associated with the portion of the media stream being recorded with the portion of the media stream, wherein the portion of the media stream is determined based at least in part on a checkpoint of the game application completed relative to the portion of the media stream;

code that obtains a selection by a user of a recorded media stream from the library of recorded media streams, the recorded media stream showing a past game play in the game application by another user; and

code that sends the recorded media stream to the client for rendering in the client in association with the media stream.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the recorded media stream includes an annotation by the another user.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the program further comprises code that obtains feedback from the user regarding the recorded media stream.

4. A system, comprising:

at least one computing device; and

a server application executable in the at least one computing device, the server application comprising;

logic that executes an application in a hosted environment in the at least one computing device;

logic that obtains a plurality of input commands from a client and provides the input commands to the application;

logic that obtains a video signal generated by the application, encodes the video signal into real-time content, and sends the real-time content to the client;

logic that records at least a portion of the real-time content and adds the at least a portion of the real-time content to a library of recorded content;

logic that selects recorded content from the library of recorded content based at least in part on at least one achievement completed in a past usage of the application shown in the recorded content, the past usage being previously recorded by the logic that records; and

logic that sends the recorded content to the client.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the recorded content and the real-time content are sent together in a combined media stream to the client.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the real-time content is sent in a first media stream to the client, and the recorded content is sent in a second media stream to the client.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein the recorded content is configured to be displayed in the client in association with the real-time content.

8. The system of claim 4, wherein the recorded content is correlated with a current status of the application.

9. The system of claim 4, wherein the recorded content includes an annotation provided by a user associated with the past usage presented in the recorded content.

10. The system of claim 4, wherein the recorded content includes an annotation provided by a different user than a user associated with the past usage presented in the recorded content.

11. The system of claim 4, wherein the server application further comprises logic that determines whether a user at the client is experiencing difficulty in the application, and the recorded content is sent to the client in response to determining that the user is experiencing difficulty in the application.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the logic that determines whether the user is experiencing difficulty in the application is configured to determine that the user is experiencing difficulty based at least in part on an input command history of the user.

13. The system of claim 4, wherein the server application further comprises logic that selects the recorded content from the library of recorded content based at least in part on at least one user-specified criterion.

14. The system of claim 4, wherein the at least a portion of the real-time content is added to the library in response to determining that the usage reflected in the at least a portion of the real-time content meets at least one criterion.

15. The system of claim 4, wherein the server application further comprises logic that determines a subset of the library of recorded content that pertains to a current status of the application in response to obtaining a request from the client.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the logic that determines the subset of the library of recorded content is further configured to compare a fingerprint generated from the real-time content with a corresponding fingerprint associated with the recorded content.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the logic that determines the subset of the library of recorded content is further configured to perform a search against user-provided data that identifies recorded content in the library of recorded content.

18. The system of claim 4, wherein the server application further comprises logic that facilitates a user selection of the recorded content from the library of recorded content.

19. The system of claim 4, wherein the server application further comprises logic that collects user ratings regarding at least some of the recorded content in the library.

20. A system, comprising:

at least one computing device; and

a server application executable in the at least one computing device, the server application comprising;

logic that executes an application in a hosted environment in the at least one computing device;

logic that obtains a plurality of input commands from a client and provides the input commands to the application;

logic that obtains a video signal generated by the application, encodes the video signal into real-time content, and sends the real-time content to the client;

logic that records at least a portion of the real-time content and adds the at least a portion of the real-time content to a library of recorded content, wherein the at least a portion of the real-time content is determined based at least in part on a checkpoint of the application completed relative to the at least a portion of the real-time content; and

logic that sends recorded content from the library of recorded content to the client, wherein the recorded content presents a past usage of the application previously recorded by the logic that records.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the server application further comprises logic that selects the recorded content from the library of recorded content based at least in part on at least one achievement completed in the past usage shown in the recorded content.

22. A method, comprising:

sending, in a client computing device, a plurality of input commands over a network to at least one computing device, wherein the input commands are to be provided to an application executed in a hosted environment in the at least one computing device; and

obtaining, in the client computing device, a media stream from the at least one computing device, the media stream presenting a current usage of the application, the media stream including recorded content that presents a past usage of the application, the recorded content being selected in the at least one computing device based at least in part on at least one achievement completed in the past usage shown in the recorded content.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the hosted environment comprises a virtualized environment.

24. The method of claim 22, further comprising providing, in the client computing device, an annotation in conjunction with the media stream, wherein the annotation is based at least in part on the past usage of the application, and wherein the annotation includes a plurality of input commands obtained from the past usage of the application.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein at least some of the input commands are obtained from an input command history associated with the past usage of the application.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the application comprises a game application, the current usage corresponds to current game play, and the past usage corresponds to past game play.

27. The method of claim 22, wherein the media stream encodes a video signal generated by the application.

28. The method of claim 22, wherein the media stream includes a voiceover of a user whose past usage is presented in the recorded content.

29. The method of claim 22, further comprising rendering, in the client computing device, a video signal of the recorded content on a display in association with a video signal in the media stream that is being generated by the application.

30. The method of claim 22, further comprising rendering, in the client computing device, a user interface for selecting the recorded content from a library of recorded content.

31. The method of claim 22, further comprising sending, in the client computing device, a request for a list of recorded content that is relevant to a current position in the application.