Platform extensibility framework

• US 9,250,926 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2009
• Issued: 02/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Allyn, Barry Christopher, Ruble, Brian Scott, Rampson, Benjamin Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): PITARO, RYAN F
• Application Number:
  US12/433,327
• Publication Number:
  US 20100281392A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,469 Days
• Field of Search: 345/503, 345/506, 345/582
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44526 Plug-ins; Add-ons
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/001 Texturing; Colouring; Generation of texture or colour inpainting G06T5/77
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/205 Image-based rendering

Abstract

A platform extensibility framework may be provided. A visualization platform may register feature extensions and receive requests to create objects. The objects may be created according to drawing instructions provided by the visualization platform, an application requesting the object'"'"'s creation, and/or at least one of the feature extensions.

Claims

1. A method for providing an extensibility framework, the method comprising:

instantiating a visualization platform using a platform-independent programming code, the visualization platform comprising an object manager and further comprising a shared core including at least a plurality of software libraries for providing interactive visualizations;

registering at least one feature extension with the visualization platform, wherein the visualization platform comprises an intermediate interface between the at least one feature extension and at least one user application, the at least one feature extension comprising an add-on operative on an operating system supporting the platform independent programming code, the at least one user application not supporting the platform independent programming code;

receiving a request to create at least one object from the at least one user application;

creating the at least one object by the visualization platform;

determining whether the request is associated with the at least one feature extension;

in response to determining that the request is associated with the at least one feature extension;

receiving at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension,

verifying that the at least one object modification is compatible with a type of the at least one object; and

modifying the at least one object according to the compatible at least one object modification; and

rendering the at least one object on a display device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one user application renders the object on the display device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving at least one second object modification from the at least one user application; and

modifying the object according to the at least one second object modification.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the request comprises receiving a visualization type and at least one data value;

wherein the object comprises a visualization object of the requested visualization type; and

wherein the visualization platform comprises at least one default drawing instruction for the visualization type and the at least one data value.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one user application is operative to determine a plurality of objects the visualization platform is operative to create and display the plurality of objects to a user.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining the plurality of objects the visualization platform is operative to create comprises retrieving a list of the plurality of objects from the visualization platform.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein determining the plurality of objects the visualization platform is operative to create comprises searching at least one location for the at least one feature extension.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the request is associated with the at least one feature extension comprises determining whether the at least one feature extension comprises at least one of the following:

at least one data value and at least one drawing instruction.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension comprises a drawing instruction overriding at least one drawing instruction used by the visualization platform to create the object.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension comprises a drawing instruction adding at least one drawing instruction to be used by the visualization platform to create the object.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension comprises a plurality of data points to be displayed on the object.

12. A system for providing application extensibility, the system comprising:

a memory storage; and

a processing unit coupled to the memory storage, wherein the processing unit is operative to;

instantiate a visualization platform using a platform-independent programming code, the visualization platform comprising an object manager and further comprising a shared core including at least a plurality of software libraries for providing interactive visualizations;

locate at least one feature extension operative for use with the visualization platform, wherein the visualization platform comprises an intermediate interface between the at least one feature extension and at least one user application, the at least one feature extension comprising an add-on operative on an operating system supporting the platform-independent programming code, the at least one user application not supporting the platform-independent programming code;

receive a request to create at least one object from the at least one user application;

create the at least one object;

determine whether the request is associated with the at least one feature extension;

in response to determining that the request is associated with the at least one feature extension;

receive at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension,

verify that the at least one object modification is compatible with a type of the at least one object, and

modify the object according to the compatible at least one object modification; and

rendering the object on a display device.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

storing the object in a memory location of the memory storage associated with the visualization platform; and

controlling access to the memory location by the application and the feature extension.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein being operative to locate the at least one feature extension operative for use with the visualization platform comprises being operative to search a predefined memory location of the memory storage for the at least one feature extension.

15. The system of claim 12, further operative to:

execute at least one of a plurality of software operating systems; and

utilize the at least one feature extension regardless of the executing at least one of the plurality of software operating systems.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the created object is shared with a plurality of user applications.

17. The system of claim 12, further comprising being operative to provide a list of objects the visualization platform is operative to create to the at least one user application, wherein the list of objects the visualization platform is operative to create comprises at least one object requiring the at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein being operative to provide a list of objects the visualization platform is operative to create to the at least one user application comprises being operative to determine whether the at least one user application is compatible with the at least one feature extension;

and

in response to determining that the at least one user application is not compatible with the at least one feature extension, withholding at least one object associated with the at least one feature extension from the list of objects the visualization platform is operative to create.

19. The system of claim 12, wherein being operative to modify the object according to the at least one object modification comprises being operative to receive at least one drawing instruction from the at least one feature extension operative to override at least one drawing instruction used to create the object.

20. A computer-readable storage device which stores a set of instructions which when executed performs a method for providing an application extensibility framework, the method executed by the set of instructions comprising:

instantiating a visualization platform using a platform-independent programming code, the visualization platform comprising an object manager and further comprising a shared core including at least a plurality of software libraries for providing interactive visualizations;

registering at least one feature extension with the visualization platform, wherein the visualization platform comprises an intermediate interface between the at least one feature extension and at least one user application, the at least one feature extension comprising an add-on operative on an operating system supporting the platform-independent programming code, the at least one user application not supporting the platform-independent programming code;

providing a list of objects that the visualization platform is operative to create to the at least one application, wherein the list of objects comprises at least one object the visualization platform requires the at least one feature extension to create;

receiving a request to create at least one of the list of objects from at least one application, wherein the request comprises a user selection from the list of objects provided to the application;

creating the at least one requested object according to at least one drawing instruction provided by the visualization platform and associated with the requested object type;

determining whether the requested object is associated with the at least one feature extension;

in response to determining that the request is associated with the at least one feature extension, determining whether the at least one feature extension is compatible with the at least one application, wherein determining whether the at least one feature extension is compatible with the at least one application comprises at least one of the following;

determining whether the at least one application comprises a compatible release version and determining whether the at least one application comprises a license to use the at least one feature extension;

in response to determining that the at least one feature extension is compatible with the at least one application;

receiving at least one object modification from the at least one feature extension, wherein the at least one object modification comprises at least one of the following;

a drawing instruction override and at least one additional drawing element,

verifying that the at least one object modification is compatible with a type of the at least one object; and

modifying the object according to the compatible at least one object modification; and

rendering the object on a display device by the application.