Media variations browser

• US 7,194,527 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2002
• Issued: 03/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Glatzer, Asta L., Wong, Curtis G., Drucker, Steven M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Caldwell; Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ailes; Benjamin A.
• Application Number:
  US10/174,212
• Publication Number:
  US 20030233460A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,736 Days
• Field of Search: 709217-220, 715/513, 715744-745, 715/760
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/435 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/44 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing

Abstract

A system and method facilitating media browsing is provided. The invention includes a browsing component and a media display system that provides a focus media and related media. The focus media and the related media are associated based, at least in part, upon metadata. The invention further provides for an association identifier that identifies related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and the related media. The association identifier can further cluster the related media based upon metadata associated with the related media.

Claims

1. A computer implemented browsing system, comprising the following computer executable components:

a focus media component that provides a focus media and clusters of related media;

an association identifier that identifies media related to the focus media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media, the association identifier further clustering the related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the related media, the quantity of clusters of related media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of clusters.

2. The browsing system of claim 1, the focus media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s selection.

3. The browsing system of claim 1, the focus media component further modifying the focus media based, at least in part, upon information associated with a user selection of a related media within a cluster of related media.

4. The browsing system of claim 3, the association identifier modifying the clustered related media based, at least in part, upon the modified focus media.

5. The browsing system of claim 4, the focus media component providing information associated with the modified focus media and modified clusters of related media.

6. The browsing system of claim 1, further comprising a user selection component that provides information associated with a user preference to the focus media component.

7. The browsing system of claim 6, further comprising a scrolling component facilitating a user'"'"'s browsing of media.

8. The browsing system of claim 6, the user preference being related to at least a quantity of related media in a cluster.

9. The browsing system of claim 1, further comprising a media information store that stores information associated with media, the information including metadata associated with media.

10. The browsing system of claim 1, further comprising a historical component that stores information associated with a user'"'"'s historical exploration of media.

11. The browsing system of claim 1, further comprising a seed component that provides a plurality of distinctive focus media.

12. The browsing system of claim 1, further comprising a media display component that displays the focus media and at least one cluster of related media.

13. The browsing system of claim 12, further comprising a user selection component that facilitates a user'"'"'s selection of a related media within a cluster, the focus media component modifying the focus media based, at least in part, upon the user'"'"'s selection.

14. The browsing system of claim 12, the media display component further comprising a computer display.

15. The browsing system of claim 1, the association identifier employing a Bayesian decision-making methodology in identifying media related to the focus media.

16. A computer implemented method for providing media related to focus media, comprising the following computer executable acts:

analyzing metadata of a focus media;

identifying media related to the focus media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media; and

,

generating at least one cluster of related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media, the quantity of clusters of related media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of clusters.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising at least one of the following acts:

receiving the focus media and metadata associated with the focus media;

providing a cluster of related media and focus media;

utilizing an artificial intelligence technique to generate the cluster; and

,

utilizing an artificial intelligence technique to identify the related media.

18. The method of claim 16, identifying media related to the focus media further being based, at least in part, upon a user preference.

19. The method of claim 16, generating at least one cluster further being based, at least in part, upon a user preference.

20. A computer implemented media browsing system, comprising the following computer executable components:

a media display component that displays a focus media and at least one cluster of related media, the quantity of clusters of related media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of clusters; and

,

a browsing component coupled to the media display component, the browsing component providing the focus media and the at least one cluster of related media to the media display component based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and the at least one cluster of related media, the browsing component further modifying the focus media provided to the media display component based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s selection of a related media within a cluster of related media.

21. The media browsing system of claim 20, further comprising a user selection device and a scrolling component, a cluster is provided a larger physical display area upon selection of the cluster with the user selection device, the scrolling component can scroll the related media of the cluster upon the user selection device pointing to an area of the physical display area associated with the scrolling component, the scrolling speed of the related media increases as the distance of the user selection device from a horizontal centerline of the physical display area increases.

22. The media browsing system of claim 20, further comprising a user selection component that receives the user'"'"'s selection.

23. A computer implemented method for browsing media, comprising the following computer executable acts:

changing a focus media based, at least in part, upon a focus media selection;

analyzing metadata associated with the focus media;

identifying related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media, the quantity of related media identified being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of related media.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising at least one of the following acts:

changing the focus media based, at least in part, upon a historical selection; and

,

changing the focus media based, at least in part, upon a seed selection.

25. A computer implemented data packet transmitted between two or more computer processes facilitating visual browsing of media, the data packet comprising:

information associated with a cluster of media related to a focus media, the cluster being based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media, the quantity of related media in the cluster being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of related media per cluster.

26. A computer readable medium having computer usable component for a media browsing system, comprising:

a focus media component that provides a focus media and clusters of related media; and

,

an association identifier that identifies media related to the focus media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media, the association identifier further clustering the related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the related media, the quantity of clusters of related media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of clusters.

27. A computer executable media browsing system, comprising:

computer implemented means for providing a focus media and at least one cluster of related media, the quantity of clusters of related media being based, at least in part, upon a user'"'"'s specified quantity of clusters;

computer implemented means for identifying media related to the focus media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the focus media and metadata associated with the related media; and

,

computer implemented means for clustering the related media based, at least in part, upon metadata associated with the related media.