Resizing document pages to fit available hardware screens

• US 7,861,166 B1
• Filed: 06/17/1999
• Issued: 12/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Discovery Patent Holdings LLC
• Original Assignee: Discovery Patent Holding LLC
• Inventors: Hendricks, John S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Paula; Cesar B
• Application Number:
  US09/335,268
• Time in Patent Office: 4,212 Days
• Field of Search: 715/500, 715/526, 715792-793, 715/901, 715/200, 715/201, 715/205, 715/234, 715251-252, 715/277, 715/800, 715/801, 715/238, 345 11- 34
• US Class Current: 715/277
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4751 for defining user accounts, e.g. accounts for children
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47805 Electronic banking banking in general G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An electronic book having various features for manipulating text or other information. The subscriber may highlight, cut and paste, copy and paste, and annotate information within an electronic book. A multiple page view feature permits the subscriber to simultaneously view any plurality of pages of an electronic book, and a multiple screen feature permits the subscriber to view one or more pages on a viewer having multiple screens. A picture-in-picture feature permits the subscriber to simultaneously view a page of an electronic book along with other content, such as a television program or information from another electronic book. The picture-in-picture feature may display an electronic book page as a main image wrapped around an inset image.

Claims

1. An apparatus for simultaneously displaying selected pages of an electronic book displayed on a viewer, comprising a plurality of hardware screens, each of the hardware screens being physically and electrically attachable, detachable, and reattachable to each other in a plurality of geometric configurations, the apparatus, comprising:

a command module that receives a request from a subscriber for simultaneously displaying at least a portion of any plurality of pages of the electronic book as selected by the subscriber;

a determining module that determines the number of hardware screens currently attached to the viewer;

a format module that formats the selected pages for simultaneous display based on the determined number of hardware screens attached to the viewer; and

a display module that simultaneously displays the portions of the selected pages on the plurality of hardware screens of the viewer,

wherein, if a number of the selected pages is equal to the number of hardware screens, each selected page is displayed on a different one of the hardware screens,

wherein, if the number of the selected pages is less than the number of hardware screens, the selected pages are enlarged and each of the hardware screens displays a different portion of the enlarged selected pages, and

wherein, if the number of the selected pages is greater than the number of hardware screens, the selected pages are reduced and are distributed across the plurality of hardware screens.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further including a task module that displays a task bar for use in receiving the request.

3. An apparatus for displaying at least one selected page of an electronic book displayed on a viewer having a plurality of hardware screens, each of the hardware screens being physically and electrically attachable, detachable, and reattachable to each other in a plurality of different geometric configurations, comprising:

a command module that receives a request from a subscriber for displaying at least one page of an electronic book on the viewer;

a determining module that determines the number of hardware screens currently attached to the viewer;

a format module that formats the selected page for display on the screens of the viewer based on the determined number of hardware screens attached to the viewer; and

a display module that provides the selected page for display across the screens of the viewer,

wherein, if a number of the at least one page is equal to the number of hardware screens, each of the at least one page is displayed on a different one of the hardware screens,

wherein, if the number of the at least one page is less than the number of hardware screens, the at least one page is enlarged and each of the hardware screens displays a different portion of the enlarged page, and

wherein, if the number of the at least one page is greater than the number of hardware screens, the at least one page is reduced and is distributed across the plurality of hardware screens.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the format module includes a multiple page format module that formats the page for display on three hardware screens.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, further including a task module that displays a task bar for use in receiving the request.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the format module enlarges the page for proportional display across the hardware screens.

7. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein:

the command module receives a request for displaying a plurality of pages; and

the multiple page format module reduces the pages for proportional display across the hardware screens.

8. The apparatus of claim 3, further including a screen detect module that detects a number of hardware screens within the viewer.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein:

the screen detect module includes a screen change module that detects a change in the number of hardware screens of the viewer; and

the format module includes a reformat module that reformats the selected page for display based upon the detected change.