Sun Microsystems, Inc.

Marimba, Inc.

Jonathan Payne

Sami Shaio

Arthur A Van Hoff

Edward H Frank

James A Gosling

Timothy G Lindholm

Patrick J Naughton

Joseph M Palrang

R Michael Sheridan

Charles H Clanton

David A LaVallee

Chris Warth

Arthur Van Hoff

A system and method for distributing software applications and data to many thousands of clients over a network. The applications are called &ldquo;channels&rdquo;, the server is called the &ldquo;transmitter&rdquo;, and the client is called the &ldquo;tuner&rdquo;. The use of channels is based on subscription. The end-user needs to subscribe to channel before it can be executed. When the end-user subscribes to a channel the associated code and data is downloaded to the local hard-disk, and once downloaded the channel can be executed many times without requiring further network access. Channels can be updated automatically at regular intervals by the tuner, and as a result the end-user is no longer required to manually install software updates, instead these software and data updates are automatically downloaded and installed in the background. This method of automatic downloading of updates achieves for the client the same result as the broadcast distribution of software over a connection based network, but wherein the client initiates each update request without requiring any special broadcast networking infra structure.

System and method for the distribution of code and data

An intuitive graphical user interface is based upon a geographic map structure, and includes a system for controlling remote external electronic devices. In the defined graphical user interface, each space of the geographic map structure is rendered on a touch screen display as a graphic image of a geographic space. Within each space are colored cartoon-like icons called 'objects' which can be selected and manipulated by the user. Certain objects, referred to as portals, transport the user from one space to another space when Selected. Other objects, referred to as buttons, perform associated actions or functions when Selected. The graphical user interface is displayed on a hand-held display device used to control remote devices. Each remote electronic device transmits a user interface program object that defines a graphical user interface to the display device. The hand-held display devices displays the graphical user interface associated with the remote device when a user selects an icon associated with the remote device on the display device's touch screen display.

Graphical user interface for displaying and navigating in a directed

A system and method for distributing software applications and data to many thousands of clients over a network. The applications are called 'channels', the server is called the 'transmitter', and the client is called the 'tuner'. The use of channels is based on subscription. The end-user needs to subscribe to channel before it can be executed. When the end-user subscribes to a channel the associated code and data is downloaded to the local hard-disk, and once downloaded the channel can be executed many times without requiring further network access. Channels can be updated automatically at regular intervals by the tuner, and as a result the end-user is no longer required to manually install software updates, instead these software and data updates are automatically downloaded and installed in the background. This method of automatic downloading of updates achieves for the client the same result as the broadcast distribution of software over a connection based network, but wherein the client initiates each update request without requiring any special broadcast networking infra structure.

Method for the distribution of code and data updates

An object synchronization module and corresponding method used in a computer system that includes a plurality of threads of execution and a set of objects that each can only be synchronized with one of the threads at a time. The object synchronization module comprises a cache of synchronization constructs, a free list of un-allocated synchronization constructs, and a cache manager. For each respective thread that seeks synchronization with a respective object, the cache manager allocates a respective synchronization construct in the free list for synchronizing the respective thread with the respective object when none of the synchronization constructs is currently allocated for synchronizing the respective object with any of the threads. However, the respective thread is added to the waiters list of a particular synchronization construct so that the respective thread must wait to synchronize the respective object when the particular synchronization construct is currently allocated for synchronizing the respective object with a particular thread. Furthermore, for each specific thread that seeks de-synchronization with a specific object when a specific synchronization construct of the synchronization constructs is currently allocated for synchronizing the specific thread with the specific object, the cache manager re-allocates the specific synchronization construct for synchronizing a waiting thread of the threads with the specific object when the specific synchronization construct's waiters list contains the waiting thread. The cache manager de-allocates the specific synchronization construct when the specific synchronization construct's waiters list does not contain any waiting threads of the threads.

System and method for caching and allocating thread synchronization

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Jonathan Payne