3com Corporation

Sachin S Lawande

Gordon E Molek

Ray Winninger

Salim Ling

John Conmy

Mark Anderson

William Zielinski

A user of a client device selects a service provider from a plurality of available service providers. The client device then queries the user for the user's information and formats the user's information into a predetermined data structure and format. The client device connects to the service provider and sends the formatted user's information to the service provider. The service provider responsively creates configuration data and provides it to the client device. The configuration data is used to configure a plurality of applications on the client device, allowing the user to establish future communication sessions with the service provider.

System and method for automatically configuring a client device

Disclosed is software architecture and method for sharing data objects among multiple applications in a client device. The architecture includes a server process in the client device for processing a template, such as a SHTML template for the Extended Markup Language (XML), based on a template identifier value received from a user application. Each of multiple applications has a template. Each template identifies a series of objects identified by tag values, such as XML entities, that are to be incorporated into a display page. A database of objects, such as a database of XML entities identified by tag values, is maintained that contains data objects for the applications. An update process periodically establishes a communication link with a remote server and requests download of a data document containing content data corresponding to at least a portion of several of the templates. The data document is parsed into the database of objects based on the structure of the data document, which generally conforms to a data type definition. When the server process processes different templates that reference the same data object, it will retrieve the data object from the database. Each template may then be rendered into a page of output data for display to a user. The architecture and method according to the present invention thus permit data objects to be shared by multiple applications and to be automatically updated. Each time a data object is updated, the data will be current for each user application that references the data object.

Method and apparatus for sharing common data objects among multiple applications in a client device

Disclosed is device and method for improved burst communication on a USB bus. In one embodiment, a USB Ethernet adapter device uses the USB Interrupt Channel to send a message to an Ethernet class driver, via the host USB stack, that the Ethernet adapter device has data to transmit on the USB. The interrupt message preferably includes the size of the data packet to be transmitted or the number of packets to send. The class driver responds by instructing the USB stack to configure a new Transfer Descriptor having buffer pointers of sufficient size for the data packet. The USB Host Controller then processes the Transfer Descriptor, thereby inviting the Ethernet adapter device to transmit its data and responsively storing the data in the predetermined buffer.

USB adapter for burst mode communications

A method and apparatus of integrating the IEEE 1394 protocol with the IP protocol in which the IEEE 1394 high speed serial bus operates as the physical and link layer medium and the IP operates as the transport layer. There are differences in the protocols which require special consideration when integrating the two protocols. The IEEE 1394 configures packets with memory information and the IP operates under channel based IO thereby necessitating a modification of the data transfer scheme to accomplish IP transfers over the IEEE 1394. Further, due to differences in packet headers, the IEEE 1394 packet header is modified to encapsulate IP packets. Moreover, in order to determine network packets quickly and efficiently, an identifier is inserted in each network packet header indicating that the packet should be processed by the network. Finally, in order to support the ability to insert or remove nodes on the network without a loss of data, the IP interface must not be disturbed. This is accomplished by maintaining constant IP addresses across bus resets which are caused by insertion or removal of nodes from the network.

Method and apparatus for operating the internet protocol over a high-speed serial bus

A method and apparatus of integrating the IEEE 1394 protocol with the IP protocol in which the IEEE 1394 high speed serial bus operates as the physical and link layer medium and the IP operates as the transport layer. There are differences in the protocols which require special consideration when integrating the two protocols. The IEEE 1394 configures packets with memory information and the IP operates under channel based I/O thereby necessitating a modification of the data transfer scheme to accomplish IP transfers over the IEEE 1394. Further, due to differences in packet headers, the IEEE 1394 packet header is modified to encapsulate IP packets. Moreover, in order to determine network packets quickly and efficiently, an identifier is inserted in each network packet header indicating that the packet should be processed by the network. Finally, in order to support the ability to insert or remove nodes on the network without a loss of data, the IP interface must not be disturbed. This is accomplished by maintaining constant IP addresses across bus resets which are caused by insertion or removal of nodes from the network.

Growing community of inventors

Mount Prospect, IL, United States of America

Sachin S Lawande