Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PRESENTATION SYSTEM
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[00011 The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Application No.
12/469,520,
filed May 20, 2009, entitled "Presentation System" which is incorporated
herein by
reference in its entirety. This application also claims the benefit under 35
U.S.C. 119(e)
of U.S. Prov. Pat. App. 61/155,508, filed February 25, 2009, entitled
"Presentation System,"
U.S. Prov. Pat. App. 61/155,515, filed February 25, 2009, also entitled
"Presentation
System," and U.S. Prov. Pat. App. 61/155,828, filed February 26, 2009, also
entitled
"Presentation System," all of which are incorporated herein by reference in
their entirety.
BACKGROUND
[00021 The present disclosure relates generally to the field of presentation
systems. More
specifically, the present disclosure relates to computer-based presentation
systems.
[00031 Current computer-based presentation systems may employ a linear
approach for
the organization of presentation slides. Under such a linear approach, each
slide may be
organized at a position in the total slides with no particular hierarchical
relationship to the
other slides. A presenter using a linear presentation system desiring to skip
to a slide earlier
or later in the presentation may be forced to step through each slide in
between the current
slide and the desired slide. Alternatively, in order to avoid stepping through
each of the
intervening slides, the presenter may need to exit a formal presentation
interface of the
presentation system to skip directly to the desired slide.
SUMMARY
100041 According to one exemplary embodiment, a system for displaying slides
of a
presentation comprises an editor module, a display, module and a user
interface module.
The editor module is configured to generate a slide for a presentation based
at least on
content defined by a user. The display module is configured to generate
display data for the
presentation. The display data represents the slide of the presentation. The
user interface
module is configured to receive a selection of a portion of the slide based at
least on a
detected movement of a user input device across the slide. The display module
is
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configured to enlarge the selected portion of the slide on the display in
response to at least
the movement of the user input device across the slide.
[0005] According to another exemplary embodiment, a system for organizing
slides
related to a presentation comprises an editing module, a display module and a
user input
module. The editing module is configured to assign both a linear relationship
and a tree
relationship to each slide. The display module is configured to present the
slides linearly
and to display the tree relationship of the slides. The user input module is
configured to
receive a user selection of a node of the displayed tree relationship. The
display module is
configured to display a slide corresponding to the selected node in response
to at least the
user selection. When a new slide is created a user is prompted to assign a
tree relationship
position for the new slide.
[0006] According to another exemplary embodiment, a system for presenting
slides
related to a presentation comprises an navigation module, a display module and
a user
interface module. The navigation module is configured to receive a tree
relationship for the
slides from a memory and generate a navigation pane based at least on the tree
relationship.
The display module is configured to display the navigation pane and a
representation of at
least one slide in the navigation pane according to a hierarchical structure
based at least on
the tree relationship. The user interface module is configured to receive a
user selection of a
slide from the navigation pane at any of a plurality of levels of hierarchy in
the hierarchical
structure. The display module is configured to determine the at least one
slide for which a
representation is displayed in the navigation pane based on a level of detail
provided by a
user via the user interface module. The display module is configured to
display the slide
selected from the navigation pane.
[0007] According to another exemplary embodiment, a system for presenting
slides
related to a presentation comprises an editing module, a presentation module,
a display
module, and a user interface module. The editing module is configured to
assign a tree
relationship to the slides. The display module is configured to display a
visual
representation of the tree relationship on an editing screen and display the
first slide
determined by the presentation module in a presentation window. The user
interface
module is configured to allow a user to select a slide based at least on the
visual
representation of the tree relationship displayed on the editing screen. The
presentation
module is further configured to determine a second slide to display for the
presentation
based at least on the slide selected by the user.
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[0008] Alternative exemplary embodiments relate to other features and
combinations of
features as may be generally recited in the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The disclosure will become more fully understood from the following
detailed
description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like
reference
numerals refer to like elements, in which:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a presentation system according to an
exemplary
embodiment.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a process flow diagram that maybe executed by the
presentation system
of FIG. 1 according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a diagram of a process that maybe used in conjunction with
the
presentation system of FIG. 1 according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a presentation system according to another
exemplary
embodiment.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram that may be executed by the
presentation system
of FIG. 4 according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0015] FIGS. 6 through 13 are screenshots of an editing interface that may be
used with
the presentation system of FIG. 4 according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0016] FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a presentation system according to
another
exemplary embodiment.
[0017] FIG. 15 is a process flow diagram that may be executed by the
presentation system
of FIG. 14 according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0018] FIG. 16 is a block diagram of a presentation system according to
another
exemplary embodiment.
[0019] FIG. 17 is a block diagram of a packaging system according to an
exemplary
embodiment.
[0020] FIGS. 18 through 24 are screenshots of an editing interface that may be
used with
the presentation system of FIG. 4 according to exemplary embodiments.
[0021] FIGS. 25 and 26 are graphical depictions of presentation systems
according to
exemplary embodiments.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] Embodiments described herein can provide an improved system for
displaying
and/or manipulating images, slides and other content related to a
presentation. Various
embodiments can be used to provide a rich media toolset for electronic
presentations that
are high-definition, interactive, easy-to-use, and/or provide for either
linear or non-linear
experiences, or both. Further, various embodiments can provide true content
hierarchies at
slide levels while also allowing for linear playback or navigation. Further,
various
embodiments may provide tools that are useful in both a formal presentation
setting and a
less formal question-and-answer setting. Further still, various embodiments
may have rich
media requirements related to, for example, HD video and interactive Flash
interoperability
built into their respective toolsets. Further still, various embodiments can
provide a node-
map content entry interface, advanced design templating, gesture zooming,
and/or
categorical index control.
[00231 Gesturing
100241 Referring now to FIG. 1, a block diagram of a presentation system 100
is shown,
according to an exemplary embodiment. System 100 includes an editor module 102
configured to generate a slide for a presentation based at least on content
defined by a user,
a display module 105 configured to generate display data for the presentation
representing
the slide of the presentation, and a user interface module 110 configured to
receive a
selection of a portion of the slide based at least on a detected movement of a
user input
device across the slide. The movement may be any kind of movement, such as a
circular
motion, a linear motion, a rectangular motion, a touch, an abstract motion
that does not
resemble any particular geometric shape, etc. Display module 105 is configured
to select,
enlarge, and/or pan the selected portion of the slide on the display in
response to at least the
movement of the user input device across the slide. In some embodiments, the
display may
be a large screen display configured for use with presentations (e.g., not a
standard laptop
and/or desktop computer display, handheld computer display, cellular phone
display,
portable multimedia device display, etc.). The display may have a diagonal
length of at
least 40 inches. The display may be configured such that content shown on the
display may
be viewed from at least 20 feet away from the display. The display may be
configured so
that it can be viewed by a large group of people (e.g., 20 or more, 50 or
more, 100 or more,
etc.) during a presentation. The display may be configured for use in a
conference room.
The display may be an LCD, plasma, DLP, projection screen display, or other
display. The
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display may be configured to be mounted on a wall. In some embodiments, the
display may
be a SMART Board, available from SMART Technologies ULC of Calgary, Alberta,
Canada. In other embodiments, the display may be an eBeam device, available
from
Lucidia, Inc. of San Carlos, California. Content may comprise a slide, video
data, image
data, audio data, audio/visual data, textual data, data downloaded from a web
site (e.g., in a
markup language format), word processing data, spreadsheet data, project
files, etc.
100251 Referring now to FIG. 2, a process flow diagram of a process 200 that
may be
performed by system 100 is described, according to an exemplary embodiment. At
step
205, display module 105 displays a slide related to a presentation on the
display. At step
210, user interface module 110 receives a selection of a portion of the slide
from a user.
The selection is based on the movement of a user input device across the
slide. The user
input device may be any device configured to allow a user to communicate with
user
interface module 110. In some embodiments, user interface module 110 may
receive user
input from a computer mouse. In other embodiments, user interface module 110
may
receive user input from a sensor configured to sense movement on or near the
display. For
example, the display may be a touch-sensitive display configured to sense a
pointing object
such as a human hand or a pen touching the surface of the display. In other
embodiments,
the display may not be a touch-sensitive display but may have a touch-
sensitive overlay
device configured to sense a pointing object touching the surface of the
overlay. In still
further embodiments, an infrared sensing device may be coupled or located
proximate to the
display and may be configured to sense movement near the surface of the
display via an
infrared grid. In still further embodiments, an image sensor may be located in
front of the
display and configured to sense when a pointing object is near the surface of
the display.
Such embodiments may permit a user to control presentation system 100 by
gesturing,
waving, dragging, pushing, or otherwise moving the user's finger or another
pointing object
such as a pen. In various embodiments, user interface module 110 may support
single-
touch input and/or multi-touch input. The user input may include data that
represents a first
point and a second point on the first image displayed at step 205. In one
embodiment, the
first point and second point may be horizontal and/or vertical coordinates on
a display. In
other embodiments, the first coordinate may be a coordinate on a display and
the second
coordinate may be a position relative to the first coordinate.
[00261 At step 215, display module 105 determines whether user interface
module 110
received a pan command or a zoom command from the user. In some embodiments,
the
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determination as to whether user interface module 110 received a pan command
or a zoom
command may be based on a type of movement of a user input device received by
user
interface module 110. For example, a curved or arced movement of a user input
device may
represent a zoom command and a straight or linear movement may represent a pan
command. Other movements of a user input device may be used to represent each
of the
pan command and zoom command as well. User interface module 110 may be
configured
to instruct display module 105 to pan the slide upon receipt of at least one
further user input
(e.g., a pan command from a mouse or hand motion). If user interface module
110 received
a pan command, process 200 proceeds to step 220. At step 220, display module
105 pans
the slide. The direction and magnitude of the panning of the slide may be
based on the
extent of the movement associated with the user selection received at step
210. If the user
interface module received a zoom command, process 200 proceeds from step 215
to step
225. At step 225, display module 105 enlarges the selected portion of the
slide. In some
embodiments, the area may be based on a predetermined display characteristic
(e.g., aspect
ratio, resolution, etc.). For example, a gesture of a horizontal line may be
received,
comprising end points (xl, yl) and (x2, y2). The display module may be
configured to
determine that the aspect ratio of the image portion selected is different
than an aspect ratio
of a display coupled to the system. The display module may then be configured
to
determine a new end point (x3, y3) based on either of (xl, yl) and (x2, y2),
and based on
the aspect ratio of the display. The display module may then be configured to
redraw the
image portion to fill the screen size of the display.
[0027] Referring now to FIG. 3, a diagram 300 of a process that may be used in
conjunction with system 100 is shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. At
step
305, a user may use the user input device to draw a shape around the area
which the user
desires to zoom into. Any shape, including an imaginative shape, may be used.
In some
embodiments, the user may draw through or over the desired zooming area. User
interface
module 110 receives a selection of the portion of the slide based on the
drawing movement
of the user. At step 3 10, system 100 creates a bounding box around the area
selected by the
user. System 100 may determine the size and position of the bounding box based
on
coordinates associated with the movement of the user input device. For
example, system
100 may be configured to determine the outermost horizontal (or "x") and
vertical (or "y")
values or coordinates associated with the movement and create the bounding box
based on
those values or coordinates. User interface module 110 may be configured to
register all
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user input device coordinates from the beginning of the user's movement until
the end of
the user's movement. At step 315, system 100 calculates the size and position
of the
selected area and display module 105 scales and/or pans the associated image
to fit the
selected area into a media container in a slide. At step 320, a user may pan
the resulting
zoomed image or scale the image back to its original size. In some
embodiments, a user
may pan the image by selecting and moving the user input device along the
image. In some
embodiments, a user may scale the image back to its original size by
selecting, clicking or
pressing the image. In still further embodiments, a minimum movement distance
or
minimum distance between start and end points may be used to prevent
accidental zooming
or panning of an image.
[0028] Editor
[0029] Referring now to FIG. 4, a block diagram of a presentation system 400
is shown,
according to an exemplary embodiment. Presentation system 400 includes an
editing
module 405, a display module 410 and a user input module 415. Editing module
405 is
configured to assign both a linear relationship and a tree relationship to
each slide in a
presentation. Display module 410 is configured to receive the linear
relationship and the
tree relationship assigned to each slide in the presentation. User input
module 415 is
configured to receive a user selection of a node of the displayed tree
relationship. Display
module 410 is configured to display a slide corresponding to the selected node
in response
to at least the user selection. Presentation system 400 may be used to
organize slides related
to a presentation. In some embodiments, presentation system 400 may be used to
organize
slides in real-time while the presentation is being presented. Presentation
system 400 may
be configured to allow a specific set of users or anyone to edit the slides
and/or order of a
presentation.
[0030] Editing module 405 is configured to assign a linear relationship and a
tree
relationship to each of the slides in a presentation. Editing module 405 may
assign a linear
relationship by defining an order in which the slides may be presented if all
slides are
presented in order from first to last, which may be assigned based on inputs
from the user
via user input module 415. In assigning each slide a linear relationship,
editing module 405
may identify a first slide, a last slide, a next slide for the first slide, a
previous slide for the
last slide, and/or a next and previous slide for each of the other slides.
Editing module 405
may assign a tree relationship by assigning a place for each slide in a
hierarchical structure
that may resemble a tree structure, which may have at least two levels, at
least three levels,
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or any number of levels of nodes, each node representing a slide, which may
comprise a
textual slide or other content (e.g., video content, image file, word
processing document,
spreadsheet document, project file, etc.). In some embodiments, the
hierarchical structure
may also be determined in part according to a plurality of types of nodes,
which may
include categories, slides and/or images. Editing module 405 may assign a tree
relationship
by defining parent-child relationships among the slides, with parent slides
having a higher-
level position or a more general subject matter than their respective child
slides. Several
branches may be formed by the tree relationship. In some embodiments, when a
user
creates a new slide in the presentation, editing module 405 may display a
prompt to the user
via display module 410 requesting that the user assign a tree relationship
position, or create
a new node in the tree, for the new slide. In other embodiments, when a user
creates a new
slide in the presentation, editing module 405 may require the user to assign a
tree
relationship position for the new slide. In some embodiments, editing module
405 may also
prompt and/or require the user to assign a linear relationship position for
the new slide.
[0031] Display module 410 is configured to receive the linear relationship and
tree
relationship from editing module 405. Display module 410 may be configured to
display
the slides, or a representation of the slides (e.g., slide title, slide
thumbnail, slide preview
pane, etc.), on a display based on the linear relationship, tree relationship
and/or both
relationships. In some embodiments, display module 410 may be configured to
display the
slides, a representation of the slides, and/or a visual representation of the
linear relationship
and the tree relationship substantially simultaneously. In further exemplary
embodiments, a
visual representation of the linear relationship may include a preview pane,
screen, window,
etc. that allows a user to preview a portion of a linear slide presentation
based on a node or
slide selected based on a visual representation of the tree relationship. For
example, a user
may select a node or slide on an on-display tree structure formed based on the
tree
relationship using user input module 415 and the selected node or slide and/or
a series of
several (e.g., three, five, six, seven, etc.) slide previews may appear in a
preview pane. The
preview pane may be located on the same screen or window as the tree
structure, on a
different screen or window on the same display, or on a different display.
[0032] In some embodiments, display module 410 maybe configured to hide one or
more
slides of a presentation. Display module 410 may be configured to skip over
hidden slides
during the presentation. In other embodiments, display module 410 maybe
configured to
display a blank screen, hidden screen icon, or other visual indicator
representing a hidden
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slide during the presentation. Slides to be hidden may be selected by a user
via user input
module 415 or may be determined by settings stored in a memory. In some
embodiments,
display module 410 may be configured to hide individual slides. In other
embodiments,
display module 410 may be configured to hide all slides beneath a selected
slide in a branch
of a hierarchy. For example, when a parent node is selected for hiding all of
its children and
related sub-children may also be hidden. In still further embodiments, display
module 410
may be configured to hide all slides beneath a specified level in a hierarchy.
In still further
embodiments, display module 410 may be configured to graveyard a slide, or
hide a slide
and remove it from a slide hierarchy. If a slide is graveyarded, other slides
in the
presentation may be renumbered or given new slide identifiers to reflect that
the
graveyarded slide is no longer a part of the displayed presentation. One
presentation may
be used to create one or more subset presentations by hiding one or more
slides of the
master presentation. Hiding slides may reduce the need to copy slides from one
presentation to create a subset presentation. Hiding slides also may allow
content to be
removed from a displayed presentation without deleting the content, so content
may be
recovered without having to recreate the content.
[0033) Referring now to FIG. 5, a process flow diagram of a process 500 that
may be used
with presentation system 400 is shown, according to an exemplary embodiment.
At step
502, system 400 checks to verify whether a template set for the slides of a
presentation
exists. Format constraints may be provided by a template created and/or used
for a
presentation and may prevent unintentional deviations from a predetermined
slide and/or
content layout. Types, styles, sizes, colors, etc. may be locked in a
template. Templates
may be structured to provide media only, media and bullets, bullets, text,
media and text,
text only, etc. At step 504, system 400 determines whether the template set is
a default
application template set. If it is, system 400 proceeds to step 514. If it is
not a default
application template set, system 400 proceeds to step 506 and builds a
template set or
obtains a shared template set. At step 508, system 400 launches a template
manager
configured to manage various slide templates. At step 510, system 400
activates new
templates and deactivates old templates to establish the appropriate templates
to be used by
editing module 405. At step 512, system 400 exits the template manager and
proceeds to
step 514. At step 514, system 400 launches an editor interface.
100341 At step 516, user input module 415 determines whether the user would
like to open
an existing presentation file. If the user wishes to open an existing
presentation file, system
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400 proceeds to step 518 and display module 410 presents a browser to the user
to select the
presentation file. The presentation file is then loaded. At step 520, the
presentation opens
on the editor window or screen, and system 400 proceeds to step 526.
[0035] If the user does not wish to open an existing presentation file at step
516, system
400 proceeds to step 522 and creates a new presentation. At step 524, a user
selection of a
template set for the presentation is received by user input module 415 and
system 400
proceeds to step 526.
[0036] At step 526, the presentation file opens in a node or tree view. At
step 528, a user
can click any node or slide in an index of the editing interface to edit the
node or slide, add
children, delete the node, and/or delete the node's children. At step 530, a
user can view
data panels associated with a particular slide, view a preview of the slide,
view properties
associated with the slide and/or the content embedded in the slide, print one
or more slides
on a printer or to a file, save the presentation file locally on a hard drive,
remotely on a
network drive, etc., and/or export the presentation. A player or presentation
interface may
also be launched from the editor interface at step 530. A user may run the
presentation in
the player interface or use the editor interface and a modeless window
control. The editor
interface and player interface may run simultaneously with navigation of
slides in the player
being controllable from either the editor interface or the player interface,
or both. All assets
or content loaded into system 400 may have absolute links. When a user chooses
to export
the presentation, the assets or content may have relative links and a single
portable file may
be produced.
[0037] At step 532, user input module 415 determines whether the user wishes
to create a
new slide and/or copy, move or sort slides in the tree displayed in the
editing interface. If
so, system 400 proceeds to step 534 and creates a new slide or copies, moves
or sorts the
slides and editing module 405 determines a new linear and/or tree relationship
for the slides
and resorts the order of the slides numerically. If not, system 400 returns to
step 530.
[0038] At step 536, user input module 415 determines whether the user has
selected a
node options property panel to assign template selections. If so, system 400
proceeds to
step 538 and selects a specific template set for a root node or a template
layout for a
selected node. If not, system 400 returns to step 530.
[0039] At step 540, user input module 415 determines whether the user has
selected a
node properties title option. If so, system 400 proceeds to step 542 and user
input module
415 receives a slide title typed by the user in a title property panel. The
slide title may be
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the same title that is used as the index entry for the slide. If not, system
400 proceeds to
step 530.
10040] At step 544, user input module 415 determines whether the user has
selected a
node properties text option. If so, system 400 proceeds to step 546 and user
input module
415 receives a slide title type by the user in a text property panel. The
slide title may be the
same title that is used as the index entry for the slide. If not, system 400
proceeds to step
530.
100411 At step 548, user input module 415 determines whether the user has
selected a
node properties media option. If so, system 400 proceeds to step 550 and user
input module
415 receives a selection of media from a user (e.g., by a browser interface,
dragging and
dropping, etc.). System 400 then loads the media. If not, system 400 proceeds
to step 530.
100421 At step 552, user input module 415 determines whether the user has
selected a
node properties bullet option. If so, system 400 proceeds to step 554 and the
user may type
bullets, move bullets or edit bullets via user input module 415. At step 556,
a user may exit
system 400.
[0043] According to the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 5, an exemplary editor
interface
layout is also shown. The layout may include a presentation preview pane 570
that
previews one or more slides. The slides 572 shown in the preview pane may
change in
response to user selection of a slide in a tree structure. The order of slides
in presentation
preview 570 may be based on a linear relationship between the slides. The
layout may also
have a tree structure or tree navigation pane or screen 572 on which a user
can select and/or
manipulate one or more slides or nodes 574. The layout may also have one or
more
property buttons 576 that may activate one or more property edit panels 578
when selected
that may allow a user to, for example, load content such as video or images,
edit text such as
the title, edit bullets, etc.
100441 Referring now to FIG. 6, a screenshot of an editing interface 600 that
may be used
by system 400 is provided, according to an exemplary embodiment. Editing
interface 600
has a plurality of menus (e.g., dropdown menus) selectable by a user via user
input module
415. File menu 605 may permit a user to create a new presentation, open an
existing
presentation, save an open presentation, export a presentation and/or other
files related to
the presentation, import a presentation and/or other files related to the
presentation, etc..
Edit menu 610 may permit a user to copy a node (e.g., slide, image, video,
etc.), cut a node,
paste a node, delete a node, etc.. Player menu 615 may allow a user to launch
a player or
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presentation interface to present the slides from within editing interface
600. In some
embodiments, the presentation may be launched in a modeless window or a
presentation
window. Player menu 615 may also allow a user to refresh a presentation
running in an
already open player interface. Player menu 615 may enable a user to alter one
or more
nodes, slides, media content, etc. of a presentation within editor interface
600 and refresh
the presentation in the player interface to reflect the alterations without
closing or otherwise
changing the player interface. In some embodiments, such as when editing
interface 600 is
displayed on one display and a player interface is displayed on a separate
display, editing
interface 600 may be used to make changes to nodes, slides, content, etc.
during a
presentation without viewers of the presentation being aware that changes are
being made.
View menu 620 may allow a user to view one or more slides and/or select
options related to
the view of the editing interface. View menu 620 may allow a user to open
and/or close a
preview pane 650. Print command button 625 may allow a user to print one or
more slides,
a representation of preview pane 650, and/or a representation of tree
structure 655. Help
menu 630 may provide internal or external links to information regarding how
to use system
400. Editing interface 600 may have a plurality of command buttons selectable
by a user
via user input module 415. The command buttons may be located in a slide
properties
panel. The command buttons may when selected cause editing interface 600 to
present one
or more slide property panels to a user. Options command button 635 may permit
a user to
select options related to a selected node or slide, such as selecting a
particular template for a
slide or group of slides. In some embodiments, the template options presented
via options
command button 635 may be based in part on the type of slide (e.g., text, text
and image,
image, video, text and video, etc.). Title command button 640 may allow a user
to change
the title of one or more slides. Text command button 645 may allow a user to
edit the text
of one or more slides.
[00451 Preview pane 650 may show a preview of one or more slides. Preview pane
650
may allow a user to preview slides and/or a linear presentation. In some
embodiments,
preview pane 650 may allow a user to preview slides and/or a presentation
without
changing the presentation being displayed in a presentation window that may
have been
opened by editing interface 600. Tree pane 655 shows a plurality of nodes and
the tree
relationship between the nodes. Tree pane 655 may show a visual representation
of the tree
relationship between the slides. In some embodiments, nodes as shown in tree
pane 655
may represent slides. In other embodiments, nodes and/or slides may represent
other
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content, such as text, pictures, videos, etc. The nodes connected by lines in
tree pane 655
are related as parent-child nodes, where the node on the left of a connecting
line is the
parent of the node on the right of the line, and the node on the right of the
line is a child of
the node on the left. In some embodiments nodes may have multiple levels of
hierarchy.
For example, a node that is related as the child of the first or left-most
node may be at a first
level of hierarchy, and a node that is a child of that node may be at a second
level of
hierarchy.
[0046] Referring now to FIGS. 7 through 13, screenshots of several editing
interfaces that
may be used by system 400 is provided, according to various exemplary
embodiments.
Referring specifically to FIG. 7, editing interface 700 has a plurality of
command buttons
selectable by a user via user input module 415. New command button 705 may
open a new
presentation. New command button 705 may cause a select project folder menu to
open in
which a user may select the desired location of the new presentation. In some
embodiments, a project folder may be created prior to selecting new command
button 705.
Open command button 710 may open an existing presentation. The existing
presentation
may be opened by selecting a project file (e.g., an XML file). Save command
button 715
may save an open presentation. Save command button 715 may pull referenced
files into a
deployment folder and save a primary reference file at the current project
location. Cached
data from a properties panel or node editing panel may be compiled when save
command
button 715 or a subsequent button such as a build button is selected. Preview
command
button 720 may open a preview of the current cached files.
[0047] FIG. 8 shows an exemplary editing interface 800 having an open
presentation
browser window 805 that may be used to open a presentation.
[0048] FIG. 9 shows an exemplary editing interface 900 having an index 905
that lists
categories associated with a presentation, slides of the presentation, and/or
media associated
with the slides. Index 905 may include a command button interface that allows
a user to
add a category, slide or image, or delete a node. These commands may follow a
strict
hierarchy which dictates that categories contain slides which contain images.
A category
may relate to one or many slides, a single slide may relate to a single
category and may
relate to none or many images, and a single image may relate to a single
slide. Adding a
category, slide or image may create a visual representation of a new node in
the index. The
visual representation may include an indicator of the type of node. Deleting a
node may
delete children associated with the node. A warning window may alert the user
that
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children maybe deleted. Editing interface 900 also has a properties panel 910
that allows a
user to view and change properties regarding a category, slide, or image, each
of which may
have different properties from one another. Properties panel 910 may include
text entry
fields such as title, description, link (absolute URL links or local file
links), and tool tip
descriptions that offer a description of the links. A user may also change
properties
regarding a presentation, such as how long the delay is between slides during
the
presentation. A user may be required to select a save command button to record
any data
entered. Properties panel 910 for images may contain a browse image name text
field
where a user can type or browse to a specific image file. A slide template may
resize all
images and/or video used in a presentation to one size. In some embodiments,
for the image
gallery and its template the image size may be 830 pixels wide by 590 pixels
tall. A larger
or smaller image may be used as well. In some embodiments, a larger or smaller
image can
be loaded and may be fit to match the presentation dimensions. Editing
interface 900 may
also have a project properties panel having text fields for project name,
cover file, template
file, category auto-building global presentation slide selector, global tool-
tip selector, etc.
[0049] FIG. 10 shows an exemplary editing interface 1000 having an expanded
index
showing categories, slides and media. Editing interface 1000 also includes a
text edit panel
1010 related to an index category 1005 that may appear to a user upon
selection of a text
command button.
[0050] FIG. 11 shows an exemplary editing interface 1100 that includes a text
edit panel
1110 related to an index slide 1105 that may appear to a user upon selection
of a text
command button. A user may change the order of the slide using text edit panel
1110.
[0051] FIG. 12 shows an exemplary editing interface 1200 that includes a media
edit
panel 1210 related to index media 1205 that may appear to a user upon
selection of a media
edit command button. Index media 1205, as illustrated, is a video file. Media
edit panel
1210 may include a view of the media content and information about the media
content. A
user may be allowed to edit a label associated with the media content and/or a
textual
description.
[0052] FIG. 13 shows an exemplary editing interface 1300 that includes a media
edit
panel 1310 related to index media 1305, which, as illustrated, is an image
file. Media edit
panel 1310 may permit a user to perform image editing functions on the image,
such as
cropping and/or resizing.
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[0053] FIG. 18 shows an exemplary editing interface 1800 having a tree pane
with a
plurality of nodes organized according to a tree relationship. As illustrated,
each node is
represented by a number and a title (e.g., slide title). For example, node
1810 is represented
by a "5" and the title "Right Resources - Your `Delta Force'." The number may
represent
an order in a linear relationship, or an order in which the slides would be
presented in a
linear presentation. For example, in FIG. 18 node 1810 is represented by the
number "5"
and node 1815 is represented by the number "6" indicating that node 1810 would
be
displayed directly prior to node 1815 in a linear presentation. In other
embodiments, the
number may represent the order in which the slide was created, an importance
level, a
position in a hierarchy based on the tree relationship, etc. In other
embodiments, nodes may
be represented by images, textual descriptions, symbols, icons, etc.
[0054] The nodes may be organized based on the tree-based relationship. For
example,
node 1805 is the parent of node 1810 and the visual representation of nodes
1805 and 1810
are connected by a line to represent the parent-child relationship. Node 1810
is the parent
of nodes 1815 and 1820 and the visual representation of nodes 1810 is
connected by a line
to that of nodes 1815 and 1820. Node 1820 is the parent of nodes 1825, 1830
and 1835, and
the visual representation of node 1820 is connected by a line to that of nodes
1825, 1830
and 1835. In other embodiments, the relationship may be shown in other ways,
such as
through indentation, color, fonts, etc. In some embodiments, one or more
nodes, groups of
nodes, and/or hierarchy levels may be hidden in the tree pane. In the
exemplary
embodiment of FIG. 18, the children of a parent node may be hidden if a user
selects a hide
command button, represented as an arrow surrounded by a circle located next to
the title of
the parent node. For example, if the arrow next to node 1820 is selected,
nodes 1825, 1830
and 1835 (i.e., the children of node 1820) may be hidden.
[0055] FIG. 19 shows an exemplary editing interface 1900 having a tree pane
with a
plurality of nodes or slides organized according to a tree relationship and a
preview pane
with slide previews organized according to a linear relationship. According to
one
exemplary embodiment, FIG. 19 may be similar to what may appear if a node is
selected in
the tree pane of editing interface 1800. Slide 1905 is illustrated as having
been selected by
a user. The selection is shown by a darkened bubble around the representation
of slide
1905. In other embodiments, selection of a slide or node may be represented in
different
ways, such as changes in color, font, size, position, highlighting, etc. In
some
embodiments, the preview pane may be a fixed pane on an editing screen. In
other
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embodiments, the preview pane may be hidden until a slide is selected in the
tree pane.
Slide 1910 appearing in the preview pane is a preview slide of selected slide
1905 in the tree
pane. The slides appearing next to slide 1910 maybe the next slides in a
linear relationship.
[00561 FIG. 20 shows an exemplary editing interface 2000 having a bullet
property panel
2005. Bullet property panel 2005 has a plurality of properties related to the
appearance of
bullets in a presentation. Bullet property panel 2005 has options to set the
vertical
alignment of bullets (top, middle, bottom, fit area), determine an animation
and/or direction
of movement when bullets appear during the presentation, and set text
associated with the
bullets. Bullet property panel 2005 also displays a preview of the appearance
of bullets in
the presentation. In other embodiments, more, less or different options may be
present,
such as color, size, indentation, etc.
[00571 FIG. 21 shows an exemplary editing interface 2100 having a media
property panel
2105. Media property panel 2105 has a plurality of properties related to media
(e.g., videos,
images, etc.) associated with and/or embedded in the slides of a presentation.
Media
property panel 2105 may display different properties based on the type of
media selected.
For example, in FIG. 21 an image is selected, and media property panel 2105
displays a
preview of the image, template media area information such as the width and
height (in
pixels, metric or English units of distance, etc.) and the scale percentage of
the preview to
the original image file. Media property panel 2105 also displays media
information such as
the location of the image file in a memory, width and height of the image,
horizontal and/or
vertical coordinates representing the position of the image on a slide, and a
selectable scale
percentage of the original image to the image shown in the slide. Different
information and
options may be presented for different types of media, such as videos. In
other
embodiments, more, less or different information and options may be present,
such as size
of a media file in memory, image properties such as brightness or contrast,
resolution,
image and/or video editing tools such as cropping, video length, etc.
100581 FIG. 22 shows an exemplary editing interface 2200 having a text
property panel
2205. Text property panel 2205 has a plurality of properties related to slide
text. Text
property panel 2205 permits a user to enter text, change the font style (bold,
italicize,
underline, etc.), set the text orientation or justification (right, left,
center), add bullets,
increase or decrease indentation, and add special characters (copyright
symbol, trademark
symbols, etc.). In other embodiments, more, less or different options may be
presented,
such as font type, color, size, etc.
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[0059] FIG. 23 shows an exemplary index 2300 that may appear within an editing
interface or a player or presentation interface. Index 2300 includes a visual
representation
of one or more slides of a presentation. The slides may be ordered in a list
according to at
least one of a linear relationship and/or a tree relationship. All slides may
appear at one
level of indentation, or one or more slides may appear at differing levels of
indentation. In
some embodiments, differing levels of indentation may represent different
hierarchical
levels based on the tree structure. In various embodiments, methods other than
differing
indentation may be used, such as differences in font, color, size, etc.
[0060] In some embodiments, index 2300 may have multiple views selectable by a
user.
One or more of the views may be based on the linear relationship and/or tree
relationship.
Index 2300, as shown, has a linear view in which all slides appear at the same
level of
indentation. The linear view indicates the linear relationship between the
slides and/or the
order in which the slides will appear in a linear presentation. In some
embodiments, index
2300 may have a tree or hierarchy view in which slides appear at different
levels of
hierarchy (e.g., by indentation) based on the tree relationship. The tree view
may show a
visual representation of parent-child relationships between slides. In some
embodiments,
users may toggle between a linear view and a tree view. For example, by
clicking linear
view command button 2302 in index 2300 a user may be presented with the linear
view of
index 2300. By clicking tree view command button 2304 a user may be presented
with the
tree view of index 2300.
[0061] In some embodiments, a user may view a preview of a slide by selecting
the slide
with a user input device. Slide 2305 has been selected by a user in the
exemplary
embodiment shown in FIG. 23, as is indicated by the light rectangular box
around the visual
representation of slide 2305. In other embodiments, other methods of
indicating selection
of a slide may be used. Slide preview 2310 may appear in response to the
selection of slide
2305 and may be a preview image of slide 2305. In other embodiments, other
information
may appear when a slide is selected, such as media embedded in the slide.
[0062] FIG. 24 shows an exemplary template management panel 2400 that may be
used
with an editing interface. Template management panel 2400 may include an
installed
template list 2405 that lists slide templates installed on a system. Each
template entry in the
slide template list may include information about the template and/or slides
that may be
created using the template, such as a title, location of the file (e.g., in
local memory, remote
memory such as on a network drive, Internet URL, etc.), size of slides in the
template (e.g.,
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in pixels, metric or English size units, etc.), aspect ratio of the slides,
etc. Template
management panel 2400 may have a delete command button 2410 that may allow a
user to
delete an installed template set. Template management panel 2400 may include
an
additional template list 2415 that lists available slide templates not
installed on the system.
Additional template list 2415 may include information about available
templates that may
be similar to or different from the information in installed template list
2405. Template
management panel 2400 may include an add command button 2420 that may allow a
user to
add and/or install an additional template selected from additional template
list 2415.
[0063] Player with Navigation Pane
[0064] Referring now to FIG. 14, a block diagram of a presentation system 1400
is
shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. Presentation system 1400 includes
a
navigation module 1405, a display module 1410, and a user interface module
1415.
Navigation module 1405 is configured to receive a tree relationship for the
slides of a
presentation from a memory and generate a navigation pane based on the tree
relationship.
Display module 1410 is configured to display the navigation pane. User
interface module
1415 is configured to allow a user of presentation system 1400 to select a
slide from the
navigation pane. Display module 1410 is then configured to display the
selected slide.
[0065] Navigation module 1405 is configured to generate, create and/or
organize a slide
navigation pane based on the tree relationship received from memory. In some
embodiments, the navigation pane may include an index (e.g., the index shown
in FIG. 23).
The navigation pane may include a representation of each slide in the
presentation. In some
embodiments, the navigation pane may be limited to include only slides at,
above, or below
a certain hierarchical level (e.g., only first parents, only first parents and
first children, etc.).
The navigation pane may be organized as any structure capable of preserving
the
hierarchical or parent-child relationships between the slides (e.g., tree,
stack, queue, linked
list, etc.). The navigation pane may include a link to each slide in the
presentation. In some
embodiments, each time a title is added to a slide, a node or structure in the
hierarchy is
automatically built. In some embodiments, display module 1410 may present a
user with a
visual category enumerator that may be selected to see a category name or jump
to a
category slide presentation. This visual category enumerator may include names
and/or
images associated with categories. In some embodiments users may use keyboard
commands to proceed through the slides and/or navigation pane. In some
embodiments
media and/or image files played and/or displayed using system 1400 may be
embedded in
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the presentation and may not require system 1400 to switch to a separate
application to play
and/or display the files. System 1400 may allow a user to view content such as
an image or
video on a partial screen or a full screen view and/or within a slide or in a
separate window.
System 1400 may be configured to return directly to the slide in which the
content is
embedded once the user is done viewing the content, either automatically or
upon input
from the user. System 1400 may incorporate video, image, spreadsheet and other
programs
for viewing and/or manipulating slide content such that the content may be
viewed and
manipulated directly in the presentation. In some embodiments, such programs
may be
included as components of system 1400. For example, in one embodiment system
1400
may include an Adobe Flash component, available from Adobe Systems Inc. of San
Jose,
California, to display Flash video during a presentation.
100661 Display module 1410 is configured to display the navigation pane. In
displaying
the navigation pane, display module 1410 is configured to display a
representation of each
slide in the navigation pane according to a hierarchical structure based at
least on the tree
relationship. For example, display module 1410 may be configured to display
the title of
each slide in the navigation pane. In other embodiments, display module 1410
may be
configured to display a brief description of each slide in the navigation
pane. In still further
embodiments, display module 1410 may be configured to display thumbnail images
of each
slide in the navigation pane (e.g., a first image of a video, a beginning
portion of the video
which plays in the thumbnail, etc.). In some embodiments, system 1400 may be
configured
to provide thumbnail images in no more than three seconds. The navigation pane
may be
displayed in any format. In some embodiments, display module 1410 may be
configured to
display the navigation pane in a format that indicates the hierarchical
relationship between
the slides to a user. For example, in one embodiment, display module 1410 may
display the
representations of the slides with indentations to indicate parent-child
relationships between
the slides. One exemplary navigation pane according to such an embodiment may
look
similar to the navigation pane shown in FIG. 13. In other embodiments, display
module
1410 may display the navigation pane in a tree structure. In other
embodiments, display
module 1410 may distinguish between hierarchy levels in the navigation pane
through the
use of different fonts, text sizes, text colors, bolding, underlining,
italicizing, highlighting,
etc. In some embodiments, system 1400 may support an unlimited number of
hierarchy
levels. In some embodiments, display module 1410 may display a preview of a
slide based
on input received by user interface module 1415 when the navigation pane is
displayed. For
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example, display module 1410 may display a thumbnail preview of a slide in
response to a
right-click or mouse-over from a computer mouse. In some embodiments, display
module
1410 may display a preview in response to a movement of a finger, pen, or
other pointing
object on or near a display screen.
[0067] User interface module 1415 is configured to receive a user selection of
a slide from
the navigation pane at any of a plurality of levels of hierarchy in the
hierarchical structure to
be displayed by display module 1410. In one embodiment, a user may select a
single slide
to indicate a starting slide for use in a linear or tree-based presentation
format. In other
embodiments, a user may select a plurality of slides to indicate that the
presentation should
be limited to the selected slides and/or related slides in the hierarchical
structure. User
interface module 1415 may also be configured to allow a user to display the
navigation pane
at any point in a presentation. For example, display module 1410 may be
configured to
display a button, box, link, label, etc. indicative of the navigation pane and
user interface
module 1415 maybe configured to command display module 1410 to display the
navigation
pane in response to user selection of the navigation pane indicator. In some
embodiments,
user interface module 1415 may be configured to command display module 1410 to
display
the navigation pane in response to a key or key combination from a keyboard,
such as a hot
key which may act as a toggle to display or not display the navigation pane in
a window
pane (which may be less than the full screen), in a full screen, etc..
[0068] In some embodiments, display module 1410 may be configured to determine
the
information displayed in the navigation pane based on user input received by
user interface
module 1415. For example, in some embodiments, display module 1410 may be
configured
to display only information related to slides at, above or below a certain
level of hierarchy
specified by a user. For example, in one embodiment a user may command display
module
1410 to display only slides within the top three levels of hierarchy. In other
embodiments,
display module 1410 may be configured to display only information having a
particular
level of detail specified by a user (e.g., display categories and not details
below the
categories). Display module 1410 may be configured to hide one or more slides
based on
the user input received by user interface module 1415. In still further
embodiments, display
module 1410 may be configured to allow a user to customize information
displayed in the
navigation pane based on other input provided to user input module 1415.
[0069] In further embodiments, display module 1410 maybe configured to display
the
navigation pane after the last slide in a branch of the tree relationship is
displayed. For
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example, if an exemplary presentation has a plurality of main topics
represented by a
plurality of primary parent slides, display module 1410 may display the
navigation pane
after the last slide related to the first primary parent slide is displayed.
This may be used to
hide certain slides or flow around them during a presentation. In some
embodiments, a
single presentation may be used several times and altered by hiding slides the
presenter does
not wish to present, with the system storing predefined selections of one or
more subsets of
the slides for presentation. Display module 1410 may also be configured to
display the
navigation pane after the last slide of the presentation has been displayed.
In other
embodiments, display module 1410 maybe configured to proceed from one branch
of slides
to another without displaying the navigation pane.
[00701 In still further embodiments, presentation system 1400 may be operable
on one or
more server computers, and may be configured to communicate with a computing
network
1420. Display module 1410 may be configured to display a presentation on one
or more
displays connected to computing network 1420. User interface module 1415 may
be
configured to receive input from.one or more users of the presentation at a
client computer
over computing network 1420, and display module 1410 may be configured to
change what
is displayed at the client computer based on the input. Computing network 1420
may be
any communication network (e.g., LAN, WAN, wired, wireless, satellite, cable,
DSL, etc.).
Computing network 1420 may be a global computing network such as the Internet.
Navigation module 1405, display module 1410 and user interface module 1415 may
be
implemented as software (e.g., HTML, XML, Java, Flash, etc.) compatible with
web
browsers (e.g., Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Safari, etc.). Presentation
system 1400
may be configured to be accessible from a client computer via a resource
locator (e.g., a
uniform resource locator), which may direct the client to a secure hypertext
transfer
protocol web site.
[00711 Referring now to FIG. 15, a process flow diagram of a process 1500 that
may be
used with presentation system 1400 is shown, according to an exemplary
embodiment. At
step 1502, system 1400 launches a player or presentation interface. The player
interface
may be launched through an exported package. At step 1504, system 1400 loads
the
presentation data file. At step 1506, system 1400 determines whether a cover
file is
included in the data file from an editor interface. If so, system 1400
proceeds to step 1508
and displays the cover image and/or slides and media content or assets in the
cover file, then
proceeds to step 1510. If not, system 1400 proceeds to step 1510.
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[0072] At step 1510, the user is provided with either the first slide in the
presentation or
an navigation pane of content nodes. The navigation pane may be organized
according to a
hierarchy and may be linked to each of the slides of the presentation. At step
1512, the user
may select any slide or node in the navigation pane to close the navigation
pane and view
the selected slide or category. At step 1514, the user may view data panels
for one or more
slides, categories and/or slide content.
[0073] At step 1516, user interface module 1415 determines whether a user
command to
reopen the navigation pane has been received. If so, system 1400 returns to
step 1510. If
not, system 1400 returns to step 1514.
[0074] At step 1518, user interface module 1415 determines whether the user
has selected
to view an image in a new window. If so, system 1400 proceeds to step 1520 and
display
module 1410 displays the selected image in an image view window. If not,
system 1400
returns to step 1514.
[0075] At step 1522, user interface module 1415 determines whether a user has
selected to
advance through each slide or through a thumbnail gallery. If so, system 1400
proceeds to
step 1524 and display module 1410 displays the slides and/or thumbnail gallery
images in
sequence. If not, system 1400 returns to step 1514.
[0076] At step 1526, system 1400 determines whether the categories, slides
and/or media
content or assets are visually represented by a customizable indexing method
in the
navigation pane. If so, system 1400 proceeds to step 1528 and a user may
select a desired
navigation pane level. If not, system 1400 returns to step 1514.
[0077] At step 1530, user interface module 1415 determines whether the user
has moved a
user input device, including a mouse, human finger or other device, over a
display to control
the view of the slides or media. If so, system 1400 proceeds to step 1532 and
the user may
move or pan the slide or media, enlarge or shrink the slide or media, and/or
play the media
via user interface module 1415. FIG. 15 also includes an exemplary diagram of
possible
user input device interaction that may be used by a user in conjunction with
steps 1530 and
1532. At step 1540, a user may exit system 1400.
[0078] Modeless/Presentation Window Controlled by Editor
[0079] Referring now to FIG. 16, a block diagram of a presentation system 1600
is
shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. Presentation system 1600 includes
an
editing module 1605, a presentation module 1610, a display module 1615, and a
user
interface module 1620. Editing module 1605 is configured to assign a tree
relationship to
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the slides of a presentation. Presentation module 1610 is configured to
determine a first
slide to display for the presentation. Display module 1615 is configured to
display a visual
representation of the tree relationship on an editing screen and the first
slide determined by
presentation module 1610 in a presentation window. User interface module 1620
is
configured to allow a user to select a slide based at least on the visual
representation of the
tree relationship displayed on the editing screen. Presentation module 1610 is
then
configured to determine a second slide to display for the presentation based
on the slide
selected by the user. Presentation system 1600 may allow a user to launch a
player or
presentation interface including the presentation window from an editing
interface including
the editing screen. In some embodiments, a user may run a presentation in the
player
interface or use the editor interface with a modeless window or presentation
window
control. A modeless window may refer to a window that remains active until it
is
dismissed, or operates independently of a screen or window which may have
created it. The
editor interface and player interface may be configured to run simultaneously
with
navigation of the slides being controllable by either the player interface or
the editor
interface. The editor interface and player interface may be configured to work
together to
provide streamlined editing and playback functionality.
[0080] Presentation module 1610 is configured to determine a first slide to
display for the
presentation. In some embodiments, the first slide may be determined based on
user input.
In other embodiments, the first slide may be determined based on the tree
relationship
assigned to the slides by editing module 1605.
[0081] Display module 1615 is configured to display a visual representation of
the tree
relationship on an editing screen and display the first slide in a
presentation window. The
editing screen and/or presentation window may be displayed automatically by
display
module 1615 or may be displayed in response to input received from a user at
user interface
module 1620. For example, the editing screen may be configured to display
automatically
upon starting presentation system 1600 and the presentation screen may appear
only after a
user has sent a command to user interface module 1620 to open the presentation
screen. In
some embodiments, the editing screen and the presentation window may occupy
portions of
the same screen on the same display. In other embodiments, the editing screen
and
presentation window may be displayed on separate screens and/or windows on the
same
display. In still further embodiments, the editing screen and presentation
window may be
displayed on separate displays.
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[00821 User interface module 1620 is configured to allow a user to select a
slide based on
the visual representation of the tree relationship displayed on the editing
screen. For
example, user interface module 1620 may receive input indicating that a user
has selected a
slide on a tree structure displayed on the editing screen. Presentation module
1610 is
configured to determine a second slide for display based on the user's
selection. In some
embodiments, user interface module 1620 may also be configured to allow a user
to select a
slide in the presentation window, such as by selecting a slide from a
navigation pane and/or
index. Editing module 1605 may be configured to receive an input from
presentation
module 1610 representing a currently displayed slide that is being displayed
in the
presentation window.
[0083] Referring now to FIG. 25, a graphical depiction of a presentation
system 2500 is
shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. Presentation system 2500 includes
an
editing computer 2505 configured to display an editing screen. Presentation
system 2500
further includes a presentation display 2510 configured to display a
presentation window.
Presentation display 2510 may be a large screen electronic display such as
those described
herein. Editing computer 2505 and presentation display 2510 communicate via
interface
2515. Interface 2515 may be any interface through which a computer may
communicate
with another computer and/or a display (e.g., VGA, DVI, HDMI, composite/RCA
audio/video cables, component video cables, USB, Firewire, Ethernet, wireless
(e.g., IEEE
802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth, etc.), etc.). A user may use editing computer 2505
to make
changes to a presentation and/or select slides for viewing in the presentation
window on
presentation display 2510 using the editing screen displayed on editing
computer 2505. In
some embodiments, a user may use editing computer 2505 to alter a presentation
while the
presentation is being delivered by another person who is using presentation
display 2510.
Presentation display 2510 may have a touch screen or other device allowing
user input on or
near presentation display 2510 as described herein. A user may be able to use
the to make
changes to a presentation directly on presentation display 2510 or send
changes to editing
computer 2505.
[00841 Referring now to FIG. 26, a graphical depiction of a presentation
system 2600 is
shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. Presentation system 2600 includes
an
editing computer 2605 configured to display an editing screen. Presentation
system 2600
further includes a plurality of presentation displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 each
configured to
display one or a plurality of presentation windows. Each of presentation
displays 2610,
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2615 and 2620 may be a large screen electronic display such as those described
herein.
Presentation displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 may have touch screens or other
devices
allowing user input on or near displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 as described
herein. A user
may be able to use the to make changes to a presentation directly on one or
more of displays
2610, 2615 and 2620 or send changes to editing computer 2605. In various
embodiments,
displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 may have the same or different features, such as
size, color,
model, resolution, refresh rate, etc. Each of displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 may
be
configured to display a different presentation window. A presentation module,
such as
presentation module 1610, may be configured to determine different slides to
display in
each presentation window. In some embodiments, the presentation windows shown
in
displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 may be linked or synchronized such that changes
made to the
slides of one presentation window using the editing screen of editing computer
2605 may
result in changes to the slides of one or more of the other presentation
windows. For
example, if a different slide is selected in the first presentation window
shown on display
2610 the slides displayed on the second and/or third presentation windows
shown on
displays 2615 and 2620, respectively, may be changed. In other embodiments,
changes
made by a user or presenter on one of the presentation windows, for example
using a system
such as presentation system 100, may change what is displayed on one or more
of the other
presentation windows. Slides displayed in two or more presentation windows may
be
changed based on user commands to move forward or backward, select a slide in
a
navigation pane or index, select a slide in a tree representation on the
editing screen, etc,
with respect to the presentation displayed on one of the presentation windows.
In some
embodiments, the content displayed on each of the presentation screens has the
same
number of screens and/or slides. In further embodiments, the content on the
slides may be
similar in structure and/or may have been created using a common template.
[00851 In some embodiments, the presentation displayed in one of the
presentation
windows is a base or primary presentation on which the slides displayed in the
other
presentation windows are based. For example, the slides displayed in the first
presentation
window on display 2610 may be the primary slides and the content of the slides
displayed in
the presentation windows of displays 2615 and 2620 may be based on the content
of the
primary slides. In some embodiments, editing computer 2605 may allow a user to
spawn
slides and/or structure for the non-primary presentation windows based on the
primary
slides. Content displayed in each of the presentation windows may be assigned
manually or
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automatically. For example, the slides or presentations may be assigned
identifiers, such as
numerical values, corresponding to the presentation window on which they are
to be
displayed. In other embodiments, a user may drag slides to one or more
presentation
windows using a drag and drop interface on the editing screen and/or one of
the presentation
windows.
[0086] In some embodiments, slides shown on one or more of displays 2610, 2615
and
2620 may be hidden during a presentation. In some embodiments, a slide may be
hidden on
one of displays 2610, 2615 and 2620 during a presentation while slides are
displayed on one
or more of the other displays. In other embodiments, hiding a slide on one of
displays 2610,
2615 and 2620 may cause linked slides on one or more of the other displays to
be hidden
during a presentation as well. In some embodiments, options regarding the
hiding of linked
slides (e.g., what slides are hidden when one slide is selected to be hidden,
how a hidden
slide is represented in the displayed presentation, etc.) may be selectable by
a user using
editing computer 2605 and/or user input on or near displays 2610, 2615 and
2620.
[0087] Export
[0088] Referring now to FIG. 17, a packaging system 1700 for packaging files
related to a
presentation is shown, according to an exemplary embodiment. Packaging system
1700
includes a packaging module 1705 configured to package files related to a
presentation into
a packaged file. The files include the slides used in the presentation. The
files may also
include other content used in the presentation, such as video files (MPEG,
XVID, AVI,
WMV, Flash, Quicktime, etc.), audio files (MP3, WMA, AAC, MIDI, MPA, etc.),
image or
picture files (JPG, BMP, GIF, TIF, PNG, etc.), spreadsheets, flowcharts, block
diagrams,
etc. Packaging system 1700 is configured to create a packaged file that can be
used, for
example, to export the presentation to users. The files contained in the
packaged file may
have relative links.
[0089] Packaging module 1705 is configured to package the files into a
packaged file such
that the files packaged within the packaged file each have a file format that
is the same as
their respective file format before being packaged. In some embodiments,
packaging
module 1705 may package the files into a zip file. In other embodiments,
packaging
module 1705 may utilize other file compression and/or packaging formats, such
as RAR. In
still further embodiments, packaging module 1705 may package the files using a
proprietary
packaging format specific to packaging system 1700. In some embodiments, the
reference
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file may not be a binary file that packages all the files into a single file
with one format. A
user may be able to retrieve each individual original content file from the
packaged file.
[00901 The files also include a reference file that can be used by a
presentation module to
reconstruct the presentation from the packaged file. The reference file may
indicate a
relationship between the files packaged in the packaged file. For example, the
reference file
may indicate in what slides and in what manner video, audio, images, etc.
contained in the
packaged file are used. In some embodiments, the reference file may be an XML
file.
Using the reference file, a user may import the presentation into a
presentation system and
edit the original content files used in the presentation. The reference file
may be configured
such that the user is not required the reconstruct the original content files
from the
presentation in order to edit content embedded in the presentation.
100911 According to one exemplary embodiment, a system for packaging files
related to a
presentation comprises a packaging module. The packaging module is configured
to
package the files into a packaged file. The files include the slides used in
the presentation.
The files packaged within the packaged file each have a file format that is
the same as its
respective file format before being packaged. The files include a reference
file that can be
used by a presentation module to reconstruct the presentation from the
packaged file. In
some embodiments, the reference file is an XML file.
100921 The systems described herein comprise units, modules, circuits or
circuit portions,
mechanisms, or devices, as part of a machine or apparatus, each of which
performs one or
more of the processes or functions described herein. Each such unit may
comprise a
computer program portion, code, software, or other computer-readable data or
instructions
operating on suitable electronic circuitry, which may be general-purpose or
specific-purpose
circuitry and may include one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers,
application-
specific integrated circuitry, programmable logic, or other analog and/or
digital circuit
elements. The code may be stored in or on a computer-readable medium, such as
a memory
(e.g., compact disk, digital versatile disk, computer memory, such as read-
only memory,
programmable read-only memory, flash memory, magnetic drive, hard drive, tape
drive,
firmware, or any other memory) which memory may be accessed by or configured
to be
read or operated by a processor to operate the code or be configured to
transfer the code
(e.g., via electronic transmission, wireless transmission, or physical
transmission, such as
via a retail store or in a package delivered through the mail) to another
computer-readable
medium (e.g., a memory) for operation by another processor (e.g., a processor
associated
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CA 02697561 2010-03-04
with the memory or otherwise configured to read the memory). In any case, the
computer
program is configured to cause the processor operating the program to provide
one or more
of the functions, processes, or steps described herein. The organization of
the units as set
forth in the figures is exemplary and in practice the functions may be
organized in modules,
objects or routines different than as set forth in the figures, or the units
may share certain
functions described herein. The code may be programmed in any of a variety of
programming languages, such as FORTRAN, C, C++, C#, Java, etc., and may
comprise
machine code, source code, object code, or other types of code.
100931 While the detailed drawings, specific examples and particular
formulations given
describe exemplary embodiments, they serve the purpose of illustration only.
The hardware
and software configurations shown and described may differ depending on the
chosen
performance characteristics and physical characteristics of the computing
devices. The
systems shown and described are not limited to the precise details and
conditions disclosed.
Furthermore, other substitutions, modifications, changes, and omissions may be
made in the
design, operating conditions, and arrangement of the exemplary embodiments
without
departing from the scope of the present disclosure as expressed in the
appended claims.
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