Personal computer

About: Personal computer is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 58809 publications have been published within this topic receiving 800814 citations. The topic is also known as: PC.

Invisible Engines: How Software Platforms Drive Innovation and Transform Industries

Abstract: Winner of the Business, Management & Accounting category in the 2006 Professional/Scholarly Publishing Annual Awards Competition presented by the Association of American Publishers, Inc. Software platforms are the invisible engines that have created, touched, or transformed nearly every major industry for the past quarter century. They power everything from mobile phones and automobile navigation systems to search engines and web portals. They have been the source of enormous value to consumers and helped some entrepreneurs build great fortunes. And they are likely to drive change that will dwarf the business and technology revolution we have seen to this point. Invisible Engines examines the business dynamics and strategies used by firms that recognize the transformative power unleashed by this new revolutiona revolution that will change both new and old industries. The authors argue that in order to understand the successes of software platforms, we must first understand their role as a technological meeting ground where application developers and end users converge. Apple, Microsoft, and Google, for example, charge developers little or nothing for using their platforms and make most of their money from end users; Sony PlayStation and other game consoles, by contrast, subsidize users and make more money from developers, who pay royalties for access to the code they need to write games. More applications attract more users, and more users attract more applications. And more applications and more users lead to more profits. Invisible Engines explores this story through the lens of the companies that have mastered this platform-balancing act. It offers detailed studies of the personal computer, video game console, personal digital assistant, smart mobile phone, and digital media software platform industries, focusing on the business decisions made by industry players to drive profits and stay a step ahead of the competition. Shorter discussions of Internet-based software platforms provide an important glimpse into a future in which the way we buy, pay, watch, listen, learn, and communicate will change forever. An electronic version of this book is available under a Creative Commons license.

System and method for request, delivery and use of multimedia files for audiovisual entertainment in the home environment

Abstract: A personal computer connected to the Internet can receive and store audio and audiovisual data or programming from the Internet This audio and audiovisual programming can be provided by the computer over a digital connection to speakers and/or a monitor located away from the computer at a location convenient for a user A remote control unit allows the user to send signals back over the digital connection to the computer to control the computer to provide the audio or audiovisual programming that the user desires over the digital connection to the speakers and/or monitor located where the user is The computer may send a listing of the available programming to the remote control unit from which the user can make selections

Electronic on-line motor vehicle auction and information system

Abstract: An electronic auction and motor vehicle auction information system allows remote users to interactively participate in motor vehicle auction sales of motor vehicles using a personal computer. Additional user applications associated with the system permit users to access and search a system database and display data about motor vehicle auction dates and locations, vehicle inventory, industry news, and vehicle sales history.

System to control content and prohibit certain interactive attempts by a person using a personal computer

Abstract: A computer terminal and a method for blocking the use and creation of vulgar and pornographic material monitors computer operations for creation or transmission of vulgar and pornographic material. Data created by the keyboard, data selected by the mouse pointer, and data passing through the Internet interface are monitored for content and further operation of the computer terminal is blocked. The terminal may only be unblocked by a supervisory intervention, such as by entering a password, or restarting or resetting the terminal. Keyword searches, such as those in Internet search engines, are also monitored, but the terminal adapts to monitor for words that are tested to produce lists of Internet sites containing vulgar and profane items. The computer terminal and method can be modified to block other forms of communication or computer operation, secret business data, execution or opening of certain programs or files.

Personalized real time information display as a portion of a screen saver

Abstract: Information "feeds" received from multiple information sources are aggregated, re-formatted and stored in a personalized real time information display system. When the display system receives a request from a user having a personal computer or other similar display device, the system is arranged to respond with information needed to display a screen saver that includes personalized, up to date information, such as traffic, weather and sports, that is of interest to that particular user. Each user has a personalized user profile indicating (a) the categories or types of information that the user desires to receive, such as sports information, weather, investment advisories, and so on, and (b) parameters that specify, for that user, the exact information desired to be received in each category. If the user's personal computer display has remained inactive for a predetermined period of time, the screen saver is activated, causing the personal computer to access the service node, and after interchange of prestored user identification and password data, retrieve information, obtained by the system from a variety of sources, based on the user's individual profile. The retrieved information is displayed on the screen without interrupting the screen saver function, and the displayed personalized data is thereafter updated in the same manner, at user-specified time intervals.