Computer implementation methods, computer systems, computer programs (content appearance transformation for remote application sharing)

Abstract

To provide a method, computer system and computer program for application sharing.SOLUTION: Setting information that includes a display preference of a receiver is received. Application content from a host computer is received. The application content includes at least one screen image. The at least one screen image is converted according to the setting information, and is transmitted to a receiver computer for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. A host controller action signal is received which represents a host controller action at the host computer. A content modification is transmitted to the receiver computer for the real-time screen sharing and for displaying with the converted at least one screen image. The content modification corresponds to the host controller action.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a screen sharing tool for online meetings and relates to improving the viewing experience of the recipients of screen sharing.

Background Art

[0002] In a screen sharing tool for digital remote meetings, the display screen on the host side displays the content and the screen view that are also displayed on the client side display screen. This content is displayed on the client side in the same manner and with the same characteristics as when the content is displayed on the host side. The content on the client side is displayed on the screen with colors, fonts, zoom levels, and other appearance features for the application set on the host side. These appearance features may be selected to be suitable for viewing by the host on the host computer.

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-096330 discloses a screen sharing system and method. When screen sharing starts for a recipient user terminal, the image quality of the image on the display screen of the recipient user terminal is set based on the resolution of the recipient user terminal. This resolution of the recipient user terminal is stored as attribute information.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In some cases, individual client participants in a virtual meeting who receive screen sharing may have special viewing requirements. The appearance features selected by the host for the shared content may interfere with the optimal viewing for each individual client who views the content on their own respective computers.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] According to one exemplary embodiment, a computer implementation method for application sharing is provided. Setting information, including the recipient's display preferences, is received. Application content is received from a host computer. The application content includes at least one screen image. At least one screen image is transformed according to the setting information. The transformed screen image is sent to the recipient computer for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. A host controller operation signal is received. The host controller operation signal represents a host controller operation on the host computer. Content modifications are sent to the recipient computer for real-time screen sharing and for display using the transformed at least one screen image. The content modifications correspond to the host controller operation. Computer systems and computer programs corresponding to the above method are also disclosed herein.

[0006] In this embodiment, content, which is a shared screen, can be displayed in an improved, individualized format that helps engage individual clients who have specific viewing needs and may typically experience low vision. Specifically, the content can be displayed in a format that is comfortable for individual clients to view. Thus, this embodiment can help improve accessibility for viewers to engage with online meeting content.

[0007] In an additional embodiment, setting information relating to the unique display preferences of multiple recipients is received. At least one screen image is uniquely converted according to each of the unique display preferences. The uniquely converted at least one screen image is sent to each of the multiple recipient computers for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. Content modifications are sent to each of the multiple recipient computers to be displayed using the uniquely converted screen image as part of the real-time screen sharing.

[0008] These embodiments allow for the simultaneous generation of unique customizations for multiple recipient computers, enabling customizations for audiences with specific viewing needs.

[0009] In an additional embodiment, the shared application content may be from a source code editor, a web browser, a document editing tool, or a combination thereof.

[0010] In these embodiments, the types of content that may be shared in the improved individual formats can be expanded.

[0011] In an additional embodiment, the display preferences controlling screen image conversion include the color, font, font size, or zoom level of the application content shared on the recipient computer, or a combination thereof.

[0012] In these embodiments, individual clients who are better able to perceive specific colors, fonts, or zoom levels may be better able to engage with the shared content during screen sharing for remote meetings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0013] These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of its exemplary embodiments, which will be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The illustrations are for clarity, to facilitate understanding of the invention by those skilled in the art in conjunction with the detailed description; therefore, various features in the drawings are not to scale.

[0014] [Figure 1] This document describes a networked computer environment according to at least one embodiment.

[0015] [Figure 2]An operation flowchart showing application sharing processing according to at least one embodiment.

[0016] [Figure 3A] Shows a prior art view of the content appearance when screen sharing occurs during an online meeting.

[0017] [Figure 3B] Shows various views modified according to the preferences of presenting a virtual meeting viewer according to at least one embodiment.

[0018] [Figure 4] A block diagram of the internal and external components of the computer, telephone, and server shown in FIG. 1 according to at least one embodiment.

[0019] [Figure 5] A block diagram of an exemplary cloud computing environment including the computer system shown in FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] [Figure 6] A block diagram of the functional layers of the exemplary cloud computing environment of FIG. 5 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021] Detailed embodiments of the structures and methods of the claims are disclosed herein; however, it should be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely illustrative of the structures and methods of the claims, which may be embodied in various forms. The invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the exemplary embodiments described herein. Rather, these exemplary embodiments are provided so that this disclosure may be thorough and complete, and so as to fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Details of well-known features and techniques may be omitted in the description to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the embodiments presented.

[0022] The exemplary embodiments described below provide methods, computer systems, and computer program products for adjusting the presentation of meeting content in virtual meetings to improve the viewing and learning experience for individuals receiving virtual meetings. Businesses, schools, social groups, etc., are spending more time using virtual meeting tools that enable users in different physical locations to communicate with each other and share information via audio-visual technology, computers, and network communications such as the internet. Presentations, documents, murals, spreadsheets, boards, images, videos, and demonstrations are used in virtual meetings. This embodiment helps improve virtual meeting software, and therefore virtual meetings themselves, by enabling the delivered information to have an improved and customized presentation that can better capture the attention of those individuals viewing on their end devices and engage them. This embodiment will help enable presenters to present more engaging content. This embodiment also facilitates the use of repeated virtual meetings on a scheduled basis by avoiding the temporary setup of recipient preferences. Therefore, this embodiment can improve the library of virtual meeting software.

[0023] Referring to FIG. 1, a network computer environment 107 according to one embodiment is shown. The network computer environment 107 may include a host computer 102 and first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, each of which is enabled to execute conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3, respectively. The networked computer environment 107 may also include a server 112 that is enabled to execute a conference content presentation adjustment program 110c that can interact with a database 114. Various computers, such as the host computer 102, the first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, and the server 112 can communicate with each other via a communication network 116. The networked computer environment 107 may include many computers and many servers, but FIG. 1 shows four computers and one server 112. The communication network 116 that enables communication between the host computer 102, the first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, and the server 112 may include various types of communication networks, such as the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), a telecommunications network, a wireless network, a public switched telephone network (PTSN), or a satellite network, or a combination thereof. It should be understood that FIG. 1 provides only an illustration of one implementation and does not imply any limitation regarding the environment in which different embodiments may be implemented. Many modifications to the shown environment may be made based on design and implementation requirements.

[0024] The host computer 102 can communicate with the server 112, as well as the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, via the communication network 116. The communication network 116 may include connections such as wired, wireless link, or fiber optic cable. The communication network 116 may include a number of servers, such as network edge servers and edge / gateway servers, which themselves may be able to run and assist during the operation of conference content presentation coordination. In some embodiments, the communication network 116 may be or include high-speed networks such as 4G and 5G networks. An implementation of this conference content presentation coordination embodiment on a 5G network would allow at least some embodiments to be implemented on the edge to boost network performance.

[0025] As illustrated with reference to Figure 4, server 112 may include internal component 902a and external component 904a, respectively. The host computer 102, as well as the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, may also each include internal component 902b and external component 904b, as shown in Figure 4. Server 112 may also operate in cloud computing service models such as Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), or Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Server 112 may also be located in cloud computing deployment models such as private cloud, community cloud, public cloud, or hybrid cloud. The host computer 102 and the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c may each be, for example, a mobile device, a telephone, a personal digital assistant, a netbook, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a desktop computer, or any type of computing device that can access a network and run programs to the host computer 102 and to the database 114 on a remotely located server 112 for the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c. The host computer 102 and the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c may each include a display screen, speaker, microphone, camera, and keyboard or other input device for better presenting audio and video materials used in the virtual conference, for recording audio and video materials to be transmitted to others participating in the virtual conference, and for providing feedback on the presentation.According to various implementations of this embodiment, the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c may interact with a database 114 that may be embedded in various storage devices, such as various computer / mobile devices, a server 112 that may be on a network, or another cloud storage service.

[0026] The use of content stored on edge servers can reduce the network traffic required to run a virtual conference, including the conference content presentation coordination described herein. This reduction in network traffic can help achieve efficient processing for the execution of the method according to this embodiment. First, a content distributor may log in to the virtual conference on the host computer 102, and individuals receiving content may log in to the virtual conference on the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, respectively, and the distributor and individual recipients may utilize their network infrastructure to obtain appropriate connectivity to the environment, such as 5G connectivity. This embodiment can leverage existing and future 5G infrastructure, as well as its increased bandwidth, latency, and scaling for applications requiring large amounts of real-time data. Server 112 can be triggered to process data and command flows by distributed enhanced experience function programs available on network edge servers, which are available on edge / gateway servers located at the network edge, or a combination thereof, located at the network gateway. A summary of preference and usage data may also flow from the edge gateway / server through the network edge server for access by server 112, which implements enhanced experience features in the virtual meeting tool.

[0027] A computer system having conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c operates as a dedicated computer system in which the conference content presentation adjustment process 200 assists in the presentation of a virtual conference. In particular, conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c transform the computer system into a dedicated computer system compared to a currently available general-purpose computer system that does not have conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c.

[0028] Referring here to Figure 2, the operation flowchart shows a meeting content presentation adjustment process 200 which can be performed using meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c in at least one embodiment. The meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c may include various modules, user interfaces, services, and virtual meeting tools, and may use data storage when the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200 is performed.

[0029] The conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c may include a configuration plugin, a controller plugin, and a converter plugin. The configuration plugin may be present in the conference content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 on each recipient computer. The controller plugin may be present in the conference content presentation coordination program 110a on the host computer 102. The controller plugin may be present in the conference content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 on each recipient computer, the conference content presentation coordination program 110a on the host computer 102, and the conference content presentation coordination program 110c on the server 112, which may be in the cloud.

[0030] In step 202 of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, a content sharing activation signal is received.

[0031] The activation signal may be generated by a user activating a graphical user interface button on a computer, such as the host computer 102. For example, the user or host of the host computer 102 shown in Figure 1 may activate a graphical user interface button displayed on the display screen of the host computer 102. The conference content presentation adjustment program 110a may be a plug-in that operates in conjunction with the digital conferencing software program. A digital conferencing software program such as WebEx(R) (Webex and all WebEx-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco Technology, Inc. or its affiliates or combination thereof) may be used to conduct a digital conference between the host computer 102 and one or more of the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c. The graphical user interface button may be part of the digital conferencing software program. The digital conferencing software program may be installed on both the host computer 102 and the first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c in order to enable digital conferencing and to allow the transmission of image and audio components from the host to the recipient computers. The digital conferencing software program may also include screen sharing capabilities among conferencing participants and a chat function that enables text chat.

[0032] A meeting content presentation coordination program 110a may be added to the digital conferencing software program so that the activation of a screen sharing button within the digital conferencing software program notifies the meeting content presentation coordination program 110a. The meeting content presentation coordination program 110a may include an application programming interface connection to the digital conferencing software program installed on the host computer 102. The application programming interface connection may enable the meeting content presentation coordination program 110a to receive notifications from the digital conferencing software program about the start of real-time screen sharing. Activation of a graphical user interface button for screen sharing may occur via a user pressing one or more keys on a keyboard or touchscreen keyboard, via one or more mouse clicks when the mouse cursor is positioned over the graphical user interface screen sharing button, via a user speaking an activation command into a microphone connected to the host computer 102, or by other means, or a combination thereof.

[0033] The activation signal may be received by the host computer's conference content presentation coordination program 110a, or transmitted via the communication network 116 and received by one or more conference content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, 110b3 of the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, 104c, and by the server 112's conference content presentation coordination program 110c.

[0034] Screen sharing, performed via a digital screen sharing button, may transmit one or more digital files along with meeting content, which may include word processing documents, murals, photos, videos, recordings, spreadsheets, images, project management, and team collaboration tool documents / boards, slides, frames, etc. One or more digital files may include various audio, video, or audiovisual components that may be transmitted during the virtual meeting to provide information to virtual meeting attendees. These various components may help provide clear information that is of interest to virtual meeting attendees / participants, may be easily viewed, and in some embodiments may be reviewed by the content recipient.

[0035] The received conference content may be stored in memory that is part of the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c, or that is accessible to the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c. For example, the conference content may be stored in the database 114 shown in Figure 1, in the RAM 908 shown in Figure 4, in memory or a server located within and connected to the communication network 116, or in the memory of one or more remote servers that are accessible to the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c via the communication network 116, a wired connection, or a combination thereof, or a combination thereof.

[0036] In step 204 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, a check is performed regarding the application running on the host screen. The conference content presentation adjustment program 110a on the host computer 102 may evaluate the screen of the host computer 102 so that its output identifies the application currently running that is displayed on the screen. The application may be a source code editor, a web browser, a document editing tool, or a combination thereof.

[0037] In step 204, the display appearance of a source code editor may be adjusted via the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, and its output may be recognized on the display screen of the host computer 102. Examples of source code editors include Eclipse (Eclipse is a trademark or registered trademark of Eclipse.org Foundation, Inc., or its affiliates or combination thereof) and Visual Studio(R) (Visual Studio is a trademark or registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation). Other source code editors may be used similarly in the conference content presentation adjustment process 200.

[0038] In step 204, the display appearance of the web browser may be adjusted via the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, and its output may be recognized on the display screen of the host computer 102. Examples of web browsers include Internet Explorer(R) (Internet Explorer-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Inc., its affiliates, or a combination thereof), Firefox(R) (Firefox-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Mozilla Corporation, its affiliates, or a combination thereof), Safari(R) (Safari-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Apple(Registered Trademark), Inc., its affiliates, or a combination thereof), and Google Chrome(TM) (Google Chrome-based trademarks are trademarks of Google, Inc., its affiliates, or a combination thereof). Other web browsers may be used similarly in the conference content presentation adjustment process 200.

[0039] In step 204, the display appearance of the document may be adjusted via the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, and the output may be recognized on the display screen of the host computer 102. Examples of document editing tools include those provided in Microsoft® Office Suite® (e.g., Word™, PowerPoint®, Excel®) (these are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft, Inc.), Google Docs™ (a trademark of Google, Inc.), Adobe Acrobat® (a registered trademark of Adobe, Inc.), OpenOffice® (a registered trademark of the Apache Software Foundation), and Apple® Pages (a trademark of Apple, Inc.). Other document editing tools may be used similarly in the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200.

[0040] The meeting content presentation coordination program 110a may query the host computer 102 to learn which program the output displayed on the host computer 102's display screen belongs to or originates from. The meeting content presentation coordination program 110a may also include an application programming interface connection to a digital conferencing software program for receiving notifications or identification information of the application whose output content is being displayed via real-time screen sharing.

[0041] In step 206 of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, recipient preferences regarding the running application are obtained. Recipient preferences may also be referred to as setting information. Recipient preferences may relate to font style, font size, font color, background color, image zoom level, or other appearance features, or combinations thereof, that may help viewers better view the presented content. This step may include obtaining multiple recipient preferences from a single recipient, or obtaining multiple recipient preferences from multiple users in different client recipient accounts, e.g., first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c, or a combination thereof, or a combination thereof. Multiple users may have unique setting preferences so that unique customizations of screen images may be displayed on each recipient computer.

[0042] User preferences available for modification may be presented to the respective client users of the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c via a graphical user interface displayed on the display screen of each computer. The display may include one or more scrollable lists or swipeable graphics displayed on the display monitor 924 of each recipient computer. The lists or graphics may include lists of all available font types, font sizes, colors, and zoom levels. The user preference GUI may also include a text input field where the end viewer enters or speaks (speech-to-text) raw numbers such as font size, a word indicating the font type, a desired color for the text or background or border, and a number for the zoom level (e.g., zoom levels from 10% to 400%).

[0043] The acquisition of user-presented preferences may occur before the virtual meeting begins or at the start of the virtual meeting. Regarding preference capture occurring before the start of the virtual meeting, viewer preferences may be stored in memory that is part of the meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c, or accessible from the meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c. For example, recipient preferences may be stored in the database 114 shown in Figure 1, in the RAM 908 shown in Figure 4, in the memory of an edge / gateway server or network edge server, or in other memory of one or more remote servers accessible via the communication network 116 to the meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c, or a combination thereof. Storing viewer preferences in the memory of an edge / gateway server may reduce the network traffic required during the presentation of the virtual meeting.

[0044] With respect to the selected setting preferences, the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 may display a sample display on the client user's screen, for example, on the screen of a first, second, or third recipient computer 104a, 104b, 104c, or a combination thereof, showing how the setting preferences appear. Displaying a sample display with the selected settings in this regard via this presentation may allow the author to test whether the selected extended configuration provides improved clarity to the client viewer. The conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c may include a sample display that can be adjusted in memory storage according to the user setting preferences and then displayed using the selected setting adjustment for testing performed for the client viewer. The author may accept modifications regarding acquisition in step 206 and saving in step 220. Alternatively, the creator may reject and attempt a different configuration so that the initially selected configuration is discarded and not used during the virtual conference presentation, nor is it remembered for future use.

[0045] In some embodiments at the start of a virtual meeting, the meeting content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 may generate a bypass graphical user interface (GUI) that asks whether the respective client end viewer on the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, respectively, wishes to skip or bypass the meeting content presentation coordination for the current virtual meeting. The user may activate the bypass GUI so that the meeting content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 may skip the presentation coordination for a particular session or meeting. During the bypass, each recipient computer may display a host image similar to the host image that appears on the host computer 102. Such bypassing is appropriate, for example, when an individual other than the recipient computer owner or an individual other than the normal recipient computer user is temporarily using each recipient computer, and the normal recipient computer user plans to use each computer in the future and the meeting will use customized setting preferences in the future.

[0046] The conference content presentation coordination programs 110a and 110c on the host computer 102 or server 112 may request recipient preferences from the conference content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 on the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, respectively, or from memory where previously provided recipient preferences were stored. The conference content presentation coordination programs 110a and 110c may receive preferences via data transmission through the communication network 116.

[0047] Recipient preferences and settings information can be automatically generated by evaluating the client's previous selections regarding the settings of each client-side application. Meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 may provide the client user with an opportunity to review the automatically generated recipient preferences. The client user may also manually enter and edit the recipient preferences.

[0048] Multiple batches of setting information / recipient setting preferences may be registered. A list of selections may be presented to the user of the recipient computer at the start of the virtual meeting within the setting selection GUI. The user may select one or more of these configurations by activating the presented items in the list within the setting selection GUI during the usage time, for example, at the start of the virtual meeting. The setting plugin may send the setting information / recipient setting preferences to the controller plugin.

[0049] The user can dynamically change their setting preferences by choosing to enter or accept specific appearance settings. After the display occurs in step 214, the user can change the settings again with respect to the meeting content presentation adjustment programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3 displayed on the respective first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c by activating GUI buttons displayed on the tabs.

[0050] For example, a first user, User A, may set presentation preferences regarding larger fonts and different background colors, while the text still fits within the screen. A second user, User B, may set presentation preferences to change the background color or background graphic, font type, and font size. A third user, User C, may set those preferences in the editing tools for an enlarged view of all individual images. Users A, B, and C may view the virtual meeting on the first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, respectively.

[0051] Figure 3A shows a conventional screen sharing 300a in which a conventional host computer 302 shares its screen with multiple conventional receiver computers 304 that have the same view and presentation as the conventional host computer 302.

[0052] Figure 3B shows an example of an embodiment 300b of the conference content presentation adjustment. Figure 3B shows the first, second, and third end device views 310a, 310b, and 310c, respectively, which are displayed on the user's computer screen at the same time that the host views the screen-shared content on the host screen 306 during a digital conference presentation or virtual conference. The host may view the host screen 306 on the screen of the host computer 102 shown in Figure 1. The transformation 308 of the content of the host screen 306 is performed to create the modified second and third end device views 310b, 310c. The first, second, and third end device views 310a, 310b, and 310c each show examples of different views that may occur at the same time during a virtual conference or at the same point within a virtual conference. The second and third end device views 310b and 310c are both different from the display on the host screen 306, but the first end device view 310a is the same as the display on the host screen 306. The first end device view 310a may be the same as the view on the host screen 306 due to a bypass by a first client user who chooses to use the conference content presentation adjustment process 200 bypass for a specific virtual conference. In the second end device view 310b, the font color is changed and the background color is changed to a second color different from the first background color used on the host screen 306. In the third end device view 310c, a third background color is visible that is different from the second background color in the second end device view 310b and different from the first background color used on the host screen 306. In the third end device view 310c, different fonts and text colors are used similarly.

[0053] User presentation preferences also relate to the positioning of text on the screen. Some users may prefer that text be displayed lower, higher, further to the left, or further to the right on their screen, or they may prefer a combination of these positional variations.

[0054] In step 208 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, the current host screen image is received. The current host screen image may be the image currently displayed on the screen of the host computer 102, or on a specific window of the host computer 102. The reception in step 208 may occur in the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b, 110b2, 110b3, or 110c of the host computer 102, the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c, or the server 112, respectively.

[0055] The image can be broken down into packets of information to be sent to the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b, 110b2, 110b3, or 110c. The information packets describe or illustrate the image displayed on the host screen. The conference content presentation coordination program 110a receives the image in packet form from or to the display device of the host computer 102. The conference content presentation coordination program 110a on the host computer 102 may receive the image before it is broken down into packets for transmission over the communication network 116.

[0056] Packets, either as data or transmitted image files, may be encrypted for protection during transmission through the communication network 116. Data may arrive as an image file, e.g., JPEG or GIF, or as individual pixel data specifically assigned to X and Y coordinates. Data may be compressed to minimize the amount of bandwidth required. Once the initial image or image data has been sent, it may be possible to reduce the amount of data transmitted by subsequently sending information about changes on the host image screen, in contrast to repeatedly transmitting repetitive data. Digital conferencing software programs may construct images by combining individual data pieces or packets, either alone or in conjunction with conferencing content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, and 110b3.

[0057] In step 210 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, a host controller operation signal is received. The host controller operation may be a mouse cursor movement, a screen scroll, or a mouse click (e.g., a right or left mouse click) that can activate a GUI feature on the screen or trigger the generation of a feature box on the screen. The host controller operation may be performed on the host computer 102. The conference content presentation adjustment program 110a on the host computer 102 may provide signals generated from user input to the input tools of the host computer 102, such as a keyboard, microphone, or mouse, so the performance of the host controller operation may generate a host controller operation signal. The host controller operation signal may represent a host controller operation that is taken. Each unique host controller operation that is taken may generate its own unique host controller operation signal, which may be transmitted within the host computer 102 or via the communication network 116.

[0058] The reception of step 210 may occur in the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, or 110c of the host computer 102, the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c, or the server 112, respectively.

[0059] In step 212 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, the image is converted according to the recipient's set preferences. The recipient's set preferences may be the preferences obtained in step 206. This image conversion may be performed by the conference content presentation adjustment program 110a on the host computer 102, the conference content presentation adjustment program 110c on the server 112, or by the respective presentation adjustment programs on each client recipient computer, for example, by the respective conference content presentation adjustment programs 110b1, 110b2, 110b3 on the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c, or a combination thereof. The portion of the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c that performs the image conversion may be referred to as a converter plugin. The controller plugins of the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c may send setting information / recipient setting preferences to the converter plugin so that the converter plugin can perform the conversion. Performing the conversion on the host computer 102 may improve accuracy and reliability in some cases because the converted image can be sent to the destination recipient computer via the communication network 116.

[0060] The converted screen image created in step 212 differs from the image currently displayed on the host screen 306, for example, on the host computer 102. The converted image may include the converted portion of the original image and the unchanged portion of the original image. Examples of converted portions of an image include changing the font of the text in the image, changing the color of the image, changing both the font and color of the image, changing the zoom level of a portion of the image as a whole, and other combinations of these examples.

[0061] The setting information and receiver setting preferences acquired in step 206 are used together with the host controller operation corresponding to the host controller operation signal received in step 210, along with the original host image received in step 208, to convert the screen image into a form correctly adjusted according to the setting preferences. By consolidating the host controller operation into image conversion, host-side operation operations such as cursor movement and screen scrolling may be included in the converted image.

[0062] In at least one embodiment, a converter plugin may use setting preferences to generate a first converted image and an original host screen image, and may send the first converted image to a controller plugin. The controller plugin then uses the first converted image and host controller operation signals to create a second converted screen image that includes content modifications corresponding to host controller operations. Host controller operations may include moving the mouse cursor, scrolling the screen, or clicking a mouse button.

[0063] If the application for screen sharing is also installed on the client side, the conversion in step 212 can be performed on the client side by plugging in the converter plugin of the application on each recipient computer. In this case, it is necessary to send information such as text information and cursor position to the client recipient computer via the communication network 116.

[0064] The converter plugin that performs the conversion may also be installed as part of the conference content presentation coordination program 110c on a separate server, for example, a server 112 separate from both the host computer 102 and the recipient computers. In this embodiment, server 112 may be considered a cloud server, and the conversion may be performed on that or another cloud server. The converted image may then be transmitted for display via the communication network 116 to recipient computers, for example, the first, second, or third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c.

[0065] In at least some embodiments, the conversion in step 212 may also include converting an image file from the host screen to a more compatible format. For example, the conversion may change an image of a host screen showing the output of a first word processing program (e.g., Microsoft® Word™) to a second format (e.g., PDF format) that has improved compatibility for a particular implementation.

[0066] In at least some embodiments, the transformation in step 212 may also include masking of sensitive information that appears on the screen of the host computer 102 and which the host does not want to be displayed to any recipient computer. The host may use GUI features of the host computer 102 generated by the conference content presentation coordination program 110a, which allow the host to designate certain parts of the screen as sensitive and mask those parts in the transformed image created in step 212.

[0067] Steps 202 to 212 may be performed as some of the functions of the host computer 102's operating system, or as functions plugged into applications and screen sharing tools that run on the host computer 102's operating system.

[0068] In step 214 of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, the converted image is displayed on the recipient computer along with content modifications corresponding to the host controller operation. The converted image is the image created in step 212. The host-side screen sharing tool may send the created screen image to the client-side screen sharing tool. The recipient computer may be the first, second, or third recipient computer 104a, 104b, 104c, or another recipient computer. This modified display may be displayed on multiple recipient computers. Multiple recipient computers may share setting preferences or each may have its own setting preferences.

[0069] If the host controller action was cursor movement, the content modification may include other transformed images that remain exactly the same for the positioning of the cursor on the screen. If the host controller action was screen scrolling, the content modification may include several new image portions and several previous image portions that have been moved upward or downward in positioning on the transformed image. If the host controller action was a mouse click to generate a GUI on a portion of the screen, the content modification may include a new GUI that overlaps with previous image portions of the original transformed image.

[0070] The display in step 214 may result from the converted image generated in step 212. The display or presentation may occur on the display monitor 924 of each of the viewer receivers, e.g., the first, second, or third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c. The microphones connected to each of the viewer receivers, e.g., the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, also support the digital conference by playing audio files transmitted along with the digital files relating to the image and the converted image.

[0071] In some embodiments, conference content material, such as a converted image, may be sent to an end device before the virtual conference begins. The live stream may include audio spoken live by the presenter on the host computer 102. In other embodiments, as the virtual conference presenter proceeds with the presentation, conference content material, such as a converted image, is sent in segments to viewer receivers, such as the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c.

[0072] In some embodiments, the display in step 214 may include a first display, which is a converted image without content modifications corresponding to the host controller operation, and a second display, which is another converted image in which content modifications corresponding to the host controller operation are incorporated into a further converted image.

[0073] In step 216 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, a determination is made as to whether the host conference screen image has been changed. This change is compared with the host screen image received in step 208. If the host conference screen image has been changed, the conference content presentation adjustment process 200 returns to step 208 to repeat steps 208 through 214. If the host conference screen image has not been changed, the conference content presentation adjustment process 200 proceeds to step 220. The determination may be made by a controller plugin that monitors the operation of the mouse and the host keyboard. Host controller operations such as moving the mouse cursor, scrolling the screen, clicking the mouse (e.g., right-clicking the mouse), and pressing keyboard keys to change the screen content may be recognized by the controller plugin of the conference content presentation adjustment program 110a on the host computer 102.

[0074] In step 218 of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, a determination is made as to whether screen sharing has ended. If screen sharing has not ended, the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200 returns to step 216 to repeat step 216. If screen sharing has ended, the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200 proceeds to step 220.

[0075] In at least some embodiments, the conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c, or the digital conferencing software program, or a combination thereof, may generate a graphical user interface (GUI) component for terminating a virtual conference, the operation of which may terminate the broadcast of the virtual conference from the host computer 102 to end devices, such as first, second, and third recipient computers 104a, 104b, 104c. The presenter or another administrator may use a keyboard 926, a computer mouse 928, a microphone connected to the computer, a touch screen, or several other input devices connected to the computer, such as the host computer 102, to activate such a virtual conference termination GUI component. The conference content presentation coordination program 110a may display the virtual conference termination GUI component on the display monitor 924 or on the screen of the host computer 102. Another virtual meeting termination GUI component may be displayed on the end device screen, for example, on the screen of the first, second, or third recipient computer 104a, 104b, 104c, allowing the meeting content presentation coordination programs 110b1, 110b2, 110b3 to provide an alternative way to end the virtual meeting display. The end client user may activate this button to end the virtual meeting using a keyboard 926, computer mouse 928, microphone, touch screen, or any other input device connected to the recipient computer, for example, the first, second, or third recipient computer 104a, 104b, 104c.

[0076] In step 220 of the conference content presentation adjustment process 200, recipient preferences are stored. These recipient preferences may be those received in step 206. These recipient preferences may be stored in memory that is part of the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c, or in memory accessible to the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c. For example, recipient preferences may be stored in the database 114 shown in Figure 1, in the RAM 908 shown in Figure 4, in the memory of an edge / gateway server or network edge server, or in other memory of one or more remote servers accessible via the communication network 116 to the conference content presentation adjustment programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c, or a combination thereof. Storing expanded content in the memory of edge / gateway servers can reduce the network traffic required during virtual conference presentations.

[0077] After the storage in step 220, the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200 is terminated. The recipient preferences stored in step 220 may be used during subsequent iterations of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200. For example, in these subsequent executions of the meeting content presentation adjustment process 200, step 206 may be performed by retrieving those end-user preferences from computer memory storage.

[0078] Figures 2 and 3B provide examples of several embodiments and should be understood as not suggesting any limitations regarding how different embodiments may be implemented. Many modifications to the embodiments shown, for example, to the indicated order of steps, may be made based on design and implementation requirements.

[0079] Figure 4 is a block diagram of the internal and external components of the computer shown in Figure 1, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. It should be understood that Figure 4 provides only an example of one implementation and does not imply any limitation with respect to the environment in which different embodiments may be implemented. Many modifications to the environment shown can be made based on design and implementation requirements.

[0080] The data processing systems 902a, 902b, 904a, and 904b represent any electronic device capable of executing machine-readable program instructions. The data processing systems 902a, 902b, 904a, and 904b may represent a smartphone, computer system, PDA, or other electronic device. Examples of computing systems, environments, configurations, or combinations thereof that may be represented by the data processing systems 902a, 902b, 904a, and 904b include, but are not limited to, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thin clients, thick clients, handheld or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based systems, network PCs, minicomputer systems, and distributed cloud computing environments that include any of the systems or devices described above.

[0081] The host computer 102, the first, second, and third receiver computers 104a, 104b, and 104c, and the server 112 may include sets of internal components 902a, 902b and external components 904a, 904b, as shown in Figure 4. Each set of internal components 902a, 902b includes one or more processors 906 on one or more buses 912, one or more computer-readable RAMs 908 and one or more computer-readable ROMs 910, and one or more operating systems 914 and one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices 916. One or more operating systems 914 in the host computer 102, the conference content presentation coordination program 110a, and the conference content presentation coordination program 110c in the server 112 may be stored in one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices 916 for execution by one or more processors 906 via one or more RAMs 908 (typically including cache memory). In the embodiment shown in Figure 4, each of the computer-readable tangible storage devices 916 is a magnetic disk storage device of an internal hard drive. Alternatively, each of the computer-readable tangible storage devices 916 is a semiconductor storage device such as a ROM 910, EPROM, flash memory, or other computer-readable tangible storage devices capable of storing computer programs and digital information.

[0082] Each set of internal components 902a and 902b also includes an R / W drive or interface 918 for reading from and writing to one or more portable computer-readable tangible storage devices 920, such as CD-ROMs, DVDs, memory sticks, magnetic tapes, magnetic disks, optical disks, or semiconductor storage devices. Software programs and conference content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, 110c, 110d, 110e, etc., are stored in one or more of the respective portable computer-readable tangible storage devices 920, can be read via their respective R / W drives or interfaces 918, and loaded into their respective hard drives, for example, tangible storage device 916.

[0083] Each set of internal components 902a and 902b may also include a network adapter (or switch port card) or interface 922, such as a TCP / IP adapter card, a wireless Wi-Fi® interface card, or a 3G, 4G, or 5G wireless interface card, or other wired or wireless link. The conference content presentation coordination program 110a in the host computer 102 and the conference content presentation coordination program 110c in the server 112 can be downloaded from an external computer (e.g., a server) via a network (e.g., the Internet, a local area network, or another wide area network) and their respective network adapters or interfaces 922. From the network adapter (or switch port adapter) or interface 922, the conference content presentation coordination 110a in the host computer 102 and the conference content presentation coordination program 110c in the server 112 are loaded into their respective hard drives, e.g., tangible storage devices 916. The network may include copper, optical fiber, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, or edge servers, or a combination thereof.

[0084] Each set of external components 904a and 904b may include a computer display monitor 924, a keyboard 926, and a computer mouse 928. External components 904a and 904b may also include a touch screen, a virtual keyboard, a touchpad, a pointing device, and other human interface devices. Each set of internal components 902a and 902b also includes a device driver 930 for interface with the computer display monitor 924, the keyboard 926, and the computer mouse 928. The device driver 930, the R / W drive or interface 918, and the network adapter or interface 922 include hardware and software (stored in the storage device 916 or ROM 910, or a combination thereof).

[0085] The present invention may be a system, method, or computer program product, or a combination thereof, at any possible level of integration of technical details. The computer program product may include a computer-readable storage medium (or medium) having computer-readable program instructions for causing a processor to perform an aspect of the present invention.

[0086] A computer-readable storage medium can be a tangible device capable of holding and storing instructions used by an instruction execution device. A computer-readable storage medium may be, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the above. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of computer-readable storage media includes, but is not limited to, portable computer diskettes, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), static random access memory (SRAM), portable compact disk read-only memory CD-ROM, digital multipurpose disk (DVD), memory stick, floppy disk, mechanically encoded devices such as punch cards or grooved raised structures with recorded instructions, and any suitable combination of the above. As used herein, computer-readable storage media should not be interpreted as transient signals in themselves, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through waveguides or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through optical fiber cables), or electrical signals transmitted via wires.

[0087] The computer-readable program instructions described herein may be downloaded from a computer-readable storage medium to each computing / processing device, or to an external computer or external storage device via a network, such as the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, or a wireless network, or a combination thereof. The network may include copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wireless transmissions, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, or edge servers, or a combination thereof. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing / processing device receives computer-readable program instructions from the network and transfers those computer-readable program instructions for storage in a computer-readable storage medium within the respective computing / processing device.

[0088] The computer-readable program instructions that perform the operation of the present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting data, integrated circuit configuration data, and may be source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk® or C++, and procedural programming languages ​​such as the C programming language or similar programming languages. The computer-readable program instructions may be executed entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or fully on a remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer via any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, via the Internet using an Internet service provider). In some embodiments, to carry out aspects of the present invention, an electronic circuit including, for example, a programmable logic circuit, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a programmable logic array (PLA) may execute a computer-readable program instruction by personalizing the electronic circuit using state information of the computer-readable program instruction.

[0089] Aspects of the present invention will be described herein with reference to flowcharts, block diagrams, or combinations thereof of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention. It will be understood that each block in a flowchart, block diagram, or combination thereof, and any combination of blocks in a flowchart, block diagram, or combination thereof, can be implemented by computer-readable program instructions.

[0090] These computer-readable program instructions are provided to a computer processor or other programmable data processing device, which can generate a machine, and as a result, instructions executed via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device create means for implementing functions / operations specified in one or more blocks of a flowchart or block diagram or a combination thereof. These computer-readable program instructions may also be stored on a computer-readable storage medium, which can instruct a computer, programmable data processing device, or other device or a combination thereof to function in a specific manner, and as a result, the computer-readable storage medium containing the instructions includes a product containing instructions that implement the modes of functions / operations specified in one or more blocks of a flowchart or block diagram or a combination thereof.

[0091] Computer-readable program instructions can also be loaded into a computer, other programmable data processing device, or other device, causing a series of operational steps on the computer, other programmable device, or other device to generate a computer implementation process, such that the instructions executed on the computer, other programmable device, or other device implement a function / operation specified in one or more blocks of a flowchart or block diagram or a combination thereof.

[0092] The flowcharts and block diagrams in the figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in a flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions containing one or more executable instructions that implement a specified logical function. In some alternative implementations, the functions described in a block may occur in an order different from the order shown in the drawing. For example, two consecutively shown blocks may actually be implemented as a single step, or they may be executed simultaneously, substantially simultaneously, partially or entirely in overlapping time, and blocks may sometimes be executed in reverse order depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in a block diagram or flowchart diagram or a combination thereof, and combinations of blocks in a block diagram or flowchart diagram or a combination thereof, may be implemented by a dedicated hardware-based system that performs a specified function or operation, or a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0093] While this disclosure includes a detailed description of cloud computing, it should be understood that the implementation of the teachings described herein is not limited to cloud computing environments. Rather, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in conjunction with any other type of computing environment, whether currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0094] Cloud computing is a service delivery model that enables convenient on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing, memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, services) that can be rapidly provisioned and deployed with minimal management effort or interaction with service providers. This cloud model may include at least five characteristics, at least three service models, and at least four deployment models.

[0095] The characteristics are as follows: On-demand self-service: Cloud consumers can unilaterally provision computing power, such as server time and network storage, automatically when needed, without requiring human interaction from the service provider. Broad network access: Capabilities are available via the network and access through standard mechanisms that facilitate use by thin client or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs) in different device environments. Resource pooling: The provider's computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model with different physical and virtual resources that are dynamically allocated and reallocated as needed. Location independence exists in the sense that consumers generally have no control or knowledge of the exact location of the resources provided, but may be able to specify location at a higher level of abstraction (e.g., country, state, or data center). Rapid elasticity: Capabilities can be provisioned rapidly and elastically, and in some cases, automatically and quickly scale out, quickly release, and quickly scale in. To consumers, the capacity available for provisioning often appears unlimited, and they can purchase any amount at any time. Measured Services: Cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource usage by leveraging measurement capabilities at a level of abstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage, processing bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can be monitored, controlled, and reported to provide transparency to both service providers and consumers.

[0096] The service model is as follows: Software as a Service (SaaS): The ability provided to the consumer is the use of the provider's applications running on cloud infrastructure. The applications are accessible from various client devices through thin client interfaces such as web browsers (e.g., web-based email). The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure, including the network, servers, operating systems, storage, or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exception of limited user-specific application configuration settings. Platform as a Service (PaaS): The ability provided to consumers is to deploy applications they have created or acquired, written using programming languages ​​and tools supported by the provider, onto cloud infrastructure. Consumers do not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure, including networks, servers, operating systems, or storage, but they do control the deployed applications and, in some cases, the applications hosting the environment configuration. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): The ability provided to consumers is to provision processing, storage, networking, and other basic computing resources, which may include operating systems and applications, on which consumers can deploy and run any software. Consumers do not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure, but they have control over the operating systems, storage, deployed applications, and, in some cases, limited control over selected networking components (e.g., host firewalls).

[0097] The deployment models are as follows: Private Cloud: The cloud infrastructure operates only with respect to the organization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party and may reside on-premises or off-premises. Community Cloud: The cloud infrastructure is shared by several organizations and supports a specific community that has shared ties (e.g., mission, security requirements, policies, and compliance considerations). It may be managed by the organization or a third party and may reside on-premises or off-premises. Public Cloud: The cloud infrastructure is made available to the general public or a large industrial group and is owned by an organization that sells cloud services. Hybrid Cloud: The cloud infrastructure remains a unique entity but is a configuration of two or more clouds (private, community, or public) joined together by standardized or proprietary technologies (e.g., cloud burst for load balancing between clouds) that enable data and application portability.

[0098] Cloud computing environments are services oriented towards statelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interactivity. At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure with a network of interconnected nodes.

[0099] Referring now to Figure 5, an exemplary cloud computing environment 1000 is shown. As shown, the cloud computing environment 1000 includes one or more cloud computing nodes 100 that can communicate with local computing devices used by cloud consumers, such as a personal digital assistant (PDA) or mobile phone 1000A, a desktop computer 1000B, a laptop computer 1000C, or an automotive computer system 1000N, or a combination thereof. The nodes 100 can communicate with each other. They may be physically or virtually grouped (not shown) in one or more networks, such as a private cloud, community cloud, public cloud, or hybrid cloud, or a combination thereof, as described above. This enables the cloud computing environment 1000 to provide infrastructure, a platform, or software as a service, or a combination thereof, that cloud consumers do not need to maintain resources on their local computing devices. The types of computing devices 1000A-N shown in Figure 5 are for illustrative purposes only, and it should be understood that the computing node 100 and the cloud computing environment 1900 can communicate with any type of computerized device via any type of network or network addressable connection or a combination thereof (for example, using a web browser).

[0100] Referring now to Figure 6, a set of functional abstraction layers 1100 provided by the cloud computing environment 1000 is shown. The components, layers, and functionalities shown in Figure 5 are for illustrative purposes only and should be understood in advance that embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. As shown, the following layers and corresponding functionalities are provided:

[0101] The hardware and software layer 1102 includes hardware and software components. Examples of hardware components include a mainframe 1104, RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture-based servers 1106, 1108, blade servers 1110, storage devices 1112, and network components and networking components 1114. In some embodiments, the software components include network application server software 1116 and database software 1118.

[0102] The virtualization layer 1120 provides an abstraction layer that may offer the following examples of virtual entities: virtual servers 1122, virtual storage 1124, virtual networks 1126 including virtual private networks, virtual applications and operating systems 1128, and virtual clients 1130.

[0103] For example, the management layer 1132 may provide the functions described below. Resource provisioning 1134 provides dynamic procurement of computing resources and other resources used to perform tasks within the cloud computing environment. Measurement and pricing 1136 provides cost tracking as resources are used within the cloud computing environment and billing or invoicing of the consumption of those resources. For example, these resources may include licenses for application software. Security provides identity verification of cloud consumers and tasks, as well as protection of data and other resources. User portal 1138 provides consumers and system administrators with access to the cloud computing environment. Service level management 1140 provides allocation and management of cloud computing resources to ensure that required service levels are met. Service level agreement (SLA) planning and execution 1142 provides proactive coordination and procurement of cloud computing resources for which future requirements are anticipated in accordance with the SLA.

[0104] The workload layer 1144 provides examples of functionality that can be utilized in a cloud computing environment. Examples of workloads and functions that can be provided from this layer include mapping and navigation 1146, software development and lifecycle management 1148, virtual classroom education delivery 1150, data analysis processing 1152, transaction processing 1154, and meeting content presentation coordination 1156. Meeting content presentation coordination programs 110a, 110b1, 110b2, 110b3, and 110c provide ways to enable client end users to more easily view screen-shared content during virtual meetings.

[0105] The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include their plural forms as well, unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that when used herein, terms such as “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “have,” “having,” and “with” specify the presence of a described feature, integer, step, action, element, or component, or a combination thereof, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, actions, elements, components, or groups thereof, or combinations thereof.

[0106] The descriptions of various embodiments of the present invention are presented for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be exhaustive or limit to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the embodiments described. The terms used herein have been selected to best describe the principles of the embodiments, their practical applications, or technical improvements to the art found in the market, or to enable those skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for sharing applications that is implemented on a computer, A step of receiving setting information, wherein the setting information includes the recipient's display preferences, and the recipient's display preferences include the positioning of text on the screen. A step in which application content is received from a host computer, wherein the application content includes at least one screen image for a screen sharing session. The steps include receiving bypass information indicating whether or not to bypass the image conversion for the screen sharing session, If the received bypass information indicates that image conversion should be performed, The steps include converting the at least one screen image according to the setting information, The steps include sending the converted at least one screen image to a recipient computer for real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session with the host computer, The stage of receiving a host controller operation signal, wherein the host controller operation signal represents the operation of the host controller in the host computer, and A step of sending content modifications to the recipient computer for display using the real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session and the converted at least one screen image according to the positioning of the text, wherein the content modifications correspond to the operation of the host controller, A method that includes [a certain feature].

2. Setting information regarding the unique display preferences of multiple recipients is received. In the conversion step, the at least one screen image is converted in a way that is unique to each of the respective unique display preferences. The at least one uniquely converted screen image is transmitted to multiple recipient computers, respectively, for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. The content modification is transmitted to each of the multiple recipient computers to be displayed using the uniquely converted screen image as part of the real-time screen sharing. The method according to claim 1.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the conversion is performed on the host computer.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the display preference further relates to the font of the at least one screen image.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the display preference further relates to the font size of the at least one screen image.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the display preference includes the color of at least one screen image.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the application content is from a source code editor.

8. A computer system for application sharing, wherein the computer system is The computer system comprises one or more processors, one or more computer-readable memories, one or more computer-readable tangible storage media, and program instructions stored in at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage media for execution by at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of the one or more computer-readable memories, wherein the computer system is A step of receiving setting information, wherein the setting information includes the recipient's display preferences, and the recipient's display preferences include the positioning of text on the screen. A step in which application content is received from a host computer, wherein the application content includes at least one screen image for a screen sharing session. The steps include receiving bypass information indicating whether or not to bypass the image conversion for the screen sharing session, If the received bypass information indicates that image conversion should be performed, The steps include converting the at least one screen image according to the setting information, The steps include sending the converted at least one screen image to a recipient computer for real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session with the host computer, The stage of receiving a host controller operation signal, wherein the host controller operation signal represents the operation of the host controller in the host computer, and A step of sending content modifications to the recipient computer for display using the real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session and the converted at least one screen image according to the positioning of the text, wherein the content modifications correspond to the operation of the host controller, Methods including can be performed. Computer system.

9. Setting information regarding the unique display preferences of multiple recipients is received. The at least one screen image is transformed in a way that is unique to each of the respective unique display preferences. The at least one uniquely converted screen image is transmitted to multiple recipient computers, respectively, for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. The content modification is transmitted to each of the multiple recipient computers to be displayed using the uniquely converted screen image as part of the real-time screen sharing. The computer system according to claim 8.

10. The computer system according to claim 8, wherein the conversion is performed on the host computer.

11. The computer system according to claim 8, wherein the display preference further relates to the font of the text of the at least one screen image.

12. The computer system according to claim 8, wherein the display preference further relates to the font size of the text in the at least one screen image.

13. The computer system according to claim 8, wherein the display preference includes the color of at least one screen image.

14. The computer system according to any one of claims 8 to 13, wherein the application is selected from the group consisting of a source code editor, a web browser, and a document editing tool.

15. A computer program for application sharing, wherein the computer program comprises program instructions, and the program instructions are provided to the computer system. A step of receiving setting information, wherein the setting information includes the recipient's display preferences, and the recipient's display preferences include the positioning of text on the screen. A step in which application content is received from a host computer, wherein the application content includes at least one screen image for a screen sharing session. The steps include receiving bypass information indicating whether or not to bypass the image conversion for the screen sharing session, If the received bypass information indicates that image conversion should be performed, The steps include converting the at least one screen image according to the setting information, The steps include sending the converted at least one screen image to a recipient computer for real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session with the host computer, The stage of receiving a host controller operation signal, wherein the host controller operation signal represents the operation of the host controller in the host computer, and A step of sending content modifications to the recipient computer for display using the real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session and the converted at least one screen image according to the positioning of the text, wherein the content modifications correspond to the operation of the host controller, This method is executable by a computer system that performs the following actions: Computer program.

16. Setting information regarding the unique display preferences of multiple recipients is received. In the conversion step, the at least one screen image is converted in a way that is unique to each of the respective unique display preferences. The at least one uniquely converted screen image is transmitted to multiple recipient computers, respectively, for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. The content modification is transmitted to each of the multiple recipient computers to be displayed using the uniquely converted screen image as part of the real-time screen sharing. The computer program according to claim 15.

17. The computer program according to claim 15, wherein the conversion is performed on the host computer.

18. The computer program according to claim 15, wherein the display preference further relates to the font or font size of the text in the at least one screen image.

19. The computer program according to claim 15, wherein the display preference includes the color of at least one screen image.

20. The computer program according to any one of claims 15 to 19, wherein the application is selected from the group consisting of a source code editor, a web browser, and a document editing tool.

21. A method for sharing applications, which is implemented on a computer, is A step of receiving setting information, wherein the setting information includes the recipient's display preferences, and the recipient's display preferences include the positioning of text on the screen. A step in which application content is received from a host computer, wherein the application content includes at least one screen image for a screen sharing session. The steps include receiving bypass information indicating whether or not to bypass the image conversion for the screen sharing session, If the received bypass information indicates that image conversion should be performed, The steps include converting the at least one screen image according to the setting information, The steps include sending the converted at least one screen image to a recipient computer for real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session with the host computer, The stage of receiving a host controller operation signal, wherein the host controller operation signal represents the operation of the host controller in the host computer, and A step of sending content modifications to the recipient computer for display using the real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session and the converted at least one screen image according to the positioning of the text, wherein the content modifications correspond to the operation of the host controller, The aforementioned application content is from a web browser. method.

22. Setting information regarding the unique display preferences of multiple recipients is received. In the conversion step, the at least one screen image is converted in a way that is unique to each of the respective unique display preferences. The at least one uniquely converted screen image is transmitted to multiple recipient computers, respectively, for real-time screen sharing with the host computer. The content modification is transmitted to each of the multiple recipient computers to be displayed using the uniquely converted screen image as part of the real-time screen sharing. The method according to claim 21.

23. The method according to claim 21, wherein the conversion is performed on the host computer.

24. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 23, wherein the display preference further includes a font for the text of the at least one screen image, a font size for the text of the at least one screen image, or a color for the at least one screen image.

25. A method for sharing applications, which is implemented on a computer, the method is A step of receiving setting information, wherein the setting information includes the recipient's display preferences, and the recipient's display preferences include the positioning of text on the screen. A step in which application content is received from a host computer, wherein the application content includes at least one screen image for a screen sharing session. The steps include receiving bypass information indicating whether or not to bypass the image conversion for the screen sharing session, If the received bypass information indicates that image conversion should be performed, The steps include converting the at least one screen image according to the setting information, The steps include sending the converted at least one screen image to a recipient computer for real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session with the host computer, The stage of receiving a host controller operation signal, wherein the host controller operation signal represents the operation of the host controller in the host computer, and A step of sending content modifications to the recipient computer for display using the real-time screen sharing of the screen sharing session and the converted at least one screen image according to the positioning of the text, wherein the content modifications correspond to the operation of the host controller, The aforementioned application content is from a document editing tool. method.

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