Process for capturing and transmitting window screen display data
AssigneeAbsolute Software Corporation
InventorsTrevor Cox, Damien Loveland, Michael Sitter
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process is disclosed for capturing screenshots on an electronic device of a user, and for transmitting representations of the captured screenshots to a monitoring system for storage. The captured screenshot data may, for example, be used to recover a device that is lost or stolen.
Claims21
A method performed by an electronic host device to facilitate recovery thereof when the electronic host device is stolen, the method comprising:
- capturing, in a memory of the electronic host device, multiple sequences of screen displays, each sequence corresponding to a different window displayed on a display of the electronic host device, each screen display captured in response to an action performed by a user of the electronic host device;
- generating a compressed representation of each sequence of screen displays;
- and
- transmitting the compressed representations of the sequences of screen displays over a network from the electronic host device to a computer system;
- wherein said capturing comprises:
- keeping a respective file open for each of the windows, and appending to the respective file when the corresponding screen display changes;
- and
- in response to a first of said files reaching a predetermined size, closing the first file while the corresponding window is still open and starting a new file for said corresponding window.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium which stores executable instructions that direct an electronic host device to perform a method for facilitating recovery of the electronic host device when the electronic host device is stolen, the method comprising:
- concurrently maintaining open on the electronic host device at least a first file that corresponds to a first window and a second file that corresponds to a second window;
- updating the first file with window shot data captured from the first window in response to user actions that cause a display in the first window to change;
- updating the second file with window shot data captured from the second window in response to user actions that cause a display in the second window to change;
- in response to the first file reaching a threshold size, and while the first window remains open:
- closing the first file and transmitting the first file on a computer network to a computer system, to thereby communicate to the computer system a representation of a sequence of window shots taken from the first window;
- and
- opening a third file that corresponds to the first window.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.