Interactive wallpaper weather map
AssigneeThe Weather Channel, Inc.
InventorBrad Bacon
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Systems and methods for providing a desktop wallpaper map on a user's PC desktop to provide an indication of weather conditions. The map displays weather information such as local, regional or national radar, satellite map, five day forecast, current conditions, etc. In a passive mode, the map is displayed in the background on a user's desktop. In an interactive mode, the map is preferably moved up to the foreground and additional weather data is provided, which may be customized by the user. The user may pan, zoom and change locations via controls that are provided on the desktop. A control icon is provided to toggle the map to and from passive and interactive modes.
Claims20
A method of displaying a wallpaper map in a computing device, comprising:
- providing said wallpaper map conveying graphical and weather information on a user desktop;
- periodically updating said graphical and weather information;
- and
- providing an icon to set a mode of said wallpaper map, wherein said mode comprises an interactive mode and a passive mode, and wherein said interactive mode and said passive mode display said graphical and weather information in said wallpaper map on said user desktop.
A system for providing a desktop wallpaper map on a computing device, comprising:
- a wallpaper map application that presents said desktop wallpaper map;
- a mode control that sets a presentation mode of said desktop wallpaper map, wherein said presentation mode comprises an interactive mode and a passive mode;
- and
- a download component that periodically retrieves information, wherein said information is presented and updated in said desktop wallpaper map, and wherein when said desktop wallpaper map is in said interactive mode and said passive mode said information is displayed in said desktop wallpaper map.
A method of presenting graphical and weather information on a desktop of a computing device, comprising:
- providing a visual display of said graphical and weather information on said desktop;
- periodically updating said visual display;
- and
- providing a mode control to set attributes of said visual display, wherein said mode control comprises a first mode and a second mode, wherein said first mode provides said visual display showing said graphical and weather information, and wherein said second mode provides said visual display showing a superset of said graphical and weather information.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.