Patent ID: 7797713
Filing Date: 2010-09-14
Classification: G06F,G11B,H04N

Abstract:
1. A method, comprising: at a TV, displaying a GUI configured to permit a user to select an Internet content source; receiving a signal from a remote control representing a selection of a source on the GUI; in response to the signal, downloading from a server metadata representing audio-video content streams; in response to the signal, downloading from the server thumbnails arranged in a grid defined by the metadata from the server, each thumbnail representing a respective audio-video content stream; presenting at least a set of the thumbnails along with metadata on the TV; and allowing a user to navigate the thumbnails to select a thumbnail using the remote control to thereby cause the respective stream to be downloaded from the server, wherein the thumbnails and metadata are received from the server such that the grid of thumbnails is dynamic in that it is established by a server for that server's content, and consequently is not known in advance by the TV, the metadata being loaded first prior to the thumbnails first, and then the thumbnails trickling down from the server, a load icon being displayed with accompanying status text, furthermore wherein when the metadata is loading as indicated by the load icon, navigation around the GUI using the remote control is disabled, and once the load icon indicates that metadata load is complete and the thumbnails start to appear on screen, navigation around the GUI is permitted even before the thumbnail grid completely loads, the grid dimensions being known from the metadata.