Abstract:
Reducing computational load for systems tracking tasks performed in a shared electronic environment allows for users to receive more nuanced notifications about the use of the shared of the electronic environment, more frequent notifications, or let the systems use those resources for other purposes. The systems and methods discussed herein provide for batching and queueing of tasks to reduce the computational load of systems and thereby improve the systems themselves and the user experience.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/316,358 titled “BATCHED TASKS” filed on Mar. 31, 2016, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Users working in a cloud environment or other shared electronic working spaces, such as coauthored documents, often want to know what has been done within the shared workspace within a given period of time or after a set amount of activity has occurred. For example, a systems administrator may wish to know what documents stored on a server have been edited within the last twenty-four hours or a writer may wish to know when collaborators have added (or subtracted) enough content to constitute more than minor edits to a document. Prior systems involved keeping a database of the actions taken in a shared workspace and querying the database for relevant actions, which requires a significant expenditure of processing resources to repeatedly query the database or the setup and maintenance of a schema for holding the actions in the database for later lookup. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0003]    This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description section. This summary is not intended to identify all features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended as limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter. 
         [0004]    Systems and methods are provided herein for enabling a more efficient batching of actions taken in a shared workspace that reduce the use of processing resources compared to prior systems and methods. As a task is received in a shared electronic workspace, the task is added to a table and a determination is made whether the task meets monitoring user supplied criteria for whether the task belongs to a batch, and if so, the task is added to a batch. Batches are held in a queue until a trigger condition, defined by a monitoring user, occurs at which time a notification is sent to the monitoring user and/or the tasks are executed in the shared electronic workspace. By employing aspects of the present disclosure, processing resources are saved by not having to rely on the heavy use of relational databases. 
         [0005]    The details of one or more aspects are set forth in the accompanying drawings and description below. Other features and advantages will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description and a review of the associated drawings. It is to be understood that the following detailed description is explanatory only and is not restrictive; the proper scope of the present disclosure is set by the claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]    The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this disclosure, illustrate various aspects of the present disclosure. In the drawings: 
           [0007]      FIG. 1  illustrates an example environment in which the batching of tasks may be practiced; 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating interactions and data flow between components used for batching tasks in a shared electronic workspace; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart showing general stages involved in an example method for batching tasks with improved efficiency; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing general stages involved in an example method for handling conflicts when batching tasks; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram illustrating physical components of a computing device with which examples may be practiced; 
           [0012]      FIGS. 6A and 6B  are block diagrams of a mobile computing device with which aspects may be practiced; and 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  is a block diagram of a distributed computing system in which aspects may be practiced. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0014]    The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or similar elements. While aspects of the present disclosure may be described, modifications, adaptations, and other implementations are possible. For example, substitutions, additions, or modifications may be made to the elements illustrated in the drawings, and the methods described herein may be modified by substituting, reordering, or adding stages to the disclosed methods. Accordingly, the following detailed description does not limit the present disclosure, but instead, the proper scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims. Examples may take the form of a hardware implementation, or an entirely software implementation, or an implementation combining software and hardware aspects. The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense. 
         [0015]    Systems and methods are provided herein to enable a more computationally efficient way to process tasks in a shared electronic workspace (SEW). As writers perform tasks in the SEW, those tasks are written to a table, and a cache determines how to batch the tasks for reporting to monitoring users. User-supplied definitions for which tasks are to be grouped into batches, how long a batch should be collected (e.g., n minutes/hours/days, n tasks, or whichever time or task trigger occurs first), and how a batch is to be reported are held by the cache, and may be added on-the-fly to determine whether to add a task to one or more existing batches or to create a new batch. Batches are held in a queue until their triggers occur, at which time a notification on the included tasks is generated and transmitted to a monitoring user and/or the tasks are executed in the SEW, and the batch is removed from the queue. While the notification is generated, tasks that would have been added to the batch being reported are placed into a new batch in the queue for reporting later, and the monitoring user is provided with the requested information without needing to generate computationally complex queries or to format a database according to a complex schema. 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  illustrates an example environment  100  in which the batching of tasks may be practiced. The example environment  100  includes a SEW  110 , one or more writers  120  that access the SEW  110 , and a receiver  130  that receives the batched tasks, or notifications thereof. In various aspects, the SEW  110  may be a file-hosting server, a server monitoring a distributed network of workstations, a shared workstation, a cloud-hosted document, or a locally-hosted document that has been shared. The writers  120  and receiver  130  comprise computing devices, and in various aspects, a writer  120  may also be a receiver  130 . Similarly, the receiver  130  may be hosting the SEW  110 , and using the notifications to commit tasks to a document or server state, allowing for tasks to be combined in batches; reducing processing resources used by the system compared to implementing the equivalent action via multiple uncombined tasks. 
         [0017]    The SEW  110 , the writer(s)  120 , and the receiver  130  are illustrative of a multitude of computing systems including, without limitation, desktop computer systems, wired and wireless computing systems, mobile computing systems (e.g., mobile telephones, netbooks, tablet or slate type computers, notebook computers, and laptop computers), hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, and mainframe computers. The hardware of these computing systems is discussed in greater detail in regard to  FIGS. 5, 6A, 6B, and 7 . 
         [0018]    In various aspects, the SEW  110  is accessed locally and/or by a network, which may include the Internet, a Local Area Network (LAN), a private distributed network for an entity (e.g., a company, a university, a government agency), a wireless ad hoc network, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or other direct data link (e.g., Bluetooth connection, a direct wired link). Data are transferred between the SEW  110 , the writer(s)  120 , and the receiver  130  for sharing tasks, notifications, and other communications. As will be understood, the network may be exclusively used for the distribution of tasks and reports thereon or may be accessed by the computing devices for communication with devices that are not part of the distribution group. 
         [0019]    The receiver  130  sets the conditions for which tasks will be batched, how frequently batches are generated, and how the batches are delivered to the receiver  130 . As will be appreciated, depending on the nature of the SEW  110 , the nature of the tasks and the batches thereof may differ. For example, if the SEW  110  were a server storing multiple documents, the tasks may include deletions, creations, or modifications to documents, as well as downtime events (power outages, reboots, etc.). Similarly, if the SEW  110  were a shared document, the tasks may include the accessing, saving, versioning, commenting, or authoring of the shared document. For example, a batch of server tasks may be used to create a notification of how many deletions, creations, or modifications to documents were made by specified users in a given period of time. 
         [0020]    As will be appreciated, the batches comprise the specified tasks, but counteractive or additive tasks may be compressed in a batch, to reduce the number of function calls or transmissions needed to process the batch. For example, a batch in a shared document where a writer  120  entered some text (a first task) and then deleted that text (a second task), the tasks in the batch may be compressed so that the batch is comprised of no tasks, as the first task was counteracted by the second task. Similarly, when a writer  120  enters some text (a first task) and then enters some more text (a second task), those tasks may be compressed into one task, as they are additive, and the batch will comprise one task that includes all of the entered text. By compressing tasks at a batch level, processing the tasks (for execution via a callback or for reporting in a notification) may be simplified, and fewer computing resources are spent in executing the aggregated task or fewer and smaller transmissions may be made to remote systems, thus conserving bandwidth. 
         [0021]    In aspects where the receiver  130  requests notifications, the batch definition set by the receiver  130  defines the delivery method for the notifications. For example, notifications may be transmitted via email, text message, or an in-program dialog or pop-up. To illustrate, a systems administrator may set up a batch definition that batches all synchronization errors within a SEW  110  of a server or cloud computing facility that the systems administrator manages and defines that the notification should be delivered via email. In an alternate illustration, an author working in a SEW  110  of a cloud-based word processing program, such as Google Docs™ (available from Alphabet, Inc. of Mountain View, Calif.), or a shared session of a hosted word processing program, such as Pages® (available from Apple, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif.), may request a notification that when a batch is triggered, a notification is delivered within the word processing program as a pop-up window (which may automatically close after a defined period of time or require the author to acknowledge the window to dismiss it) or within a notifications pane in the user interface of the word processing program. 
         [0022]    Triggers for batches may specify one or more frequencies (e.g., send a report every n minutes) or size requirements (e.g., send a report after n tasks,) and a given batch may include multiple conditions for a trigger or more than one trigger. For example, a receiver  130  may set triggers in a shared document to receive notifications when n words of content have been added by a coauthor or every n minutes, whichever comes first, or both conditions may be part of a single trigger so that a notification is sent when both at least n words have been added and at least n minutes have passed. As will also be appreciated, the receiver  130  may also set triggers for multiple reports so that, continuing the above example, separate reports may be received whenever a coauthor has added n word of content to the shared document and whenever n minutes have passed. 
         [0023]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating interactions and data flow  200  between components used for batching tasks in a SEW  110 . As illustrated, incoming tasks  210 , received from writers  120 , are stored in a task table  220  and are examined by a batching agent  230  on receipt to determine whether an incoming task  210  also belongs in one or more batches  240  in the queue  250 . The batching agent  230  consults a cache  270  for batch definitions, received from receivers  130 , to determine whether an incoming task  210  is to be added to a batch  240  (individually illustrated as a new batch  240   a , a hidden batch  240   b , and a visible batch  240   c ). The queue  250  is polled by a polling agent  260  to pull any visible batches  240   c  (i.e., those having met their trigger condition) for use by the executor  280 , which pulls the tasks comprising the batch  240  from the task table  220  for processing and transmission to the receivers  130 . As will be appreciated, the components discussed in regard to  FIG. 2  may be implemented on the same computing device as the SEW  110 , in combination with the SEW  110  or separately from the SEW  110 . 
         [0024]    As illustrated, an incoming task  210  is received from a writer  120 . In various aspects, the incoming task  210  may be any task within the SEW  110 , such as for example, an edit made to a coauthored document, a request to retrieve a file from a document management system, a command to change user settings in a software package, etc. Each incoming task  210  is stored in a task table  220  and examined by a batching agent  230  to determine whether it is to be added to a batch  240 . Each incoming task  210  includes various properties, such as, for example, a task type identifier, a writer identifier, a target identifier, etc., that the batching agent  230  uses to determine whether the incoming task  210  belongs in a batch  240 . 
         [0025]    If the incoming task  210  is determined to not belong to a batch  240 , it is added to the task table  220  and to no batches  240 , otherwise the incoming task  210  is added to a batch  240  and to the task table  220 . When an incoming task  210  is added to the task table  220 , a task identifier is assigned to the task for use as a key in recalling that task from the task table  220 . That task identifier is also added to the batches  240  in the queue  250  to which the incoming task  210  is assigned (if any). Each batch  240  includes a batch name (to identify the batch  240  in the queue  250 ), a batching property (to set how the batch  240  is handled when it is triggered), the task identifiers for assigned tasks, a visibility setting (i.e., whether the batch  240  is visible to the polling agent  260 ), and a timeout (for when the batch  240  is to be removed from the queue  250 ). In various aspects, a timeout may define a period of time, a number of clock cycles, or a number of polling attempts for how long a given batch  240  will remain in the queue  250  or in a visible state in the queue  250 . 
         [0026]    The receivers  130  define the properties for tasks that they wish to batch, and the batch definitions are stored in the cache  270 , which is consulted by the batching agent  230  to determine which tasks to batch together, and the properties of the batches  240  to create in the queue  250 . The definitions stored by the cache  270  are transient and expire after the set period of time for which the receiver  130  is interested in batching. As will be appreciated, a receiver  130  may set up a recurring definition, so that a new definition is automatically created in the cache  270  when the previous definition expires, or the receiver  130  may set up a one-time definition. A user may add batch definitions to the cache  270  on-the-fly, so that incoming tasks  210  meeting the conditions of the batch definition will be added to batches  240 . 
         [0027]    As illustrated, the batches  240  are shown in three varieties: new batches  240   a , hidden batches  240   b , and visible batches  240   c . New batches  240   a  are created when an incoming task  210  is received and there is not a hidden batch  240   b  in the queue  250  for the batch definition that assigned the incoming task  210 . As will be appreciated, a task may be assigned to multiple batches  240 , and a new batch  240   a  will be created for a particular definition when a hidden batch  240   b  does not exist for that definition even if other hidden batches  240   b  exist for other definitions to which that task was assigned. Batches  240  are created having a hidden visibility state (i.e., as hidden batches  240   b ) and are not visible to the polling agent  260  when it queries the queue  250 . Tasks are accumulated in hidden batches  240   b  and when the trigger for a hidden batch  240   b  is reached, it changes its visibility setting to become a visible batch  240   c , which the polling agent  260  is operable to see and pull for the executor  280  to operate on. Each visible batch  240   c  is associated with a timeout property so that the visible batch  240   c  will be deleted automatically from the queue  250  if it is not pulled by the polling agent  260  or the executor  280  fails to operate on the included tasks within a given period of time so as to not cause stalls or hangs in the SEW  110 . 
         [0028]    The polling agent  260  periodically polls the queue  250  for any visible batches  240   c , which are passed to the executor  280 . In various aspects, the frequency at which the polling agent  260  queries the queue  250  may vary, and may be constant, variable, and include interrupts to query the queue  250  outside of the normal frequency. The tasks from the visible batches  240   c  are pulled from the task table  220  based on the task identifiers that were part of the pulled batch  240 . The executor  280  then attempts to operate on the tasks pulled from the task table  220  based on the batching property of the pulled batch  240 . Depending on the batching property, the executor  280  may generate and transmit a notification to the receiver  130  regarding the batched tasks, implement the batched tasks via callback operation, and compress the batched tasks (if appropriate). In various aspects, if the executor  280  fails to operate on the batched tasks, it may retry operating on the batched tasks until the batch  240  is deleted from the queue  250  at the end of its timeout period. 
         [0029]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart showing general stages involved in an example method  300  for batching tasks with improved efficiency. Method  300  begins at OPERATION  310 , when a new task is received within the SEW  110 , and is added to the task table  220  in OPERATION  320 . All tasks received within the SEW  110  are added to the task table  220 , which may be queried for historic task information, and at DECISION  330 , it is determined whether the new task belongs to a batch  240 . 
         [0030]    At DECISION  330 , the properties of the new task are compared against a batch definition stored in a cache  270  to determine whether the new task belongs in one or more batches  240 . For example, a first batch definition may define that all changes made by user X in a SEW  110  are to be batched together, and a second definition may define that all changes that add content to the SEW  110  are to be batched together, and a task that includes change from user X that adds content to the SEW  110  would therefore be determined to be assigned to two batches. Contrarily, a task from user Y that removes content from the SEW  110  would belong to neither of the above batch definitions, and would therefore not be added to any batches  240  in this example. If the new task does not belong to any batches  240 , method  300  concludes. If the new task does belong to at least one batch  240 , method  300  proceeds to DECISION  340 . 
         [0031]    At DECISION  340  it is determined whether an available batch  240  exists in the queue  250 . Available batches  240  are those batches in the queue  250  that have not been made visible to a polling agent  260  or otherwise held aside for execution. If a batch  240  is available for the new task, method  300  will proceed to OPERATION  360 , otherwise method  300  proceeds to OPERATION  350 . 
         [0032]    OPERATION  350  is performed to create a new batch  240   a  in the queue  250 . A new batch  240   a  is created when there is no hidden batch  240   b  associated with a batch definition that the new tasks meets, and to which the new task will be added. The new batch  240   a  is created having a visibility property set to hidden, and its other properties defined by the batch definition. Once the new batch  240   a  has been created, method  300  proceeds to OPERATION  360 . 
         [0033]    At OPERATION  360  the new task is added to the hidden batch(es)  240   b  associated with the batch definition(s) that the new task satisfies. A task is added to a batch  240  by storing its task identifier with the task identifiers for any other tasks that have been previously batched. The identifiers of the batched tasks serve to identify the tasks in the task table  220  so that they may be quickly retrieved when the batch  240  becomes visible and is pulled from the queue  250  for execution. Method  300  then concludes. 
         [0034]      FIG. 4  is a flowchart showing general stages involved in an example method  400  for handling conflicts when batching tasks. Method  400  begins at OPERATION  410 , where the queue  250  is polled for visible batches  240   c . In various aspects, a polling agent  260  may poll the queue  250  at various frequencies (e.g., every 60 s, every 80 clock cycles), or may poll the queue  250  in response to an interrupt command. At DECISION  420  it is determined whether the queue  250  contains any visible batches  240   c  that the polling agent  260  has not already polled (i.e., an “unlocked”, newly triggered, or newly visible batch  240   c ). If it is determined there are no newly visible batches  240   c  in the queue  250 , method  400  proceeds to OPERATION  470 . If it is determined that there is at least one newly visible batch  240   c  in the queue  250 , method  400  proceeds to OPERATION  430 . 
         [0035]    At OPERATION  430  the newly visible batch  240   c  is noted as having been successfully polled from the queue  250  and the polling agent  260  will remember that it has seen the given visible batch  240   c  (i.e., the polling agent  260  “locks onto” the given visible batch  240   c ). In various aspects, the polling agent  260  locks onto the newly visible batch  240   c  by noting the batch name of the visible batches  240   c  and adding any newly visible batch  240   c  to a list of visible batches  240   c  so that a given batch  240  will only be seen by the polling agent as newly visible once. 
         [0036]    Proceeding to OPERATION  440 , the tasks stored in the batch  240  are retrieved from the task table  220 . In various aspects, the batches  240  store the identifiers for the tasks in the task table  220 , which are used to retrieve the tasks from the task table  220 . In various aspects, the batches  240  store the tasks in an order in which they were received, while in other aspects, the batches  240  will order the tasks by a shared target, source, or category of task for ease of processing. 
         [0037]    At OPERATION  450 , the tasks from the batch  240  are processed. In various aspects, the tasks are processed via invoking callbacks to the tasks to execute the tasks in the SEW  110 , and/or the tasks are processed to create a notification to transmit to a receiver  130 . When processing a batch  240  that includes more than one task, the tasks may be combined such that earlier tasks that are undone by later tasks will cancel each other out. For example, a task indicating that a user typed a word and a task indicating that a user deleted that word may be reported by notifying a monitoring user that each task occurred, the end result of those tasks, or not invoking a callback for either task, because the end result of the tasks is that nothing occurred. Further, when a batch  240  includes multiple tasks that are related, the tasks may be combined additively such that the end result, or a summary thereof, is processed. For example, tasks for inputting individual characters to type a word may be combined into one task to indicate that a user typed that word rather than the individual letters. In another example, when multiple tasks for typing multiple words are in a batch  240 , a summary of those tasks may be provided in a notification to a receiver  130  (e.g., “n words have been added to paragraph X”). 
         [0038]    Method  400  then proceeds to OPERATION  460 , where the lock is released from the newly visible batch  240   c . A lock is released from a batch  240  when the batch  240  has been processed, either in a notification or via a callback to execute the tasks in the SEW  110 , or when the batch  240  times out from the queue  250 . As will be appreciated, each batch  240  includes a timeout parameter that sets how long the batch  240  will be visible for. When the timeout parameter expires, the batch  240  is deleted from the queue  250 , which prevents the batch  240  from consuming too many computing resources (e.g., inducing a hang or stalled process in the SEW  110 ). In some aspects, when a lock is removed from a batch  240 , that batch  240  is deleted from the queue  250 , while in other aspects the tasks indicated in the batch  240  are cleared and the batch  240  is made hidden again (clearing any lists tracking the batch  240  as a visible batch  240   c ) Method  400  then proceeds to OPERATION  470 . 
         [0039]    At OPERATION  470  the polling agent  260  waits until the next polling signal, which may be internally generated (e.g., a set length of time or a set number of clock cycles have passed) or externally generated (e.g., an interrupt command that directs the polling agent  260  to poll the queue  250 ). When the polling agent  260  is signaled, method  400  returns to OPERATION  410 , where the queue  250  will be polled for any newly visible batches  240   c.    
         [0040]    While implementations have been described in the general context of program modules that execute in conjunction with an application program that runs on an operating system on a computer, those skilled in the art will recognize that aspects may also be implemented in combination with other program modules. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, components, data structures, and other types of structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. 
         [0041]    The aspects and functionalities described herein may operate via a multitude of computing systems including, without limitation, desktop computer systems, wired and wireless computing systems, mobile computing systems (e.g., mobile telephones, netbooks, tablet or slate type computers, notebook computers, and laptop computers), hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, and mainframe computers. 
         [0042]    In addition, according to an aspect, the aspects and functionalities described herein operate over distributed systems (e.g., cloud-based computing systems), where application functionality, memory, data storage and retrieval and various processing functions are operated remotely from each other over a distributed computing network, such as the Internet or an intranet. According to an aspect, user interfaces and information of various types are displayed via on-board computing device displays or via remote display units associated with one or more computing devices. For example, user interfaces and information of various types are displayed and interacted with on a wall surface onto which user interfaces and information of various types are projected. Interaction with the multitude of computing systems with which implementations are practiced include, keystroke entry, touch screen entry, voice or other audio entry, gesture entry where an associated computing device is equipped with detection (e.g., camera) functionality for capturing and interpreting user gestures for controlling the functionality of the computing device, and the like. 
         [0043]      FIGS. 5-7  and the associated descriptions provide a discussion of a variety of operating environments in which examples are practiced. However, the devices and systems illustrated and discussed with respect to  FIGS. 5-7  are for purposes of example and illustration and are not limiting of a vast number of computing device configurations that are utilized for practicing aspects, described herein. 
         [0044]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram illustrating physical components (i.e., hardware) of a computing device  500  with which examples of the present disclosure may be practiced. In a basic configuration, the computing device  500  includes at least one processing unit  502  and a system memory  504 . According to an aspect, depending on the configuration and type of computing device, the system memory  504  comprises, but is not limited to, volatile storage (e.g., random access memory), non-volatile storage (e.g., read-only memory), flash memory, or any combination of such memories. According to an aspect, the system memory  504  includes an operating system  505  and one or more program modules  506  suitable for running software applications  550 . According to an aspect, the system memory  504  includes a SEW  110 , operable to enable a software application  550  to employ the teachings of the present disclosure via stored instructions. The operating system  505 , for example, is suitable for controlling the operation of the computing device  500 . Furthermore, aspects are practiced in conjunction with a graphics library, other operating systems, or any other application program, and is not limited to any particular application or system. This basic configuration is illustrated in  FIG. 5  by those components within a dashed line  508 . According to an aspect, the computing device  500  has additional features or functionality. For example, according to an aspect, the computing device  500  includes additional data storage devices (removable and/or non-removable) such as, for example, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape. Such additional storage is illustrated in  FIG. 5  by a removable storage device  509  and a non-removable storage device  510 . 
         [0045]    As stated above, according to an aspect, a number of program modules and data files are stored in the system memory  504 . While executing on the processing unit  502 , the program modules  506  (e.g., SEW  110 ) perform processes including, but not limited to, one or more of the stages of the methods  300  and  400  illustrated in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . According to an aspect, other program modules are used in accordance with examples and include applications such as electronic mail and contacts applications, word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, database applications, slide presentation applications, drawing or computer-aided application programs, etc. 
         [0046]    According to an aspect, the computing device  500  has one or more input device(s)  512  such as a keyboard, a mouse, a pen, a sound input device, a touch input device, etc. The output device(s)  514  such as a display, speakers, a printer, etc. are also included according to an aspect. The aforementioned devices are examples and others may be used. According to an aspect, the computing device  500  includes one or more communication connections  516  allowing communications with other computing devices  518 . Examples of suitable communication connections  516  include, but are not limited to, radio frequency (RF) transmitter, receiver, and/or transceiver circuitry; universal serial bus (USB), parallel, and/or serial ports. 
         [0047]    The term computer readable media, as used herein, includes computer storage media apparatuses and articles of manufacture. Computer storage media include volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures, or program modules. The system memory  504 , the removable storage device  509 , and the non-removable storage device  510  are all computer storage media examples (i.e., memory storage). According to an aspect, computer storage media include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other article of manufacture which can be used to store information and which can be accessed by the computing device  500 . According to an aspect, any such computer storage media is part of the computing device  500 . Computer storage media do not include a carrier wave or other propagated data signal. 
         [0048]    According to an aspect, communication media are embodied by computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and include any information delivery media. According to an aspect, the term “modulated data signal” describes a signal that has one or more characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media include wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, radio frequency (RF), infrared, and other wireless media. 
         [0049]      FIGS. 6A and 6B  illustrate a mobile computing device  600 , for example, a mobile telephone, a smart phone, a tablet personal computer, a laptop computer, and the like, with which aspects may be practiced. With reference to  FIG. 6A , an example of a mobile computing device  600  for implementing the aspects is illustrated. In a basic configuration, the mobile computing device  600  is a handheld computer having both input elements and output elements. The mobile computing device  600  typically includes a display  605  and one or more input buttons  610  that allow the user to enter information into the mobile computing device  600 . According to an aspect, the display  605  of the mobile computing device  600  functions as an input device (e.g., a touch screen display). If included, an optional side input element  615  allows further user input. According to an aspect, the side input element  615  is a rotary switch, a button, or any other type of manual input element. In alternative examples, mobile computing device  600  incorporates more or fewer input elements. For example, the display  605  may not be a touch screen in some examples. In alternative examples, the mobile computing device  600  is a portable phone system, such as a cellular phone. According to an aspect, the mobile computing device  600  includes an optional keypad  635 . According to an aspect, the optional keypad  635  is a physical keypad. According to another aspect, the optional keypad  635  is a “soft” keypad generated on the touch screen display. In various aspects, the output elements include the display  605  for showing a graphical user interface (GUI), a visual indicator  620  (e.g., a light emitting diode), and/or an audio transducer  625  (e.g., a speaker). In some examples, the mobile computing device  600  incorporates a vibration transducer for providing the user with tactile feedback. In yet another example, the mobile computing device  600  incorporates a peripheral device port  640 , such as an audio input (e.g., a microphone jack), an audio output (e.g., a headphone jack), and a video output (e.g., a HDMI port) for sending signals to or receiving signals from an external device. 
         [0050]      FIG. 6B  is a block diagram illustrating the architecture of one example of a mobile computing device. That is, the mobile computing device  600  incorporates a system (i.e., an architecture)  602  to implement some examples. In one example, the system  602  is implemented as a “smart phone” capable of running one or more applications (e.g., browser, e-mail, calendaring, contact managers, messaging clients, games, and media clients/players). In some examples, the system  602  is integrated as a computing device, such as an integrated personal digital assistant (PDA) and wireless phone. 
         [0051]    According to an aspect, one or more application programs  650  are loaded into the memory  662  and run on or in association with the operating system  664 . Examples of the application programs include phone dialer programs, e-mail programs, personal information management (PIM) programs, word processing programs, spreadsheet programs, Internet browser programs, messaging programs, and so forth. According to an aspect, SEW  110  is loaded into memory  662 . The system  602  also includes a non-volatile storage area  668  within the memory  662 . The non-volatile storage area  668  is used to store persistent information that should not be lost if the system  602  is powered down. The application programs  650  may use and store information in the non-volatile storage area  668 , such as e-mail or other messages used by an e-mail application, and the like. A synchronization application (not shown) also resides on the system  602  and is programmed to interact with a corresponding synchronization application resident on a host computer to keep the information stored in the non-volatile storage area  668  synchronized with corresponding information stored at the host computer. As should be appreciated, other applications may be loaded into the memory  662  and run on the mobile computing device  600 . 
         [0052]    According to an aspect, the system  602  has a power supply  670 , which is implemented as one or more batteries. According to an aspect, the power supply  670  further includes an external power source, such as an AC adapter or a powered docking cradle that supplements or recharges the batteries. 
         [0053]    According to an aspect, the system  602  includes a radio  672  that performs the function of transmitting and receiving radio frequency communications. The radio  672  facilitates wireless connectivity between the system  602  and the “outside world,” via a communications carrier or service provider. Transmissions to and from the radio  672  are conducted under control of the operating system  664 . In other words, communications received by the radio  672  may be disseminated to the application programs  650  via the operating system  664 , and vice versa. 
         [0054]    According to an aspect, the visual indicator  620  is used to provide visual notifications and/or an audio interface  674  is used for producing audible notifications via the audio transducer  625 . In the illustrated example, the visual indicator  620  is a light emitting diode (LED) and the audio transducer  625  is a speaker. These devices may be directly coupled to the power supply  670  so that when activated, they remain on for a duration dictated by the notification mechanism even though the processor  660  and other components might shut down for conserving battery power. The LED may be programmed to remain on indefinitely until the user takes action to indicate the powered-on status of the device. The audio interface  674  is used to provide audible signals to and receive audible signals from the user. For example, in addition to being coupled to the audio transducer  625 , the audio interface  674  may also be coupled to a microphone to receive audible input, such as to facilitate a telephone conversation. According to an aspect, the system  602  further includes a video interface  676  that enables an operation of an on-board camera  630  to record still images, video stream, and the like. 
         [0055]    According to an aspect, a mobile computing device  600  implementing the system  602  has additional features or functionality. For example, the mobile computing device  600  includes additional data storage devices (removable and/or non-removable) such as, magnetic disks, optical disks, or tape. Such additional storage is illustrated in  FIG. 6B  by the non-volatile storage area  668 . 
         [0056]    According to an aspect, data/information generated or captured by the mobile computing device  600  and stored via the system  602  are stored locally on the mobile computing device  600 , as described above. According to another aspect, the data are stored on any number of storage media that are accessible by the device via the radio  672  or via a wired connection between the mobile computing device  600  and a separate computing device associated with the mobile computing device  600 , for example, a server computer in a distributed computing network, such as the Internet. As should be appreciated, such data/information are accessible via the mobile computing device  600  via the radio  672  or via a distributed computing network. Similarly, according to an aspect, such data/information are readily transferred between computing devices for storage and use according to well-known data/information transfer and storage means, including electronic mail and collaborative data/information sharing systems. 
         [0057]      FIG. 7  illustrates one example of the architecture of a system for automatic presentation of blocks of repeated content as described above. Content developed, interacted with, or edited in association with the SEW  110  is enabled to be stored in different communication channels or other storage types. For example, various documents may be stored using a directory service  722 , a web portal  724 , a mailbox service  726 , an instant messaging store  728 , or a social networking site  730 . The SEW  110  is operative to use any of these types of systems or the like for distribution of selected content, as described herein. According to an aspect, a server  720  provides the SEW  110  to clients  705   a - c  (generally clients  705 ), which may be run on writer devices  120  or receiver devices  130 . As one example, the server  720  is a web server providing the SEW  110  over the web. The server  720  provides the SEW  110  over the web to clients  705  through a network  740 . By way of example, the client computing device is implemented and embodied in a personal computer  705   a , a tablet computing device  705   b  or a mobile computing device  705   c  (e.g., a smart phone), or other computing device. Any of these examples of the client computing device are operable to obtain content from the store  716 . 
         [0058]    Implementations, for example, are described above with reference to block diagrams and/or operational illustrations of methods, systems, and computer program products according to aspects. The functions/acts noted in the blocks may occur out of the order as shown in any flowchart. For example, two blocks shown in succession may in fact be executed substantially concurrently or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved. 
         [0059]    The description and illustration of one or more examples provided in this application are not intended to limit or restrict the scope as claimed in any way. The aspects, examples, and details provided in this application are considered sufficient to convey possession and enable others to make and use the best mode. Implementations should not be construed as being limited to any aspect, example, or detail provided in this application. Regardless of whether shown and described in combination or separately, the various features (both structural and methodological) are intended to be selectively included or omitted to produce an example with a particular set of features. Having been provided with the description and illustration of the present application, one skilled in the art may envision variations, modifications, and alternate examples falling within the spirit of the broader aspects of the general inventive concept embodied in this application that do not depart from the broader scope of the present disclosure.