Patent ID: 12229393

The use of the same reference symbols in different drawings indicates similar or identical items.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following description in combination with the Figures is provided to assist in understanding the teachings disclosed herein. The description is focused on specific implementations and embodiments of the teachings and is provided to assist in describing the teachings. This focus should not be interpreted as a limitation on the scope or applicability of the teachings.

FIG.1illustrates an embodiment of an information handling system100including processors102and104, a chipset110, a memory120, a graphics adapter130connected to a video display134, a non-volatile RAM (NV-RAM)140that includes a basic input and output system/extensible firmware interface (BIOS/EFI) module142, a disk controller150, a hard disk drive (HDD)154, an optical disk drive156, a disk emulator160connected to a solid-state drive (SSD)164, an input/output (I/O) interface170connected to an add-on resource174and a trusted platform module (TPM)176, a network interface180, and a baseboard management controller (BMC)190. Processor102is connected to chipset110via processor interface106, and processor104is connected to the chipset via processor interface108. In a particular embodiment, processors102and104are connected together via a high-capacity coherent fabric, such as a HyperTransport link, a QuickPath Interconnect, or the like. Chipset110represents an integrated circuit or group of integrated circuits that manage the data flow between processors102and104and the other elements of information handling system100. In a particular embodiment, chipset110represents a pair of integrated circuits, such as a northbridge component and a southbridge component. In another embodiment, some or all of the functions and features of chipset110are integrated with one or more of processors102and104.

Memory120is connected to chipset110via a memory interface122. An example of memory interface122includes a Double Data Rate (DDR) memory channel and memory120represents one or more DDR Dual In-Line Memory Modules (DIMMs). In a particular embodiment, memory interface122represents two or more DDR channels. In another embodiment, one or more of processors102and104include a memory interface that provides a    dedicated memory for the processors. A DDR channel and the connected DDR DIMMs can be in accordance with a particular DDR standard, such as a DDR3 standard, a DDR4 standard, a DDR5 standard, or the like.

Memory120may further represent various combinations of memory types, such as Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) DIMMs, Static Random Access Memory (SRAM) DIMMs, non-volatile DIMMs (NV-DIMMs), storage class memory devices, Read-Only Memory (ROM) devices, or the like. Graphics adapter130is connected to chipset110via a graphics interface132and provides a video display output136to a video display134. An example of a graphics interface132includes a Peripheral Component Interconnect-Express (PCIe) interface and graphics adapter130can include a four-lane (×4) PCIe adapter, an eight-lane (×8) PCIe adapter, a 16-lane (×16) PCIe adapter, or another configuration, as needed or desired. In a particular embodiment, graphics adapter130is provided down on a system printed circuit board (PCB). Video display output136can include a Digital Video Interface (DVI), a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), a DisplayPort interface, or the like, and video display134can include a monitor, a smart television, an embedded display such as a laptop computer display, or the like.

NV-RAM140, disk controller150, and I/O interface170are connected to chipset110via an I/O channel112. An example of I/O channel112includes one or more point-to-point PCIe links between chipset110and each of NV-RAM140, disk controller150, and I/O interface170. Chipset110can also include one or more other I/O interfaces, including a PCIe interface, an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) interface, a Small Computer Serial Interface (SCSI) interface, an Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) interface, a System Packet Interface (SPI), a Universal Serial Bus (USB), another interface, or a combination thereof. NV-RAM140includes BIOS/EFI module142that stores machine-executable code (BIOS/EFI code) that operates to detect the resources of information handling system100, to provide drivers for the resources, to initialize the resources, and to provide common access mechanisms for the resources. The functions and features of BIOS/EFI module142will be further described below.

Disk controller150includes a disk interface152that connects the disc controller to a hard disk drive (HDD)154, to an optical disk drive (ODD)156, and to disk emulator160. An    example of disk interface152includes an Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) interface, an Advanced Technology Attachment (ATA) such as a parallel ATA (PATA) interface or a serial ATA (SATA) interface, a SCSI interface, a USB interface, a proprietary interface, or a combination thereof. Disk emulator160permits SSD164to be connected to information handling system100via an external interface162. An example of external interface162includes a USB interface, an institute of electrical and electronics engineers (IEEE) 1394 (Firewire) interface, a proprietary interface, or a combination thereof. Alternatively, SSD164can be disposed within information handling system100.

I/O interface170includes a peripheral interface172that connects the I/O interface to add-on resource174, to TPM176, and to network interface180. Peripheral interface172can be the same type of interface as I/O channel112or can be a different type of interface. As such, I/O interface170extends the capacity of I/O channel112when peripheral interface172and the I/O channel are of the same type, and the I/O interface translates information from a format suitable to the I/O channel to a format suitable to the peripheral interface172when they are of a different type. Add-on resource174can include a data storage system, an additional graphics interface, a network interface card (NIC), a sound/video processing card, another add-on resource, or a combination thereof. Add-on resource174can be on a main circuit board, on separate circuit board or add-in card disposed within information handling system100, a device that is external to the information handling system, or a combination thereof.

Network interface180represents a network communication device disposed within information handling system100, on a main circuit board of the information handling system, integrated onto another component such as chipset110, in another suitable location, or a combination thereof. Network interface180includes a network channel182that provides an interface to devices that are external to information handling system100. In a particular embodiment, network channel182is of a different type than peripheral interface172, and network interface180translates information from a format suitable to the peripheral channel to a format suitable to external devices.

In a particular embodiment, network interface180includes a NIC or host bus adapter (HBA), and an example of network channel182includes an InfiniBand channel, a Fibre    Channel, a Gigabit Ethernet channel, a proprietary channel architecture, or a combination thereof. In another embodiment, network interface180includes a wireless communication interface, and network channel182includes a Wi-Fi channel, a near-field communication (NFC) channel, a Bluetooth® or Bluetooth-Low-Energy (BLE) channel, a cellular based interface such as a Global System for Mobile (GSM) interface, a Code-Division Multiple Access (CDMA) interface, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) interface, a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) interface, or another cellular based interface, or a combination thereof. Network channel182can be connected to an external network resource (not illustrated). The network resource can include another information handling system, a data storage system, another network, a grid management system, another suitable resource, or a combination thereof.

BMC190is connected to multiple elements of information handling system100via one or more management interface192to provide out of band monitoring, maintenance, and control of the elements of the information handling system. As such, BMC190represents a processing device different from processor102and processor104, which provides various management functions for information handling system100. For example, BMC190may be responsible for power management, cooling management, and the like. The term BMC is often used in the context of server systems, while in a consumer-level device, a BMC may be referred to as an embedded controller (EC). A BMC included in a data storage system can be referred to as a storage enclosure processor. A BMC included at a chassis of a blade server can be referred to as a chassis management controller and embedded controllers included at the blades of the blade server can be referred to as blade management controllers. Capabilities and functions provided by BMC190can vary considerably based on the type of information handling system. BMC190can operate in accordance with an Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI). Examples of BMC190include an Integrated Dell® Remote Access Controller (iDRAC).

Management interface192represents one or more out-of-band communication interfaces between BMC190and the elements of information handling system100, and can include an Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus, a System Management Bus (SMBUS), a Power Management Bus (PMBUS), a Low Pin Count (LPC) interface, a serial bus such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) or a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), a network interface such as an Ethernet interface, a high-speed serial data link such as a PCIe interface, a Network Controller Sideband    Interface (NC-SI), or the like. As used herein, out-of-band access refers to operations performed apart from a BIOS/operating system execution environment on information handling system100, that is apart from the execution of code by processors102and104and procedures that are implemented on the information handling system in response to the executed code.

BMC190operates to monitor and maintain system firmware, such as code stored in BIOS/EFI module142, option ROMs for graphics adapter130, disk controller150, add-on resource174, network interface180, or other elements of information handling system100, as needed or desired. In particular, BMC190includes a network interface194that can be connected to a remote management system to receive firmware updates, as needed or desired. Here, BMC190receives the firmware updates, stores the updates to a data storage device associated with the BMC, transfers the firmware updates to NV-RAM of the device or system that is the subject of the firmware update, thereby replacing the currently operating firmware associated with the device or system, and reboots information handling system, whereupon the device or system utilizes the updated firmware image.

BMC190utilizes various protocols and application programming interfaces (APIs) to direct and control the processes for monitoring and maintaining the system firmware. An example of a protocol or API for monitoring and maintaining the system firmware includes a graphical user interface (GUI) associated with BMC190, an interface defined by the Distributed Management Taskforce (DMTF) (such as a Web Services Management (WSMan) interface, a Management Component Transport Protocol (MCTP) or, a Redfish® interface), various vendor defined interfaces (such as a Dell EMC Remote Access Controller Administrator (RACADM) utility, a Dell EMC OpenManage Enterprise, a Dell EMC OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSS) utility, a Dell EMC OpenManage Storage Services (OMSS) utility, or a Dell EMC OpenManage Deployment Toolkit (DTK) suite), a BIOS setup utility such as invoked by a “F2” boot option, or another protocol or API, as needed or desired.

In a particular embodiment, BMC190is included on a main circuit board (such as a baseboard, a motherboard, or any combination thereof) of information handling system100or is integrated onto another element of the information handling system such as chipset110, or another suitable element, as needed or desired. As such, BMC190can be part of an integrated    circuit or a chipset within information handling system100. An example of BMC190includes an iDRAC, or the like. BMC190may operate on a separate power plane from other resources in information handling system100. Thus BMC190can communicate with the management system via network interface194while the resources of information handling system100are powered off. Here, information can be sent from the management system to BMC190and the information can be stored in a RAM or NV-RAM associated with the BMC. Information stored in the RAM may be lost after power-down of the power plane for BMC190, while information stored in the NV-RAM may be saved through a power-down/power-up cycle of the power plane for the BMC.

Information handling system100can include additional components and additional busses, not shown for clarity. For example, information handling system100can include multiple processor cores, audio devices, and the like. While a particular arrangement of bus technologies and interconnections is illustrated for the purpose of example, one of skill will appreciate that the techniques disclosed herein are applicable to other system architectures. Information handling system100can include multiple central processing units (CPUs) and redundant bus controllers. One or more components can be integrated together. Information handling system100can include additional buses and bus protocols, for example, I2C and the like. Additional components of information handling system100can include one or more storage devices that can store machine-executable code, one or more communications ports for communicating with external devices, and various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display.

For purposes of this disclosure information handling system100can include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, entertainment, or other purposes. For example, information handling system100can be a personal computer, a laptop computer, a smartphone, a tablet device or other consumer electronic device, a network server, a network storage device, a switch, a router, or another network communication device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. Further, information handling system100can include    processing resources for executing machine-executable code, such as processor102, a programmable logic array (PLA), an embedded device such as a system-on-a-chip (SoC), or other control logic hardware. Information handling system100can also include one or more computer-readable media for storing machine-executable code, such as software or data.

A display manager or similar application typically includes a feature to help users organize their desktop into various pre-defined or custom window layouts for their display devices, such as video display134. However these applications typically do not consider the physical properties of the display, the operating system settings, or the nature of the application window. Generally the display partitions are predefined and applied across all screen resolutions, sizes, and aspect ratios. When the display partition is applied, it is proportionally scaled to fit the display. However, the sizes of the zones in the display partitions may not be optimal or may not even be usable for the user's workflow. For example, different applications often require different optimal window sizes. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a system and method for adaptive display screen partitioning that considers the preferred settings of the application. In particular, the display partitions offered for display may be adapted to the display screen properties, the affected operating system settings, and the nature of the current application.

FIG.2shows a system200for adaptive display screen partitioning. System200includes an information handling system205and a display screen215. Information handling system205includes an input/output device, a display screen manager235, an operating system240, and a storage device245. The components of system200may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. The components shown are not drawn to scale and information handling environment205may include additional or fewer components. In addition, connections between components may be omitted for descriptive clarity.

Display screen215, which is similar to video display134ofFIG.1, includes a display partition220which further includes display zones225aand225b. Display partitions, such as display partition220, offered for display screen215may be adapted to the display screen properties, such as resolution, size, and aspect ratio. Display partition220may be applied    proportionally scaled to fit display screen215. Display partition220may also be adapted to operating system settings such as a current operating system scaling applied to operating system240. The current operating system scaling setting, also referred to as a dots per inch (DPI) scaling factor, may include scaling a size of a portion of the content on the display. The scaling factor may be set as a percentage. A lower DPI setting may make the content appear smaller, while a larger DPI setting may make the content appear larger.

In this example, the display partition is divided into two display zones, also referred to herein simply as zones. The size of each zone in the display partition may be adapted to the required or desired display window size of an application. Although it is shown that the display partition is applied to one display screen, display partition220may be applied across two or more display screens and/or display devices. For example, when there are two display screens, display zone225amay encompass the first display screen while display zone225bmay encompass the second display screen. Further, display screen215may be included in information handling system205, such as an embedded display screen associated with a portable information handling system, such as a laptop, a notebook, a 2-in-1 computer, a mobile device, etc.

Display screen manager235may be configured to define one or more display screen layouts, such as display partition220. Each display screen layout may include one or more zones, such as display zones225aand225b. Each zone may be defined with a specified length and a specified width and position at a pre-specified location, such as shown inFIG.7. In addition, the user may have a user-preferred length and preferred width for a particular zone.

User input210may be provided by a user, via input/output device230which is accepted by operating system240. For example, user input210may select, drag, or move actions made by a user to move or drag an object to a target zone, such as one of display zone225aand display zone225b. The object may be a file, an application, a folder, or the like. When the user moves or drags the object in proximity to the target zone, display screen manager235can interpret such action as hovering over the target zone. As the object hovers over the target region, display screen manager235may resize the target zone automatically to adapt the size of the target zone to the preferred settings and nature of the object. For example, the length    and width of the target zone may be adjusted based on the preferred length and width of the selected object.

As the object is dropped or snapped into the target region, neighboring zone(s) may be repositioned and/or also resized automatically. For example, the length and width of neighboring zones that is to the left, right, top, or bottom of the target zone may also be adjusted equally. If the length and width of the target zone are increased, then to compensate, the length and width of the neighboring zones may be reduced. For example, if the application window was snapped into display zone225a, display screen manager235may resize display zone225abased on the application's preferred window size. Display screen manager235may also resize display zone225bto accommodate the change in the size of display zone225arelative to the screen size of display screen215.

Storage device245may be a persistent data storage device configured to store data associated with display screen manager235and/or user input210. For example, storage device245may store a display screen layout table250and a display screen properties database255. Display screen layout table250may be similar to a table400ofFIG.4. Data screen properties database820may be associated with an application's preferred window size similar to the database of block810ofFIG.8. This data stored in storage device245may be used in adjusting the size of one or more zones of the display partition. Storage device245may include an NV-RAM, a solid state disk, a hard disk drive, a magnetic tape library, an optical disk drive, a magneto-optical disk drive, a compact disk drive, a compact disk array, a disk array controller, and/or any computer-readable medium operable to store data.

A user of information handling system205may provide a user input210. In some cases, user input210may be used to create a custom display screen layout via input/output device230. User input210may also be a move or drag event of an application window and/or to snap the application window to a display zone. The user may also update one or more tables or databases stored in storage device245.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the configuration, hardware, and/or software components of system200depicted inFIG.2may vary. For example, the illustrative components within system200are not intended to be exhaustive, but rather are    representative to highlight components that can be utilized to implement aspects of the present disclosure. For example, other devices and/or components may be used in addition to or in place of the devices/components depicted. The depicted example does not convey or imply any architectural or other limitations with respect to the presently described embodiments and/or the general disclosure. In the discussion of the figures, reference may also be made to components illustrated in other figures for the continuity of the description.

FIG.3shows a flowchart of a method300for adaptive display screen partitioning. Method300may be performed by one or more components of system200ofFIG.2. However, while embodiments of the present disclosure are described in terms of system200ofFIG.2, it should be recognized that other systems may be utilized to perform the described method. One of skill in the art will appreciate that this flowchart explains a typical example, which can be extended to advanced applications or services in practice.

Method300typically starts at block310where the method may establish a database of display properties versus applicable display partitions. For example, the database may be a table, such as table400inFIG.4, which may be used to associate applicable display partitions to a particular set of display properties. The display properties may include the display's native horizontal and vertical resolutions, aspect ratio, the display's screen size, etc. The display properties may be used to determine the applicable display partitions.

At block320, the method may select the applicable display partitions. The applicable display partitions may be selected from a set of display partitions that includes pre-defined and custom display partitions based on a set of criteria, such as shown inFIG.4. The set of criteria may include the display's DPI, position, and size of each zone, the number of zones, user-defined criterion, etc.

At block330, the method may further select display partitions from a set of applicable display partitions. The selection may be based on the user's or application's preferred settings and operating system settings, such as a current operating system scaling setting. For example, the user may have a set of criteria for selecting suitable display partitions, such as shown in table 1 below. In this example, the user preference includes a maximum of eight zones for a display partition with a minimum horizon resolution of 480 pixels and a maximum vertical resolution of    360 pixels for each zone. If the display screen meets the minimum DPI preferred by the user, then the method may look through the database for the applicable display partitions associated with the minimum zone resolution and the maximum number of zones. The applicable display partitions that meet the said criteria may be selected and presented to the user. The user can then choose one or more display partitions from the applicable display partitions presented.

TABLE 1Minimum ZoneMinimum ZoneMinimumHorizontalVerticalMaximumDots per InchResolutionResolutionNo. of Zones120 Pixels4803608per Inch

FIG.4shows table400shows applicable display partition(s) associated with certain display properties. In particular, table400shows applicable display partition(s) for a particular resolution, aspect ratio, and display screen size. The horizontal and vertical resolutions may be in pixels while the display screen size may be in inches or similar units of measure. In this example, table400includes an entry for each set of display properties and applicable display partition(s). For example, for a display screen with a horizontal resolution of 1,024 pixels, a vertical resolution of 768 pixels with an aspect ratio of 4:3, and a display screen size of 12 inches, the applicable display partitions include display partition1. The applicable display partitions may be based on a set of display partitions as shown inFIG.5.

FIG.5shows a set500of display partitions. Set500of display partitions includes pre-defined and user-defined display partitions. Each display partition may have a different layout. The display partitions include at least one zone. One of skill in the art will appreciate that this set shows an example of display partitions. Other display partitions with different layouts may be added to this set. Accordingly, one or more display partitions shown may be removed from this set without affecting the limitations of the present disclosure.

FIG.6shows a method600for selecting a display partition from the applicable display partitions. In particular, the display partitions may be selected from one or more applicable display partitions in table400ofFIG.4. Method600may be performed by one or more components of system200ofFIG.2. However, while embodiments of the present disclosure are described in terms of system200ofFIG.2, it should be recognized that other systems may be    utilized to perform the described method. One of skill in the art will appreciate that this flowchart explains a typical example, which can be extended to advanced applications or services in practice.

Method600typically starts at block610where the method may obtain the display screen properties. For example, the method may use extended display identification data (EDID) read operations performed on the display screen to retrieve its EDID information, such as refresh rate, vendor information, maximum image size, color characteristics, serial number, panel resolution, etc. The EDID information can be stored in the display screen and provided to the information handling system via a display controller when the display screen is coupled to the information handling system for the first time. For the display screen that has been connected to the information handling system before, the display properties may be found in the system's registry. The display properties can also be stored in a non-volatile storage device, such as an NV-RAM, a hard disk, an SSD, or similar. For a multiple display screen setup, if the display partition is applied across the multiple display screens, based on a total native resolution. The total native resolution is the sum of the resolutions of all the participating display screens.

At block620, the method may determine the effective DPI and zone resolution for the display screen. The effective DPI is the actual DPI used for content rendering. The effective DPI may be influenced by a current scaling setting in the operating system. The effective DPI may be calculated using the formula:

Physical⁢DPI=H2+V2/Display⁢screen⁢size⁢Effective⁢DPI=Physical⁢DPI/Operating⁢system⁢current⁢scaling⁢setting

The method may also calculate the effective resolution by calculating the actual resolution. For example, the method may calculate the width and height (x, y) resolution of the display screen as depicted in display partition700ofFIG.7. For example, given a resolution of 1920×1080, the display screen has a width or horizontal resolution of 1,920 pixels and a height or vertical resolution of 1,080 pixels which results in an actual resolution of 2,073,600 pixels. These calculations may be performed each time the current operating system scaling setting is changed.

Effective⁢X⁢resolution=(Zone⁢x⁢%*height)/Operating⁢system⁢current⁢scaling⁢setting⁢Effective⁢Y⁢resolution=(Zone⁢y⁢%*height)/Operating⁢system⁢current⁢scaling⁢setting

At block630, the method determines applicable display partitions. The applicable partitions may be based on the effective DPI, the smallest zone size in the partition, and the number of zones in the partition. The applicable display partitions may be filtered based on the user's preferences. Table 2 shows a first set of applicable display partitions for a particular set of display properties in row number one. Table 2 also shows a second set of display partitions that are selected based on filtering according to the user's preferences, wherein the second set is a subset of the first set of display partitions. Accordingly, instead of presenting the user with the first set of applicable display partitions to choose from, the user may be presented with the second set of display partitions.

TABLE 2ResolutionDisplayRowHorizontalVerticalAspectScreenDisplayNo.ResolutionResolutionRatioSizePartitions12560144016:9271, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8, 9, 10, 11, 12,13, 14, 15, 1622560144016:9271, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,8, 9, 10

FIG.7shows a display partition700with calculations associated with zone resolution and size for each zone, as discussed above. Display partition700includes five zones. The calculations may be based on various display properties. For example, display partition700has a horizontal resolution of 3840 pixels and a vertical resolution of 2160, an aspect ratio of 16:9, and a display screen size of 32 inches. In this example, zone1has a horizontal resolution of 1,920 pixels and a vertical resolution of 1,080 pixels. Zone2is similar in size to zone1. Zone3has a horizontal resolution of 1,280 pixels and a vertical resolution of 1,080 pixels. Zones4and5are similar in size to zone3. The height and width of display partition700may also be shown as a percentage of the display partition. For example, the width of zone1is 50% of the display partition700, as shown from point A to point B. The height of zone1is 50% of the display partition700, as shown from point A to point J.

FIG.8shows a flowchart of a method800for dynamically adapting a display partition to a preferred resolution. Method800may be performed by one or more components of system200ofFIG.2. However, while embodiments of the present disclosure are described in terms of    system200ofFIG.2, it should be recognized that other systems may be utilized to perform the described method. One of skill in the art will appreciate that this flowchart explains a typical example, which can be extended to advanced applications or services in practice.

Method800typically starts at block810where the method may build a database that may be used to determine a relationship between an application at a particular state and its preferred window size, such as shown in table 3 below. The database may be updated automatically when a user manually resizes the application window after snapping the application window to the target zone. The update may be based on the horizontal and vertical resolution that the target zone was manually resized to. In another embodiment, the database can be built dynamically over time by sending the preferred window horizontal and vertical resolutions of the user to a telemetry server whenever the user manually resizes an application window.

TABLE 3ProcessApplicationPreferred WindowPreferred WindowNameStateHorizontal ResolutionVertical ResolutionMplayerPlaying800600WordEditorEditing1500Nil

At block820, the method may query the operating system for the process name and current state of the application. The method may query the application for the preferred application window or canvas size when the application is clicked by the user before moving or dragging the application window to the target zone. If the method successfully queries the application's preferred window size, then the query result may be used by the method to resize the application window at block830. Otherwise, the method may query the database for the application's preferred window size under the current application state.

At block830, the method may resize or adjust the size of the application window and/or the target zone based on the application's preferred horizontal and vertical resolutions when the application window hovers over a target zone of a selected display partition before the user snapping the application window into the target zone. The resizing or adjustment may be based on the calculation below.

Horizontal⁢resolution⁢adjustment=(Preferred⁢horizontal⁢resolution-Current⁢horizontal⁢resolution)*Operating⁢system⁢current⁢scaling⁢setting⁢Vertical⁢resolution⁢adjustment=(Preferred⁢vertical⁢resolution-Current⁢vertical⁢resolution)*Operating⁢system⁢current⁢scaling⁢setting

The target zone may be adjusted towards the border of the display screen upon reaching the edges of the display screen. If there is one zone next to the target zone, such as to the left, right, top, or bottom, then the method may adjust the horizontal and/or vertical resolution of the neighboring zone. If there is more than one neighboring zone, then the method may adjust the horizontal and/or vertical resolutions of the neighboring zones equally. For example, the method may increase or reduce the horizontal and vertical resolutions of the neighboring zones. The user can configure how the method performs the adjustments. For example, the user may set up a rule that the adjustment of the neighboring zones may be disabled if the preferred application window is smaller than the target zone.

At block840, the method may monitor the operating system for application events that may trigger resizing the zone associated with the application and/or its neighboring zones if any. The application event that may trigger the resizing may be referred to herein simply as an application resizing event. For example, the resizing event includes a user minimizing or maximizing the application window. The method proceeds to decision block850, the method may determine if it detects a resizing event. If the method detects an application resizing event, then the “YES” branch is taken, and the method proceeds to block830. If the method does not detect an application resizing event, then the “NO” branch is taken, and the method proceeds to block840. The method may have subscribed to application resizing events that may influence the size of the application window.

FIG.9shows a display partition900configured for adaptive display screen partitioning. In this example, display partition900includes zones1-3, wherein zone2may be a target zone of an application window of a word processing software, wherein zone2may be narrower than the preferred horizontal resolution. Because of the nature of a word processing application, a wider horizontal resolution is beneficial for the user in reading text.

FIG.10shows display partition1000configured for adaptive display screen partitioning. In particular, display partition1000is a representation of display partition900after the target zone was resized based on the preferred horizontal resolution of the application. The neighboring zones on the left and right sides of the target zone may also be resized to accommodate the increase in horizontal resolution of the target zone.

AlthoughFIG.3,FIG.6, andFIG.8show example blocks of method300, method600, and method800in some implementations, method300, method600, and method800may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or differently arranged blocks than those depicted inFIG.3,FIG.6, andFIG.8. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles presented herein may be implemented in any suitably arranged processing system. Additionally, or alternatively, two or more of the blocks of method300, method600, and method800may be performed in parallel. For example, blocks830and840of method800may be performed in parallel.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, the methods described herein may be implemented by software programs executable by a computer system. Further, in an exemplary, non-limited embodiment, implementations can include distributed processing, component/object distributed processing, and parallel processing. Alternatively, virtual computer system processing can be constructed to implement one or more of the methods or functionalities as described herein.

When referred to as a “device,” a “module,” a “unit,” a “controller,” or the like, the embodiments described herein can be configured as hardware. For example, a portion of an information handling system device may be hardware such as, for example, an integrated circuit (such as an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a structured ASIC, or a device embedded in a larger chip), a card (such as a Peripheral Component Interface (PCI) card, a PCI-express card, a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) card, or other such expansion card), or a system (such as a motherboard, a system-on-a-chip (SoC), or a stand-alone device).

The present disclosure contemplates a computer-readable medium that includes instructions or receives and executes instructions responsive to a propagated signal; so that a    device connected to a network can communicate voice, video, or data over the network. Further, the instructions may be transmitted or received over the network via the network interface device.

While the computer-readable medium is shown to be a single medium, the term “computer-readable medium” includes a single medium or multiple media, such as a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers that store one or more sets of instructions. The term “computer-readable medium” shall also include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by a processor or that cause a computer system to perform any one or more of the methods or operations disclosed herein.

In a particular non-limiting, exemplary embodiment, the computer-readable medium can include a solid-state memory such as a memory card or other package that houses one or more non-volatile read-only memories. Further, the computer-readable medium can be a random-access memory or other volatile re-writable memory. Additionally, the computer-readable medium can include a magneto-optical or optical medium, such as a disk or tapes, or another storage device to store information received via carrier wave signals such as a signal communicated over a transmission medium. A digital file attachment to an e-mail or other self-contained information archive or set of archives may be considered a distribution medium that is equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more of a computer-readable medium or a distribution medium and other equivalents and successor media, in which data or instructions may be stored.

Although only a few exemplary embodiments have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure as defined in the following claims. In the claims, means-plus-function clauses are intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures.