Patent ID: 7634540

Claim:
A method for enabling, in a teleconferencing system, partial layout synchronization between a user interface layout of a first conference client and a user interface layout of a second conference client, the method comprising: entering a presenter mode in a conference client application running on the first conference client; receiving a layout modification from a local user of the conference client application, the layout modification altering a selection or arrangement of conference components in a user interface; identifying a primary conference component prior to the layout modification and a primary conference component after the layout modification, and determining that the layout modification is a significant layout modification when the primary conference component prior to the layout modification is different from the primary conference component after the layout modification, and determining that the layout modification is an insignificant layout modification when the primary conference component prior to the layout modification is the same as the primary conference component after the layout modification wherein the layout modification comprises at least one of an addition of a conference component to the user interface, a removal of a conference component from the user interface, a swap of two conference components so that each of the two conference components take a size and position of another of the two conference components in the user interface, or a relocating or resizing of one or more conference components in the user interface; and transmitting a command for receipt by a conference server only when the layout modification is a significant layout modification, the command containing a representation of the layout modification usable by the second conference client in the non-presenter mode to implement the layout modification in a user interface provided by the second conference client.