Patent ID: 7058734

Claim:
A method of providing functionality in a variable-function device, the method comprising: detecting for an event, wherein the detecting is performed by a computer and wherein the event comprises a notification that can be detected by the computer; in response to the detecting of the event, determining if event-related content, which is related to the event, should be generated via a variable function device; in response to the determining step, if the event-related content should be generated by the variable function device, then generating the event-related content via an output stage of the variable-function device, wherein the event-related content from the output stage of the variable-function device comprises an image, a notification, an audio sound, or another output; and in response to the determining step, if the event-related content is not generated via the variable-function device, then generating the event-related content via an output stage of the computer, wherein the output stage of the computer includes a screen of the computer, and wherein the event-related content from the output stage of the computer comprises an image, a notification, an audio sound, or another output.