Patent ID: 7659885

Claim:
A computing system adapted for use with a plurality of different keyboard overlays, the computing system comprising: a touch-sensitive display screen responsive to contact by a display actuator on a key bottom surface of said plurality of different keyboard overlays, the plurality of different keyboard overlays comprising removable keyboard overlays; a connection mechanism for removably connecting a keyboard overlay to the touch-sensitive display; an alignment mechanism for aligning the keyboard overlay with the touch-sensitive display screen; a sensor for: detecting a presence of a removable keyboard overlay aligned with a touch-sensitive display screen of a computing system, wherein the removable keyboard overlay is aligned when a rigid frame surrounding the periphery of the removable keyboard overlay slides fully into a slot on the computing system detecting a type of the removable keyboard overlay based at least in part on information relating to the removable keyboard overlay, the information comprising: size of the removable keyboard overlay; transparency of the removable keyboard overlay; and the arrangement of the keys on the removable keyboard overlay; and a utility program executable from a computer storage media for communicating with the sensor and for alerting applications to the presence of the keyboard overlay, wherein the utility program is configured to: communicate according to the type of the keyboard overlay detected; rearrange information displayed on the touch-sensitive screen in response to the detected type of the removable keyboard overlay; run a specific application on the computing system appropriate to the detected type of the removable keyboard overlay; tell the application about the presence and detected type of the removable keyboard overlay; detect a touch on the touch-sensitive display screen in an area covered by the removable keyboard overlay; and inform the application of the position of the detected touch.