Patent ID: 8004617

Claim:
A controller for rapidly instituting an active mode of a digital-television enabled system, the system including a first, volatile memory configured to load and store software instructions, the controller comprising: an input configured to receive first digital audio information and first digital video information; a first output configured to be coupled to a display and to convey second audio information and second video information toward the display regarding the first audio information and the first video information; at least one second output configured to be coupled to the first memory and to convey commands to, and receive information from, the first memory; and a processor within the controller configured to be in communication with the first memory and a second memory and configured to perform functions in accordance with software instructions stored in the first memory and the second memory, the processor being further configured to cause the first memory to load software instructions for provision to the processor such that first instructions for processing at least one of the first audio information and the first video information are loaded and stored by the first memory with a higher priority than second instructions for performing other functionality; and wherein the processor is further configured to cause the first memory to load the software instructions for provision to the processor such that the first instructions are loaded and stored by the first memory in parallel with the second instructions being loaded and stored but before completion of loading and storing of the second instructions, the second instructions are loaded and stored only if loading and storing of the first instructions is not inhibited by the loading and storing of the second instructions.