Patent Application
20080012867
In this specification, the term “in response to” is defined as “replying to” or “reacting to.” For example, “in response to a signal” means “replying to a signal” or “reacting to a signal” without necessity of direct signal reception.
When a disk is inserted into the first subsystem 301, the first subsystem 301 automatically runs so that the disk reader 313 can retrieve original operation information thereof. The original operation information comprises, for example, the titles of the items in the disk, formats of the disk, and number of tracks in the disk. The original operation information is stored in the memory 305. The user might then play the second subsystem 303 to watch TV. In such a case, the processor 307 runs the second subsystem 303. Once the user desires the operation information of the first subsystem 301, the user may input a control signal via a remote controller (not shown) to control the system 3. After the interface 309 receives the control signal, the display device 311 represents the original operation information in response to the control signal while the second subsystem 303 is running.
The system 3 further comprises an OSD processor 321 for displaying an OSD. When the display device 311 is required to represent the original operation information, the processor 307 controls the OSD processor 321 to display the original operation information in the OSD. The user is, hence, able to obtain the operation information of the first subsystem 301 visually without actually re-running the first subsystem 301. In the first embodiment, the operation information may be arranged as a table as
Rather than using an OSD, the operation information may be displayed directly in the foreground while the TV program 41 is displayed in the background.
If there is no disk in the first subsystem 301 when the user inputs the control signal, the display device 311 would display “no disk.”
If the user plays one of the items in the disk at the outset and pauses or stops the playing before the end of the item, an update of the operation information is generated because a status of the first subsystem 301 has been changed. The update comprises, for example, the title of the paused or stopped item and the paused or stopped timing. This update will overwrite the original operation information. When the user inputs the control signal later, the update is displayed instead of the original operation information.
Rather than visual display, the operation information may also be performed auditively. For example, the system 3 plays a voice sound to inform the user of the operation information while the second subsystem 303 is running.
A second embodiment of the present invention is a method for representing operation information of a first subsystem while a second subsystem is running. The method is adapted for a system, such as the aforementioned system 3.
In addition to the steps shown in
Generally speaking, the start-up of a multimedia subsystem or an optical storage subsystem takes time. By storing the operation information of the first subsystem while the first subsystem is running, the present invention is capable of displaying the operation information while the second subsystem is running without re-running the first subsystem. The user may, hence, obtain the operation information of the first subsystem promptly. In addition, power is saved.
The above disclosure is related to the detailed technical contents and inventive features thereof. People skilled in this field may proceed with a variety of modifications and replacements based on the disclosures and suggestions of the invention as described without departing from the characteristics thereof. Nevertheless, although such modifications and replacements are not fully disclosed in the above descriptions, they have substantially been covered in the following claims as appended.
