Location-based operations for information handling systems

Abstract

A location-aware product includes a location information resource for providing the present location of the location-aware product to within some margin of error, and such present location information is included by the location-aware product in various outputs, including but not limited to, location stamps in files for create, open, and/or modify file operations. In a further aspect, location information may be used in determining the time zone or zones in which one or more operations have occurred, and to provide the basis for updating clocks, or other resources, useful for time stamping of various operations and outputs. In a still further aspect of the present invention, information displays may be sorted by accounting for the differences in times and dates introduced through time stamping of events in different time zones.

1 . A method of updating a programmable clock with time zone information, comprising: 
 reading location information from a location information resource;    determining whether the location information is within a first time zone;    generating updated time information based, at least in part, on the change in time zone if the determining whether the location information is within a first time zone is negative; and    updating the programmable clock with the updated time information.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first time zone corresponds with time information associated with the programmable clock.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the updated time information comprises updated time zone information and corresponding numeric time information.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising: updating the programmable clock subsequent to a user action.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the user action is pushing a button.  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising: automatically updating the programmable clock.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein a user selects attributes associated with automatically updating the programmable clock.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the programmable clock displays the updated time information and a reference time information, wherein the reference time information corresponds with a reference time zone.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the reference time zone is selectable by a user.  
     
     
         10 . A method of updating a programmable clock with time zone information, comprising: 
 reading location information from a location information resource;    determining whether the location information is within a first time zone;    determining whether the distance between the location information and a time zone boundary is greater than a pre-determined amount if the determining whether the location information is within a first time zone is negative;    generating updated time information based, at least in part, on the change in time zone if the determining whether the distance between the location information and a time zone boundary is greater than a pre-determined amount is affirmative; and    updating the programmable clock with the updated time information.    
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the pre-determined amount is based, at least in part, on a margin of error associated with the location information resource.  
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the pre-determined amount is based, at least in part, on a distance needed for a hysteresis.  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the pre-determined amount is selectable by a user.