Embedding thumbnail information into video streams

Abstract

Methods and systems may provide for embedding thumbnail information into a video file such as a clip, stream, recording, and so forth. The thumbnail information may include, for example, a representative image of the video content in the file, an index to a key frame in the video content, or any combination thereof. If the thumbnail information includes the representative image, the representative image may be embedded at a predetermined location in the file. If the thumbnail information includes the index to a key frame, the index may be embedded in a header of the file.

1 - 28 . (canceled) 
     
     
         29 . A method comprising:
 identifying a file containing video content;   identifying thumbnail information for the video content, wherein the thumbnail information includes one or more of a representative image and an index to a key frame in the video content; and   embedding the thumbnail information into the file containing the video content, wherein if the thumbnail information includes the representative image, the representative image is embedded at a predetermined location in the file, and wherein if the thumbnail information includes the index to a key frame, the index is embedded into a header of the file.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , further including receiving a designation of the representative image via a user interface. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein a resolution of the representative image is different from a resolution of the video content. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 29 , further including:
 receiving a designation of the key frame via a user interface; and   generating the index based on the designation of the key frame.   
     
     
         33 . A computer readable storage medium comprising a set of instructions which, if executed by a processor, cause a computer to:
 identify a file containing video content;   identify thumbnail information for the video content; and   embed the thumbnail information into the file containing the video content.   
     
     
         34 . The medium of  claim 33 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include a representative image. 
     
     
         35 . The medium of  claim 34 , wherein the representative image is to be embedded at a predetermined location in the file. 
     
     
         36 . The medium of  claim 34 , wherein the instructions, if executed, cause a computer to receive a designation of the representative image via a user interface. 
     
     
         37 . The medium of  claim 34 , wherein a resolution of the representative image is to be different from a resolution of the video content. 
     
     
         38 . The medium of  claim 33 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include an index to a key frame in the video content. 
     
     
         39 . The medium of  claim 38 , wherein the index is to be embedded into a header of the file. 
     
     
         40 . The medium of  claim 38 , wherein the instructions, if executed, cause a computer to:
 receive a designation of the key frame via a user interface; and   generate the index based on the designation of the key frame.   
     
     
         41 . A system comprising:
 a battery to provide power to the system;   an input module to receive a browse request associated with a file containing video content;   a thumbnail module to identify thumbnail information in the file; and   an output module to display a thumbnail image based on the thumbnail information.   
     
     
         42 . The system of  claim 41 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include a representative image. 
     
     
         43 . The system of  claim 42 , wherein the thumbnail module is to retrieve the representative image from a predetermined location in the file to obtain the thumbnail image. 
     
     
         44 . The system of  claim 42 , wherein a resolution of the representative image is to be different from a resolution of the video content. 
     
     
         45 . The system of  claim 41 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include an index to a key frame in the video content. 
     
     
         46 . The system of  claim 45 , wherein the thumbnail module is to retrieve the index from a header of the file. 
     
     
         47 . The system of  claim 45 , wherein the thumbnail module includes a decoder to decode the key frame to obtain the thumbnail image. 
     
     
         48 . The system of  claim 41 , wherein the input module is to receive the browse request via a user interface. 
     
     
         49 . A computer readable storage medium comprising a set of instructions which, if executed by a processor, cause a computer to:
 receive a browse request associated with a file containing video content;   identify thumbnail information in the file; and   display a thumbnail image based on the thumbnail information.   
     
     
         50 . The medium of  claim 49 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include a representative image. 
     
     
         51 . The medium of  claim 50 , wherein the instructions, if executed, cause a computer to retrieve the representative image from a predetermined location in the file to obtain the thumbnail image. 
     
     
         52 . The medium of  claim 50 , wherein a resolution of the representative image is to be different from a resolution of the video content. 
     
     
         53 . The medium of  claim 49 , wherein the thumbnail information is to include an index to a key frame in the video content. 
     
     
         54 . The medium of  claim 53 , wherein the instructions, if executed, cause a computer to retrieve the index from a header of the file. 
     
     
         55 . The medium of  claim 53 , wherein the instructions, if executed, cause a computer to decode the key frame to obtain the thumbnail image. 
     
     
         56 . The medium of  claim 49 , wherein the browse request is to be received via a user interface.