Microsoft Corporation
Visual indicators for providing user awareness of independent activity of participants of a communication session

Abstract:

The present disclosure provides systems that display visual indicators that provide user awareness of independent activity of participants in a communication session. The visual indicators are displayed within a Together Mode user interface that gives participants of a communication session a feeling that they are in the same room. The visual indicators further the technical benefits of the Together Mode user interface by providing additional context to particular non-verbal social cues. A system can generate a visual indicator that notifies meeting participants that a particular user is engaged with a computing device. The visual indicator can be generated in response to detecting that the user is interacting with an input device, such as a keyboard or touchscreen. The visual indicator mitigates confusion of non-verbal social cues, e.g., when a person appears to be looking at another participant of a meeting but is actually looking at, and interacting with, a computer.