Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Distributed data processing – Client/server
Reexamination Certificate
1998-10-01
2001-11-20
Maung, Zarni (Department: 2154)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Distributed data processing
Client/server
C709S217000, C709S246000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06321251
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gateway for dynamically providing Web Site status information and, more specifically, to a gateway which allows a user to dynamically gather information on which pages within a Web Site have been updated.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The methods by which companies conduct business with their customers are undergoing fundamental changes, due in large part to World Wide Web technology. In addition, the same technology that makes a company accessible to the world, may be used on internal company networks for conducting operational and administrative tasks.
One of the technologies underlying the World Wide Web is the Web Browser. Web Browsers have become a de facto user interface standard because of their ability to interpret and display information having standard formats (e.g., HyperText Markup Language (HTML), standard text, GIF, etc.). Client software programs, popularly referred to as Web Browsers (e.g., Mosaic, Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, etc.), execute on client systems and issue requests to server systems. The server systems typically execute HyperText Transport Protocol (HTTP) server programs which process requests from the Web Browsers and deliver data to them. The system that executes an HTTP server program and returns data to the Web Browser will hereinafter be referred to as a Web Server System. An HTTP server program itself will be referred to as a Web Server.
A Web Server System has access to on-line documents that contain data written in HyperText Markup Language (HTML). The HTML documents contain display parameters, capable of interpretation by a Web Browser, and references to other HTML documents and Web Servers (source: World Wide Web: Beneath the Surf, from UCL Press, by Mark Handley and Jon Crowcroft, on-line at http://www.cs.ucl.ac.uk/staff/jon/book/book.html).
Typically, information regarding a given Web Site is “hard coded” into an associated Web Page written in HyperText Markup Language (HTML). For example, most Web Sites will have links to other Web Sites. If additional links are to be added, as will occur when new information is added to a Web Site, the HTML code for the Web Site must be modified to provide access to these links. Thus, it is a formidable and time consuming task to keep these HTML links both functional and current.
Furthermore, a list of “recent updates to this Web Site” is typically included as part of the Web Site, and is usually maintained by a Web Site administrator. If a Web Site has frequent changes (e.g., when information is added to a Web Site), this updating process can be a burden, and users may not always have information regarding the latest state of the Web Site.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes many of the disadvantages associated with the prior art by providing a method and apparatus for dynamically providing Web Site status information to a user via a Web Browser. More specifically, the present invention allows a user to gather information on which pages within a Web Site have been updated.
To accomplish this automated information gathering task, the present invention utilizes a special purpose search gateway to interconnect the user's Web Browser to a Web Server containing the Web Site of interest. This special purpose gateway contains a program which traverses a portion of the Web-accessible file structure of a Web Site on a Web Server, starting at the root node specified by the Web Site administrator when configuring the program. This program is invoked by choosing an action via a Web Browser (e.g., clicking on a link or a button) which invokes a call to a program running on a particular server.
In a preferred embodiment, this program searches for files which have been modified within a predetermined relative period of time (e.g., within the last
10
days), then builds a table of links to these files. In another embodiment, the program searches for files that have been modified after a predetermined absolute date (e.g., all files updated since Jul. 1, 1998), and builds a table of links to the resultant files. The table is returned to the user so that the user may investigate changes made recently to the Web Sites. Thus, the present invention provides a mechanism to allow users to view recently-updated areas within a Web Site without requiring any action on the part of the Web Site administrator.
In other embodiments, the present invention returns links to files based on information related to aspects of a file other than the update status, such as file extension type and file directories. In a preferred embodiment, the Web Site administrator is allowed to specify the root node which is traversed. In other embodiments, the Web Site administrator (or any other user of the present invention) could also be allowed to specify which types of files to include in the search by specifying file extensions, file sizes, and file directories. Users of the present invention also have the capability to customize the table of results generated by the search.
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Douglis, F., et al., WebGUIDE: Quering and Navigating Changes in Web Repositories, Comp. Networks & ISDN Systems, vol. 28, No. 11, pp. 1335-1344, May 1996.*
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Deisinger Mark V.
Gambrel Robert J.
Caldwell Andrew
Johnson Charles A.
Maung Zarni
Nawrocki, Rooney & Sivertson P.A.
Starr Mark T.
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