System and method for delivering an open profile personalization system through social media based on profile data structures that contain interest nodes or channels

• US 10,198,776 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2012
• Issued: 02/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Graham Holdings Company
• Original Assignee: Graham Holdings Company
• Inventors: Roiniotis, Spiro, Ravindran, Vijay, Neumann, Brian, Burke, Thomas, Covey-Brandt, Charles, Thomas, Brandon
• Primary Examiner(s): Paula, Cesar B
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Luu-Phuong T
• Application Number:
  US13/624,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20140089777A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,328 Days
• Field of Search: 715234
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/252 between a Database Management System and a front-end application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/54 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/635 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/637 Administration of user profiles, e.g. generation, initialization, adaptation or distribution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/638 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9537 Spatial or temporal dependent retrieval, e.g. spatiotemporal queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/38 for implementing user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4451 User profiles; Roaming
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

A data processing system and method delivers an open profile personalization system based on profile data structures that contain one or more interest nodes or channels. The channels can be created or subscribed to by the user, provided by social media friends of the user, and/or suggested by editors of the system. The interest nodes include respective sets of targets and qualifiers, where the targets and qualifiers comprise types of attributes to be used in the filtering of information files for delivery as a result set for the interest nodes. Targets and qualifiers are applied to the types of attributes and available information files to produce a filtered set. Web pages showing personalized results include tools based on content analysis to assist the user in creation and editing of the open profile.

Claims

1. A non-transitory data processing system that interfaces with a social media network service via a social media network interface, comprising:

storage to store information files and associated metadata, the metadata indicating information about the associated information files and including typed-attributes usable in processing the information files;

a database, accessed through said social media network interface, including a plurality of individually addressable personalized user records, each one of said individually addressable personalized user records including respective hierarchically organized profile data structures, the profile data structures including therewithin a plurality of hierarchically organized named interest nodes each of which constitutes a user-tunable channel, each named interest node data structure being logically connected with at least one target data structure which includes one or more target attribute values and at least one qualifier data structure which includes one or more qualifier attribute values, wherein the at least one target data structure is logically connected with at least one typed-attribute which corresponds to the at least one qualifier data structure, wherein each said one or more target attribute values represents a value to be matched in a stored information file or associated metadata, and wherein each said qualifier attribute value is configured to rank, filter, compose and/or deliver information files that are selected based on a corresponding one of said target attribute values;

logic executable to, in response to a request from a user for a page view or a change made by the user to an interest node in said plurality of individually addressable personalized user records, dynamically produce a filtered set of information files by (1) selecting one of said individually addressable personalized user records including a hierarchy of interest nodes associated with the user, and (2) processing the information files and associated metadata in the storage by matching said selected typed attributes in the metadata of the stored information files with in the hierarchy of interest nodes of the selected personalized user record, a respective target data structure from each of (a) an expressly selected interest node by the user representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel, (b) an interest node selected as in (a) by a user friend of the user in said social media service and shared with the user as a shared user-tunable channel, and (c) an interest node selected by a human editor of the data processing system and provided to the user, and (3) further processing the matched information files and associated metadata by filtering the matched information files based on a respective qualifier data structure from each of (a), (b) and (c), wherein (a), (b) and (c) are interest nodes in the hierarchically organized named interest nodes included in the selected individually addressable personalized user record;

logic executable to compose and send executable documents via said social media interface according to a communication protocol to a user terminal for rendition of a graphical user interface (GUI) at a user terminal, wherein the executable documents comprise data specifying a representation of the filtered set of information files including information files from (a), (b) and (c), arranged according to a relevancy determined according to at least one parameter associated with each of (a), (b) and (c) and a representation of user selectable mark-up identifying typed-attributes represented by said metadata associated with the filtered set of information files and wherein the GUI includes a front page format viewable to the user that reflects the filtered set of information files; and

logic to receive messages via said social media network interface according to a communication protocol indicating selection of particular mark-up in the graphical interface at the user terminal, and executable to modify the one or more selected interest nodes representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel in response to said messages to add a target corresponding to the typed-attribute identified by the particular mark-up,

wherein the system identifies the source of the interest nodes including at least one each of the three sources (a), (b), and (c) detailed above, and wherein the identified source of each of the interest nodes is displayed on the front page format of the GUI,

wherein a particular interest node shared among a plurality of user friends of said social media service allows access for editing or updating of the interest node to any of said plurality of user friends who have accepted an invitation to share the particular interest node, and

wherein the system is configured to share interest nodes with other users by activating a share command associated with an interest node to be shared.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files, and topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files, topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files, source type attributes identifying sources of the associated information files, and phrase type attributes identifying key words or phrases used in the associated information files.

6. The system of claim 1, including logic executable to receive information files and associated metadata from sources of information files via a data network interface, and store the received information files and associated metadata in said storage.

7. The system of claim 1, including logic executable to process information files stored in said storage to produce metadata identifying targets reflecting information about the associated information files.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one qualifier is a typed-attribute usable by logic to rank information files, and the system including said logic executable to rank information files using said at least one qualifier, and to select information files for the filtered set using said rank.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the profile data structure includes user specified qualifiers, and said logic executable to rank information files applies said user specified qualifiers.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the executable documents include data structures specifying user selectable mark-up enabling the user to produce messages to the data processing system to add or modify qualifiers in the profile data structure.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the executable documents include data structures specifying user selectable mark-up for generating an indication of interest in specific information files represented on the graphical interface, and executable elements to produce a menu in response to said indication enabling the user to produce messages to the data processing system to add or modify qualifiers in the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel includes delivery qualifiers, said delivery qualifiers being typed-attributes usable by logic executable to process information files using said delivery qualifiers to produce said filtered set of information files, said delivery qualifiers including time and location factors in the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the interest nodes in the profile data structure includes data structures arranged to contain sets of targets, and said executable document includes data structures specifying user selectable mark-up for generating an indication that the user intends to create an interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel, and further including logic executable to create a new interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel in a profile data structure associated with the user in response to said indication.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface includes at least one display showing the selected named interest node and the at least one typed-attribute logically connected therewith.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the graphical user interface includes at least one display having an input region for inputting search terms to modify the filtered set of information files.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the front page format of the GUI identifies information content accessed by the user and the one or more other users of the social media service.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein a human editor who shares a particular interest node among a plurality of users of said social media service retains control of the selected interest node and actively curates the flow of information.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the GUI displays the user'"'"'s social media friends and the time of their most recent activity.

19. The data processing system according to claim 1, wherein the logic executable to produce a filtered set of information files comprises calculating a relevancy score for respective ones of the information files based upon parameters including at least one parameter from the said social media service, and selecting the filtered set of information files based upon the calculated relevancy scores.

20. A computer implemented method for processing information files of a data processing system characterized by containing or pertaining to targets of analysis, said method comprising:

using at least one processor with accessible input/output and at least one data store to perform the following;

storing information files and associated metadata in computer readable storage, the metadata including targets indicating information about the associated information files and including typed-attributes usable by logic to process the information files;

storing, via a social network interface to a social network service, a database of individually addressable personalized user records, each of said individually addressable personalized user records including a plurality of hierarchically organized profile data structures, the profile data structures including therewith in a plurality of hierarchically organized named interest nodes each of which constitutes a user-tunable channel, each named interest node data structure being logically connected with at least one target data structure which includes one or more target attribute values and at least one qualifier data structure which includes one or more qualifier attribute values, wherein the at least one target data structure is logically connected with at least one typed-attribute which corresponds to the at least one qualifier data structure, wherein each said one or more target attribute values represents a value to be matched in a stored information file or associated metadata, and wherein each said qualifier attribute value is configured to rank, filter, compose and/or deliver information files that are selected based on a corresponding one of said target attribute values;

upon modifying an interest node in said plurality of individually addressable personalized user records or receiving a request for a page view, dynamically filtering the information files and metadata using said at least one target to produce a filtered set of information files by (1) selecting one of said individually addressable personalized user records including a hierarchy of interest nodes associated with the user, and (2) processing the information files and the metadata in the storage by matching said selected typed attributes in the metadata of the stored information files with, in the hierarchy of interest nodes of the selected personalized user record, a respective target data structure from each of (a) at least one interest node selected by the user, (b) an interest node selected as in (a) by a user friend of the user in said social media service and shared with the user as a shared interest node, and (c) at least one interest node selected by human editors of the data processing system provided to the user, representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel to produce a filtered set of information files, by executing a procedure on the data processing system in communication with the storage and the database, and (3) further processing the matched information files and associated metadata by filtering the matched information files based on a respective qualifier data structure from each of (a), (b) and (c), wherein (a), (b) and (c) are interest nodes in the hierarchically organized named interest nodes included in the selected individually addressable personalized user record;

composing, using the data processing system, a first executable document for rendition of a graphical user interface (GUI), including a representation of the filtered set of information files including information files from (a), (b) and (c), arranged according to a relevancy determined according to (a), (b) and (c) with user selectable mark-up identifying typed-attributes represented in the filtered set of information files and a representation of the profile data structure wherein the GUI includes a front page format viewable to the user that reflects the filtered set of information files;

sending said first executable document via the social network interface from the data processing system to a user terminal;

modifying, using the data processing system, the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel in the profile data structure in response to an indication of a selected mark-up by adding the identified target;

composing, using the data processing system, a second executable document for rendition of a graphical user interface using said modified interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel; and

sending said second executable document across the data network from the data processing system to the user terminal,

wherein the system identifies the source of the interest nodes including at least one each from the three sources (a), (b), and (c) detailed above, and wherein the identified source of each of the interest nodes is displayed on the front page format of the GUI,

wherein a particular interest node shared among a plurality of user friends of said social media service allows access for editing or updating of the interest node to any of said plurality of user friends who have accepted an invitation to share the particular interest node,

wherein the user shares interest nodes the other users by activating a share command associated with an interest node to be shared.

21. The method of claim 20, including analyzing the information files to produce at least some of the associated metadata.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein said second executable document includes a representation of a second filtered set of information files with user selectable mark-up identifying typed-attributes represented in the second filtered set of information files, and a representation of the modified interest node.

23. The method of claim 20, wherein said first executable document includes a first pane displaying the representation of the selected interest node, a second pane displaying the representation of the filtered set of information files, and a third pane including a list of mark-up identifying typed-attributes represented in the filtered of information files.

24. The method of claim 20, wherein said first executable document includes a status bar indicating the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel, and including changing the filtered set of information files in response to said indication of the selected mark-up, and wherein said second executable document includes a representation of the changed filtered set of information files and an indication in the status bar of a target corresponding to the typed-attribute identified by the selected mark-up.

25. The method of claim 20, wherein said user selectable mark-up include a first mark-up marking a particular typed-attribute and selectable to cause execution of a program to change the filtered set of information files in response to the particular typed-attribute, and a second annotation marking said particular typed-attribute selectable to cause execution of a program to update the selected interest node representing a respectively corresponding user-tunable channel with the target corresponding to the particular typed-attribute.

26. The method of claim 20, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files.

27. The method of claim 20, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files.

28. The method of claim 20, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files, and topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files.

29. The method of claim 20, wherein said targets comprise typed-attributes including entity type attributes identifying entities named in the associated information files, topic type attributes identifying topics from a taxonomy addressed in the associated information files, source type attributes identifying sources of the associated information files, and phrase type attributes identifying key words or phrases used in the associated information files.

30. The method of claim 20, wherein the graphical user interface includes at least one display showing the selected named interest node and the at least one typed-attribute logically connected therewith.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the graphical user interface includes at least one display having an input region for inputting search terms to modify the filtered set of information files.

32. The method of claim 20, wherein the front page format of the GUI identifies information content accessed by the user and the at least one other user of the social media service.

33. The method of claim 20, wherein a human editor who shares a particular interest node among a plurality of users of said social media service retains control of the selected interest node and actively curates the flow of information.

34. The system of claim 20, wherein the GUI displays the user'"'"'s social media friends and the time of their most recent activity.