Frequent sites based on browsing patterns

• US 10,375,186 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2016
• Issued: 08/06/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Kannan, Vishwac Sena, Surti, Tanvi Saumil
• Primary Examiner(s): Asres, Hermon
• Application Number:
  US15/159,562
• Publication Number:
  US 20160269498A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,174 Days
• Field of Search: 709224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

Various embodiments provide a frequent sites module which is designed to generate frequent sites for a user that include websites that are relevant to the user based on browsing patterns of the user. In one or more embodiments, the frequent sites are generated from user-engagement data that indicates engagement by the user with websites identified in the user'"'"'s browsing history. A web platform, e.g., a web browser, can display the frequent sites for the user in a frequent sites user interface container to enable the user to efficiently navigate to the websites that are relevant to the user by selection of websites from the frequent sites user interface container. Various embodiments describe other aspects of frequent sites based on browsing patterns, including multiple-device frequent sites, device-specific frequent sites, domain-specific frequent sites, URL-specific frequent sites, decaying of frequent sites, recent frequent sites, and contextual frequent sites.

Claims

1. A computing device, comprising:

one or more processors; and

a memory comprising instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by the one or more processors, implements a web platform that performs operations comprising;

maintaining, at the computing device, a local browsing history of the computing device, wherein the local browsing history comprises user engagement data of a user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the computing device, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of;

clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

receiving, over a network from a frequent sites module, multiple-device frequent sites associated with the user, the multiple-device frequent sites generated for the user based on the user'"'"'s aggregated browsing history via the computing device and at least one additional computing device, wherein the user'"'"'s aggregated browsing history comprises user engagement data of the user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the computing device and at least one additional computing device, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of;

clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

modifying the multiple-device frequent sites using the local browsing history of the computing device to generate device-specific frequent sites corresponding to the user, the modifying comprising altering the multiple-device frequent sites such that one or more websites navigated to on the computing device and included in the local browsing history are listed ahead of websites in the multiple-device frequent sites that have not been navigated to on the computing device, and wherein modifying the multiple-device frequent sites to generate the device-specific frequent sites further comprises applying a weight to websites listed in the multiple-device frequent sites which have been navigated to on the computing device to cause the websites that have been navigated to on the computing device to be listed higher in the device-specific frequent sites than websites that have not been navigated to on the computing device;

causing the device-specific frequent sites to be rendered in a frequent sites user interface container of the web platform by displaying selectable representations of each website in the device-specific frequent sites, each of the selectable representations selectable to initiate navigation to the respective website via the web platform; and

responsive to user input to select one of the selectable representations of the device-specific frequent sites;

causing navigation to a respective website associated with the selected representation via the web platform; and

updating the multiple-device frequent sites by communicating, over the network to the frequent sites module, an indication of the navigation to the respective website associated with the selected representation.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the multiple-device frequent sites are generated for the user based on at least a first browsing history associated with the computing device and at least a second browsing history associated with the at least one additional computing device, and wherein the local browsing history of the computing device corresponds to the first browsing history associated with the computing device but does not include the second browsing history.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the device-specific frequent sites include at least one website that is not included in the multiple-device frequent sites.

10. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the communicating the indication causes the frequent sites module to update the multiple-device frequent sites by adjusting engagement data for the respective website by increasing a navigation count of the respective website.

11. The computing device of claim 1, wherein responsive to the user input to select one of the selectable representations of the device-specific frequent sites, the operations further comprise increasing a navigation count for the respective website in the device-specific frequent sites.

12. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the modifying the multiple-device frequent sites to generate the device-specific frequent sites further comprises listing, in the multiple-device frequent sites, websites with a local navigation count above a certain threshold ahead of websites that have not been navigated to using the computing device.

13. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the modifying causes an order of websites listed in the device-specific frequent sites of the computing device to be different than a respective order of websites listed in additional device-specific frequent sites of the additional computing device.

4. A computer-implemented method comprising:

maintaining, at a computing device, a local browsing history of the computing device, wherein the local browsing history comprises user engagement data of a user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the computing device, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of;

clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

receiving, at the computing device over a network from a frequent sites module, multiple-device frequent sites associated with the user, the multiple-device frequent sites generated for the user based on the user'"'"'s aggregated browsing history via the computing device and at least one additional computing device, wherein the user'"'"'s aggregated browsing history comprises user engagement data of the user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the computing device and the at least one additional computing device, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

modifying the multiple-device frequent sites using the local browsing history of the computing device to generate device-specific frequent sites corresponding to the user, the modifying comprising applying a weight to websites listed in the multiple-device frequent sites which have been navigated to on the computing device to cause the websites that have been navigated to on the computing device to be listed higher in the device-specific frequent sites than websites that have not been navigated to on the computing device but have been navigated to on at least one of the additional computing devices;

causing the device-specific frequent sites to be rendered in a frequent sites user interface container of a web platform by displaying selectable representations of websites in the device-specific frequent sites, each of the selectable representations selectable to initiate navigation to the respective website via the web platform; and

responsive to user input to select one of the selectable representations of the device-specific frequent sites, causing navigation to a respective website associated with the selected representation via the web platform.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the multiple-device frequent sites are generated for the user based on at least a first browsing history associated with the computing device and at least a second browsing history associated with the at least one additional computing device, and wherein the local browsing history of the computing device corresponds to the first browsing history associated with the computing device but does not include the second browsing history.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the device-specific frequent sites include at least one website that is not included in the multiple-device frequent sites.

7. A computer-readable storage device comprising instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by a processor of a computing device, perform operations comprising:

maintaining, at the computing device, a local browsing history of the computing device, wherein the local browsing history comprises user engagement data of a user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the computing device, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of;

clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

receiving, over a network, multiple-device frequent sites associated with the user, the multiple-device frequent sites generated for the user based on the user'"'"'s browsing history via multiple computing devices, wherein the user'"'"'s browsing history via multiple computing devices comprises user engagement data of the user'"'"'s interactions with websites browsed to on the multiple computing devices, the user'"'"'s interactions comprising one or more of;

clicking on links on the websites, typing data into data entry fields on the websites, scrolling the websites, watching videos on the websites, or listening to audio on the websites;

modifying the multiple-device frequent sites using the local browsing history of the computing device to generate device-specific frequent sites corresponding to the user by listing, in the multiple-device frequent sites, websites with a local navigation count above a certain threshold ahead of websites that have not been navigated to using the computing device, the local navigation count based on user navigation to a respective website on the computing device but not to the respective website on at least one of the other multiple computing devices;

causing the device-specific frequent sites to be rendered in a frequent sites user interface container of a web platform by displaying selectable representations of each website in the device-specific frequent sites, each of the selectable representations selectable to initiate navigation to the respective website via the web platform; and

responsive to user input to select one of the selectable representations of the device-specific frequent sites, causing navigation to a respective website associated with the selected representation via the web platform.

8. The computer-readable storage device of claim 7, wherein the multiple-device frequent sites are generated for the user based on at least a first browsing history associated with the computing device and at least a second browsing history associated with the at least one additional computing device, and wherein the local browsing history of the computing device corresponds to the first browsing history associated with the computing device but does not include the second browsing history.

9. The computer-readable storage device of claim 7, wherein the device-specific frequent sites include at least one website that is not included in the multiple-device frequent sites.