Electronic Information Caching

• US 20060155823A1
• Filed: 03/06/2006
• Published: 07/13/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yahoo Assets LLC
• Original Assignee: America Online Inc. (Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sullivan, Brian, Tran, Vinh, Morgan, Harry G., Howard, Ronald
• Granted Patent: US 8,751,599 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/216
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0868 Data transfer between cache memory and other subsystems, e.g. storage devices or host systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/762 triggered by the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5683 Storage of data provided by user terminals, i.e. reverse caching

Abstract

Electronic information is made more readily available to one or more access requesters based on an anticipated demand for the electronic information using a process, system or computer software. For instance, electronic information stored on a first storage medium is identified for transport (e.g., in response to a request of at least one of the access requesters), and the electronic information is transported accordingly. Afterwards, a determination is made to store the electronic information on a second storage medium that is more accessible to the access requesters than the first storage medium. The determination is based on an anticipated demand of the access requestors for the electronic information. The anticipated demand is determined based at least on information that is not particular to any single access requestor. The electronic information then is stored on the second storage medium and the access requesters are provided access to the electronic information from the second storage medium.

Claims

1. A method for making electronic information more readily available to one or more access requesters, the method comprising:

identifying for transport electronic information stored at a data source;

transporting the identified electronic information from the data source to a requesting access requester;

anticipating a demand of the access requesters for access to the electronic information based at least on non-electronic information related to the electronic information that is not particular to any single access requester;

determining, based on the anticipated demand, to store the already identified and transported electronic information on a storage medium that is more accessible to the access requestors than the data source; and

storing the transported electronic information on the storage medium.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic information is identified for transport based on a request of the requesting access requestor to access the electronic information.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein anticipating the demand based at least on information that is not particular to any single access requester comprises anticipating the demand based on information that is common to multiple access requestors.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein anticipating the demand based at least on information that is not particular to any single access requester comprises anticipating the demand based on information that is obtained from several access requesters.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein anticipating the demand based at least on information that is not particular to any single access requester comprises anticipating the demand based on information that is related to none of the access requesters.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the non-electronic information is indicative of a popularity of a topic associated with the electronic information.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the popularity is the popularity for a class of access requesters.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the non-electronic information is indicative of past requests for information similar to the electronic information.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining whether the electronic information is accessible to the access requesters from the storage medium,

wherein the access requesters are provided with access to the electronic information from the data source only if the electronic information is not accessible to the access requesters from the storage medium.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the storage medium is more geographically proximate to the access requesters than the data source such that the storing includes storing the electronic information on a medium that is more geographically proximate to the access requesters than the data source.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the storage medium is more electronically proximate to the access requesters than the data source such that the storing includes storing the electronic information on a medium that is more electronically proximate to the access requestors than the data source.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the data source resides on a central server and the storage medium resides on a distributed server such that the storing includes duplicating the electronic information from the central server to the distributed server.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the demand is anticipated based on at least one of current and past requests for access to related electronic information by the access requesters.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the access requestors comprise a class of access requesters.

15. A method for making electronic information more readily available to one or more first access requestors based on an anticipated demand for the electronic information, the method comprising:

anticipating a demand of the access requesters for access to the electronic information based at least on non-electronic information related to the electronic information;

determining to duplicate electronic information from a data source to a storage medium that is more accessible to the first access requesters based on the anticipated demand;

accessing the electronic information stored on the data source; and

duplicating the electronic information to the storage medium.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the non-electronic information is indicative of a popularity of a topic associated with the electronic information.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the popularity is the popularity for a class of access requesters.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the non-electronic information is indicative of past requests for information similar to the electronic information.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the past requests for information are past requests of a class of access requesters.

20. In a system in which algorithms are employed to identify and prioritize electronic assets to be temporarily stored within distributed cache, a method of populating the distributed cache, comprising:

receiving a first electronic asset to be made available for request by a networked user;

measuring an anticipated demand for the first electronic asset based on criteria that is collected before receiving requests for access to the first electronic asset and that is unrelated to past access requests, the criteria including non-electronic information;

determining to duplicate the first electronic asset from a data source to a storage medium that is more accessible to the networked user based on a size of the electronic information and on the anticipated demand;

accessing the first electronic asset stored on the data source; and

duplicating the first electronic asset to the storage medium.