Method and apparatus for using business rules or user roles for selecting portlets in a web portal

• US 20060235935A1
• Filed: 10/01/2003
• Published: 10/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Ng, Joanne
• Application Number:
  US10/527,126
• Publication Number:
  US 20060235935A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/208
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

An embodiment of the invention includes means to select portal resources (portlets, page and page groups) as displayed to a user based on pluggable rules engine; a rules database; and a portlet application aggregation engine which applies rules to select and display selected portlets, pages and page groups to a user.

Claims

1. Apparatus for displaying to a user a web page session for a web application, said web page session displaying a plurality of associated collaborative portlets, sharing information with each other, accessible by said user comprising:

a portal server for operating a web portal to provide access to said web application;

a portlet application, for managing a collection of associated portlets, for operating on said portal server;

access means to access a rules database adapted to store rules;

said rules comprising rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users; and

selection means to select a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on information provided by said user.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said selection means comprises a pluggable rules engine and a portlet application aggregation engine which selects rules from said rules database and applies rules to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user as required.

16. An article comprising:

a computer readable signal bearing medium;

computer program code means recorded on said medium adapted to implement the apparatus of any of claims 1 to 8.

3. Apparatus for displaying to a user a web page session for a web application, said web page session displaying a plurality of associated collaborative portlets, sharing information with each other, accessible by said user comprising:

a portal server for operating a web portal to provide access to said web application;

a portlet application, for managing a collection of associated portlets, for operating on said portal server;

roles access means to access a roles database;

said roles database containing rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users based on user roles; and

role selection means to select a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on an identified role of said user as required.

7. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said selection means comprises a pluggable rules engine, and a portlet application aggregation engine which applies rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

4. Apparatus for supporting the selection of portal resources for a user based on business rules for a collection of associated portlets operating on a portal server comprising:

a rules database for storing display rules;

access means to access said rules database;

said rules comprising rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users;

selection means to select a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on information provided by said user as required.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said selection means includes a rules engine which applies rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said selection means includes a rules engine and a portlet application aggregation engine which applies rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

8. Apparatus for supporting the selection of portal resources for a user based on business rules for a collection of associated portlets operating on a portal server comprising:

a portlet application, for managing a collection of associated portlets, for operating on said portal server;

a roles database;

said roles database containing rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users based on user roles;

roles access means to access said roles database;

role selection means to select a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on an identified role of said user.

9. A method for displaying to a user a web page session for a web application, said web page session displaying a plurality of associated collaborative portlets, sharing information with each other, accessible by said user comprising:

operating a web portal or a portal server to provide access to said web application;

managing a collection of associated portlets with a portlet application, for operating on said portal server;

accessing a rules database storing rules;

said rules comprising rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users;

selecting a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on information provided by said user as required.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein a pluggable rules engine, and a portlet application aggregation engine apply rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

10. A method for supporting the selection of portal resources for a user based on business rules for a collection of associated portlets operating on a portal server comprising:

providing a rules database for storing display rules;

said rules comprising rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users;

accessing said rules database;

selecting a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on information provided by said user as required.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein a rules engine is used to apply rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein said a rules engine and a portlet application aggregation engine apply rules from said rules database to select and display selected portlets, pages, and page groups to a user.

15. An article comprising:

a computer readable signal bearing medium;

computer program code means recorded on said medium adapted to perform the method of any of claims 10 to 13.

14. A method for supporting the selection of portal resources for a user based on business rules for a collection of associated portlets operating on a portal server comprising:

for managing a collection of associated portlets with a portlet application operating on said portal server;

providing a roles database;

said roles database containing rules controlling display of sets of portlets, pages, page groups to users based on user roles;

accessing said roles database;

selecting a set of portlets, pages, and page groups to be displayed to a user based on an identified role of said user.