Method, system and program product for collecting web metric data

• US 20070266145A1
• Filed: 05/11/2006
• Published: 11/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: O'Connell, Brian, Nesbitt, Richard, Vaughan, Kevin, Pearthree, Herbert
• Granted Patent: US 8,856,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking

Abstract

A method, system and program product for collecting web metric data is disclosed. The method includes inserting a script at the top of each web page to be metered, sending a web page request to a web server for a web page, loading the web page while executing the script inserted within the web page for collecting web usage data without substantially increasing web page load time. The method further includes establishing an asynchronous connection to a metric server chosen for sending the web usage data collected and transmitting to the metric server the web usage data collected as part of a record request using a method such that the record request is not cached at an intermediate proxy. The method further includes contacting an alternate metric server if the metric server chosen is not available or cannot record the web usage data.

Claims

1. A method of collecting web usage data over a computer network, said method comprising the steps of:

inserting script at the top of each web page of a plurality of web pages to be metered;

sending a web page request over a computer network to a web server for a web page of said plurality of web pages;

loading said web page while executing said script inserted within said web page for collecting web usage data without substantially increasing load time for said web page;

establishing an asynchronous connection to a first metric server for sending a record request for recording said web usage data collected for said web page; and

transmitting upon establishment of said asynchronous connection to said first metric server said web usage data as part of said record request using a method such that said record request is not cached at an intermediate proxy.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said transmitting step further comprises the step of:

if said asynchronous connection to said first metric server cannot be established, establishing an asynchronous connection to a second metric server.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

receiving an acknowledgment response from said first metric server whether or not said web usage data has been successfully recorded on said first metric server.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein said script provides a list of metric servers to be contacted for recording said web usage data collected, and wherein said first metric server is on said list of metric servers to be contacted.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising the step of:

if said acknowledgment response received from said first metric server informs that said web usage data has not been successfully recorded, contacting a second metric server for sending said web usage data collected to be recorded;

wherein said second metric server is on said list of metric servers to be contacted if said first metric server cannot be contacted.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising the step of:

contacting an arbitrary metric server on said list of metric servers for sending said web usage data in order to achieve load balancing.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein said script comprises a JavaScript script.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein said record request is transmitted across said computer network using an HTTP Internet protocol, and wherein said method for said record request comprises a POST method.

9. A system for collecting web metric data, comprising:

a plurality of available web servers coupled to a computer network, each of said plurality of available web servers configured to serve one or more web pages to be metered, each of said one or more web pages having inserted therein script at the top; and

a browser application running on a client computer on said computer network configured to execute said script within a web page of said one or more web pages that is requested without substantially increasing load time of said web page and configured to transmit a request for recording any web metric data collected for said web page to a metric server among a plurality of servers identified in said script by using a method such that said request is not cached at an intermediate proxy.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein said system is further configured to collect said web metric data associated with said web page and to transmit said request for recording said web metric data collected via an asynchronous connection to said metric server.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein said system is further configured to receive an acknowledgment response from said metric server as to whether or not said web metric data transmitted has been successfully recorded on said metric server.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein if either said acknowledgment response is not received from said metric server or if said acknowledgment response verifies that said web metric data transmitted has not been successfully recorded, said system is further configured to contact an alternate metric server from a list of metric servers identified in said script for sending said web metric data collected such that an error message is not communicated on said client computer.

13. The system according to claim 11, wherein said system is further configured to contact an arbitrary metric server on said list of metric servers for sending said web metric data collected in order to achieve load balancing.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein said script comprises a JavaScript script;

and wherein said request is transmitted across said computer network using an HTTP Internet protocol, and wherein said method for said record request comprises a POST method.

15. A computer program product for collecting web metric data, said computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium;

first program instructions to insert a script at the top of each web page of a plurality of web pages to be metered for web metric data;

second program instructions to execute said script for collecting said web metric data associated with a web page of said plurality of web pages being loaded without substantially increasing load time for said web page;

third program instructions to transmit a request to a metric server for recording said web metric data collected using a method such that said request is not cached at an intermediate proxy; and

wherein said first, second and third program instructions are stored on said computer readable medium.

16. The computer program product according to claim 15, further comprising:

fourth program instructions to determine whether an acknowledgment response is received from said metric server verifying recordation of said web metric data and, if not, said fourth program instructions include further instructions to contact an alternate metric server for recording said web metric data;

said fourth program instructions being stored on said computer readable medium.

17. The computer program product according to claim 15, wherein said third program instructions include instructions to establish an asynchronous connection to said metric server for sending said request for recording said web metric data collected.

18. The computer program product according to claim 17, wherein said metric server and said alternate metric server is chosen from a list of available metric servers provided in said script.

19. The computer program product according to claim 18, wherein said fourth program instructions include instructions to contact an arbitrary metric server from said list of available metric servers in order to achieve load balancing.

20. The computer program product according to claim 19, wherein said script comprises a JavaScript script;

and wherein said request is transmitted across said computer network using an HTTP Internet protocol, and wherein said method for said record request comprises a POST method.