Extending functionality of web-based applications

• US 20080222238A1
• Filed: 03/08/2007
• Published: 09/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Ivanov, Maxim, Pai, Samarth
• Granted Patent: US 8,930,555 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0273 using web services for network management, e.g. simple object access protocol [SOAP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5012 determining service availability, e.g. which services are available at a certain point in time
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5058 Service discovery by the service manager
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers

Abstract

A centralized location for discovery and data exchange for web applications. Embodiments of the invention are directed to providing a centralized interface location to send data to and receive data from one or more web applications hosted on application servers different from a server hosting the centralized interface. An application developer for a subscriber having an account with the web application may therefore easily extend the functionality of one or more web applications by communicating with a single interface provided, rather than with separate interfaces for each application. The centralized interface may provide information such as a list of all web applications or functionality to which a particular subscriber has access, and may support any desired extension (e.g., addition of users).

Claims

1. A method for use in a computer system comprising a web application manager that provides to each of a plurality of subscribers a subscriber account, each subscriber account including at least one web application from a plurality of web applications made available for inclusion in the plurality of subscriber accounts, the method comprising an act of:

(A) providing to a developer for a subscriber account an application programming interface (API) that provides a centralized discovery capability to enable the developer to discover, via a single interaction with the API, which of the plurality of web applications is included in the subscriber account.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the developer is a developer of a computer program adapted to execute on a client computer, and the computer program discovers which of the plurality of web applications is included in the subscriber account via the centralized discovery capability provided by the API.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the developer is a developer of another web application hosted by a web server, and the other web application discovers which of the plurality of web applications is included in the subscriber account via the centralized discovery capability provided by the API.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the API is a first API, and wherein the method further comprises an act of:

(B) providing to the developer for the subscriber account a second API that enables the developer to communicate with at least two servers hosting at least two web applications accessible by a user of the subscriber account via a third server that provides a centralized interface to the at least two servers.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first API and the second API comprise a single API.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the at least two web applications are web applications capable of being discovered as included in the subscriber account via the first API.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the central discovery capability further enables a developer to discover, via a single interaction with the API, a version for each web application of the plurality of web applications.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the central discovery capability further enables a developer to discover, via a single interaction with the API, whether a computer program developed by the developer is compatible with a web application of the plurality of web applications.

9. A method for use in a computer system comprising a web application manager that provides to each of a plurality of subscribers a subscriber account, each subscriber account including at least one web application from a plurality of web applications available for inclusion in the plurality of subscriber accounts, the method comprising an act of:

(A) providing to a developer for a subscriber account an application programming interface (API) that enables the developer to communicate with at least two servers, each hosting at least one of the web applications included in the subscriber account, via a third server that provides a centralized interface to the at least two servers.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein enabling the developer to communicate with the at least two servers via the third server comprises providing to the developer information comprising addresses for the at least two servers to allow the developer to communicate with the plurality of servers without knowing in advance the location of the at least two servers.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein enabling the developer to communicate with the at least two servers via the third server comprises providing to the developer a centralized interface to the at least two servers through which the developer may communicate with the at least two servers.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the developer is a developer of a computer program adapted to execute on a client computer, and the computer program communicates with the at least two web applications via the centralized interface provided by the third server.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the developer is a developer of another web application hosted by a web server, and the other web application communicates with the at least two web applications via the centralized interface provided by the third server.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the developer may communicate, using the API, with any web application included in the subscriber'"'"'s account hosted by any application server via the centralized interface provided by the third server.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the centralized interface enables a developer to discover, via a single interaction with the API, whether a computer program developed by the developer is compatible with the at least two web applications.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a plurality of application servers, each hosting at least one web application;

a central server that provides a centralized interface to the plurality of application servers; and

a client computer comprising at least one computer-readable medium having encoded thereon an application programming interface (API) that enables a developer to communicate with the plurality of servers via the central server.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the API enables the developer to communicate with the plurality of servers via the central server by providing to the developer information comprising addresses for the plurality of servers such that the developer does not have to know in advance the location of the plurality of servers.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the API enables the developer to communicate with the plurality of servers via the central server by providing a centralized interface to the plurality of servers through which the developer may communicate with the plurality of servers.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the developer is a developer of a computer program adapted to execute on a client computer, and the computer program communicates with at least one web application hosted by the plurality of application servers via the centralized interface.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, further comprising

a web server hosting another web application, the web server comprising at least one computer-readable medium having encoded thereon an application programming interface (API) that enables a developer to communicate with a plurality of web applications hosted by the plurality of application servers accessible by a user of the subscriber account via the centralized interface to the plurality of application servers;

and

wherein the developer is a developer of the other web application hosted by the web server, and the other web application communicates with at least one web application via the centralized interface provided by the central server.