Activities Operating on Structured Data

• US 20100042937A1
• Filed: 08/13/2008
• Published: 02/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Pavlicic, Miladin, Kim, Jane T.
• Granted Patent: US 9,396,281 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents

Abstract

Various embodiments can enable a webpage publisher to describe structured data on a webpage in a manner that enables a Web browser to intelligently present activities that pertain to user selections relative to the structured data appearing on the webpage. In at least some embodiments, a webpage publisher can provide markup that identifies structured data on a webpage. A service provider can provide a representation that describes the types of structured data in which it is interested, and how to handle the structured data responsive to a user selection. The Web browser can then use the markup in the webpage and the service provider'"'"'s representation to identify and present activities associated with structured data selected by the user.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

defining a representation that describes an activity provided by a service provider;

defining, in the representation, one or more structured data types;

defining, in the representation, a calling location to which data is to be sent responsive to a user selection of structured data corresponding to a structured data type; and

defining one or more parameters associated with the one or more structured data types, wherein the one or more parameters are to be used to identify data that is to be sent to the service provider responsive to a user selection.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein said representation comprises XML.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

defining, in the representation, a context associated with unstructured data;

defining one or more parameters associated with the unstructured data, wherein the one or more parameters are to be used to identify data that is to be sent to the service provider responsive to a user selection.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the representation defines an HTTP GET request that is to be used to send data to the service provider.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location comprises a Web address.

6. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a user selection within a webpage;

ascertaining whether a user'"'"'s selection pertains to a known structured data type;

in association with the user'"'"'s selection pertaining to a known structured data type, sending a request to a service provider that provides an activity, wherein the request includes one or more parameters that are to be used by the service provider to provide the activity.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein said ascertaining is performed by using markup in which the one or more parameters are specified.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein said ascertaining is performed by using XML in which the one or more parameters are specified.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 further comprising responsive to the user'"'"'s selection not pertaining to structured data, sending a request to the service provider, wherein the request includes the user'"'"'s selection.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein said receiving is performed by a Web browser.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 further comprising responsive to the user'"'"'s selection, presenting a menu that lists one or more activities that are relevant to the user'"'"'s selection.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the menu includes activities associated with both structured data and unstructured data.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the menu includes activities associated with both structured data and unstructured data, wherein the activities are ordered.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the menu includes activities associated with both structured data and unstructured data, and wherein those activities associated with structured data appear above those activities associated with unstructured data.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the user'"'"'s selection comprises less than an entire portion of structured data corresponding to the known structured data type.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15 further comprising treating the user'"'"'s selection as unstructured data for purposes of sending the request.

17. A system comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media; and

a description embodied on the one or more computer-readable storage media, wherein the description describes structured data that appears on a web page, wherein the description describes;

one or more structured data types;

an address to which data is to be sent to a service provider that offers an activity associated with a user selection of structured data that corresponds to one or more structured data types; and

one or more parameters that describe data that is to be sent to the service provider.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the description comprises a markup description.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the description comprises an XML description.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the description further comprises a description of where to send data selected by the user when the data selected by the user comprises unstructured data.