Platform For Configurable Logging Instrumentation

• US 20100332550A1
• Filed: 06/26/2009
• Published: 12/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Ainslie, Charles
• Application Number:
  US12/492,704
• Publication Number:
  US 20100332550A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/802
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/316 by observing the pattern of computer usage, e.g. typical user behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/552 involving long-term monitoring or reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1425 Traffic logging, e.g. anomaly detection

Abstract

A configurable logging platform may be provided. A logging object may be embedded in a web page. When the page is rendered, the logging object may retrieve a remote configuration file comprising at least one logging action. An event handler may be added to the rendered web page in order to capture a user behavior associated with the logging action. The captured user behavior may be stored by the logging object and transmitted to a logging database.

Claims

1. A method for providing a logging platform, the method comprising:

embedding a logging object in each of a plurality of web pages;

rendering at least one of the plurality of web pages in an application associated with at least one client device;

in response to loading the at least one web page, retrieving a configuration file associated with the logging object comprising at least one logging action; and

capturing at least one user behavior according to the at least one logging action.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one of the plurality of web pages is retrieved from a first remote server and the configuration file is retrieved from a second remote server.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one logging action comprises at least one of the following:

a page element to monitor, a user event to monitor, a page dwell time, a page focus time, a page metadata tag to capture, a browser identifier to capture, an operating system identifier to capture, a browser screen position to monitor, and a scroll activity monitor.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the captured at least one user behavior in a logging database.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein storing the captured at least one user behavior occurs in response to the at least one web page being unloaded.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein storing the captured at least one user behavior occurs in response to the at least one user behavior being completed.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein storing the captured at least one user behavior occurs at a scheduled time.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one client device comprises a computing device operative to execute the logging object code.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding an event handler associated with the at least one logging action to the page on the client device, wherein the event handler is operative to capture the at least one user behavior.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the event handler is further operative to transmit the captured at least one user behavior to a server associated with the web page.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the event handler is further operative to transmit the captured at least one user behavior to a logging database.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the event handler is associated with a unique element identifier.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration file comprises at least one of the following:

Extensible Markup Language (XML) and JavaScript Object Notation (JSON).

14. A computer-readable medium which stores a set of instructions which when executed performs a method for providing a configurable logging platform, the method executed by the set of instructions comprising:

retrieving a web page, wherein the web page comprises a logging object;

retrieving a configuration file associated with the logging object comprising at least one user action to log;

rendering the web page;

adding, by the logging object, an event handler to the at least one element associated with the rendered web page;

logging at least one user behavior associated with the web page by the event handler; and

sending the logged at least one user behavior to a logging server.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the web page is retrieved from a first remote location and the configuration file is retrieved from a second remote location.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the logging server comprises a third remote location.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein sending the logged at least one user behavior occurs according to at least one of the following:

in response to the web page being loaded, in response to the web page being unloaded, in response to the at least one user behavior being completed, and at a scheduled periodic interval.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, further comprising:

determining whether the logging object comprises a supported object language; and

in response to determining that the logging object does not comprise a supported object language, downloading a client logging engine operative to execute the functionality of the logging object.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the supported object language comprises JavaScript.

20. A system for providing a configurable logging platform, the system comprising:

a server computing device comprising a memory storage and a processing unit coupled to the memory storage, wherein the processing unit is operative to;

receive a request from a client computing device for a web page, and

transmit the requested webpage to the client computing device, wherein the requested webpage comprises an embedded logging object specifying a location of a logging configuration file,

the client computing device comprising a memory storage and a processing unit coupled to the memory storage, wherein the processing unit is operative to;

receive the requested webpage,

retrieve the logging configuration file from the specified location,

render the requested webpage in an application executing on the client computing device, wherein being operative to render the requested webpage comprises being operative to add an event handler to at least one object associated with the requested webpage according to the retrieved logging configuration file,

store at least one user event captured by the event handler in a client log, wherein the client log comprises at least one of the following;

a database, a web browser cookie, and a text file, and wherein the at least one user event comprises at least one of the following;

a user interaction with the at least one object, a page dwell time, a page focus time, a scroll activity, a link selection, and a user interface device event associated with the application, and

transmit the client log to a database computing device at a time comprising at least one of the following;

at a page unload, at a predetermined time interval specified in the logging configuration file, and immediately following the at least one user event; and

the database computing device comprising a memory storage and a processing unit coupled to the memory storage, wherein the processing unit is operative to;

receive the client log from the client computing device, and

prepare the client log for insight analysis.