Customizing an application

• US 20120047029A1
• Filed: 10/31/2011
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Veres, Robert Dean, Liang, Ching-Jye
• Granted Patent: US 9,092,792 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.73
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions

Abstract

A system is configured to perform a method of customizing an application. The method includes receiving a connection from a client machine that is executing an application configurable by configuration information. The method also includes determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information. The method further includes transmitting the configuration information to the client machine in response to the determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information. In response to the transmitting of the configuration information, the application is configured to include a category structure for the application. In some example embodiments, the configuration information includes a software module upgrade of the application.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a connection from a client machine that is executing an application customizable by configuration information;

determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information; and

transmitting the configuration information to the client machine,

the application being configured by the configuration information to include a category structure for the application in response to the transmitting of the configuration information,

the transmitting of the configuration information being performed by a processor of a machine in response to the determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a selection of a web site,

the selection identifying the web site as being selected by a user of the client machine.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the receiving of the selection of the web site includes recognizing the selection of the web site in the receiving of the connection from the client machine.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the configuration information identifies the web site and configures the application to communicate with the web site.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein:

the selection of the web site is an offline selection of a preference for the web site.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transmitting of the configuration information to the client machine causes the client machine to configure the application with the configuration information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transmitting of the configuration information includes transmitting a software module upgrade of the application from a network-based facility to the client machine.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

determining that the software module upgrade exists,

the transmitting of the software module upgrade being in response to the determining that the software module upgrade exists.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the transmitting of the configuration information includes transmitting an update of the application from the network-based facility to the client machine.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the update of the application includes at least one of;

an updated attribute structure for the application, or

a modification of the application.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the configuration information identifies a geographical region based on at least one of;

a country of the web site,

a state of the web site,

a territory of the web site, or

a province of the web site; and

the application is configured by the configuration information, in response to the transmitting of the configuration information, to communicate according to the identified geographical region.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the configuration information identifies a currency; and

the application is configured by the configuration information, in response to the transmitting of the configuration information, to display a fee in the identified currency.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the configuration information identifies a currency format; and

the application is configured by the configuration information, in response to the transmitting of the configuration information, to display a fee using the identified currency format.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the configuration information identifies a language; and

the application is configured by the configuration information, in response to the transmitting of the configuration information, to display content in the identified language.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein:

the configuration information identifies a font that corresponds to the language; and

the application is configured by the configuration information, in response to the transmitting of the configuration information, to display content in the identified font that corresponds to the language.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the application is configured by the configuration information in response to an enablement of automatic updating of the application.

17. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

receiving a connection from a client machine that is executing an application customizable by configuration information;

determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information; and

transmitting the configuration information to the client machine,

the application being configured by the configuration information to include a category structure for the application in response to the transmitting of the configuration information,

the transmitting of the configuration information being performed by the one or more processors of the machine in response to the determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein:

the transmitting of the configuration information includes transmitting a software module upgrade of the application from a network-based facility to the client machine.

19. A system comprising:

a communicator module configured to receive a connection from a client machine that is executing an application customizable by configuration information; and

a processor configured by an upgrade control module that configures the processor to determine that the application has not been customized by the configuration information,

the upgrade control module configuring the processor to transmit the configuration information to the client machine,

the application being configured by the configuration information to include a category structure for the application in response to the transmitting of the configuration information,

the transmitting of the configuration information being performed in response to the determining that the application has not been customized by the configuration information.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the transmitting of the configuration information includes transmitting a software module upgrade of the application from a network-based facility to the client machine.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the category structure is configured to enable a user of the application to categorize user-composed information to be communicated from the application to a network-based facility.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the category structure is configured to enable a user of the application to classify a listing created by the user for publication by a network-based facility.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the category structure is configured to enable a user of the application to classify an advertisement for at least one of a product or a service.

24. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the category structure specifies multiple sets of attributes that correspond to multiple categories included in the category structure.