METHOD AND APPARATUS PROVIDING OMNIBUS VIEW OF ONLINE AND OFFLINE CONTENT OF VARIOUS FILE TYPES AND SOURCES

• US 20140172785A1
• Filed: 02/19/2014
• Published: 06/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AOL Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Mercury Kingdom Assets Limited
• Inventors: Fairchild, Granville R., Frischling, Bill, Keeling, John, Pacheco, Dan, Rosmarin, Myron
• Granted Patent: US 9,589,034 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/609
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing

Abstract

An online service provider (OSP) operates online data centers to store members'"'"' data objects relating to various online member services of the OSP. An aggregated catalog lists members'"'"' data objects residing in the online data centers and also those residing in member computers'"'"' local storage. An aggregator monitors contents of the online storage facilities to detect new storage of prescribed types of data objects owned by the members, and also communicates with member computers to identify prescribed types of data objects newly stored in the respective local storage. The aggregator updates the aggregated catalog to list the newly stored data objects. Responsive to a request by a member, a finder searches the aggregated catalog and utilizes results of the search to provide, for display at the requesting member'"'"'s computer, a consolidated listing of online data objects and locally stored data objects owned by the requesting member.

Claims

1-10. -10. (canceled)

11. A method comprising:

providing an aggregated catalog of data objects residing in online data centers and data objects residing in respective end-user computers;

updating the aggregated catalog to list newly stored data objects from the online data centers and newly stored data objects from end-user computers; and

responsive to a request by an end-user, searching the aggregated catalog and utilizing results of the search to provide an output for display at the requesting end-user'"'"'s computer, the output comprising a consolidated listing of data objects of the end-user residing in the online data centers including the new data objects and data objects of the end-user residing in the end user'"'"'s computer, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable VIEW feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the VIEW feature in conjunction with a particular one of the listed data objects, activating software to allow the given end-user to view the particular one of the listed data object.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable CHANGE feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the CHANGE feature in conjunction with a particular one of the listed data objects, activating software to modify the particular one of the listed data object by the given end-user.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable SHARE feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the SHARE feature in conjunction with a particular one of the listed data objects, the finder or interface calls upon the aggregator transfer the particular one of the listed data object to a designated transferee.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the consolidated listing includes:

an end-user-activatable SHARE feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the SHARE feature in conjunction with a particular one of the listed data objects, the finder or interface calls upon the aggregator transfer the particular one of the listed data object to a designated transferee; and

an end-user-activatable CHANGE feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the CHANGE feature in conjunction with a particular one of the listed data objects, activating software to modify the particular one of the listed data object by the given end-user.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the data objects are songs.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in the online data centers and wherein the updating is in response to detecting the new data objects residing in the online data centers.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in respective end-user computers and wherein the updating is in response to detecting the new data objects residing in respective end-user computers.

18. Data management equipment comprising:

a catalog including metadata identifying end-users'"'"' data object residing in at least one data center associated with the data management equipment and metadata identifying end-users'"'"' data objects residing in respective end-user computers;

an aggregator, the aggregator comprising a processor programmed to update the catalog to list to include metadata identifying newly stored data objects contained in the at least one data center and newly stored data objects contained in the end-user computers; and

a finder, the finder to perform operations comprising, responsive to a request, searching the catalog and utilizing results of the search to provide an output for display to a requesting device, the output comprising user-activatable features, the user-activatable features including an end-user-activatable CHANGE feature, the end-user-activable CHANGE feature responsive to an activation in conjunction with a particular one of the data objects modifying the particular one of the data objects.

19. The equipment of claim 18, wherein the user-activatable features includes an end-user-activatable VIEW feature, the end-user-activatable VIEW feature responsive to an activation in conjunction with the particular one of the data objects causing the particular one of the data objects to become visible to the requesting device.

20. The equipment of claim 18, wherein the output further comprises an end-user-activatable SHARE feature, the end-user-activatable SHARE feature responsive to an activation in conjunction with a particular one of the data objects causing the particular one of the data objects to be transferred to a designated transferee.

21. The equipment of claim 18, wherein the output further comprises:

an end-user-activatable VIEW feature, the end-user-activatable VIEW feature responsive to an activation in conjunction with the particular one of the data objects causing the particular one of the data objects to become visible to the requesting device; and

an end-user-activatable SHARE feature, the end-user-activatable SHARE feature responsive to an activation in conjunction with a particular one of the data objects causing the particular one of the data objects to be transferred to a designated transferee.

22. The equipment of claim 18, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in the at least one data center associated with the data management equipment, and wherein the aggregator updates the catalog in response to detecting the new data objects residing in the at least one data center.

23. The equipment of claim 18, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in respective end-user computers and wherein the aggregator updates the catalog in response to detecting the new data objects residing in respective end-user computers.

24. The equipment of claim 18, wherein the at least one data center is an web-accessible data center.

25. A method comprising:

providing an aggregated catalog of data objects residing in online data centers and data objects residing in respective end-user computers;

updating the aggregated catalog to list newly stored data objects from the online data centers and newly stored data objects from end-user computers; and

responsive to a request by an end-user, searching the aggregated catalog and utilizing results of the search to provide an output for display at the requesting end-user'"'"'s computer, the output comprising a consolidated listing of data objects of the end-user residing in the online data centers including the new data objects and data objects of the end-user residing in the end user'"'"'s computer, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable SHARE feature, wherein responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the SHARE feature in conjunction with a particular data object transferring the particular data object to a designated transferee.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable CHANGE feature, responsive to a given end- user'"'"'s activation of the CHANGE feature in conjunction with a particular data object, activating software to modify the particular data object.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the consolidated listing includes an end-user-activatable VIEW feature, responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the VIEW feature in conjunction with a particular data object, activating software to allow the given end-user to view the particular data object.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein the consolidated listing includes:

an end-user-activatable VIEW feature, responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the VIEW feature in conjunction with a particular data object, activating software to allow the given end-user to view the particular data object; and

an end-user-activatable CHANGE feature, responsive to a given end-user'"'"'s activation of the CHANGE feature in conjunction with a particular data object, activating software to modify the particular data object.

29. The method of claim 25, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in the online data centers and wherein the updating is in response to detecting the new data objects residing in the online data centers.

30. The method of claim 25, further comprising detecting new data objects residing in respective end-user computers and wherein the updating is in response to detecting the new data objects residing in respective end-user computers.