System and method for building a web site with automated workflow

• US 6,308,188 B1
• Filed: 06/19/1998
• Issued: 10/23/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Soley, Peter, Rudnick, Ben, Bernardo, Richard S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen S.
• Application Number:
  US09/100,116
• Time in Patent Office: 1,222 Days
• Field of Search: 707/501, 707/530, 707/517, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 345/331
• US Class Current: 715/234
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/131 Fragmentation of text files, e.g. creating reusable text-blocks; Linking to fragments, e.g. using XInclude; Namespaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/151 Transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/186 Templates

Abstract

A software tool is provided for use with a computer system for simplifying the creation of Web sites. The tool comprises a plurality of pre-stored templates, comprising HTML formatting code, text, fields and formulas. The templates preferably correspond to different types of Web pages and other features commonly found on or available to Web sites. Each feature may have various options. To create a web site, a Web site creator (the person using the tool to create a web site) is prompted by the tool through a series of views stored in the tool to select the features and options desired for the Web site. Based on these selections, the tool prompts the web site creator to supply data to populate fields of the templates determined by the tool to correspond to the selected features and options. Based on the identified templates and supplied data, the tool generates the customized Web site without the web site creator writing any HTML or other programming code. Automated work flow is enabled based on information supplied by the site creator during creation of the web site.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising a tool for creating a Web site having user specified features, comprising:

means for storing a library of templates corresponding to a plurality of predefined features available in a Web site, wherein said plurality of predefined features further comprise one or more workflow options that permit collaborative and distributed authoring of Web site content, wherein the one or more workflow options further comprise;

means for setting a number of approval levels that the Web site content is to receive prior to inclusion in the Web site;

means for designating an authorized content approver from which a predetermined level of approval must be granted before the Web site content can be included on the Web site;

means for assigning automatic routing rules for routing the Web site content according to a predetermined approval schedule;

means for assigning a time period for action by which the Web site content must be acted upon; and

means for requesting notification of whether a predetermined event has occurred;

means for enabling a web site creator using the tool to select the desired ones of said plurality of predefined features for a Web site, and to select one or more of said one or more workflow options;

means for automating workflow according to said one or more of said one or more workflow options selected wherein said means for automating workflow further comprises;

means for restricting the collaborative and distributed authoring according to the one or more workflow options selected;

means for enabling approval of the Web site content according to the one or more workflow options selected;

means for routing a Web page according to the one or more workflow options;

means for determining whether any said time period for action has expired;

means for notifying upon the occurrence of said predetermined event; and

consolidation means for collecting the Web page upon completion of the routing according to the one or more workflow options selected;

means for building a Web site based on the templates corresponding to the selected features and the collected Web page.

2. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein said templates comprise HTML code.

3. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein said templates comprise HTML, code, and one or more templates include predefined formatting for one of said predefined features.

4. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein said templates comprise HTML code, and one or more templates include predefined formatting for one of said predefined features, and fields that require input from the web site creator to customize the feature for the web site being created by the web site creator.

5. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein the means for building the web site generates a plurality of web pages based on the templates corresponding to the selected features, and further comprising means for enabling the web site creator to customize the web pages with specific content without requiring the web site creator to write or modify software code.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the authorized content approver is assigned an access privilege and wherein the privilege is a create/edit/approve privilege.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein the privilege is a read only privilege.

8. A method of using a tool for creating a Web site, comprising:

storing a library of templates corresponding to a plurality of predefined features available in a web site, wherein said plurality of predefined features further comprise one or more workflow options that permit collaborative and distributed authoring of Web site content, wherein the one or more workflow options further comprise;

means for setting a number of approval levels that the Web site content is to receive prior to inclusion in the Web site;

means for designating an authorized content approver from which a predetermined level of approval must be granted before the Web site content can be included on the Web site;

means for assigning automatic routing rules for routing the Web site content according to a predetermined approval schedule;

means for assigning a time period for action by which the Web site content must be acted upon; and

means for requesting notification of whether a predetermined event has occurred;

enabling a web site creator using the tool to select the desired ones of said plurality of predefined features for a Web site, and to select one or more of said one or more workflow options;

forwarding one or more Web pages to subsequent users for action wherein said step of forwarding is accomplished according to said one or more of said one or more workflow options selected;

collecting the Web pages; and

, building a Web site based, at least, the Web pages collected and the templates corresponding to the selected features.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of notfying at least one of the plurality of users that an action In connection with the one or more Web paces is requested.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of providing each user with a predetermined time in which to take action.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of consolidating a plurality of web pages based on templates corresponding to selected features, and further comprising the step of customizing the plurality of web pages with specific content without requiring the web site creator to write or modify software code.

12. An electronic storage medium having code embodied therein for creating a Web site, said computer usable medium comprising:

code that causes a processor to store a library of templates corresponding to a plurality of predefined features available in a web site, wherein said plurality of predefined features further comprise one or more workflow options that permit collaborative and distributed authoring of Web site content, wherein the one or more workflow options further comprise;

code for setting a number of approval levels that the Web site content is to receive prior to inclusion in the Web site;

code for designating an authorized content approver from which a predetermined level of approval must be granted before the Web site content can be included on the Web site;

code for assigning automatic routing rules for routing the Web site content according to a predetermined approval schedule;

code for assigning a time period for action by which the Web site content must be acted upon; and

code for requesting notification of whether a predetermined event has occurred;

code that causes a processor to enable a web site creator using the tool to select the desired ones of said plurality of predefined features for a Web site, and to select one or more of said one or more workflow options;

code that causes a processor to forward one or more Web pages to subsequent users for action by routing the Web pages to a plurality of users;

code that causes a processor to collect the Web pages; and

code that causes a processor to build a Web site based, at least, on the Web pages collected and the templates corresponding to the selected features.

13. The medium of claim 12, further comprising code that causes a processor to notifies at least one of the plurality of users that an action in connection with the one or more Web pages is requested.

14. The medium of claim 12, further comprising code that causes a processor to notify each user with a predetermined time in which to take action.

15. The medium of claim 12, further comprising code that causes a processor to enable the web site creator to customize the one or more web pages with specific content without requiring the web site creator to write or modify software code.

16. A computer system comprising a tool for creating a Web site, comprising:

at least one storage device that stores a library of templates corresponding to a plurality of predefined features available in a web site, wherein said plurality of predefined features further comprise one or more workflow options that permit collaborative and distributed authoring of Web site content, wherein the one or more workflow options further comprise;

an approval level setter for setting a number of approval levels that the Web site content is to receive prior to inclusion in the Web site;

a content approver designator for designating an authorized content approver from which a predetermined level of approval must be granted before the Web site content can be included on the Web site;

a routing rules assignor for assigning automatic routing rules for routing the Web site content according to a predetermined approval schedule;

a time period assignor for assigning a time period for action by which the Web site content must be acted upon; and

a notifier for requesting notification of whether a predetermined event has occurred;

a selection module that enables a web site creator using the tool to select the desired ones of said plurality of predefined features for a Web site, and to select one or more of said one or more workflow options;

a workflow automation module that automates workflow according to said one or more of said one or more workflow options selected wherein said workflow automation module further comprises;

a restictor module for restricting the collaborative and distributed authoring according to the one or more workflow options selected;

an approval module for enabling approval of the Web site content according to the one or more workflow options selected;

a routing module for routing a Web page according to the one or more workflow options;

a time period module for determining whether any said time period for action has expired;

a notification module for notifying upon the occurrence of said predetermined event; and

a consolidation module for collecting the Web page upon completion of the routing according to the one or more workflow options selected;

a Web site assembler that builds a Web site based on the templates corresponding to the selected features.

17. The computer system according to claim 16, wherein the consolidation module consolidates a plurality of web pages based on templates corresponding to selected features, and further comprising a customizing module for enabling the web site creator to customize the plurality of web pages with specific content without requiring the web site creator to write or modify software code.