Copy server for collaboration and electronic commerce

• US 6,675,216 B1
• Filed: 07/06/1999
• Issued: 01/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cisco Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Cummings, Charles D., Quatrano, Stephen R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Application Number:
  US09/347,870
• Time in Patent Office: 1,645 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/205, 709/225, 709/226, 709/229
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/08 specially adapted for terminal emulation, e.g. Telnet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/131 Protocols for games, networked simulations or virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Systems and methods for collaborating over the Internet (or an intranet) in which two or more parties, such as a user and an agent, can share dynamic content generated by a web site server. Collaboration can be accomplished on live, dynamic pages without imposing a proxy server between user browsers and the web servers. Mechanisms prevent multiple submissions, and filters can be provided to selectively filter versions of a page for different users.

Claims

1. A method for providing collaboration between a first user and a second user comprising:

receiving, by a web site, a request from the first user with a browser;

processing the request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content;

copying the page with dynamic content into a copy server without changing any locators in the page, the copy server having the page with dynamic content as a copied page;

providing, to the first user, a locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the first user to access the copied page from the copy server; and

providing, to the second user, the locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the second user to access the copied page from the copy server, the first user and the second user viewing versions of the same copied page.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the versions of the copied page obtained by the first and second users are identical.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising filtering the copied page to cause a different version of the copied page to be provided to different users.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the filtering suppresses a portion of one of a user view and an agent view.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing the versions of the copied page and storing the versions of the copied page in the copy server with a plug-in adapter to an application server.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing the versions of the copied page and storing the versions of the copied page in the copy server with a plug-in adapter to a web server.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing the versions of the copied page and storing the versions of the copied page in the copy server with custom code in an application.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising redirecting the first user to have direct access to the copy server without passing through other web servers to obtain the copied page.

9. The method of claim 2, further comprising redirecting the first user to have direct access to the copy server without passing through other web servers to obtain the copied page.

10. The method of claim 3, further comprising redirecting the first user to have direct access to the copy server without passing through other web servers to obtain the copied page.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising redirecting the first user to the copied page through an application server.

12. The method of claim 2, further comprising redirecting the first user to the copied page through an application server.

13. The method of claim 3, further comprising redirecting the first user to the copied page through an application server.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein, in response to first submission of information relating to the copied page by a first user, preventing, by the web site, a second submission of information relating to that copied page by another user.

15. The method of claim 2, wherein, in response to a first submission of information relating to the copied page by a first user, preventing, by the web site, a second submission of information relating to that copied page by another user.

16. The method of claim 3, wherein, in response to first submission of information relating to the copied page by a first user, preventing, by the web site, a second submission of information relating to that copied page by another user.

17. A web site system comprising:

a web server accessible to users with browsers for causing the web site to generate dynamic content as a page;

a copy server for storing and serving copies of the page of dynamic content, the page having an associated locator to allow access to the page;

the web server having an adapter for capturing the copied page, redirecting and synchronizing access to the copied page;

a collaboration server for communicating with the first and second users to coordinate the first and second users to view the copied page together, the first user accessing the copied page via the locator and the second user accessing the copied page via the locator; and

a filter for modifying the copied page so that first and second different versions of the dynamic content are provided to the first and second users, respectively.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the application server has an adapter for capturing the copied page, redirecting and synchronizing access to the copied page.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the application server has custom code for capturing the copied page, redirecting and synchronizing access to the copied page.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the web server is an HTTP server.

21. A computerized device comprising:

at least one communications interface;

a controller; and

an interconnection mechanism coupling the at least one communications interface and the controller;

wherein the controller is configured to;

receive, by a web site, a request from a first user with a browser;

process the request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content;

copy the page with dynamic content into a copy server without changing any locators in the page, the copy server having the page with dynamic content as a copied page;

provide to the first user a locator for the copied page of the copy server to allow the first user to access the copied page from the copy server by using the locator; and

provide to a second user the locator for the copied page of the copy server to allow the second user to access the copied page from the copy server by using the locator, the first user and the second user viewing versions of the same copied page.

22. A computer program product having a computer-readable medium including computer program logic encoded thereon that, when performed on a controller in a computerized device having a coupling to at least one communications interface provides a method for performing the operations of:

receiving a request from a first user with a browser;

processing the request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content;

copying the page with dynamic content into a copy server without changing any locators in the page, the copy server having the page with dynamic content as a copied page;

providing, to the first user, a locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the first user to access the copied page from the copy server; and

providing, to a second user, the locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the second user to access the copied page from the copy server, the first user and the second user viewing versions of the same copied page.

23. A computerized device comprising:

at least one communications interface;

a controller; and

an interconnection mechanism coupling the at least one communications interface and the controller;

wherein the controller is configured to produce a means for providing collaboration for dynamic content, such means including;

means for receiving a request from a first user with a browser;

means for processing the request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content;

means for copying the page with dynamic content into a copy server without changing any locators in the page, the copy server having the page with dynamic content as a copied page;

means for providing, to the first user, a locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the first user to access the copied page from the copy server; and

means for providing, to a second user, the locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the second user to access the copied page from the copy server, the first user and the second user viewing versions of the same copied page.

24. A method for providing collaboration for dynamic content comprising the steps of:

receiving a dynamic content request from a first user;

processing the dynamic content request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content, the page with dynamic content having a page address;

copying the page with dynamic content as a copied page into a copy server, the copied page having the page address;

providing to the first user the page address for the copied page from the copy server to allow first user to obtain the copied page from the copy server;

providing to a second user the page address for the copied page of the copy server to allow second user to obtain the copied page from the copy server, the first user and the second user each viewing a version of the copied page;

receiving a first submission of information relating to the copied page by the first user; and

preventing a second submission of information relating to the copied page by the second user, based upon receiving the first submission of information.

25. A method for providing collaboration between a first user and a second user comprising:

receiving, by a web site, a request from the first user with a browser;

processing the request with information related to the first user to create a page with dynamic content;

copying the page with dynamic content into a copy server without changing any locators in the page, the copy server having the page with dynamic content as a copied page;

providing, to the first user, a locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the first user to access the copied page from the copy server;

providing, to the second user, the locator for the copied page of the copy server, the locator allowing the second user to access the copied page from the copy server, the first user and the second user viewing versions of the same copied page; and

allowing the first user to operate on the page with dynamic content while blocking the second user from operating on the page with dynamic content.

26. The method of claim 25 further comprising:

generating a result page based upon operation, by the first user, on the page with dynamic content; and

copying the result page as a copied page on the copy server; and

allowing the first user and the second user access to the copied page.