Internet collaboration system and method

• US 6,826,595 B1
• Filed: 07/05/2000
• Issued: 11/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: Sap Portals Israel Ltd (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Oren, Amichay, Gust, Mordechai, Barbash, Joshua, Oren, Yael
• Primary Examiner(s): Geckil, Mehmet B.
• Application Number:
  US09/610,666
• Time in Patent Office: 1,609 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/205, 709/227, 709/246, 709/203, 715/512, 715/513, 715/515, 345/753, 345/759, 345/691, 345/733
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes

Abstract

Thus provided according to one aspect of the invention is a method of communication by the Internet network between at least a first GROUP member and a second GROUP member, each connectable to one or more SERVERS having data-bases, and employing an interface for displaying web-page(s), comprising the steps of establishing connection by the first GROUP member to a SERVER, establishing connection by the second GROUP member, to the SERVER, updating the first and the second GROUP members of being respectively connected to the SERVER, loading an original web-page by the first GROUP member, updating the second GROUP member of the location of the web-page; and loading the original web-page by the second GROUP member. The method may comprise the further steps of creation of an annotation by the first GROUP member overlying the web-page, loading the annotation by the second GROUP member and establishing creation of an annotation by the second GROUP member overlaying the web-page and loading the annotation by the first GROUP member.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for coordinating annotations in real-time between a first client and a second client, the method comprising:

associating said first client with said second client to initiate a real-time annotation session;

automatically transmitting graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said graphical annotation data associated with an online document and describing a graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said graphical annotation on said online document at said second client,

wherein said online document is not modified during overlaying of said graphical annotation.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said online document is a Web page on the Internet.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said graphical annotation data is transmitted directly from said first client to said second client over a client/client communication channel.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing said graphical annotation data and said association with said online document in an annotation database.

5. The method as in claim 4 wherein said annotation database resides on a server to which said first and second clients are connected.

6. The method as in claim 1 wherein said graphical annotation data is transmitted from said first client to an annotation server over a client/server communication channel before being transmitted from said annotation server to said second client.

7. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

automatically displaying a second online document on said second client in response to said first client displaying said second online document.

8. The method as in claim 7 further comprising:

automatically transmitting second graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said second graphical annotation data associated with said second online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said second graphical annotation on top of said second online document at said second client,

wherein said second online document is not modified during overlaying of said graphical annotation.

9. The method as in claim 8 further comprising:

storing said second graphical annotation data and said association with said second online document in an annotation database.

10. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

automatically transmitting second graphical annotation data generated by said second client to said first client in real-time, said second graphical annotation data associated with said online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said second graphical annotation on said online document at said first client,

wherein said online document is not modified during overlaying of said second graphical annotation.

11. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

associating a third client with said first client and said second client as part of said annotation session.

12. The method as in claim 11 further comprising:

automatically transmitting said graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said third client in real-time in response to said third client joining said annotation session; and

visually overlaying said graphical annotation on top of said online document at said third client.

13. An article of manufacture including a sequence of instructions which, when executed by a computer of a first client, cause said computer to:

establish a real-time annotation session between said first client and a second client;

automatically transmit graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said graphical annotation data associated with an online document and describing a graphical annotation; and

visually overlay said graphical annotation on said online document at said second client,

wherein said online document is not modified during overlaying of said graphical annotation.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 13 wherein said online document is a Web page.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 13 wherein said graphical annotation data is transmitted directly from said first client to said second client over a client/client communication channel.

16. The article of manufacture as in claim 13 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

store said graphical annotation data and said association with said online document in an annotation database.

17. The article of manufacture as in claim 16 wherein said annotation database resides on a server to which said first and second clients are connected.

18. The article of manufacture as in claim 13 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

automatically display a second online document on said second client in response to said first client displaying said second online document.

19. The article of manufacture as in claim 18 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

automatically transmit second graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said second graphical

annotation data associated with said second online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlay said second graphical annotation on top of said second online document at said second client,

wherein said second online document is not modified during overlaying of said graphical annotation.

20. The article of manufacture as in claim 19 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

store said second graphical annotation data and said association with said second online document in an annotation database.

21. The article of manufacture as in claim 13 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

automatically transmit second graphical annotation data generated by said second client to said first client in real-time, said second graphical annotation data associated with said online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlay said second graphical annotation on top of said online document at said first client,

wherein said online document is not modified during overlaying of said second graphical. annotation.

22. The article of manufacture as in claim 13 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

add a third client to said annotation session between said first client and a second client.

23. The article of manufacture as in claim 13 including additional instructions which, when executed by said computer, cause said computer to:

automatically transmit said graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said third client in real-time in response to said third client joining said annotation session; and

visually overlay said graphical annotation on top of said online document at said third client.

24. An annotation system comprised of:

a topology manager for coordinating a real-time group annotation session between two or more clients belonging to the same annotation group;

wherein annotations generated by a first client and associated with an online document are transmitted to other clients in said annotation group in real-time,

wherein said annotations generated by said first client are visually overlayed on top of said online document at said other clients in said annotation group, and

wherein said online document is not modified during overlaying of said annotation.

25. The system as in claim 24 further comprising:

an annotation manager for storing annotation data defining said annotations in an annotation database wherein said annotations are associated with said annotation group.

26. The system as in claim 24 further comprising:

a client/client communication interface residing on each of said clients in said annotation group and configured to transmit annotations made by any client in said group directly to other clients in said group.

27. The system as in claim 25 further comprising:

a client/server communication interface residing on each of said clients in said annotation group and configured to transmit annotations made by any client in said group directly to said annotation manager.

28. The system as in claim 24 further comprising:

a message system for automatically transmitting shortcut information from one group member to another group member.

29. The system as in claim 28 wherein said shortcut information is a Uniform Resource Locator (“

URL”

) for a Web page.

30. The system as in claim 24 further comprising:

a follow-up manager for tracking and storing each group member'"'"'s activities while each group member is involved in said annotation session.

31. The system as in claim 30 wherein one of said activities is viewing different Web pages from the Internet.

32. The system as in claim 24 further comprising:

a group members manager for storing a plurality of annotation group data in a database including a client list for each annotation group.

33. A computer-implemented method for coordinating annotations between a first client and a second client, the method comprising:

associating said first client with said second client to initiate real-time annotation session;

automatically transmitting graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said graphical annotation data associated with a specified area of said online document and describing a graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said graphical annotation on said online document at said second client,

wherein said graphical annotation visually occupies substantially the same spatial relationship with said specified area of said online document at both said first client and said second client.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein said online document is a Web page on the Internet.

35. The method of claim 33 wherein said graphical annotation data is transmitted directly from said first client to said second client over a client/client communication channel.

36. The method of claim 33 further comprising:

storing said graphical annotation data and said association with said online document in an annotation database.

37. The method as in claim 36 wherein said annotation database resides on a server to which said first and second clients are connected.

38. The method as in claim 33 wherein said graphical annotation data is transmitted from said first client to an annotation server over a client/server

communication channel before being transmitted from said annotation server to said second client.

39. The method as in claim 33 further comprising:

automatically displaying a second online document on said second client in response to said first client displaying said second online document.

40. The method as in claim 39 further comprising:

automatically transmitting second graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said second client in real-time, said second graphical annotation data associated with a specified area of said second online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said second graphical annotation on top of said second online document at said second client,

wherein said second graphical annotation visually occupies substantially the same spatial relationship with said specified area of said second online document at both said first client and said second client.

41. The method as in claim 40 further comprising:

storing said second graphical annotation data and said association with said second online document in an annotation database.

42. The method as in claim 33 further comprising:

automatically transmitting second graphical annotation data generated by said second client to said first client in real-time, said second graphical annotation data associated with a second area of said online document and describing a second graphical annotation; and

visually overlaying said second graphical annotation on said online document at said first client,

wherein said second graphical annotation visually occupies substantially the same spatial relationship with said second area of said online document at both said first client and said second client.

43. The method as in claim 33 further comprising:

associating a third client with said first client and said second client as part of said annotation session.

44. The method as in claim 43 further comprising:

automatically transmitting said graphical annotation data generated by said first client to said third client in real-time in response to said third client joining said annotation session; and

visually overlaying said graphical annotation on top of said online document at said third client,

wherein said graphical annotation visually occupies substantially the same spatial relationship with said specified area of said online document at said third client as with both said first client and said second client.

45. The method as in claim 33 further comprising:

saving said graphical annotation data in an annotation database wherein said graphical annotation data is associated with said online document.

46. The method as in claim 45 wherein said annotation database is on a server to which said first client and said second client communicate.

47. The method as in claim 45 further comprising:

said first client loading said graphical annotation data from said annotation database.

48. The method as in claim 45 further comprising:

said second client loading said graphical annotation data from said annotation database.

49. The method as in claim 47 further comprising:

loading said online document on said first client and overlaying said graphical annotation on said online document.

50. The method as in claim 48 further comprising:

loading said online document on said second client and overlaying said graphical annotation on said online document.