System and method for automatically personalizing web portals and web services based upon usage history

• US 6,959,319 B1
• Filed: 09/11/2000
• Issued: 10/25/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Sundaresan, Neelakantan, Huang, Anita Wai-Ling
• Primary Examiner(s): LIN, WEN TAI
• Application Number:
  US09/659,558
• Time in Patent Office: 1,870 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/245, 709217-219, 709/224, 709/229, 707/10, 705/14, 705/27
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers

Abstract

A method of customizing a web page by sensing a user'"'"'s access of objects included in the web page or objects that are specified by the user in advance, wherein by “access” it means using the functions provided by the objects after they are locally displayed. The web page is customized in such a fashion that only the objects that have been used for a predetermined number of times or the pre-specified objects that have been used for the predetermined number of times would be included in a web page for the user'"'"'s subsequent visits.

Claims

1. A method of displaying predetermined objects on a web page accessed by a user, comprising:

one of displaying only those objects of said web page which said user has accessed a predetermined number of times previously, and displaying only those objects of said web page which said user has specified in advance,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sensing a number of times a user visits a website; and

sensing links for objects and other interactive objects on a home page of a website, accessed by said user.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

sensing classes of objects to which the links and other interactive objects belong.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said sensing is performed automatically.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

registering, by said user, a preference for which of said objects are to be displayed, said displaying of said objects being based on said registering.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically prioritizing parts of a Web service associated with said web page that are repeatedly used by said user.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically deprioritizing parts of a Web service associated with said web page that are used less than said predetermined amount of times by said user.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

splitting said web page into at least one page based upon a usage criteria specified.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

splitting said web page into at least one page based upon a usage criteria specified.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein said splitting comprises:

splitting into pages on a basis of classes with each page comprising parts of at least one class.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein said splitting comprises:

splitting into pages on a basis of classes with each page comprising parts of at least one class.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein said prioritizing is based on structural information on pages representing said web service, said structure information having a hypertext mark-up language (HTML) format.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein said prioritizing is based on structural information on pages representing said web service, said structure information having other than a hypertext mark-up language (HTML) format.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

linking split pages such that said user may selectively launch said services that the user has used less than said predetermined number of times previously.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating multiple links at each level of a hierarchy of said Web page such that said user can go between parts used more than said predetermined number of times and parts used less than said predetermined number of times.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying comprises:

displaying links as pictorial forms that are thumbnail forms of said web page, thereby providing said user with a visual cue as to whether said link should be followed.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

bypassing said one of displaying only those objects, on user request, so that said user sees said page as served by a server.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

registering, by said user, a browser to be accessed through a proxy server.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking a plurality of different users.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking a plurality of different web services.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

specifying, by said user, at least one of a different threshold and a different criteria for identifying a frequent accessing of said objects.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising:

tracking of said frequent accessing by maintaining information and transforming an original page based upon structure links.

23. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a session of a user with a web service.

24. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a repository of user usage of a web service by updating previous visits with new visits based upon at least one of web page structure, user clicks and input, and user customization.

25. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using an extensible markup language (XML)-based schema language for specifying an update to a visit history.

26. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

registering, by the user, a browser of the user with a customizing service.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said user specifies, in the browser, visits to which sites should go through the customizing service, such that when the user tries to access a registered site from the browser, a downloaded page is intercepted by the customizing service and a structural information on the page is examined by the customizing service.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein only links and structures, used by said user said predetermined number of times or specified by said user, are placed on a home page of a website, other pages of said website being available through an indirect link.

29. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing an image object on said web page for allowing the user to visit at least a portion of at least one of a rest of classes and a rest of pages associated with said web page, by said user clicking on said image.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

creating a hyperlink out of an icon corresponding to the image represented by at least one of the rest of the classes and the rest of the pages, such that said user obtains a thumbnail of said at least one of the rest of the classes and pages associated with said web page.

31. The method of claim 1, further comprising registering a customization of said user, said registering comprising:

specifying a universal resource locator of the web page and optionally a set of universal resource locator (URL) patterns to indicate link patterns;

specifying a threshold for the customization, for informing after how many uses of the web service the customization of the service for the user should commence; and

automatically introducing into a browser of the user, options for asking the browser to go via a customizer service when accessing the URL for the service that the user specified.

32. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

invoking, by said user, a web browser;

specifying a universal resource locator (URL);

determining whether said URL is a registered URL; and

if the URL is determined to be a registered URL, then the browser visiting the page through a customizing proxy server, and if not then the browser visiting the site, said browser receiving the page at least one of either directly from a server and from the customizing proxy server and serving the page to the user.

33. The method of claim 1, wherein customizing of said web page comprises:

receiving a universal resource locator (URL) request from a web browser of said user;

sending a request to the web server corresponding to the URL and obtaining the page;

comparing with a database of (user, service) pairs whether the URL is a service URL registered by the user, and if said URL is registered by said user, determining whether a number of visits to the web service by the user has exceeded said predetermined number of times;

if the predetermined number is exceeded, then accessing an access history of the user for the web service from the database and customizing the web page based upon the access history, to create a modified page, and returning a modified page to the browser;

if the predetermined number is not exceeded, then incrementing an access count by said user to the service and returning the page to the browser; and

if said URL matches an access pattern within a service URL structure, updating a visit history for the access pattern for the registered web service and returning the page to the user'"'"'s browser.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein for each web service URL, an extensible mark-up language (XML) document is stored representing a structure of the document.

35. The method of claim 30, wherein as the user visits the website repeatedly, the XML document is updated to specify which parts of the page structure were accessed.

36. A method of selectively tracking of web service usage by a user, comprising:

sensing a number of times a user visits a website;

sensing links for objects and other interactive objects on a home page of the website, accessed by the user; and

displaying only those objects which the user accesses a predetermined number of times,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

37. The method of claim 36, further comprising:

sensing classes of objects to which the links and other interactive objects belong.

38. A system for displaying predetermined objects on a web page accessed by a user, comprising:

a sensor for sensing whether a web page has been accessed by said user; and

a display for displaying one of only those objects of said web page which said user has accessed a predetermined number of times previously, and only those objects of said web page which said user has specified in advance,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

39. A system for selectively tracking web service usage by a user, comprising:

means for sensing a number of times a user visits website;

means for sensing links for objects and other interactive objects on a home page of the website, accessed by the user; and

a display for displaying only those objects which the user has accessed a predetermined number of times previously,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

40. The system of claim 39, further comprising:

means for sensing classes of objects to which the links and the other interactive objects belong.

41. A signal-bearing medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform a method of displaying predetermined objects on a web page accessed by a user, said method comprising:

one of displaying only those objects of said web page which said user has accessed a predetermined number of times, and displaying only those objects of said web page which said user has specified in advance,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

42. A signal-bearing medium tangibly embodying a program of machine-readable instructions executable by a digital processing apparatus to perform a method of selectively tracking of web service usage by a user, said method comprising:

sensing a number of times a user visits a website;

sensing links for objects and other interactive objects on a home page of the website, accessed by the user; and

displaying only those objects which the user accesses a predetermined number of times,

wherein if at least one of a number of visits to a web site is determined to exceed said predetermined number of times and if the user has specified the user'"'"'s preferences in advance, the next time the user visits the site, the user obtains a version of the site that has been customized to the user'"'"'s previous visits, such that a browser of the user does not download text and graphics that are not used by the user said predetermined number of times.

43. The medium of claim 42, further comprising:

sensing classes of objects to which the links and other interactive objects belong.