Method for translucent online interaction

• US 6,970,931 B1
• Filed: 09/14/2000
• Issued: 11/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Ellis, Jason B., Laff, Mark R., Malkin, Peter K., Erickson, Thomas D., Yu, Philip S., Richards, John T., Wolf, Tracee, Bellamy, Rachel K. E., Kellogg, Wendy A.
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, KHANH Q
• Application Number:
  US09/662,499
• Time in Patent Office: 1,902 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/220, 709/222, 709/224, 709/228, 709/230, 709/227, 709/232, 705/37, 370/252, 455/4.2, 379/26, 379/90, 707/9
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for representing users within an online environment. The method allows users to define environmental parameters for controlling user interaction, define user representation parameters of user data within the environment, capture user data from the users, build an abstract graphical display of the environment, and build a user representation within the abstract graphical display for each user'"'"'s data.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for representing a user within an online environment comprising the steps of:

defining a plurality of environmental parameters for controlling user interaction, the environmental parameters including two-dimensional space parameter and a time parameter, wherein defining, the plurality of environment parameters comprises,

determining an environmental structure,

governing user interaction within the environment according to the user parameters and the environmental structure, and

displaying an abstract graphical cue of a first parameter of the user in the abstract graphical display of the environment, wherein the abstract graphical cue moves through the abstract graphical display of the environment according to a second parameter of the user to provide a second abstract graphic cue;

defining a plurality of user representation parameters of user data within the environment;

capturing user data from the user;

displaying an abstract graphical display of the environment to the user; and

displaying a user representation within the abstract graphical display incorporating the user data to the user, wherein the user representation appears at a location in the two-dimensional space according to a level of user activity over time.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the environmental structure is one of an auction, a queue of users, a chat room, a conference room, a news group, an online help desk, and a business interface.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of defining the user representation based on a user profile.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the user data is captured from a user'"'"'s device registered with a social proxy providing service.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user data is captured from a user'"'"'s activity within the online environment, wherein the user data is abstracted to provide the user representation.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein user data is updated periodically.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the user navigates the abstract graphical display by selecting an object to reveal information about the object.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the object is an element represented in the abstract graphical display, comprising associated data.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the information is one of a hierarchical relationship, content of a compound data object, a zoomed view, and user information.

10. A computer implemented method for representing a social proxy comprising the steps of:

displaying an abstract graphical display of the social proxy for a virtual environment and facilitating user interaction, wherein the social proxy is a geometric shape defining a boundary of the virtual environment, wherein the social proxy for the virtual environment includes a two-dimensional space parameter and a time parameter,

wherein displaying the abstract graphical display of the social proxy for a virtual environment comprises,

determining the geometric shape,

governing user interaction within the social proxy according to the geometric shape, and

displaying an abstract graphical cue of a first parameter of the user in the abstract graphical display of the social proxy for a virtual environment, wherein the abstract graphical cue moves through the abstract graphical display of the social proxy for a virtual environment according to a second parameter of the user to provide a second abstract graphical cue;

defining a user proxy for a user, the user proxy having updatable variables;

displaying the user proxy within the geometric shape defining the boundary of the virtual environment, wherein the user proxy appears at a location in the two-dimensional space according to a level of user activity over time; and

updating user proxy variables periodically.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the social proxy is defined by a provider and the user proxy is defined by an abstraction of the updatable variables.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprises the steps of:

defining a proxy for a provider; and

displaying the provider within the social proxy.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the provider is the user.

14. The method of claim 10, further includes the step of displaying a link to a second social proxy.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the social proxy is one of a plurality of social proxies within a hierarchical system of proxies.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the social proxy is used interactively by the user with an application, the application is an extension of the social proxy.

17. The method of claim 10, further comprising displaying a portion of the abstract graphical display of the social proxy based on a user'"'"'s access credentials.