System and method for providing user help according to user category

• US 7,526,722 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2005
• Issued: 04/28/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Wadhwa, Gaurav
• Primary Examiner(s): Desai; Rachna S
• Assistant Examiner(s): DiStefano; Gregory A
• Application Number:
  US11/319,418
• Publication Number:
  US 20070157092A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,216 Days
• Field of Search: 715/705, 715/707, 715/708, 706/11
• US Class Current: 715/707
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/453 Help systems

Abstract

In a system and method for providing user help information, based on a user history, a user proficiency category may be determined, at a point during execution of a sequence of program instructions, it may be determined based on the user proficiency category whether to output a portion of stored user help information that is, in particular, associated with the point in the execution, and based on the latter determination, the portion may be automatically provided without receiving a request for user help information.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for providing user help information, comprising:

a processor storing information regarding a particular error, the stored information indicating that occurrence of the particular error is to be used as an indication of a first proficiency level;

subsequent to use of a logged occurrence of the particular error as the indication of the first proficiency level, the processor updating the stored information regarding the particular error to indicate that occurrence of the particular error is to be used as an indication of a proficiency level that is more advanced than the first proficiency level;

based on a user history and the stored information, the processor determining a user proficiency category; and

during execution of a program, the processor automatically and selectively providing a stored user help information that instructs on avoidance of an error conditional upon that the error, on avoidance of which the user help information instructs, is associated with the determined user proficiency category.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user proficiency category is determined based on a calculation that uses a plurality of user history factors, each factor assigned a corresponding weight.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user proficiency category is determined based on at least one of a number of system log-ins, particular system features used by a user with whom the user history is associated, a number of a set of events that have occurred during operation of a system by the user, and types of events that have occurred during operation of the system by the user.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user proficiency category is determined based on at least the number of system log-ins, and the number of system log-ins is decremented if a predetermined amount of time passes between log-ins.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein:

after occurrence of a particular event, the number of the set of events is incremented; and

after at least one of passage of a predetermined amount of time from the occurrence of the particular event, a predetermined number of system log-ins after the occurrence of the particular event, and a predetermined times a point in an execution of program instructions at which the particular event occurred is revisited by operation of the user, without recurrence of the particular event, the number of the set of events is decremented.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, based on the user history, a plurality of user proficiency categories are determined, each associated with a corresponding aspect of a system.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, whether to provide a particular portion of the stored user help information is determined in accordance with a particular one of the plurality of proficiency categories that is associated with a point in program execution at which the determination regarding whether to provide the particular portion is made.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein, whether to provide a particular portion of the stored user help information is determined in accordance with a particular one of the plurality of proficiency categories that is associated with an aspect of the system with which is associated an event for which the determination is made.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion is provided upon a condition that the user history does not indicate a previous provision of the portion that was in accordance with the user proficiency category, further comprising:

responsive to providing the portion, updating the user history to indicate the previous provision of the portion.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the error, on avoidance of which the user help information instructs, is associated with the determined proficiency category independent of occurrence of the error, the method further comprising:

clearing the indication in the user history of the previous provision of the portion upon occurrence of the error, on avoidance of which the user help information instructs.

11. The method of claim 1, farther comprising:

providing a portion of the stored user help information that is associated with a task responsive to log-in by a user conditional upon that a user history associated with the user indicates that that user previously logged-off without completing the task.

12. A tangibly-embodied computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions adapted to be executed by a processor, the instructions which, when executed, cause the processor to perform a method for providing user help information, the method comprising:

storing information regarding a particular error, the stored information indicating that occurrence of the particular error is to be used as an indication of a first proficiency level;

subsequent to use of a logged occurrence of the particular error as the indication of the first proficiency level, updating the stored information regarding the particular error to indicate that occurrence of the particular error is to be used as an indication of a proficiency level that is more advanced than the first proficiency level;

based on a user history and the stored information, determining a user proficiency category; and

during execution of a program, automatically and selectively providing a stored user help information that instructs on avoidance of an error conditional upon that the error, on avoidance of which the user help information instructs, is associated with the determined user proficiency category.

13. A computer-implemented method for providing user help information, comprising:

during each of a first and a second execution of a sequence of program instructions, in response to reaching a predetermined point in the execution, a processor automatically determining whether to output, of a stored user help information, a portion that includes instructions regarding how to avoid occurrence of an event at one of the predetermined point and a point in the sequence proximal to the predetermined point, wherein, during the first execution, the event is associated with a first proficiency category; and

subsequent to the first execution, the processor updating, based on a plurality of user histories, stored information regarding the event, the updated information associating the event with a second proficiency category;

wherein;

during the first execution, the portion is determined to be provided conditional upon that a user proficiency category, determined based on a respective one of the user histories associated with the first execution, is the first proficiency category;

during the second execution, the portion is determined to be provided conditional upon that a user proficiency category, determined based on a respective one of the user histories associated with the second execution, is the second proficiency category.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

compiling, for each of at least one of the respective user histories, a user-specific help manual that includes, of the stored user help information, only portions that are associated with the respectively determined user proficiency category.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

for each of the at least one of the respective user histories, automatically displaying the respective user-specific help manual in response to a log-in by a user associated with the respective user history.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

for each of the at least one of the respective user histories, displaying a selectable icon, selection of the icon being interpreted as an instruction to display the respective user-specific help manual.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein, for one of the at least one of the respective user histories, a plurality of user-specific help manuals are compiled, each corresponding to a different one of a plurality of stored tasks, wherein the portions included in a particular one of the user-specific help manuals depends on the task to which the particular user-specific help manual corresponds, the method farther comprising:

in response to an operation to open a particular one of the stored tasks, providing the user-specific help manual corresponding to the particular task.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein:

the user histories include an indication of a user role; and

the user proficiency categories depend on the indicated user role.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein, whether occurrence of a particular event is logged in a user history depends on a user role indicated by the user history.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the user proficiency categories determined based on the respective user histories are user-electable.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein a failure to perform an anticipated action is logged in one of the user histories as an error.