Event notification

• US 7,600,046 B2
• Filed: 07/03/2008
• Issued: 10/06/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yahoo Assets LLC
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bollas, James Zachary, Davis, Brockton Scott, Vaughan, Richard George, Owens, Stephen Kent, Seitz, Edward F., Whittle, Derrick W., Sollicito, Vincent L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim; Krisna
• Application Number:
  US12/168,046
• Publication Number:
  US 20080270591A1
• Time in Patent Office: 460 Days
• Field of Search: 709/248, 709220-222, 709237-238, 345/619, 715/526
• US Class Current: 709/248
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/544 Remote
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications

Abstract

A method, apparatus, computer program product, and computer system for ensuring consistency between data displayed by multiple independent client programs that can simultaneously display server-provided data. The data are accessible only from a server that is not persistently connected to the client computer systems) displaying the data, so the client programs cannot retrieve the data independently without sending a request to the server. Client programs do not poll the server by sending a request to learn that data capable of being displayed by the multiple client programs have been updated. Instead, client programs are notified by the server program receiving the request to change the data at the time the request is received.

Claims

1. A computerized method for providing consistency in display of server-provided data, the method comprising:

in response to receiving a request to make a change to server-provided data from a first control instance;

sending a notification from a server instance to a second control instance, wherein the second control instance sends the notification to a third control instance; and

the third control instance displays the change to the server-provided data in response to receiving the notification, wherein the first control instance is associated with a first application, the third control instance is associated with a third application, and each of the first and third applications displays the change to the server-provided data.

2. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the third application comprises a sidebar.

3. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first application is independent of the third application.

4. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first application provides a primary window and the third application provides a secondary window, wherein the secondary window is subservient to the primary window.

5. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first and third applications comprises a web browser.

6. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein display of the change to the data associated with the third control instance occurs in a separate window from the change to the data associated with the first control instance.

7. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein display of the change to the data associated with the third control instance occurs in a same window as the change to the data associated with the first control instance.

8. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the third control instance is one of a plurality of control instances hosted by the second control instance.

9. The computerized method of claim 7, wherein in response to receiving the request to make the change to the data from the first control instance,

sending the notification to a fourth control instance from the second control instance;

and

the fourth control instance displays the change to the data in response to receiving the notification, wherein the fourth control instance is associated with a fourth application.

10. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first control instance connects to the server instance only when the first control instance sends the request to make the change to the data to the server instance.

11. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein sending the notification from the server instance to the second control instance comprises sending the notification from the server instance to a fourth control instance, and sending the notification from the fourth control instance to the second control instance.

12. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein sending the notification from the second control instance to the third control instance comprises sending the notification from the second control instance to a fourth control instance, and sending the notification from the fourth control instance to the third control instance.

13. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first control instance does not comprise the second control instance, and the second control instance does not comprise the first control instance.

14. The computerized method of claim 1 wherein the first control instance runs in a first container instance, the second control instance runs in a second container instance, the first container instance does not comprise the second container instance, and the second container instance does not comprise the first container instance.

15. An apparatus for providing consistency in display of server-provided data, comprising:

a server including a server instance and operable to send a notification from the server instance to a second control instance in response to receiving a request to make a change to server-provided data from a first control instance, wherein

the second control instance sends the notification to a third control instance, and

the third control instance displays the change to the server-provided data in response to receiving the notification, wherein a first window displays the change to the server-provided data prior to the server sending the notification to the second control instance, the first window being associated with the first control instance, and a third window associated with the third control instance displays the change to the server-provided data.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein at least one of the first and third windows comprises a sidebar.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first window is independent of the third window.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first and third windows are provided by a browser application, and at least one of the first and third windows is a main window.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first and third windows comprise a first pane and a third pane, respectively, of a single window.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first control instance connects to the server instance only when the first control instance sends the request to make the change to the data to the server instance.

21. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein at least one of the first and third control instances does not maintain persistent connection to the server.

22. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the third control instance is one of a plurality of control instances hosted by the second control instance.

23. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first control instance does not comprise the second control instance, and the second control instance does not comprise the first control instance.

24. A computer readable storage medium comprising program code for providing consistency in display of server provided data, comprising:

providing instructions for sending a notification from a server instance to a second control instance in response to receiving a request to make a change to server-provided data from a first control instance, wherein

the second control instance sends the notification to a third control instance, and

the third control instance displays the change to the server-provided data in response to receiving the notification, wherein the first control instance displays the change to the server-provided data prior to the third control instance displaying the change to the server-provided data, and at least one of the first and third control instances does not maintain connections with the server instance.

25. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the second control instance operates independently of the first control instance.

26. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the first control instance operates independently of the third control instance.

27. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein at least one of the first and third control instances displays the change to the data in a sidebar.

28. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the first control instance displays the change to the data in a different window from the change to the data displayed by the third control instance.

29. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the first control instance displays the change to the data in a same window as the change to the data displayed by the third control instance.

30. The computer readable storage medium of claim 28, wherein the change to the data displayed by the first control instance is displayed in a first pane of the same window and the change to the data displayed by the third control instance is displayed in a third pane of the same window.

31. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the third control instance is one of a plurality of control instances hosted by the second control instance.

32. The computer readable storage medium of claim 24, wherein the first control instance is associated with a first application and the third control instance is associated with a third application, and the third application is controlled by the first application.