Adjusting timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of server to download data therefrom

• US 7,711,794 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2005
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: X Corp. (f/k/a Twitter, Inc.) (X Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Russell, Paul F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Follansbee; John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mejia; Anthony
• Application Number:
  US11/047,841
• Publication Number:
  US 20060173971A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,918 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/223, 709/230, 709/224
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/234 for tracking messages

Abstract

The timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of a server to download data from the server is changed. In one embodiment, user input in relation to polling the server to download data from the server is detected. In response, the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is changed based at least on the user input detected. In another embodiment, the amount of data downloaded from the server at each polling is tracked. The timing between pollings of the server is thus changed based on the amount of data downloaded from the server during the pollings of the server. The server may be an email server, such that the data downloaded therefrom includes email messages.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

detecting user input in relation to an application program of a client polling a server to download data from the server for viewing by a user at the client;

tracking an amount of data downloaded from the server at automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server;

changing a timing between the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server based at least on the user input detected, and based on the amount of data downloaded from the server at the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is increased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during a most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is less than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than the predetermined threshold,

and wherein the predetermined threshold is greater than zero; and

,

displaying at the client by the application program the data downloaded from the server for viewing by the user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically polling the server without user initiation to download data from the server, at time periods controlled by the timing.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the user input in relation to polling the server comprises detecting that a user is initiating polling the server, such that the timing between the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased in response.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the user input in relation to polling the server comprises detecting that an application program window in which the data is downloaded from the server has been brought into foreground relative to other windows, such that the timing between the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased in response.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined threshold is equal to an average amount of data downloaded from the server during previous automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein polling the server to download the data from the server comprises polling an email server to download email messages from the email server.

7. A method comprising:

tracking email messages downloaded from a email server at each of a plurality of automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server; and

,

changing a timing between future automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server based at least on email messages downloaded during a most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the email server,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server is decreased when a number of email messages downloaded from the email server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server is increased when the number of email messages downloaded from the email server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than the predetermined threshold,

and wherein the predetermined threshold is greater than zero.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising automatically polling the mail server without user initiation to download email messages from the server, at time periods controlling by the timing.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the predetermined threshold is equal to an average number of email messages downloaded during previous automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising detecting user input in relation to polling the email server to download email messages from the email server,

wherein changing the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the mail server is further based on the user input detected.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein detecting the user input in relation to polling the email server comprises detecting that a user is initiating polling the email server, such that the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server is decreased in response.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein detecting the user input in relation to polling the email server comprises detecting that an application program window in which the email messages are downloaded from the email server has been brought into foreground relative to other windows, such that the timing between the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the email server is decreased in response.

13. A method comprising:

tracking an amount of data downloaded from a server at each of a plurality of automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server;

changing a timing between the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server based on the amount of data downloaded from the server at the automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server; and

,

automatically polling the server without user initiation to download data from the server, at time periods controlled by the timing,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during a most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is increased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is less than the predetermined threshold,

and wherein the predetermined threshold is greater than zero.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the predetermined threshold is equal to an average amount of data downloaded from the server during previous automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein polling the server to download the data from the server comprises polling an email server to download email messages from the email server.

16. A computing device comprising:

a communication mechanism to communicatively couple the computing device to a network to which a server is also communicatively coupled, the communication mechanism including at least hardware;

an application program to periodically and automatically poll the server without user initiation to download data from the server; and

,

a mechanism implemented at least in hardware, the mechanism to change a timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server based at least on user input in relation to polling the server to download data from the server, and based at least on an amount of data downloaded from the server at each automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is increased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during a most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is less than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than the predetermined threshold,

and wherein the predetermined threshold is greater than zero.

17. The computing device of claim 16, wherein the user input is one of:

user initiation of manual polling of the server; and

,

user initiation of bringing a window of the application program into foreground relative to other windows.

18. An article of manufacture comprising:

a tangible computer-readable data storage medium; and

,

means in the medium for changing a timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of a server to download data from the server based on user input in relation to polling the server and based at least on an amount of data downloaded from the server at each automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is increased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during a most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is less than a predetermined threshold,

wherein the timing between automatic, non-user-initiated pollings of the server is decreased when the amount of data downloaded from the server during the most recent automatic, non-user-initiated polling of the server is greater than the predetermined threshold,

and wherein the predetermined threshold is greater than zero.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 18, wherein the server is an email server, such that the email server is polled to download email messages from the email server.