Content-facilitated speculative preparation and rendering

• US 8,341,245 B1
• Filed: 09/26/2011
• Issued: 12/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Roskind, James, Belshe, Michael, Chan, William
• Primary Examiner(s): Meky, Moustafa M
• Application Number:
  US13/245,413
• Time in Patent Office: 456 Days
• Field of Search: 709200-203, 709217-227, 709/228, 709/229
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2216/13 Prefetching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5681 Pre-fetching or pre-delivering data based on network characteristics

Abstract

Methods and systems for reducing web page load time include obtaining speculative information associated with a uniform resource locator (URL). The method and system also include determining whether to prefetch content of the URL based on the speculative information. The method and system further include providing an instruction to prefetch the URL content when a determination to prefetch results.

Claims

1. A method for web content prefetching comprising:

obtaining speculative information associated with a uniform resource locator (URL), wherein the speculative information includes a likelihood that a user will navigate to the URL and an estimated value of cacheability;

analyzing a processing availability associated with a client;

determining, using a computing device, whether to prefetch content of the URL based on the likelihood that the user will navigate to the URL and the processing availability associated with the client;

when the estimated value of cacheability is below a threshold, determining that the URL content should not be stored in a cache;

when the estimated value of cacheability is not below a threshold, determining that the URL content should be stored in the cache; and

providing an instruction to prefetch the URL content when the determining results in a determination to prefetch,

wherein the computing device includes a client computing device, and the obtaining, analyzing, determining, and providing are performed at the client computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising preprocessing the prefetched URL content.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining speculative information includes obtaining the speculative information present in a web page header.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining speculative information includes obtaining the speculative information present in web page content.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining speculative information includes obtaining the speculative information present in a link tag associated with the URL.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining speculative information includes obtaining the speculative information via a scripting language.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining speculative information includes obtaining a probability that a user would navigate to the URL.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether to prefetch content includes analyzing a context of the URL.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether to prefetch content includes analyzing bandwidth availability associated with the client.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the URL content should be stored in the cache includes analyzing caching properties associated with the client.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein when the processing availability associated with the client is below a second threshold, the determining whether to prefetch content of the URL results in a determination to not prefetch the URL content irrespective of other conditions.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether to prefetch content includes evaluating whether a benefit of providing an instruction to prefetch outweighs a cost of providing an instruction to prefetch, the cost being based on the processing availability associated with the client at a point in time.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the analyzing includes analyzing the processing availability associated with the client based on a point in time and the determining whether to prefetch content includes determining whether to prefetch content of the URL based on the processing availability associated with the client based on the point in time.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing the URL content in the cache at the client computing device when it is determined that the URL content should be stored in the cache; and

creating a cache expiration policy for the URL content, the cache expiration policy including a time period after prefetching the URL content that the URL content is to be stored in the cache and available for rendering.

15. A system for web content prefetching comprising:

a speculative information acquirer, implemented with a computing device, configured to obtain speculative information associated with a uniform resource locator (URL), wherein the speculative information includes a likelihood that a user will navigate to the URL and an estimated value of cacheability; and

a speculator configured to

analyze a processing availability associated with a client;

determine whether to prefetch content of the URL based on the likelihood that the user will navigate to the URL and the processing availability associated with the client;

when the estimated value of cacheability is below a threshold, determine that the URL content should not be stored in a cache;

when the estimated value of cacheability is not below a threshold, determine that the URL content should be stored in the cache; and

provide an instruction to prefetch the URL content when the determining results in a determination to prefetch,

wherein the computing device includes a client computing device, and the speculative information acquirer and the speculator are implemented with the client computing device.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising a renderer configured to preprocess the prefetched URL content.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculative information acquirer is further configured to obtain the speculative information present in a web page header.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculative information acquirer is further configured to obtain the speculative information present in web page content.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculative information acquirer is further configured to obtain the speculative information present in a link tag associated with the URL.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculative information acquirer is further configured to obtain the speculative information via a scripting language.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculative information acquirer is further configured to obtain a probability that a user would navigate to the URL.

22. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculator is further configured to analyze a context of the URL.

23. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculator is further configured to analyze bandwidth availability of the client.

24. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculator is further configured to analyze caching properties of the client.

25. The system of claim 15, wherein the speculator is further configured to when the processing availability associated with the client is below a second threshold, determine to not prefetch the URL content irrespective of other conditions.

26. A computer program product comprising a computer-usable medium having computer program logic recorded thereon for enabling a processor to prefetch web content, the computer program logic comprising:

first computer readable program code that enables a processor to obtain speculative information associated with a uniform resource locator (URL), wherein the speculative information includes a likelihood that a user will navigate to the URL and an estimated value of cacheability;

second computer readable program code that enables a processor to analyze a processing availability associated with a client;

third computer readable program code that enables a processor to determine, using a computing device, whether to prefetch content of the URL based on the likelihood that the user will navigate to the URL and the processing availability associated with the client;

fourth computer readable program code that enables a processor to when the estimated value of cacheability is below a threshold, determine that the URL content should not be stored in a cache;

fifth computer readable program code that enables a processor to when the estimated value of cacheability is not below a threshold determine that the URL, content should be stored in the cache; and

sixth computer readable program code that enables a processor to provide an instruction to prefetch the URL content when the determining results in a determination to prefetch,

wherein the computing device includes a client computing device, and the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth computer readable program code are implemented using the client computing device.

27. The computer program product of claim 26, wherein the first computer readable program code that enables a processor to obtain speculative information associated with a uniform resource locator (URL) includes seventh computer readable program code that enables a processor to obtain a probability that a user would navigate to the URL.