Dynamically providing a feed of stories about a user of a social networking system

• US 8,352,859 B2
• Filed: 02/10/2010
• Issued: 01/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Zuckerberg, Mark, Sanghvi, Ruchi, Bosworth, Andrew, Cox, Chris, Sittig, Aaron, Hughes, Chris, Germinder, Katie, Corson, Dan
• Primary Examiner(s): HUYNH, CONG LAC T
• Application Number:
  US12/703,199
• Publication Number:
  US 20100146443A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,063 Days
• Field of Search: 715/200, 715/273
• US Class Current: 715/273
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/14 Tree-structured documents parsing G06F40/205; validation G06F40/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

To display a news feed in a social network environment, a social networking system generates news items regarding activities associated with a user of a social network environment. The social networking system may also attach an informational link associated with at least one of the activities to at least one of the news items, limit access to the news items to a predetermined set of viewers, and assign an order to the news items. The news items may be displayed in the assigned order to at least one viewing user of the predetermined set of viewers, and the number of news items displayed may be dynamically limited.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

monitoring a plurality of activities in a social network environment, wherein one or more of the activities relate to a user and are performed by other users;

storing the monitored activities in a database;

for each of one or more of the activities that relates to the user and was performed by another user, generating a story;

receiving a request from a viewing user for a page of information about the user;

selecting, by a social networking system, a plurality of the generated stories that relate to the user and describe an activity that was performed by another user;

generating a page of information about the user, where the page of information comprises a listing of one or more of the selected stories; and

providing the page of information about the user to the viewing user for display.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

attaching a link associated with at least one of the activities of another user to at least one of the plurality of stories in the listing of generated stories, wherein the link enables the viewing user to participate in the same activity as the another user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s RSVP to an event, and the link enables the viewing user to RSVP to the event.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of a photo, and the link enables the viewing user to view the photo.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of a photo, and the link enables the viewing user to add another photo.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of an affiliation with a group in the social network environment, and the link enables the viewing user to add an affiliation with the group.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was tagged by another user used in a photo.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was approved by another user for a relationship.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was mentioned by another user in a posting in the social networking system.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about an activity outside the social networking system.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about activities of one or more users who are connected to the user in the social networking system.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about the user'"'"'s own activities.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the page of information comprises a web page.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting for the listing a set of stories based on an affinity of the stories with the viewing user.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a set of privacy settings established by the user; and

filtering one or more activities from the generated stories based on the user'"'"'s privacy settings.

16. A method comprising:

monitoring a plurality of activities in a social networking system, wherein one or more of the activities relate to a user and are performed by other users;

storing the monitored activities in a database;

for each of one or more of the activities that relates to the user, generating a story;

receiving a request from a viewing user for a page of information about the user;

selecting, by a social networking system, a plurality of the generated stories that relate to the user and describe an activity that was performed by another user;

generating a page of information about the user, where the page of information comprises a listing of one or more of the selected stories;

attaching a link associated with at least one of the activities of another user to at least one of the plurality of stories in the listing of generated stories, wherein the link enables the viewing user to participate in the same activity as the another user; and

providing the page of information about the user to the viewing user for display.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s RSVP to an event, and the link enables the viewing user to RSVP to the event.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of a photo, and the link enables the viewing user to view the photo.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of a photo, and the link enables the viewing user to add another photo.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein a link is attached to a story about another user'"'"'s addition of an affiliation with a group in the social network environment, and the link enables the viewing user to add an affiliation with the group.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was tagged by another user in a photo.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was approved by another user for a relationship.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing comprises a story about an activity, where the activity is that the user was mentioned by another user in a posting in the social networking system.

24. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about an activity outside the social networking system.

25. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about activities of one or more users who are connected to the user in the social networking system.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein the listing of one or more of the stories comprises one or more stories about the user'"'"'s own activities.

27. The method of claim 16, wherein the page of information comprises a web page.

28. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

selecting for the listing a set of stories based on an affinity of the stories with the viewing user.

29. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing a set of privacy settings established by the user; and

filtering one or more activities from the generated stories based on the user'"'"'s privacy settings.