Resource processing using an intermediary for context-based customization of interaction deliverables

• US 8,533,675 B2
• Filed: 02/02/2010
• Issued: 09/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: EnterpriseWeb LLC
• Original Assignee: EnterpriseWeb LLC
• Inventors: Duggal, Dave M., Malyk, William J.
• Primary Examiner(s): MITCHELL, JASON D
• Application Number:
  US12/698,361
• Publication Number:
  US 20100199260A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,316 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/120
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/20 Software design
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/70 Software maintenance or management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

A software application includes work order resources, each of which defines an atomic operation for the software application, and a construction service resource, which processes the work order resources in response to all interaction requests for the software application. Each interaction request is received from a client and identifies a corresponding work order, which the construction service processes to dynamically construct a set of deliverables, which can include a custom representation of the work order. While processing the interaction request, the construction service, as directed by the work order, can make one or more requests to context resources for context information corresponding to an activity for which the interaction was requested to construct the set of deliverables. The work order resource can comprise a reflective program that enables the construction service to dynamically determine and construct the set of deliverables, including the next appropriate interaction(s) using the context information, thereby directing a set of atomic operations as part of an activity being performed and enabling the dynamic context-based construction of interaction deliverables.

Claims

1. A software application comprising program code embodied in at least one computer-readable storage component, the software application comprising:

a plurality of work order resources, wherein each work order resource defines an atomic operation for the software application and has a corresponding unique work order resource identifier;

a construction service resource configured to process all interaction requests for the software application, wherein each interaction request includes a work order resource identifier, and wherein each interaction request is made as part of an activity being performed using the software application, wherein the construction service resource is configured to process each interaction request by;

processing a representation of a work order resource corresponding to the work order resource identifier in the interaction request, wherein the processing includes constructing a set of deliverables as directed by the representation of the work order resource and context information for an activity corresponding to the requested interaction; and

providing the set of deliverables in response to the interaction request;

a system controller, wherein the system controller is configured to receive all interaction requests for the software application, and in response to receiving an interaction request, instantiate a container for processing the request, request a representation of the construction service resource for processing the interaction request, and provide the representation of the construction service resource the work order resource identifier included in the interaction request for use during execution of the representation of the construction service resource in the instantiated container; and

a set of context resources, wherein the representation of the work order resource processing includes the construction service requesting a representation of a context resource referenced by the work order resource, receiving the representation of the context resource, and adjusting the work order resource processing based on the representation of the context resource.

2. The software application of claim 1, wherein the representation of the construction service resource requests a representation of the work order resource using the work order resource identifier.

3. The software application of claim 1, wherein all requests made in the software application use a standard interface protocol.

4. The software application of claim 1, wherein the work order resource includes at least one relative reference to a context resource.

5. The software application of claim 4, wherein the representation of the work order resource processing includes the construction service refining and making absolute the at least one relative reference using the context information for the activity to dynamically adjust the representation of the work order resource processing.

6. The software application of claim 1, wherein the set of context resources includes a work order condition resource, and wherein at least one of the plurality of work order resources is configured to enable the construction service to dynamically construct the set of deliverables by selecting at least one of a plurality of actions using a representation of the work order condition resource.

7. The software application of claim 1, wherein the set of context resources includes a customization resource, and wherein at least one of the plurality of work order resources is configured to enable the construction service to dynamically construct the set of deliverables by performing a set of actions using a representation of the customization resource.

8. The software application of claim 1, wherein the context information for the activity includes client data for a client generating the interaction request.

9. The software application of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of work order resources is configured to enable the construction service to dynamically construct the set of deliverables by dynamically identifying a set of next work order resource identifiers based on the context information for the activity, each next work order resource identifier corresponding to a valid next interaction for the activity.

10. The software application of claim 1, further comprising a set of utility resources, wherein each utility resource is configured to process a representation of a resource of a corresponding type and provide a processed representation of the resource in response to a request for a representation of the resource.

11. The software application of claim 1, wherein each interaction request addresses the system controller, and wherein the plurality of work order resources includes a plurality of under-specified reflective programs.

12. The software application of claim 1, wherein the software application is configured to perform a plurality of activities, wherein each of the plurality of activities requires a plurality of interaction requests, and wherein the set of deliverables for each of the plurality of interaction requests includes a custom representation of a resource dynamically constructed in response to the interaction request.

13. A computer-implemented method of processing interactions for a software application, the method comprising:

receiving an interaction request at a system controller executing on a computer system, wherein the system controller receives all interaction requests for the software application, and wherein, in response to receiving each interaction request, the system controller processes the interaction request by;

instantiating a container on the computer system in response to receiving the interaction request;

requesting a representation of a construction service resource of the software application for execution in the container; and

providing the representation of the construction service resource a work order resource identifier corresponding to the interaction request for use during execution of the representation of the construction service resource in the instantiated container, and

wherein the representation of the construction service resource processes the interaction request by;

obtaining a representation of a work order resource corresponding to the work order resource identifier in response to the receiving;

processing the representation of the work order resource, wherein the processing includes requesting a representation of a context resource identified by the work order resource, receiving the representation of the context resource, and constructing a set of deliverables as directed by the representation of the work order resource and context information for an activity corresponding to the requested interaction, and wherein the processing is adjusted based on the representation of the context resource; and

providing the set of deliverables in response to the interaction request.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising terminating the representation of the construction service resource after the interaction request processing.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the work order resource includes at least one relative reference to a context resource.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the representation of the work order resource processing includes refining and making absolute the at least one relative reference using the context information for the activity to dynamically adjust the representation of the work order resource processing.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the adjusting includes selecting a subset of a plurality of actions using the representation of the context resource.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the adjusting includes dynamically identifying a set of next work order resource identifiers based on the representation of the context resource, each next work order resource identifier corresponding to a valid next interaction for the activity.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the computer system is a server, and wherein the context information includes metadata regarding the activity acquired by the construction service as directed by the representation of the work order resource.

20. A computer system including:

a processing component; and

a storage component, wherein the storage component includes at least one computer-readable medium comprising a software application including;

a plurality of work order resources, wherein each work order resource defines an atomic operation for the software application and has a corresponding unique work order resource identifier;

a construction service resource configured to process all interaction requests for the software application, wherein each interaction request includes a work order resource identifier, and wherein each interaction request is made as part of an activity being performed using the software application, wherein the construction service resource is configured to process each interaction request by;

processing a representation of a work order resource corresponding to the work order resource identifier in the interaction request, wherein the processing includes constructing a set of deliverables

as directed by the representation of the work order resource and context information for an activity corresponding to the requested interaction; and

providing the set of deliverables in response to the interaction request;

a system controller, wherein the system controller is configured to receive all interaction requests for the software application, and in response to receiving an interaction request, instantiate a container for processing the request, request a representation of the construction service resource for processing the interaction request, and provide the representation of the construction service resource the work order resource identifier included in the interaction request for use during execution of the representation of the construction service resource in the instantiated container; and

a set of context resources, wherein the representation of the work order resource processing includes the construction service requesting a representation of a context resource referenced by the work order resource, receiving a representation of the context resource, and adjusting the work order resource processing based on the representation of the context resource.

21. The computer system of claim 20, wherein the work order resource includes at least one relative reference to a context resource.

22. The computer system of claim 21, wherein the representation of the work order resource processing includes refining and making absolute the at least one relative reference using the context information for the activity to dynamically adjust the representation of the work order resource processing.

23. The computer system of claim 20, wherein the software application further includes a set of utility resources, wherein each utility resource is configured to process a representation of a resource of a corresponding type and provide a processed representation of the resource in response to a request for a representation of the resource.