Installable web applications

• US 8,849,957 B1
• Filed: 05/18/2011
• Issued: 09/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Boodman, Aaron, Kay, Erik, Weinstein, Rafael, Perry, Matthew, Murphy, Glen
• Primary Examiner(s): Osman, Ramy M
• Application Number:
  US13/110,878
• Time in Patent Office: 1,231 Days
• Field of Search: 717/174, 717/178, 709/203, 709/217, 709/219, 709/223, 709/220
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0766 Error or fault reporting or storing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9566 URL specific, e.g. using aliases, detecting broken or misspelled links
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/53 by executing in a restricted environment, e.g. sandbox or secure virtual machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/57 Certifying or maintaining trusted computer platforms, e.g. secure boots or power-downs, version controls, system software checks, secure updates or assessing vulnerabilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44526 Plug-ins; Add-ons
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1483 service impersonation, e.g. phishing, pharming or web spoofing detection of rogue wireless access points H04W12/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 : involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 : Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 : Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

According to one general aspect, a method of executing a web application installed on an apparatus may include executing, via a processor included by the apparatus, a web browser. The method may include loading, via the web browser, the web application. In some embodiments, the web application may include a manifest and at least a portion of a web site and wherein the web application was packaged as an installable entity. The method may further include managing, by the web browser, the execution of the web application. The method may include accessing, via the web browser, from a local storage medium one or more portions of the web site included by the web application. In some embodiments, the one or more portions of the web site may have been stored in the local storage medium when the web application was installed.

Claims

1. A method of executing a web application installed on an apparatus, the method comprising:

executing, via a processor included by the apparatus, an operating system;

loading, via the operating system, the web application, wherein the web application includes a manifest that is a static metadata file that includes a local storage field indicating that one or more portions of the web application is stored in a local storage medium, and wherein the web application was packaged as an installable entity; and

executing the web application under direct control of the operating system, including;

accessing from the local storage medium one or more portions of the web application as indicated by the local storage field, and wherein the one or more portions of the web application were stored in the local storage medium during installation of the web application, and

accessing from a remote server at least a second portion of the web application indicated by the manifest.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the web application includes a self-contained web site, and wherein accessing from the local storage medium one or more portions of the web application includes never accessing any portion of the self-contained web site from the remote server, and only accessing portions of the self-contained web site from the local storage medium.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the web application includes a video game.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the local storage field indicates that any portions of the web application identified by at least a first part of a universal resource locator (URL) are stored in the local storage medium.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the manifest includes at least a field that indicates that the one or more portions and the second portion are both part of a same origin/extent.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein directly controlling the execution of the web application includes:

acquiring one or more permissions to access one or more system resources from a user of the apparatus; and

granting or denying the permissions to access the system resources to portions of the web application regardless of whether the portion of the web application is stored locally or remotely.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically updating the web application, wherein automatically updating the web application includes automatically updating the one or more portions of the web application stored in the local storage medium.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the web application includes a first portion of a web site that is locally stored and includes static web pages and client-side executable code that is executed by the apparatus;

and

wherein the second portion of the web application is remotely stored and includes dynamically changing web pages and server-side executable code.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein directly controlling the execution of the web application includes:

receiving a request from a user to access a requested portion of the web application;

determining if the requested portion of the web application was stored locally when the web application was installed;

if the requested portion of the web application was stored locally when the web application was installed, causing the requested portion to be accessed from the local storage medium; and

if the requested portion of the web application was not stored locally when the web application was installed, causing the requested portion to be accessed from the remote server.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a processor configured to execute executable code defining an operating system;

a local storage medium configured to store at least a portion of a web application;

the web application comprising at least a portion of a web page and wherein the web application was packaged as an installable entity as instructed by a manifest that is a static metadata file included by the installable entity, wherein the manifest includes a local storage field indicating which portion of the web application is stored in the local storage medium; and

the operating system configured to;

launch the web application without use of a native application not included by the operating system,

manage the execution of the web application,

access from the local storage medium one or more portions of the web application as indicated by the local storage field, and wherein the one or more portions of the web application were stored in the local storage medium-during installation of the web application, and

access from a remote server at least a second portion of the web application indicated by the manifest.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the web application includes a self-contained web site, and wherein operating system is configured to access any portions of the self-contained web site from the local storage medium.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the local storage field indicates that any portions of the web application identified by at least a first part of a universal resource locator (URL) are stored in the local storage medium.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operating system is configured to:

acquire one or more permissions to access one or more system resources from a user of the apparatus; and

grant or deny access the system resources, based upon the one or more permissions, to the web application.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operating system is configured to:

receive a request from a user to access a requested portion of the web page associated with the web application;

determine if the requested portion of the web page was stored locally when the web application was installed;

if the requested portion of the web page was stored locally when the web application was installed, cause the requested portion to be accessed from the local storage medium; and

if the requested portion of the web page was not stored locally when the web application was installed, cause the requested portion to be accessed from the remote server.

15. A method of executing a web application installed on an apparatus, the method comprising:

executing, via a processor included by the apparatus, a native application;

loading, via the native application, the web application, wherein the web application includes a manifest that is a static metadata file that includes a local storage field indicating that one or more portions of the web application is stored in a local storage medium, and wherein the web application was packaged as an installable entity;

managing, by the native application, the execution of the web application;

accessing, via the native application and as part of the execution of the web application, from the local storage medium the one or more portions of the web application as indicated by the local storage field, and wherein the one or more portions of the web application were stored in the local storage medium during installation of the web application; and

accessing from a remote server at least a second portion of the web application indicated by the manifest.