Product customization based on user contributions

• US 9,372,687 B1
• Filed: 05/29/2015
• Issued: 06/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intuit, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Intuit, Inc.
• Inventors: MacMartin, Robert, Pai, Yogish, Goyette, Steve George
• Primary Examiner(s): Do, Chat
• Assistant Examiner(s): Slachta, Douglas
• Application Number:
  US14/726,392
• Time in Patent Office: 389 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/10 Requirements analysis; Specification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4451 User profiles; Roaming

Abstract

A method to customize an online software application. The method includes displaying, using a user interface of the online software application, a message inviting user contribution to a customizable component of the online software application, receiving, from an initial seed user via a network connection and in response to displaying the message, a structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user according to a requirement based on an attribute of the initial seed user, determining that a new user of the online software application matches the attribute of the initial seed user, and configuring, based on the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user, an instantiation of the online software application for the new user to perform a pre-determined task according to the requirement.

Claims

1. A method to customize an online software application, comprising:

displaying, using a user interface of the online software application, a message inviting user contribution to a customizable component of the online software application;

receiving, from an initial seed user via a network connection and in response to displaying the message, a structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user according to a requirement based on an attribute of the initial seed user;

determining that a new user of the online software application matches the attribute of the initial seed user;

configuring, based on the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user, a first instantiation of a plurality of instantiations of the online software application for the new user to perform a pre-determined task according to the requirement;

configuring, based on the structural specification of the customizable component, the plurality of instantiations of the online software application for a plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task;

extracting, from the customizable component in each of the plurality of instantiations, a plurality of structured contents used by the plurality of users to further configure the plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task;

generating a statistical measure of the plurality of users using the plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task, wherein the statistical measure comprises;

a number of registered users, among the plurality of users, who have paid for the online software application;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a same structured content;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a shared pattern of the plurality of structured contents; and

a number of times that the plurality of users have performed the pre-determined task based on the shared pattern;

generating, in response to the statistical measure exceeding a pre-determined threshold, a suggested structured content to represent a portion of the plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the statistical measure, wherein configuring the instantiation of the online software application for the new user is further based on the suggested structured content; and

performing, using the first instantiation of the online software application and via the network connection, the pre-determined task for the new user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a first geographical region based on the attribute of the initial seed user,

wherein the pre-determined task for the new user is performed within the first geographical region, wherein determining that the new user matches the attribute of the initial seed user comprises determining that the new user is within the first geographical region, and

wherein the pre-determined task for the plurality of users is performed within the first geographical region.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

displaying, using the user interface, a selection menu for the initial seed user to select from a plurality of geographical regions supported by the online software application; and

receiving, from the initial seed user, a selection indicating that the geographical region is not yet supported by the online software application and is not included in the plurality of geographical regions,

wherein displaying the message is in response to receiving the selection.

4. The method of claim 2,

wherein a first structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a first user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task,

wherein a second structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a second user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task, and

wherein the first structured content and the second structured content correspond to different portions of the structural specification based on different industries of the first user and the second user.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving, from a subsequent seed user and in response to displaying the message, a revision to the structural specification of the customizable component, wherein the revision is suggested by the subsequent seed user according to another requirement of a second geographical region;

configuring, for another plurality of users, another plurality of instantiations of the online software application based on the revision of the structural specification of the customizable component;

extracting, from the customizable component in each of the another plurality of instantiations, another plurality of structured contents used by the another plurality of users to further configure the another plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task within the second geographical region;

generating another statistical measure of the another plurality of users using the another plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task;

generating, in response to the another statistical measure exceeding the pre-determined threshold, another suggested structured content to represent another portion of the another plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the another statistical measure; and

configuring, based on the another suggested structured content and in response to at least determining that another new user of the online software application is within the second geographical region, another instantiation of the online software application for the another new user to perform the pre-determined task within the second geographical region.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

identifying a type associated with the customizable component;

storing, in a community data repository, the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user as an explicit contribution;

storing, in the community data repository, the plurality of structured contents used by the plurality of users as a plurality of implicit contributions;

assigning an initial version of the type to the structural specification and the plurality of structured contents, wherein generating the suggested structured content comprises retrieving the structural specification and the plurality of structured contents from the community data repository based on the initial version of the type;

storing, in the community data repository, the revision to the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the subsequent seed user as another explicit contribution;

storing, in the community data repository, the another plurality of structured contents used by the another plurality of users as another plurality of implicit contributions; and

assigning a subsequent version of the type to the revision to structural specification and the another plurality of structured contents, wherein generating the another suggested structured content comprises retrieving the another structural specification and the another plurality of structured contents from the community data repository based on the subsequent version of the type.

7. A system to customize an online software application, comprising:

a computer server configured to execute a plurality of instantiations of the online software application;

a user device coupled to the computer server via a network connection, wherein the user device is configured to display, using a user interface of the software application, a message inviting user contribution to a customizable component of the software application;

a software application customizer executing on a computer processor and configured to;

receive, from the user device via the network connection and in response to displaying the message, a structural specification of the customizable component suggested by an initial seed user according to a requirement based on an attribute of the initial seed user;

determine that a new user of the online software application matches the attribute of the initial seed user;

configure, based on the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user, a first instantiation of a plurality of instantiations of the online software application for the new user to perform a pre-determined task according to the requirement;

configure, based on the structural specification of the customizable component, the plurality of instantiations of the online software application for a plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task;

extract, from the customizable component in each of the plurality of instantiations, a plurality of structured contents used by the plurality of users to further configure the plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task;

generate a statistical measure of the plurality of users using the plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task, wherein the statistical measure comprises;

a number of registered users, among the plurality of users, who have paid for the online software application;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a same structured content;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a shared pattern of the plurality of structured contents; and

a number of times that the plurality of users have performed the pre-determined task based on the shared pattern;

generate, in response to the statistical measure exceeding a pre-determined threshold, a suggested structured content to represent a portion of the plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the statistical measure, wherein configuring the instantiation of the online software application for the new user is further based on the suggested structured content; and

perform, using the first instantiation of the online software application and via the network connection, the pre-determined task for the new user; and

a community data repository configured to store the structural specification and the plurality of structured contents.

8. The system of claim 7, the software application customizer further configured to:

identify a first geographical region based on the attribute of the initial seed user,

wherein the computer server is further configured to perform, using the instantiation of the online software application and via the network connection, the pre-determined task for the new user within the first geographical region, wherein determining that the new user matches the attribute of the initial seed user comprises determining that the new user is within the first geographical region, and

wherein the computer server is further configured to perform, using the plurality of instantiations of the online software application and via the network connection, the pre-determined task for the plurality of users within the first geographical region.

9. The system of claim 8, the user device further configured to:

display, using the user interface, a selection menu for the initial seed user to select from a plurality of geographical regions supported by the software application; and

receive, from the initial seed user, a selection indicating that the geographical region is not yet supported by the software application and is not included in the plurality of geographical regions,

wherein displaying the message is in response to receiving the selection.

10. The system of claim 8,

wherein a first structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a first user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task,

wherein a second structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a second user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task, and

wherein the first structured content and the second structured content correspond to different portions of the structural specification based on different attributes of the first user and the second user.

11. The system of claim 8, the software application customizer further configured to:

receive, from a subsequent seed user and in response to displaying the message to the subsequent seed user, a revision to the structural specification of the customizable component, wherein the revision is suggested by the subsequent seed user according to another requirement of a second geographical region;

configure, for another plurality of users, another plurality of instantiations of the software application based on the revision of the structural specification of the customizable component;

extract, from the customizable component in each of the another plurality of instantiations, another plurality of structured contents used by the another plurality of users to further configure the another plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task within the second geographical region;

generate another statistical measure of the another plurality of users using the another plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task;

generate, in response to the another statistical measure exceeding the pre-determined threshold, another suggested structured content to represent another portion of the another plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the another statistical measure; and

configure, based on the another suggested structured content and in response to at least determining that another new user of the software application is within the second geographical region, another instantiation of the software application for the another new user to perform the pre-determined task within the second geographical region.

12. The system of claim 11, the software application customizer further configured to:

identify a type associated with the customizable component;

store, in the community data repository, the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user as an explicit contribution;

store, in the community data repository, the plurality of structured contents used by the plurality of users as a plurality of implicit contributions;

assign an initial version of the type to the structural specification and the plurality of structured contents, wherein generating the suggested structured content comprises retrieving the structural specification and the plurality of structured contents from the community data repository based on the initial version of the type;

store, in the community data repository, the revision to the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the subsequent seed user as another explicit contribution;

store, in the community data repository, the another plurality of structured contents used by the another plurality of users as another plurality of implicit contributions; and

assign a subsequent version of the type to the revision to structural specification and the another plurality of structured contents, wherein generating the another suggested structured content comprises retrieving the another structural specification and the another plurality of structured contents from the community data repository based on the subsequent version of the type.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions to customize a software application, the instructions, when executed by a computer processor, comprising functionality for:

displaying, using a user interface of the online software application, a message inviting user contribution to a customizable component of the online software application;

receiving, from an initial seed user via a network connection and in response to displaying the message, a structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user according to a requirement based on an attribute of the initial seed user;

determining that a new user of the online software application matches the attribute of the initial seed user;

configuring, based on the structural specification of the customizable component suggested by the initial seed user, a first instantiation of a plurality of instantiations of the online software application for the new user to perform a pre-determined task according to the requirement;

configuring, based on the structural specification of the customizable component, the plurality of instantiations of the online software application for a plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task;

extracting, from the customizable component in each of the plurality of instantiations, a plurality of structured contents used by the plurality of users to further configure the plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task;

generating a statistical measure of the plurality of users using the plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task, wherein the statistical measure comprises;

a number of registered users, among the plurality of users, who have paid for the online software application;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a same structured content;

a number of users, among the plurality of users, who have performed the pre-determined task based on a shared pattern of the plurality of structured contents; and

a number of times that the plurality of users have performed the pre-determined task based on the shared pattern;

generating, in response to the statistical measure exceeding a pre-determined threshold, a suggested structured content to represent a portion of the plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the statistical measure, wherein configuring the instantiation of the online software application for the new user is further based on the suggested structured content; and

performing, using the first instantiation of the online software application and via the network connection, the pre-determined task for the new user.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 13, the instructions, when executed by the computer processor, further comprising functionality for:

identifying a first geographical region based on the attribute of the initial seed user,

wherein the pre-determined task for the new user is performed within the first geographical region, wherein determining that the new user matches the attribute of the initial seed user comprises determining that the new user is within the first geographical region, and

wherein the pre-determined task for the plurality of users is performed within the first geographical region.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14, the instructions, when executed by the computer processor, further comprising functionality for:

displaying, using the user interface, a selection menu for the initial seed user to select from a plurality of geographical regions supported by the online software application; and

receiving, from the initial seed user, a selection indicating that the geographical region is not yet supported by the online software application and is not included in the plurality of geographical regions,

wherein displaying the message is in response to receiving the selection.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14,

wherein a first structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a first user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task,

wherein a second structured content of the plurality of structured contents is used by a second user of the plurality of users to perform the pre-determined task, and

wherein the first structured content and the second structured content correspond to different portions of the structural specification based on different industries of the first user and the second user.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 14, the instructions, when executed by the computer processor, further comprising functionality for:

receiving, from a subsequent seed user and in response to displaying the message, a revision to the structural specification of the customizable component, wherein the revision is suggested by the subsequent seed user according to another requirement of a second geographical region;

configuring, for another plurality of users, another plurality of instantiations of the online software application based on the revision of the structural specification of the customizable component;

extracting, from the customizable component in each of the another plurality of instantiations, another plurality of structured contents used by the another plurality of users to further configure the another plurality of instantiations for performing the pre-determined task within the second geographical region;

generating another statistical measure of the another plurality of users using the another plurality of instantiations to perform the pre-determined task;

generating, in response to the another statistical measure exceeding the pre-determined threshold, another suggested structured content to represent another portion of the another plurality of structured contents that is qualified based on the another statistical measure; and

configuring, based on the another suggested structured content and in response to at least determining that another new user of the online software application is within the second geographical region, another instantiation of the online software application for the another new user to perform the pre-determined task within the second geographical region.