Methods and systems to communicate information

• US 9,443,333 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2006
• Issued: 09/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Shah, Seema, Nash, Adam, Gupta, Raghav, Arora, Aditya, Foster, Benjamin David, Subramaniam, Srikanth, Ansari, Suhail, Stonestreet, Xavier, Raman, Vijay, Leon, Jean-Michel
• Primary Examiner(s): PHILLIPS, III, ALBERT M
• Application Number:
  US11/478,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20070200850A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,728 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/242 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2455 Query execution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/206 Drawing of charts or graphs

Abstract

There is provided a method and system to communicate information. The system receives a first query that contains a first constraint and retrieves a first plurality of data items from a database based on the first query. Next, the system generates a first distribution based on the first plurality of data items, the first distribution utilizing a first plurality of domains that are used to identify data items. Next the system generates a second distribution based on a plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items. Next the system generates a third distribution based on the first distribution and the second distribution. Finally, the system generates distribution data to be included within an interface, the interface to include at least one interface element that is positioned on the interface based on the third distribution, the at least one interface element to respectively represent at least one domain.

Claims

1. A system including:

a processor and executable instructions accessible on a computer-readable medium that, when executed, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

receiving a first query containing a first constraint;

retrieving a first plurality of data items from a database based on the first query and generating a first distribution based on the first plurality of data items, the first distribution utilizing a first plurality of domains that are used to identify data items, the first distribution including the first plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the first distribution including a count of data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a second distribution based on a plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items, the second distribution including the plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the second distribution including a count of requests to view data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a third distribution based on the first distribution and the second distribution and identifying whether the third distribution exhibits a type of distribution from a plurality of types of distributions by comparing the third distribution with at least one of a peak distribution and a hills distribution; and

generating interface information based on the type of distribution.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations are further comprising generating distribution data to be included within an interface, wherein the interface includes at least one interface element that is positioned on the interface based on the third distribution, the at least one interface element to respectively represent at least one domain, and wherein the interface includes a user interface and wherein the at least one interface element includes at least one user interface element.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the third distribution includes a plurality of total coverage information respectively associated with the first plurality of domains.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the first distribution includes a plurality of supply information and the second distribution includes a plurality of demand information.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the operations are further comprising positioning the at least one user interface element on the user interface based on a descending order of the total coverage information.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the operations are further comprising adding the plurality of total coverage information to generate a cumulative coverage.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the operations are further comprising determining whether the cumulative coverage exceeds a predetermined threshold.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the operations are further comprising:

counting the at least one user interface element; and

determining whether a predetermined threshold is exceeded.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the operations are further comprising identifying a second query that contains a second constraint corresponding to the first constraint contained by the first query.

10. The system of claim 2, wherein the operations are further comprising respectively associating the plurality of requests to view data items with the first plurality of domains.

11. A method including:

receiving a first query that contains a first constraint;

retrieving a first plurality of data items from a database based on the first query;

generating a first distribution based on the first plurality of data items, the first distribution utilizing a first plurality of domains that are used to identify data items, the first distribution including the first plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the first distribution including a count of data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a second distribution based on a plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items, the second distribution including the plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the second distribution including a count of requests to view data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a third distribution based on the first distribution and the second distribution;

identifying whether the third distribution exhibits a type of distribution from a plurality of types of distributions by comparing the third distribution with at least one of a peak distribution and a hills distribution; and

generating interface information based on the type of distribution.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

generating distribution data to be included within an interface, the interface to include at least one interface element that is positioned on the interface based on the third distribution, the at least one interface element to respectively represent at least one domain, and wherein the interface includes a user interface and wherein the at least one interface element includes at least one user interface element.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the third distribution includes a plurality of total coverage information respectively associated with the first plurality of domains.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first distribution includes a plurality of supply information and the second distribution includes a plurality of demand information.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the at least one user interface element is positioned on the user interface based on a descending order of the total coverage information.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the generating the distribution data includes adding the plurality of total coverage information to generate a cumulative coverage.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the generating the distribution data includes determining whether the cumulative coverage exceeds a predetermined threshold.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the generating the distribution data includes counting the at least one user interface element and determining whether a predetermined threshold is exceeded.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the generating the second distribution includes identifying a second query that contains a second constraint that corresponds to the first constraint in the first query.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the generating the second distribution includes respectively associating the plurality of requests to view data items with the first plurality of domains.

21. A machine readable medium having no transitory signals and storing a set of instructions that, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

retrieving a first query containing at least one constraint;

retrieving a first plurality of data items from a database based on the first query;

generating a first distribution based on the first plurality of data items, the first distribution utilizing a first plurality of domains that are used to identify data items, the first distribution including the first plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the first distribution including a count of data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a second distribution based on a plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items, the second distribution including the plurality of requests to view a second plurality of data items distributed across the first plurality of domains, the second distribution including a count of requests to view data items for each domain in the first plurality of domains;

generating a third distribution based on the first distribution and the second distribution;

identifying whether the third distribution exhibits a type of distribution from a plurality of types of distributions by comparing the third distribution with at least one of a peak distribution and a hills distribution; and

generating interface information based on the type of distribution.