Online location sharing through an internet service search engine

• US 9,715,544 B2
• Filed: 08/17/2010
• Issued: 07/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Callanan, Sean, Raguillat, Fred, Zimmet, Carol Sue, Lyle, Ruthie D., O'Sullivan, Patrick Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): Fan, Hua
• Application Number:
  US12/857,705
• Publication Number:
  US 20120047207A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,534 Days
• Field of Search: 709204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9536 Search customisation based on social or collaborative filtering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries

Abstract

A system for online location sharing through an internet service search engine includes: a server comprising at least one processor and a memory communicatively coupled to the processor. The memory stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to: receive from a first user a query identifying a second user; query a plurality of internet services over a network for real-time information relevant to the second user; and

provide a consolidated view of responses received from the plurality of internet services to the first user. Thee server is authorized by the second user to receive all information relevant to the second user contained in the responses. The consolidated view of responses indicates an online location of the second user.

Claims

1. A system for online location sharing through an internet service search engine, the system comprising:

a server comprising at least one processor and a memory communicatively coupled to said processor, said memory comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by said at least one processor, cause said at least one processor to;

receive from a first user a query identifying a second user;

query a plurality of internet services, each of said plurality of internet services storing information about said second user, over a network for real-time information relevant to said second user; and

provide a number of responses received from said plurality of internet services to said first user, said server being authorized by said second user to receive all information relevant to said second user contained in said responses;

wherein a number of said responses indicate which of said plurality of said internet services is an online location of said second user.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein each said response comprises information relevant to said second user only to an extent permitted by a privacy policy set by said second user.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said online location of said second user is one of said plurality of said internet services that was most recently used by said second user.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said online location of said second user one of said plurality of said internet services to which said second user is currently logged in.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said processor determines said online location of said second user from said plurality of responses by:

identifying a most recent time stamp associated with information posted by said second user to said plurality of internet services, said information and said time stamp being present in said responses received from said plurality of internet services; and

determining said online location to be said one of said plurality of said internet services to which said second user posted said information associated with said most recent time stamp.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said responses comprise a current online activity of said second user.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising applying a predictive analysis incorporating records of past online presence patterns of said second user from said responses received from said plurality of internet services to guess said online location of the second user.

15. The system of claim 6, wherein said current online activity of said second user is posting information to a social network.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one processor is programmed to determine a way to contact said second user through one of said internet services.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of internet services is a social network.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one processor is programmed to view information recently posted by said second user through one of said plurality of said internet services.

7. A computer program product for online location sharing through an internet service search engine, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to receive from a first user a query identifying a second user;

computer readable program code configured to query a plurality of internet services, each of which store information about said second user, over a network for real-time information relevant to said second user; and

computer readable program code configured to provide a number of responses received from said plurality of internet services to said first user, said first user being authorized by said second user to receive all information relevant to said second user contained in said responses;

wherein a number of said responses indicate which of said plurality of said internet services is an online location of said second user.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer readable program code configured to determine a way to contact said second user through one of said internet services.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein at least one of said plurality of internet services is a social network.

10. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer readable program code configured to view information recently posted by said second user through one of said plurality of said internet services.

11. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer readable program code configured to apply a predictive analysis incorporating records of past online presence patterns of said second user from said responses received from said plurality of internet services to guess said online location of the second user.

12. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer readable program code configured to establish communication between an internet service search engine and an individual search engine client application programming interface modules installed in each of said plurality of internet services.

14. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein said responses comprise a summary of online activity of said second user.

16. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein said responses comprise a summary of online activity of said second user.

20. A system for online location sharing through an internet service search engine, the system comprising:

a server comprising at least one processor and a memory communicatively coupled to said processor, said memory comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by said at least one processor, cause said at least one processor to;

receive from a first user a query identifying a second user;

query a plurality of internet services, each of which store information about said second user, over a network for real-time information relevant to online activity of said second user, where at least one of said plurality of internet services is a social network; and

provide a number of responses received from said plurality of internet services to said first user, said server being authorized by said second user to receive all information relevant to said online activity of said second user contained in said responses;

wherein a number of said responses indicate which of said plurality of said internet services is an online location of said second user.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein said processor is further programmed to determine to contact said second user through said at least one social network.