Customizing enterprise level business information networking

• US 9,864,770 B2
• Filed: 11/12/2010
• Issued: 01/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Lee, Peter, Mehra, Vinod, Woollen, Rob
• Primary Examiner(s): Peng, Huawen A
• Application Number:
  US12/945,577
• Publication Number:
  US 20110113072A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,615 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/122 using management policies backup systems G06F11/1446; file migration policies for HSM systems G06F16/185
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/176 Support for shared access to files; File sharing support
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/185 Hierarchical storage management [HSM] systems, e.g. file migration or policies thereof details of archiving G06F16/11
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1873 Versioning file systems, temporal file systems, e.g. file system supporting different historic versions of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2282 Tablespace storage structures; Management thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Systems, apparatus, and methods for implementing enterprise level social and business information networking are provided. Users can receive relevant information about a database system and its users at an appropriate time. Users can then use this relevant information to reduce errors and limit redundant efforts. For example, an update of a record in the database can be identified, and a story created automatically about the update and sent to the users that are following the record. Which updates have stories created and which stories are to be sent to which users can be configured. Other events besides updating of records can also be tracked. For example, actions of a user that result in an event can be tracked, where such tracking can also be configurable. Subscriptions to follow an object can be automatic, and access checks can be used to ensure that unauthorized users do not see certain data.

Claims

1. A method of creating a custom feed for users of a database system for enterprise level social and business information networking, the method comprising:

receiving one or more criteria specifying which changes are to be tracked for possible inclusion into a feed to be displayed, one of the one or more criteria specifying that a depth of a level of relationship between records be no greater than 1 level of separation in a hierarchical model of records stored in a database, the records being business records related to one or more business activities of an organization and being differentiated from a user'"'"'s profile;

receiving data indicative of a change associated with a first record;

analyzing, by the database system, the change to determine if the one or more criteria are satisfied, including determining a depth of a level of relationship between the first record and a second record;

adding at least a portion of the data to a table that tracks changes for inclusion into at least one feed for a user of a tenant when the depth of the level of relationship between the first record and the second record is no greater than 1 level of separation, the at least one feed including one or more changes to the first record and being accessible to the user as a follower of the second record; and

providing, by the database system, at least a portion of the at least one feed to a computing device associated with the user as the follower of the second record, the computing device configured to display the at least one feed in a user interface, the displayed at least one feed excluding changes not satisfying the one or more criteria.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria are received from the tenant and supplement default criteria for tracking changes.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria are received from the tenant and replace default criteria for tracking changes.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria are specified as program code that analyzes the data and adds the at least a portion of the data to the table through an application programming interface.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria specify a record type to be added to or removed from a list of record types that are tracked.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the database system is a multi-tenant database system, wherein the list is specific to the tenant, and wherein other lists exist for other tenants.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more criteria specify one or more fields of particular records that are to be added to or removed from a list of fields that are tracked.

8. A method of creating a custom feed for users of a database system, the method comprising:

receiving one or more criteria specifying which feed items are to be displayed to a first user, one of the criteria specifying that only feed items associated with records below followed records be displayed, the records being in a hierarchical model of records stored in a database, the records being business records related to one or more business activities of an organization and being differentiated from a user'"'"'s profile;

identifying, by the database system, records associated with feed items of one or more selected objects that match the one or more criteria, including determining a depth of a level of relationship between a first record and a second record, the feed items being stored in the database, the relationship between records being one of a parent-child relationship and a grandparent-grandchild relationship; and

displaying, to the first user, in the custom feed the feed items associated with records below the followed records, the custom feed including one or more changes to the first record and being accessible to the first user as a follower of the second record, the first record being one of a child record and a grandchild record of the second record.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more selected objects are objects that the first user is following.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more selected objects is a single record whose record feed the first user is requesting.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria specifies which items to add to the custom feed.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria specifies which items to remove from the custom feed.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

after identifying the matching feed items, generating text for displaying in the custom feed as part of the matching feed items.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria is received before a feed item is created.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria is received from the first user, and wherein the one or more criteria is only used for determining feeds to display to the first user.

16. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more criteria is received from a first tenant and applies to all users of the first tenant.

17. The method of claim 8, wherein a plurality of criteria of the one or more criteria are specified, and wherein, the one or more criteria are satisfied for a feed item if one criterion is satisfied of the one or more criteria.

18. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing a plurality of instructions for controlling a processor to perform an operation of creating a custom feed for users of a database system, the instructions comprising:

receiving one or more first criteria specifying which feed items are to be displayed to a first user, one of the one or more first criteria specifying that only feed items associated with added records below followed records be displayed, the records being in a hierarchical model of records stored in a database, the records being business records related to one or more business activities of an organization and being differentiated from a user'"'"'s profile;

identifying, by the database system, feed items of one or more selected objects that match the one or more first criteria, including determining a depth of a level of relationship between a record associated with a first feed item and a record associated with a second feed item, the first feed item and the second feed item being stored in the database, the relationship between records being one of a parent-child relationship and a grandparent-grandchild relationship; and

displaying, to the first user, in the custom feed any feed items associated with added records below the followed records, the custom feed including one or more changes to the record associated with the first feed item and being accessible to the first user as a follower of the record associated with the second feed item, the record associated with the first feed item being added to the database and being one of a child record and a grandchild record of the record associated with the second feed item.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the instructions further comprise:

receiving, from a tenant, one or more second criteria specifying which changes are to be tracked for possible inclusion into a feed to be displayed;

receiving data indicative of a change;

analyzing the change to determine if the one or more second criteria are satisfied;

if the one or more second criteria are satisfied, adding at least a portion of the data to a table that tracks changes for inclusion into at least one feed for a user of the tenant.