Method, system and apparatus for client-side usage tracking of information server systems

• US 6,018,619 A
• Filed: 05/24/1996
• Issued: 01/25/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Ludeman, John F., Treadwell, David R. III, Allard, James E.
• Primary Examiner(s): An, Meng-Ai T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, GAUTAM
• Application Number:
  US08/652,976
• Time in Patent Office: 1,341 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.11, 395/200.05, 395/200.09, 395/200.15, 395/200, 395/200.53, 395/200.54, 395/200.38, 395/200.45, 395/200.49, 395/200.46 , 395/200.57, 395/200.59, 395/200.41, 395/200.43
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/00 Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method for tracking usage patterns of users of hyper-media systems, such as the World-Wide Web, that creates a usage log on a user'"'"'s client computer and periodically transmits the usage log from the user'"'"'s client machine to a usage tracking server computer to be incorporated in an overall usage log for a given information server computer. Alternatively, proxy server may be connected between a client computer and an information server with the proxy server acting as a client to the information server and creating a usage log of the user'"'"'s client computer access to the information server computer to be sent to usage tracking computer. Each time a user connects to a Web site, the client computer or proxy server creates a usage log that records all objects retrieved from that particular Web site and other attributes of user processing such as time spent viewing an object, amount of an object viewed, etc. Periodically, upon the occurrence of one of more predefined events that signify the end of a session, computer or proxy server saves the usage log into a single, compressed file and transmits the resulting file to the server. Events that signify the end of a session and trigger the transmission of a usage log from the user'"'"'s client computer or proxy server computer to the usage tracking server computer may include a predetermined time interval, accessing a predetermined number of objects, application program or operating system shut down, connecting to a different Web site, and/or modem shut down.

Claims

1. In an information server system comprising a network with at least one information server accessed by a plurality of either client systems or proxy servers, each proxy server in turn accessed by a plurality of client systems, and wherein at least some of said proxy servers are non-tracking proxy servers and the other proxy servers are tracking proxy servers, and at least some of the client systems are non-tracking client systems and the other client systems are tracking client systems, a method for tracking at one or more client systems session events resulting from information supplied by the information server in response to requests for information from at least one of the client systems or one of the proxy servers, while maintaining system compatibility with those client systems or proxy servers that do not have tracking ability, the method for tracking comprising the steps of:

initiating, by at least one client system or proxy server, a connection request to an information server system, said connection request also signifying whether said client system or proxy server is non-tracking or is capable of tracking given session events;

in response to said connection request, returning to said requesting client system or requesting proxy server (i) information requested, (ii) an acknowledgment by said information server system which enables said requesting client system or requesting proxy server to begin tracking said session events if the requesting client system or requesting proxy server is capable of tracking such session events, and (iii) a location of a designated server for receiving tracked session event;

in response to said acknowledgment, if said requesting client system or requesting proxy server is a tracking client system, monitoring said session events and generating a client side usage log of the monitored session events, and if said requesting client system or requesting proxy server is non-tracking, then generating a usage log of the monitored session events at the information server system; and

thereafter transmitting the usage log that is generated either at the requesting client system or requesting proxy server, or at the information server, to said designated server.

2. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has been inactive a fixed amount of time with respect to said information server.

3. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has accessed a set number of objects or files.

4. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system attempts connection to a different information server system.

5. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a referring link where the client system previously accessed objects or files.

6. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding treatment of image data associated with a particular link.

7. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a percentage amount processed by the client system of a particular object or file.

8. A method for tracking as recited in claim 1 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding amount of time spent by the client system in accessing a particular object or file.

17. A computer program product as recited in claim 1 or 9 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a percentage amount processed by the client system of a particular object or file.

9. In an information server system comprising a network with at least one information server accessed by a plurality of either client systems or proxy servers, each proxy server in turn accessed by a plurality of client systems, and wherein at least some of said proxy servers are non-tracking proxy servers and the other proxy servers are tracking proxy servers, and at least some of the client systems are non-tracking client systems and the other client systems are tracking client systems, and wherein tracking is desired for one or more client systems session events resulting from information supplied by the information server in response to requests for information from at least one of the client systems or one of the proxy servers, while maintaining system compatibility with those client systems or proxy servers that do no have tracking ability, a computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium associated with one or more client systems at which the tracking of session events is desired; and

computer program code means stored on said computer readable medium, said computer program code means comprising means for performing the desired tracking of said session events comprising;

code means for initiating, by at least one client system, a connection request to an information server system, said connection request also signifying whether said requesting client system is a non-tracking or a tracking client system that is capable of tracking given session events;

code means for receiving an acknowledgment from said information server system in response to said connection request which (i) enables said requesting client system to begin tracking said session events if the requesting client system is a tracking client system, and (ii) identifies a designated server for receiving tracked session events;

code means for monitoring said session events and generating a client side usage log of the monitored session events if the client system is a tracking client system, and for causing the information server to generate a usage log if the client system is a non-tracking client system; and

code means for transmitting the client side usage log to said designated server after a session is complete.

10. In an information server system comprising a network with at least one information server accessed by a plurality of either client systems or proxy servers, each proxy server in turn accessed by a plurality of client systems, and wherein at least some of said proxy servers are non-tracking proxy servers and the other proxy servers are tracking proxy servers, and at least some of the client systems are non-tracking client systems and the other client systems are tracking client systems, and wherein tracking is desired for one or more client systems session events resulting from information supplied by the information server in response to requests for information from at least one of the client systems or one of the proxy servers, while maintaining system compatibility with those client systems or proxy servers that do not have tracking ability, a computer program product comprising:

a computer readable medium associated with the at least one information server; and

computer program code means stored on said computer readable medium, said computer program code means comprising means for enabling the desired tracking of said session events comprising;

code means for receiving from at least one client system or from at least one proxy server a connection request, said connection request also signifying whether said requesting client system or requesting proxy server is non-tracking or is capable of tracking given session events; and

code means for initiating an acknowledgment by said information server system in response to said information request which (i) enables said requesting client system or said requesting proxy server to begin tracking said session events if the requesting client system or requesting proxy server has tracking capability, and (ii) identifies a designated server for receiving tracked session events from said requesting client system or requesting proxy server after they have been monitored by the requesting client system or requesting proxy server and stored in a client side usage log.

11. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the information server system and the designated server are the same.

12. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has accessed a set number of objects or files.

13. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has been inactive a fixed amount of time with respect to the information server system.

14. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system attempts connection to a different information server system.

15. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a referring link where the client system previously accessed objects or files.

16. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding treatment of image data associated with a particular link.

18. A computer program product as recited in claim 9 or 10 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding the amount of time spent by the client system in accessing a particular object or file.

19. An information server system comprising:

a network with at least one information server accessed by a plurality of either client systems or proxy servers, each proxy server in turn accessed by a plurality of client systems wherein at least some of said proxy servers are non-tracking proxy servers and the other proxy servers are tracking proxy servers, and at least some of the client systems are non-tracking client systems and the other client systems are tracking client systems;

as a first article of manufacture, a first computer readable medium stored on said information server, said first computer readable medium comprising first program code means stored thereon;

as a second article of manufacture, a second computer readable medium stored on at least one of said proxy servers or one of said client systems, said second computer readable medium comprising second program code means stored thereon; and

said first and second computer program means together providing a system for tracking at one or more of the tracking client systems or at one or more of the tracking proxy servers, session events resulting from information supplied by the information server in response to requests for information from at least one of the client systems or proxy servers, while maintaining system compatibility with other non-tracking client systems or proxy servers that do not have such tracking ability, the system comprising;

code means for initiating, by at least one client system or proxy server, a connection request to an information server system, said connection request also signifying said client system'"'"'s or said proxy server'"'"'s ability to track given session events;

code means for returning to said requesting client system or proxy server in response to said connection request (i) information requested, (ii) an acknowledgment by said information server system which enables said requesting client system or proxy server to begin tracking said session events when they are capable of doing so, and (iii) a location of a designated server for receiving tracked session events;

code means for monitoring, by said requesting client system or said requesting proxy server, said session events and generating a client side usage log of the monitored session events when the requesting client system or proxy server have tracking ability, and for causing the information server to generate a usage log of the monitored session events when the requesting client system or proxy server to not having tracking ability; and

code means for transmitting the either the client side usage log or the usage log generated by the information server, as applicable, to said designated server after a session is complete.

20. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the information server system and the designated server are the same.

21. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has accessed a set number of objects or files.

22. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system has been inactive a fixed amount with respect to the information server.

23. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log is transmitted after the client system attempts connection to a different information server.

24. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a referring link where the client system previously accessed objects or files.

25. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding treatment of image data associated with a particular link.

26. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding a percentage amount processed by the client system of a particular object or file.

27. A system as recited in claim 19 wherein the generated usage log includes information regarding the amount of time spent by the client system in accessing a particular object or file.