Configuring client software using remote notification

• US 6,219,698 B1
• Filed: 12/19/1997
• Issued: 04/17/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Iannucci, Robert A., Weikart, Christopher M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, THONG H
• Application Number:
  US08/994,365
• Time in Patent Office: 1,215 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10, 707/2, 379/27, 370/338, 395/700, 395/500, 395/800.43, 395/873, 709/208, 709/216, 709/221, 709/203, 607/59, 348/416
• US Class Current: 709/221
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols

Abstract

To maintain communications between first and second processing systems interconnected by a communications network, computer programing having first and second sets of instructions are stored at the first processing system. The computer programing is initialized at the first processing system to perform a task associated with the first set of instructions. In accordance with the second set of instructions, a first signal is automatically transmitted from the first processing system to the second processing system responsive to the initialization of the computer programming.

Claims

1. A method of maintaining communications between a first processing system and a second processing system interconnected to the first processing system by a communications network, comprising the steps of:

storing a software application having a first set of instructions and a second set of instructions, the first set of instructions for causing a first application task to be performed and the second set of instructions for causing a first update signal to be transmitted from the first processing system to the second processing system;

initializing the first set of instructions to perform the first application task;

responsive to the first set of instructions being initialized to perform the first task, executing the second set of instructions thereby transmitting the first update signal from the first processing system to the second processing system;

receiving an updated first set of instructions from the second processing system responsive to the transmitting the first update signal; and

updating the first set of instructions included in the software application with the received updated first set of instruction.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first update signal represents an identification of a currently stored version of the second set of instructions.

3. A method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

transmitting, from the second processing system to the first processing system and responsive to the transmitted first update signal, a second signal indicative of information available from the second processing system.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the available information is one of an upgrade of the first set of instructions and information pertaining to other than the upgrade of the first set of instructions.

5. A method according to claim 3, further comprising the steps of:

inputting a command at the first processing system to request the available information from the second processing system;

transmitting, from the first processing system to the second processing system and responsive to the input command, a third signal, representing a request for the available information, in accordance with the second set of instructions; and

transmitting the available information from the second processing system to the first processing system, responsive to the third signal.

6. A method according to claim 3, wherein the second signal represents a description of the available information and further comprising the step of:

displaying the description at the first processing system.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the description includes text.

8. A method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of:

displaying the description at the first processing system periodically.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the description is displayed periodically at a selected time interval.

10. A method according to claim 3, wherein the second signal represents a symbol and further comprising the step of:

displaying the symbol at the first processing system.

11. A method according to claim 3, further comprising the step of:

determining, at the second processing system, if the first processing system is within a defined group of processing systems;

wherein the second signal is transmitted from the second processing system to the first processing system only if the first processing system is determined to be within the defined group.

12. A method according to claim 3, wherein the second signal includes at least one of a description of an upgrade to the first set of instructions and an indicator of other information, and further comprising the step of:

displaying the at least one of the description of the upgrade and the indicator of other information at the first processing system.

13. A method according to claim 12, further comprising the step of:

storing a network browser at the first processing system;

locating a web page on the network in accordance with the network browser; and

displaying the located web page at the first processing system;

wherein the at least one of the description of the upgrade and the indicator of other information are displayed within a web page at the first processing system.

14. A method according to claim 12, wherein the indicator of the other information is displayed and, further comprising the step of:

inputting a command at the first processing system to request the other information;

wherein, responsive to the input command, the other information is transmitted from the second processing system to the first processing system and the indicator is removed from the display.

15. A method according to claim 14, further comprising the step of:

storing a network browser at the first processing system;

wherein the other information transmitted from the second processing system to the first processing system is loaded into the network browser.

16. A method according to claim 14, further comprising the step of:

storing a first value and a second value at the first processing system; and

changing one of the stored first and the stored second values responsive to the second signal to cause the indicator to be illuminated at the display.

17. A method according to claim 16, wherein the first and the second values are initially set to be equal values.

18. A method according to claim 16, wherein one of the first and the second values is changed such that the values are one of equal and unequal.

19. A method according to claim 16, further comprising the step of:

further changing one of the first and the second values responsive to the input command to thereby cause the indicator to be removed from the display.

20. A method according to claim 19, wherein the further changed one of the first and the second values is changed such that the values are one of equal and unequal.

21. An article of manufacture for upgrading a software application having a first set of instructions and a second set of instructions, the first set of instructions for causing a first application task to be performed and the second set of instructions including a location of an upgrade for the first set of instructions, the article of manufacture comprising:

a computer readable medium; and

processor instructions stored on the computer readable medium, the processor instructions configured to be readable from the computer readable medium by a processor and to thereby cause the processor to operate as to;

execute the first set of instructions;

in response to the execution of the first set of instructions, read from the second set of instructions the location of the upgrade for the first set of instructions;

receive from the location of the upgrade for the first set of instructions the upgrade for the first set of instructions; and

upgrade the first set of instructions with the upgrade for the first set of instructions.

22. The article of manufacture of claim 21, wherein the location of the upgrade for the first set of instructions includes a Uniform Resource Locator.

23. The article of manufacture of claim 21, wherein the processor instructions are configured to cause the processor to operate as to:

determine if the first set of instructions is ungradable by the upgrade for the first set of instructions.

24. The article of manufacture of claim 21, wherein the processor instructions are further configured to cause the processor to operate as to:

generate an icon linked to the the second set of instructions of the software application; and

responsive to a selection of the icon, read the location of the upgrade for the first set of instructions from the second set of instructions of the software application.

25. A processing system for maintaining communications between a first processing system and a second processing system interconnected to the first processing system by a communications network, comprising:

a memory configured to store a software application having a first set of instructions and a second set of instructions, the first set of instructions for causing a first application task to be performed and a second set of instructions for causing a first update signal to be transmitted from the first processing system to the second processing system;

a processor configured to initialize the software application to perform the first application task, to generate the first update signal from the first processing system to the second processing system in response to the initialization of the software application and in accordance with the second set of instructions to receive an updated first set of instructions from the second processing system and to update the first set of instructions from the received updated first set of instructions.

26. A system according to claim 25, wherein the first update signal further represents an identification of a current version of the stored second set of instructions.

27. A system according to claim 25, wherein the processor is further configured to process a second signal representing an indication of available information from the second processing system.

28. A system according to claim 27, wherein the available information is at least one of an upgrade of the first set of instructions and information pertaining to other than the upgrade of the first set of instructions.

29. A system according to claim 27, further comprising;

an input device configured to accept a user command requesting the available information from the second processing system;

wherein the processor is further configured to generate, in response to the input command and in accordance with the second set of instructions, a third signal to the second processing system, requesting the available information.

30. A system according to claim 29, wherein:

the processor is further configured to process, in accordance with the second set of instructions, a fourth signal representing the available information from the second processing system.

31. A system according to claim 30, further comprising:

a display configured to display the indication of available information in response to the processing of the second signal and to display at least a portion of the available information in response to the processing of the fourth signal.

32. A system according to claim 27, further comprising:

a display configured to display the indication of available information.

33. A system according to claim 27, wherein:

the first update signal represents an identification of a current version of the second set of instructions; and

the indication of available information includes a description of features of an upgrade to the first set of instructions.

34. A system according to claim 33, further comprising:

a display wherein the description is displayed periodically at a time interval.

35. A system according to claim 34, further comprising:

an input device configured to input the time interval.

36. A system according to claim 27, wherein the indication of the availability of information from the second processing system includes at least one of a description of an upgrade to the first set of instructions and an indicator of the availability of information other than the upgrade, and further comprising:

a display configured to display the at least one of the description of an upgrade and the indicator.

37. A system according to claim 36, wherein the indicator is a symbol.

38. A system according to claim 36, wherein:

the memory is further configured to store a network browser;

the processor is further configured to locate web pages on the network in accordance with the network browser; and

the display is further configured to display a located web page with the at least one of the description of an upgrade and the indicator displayed within the displayed web page.

39. A system according to claim 36, further comprising:

an input device configured to input a command to request the available information represented by the indicator;

wherein the indicator is removed from the display in response to the input command.

40. A system according to claim 39, wherein the memory is a first memory and further comprising:

a second memory configured to store a first value and a second value, in which one of the first value and the second value is changed in response to the input command to cause the indicator to be removed from the display.

41. A system according to claim 36, further comprising:

an input device configured to input a command to request the available information represented by the indicator;

wherein the processor is further configured to generate, in response to the input command and in accordance with the second set of instructions, a third signal to the second processing system to thereby request the available information represented by the indicator and to process a fourth signal to update the first set of instructions from the available information represented by the indicator.

42. A method of establishing a communications channel between a first processing system and a second processing system interconnected to the first processing system by a communications network, comprising the steps of:

storing a software application having a first set of instructions and a second set of instructions, the first set of instructions for causing a first application task to be performed and the second set of instructions for causing a first update signal to be transmitted from the first processing system to the second processing system;

initializing the first set of instructions to perform the first application task;

responsive to the first set of instructions being initialized to perform the first task, executing the second set of instructions thereby transmitting the first update signal from the first processing system to the second processing system, the first update signal comprising first update signal information relating to the first processing system;

responsive to the first update signal, determining second update signal information to place into a second update signal;

sending the second update signal from the second processing system to the first processing system;

receiving the second update signal from the second processing, thus creating a communications channel between the first processing system and the second processing system; and

determining from the second update signal an action to execute on the first processing system.

43. The method of claim 42 wherein the first update signal information comprises at least one of:

first processing system location information, first processing system user information,

first processing system software version status information, and first processing system hardware version status information.

44. The method of claim 42 wherein at least some of the first update signal information is obtained from persistent storage on the first processing system managed by the second set of instructions.

45. The method of claim 42 wherein the second signal update information relates to a software update associated with the software application.

46. The method of claim 42 wherein the second signal information relates to a message targeted to a user of the first processing system based upon information contained in the first update signal.

47. The method of claim 46 wherein the message targeted to the user is based upon the first signal information being used to identify the first processing system as being a member of a predefined group.

48. The method of claim 46 wherein the message targeted to the user of the first processing system is verified as not having been previously displayed.

49. The method of claim 48 wherein the verification step uses a token stored on the first processing system and a token sent from the second processing, when the token stored on the first processing system and the token sent from the second processing have different values the message targeted to the user of the first processing system is verified as not having been previously displayed;

and

processing of the targeted message includes storing the token sent from the second processing on the first processing system.

50. The method of claim 42 further comprising the steps of:

sending a third update signal, from the first processing system to the second processing system, the third update signal requesting an updated set of instructions for the software application;

receiving an updated set of instructions from the second processing system responsive to sending the third update signal; and

updating the software application with the received updated set of instructions.

51. The method of claim 42 wherein the second update signal is sent without being directly responsive to the first signal, but responsive to a user action on the second processing system.

52. The method of claim 42 wherein the second signal is sent without being directly responsive to the first signal, but responsive to automatic processing determined by the second processing system.

53. The method of claim 42 wherein the step of storing the software application involves the use of a Web browser software program.