Server system communicating with personal digital assistant and communication method thereof

• US 6,374,245 B1
• Filed: 03/12/1998
• Issued: 04/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Park, Hee-young
• Primary Examiner(s): Corrielus, Jean M.
• Application Number:
  US09/041,024
• Time in Patent Office: 1,496 Days
• Field of Search: 707/232, 707/70, 707/104, 707/4, 707/201, 707/202, 707/203, 709/218, 709/217, 709/227, 709/229, 705/2, 705/3, 705/26
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A server system communicating with a personal digital assistant (PDA), and a communication method thereof. In a system including a server system for generating and storing files to be distributed to a plurality of users, a data transceiver connected to the server system, and the PDA connected to the data transceiver, for transmitting and receiving the data of the server system, the server system includes: a data portion for storing all files; a selector for selecting files to be downloaded to the PDA from among the files provided by the data portion, according to the command of a user; a file storage portion for storing the files selected by the selector; and a controller for classifying the files selected by the selector according to users, storing the files by user in different directories of the file storage portion, and when a user wishes, downloading only files stored in the user directory of the file storage portion to the user'"'"'s PDA. Therefore, when the PDA user wants to generate a new file or change an existing file, files are selectively downloaded from the server system, and files which are unnecessary for the user are deleted from the PDA, thereby efficiently using the limited PDA memory.

Claims

1. A system including a server system for generating and storing files to be distributed to a plurality of users, a data transceiver connected to the server system, and a personal digital assistant (PDA) connected to the data transceiver for transmitting and receiving data of the server system, wherein the server system comprises:

a data portion for storing the files;

a controller for determining which of the files stored in the data portion are new or changed;

a selector for selecting, according to user command, from among the files which are new or changed, a plurality of files to be downloaded to the PDA from the data portion; and

a file storage portion for storing the plurality of files selected by the selector;

wherein the controller classifies each of the plurality of files selected by the selector according to user, stores each of the plurality of files by user in different directories of the file storage portion, and when a particular user wishes, downloads only files stored in the directory of the particular user to the PDA associated with the particular user.

2. A communication method between a personal digital assistant (PDA) and a server system in a system including the server system for generating and storing files to be distributed to a plurality of users, a data transceiver connected to the server system, and the PDA connected to the data transceiver, for transmitting and receiving the data of the server system, the communication method comprising the steps of:

(a) determining which of the files of the server system are required by all the users;

(b) storing the files of the server system which are determined to be required by all of the users in the directories of all of the users;

(c) determining which of the files of the server system are new or changed;

(d) storing the files of the server system which are determined to be new or changed in a common directory;

(e) selecting, by a first user, from among the files of the common directory at least one file for a PDA of the first user to download to the PDA of the first user;

(f) storing the at least one file selected in the step (e) in a directory of the first user; and

(g) connecting the PDA of the first user to the data transceiver and downloading the at least one file stored in the directory of the server system of the first user to the PDA of the first user.

3. The communication method of claim 2, further comprising the steps of:

(f) preparing a first list of files to be commonly deleted, and storing the first list in the directories of all of the users;

(g) preparing a second list of files to be deleted among the files stored in a PDA of a second user, and storing the second list of files in the directory of the second user; and

(h) connecting the PDA of the second user to the data transceiver, receiving the lists of files to be deleted and deleting the files included in the lists from the PDA of the second user.

4. The communication method of claim 3, wherein the first and second users are the same.