System and method of searching for information based on prior user actions

• US 7,502,798 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2005
• Issued: 03/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Friedman, Nathaniel Dourif, Trowbridge, Jon Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): LEROUX, ETIENNE PIERRE
• Application Number:
  US11/195,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20070033166A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,315 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/3, 707/10, 707/104.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/323 Visualisation of programs or trace data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3438 monitoring of user actions tracking the activity of the user H04L67/535
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3466 Performance evaluation by tracing or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/81 Threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/86 Event-based monitoring

Abstract

The invention is directed to a system and method of observing actions performed on a computer and generating a timeline that includes timeline entries corresponding to the observed actions. During a computer session, the invention searches the timeline and other locations for objects that relate to target objects that are accessed by users and/or presented to users. The search produces search result objects associated with the target objects. The search result objects may be used to conduct additional searches in order to provide more complete search results.

Claims

1. A method of searching for objects that relate to target objects, comprising:

accessing a timeline that includes objects corresponding to user initiated actions and computer initiated actions;

identifying target objects;

analyzing information associated with the target objects, wherein the information includes user initiated action information or computer initiated action information;

searching timeline entry objects based on the user initiated action information or the computer initiated action information;

inferring relationships between the target objects and the timeline entry objects based on the analyzed information;

generating search result objects based on inferred relationships that satisfy a predetermined criteria;

analyzing information associated with the search result objects;

performing an update search based on information associated with the search result objects; and

generating update search result objects.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user initiated action information or the computer initiated action information are associated with corresponding user initiated actions or computer initiated actions.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the objects include (i) applications, (ii) documents, (iii) files, (iv) electronic mail messages, (v) chat sessions, (vi) web sites, (vii) address book entries, (viii) calendar entries or any combination of (i) to (viii).

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the target objects include accessed objects, viewed objects, and focused objects.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the timeline entry objects are organized in a chronological order.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the searching timeline entry objects and inferring relationships for the target objects are automatically triggered by user initiated actions and computer initiated actions.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising displaying (i) the search result objects, (ii) the update search result objects, or any combination of (i) and (ii) on a graphical user interface.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the update search is performed on (i) timeline entry objects, (ii) client terminal objects, (iii) server objects, (iv) Internet objects, or any combination of (i) to (iv).

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein searching timeline entry objects includes (i) time association-based searching, (ii) context association-based searching, (iii) content-based searching or any combination of (i) to (iii).

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the update search includes performing (i) content-based searching, (ii) context-based searching, (iii) user initiated action-based searching, (iv) computer initiated action-based searching or any combination of (i) to (iv).

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the inferring relationships between the target objects and the timeline entry objects based on analyzed information comprises inferring relationships based on one or more of:

chronological proximity of user-initiated actions;

chronological proximity of window focus toggling, temporal proximity in which users access two or more objects, temporal proximity in which users create two or more objects, or temporal proximity in which users edit two or more objects.

12. A system that searches for objects that relate to target objects, comprising:

a monitoring system that creates a timeline including objects corresponding to user initiated actions and computer initiated actions;

a target object identifier that is configured to identify target objects;

an object analyzer that analyzes information associated with the target objects, wherein the information includes user initiated action information or computer initiated action information;

an initial searching system that searches timeline entry objects based on the user initiated action information or the computer initiated action information;

a correlation determining system that infers relationships between the target objects and the timeline entry objects based on the analyzed information;

a search result system that generates search result objects based on inferred relationships that satisfy a predetermined criteria;

a search result object analyzer that analyzes information associated with the search result objects;

an update searching system that performs an update search based on information associated with the search result objects; and

an update search result system that generates update search result objects.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the user initiated action information or the computer initiated action information are associated with corresponding user initiated actions or computer initiated actions.

14. The system according to claim 12, wherein the objects include (i) applications, (ii) documents, (iii) files, (iv) electronic mail messages, (v) chat sessions, (vi) web sites, (vii) address book entries, (viii) calendar entries or any combination of (i) to (viii).

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein the target objects include accessed objects, viewed objects, and focused objects.

16. The system according to claim 12, wherein the timeline entry objects are organized in a chronological order.

17. The system according to claim 12, wherein the search by the initial searching system and the inferring of relationships by the correlation determining system are automatically triggered by user initiated actions and computer initiated actions.

18. The system according to claim 12, further comprising an interface that displays (i) the search result objects, (ii) the update search result objects, or any combination of (i) and (ii) on a graphical user interface.

19. The system according to claim 12, wherein the update search is performed on (i) timeline entry objects, (ii) client terminal objects, (iii) server objects, (iv) Internet objects, or any combination of (i) to (iv).

20. The system according to claim 12, wherein searching timeline entry objects includes (i) time association-based searching, (ii) context association-based searching, (iii) content-based searching or any combination of (i) to (iii).

21. The system according to claim 12, wherein performing the update search includes performing (i) content-based searching, (ii) context-based searching, (iii) user initiated action-based searching, (iv) computer initiated action-based searching or any combination of (i) to (iv).

22. The system of claim 12, wherein the correlation determining system infers relationships between the target objects and the timeline entry objects based on one or more of:

chronological proximity of user-initiated actions;

chronological proximity of window focus toggling, temporal proximity in which users access two or more objects, temporal proximity in which users create two or more objects, or temporal proximity in which users edit two or more objects.