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Description  |
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to the data processing field, and
more particularly, relates to a method, apparatus and computer program
product for automated, intelligent refreshing of internet web pages.
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
Valuable information available on the internet or World Wide Web (WWW) is
often difficult or cumbersome and time consuming to use for reviewing
internet web pages using current browsing technology. Refreshing of WWW
sites is not handled well by browsers today. Known techniques typically
cause either too much web traffic by refreshing too frequently, or not
enough when refreshing is not provided when needed.
Most users keep a list, called either bookmarks or favorites, of the pages
they often view. Known commercially available web browser programs
include, for example, Netscape Navigator Version 3.01 and Microsoft
Internet Explorer 3.0. These browser programs allow the user to specify,
on a global browser basis, how often web pages should be refreshed. The
choices include always or every time the page is accessed, once per
session, or never.
This manual approach, although better than nothing, often is under used,
and in many cases not used at all, for control of refreshing. There are
too many sites in typical bookmark lists for the average user to manually
enter a wise refresh rate for each site. Individual users often lack
information needed to effectively select a refresh option to effectively
define how often individual pages are updated. Many users pick a higher
than needed refresh rate just to be on the safe side, with a resulting
needless increase in network traffic.
Another problem with browsers is that feedback of the effectiveness of user
selected refresh options is nonexistent. Some internet web pages usually
change on an hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Once a user picks a
refresh option, the user has no way of knowing if the selection was a good
choice. Of the refreshes that are performed responsive to a particular
user selected refresh option, no feedback is provided on how many were
needed or how many should have been done.
A need exists for browser technology that enables automated, flexible and
efficient refreshing of internet web pages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A principal object of the present invention is to provide an intelligent
method, apparatus and computer program product for automated refreshing of
internet web pages. Other important objects of the present invention are
to provide such refreshing method, apparatus and computer program product
that efficiently and effectively facilitates refreshing of particular
internet web pages to be reviewed; to provide such refreshing method,
apparatus and computer program product substantially without negative
effect; and provide such refreshing method, apparatus and computer program
product that overcome many of the disadvantages of prior art arrangements.
In brief, an intelligent method, apparatus and computer program product are
provided for automated refreshing of internet web pages. Page data are
stored including a record of page data values for each user selected
internet web page. The page data values include at least one refresh
interval, a last time refreshed and a last time accessed. A user request
for refreshing an internet web page is received and the internet web page
is refreshed. Utilizing the refreshed internet web page, checking for
changes in the refreshed internet web page is performed. Then scanning the
stored page data is performed and for each user selected internet web
page, the stored refresh interval is compared with a current refresh time
interval. For each user selected internet web page, responsive to the
current refresh time interval being greater than the stored refresh time
interval, the internet web page is refreshed.
In accordance with features of the invention, a feedback message is sent to
the user responsive to refreshing an internet web page and the stored
refresh interval is updated.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention together with the above and other objects and
advantages may best be understood from the following detailed description
of the preferred embodiments of the invention illustrated in the drawings,
wherein:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram representation illustrating a computer system for
implementing a method for intelligent, automated refreshing of internet
web pages in accordance with the invention;
FIGS. 2 and 3 are charts illustrating data structures respectively
including exemplary page data and an exemplary auto refresh switch for
implementing a method for intelligent, automated refreshing of internet
web pages in accordance with the invention;
FIGS. 4A and 4B together provide a flow chart illustrating sequential
browser steps for the automated method for refreshing of internet web
pages of the preferred embodiment;
FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating sequential browser steps for checking
for internet web page changes in the automated method for refreshing of
internet web pages of the preferred embodiment;
FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating sequential browser steps for updating
change data in the automated method for refreshing of internet web pages
of the preferred embodiment;
FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D and 7E together provide a flow chart illustrating
sequential browser steps to scan an auto refresh list in the automated
method for refreshing of internet web pages of the preferred embodiment;
FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a computer program product in
accordance with the preferred embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Having reference now to the drawings, in FIG. 1, there is shown a computer
or data processing system of the preferred embodiment generally designated
by the reference character 100. As shown in FIG. 1, computer system 100
includes a central processor unit (CPU) 101, a read only memory 102, a
random access memory 104, a display adapter 106 coupled to a display 108.
CPU 101 is connected to a user interface (UI) adapter 110 connected to a
pointer device and keyboard 112. CPU 101 is connected to an input/output
(IO) adapter 114 connected to a direct access storage device (DASD) 116
and a tape unit 118. CPU 101 is connected to a communications adapter 120
providing a communications function. The computer system 100 includes an
operating system 130, an internet browser program 132 and a refresh
manager 134 of the preferred embodiment.
Various commercially available processors could be used for computer system
100, for example, an IBM personal computer or similar workstation can be
used. Central processor unit 101 is suitably programmed to execute the
flowchart of FIGS. 4A, 4B, 5, 6, 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D, and 7E of the preferred
embodiment.
In accordance with features of the preferred embodiment, internet browser
program 132 and refresh manager 134 enables intelligent, automated
refreshing for individual user selected internet web pages. Browser 132
provides automatic refresh functions utilizing heuristic data and other
techniques and browser 132 provide feedback to the user. This is
accomplished with refresh manager 134 maintaining and updating refreshing
information together with the bookmarks and favorites data. The computed
and personalized refresh rates advantageously are integrated into a
bookmark list or the like so that an HTML tag solution is not required,
and so that refresh rates can be personalized and overridden. The initial
refresh rate may be set in three different ways: 1) by today's browsers
with very limited options; 2) by a manual setting; or 3) by loading from
an HTML tag within the web site of interest. Disadvantages with the use of
an HTML tag result because it is dependent on the site owner keeping it up
to date, and the initial setting may be wrong or outdated. If HTML tags
eventually are used to provide a refresh rate, this tag is recognized and
used to determine a starting point, then this starting point refresh rate
is improved by the intelligent method of automated refreshing of the
present invention.
The intelligent method of automated refreshing of the present invention
provides the feedback to the user. For example, a user may be interested
in a web site that tracks prices of a distributor of products used in the
user's business. Suppose that the refresh rate is initially set for 1
hour, using either of the three above options. The user needs to know if
this was a good value or is consuming too much traffic, or not refreshing
often enough. The user needs to know how to adjust or fine tune the
refreshing rate with minimal effort. In accordance with features of the
preferred embodiment, internet browser program 132 and refresh manager 134
provide at each refresh, a checksum or other technique that is used to
determine if the site page has changed since the last refresh. This
information is presented to the user. Appropriate graphs or warning
signals are given, such as "you are refreshing too often", or "this site
has high activity and you may want to refresh more often."
The intelligent method of automated refreshing of the present invention
heuristically adjusts the refreshing rate using the initial rate as a
start, based on history, including provisions for special cases, such as
weekends and holidays. The user can subsequently manually override this
automatically generated schedule. However, without the automatic
refreshing rate adjustment of the preferred embodiment, the user may never
figure out the best refresh rates, or more likely never have the time or
inclination to try. Use of the intelligent method of automated refreshing
of the present invention can be extremely valuable for reducing network
traffic.
For example, the intelligent method of automated refreshing of the present
invention may determine that a site changes every hour from 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. on weekdays. Or, alternatively, it may compute that a site changes
every week day at noon, and key in on the provider's schedule for updating
the site. Other sites might be updated on weekends, or have high activity
during certain seasons of the year, which could then be automatically
reflected in their refresh rates. On the other hand, if after time the
site is determined to be erratic in its updates, so that a refresh
schedule is hard to automate, a formula can at least determine times to
block out refreshing, such as midnight to 5 a.m. local time of the
provider of the site. Even this minimal amount of optimization could save
large amounts of network traffic, which today's schemes for refreshing do
not take into account. If a site is found to be inactive over some period
of time, in addition to appropriately adjusting the refresh schedule, a
warning message can be generated to indicate that the site has not changed
in an identified number of weeks, months or years.
Referring now to FIG. 2, an exemplary page structure 200 is illustrated for
implementing the method for intelligent, automated refreshing of internet
web pages in accordance with the invention. Page data structure 200 is
persistent from one run of the browser program 132 to another. Page data
structure 200 includes a universal resource locator (URL) 202, a refresh
interval 204, a weekend interval 206, a last time refreshed 208, a time of
day array 210, a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) or hash value 212, an auto
refresh ON/OFF 214, and a last time accessed 216.
Page data structure 200 is stored as a list or array of the records 202,
204, 206, 208, 210, 212, 214, 216 for each user selected internet web page
in a bookmark list or favorites data for a particular user. The refresh
interval 204 defines a time interval to refresh a page in cache when this
much time has passed. The weekend interval 206 defines a refresh time
interval to refresh a page in cache that is used only on weekends. A time
of day array is a collection of refresh intervals, such as one for each
hour which is used to a page during a particular hour of the day. The CRC
or hash value 212 is an integer value used to determine if a page has
changed, for example, determined by adding together all the bytes in a
page.
FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary auto refresh switch data structure 300 for
implementing the method for intelligent, automated refreshing of internet
web pages in accordance with the invention. Auto refresh switch 300
includes multiple fields for defining a plurality of refreshing
operational modes including off 302, basic 304, special.sub.-- case.sub.--
weekends 306 and time.sub.-- of.sub.-- day 308.
Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B, there are shown exemplary sequential steps of
browser 132 for implementing the method for intelligent, automated
refreshing of internet web pages starting at a block 400. A user action is
received as indicated at a block 402. It is determined whether the user
action to refresh a web page as indicated at a decision block 404. If not,
then the sequential operations continue following entry point B in FIG.
4B. When a user action to refresh a web page is identified at block 404,
then refreshing is performed as indicated at a block 406. Then a routine
illustrated and described with respect to FIG. 5, to check the page for
changes is performed as indicated at a block 408. Then the normal browser
function is performed as indicated at a block 410. Then a routine
illustrated and described with respect to FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D and 7E, to
scan an automatic refresh list or page data is performed as indicated at a
block 412. Then the sequential operations return to block 402 to get a
user action.
Referring to FIG. 4B, when a user action to refresh a web page is not
identified at block 404, then checking whether the user selected a new
page is provided as indicated at a decision block 414. If the user
selected a new page, then checking whether the page is stored in cache is
provided as indicated at a decision block 416. If the page is not cached,
then the page is loaded as indicated at a block 418. Next a routine
illustrated and described with respect to FIG. 6, is performed to update
change data as indicated at a block 420. If determined that the page is
cached at block 416, then the page is displayed as indicated at a block
422. Then the sequential operations return to block 410 in FIG. 4A
following entry point C to perform the normal browser function.
In FIG. 4B, when the user did not select a new page at block 414, then
checking to change refresh defaults is performed as indicated at a
decision block 424. If yes, a routine to change refresh defaults is
performed as indicated at a block 426. The refresh default values updated
at block 426 can include a starting threshold or initial refresh interval,
a reduction amount or amount to reduce refresh intervals by when a page
changes so that refreshing occurs more often, an increase amount or amount
to increase refresh intervals by when a page does not change so that
refreshing occurs less frequently, and a cleanup threshold or time
interval that a page has not been accessed to remove page from cache.
Otherwise when change refresh default is not indicated at block 424, then
all other actions are handled in the normal function of browser 132. Then
the sequential operations return to block 412 in FIG. 4A following entry
point D to scan the refresh list.
Referring to FIG. 5, there are shown exemplary sequential steps of browser
132 for checking for internet web page changes in the automated method for
intelligent, automated refreshing of internet web pages starting at a
block 500. As indicated at a block 502, the refreshed page from block 406
in FIG. 4A is scanned and the CRC is computed. Then the calculated CRC is
compared to the CRC 212 in the date data 200 for this URL 202 as indicated
at a decision block 504. If the calculated and stored CRCs are equal, then
a message is sent saying that the document has not changed as indicated at
a block 506. Otherwise if the calculated and stored CRCs are not equal,
then a message is sent saying that the document has changed as indicated
at a block 508. Then the last time refreshed value 208 for this URL 202 in
the page data 200 is updated to be the current time as indicated at a
block 510. Next the last time accessed value 216 for this URL 202 in the
page data 200 is updated to be the current time as indicated at a block
512. Then the CRC value 212 for this URL 202 in the page data 200 is
updated to be the calculated CRC as indicated at a block 514. Then the
routine is exited as indicated at a block 516 and the sequential
operations return.
Referring to FIG. 6, there are shown exemplary sequential steps of browser
132 for updating change data in the automated method for intelligent,
automated refreshing of internet web pages starting at a block 600.
Checking whether the auto refresh switch off is performed as indicated at
a decision block 602. If the auto refresh switch is on, then an auto
refresh flag is set in a page data record to on as indicated at a block
604. Otherwise, if the auto refresh switch is off, then the operations
stop as indicated at a block 606. After the auto refresh flag is set to on
at block 604, the record is added in page data 200 for a particular page
just loaded as indicated at a block 608. The last time updated or
refreshed 208 is set to the current time as indicated at a block 610. All
intervals 204, 206, 210 are set to the starting threshold value to define
an initial refresh interval as indicated at a block 612; as discussed
above, the initial refresh interval value can be obtained from an HTML tag
for the page. The page just loaded is scanned and a CRC is computed and
saved in the record as indicated at a block 614. Next the last time
accessed value 216 for this URL 202 in the page data 200 is set to be the
current time as indicated at a block 616. Then the routine is exited as
indicated at a block 618 and the sequential operations return.
Referring to FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C, 7D and 7E, there are shown exemplary
sequential steps of browser 132 to scan the auto refresh list in the
automated method for intelligent, automated refreshing of internet web
pages starting at a block 700 in FIG. 7A. Checking for more pages to scan
in the page data is performed as indicated at a decision block 702. When
there are no more pages to scan, the routine is exited as indicated at a
block 704. When there are more pages to scan, then a next recorded is
obtained from the page data 200 as indicated at a block 706. Checking
whether the auto refresh switch is off is performed as indicated at a
decision block 708. If the auto refresh switch is not off, then the
sequential operations continue following entry point B in FIG. 7B. When
the auto refresh switch is off, then following entry point A checking
whether the current record is older that the cleanup threshold is
performed as indicated at a decision block 710. If the current record is
not older that the cleanup threshold, then the sequential operations
return following entry point C to block 702 to check for more pages.
Referring to FIG. 7B, when determined that the auto refresh switch is not
off at block 708 in FIG. 7A, then checking whether the auto refresh switch
is set to basic as indicated at a block 716. If so, then the sequential
operations continue following entry point F in FIG. 7E. Otherwise if the
auto refresh switch is not set to basic, then checking whether the auto
refresh switch is set to special case weekend is performed as indicated at
a decision block 718. If the auto refresh switch is not set to special
case weekend, then the current time less the last updated time is compared
with the interval in the time of day slot for the current time as
indicated at a decision block 720. If the resulting value for the current
time less the last updated time is not greater the interval in the time of
day slot for the current time, then the sequential operations return
following entry point A for checking whether the current record is older
that the cleanup threshold at decision block 710. Otherwise when the
resulting value for the current time less the last updated time is greater
the interval in the time of day slot for the current time, then the
sequential operations continue following entry point E in FIG. 7D. When
the auto refresh switch is set to special case weekend at block 718, then
checking whether the current date is a weekend date is performed as
indicated at a decision block 722. If the current date is not a weekend
date, then the sequential operations continue following entry point F in
FIG. 7E. When the current date is a weekend date, then the current time
less the last updated value is compared with the stored weekend refresh
interval as indicated at a decision block 724. If the current time less
the last updated value is not greater than the stored weekend refresh
interval, then the sequential operations return following entry point A
for checking whether the current record is older that the cleanup
threshold at decision block 710. If the current time less the last updated
value is greater than the stored weekend refresh interval, then the
sequential operations continue following entry point D in FIG. 7C.
Referring to FIG. 7C, then this page in the page data 200 is refreshed as
indicated at a block 726. Checking whether the CRC value 212 changed is
performed as indicated at a decision block 728. If the CRC value 212
changed, then the weekend interval is decremented by a stored reduction
amount as indicated at a block 730 so that refreshing occurs more often.
Then the last time refreshed is updated to be the current time as
indicated at a block 732 and the sequential operations return following
entry point A in FIG. 7A. If the CRC value 212 did not change, then the
weekend interval is incremented by a stored increase amount as indicated
at a block 734. Then the last time refreshed is updated to be the current
time at block 732 and the sequential operations return following entry
point A in FIG. 7A for checking whether the current record is older that
the cleanup threshold at decision block 710.
Referring to FIG. 7C, then this page in the page data 200 is refreshed as
indicated at a block 736. Checking whether the CRC value 212 changed is
performed as indicated at a decision block 738. If the CRC value 212
changed, then the interval associated with the time of day slot is
decremented by a stored reduction amount as indicated at a block 740. Then
the last time refreshed is updated to be the current time as indicated at
a block 742 and the sequential operations return following entry point A
in FIG. 7A. If the CRC value 212 did not change, then the interval
associated with the time of day slot is incremented by a stored increase
amount as indicated at a block 744. Then the last time refreshed is
updated to be the current time at block 742 and the sequential operations
return following entry point A in FIG. 7A for checking whether the current
record is older that the cleanup threshold at decision block 710.
Referring to FIG. 7E, the auto refresh switch is set to basic at block 716
in FIG. 7B, then the sequential operations continue following entry point
F with checking whether the current time less the last time updated is
greater than the refresh interval as indicated at a decision block 742.
Then this page in the page data 200 is refreshed as indicated at a block
744. Checking whether the CRC value 212 changed is performed as indicated
at a decision block 746. If the CRC value 212 changed, then the | | |
