CN101542427B - Content feed user interface - Google Patents

Abstract

A content feed aggregator displays an ordered list of content items, including a selected item and a set of other items. The selected item is displayed in an expanded format while other items are simultaneously displayed in a compact format. At least one respective item in a compact format is displayed above the selected item and at least one respective item in a compact format is displayed below the selected item. In response to a user action to select a second item in the displayed list, the ordered list of content items is redisplayed, wherein the second item is displayed in an expanded format and other items, including the first item, are displayed in a compact format.

Description

Content feeds the user interface

technical field

The disclosed embodiments relate generally to content syndication, and more particularly to a content feed user interface having multiple modes for viewing content feed items.

Background technique

Content syndication is becoming increasingly popular as a way of distributing frequently updated information, such as news and blog posts, on the Internet. Using a content syndication format such as Simple Syndication (RSS), a content provider can include content and/or links to such content in a content feed. Users can subscribe to these content feeds using an application known as a feed reader, content feed reader, feed aggregator, or content feed aggregator. When the content feed is updated with new content items, the new content items are reflected on the user's reader.

A user may subscribe to a number of content feeds, where each feed lists multiple content items. Browsing through a dense list of content items to locate an item of interest can be a burdensome task for a user.

Therefore, there is a need for a more efficient way of presenting content items to users.

Contents of the invention

A method of presenting content includes displaying an ordered list of content items, the list of content items including a selected item and a set of other items. The other items are displayed in a compact format while the selected item is simultaneously displayed in an expanded format. The displayed list of content items includes at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format above the selected item and at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format below the selected item.

A system for presenting content includes memory, one or more processors, and one or more programs stored in the memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include instructions for displaying an ordered list of content items including the selected item and a set of other items. The display instructions include instructions for displaying other items in a compact format while displaying the selected item in an expanded format. The displayed list of content items includes at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format above the selected item and at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format below the selected item.

A computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured to be executed by a computer system. The one or more programs include instructions for displaying an ordered list of content items including the selected item and a set of other items. The display instructions include instructions for displaying other items in a compact format while displaying the selected item in an expanded format. The displayed list of content items includes at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format above the selected item and at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format below the selected item.

A system for presenting content includes means for displaying an ordered list of content items, the list of content items including a selected item and a set of other items. The means for displaying includes means for displaying other items in a compact format while displaying the selected item in an expanded format. The displayed list of content items includes at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format above the selected item and at least one corresponding item displayed in a compact format below the selected item.

A computer-implemented method of presenting content includes detecting user selection of a corresponding bookmark. The bookmark includes a link to a URL corresponding to the online content feed aggregator. A document is downloaded from a network location associated with the bookmark and the downloaded document is displayed. The documents correspond to content feeds to which the user has subscribed.

A method of serving content includes receiving requests from client devices. The request includes a user identifier. A redirection to the document is communicated to the client device. The document is selected from the group consisting of: a document corresponding to a URL in a content item of a respective content feed to which the user has subscribed, and a home page of a respective content feed to which the user has subscribed.

A system for presenting content includes a memory, one or more processors, and one or more programs stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include instructions for detecting user selection of a corresponding bookmark. The bookmark includes a link to a URL corresponding to the online content feed aggregator. The one or more programs also include instructions for downloading a document from a network location associated with the bookmark and instructions for displaying the downloaded document. The documents correspond to content feeds to which the user has subscribed.

A computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured to be executed by a computer system. The one or more programs include instructions for detecting user selection of a corresponding bookmark. The bookmark includes a link to a URL corresponding to the online content feed aggregator. The one or more programs also include instructions for downloading a document from a network location associated with the bookmark and instructions for displaying the downloaded document. The documents correspond to content feeds to which the user has subscribed.

A system for presenting content includes means for detecting user selection of a corresponding bookmark. The bookmark includes a link to a URL corresponding to the online content feed aggregator. The system also includes means for downloading a document from a network location associated with the bookmark and means for displaying the downloaded document. The documents correspond to content feeds to which the user has subscribed.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating a content feed aggregation system in accordance with some embodiments.

2A-2D are flowcharts illustrating processes for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments.

3A-3D are schematic screenshots of a user interface of a content feed reader in accordance with some embodiments.

Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating a client computer in accordance with some embodiments.

Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating a server computer in accordance with some embodiments.

Figures 6A, 6B and 6C are diagrams illustrating data structures for feeding content items and user subscriptions in accordance with some embodiments.

7A, 7B, and 7C are flowcharts illustrating processes for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments.

Figure 8A is a block diagram illustrating a feed reader user interface in accordance with some embodiments.

Figure 8B is a block diagram illustrating content items provided via the user interface of Figure 8A in accordance with some embodiments.

8C is a block diagram illustrating a user interface for installing a bookmark on a browser toolbar for accessing one or more items of one or more content feeds to which the user has subscribed, in accordance with some embodiments .

Like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the drawings.

Detailed ways

In a content feed aggregation system, a user may subscribe to one or more content feeds and be presented with content items included in those content feeds. The content items may be presented to the user in an ordered list such that the format of each item in the list is uniform. However, the user may wish to view additional information related to the selected content item beyond that provided by the unified listing. The disclosed embodiments provide a way for a user to view additional information related to a selected item. For example, in one mode of operation, when a user selects a first content item, the selected item is displayed in an expanded format and other items are displayed in a compact format. When the user subsequently selects a second content item, the second item is displayed in the expanded format and the first item is displayed in the compact format.

Content feeds are also referred to herein as feed streams. Feed items from a content feed source can be considered a stream of items. Additionally, some embodiments of the content feed aggregation and distribution system described herein allow users to define virtual streams that incorporate content items from content feeds and/or other virtual streams. Thus, in these embodiments, the term "feed stream" also encompasses virtual streams defined by the user of the content feed aggregation and distribution system.

Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating a content feed aggregation system in accordance with some embodiments. Content feed aggregation system 100 includes server system 104 . Server system 104 is coupled to one or more client systems 102 and one or more hosts 120 (or “feed sources”) via network 106 . Network 106 may be any suitable wired and/or wireless network, and may include local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), the Internet, metropolitan area networks (MANs), and any combination of these networks.

Server system 104 accesses content feeds from feed sources 120 . Server system 104 includes server 108 and database 110 . The server 108 acts as a front end to the server system 104 . Server 108 , sometimes referred to as a front-end server, obtains content feeds from feed source 120 and also provides an interface between server system 104 and client system 102 . In some embodiments, the functionality of server 108 may be divided or distributed across two or more servers.

The server system 104 stores the content items in the content feed in the database 110 . In some embodiments, database 110 stores metadata (eg, title, description, URL, date/time, and possibly other metadata) and the content of each content item. However, in some other embodiments, the database 110 stores metadata but not the content of each content item. Database 110 also stores user feed information 112 for a plurality of users. User feed information for a particular user identifies content feed subscriptions for that particular user, along with sources, filters, and reading status. That is, the user feed information associated with a user identifies content feeds to which the user has subscribed, any filters the user has defined on the feeds, any tags the user has associated with individual feed items, and An indication of whether each feed item has been marked as "read" by the user.

It should be understood that server system 104 including server 108 and database 110 may be implemented as a distributed system of multiple computers. However, for ease of explanation, server system 104 is described below as being implemented on a single computer, which may be considered a single logical system.

A content feed (or channel) is a resource or service that provides a list of content items presented, recently added, or recently updated at the feed source 120 . A content item in a content feed may include content associated with the item itself (the actual content specified by the content item), a title (sometimes referred to as a title) and/or a content description, a content locator (e.g., a URL), or random combination. For example, if a content item identifies a textual article, the content item may include an embedded article itself, as well as a title (or heading) and a locator. Alternatively, a content item may include a title, description, and locator, but not article content. Accordingly, some content items may include content associated with those items, while others contain links to associated content rather than the entire content of the item. A content item may also include additional metadata that provides additional information related to the content. The full version of content may be any machine-readable data, including but not limited to web pages, images, digital audio, digital video, Portable Document Format (PDF) documents, and the like.

In some embodiments, content feeds are specified using a content syndication format such as RSS. RSS is an acronym that stands for "rich site summary", "RDF site summary" or "Really Simple Syndication". "RSS" may refer to any of a family of Extensible Markup Language (XML)-based formats for specifying content feeds and content items included in the feeds. In some other embodiments, content feeds may be specified using other content syndication formats such as the Atom syndication format or the VCALENDAR calendar format.

Additional information related to the RSS syndication format known as "Simple Syndication" is disclosed in the RSS 2.0 Specification by D. Winer, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. Additional information related to the Atom Syndication Format is disclosed by M. Nottingham et al. in The Atom Syndication Format, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

A user interfaces with the server system 104 and views a content item at a client system or device 102 (hereinafter referred to as a client system for ease of reference). Client system 102 includes a computer 118 or computer-controlled device, such as a personal digital assistant (PDA), cellular telephone, or the like. Computer 118 typically includes one or more processors (not shown); memory, which may include volatile memory (not shown) and non-volatile memory such as hard drive 119 ; and display 114 . Computer 118 may also have input devices such as a keyboard and mouse (not shown).

In some embodiments, a user may interact with server system 104 via feed reader user interface 116 , which may be presented on display 114 . A user may create a feed subscription list via the feed reader user interface 116 . In some embodiments, using the feed reader user interface 116, a user may also create filters or tags to be applied to content feeds and/or content items, and modify the reading status of content feeds and/or content items. The feed reader user interface transmits the content feed subscription list or modifications to the content feed subscription list to the server 104 for storage in the database 110 . The feed reader user interface 116 presents content items stored in the database 110 to the user based on the user's content feed subscription list. That is, the feed reader user interface 116 presents the user with content items specified in content feeds to which the user has subscribed. A user may view a full version of the content of a content item in the feed viewer user interface 116 by selecting it (eg, by clicking on it with a mouse pointer). In some embodiments, a copy of the user's content feed subscription list and a copy of the presented content items may be cached locally at the client system 102 .

In some embodiments, feed reader user interface 116 may be a web-based user interface. That is, feed reader user interface 116 includes one or more web pages. It should be noted that a single web page may contain multiple frames, each of which (when displayed by a browser application) may appear as a different web page. Web pages may be written in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Extensible Markup Language (XML), or any other language for preparing web pages, and may include one or more scripts for interacting with server system 104 . For example, a web page may include a Javascript application that interacts with server system 104 via an application programming interface (API). The Javascript application receives content items from the server system 104, manages the presentation of those content items on the client side, and also performs the client-side portion of other tasks, such as marking items as read, adding and removing content feeds to subscriptions, Content Feeds Subscriptions and/or individually selected content items add tags, select or correct user preferences, etc. Users may subscribe to content feeds, view content items, and otherwise interact with server system 104 by interacting with web pages of feed reader user interface 116 . In other words, server system 104, including feed reader user interface 116, provides web-based content aggregation services. The server system 104 aggregates and stores content items in accordance with the user's content feed subscriptions. In some embodiments, the server system 104 is also capable of applying filters or tags, or changing the read status of a content item upon user action or instruction. When a user accesses the feed reader user interface 116 , content items are presented to the user via the feed reader user interface 116 .

In some other embodiments, feed reader user interface 116 may be part of a stand-alone application running on client system 102 . The stand-alone applications can interact with server system 104 via an application programming interface (API).

Figure 2A is a flow diagram illustrating a process 200 for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments. Process 200 occurs at a client device on a client application that allows a user to interact with server system 104 via feed reader user interface 116 . User interface 116 displays a sorted list of content items (202). Specifies a content item in a content feed to which the user has subscribed. The selected first item is displayed in an expanded format, while the other items are displayed in a compact format (204). 3B depicts a schematic screenshot of a user interface showing a first item in an expanded format and other items in a compact format in a sorted list of content items. In one embodiment, the compact format includes a publication source, a title, and a timestamp associated with each item, where each item is presented on a single line. In another embodiment, the compact format also includes an excerpt (a small portion) of the content, also displayed on said single line. In one embodiment, the expanded format displays the same information on the first line of the expanded format as the compact format. Additionally, the expanded format displays the title (sometimes called a title) and source of the content on subsequent lines in a larger font than used on the first line, and displays some or all of the content below the title and source. In other embodiments, the extended format may include additional information associated with the content item. For example, a content item displayed in an expanded format may include links to all content associated with the content item. The link includes a URL to a web page or other document containing the entire content of the content item.

The user may select the next item (second item), for example by scrolling down the list, or may select another item (second item), for example by clicking on it. In response, the sorted list is redisplayed (206). The newly selected second item is displayed in an expanded format, while other items, such as the first item, are displayed in a compact format (208). 3C depicts an exemplary schematic screenshot of a user interface showing a second item in an expanded format while the first item and other items are displayed in a compact format.

Figure 2B is a flow diagram illustrating a process 220 for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments. As described above, an ordered list of content items is displayed with the selected first item in an expanded format and the other items in a compact format (202, 204). When the user selects the second item, the sorted list is redisplayed (222). If the user has selected a second item by scrolling down the list, the redisplayed list is scrolled appropriately. The newly selected item is displayed in an expanded format, while other items, such as the first item, are displayed in a compact format (208). If the user has scrolled down the list, the item or items that were previously displayed at the top of the list when the first item was selected are no longer displayed (224). In some embodiments, the status of the previously selected item changes from unread to read (226) as the item scrolls off the top of the displayed list. More specifically, when an item already viewed in extended format scrolls off the top of the displayed list (226), the client sends a message to the server identifying the content item to be marked as read, and the server system then updates the content item accordingly status.

As discussed below with reference to FIG. 2D, in some other embodiments, content items are marked as read when they are displayed in the expanded format. Alternatively, content items are marked as read when they are selected, regardless of whether they are displayed in expanded or compact format. Furthermore, in some embodiments, content items that have been marked as read and have not been scrolled off the top of the displayed list are displayed differently than unread items are displayed. For example, one or more portions of the displayed text (e.g., the displayed title or title) of an item marked as read may be displayed using a slight shade of gray, while the corresponding text or portion of text of an unread item may be displayed using black text to display.

Figure 2C is a flow diagram illustrating a process 240 for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments. Process 240 begins with operations 202-208 described above with respect to FIG. 2A. After operation 208, the displayed sorted list includes the newly selected second item displayed in the expanded format and other items displayed in the compact format, such as the previously selected first item. The user may select the next item (the third item), eg, by scrolling down the list, or may select another item (the third item), eg, by clicking on the other item. In response, the sorted list is redisplayed (242). The newly selected third item is displayed in an expanded format, while other items, such as the second and first items, are displayed in a compact format (244). However, if the user scrolls through the list to select the third item, then depending on how far the user scrolled through the list, the first and second items may not be displayed (for example, because they have been scrolled off the top or the top of the displayed list of content items). bottom).

Figure 2D is a flow diagram illustrating a process 260 for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments. Operations 202 and 204 are performed as described above with respect to Figure 2A. Selecting the first item causes the status of the first item to change from unread to read (262). In one embodiment, the state is changed by transmitting information to the server 108 indicating that the first item has been read (264). Server 108 then updates database 110 to reflect that the first item has been read by the user.

The user may select the next item (the second item), eg, by scrolling down the list, or may select another item (the second item), eg, by clicking on the other item. In response, the sorted list is redisplayed (206). The newly selected second item is displayed in an expanded format, while other items, such as the first item, are displayed in a compact format (208). Selection of the second item causes the status of the second item to change from unread to read (266). In one embodiment, the state is changed by transmitting information to the server 108 indicating that the second item has been read (268). Server 108 then updates database 110 to reflect that the second item has been read by the user.

FIG. 3A is a schematic screenshot of a web browser user interface 300 (sometimes referred to hereafter as a web browser for convenience) presenting a web page displayed for a reader user interface 302 in accordance with some embodiments. Web browser 300 may be any type of browser application that allows a user to display and interact with web pages or other documents or information. The user interface of the web browser includes a URL field 304 for inputting the URL of any webpage that the user wishes to display and displaying the URL of the currently displayed webpage. A user may access a web page displaying feed reader user interface 302 by entering a URL associated with feed reader user interface 302 in URL field 304 .

The feed reader user interface 302 includes a list of tags 305 , also referred to as folders, associated with content feeds to which the user has subscribed. Exemplary tabs shown in FIG. 3A include "News" 306 and "Sports" 308 . Label or folder names can be user-defined names. The user interface 302 also includes a sorted list 310 of content items associated with the selected tag. For example, in FIG. 3A, the "Sports" tab 308 has been selected by the user and is indicated by a shaded background. In this example, sorted list 310 includes items 312, 314, and 315. In some embodiments, items in sorted list 310 are sorted according to timestamps associated with the items. In some other embodiments, the items in the sorted list 310 are sorted according to a score that takes into account the item content and the item's timestamp.

A user can select a different tab, eg, by clicking on a different tab. If the user selects the “News” tab 306 , the sorted list 310 will display the content items associated with the “News” tab 306 . Furthermore, the user interface 302 also indicates that the "News" tab 306 is selected by displaying it with a shaded background. In this example, after the user selects the "News" tab 306, the background of the "Sports" tab 308 will no longer be shaded.

In FIG. 3A, all items of sorted list 310 including 312, 314, and 315 are displayed in a compact format. In this embodiment, the compact format includes the source, title and timestamp for each item displayed on a single line. For example, a compact format display of item 312 includes "Sports Source 1," "Sports Headline 1," and "Timestamp 1," all displayed on the same line in sorted list 310. In other embodiments, the compact format may include additional information. For example, a brief portion of the content may be displayed immediately after the title.

User interface 302 shows selection of an item in sorted list 310 by displaying the item with an expanded border. In FIG. 3A, item 312 is selected as indicated by the widened border. As indicated by their narrow borders, items 314 and 315 are not selected. In other embodiments, selected items may have borders of a different color than other items (eg, dark blue borders for selected items and gray or light black borders for unselected items). The user can scroll through the sorted items by clicking on the "NextItem" button 316 or the "Previous Item" button 318, by clicking directly on another item, or by using the scroll bar 320. List 310 and then click on another item to select another item (second item). For example, in FIG. 3A , the user can select item 314 by clicking on "Next Item" button 316 or by clicking directly on item 314. Item 314 is then displayed with a wider border, and other items such as item 312 will be presented with a narrower border.

Figure 3B is a schematic screenshot of a web browser 300 presenting a web page displayed for a viewer user interface 302 in accordance with some embodiments. As shown in FIG. 3A , the user interface 302 includes a list 305 of tags associated with content feeds to which the user has subscribed and a sorted list 310 of content items associated with the selected tag. However, the selected content item 340 is displayed in an expanded format, while other content items, such as the second item 314, are displayed in a compact format. Item 340 corresponds to item 312 shown in compact format in FIG. 3A. In one embodiment, the expanded format displays the same information on the first line as the compact format, such as each item's source, title, and timestamp. The title is then displayed again in a larger font on the second line, the source is displayed again on the third line, and the content is displayed on the fourth line and subsequent lines if desired. This embodiment of the extended format is illustrated by content item 340 . In various embodiments, the expanded format does not display the same information on the first line as the compact format; instead, it displays the title and source in a larger font than the compact format, followed by the content on subsequent lines.

As discussed above with respect to FIG. 3A, the user may select another item (the second item). For example, in FIG. 3B , the user can select item 314 by clicking on item 314 or clicking on “NextItem” button 316 . Figure 3C, which is a schematic screenshot of web browser 300 rendering a web page displaying feed reader user interface 302, shows the result of this user action according to an embodiment. Selected item 360 (corresponding to item 314 in compact format) appears in expanded format. Other items including first item 312 (corresponding to item 340 in expanded format) are displayed in compact format.

In the example of FIGS. 3B and 3C , item 360 is not as large as item 340 and has only one line of content instead of two. Thus, the sorted list 310 in FIG. 3B displays fewer items than the sorted list 310 in FIG. 3C, the sorted list 310 in FIG. project. Typically, the number of items displayed in sorted list 310 will vary depending on the size of the expanded format of the selected item.

Figure 3D is a schematic screenshot of a web browser 300 presenting a web page displayed for a viewer user interface 302 in accordance with some embodiments. As shown in FIGS. 3A-3C , the user interface 302 includes a list 305 of tags associated with content feeds to which the user has subscribed and a sorted list 310 of content items associated with the selected tag. However, all items in sorted list 310 are displayed in expanded format. Items 340 and 360 (corresponding to items 312 and 314, respectively, in the compact format) are displayed in their entirety. Item 380 (corresponding to item 315 in the compact format) only displays the top portion because there is not enough space to display the entire item in the expanded format. Since the size of each item of the expanded format varies, for example, depending on the amount of content, the number of displayed items generally changes.

Some, but not necessarily all, content items displayed in expanded form include links to the full content associated with those content items. The link may be activated by the user clicking on the title of the content item, or by clicking on the corresponding content item's link icon (not shown in FIGS. 3A-3D ) displayed in an expanded format. Typically, activation of a link causes the browser to open a new browser window or tab, and to download and display the document (if any) at the location (eg, URL) specified by the link.

Although not shown in FIGS. 3A-3D , a feed reader user interface will typically include icons, menu items, etc. for reviewing and managing a user's content feed subscriptions, including removing and adding content feed subscriptions, and The corresponding content feed subscription is optionally tagged with one or more user-defined tags (or alternatively, the corresponding content feed subscription is assigned to one or more user-defined folders).

Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating a client computer in accordance with some embodiments. Typically, client computer 400 includes one or more processing units (CPUs) 402, one or more network or other communication interfaces 406, memory 404, and one or more communication buses 414 for interconnecting these components. Communication bus 414 may include circuitry (sometimes called a chipset) that interconnects and controls communications between system components. The client computer 400 may also include a user interface 408 including a display device 410 and a keyboard and/or mouse (or other pointing device) 412 . Memory 404 includes high-speed random-access memory such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random-access solid-state storage devices; and may include non-volatile memory such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory device or other non-volatile solid-state storage device. Memory 404 may optionally include one or more storage devices located remotely from CPU 402. In some embodiments, memory 404 stores the following programs, modules, and data structures, or subsets thereof:

· Operating system 416, including programs for handling various basic system services and for performing hardware-dependent tasks;

A network communication module 418 for connecting the client system 400 to other computers via one or more communication network interfaces 406 and one or more communication networks, such as the Internet, other wide area networks, local area networks, metropolitan area networks, etc. ;

• Feed Reader Module 420 for processing content items from a content feed; and

• A client application 430, such as a web browser.

The feed viewer module 420 includes a content item format module 422 for determining the format in which content items are displayed, a local database 424 for storing content items sent by the server, and a server interface module 426 for interacting with the server computer 500 .

In some embodiments, feed reader module 420 may be a script-based module embedded in a web page served from server system 104 (FIG. 1). The web page may be presented by a client 430 at the client computer 400, such as a web browser. When a web page is rendered, execution feeds the reader module 420 , thereby providing a web-based interface to the server system 104 . Script-based feed reader modules may be written in JavaScript, ECMAScript, or any other suitable scripting language.

In some other embodiments, feed reader module 420 may be a stand-alone application stored in memory 404 of client computer 400 . The stand-alone applications may include, but are not limited to, feed aggregator applications. In still other embodiments, feed reader module 420 may be an add-on or plug-in for other applications. For example, feed reader module 420 may be a plug-in or extension to a web browser application or email application.

In some embodiments, received content items may be cached locally in memory 404 . Similarly, a user's content feed subscription list may also be cached locally in memory 404 .

Each element identified above in Figure 4 may be stored in one or more of the previously mentioned memory devices. Each module identified above corresponds to a set of instructions for performing the function described above. The above identified modules or programs (ie, sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or rearranged in various embodiments. In some embodiments, memory 404 may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 404 may store additional modules and data structures not described above.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a server computer 500 in accordance with some embodiments. Typically, server computer 500 includes one or more processing units (CPUs) 502, one or more network or other communication interfaces 506, memory 504, and one or more communication buses 510 for interconnecting these components. Communication bus 510 may include circuitry (sometimes called a chipset) that interconnects and controls communications between system components. Server system 500 may optionally include a user interface 508, which may include a display device (not shown) and a keyboard and/or mouse (not shown). Memory 504 includes high-speed random access memory such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid-state storage devices; and may include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or Other non-volatile solid-state storage devices. Memory 504 may optionally include one or more storage devices located remotely from CPU 502. In some embodiments, memory 504 stores the following programs, modules, and data structures, or subsets thereof:

· Operating system 516, including programs for handling various basic system services and for performing hardware-dependent tasks;

A network communication module 518 for connecting the server system 500 to other computers via one or more communication network interfaces 506 and one or more communication networks, such as the Internet, other wide area networks, local area networks, metropolitan area networks, etc.;

· Feed tracker module 516 for retrieving content items for storage periodically and/or when the content feed is updated;

· Subscription database 518 for storing information related to system users' content feed subscriptions;

· Feed content database 520 for storing content items from content feeds and user information about content items that the respective user has read, tagged, etc.;

a reader application interface 524 for exchanging information with a feeder reader module in one or more client computers; and

• User Preferences Database 526 for storing user-specific information, including user preferences regarding user interfaces.

Each of the above-identified elements in FIG. 5 may be stored in one or more of the aforementioned memory devices, and each of the above-identified modules corresponds to a set of instructions for performing the functions described above. The above identified modules or programs (ie, sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or rearranged in various embodiments. In some embodiments, memory 504 may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory 504 may store additional modules and data structures not described above.

Although Figure 5 shows a "server computer," Figure 5 is intended more as a functional description of the various features that may be present in a set of servers than as a structural illustration of the embodiments described herein. In practice and as recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art, items shown separately may be combined and some items may be divided. For example, some items shown individually in Figure 5 may be implemented on a single server, and individual items may be implemented by one or more servers.

Figure 6A is a diagram illustrating a data structure for feeding content items in accordance with some embodiments. As noted above, server computer 500 ( FIG. 5 ) may store a plurality of feed content items in feed content database 520 . The feed content items may be stored in a data structure such as table data structure 600 . Feed content table 600 includes a row 610 for each content item from each feed source. Each row includes one or more fields (612, 614) that identify a content item such as a content ID 612 and a feed ID 614 (which identifies a feed source for the content item). In some embodiments, the content ID may include information that uniquely identifies the feed source, in which case the feed ID 614 may be omitted. Each row 610 may further include the content 616 of the content item. Content 616 may include metadata for the content item (eg, title, description, URL, date/time, and possibly other metadata), and may further include the actual content of the content item. Additionally, each row 610 includes a column 618 or field for each registered user of the system. The user data in the column may include a read flag 620 indicating whether the user corresponding to the column has read the content item associated with the row 610 containing the user data. The user data in column 618 may also optionally include additional user information, such as one or more user-specified tags or tags 622 . Users may add tags or marks to content items as well as content feeds, and a record of the user's tags or tags associated with each tagged content item is stored in user data 618 . In some embodiments, the system may allow users to tag or mark individual content items with predefined tags or marks (e.g., asterisks, red, blue, etc.), and some embodiments further allow users to use user-defined tags (eg, "News", "Music", etc.) Add tags or tags to each content item. Additionally, the content item represented by row 610 may be tagged by any number of users.

Figure 6B is a diagram illustrating a data structure for user subscriptions in accordance with some embodiments. As noted above, server computer 500 ( FIG. 5 ) may store user subscription information in subscription database 518 . User subscription information may be stored in a data structure such as table data structure 650 . User subscription information table 650 stores feed identifications for feed streams known to the system and user data for those feed streams. User subscription table 650 includes a field or column 656 corresponding to a stream ID for each content stream known to the system, including actual content streams (typically corresponding to content streams from publishing sources at suitably defined network locations) and virtual content streams. content flow. A virtual content stream is a content stream that is taken from one or more other content streams within the context of the server system 104 . For example, a virtual content stream may include a set of actual content streams with tags assigned by a user. In another example, a virtual stream may include content items that have been assigned a particular tag by a user; the tagged content items may be from one or more actual content streams. In one embodiment, a virtual flow may be identified by a user who created the flow and a user tag assigned to the virtual flow by said user. Accordingly, a stream ID for a virtual stream may include a user ID 658 of the user who created the virtual stream and a user tag 660 assigned to the virtual stream by the user. Alternatively, the flow ID of the virtual flow may be generated or specified by a mapping function that maps virtual flows to virtual flow IDs.

Table 650 further includes a row 654 for each user with a field or column 656 containing user data for each content stream. In some embodiments, the user data for the respective content stream includes a subscription flag 662 indicating whether the user has subscribed to the content stream associated with the column 656 containing the user data. The user data may also include a marked as read flag and a timestamp 668 indicating whether and when the user corresponding to the row viewed the item in the content stream associated with column 656 . User data may further include additional user information, such as one or more user-specified tags 664 . Users can tag content streams that they wish to watch again in the future, and a record of the user's tags associated with content streams can be stored in user data 656 .

Figure 6C is a diagram illustrating a data structure for user preferences in accordance with some embodiments. As noted above, server computer 500 ( FIG. 5 ) may store user preference information in user preference database 526 . User preference information may be stored in a data structure such as table data structure 680 . User preference table 680 contains user data 684 (eg, in rows or records of table 680 ) for each user. The user data 684 optionally includes a user ID 686 (which may be indicated by the position of the user data 684 in the user preference table 680), and a token 688 used by the server 500 to authenticate requests from the user. In some embodiments, the token 688 is generated using a random or pseudo-random number generator or function and is of sufficient length such that it cannot be guessed or independently copied. In some embodiments, users who have not implemented the bookmarking features discussed below are not assigned a token 688 . Instead, a corresponding token 688 is generated and stored in the user's user data 684 when the user first implements the bookmark feature. As described in more detail below, the token is used in the bookmark feature to prevent an intruder from forging a user's feed reader bookmark (sometimes referred to herein as a content feed bookmark), which would enable the user's Feeds the reader account for unauthorized access and, in turn, can cause content items to be marked as read even if they have never been viewed by the user.

User data may optionally include one or more additional fields 689 , 690 , 692 , 694 . For example, user data may optionally include a sort order tag 689 for specifying the order in which content items are displayed on a user interface, such as user interface 302 (FIG. 3A). For example, content items may be displayed in chronological order or according to a ranking based on predetermined criteria (eg, quality and/or quantity of content within a content item, and age of the content item). The user data may further include an animation flag 690 to indicate whether an animation is displayed on the user interface. The user data may include user interface feature tags or parameter values (692, 694) to specify other user interface features associated with the user. For example, user interface feature tags can be used to specify the formatting and colors of the user interface. In one embodiment, the user can set the sort order flags, animation flags, and user interface feature flags via a menu (not shown) accessible from the user interface.

Feed content table 600 and user subscription table 650, or portions of these tables, may be stored using a sparse table storage mechanism, since most of the user data in these tables may be empty or set to default values.

Figure 7A is a flow diagram illustrating a process 700 for presenting content items to a user in accordance with some embodiments. Operations 702 - 712 are performed by the client computer 400 and operations 714 - 722 are performed by the server computer 500 . Client 400 detects user selection of a bookmark (sometimes referred to herein as a feed reader bookmark or a content feed bookmark) (702). In response, client 400 downloads the document associated with the bookmark (704) and displays the downloaded document to the user (712).

In one embodiment, the process of downloading a document begins by transmitting a request to the server 500 specified by the bookmark (706). As discussed in more detail below, in some embodiments, if the request is a valid request, it includes a token that uniquely corresponds to the requesting user's user identifier and contains the requesting user's user identifier (sometimes referred to as the user identifier). ID) login cookie (also known variously as object, cookie file, or cookie object). Server 500 receives the request (714), identifies the user or user account for the user, and identifies unread content items for the requesting user (716). Typically, for a server to successfully process a user request, the requesting user must be a registered user of the content feed aggregation system and must have subscribed to at least one content feed. The item identified by the server may, for example, be the most recent unread item in a set of content feeds associated with the selected bookmark. In another example, unread items are identified according to other predefined selection criteria.

Documents associated with the identified item are identified (718). Exemplary identified documents include a document corresponding to a URL in the identified content item, or a home page containing a content feed for the identified content item. For example, if the identified item is a blog post, the identified document may be the web page containing the post, or it may be the blog's home page. If the identified item is a new article, the identified document may be the web page containing the article, or it may be the home page of the news service that published the article.

The server 500 marks the identified content item or corresponding feed as read (720). In one embodiment, when the document identified in operation 718 is linked to a particular content item, the particular content item is marked as read. On the other hand, when the document identified in operation 718 is the home page of a content feed, then the corresponding feed stream is marked as read, with a timestamp indicating the last time the feed stream was marked as read. Marking the entire feed as read is (from the user's point of view) equivalent to marking all content items in the feed as read by the user, but it is more efficient because only for The update made by the server database is to update the "marked as read" tag and timestamp 668 (in the user subscription table 650) in the user data for the feed. In contrast, marking all individual items in the feed stream as read potentially requires updating user data for many items in the feed content table 600 . Once a feed stream has been marked as read for a particular user, only content items newer than the marked as read timestamp can be considered unread by the user (excluding, of course, any individual content items that have already been marked as read ).

Server 500 then sends client 400 a redirection to the identified document, or more specifically, to the network location associated with the document (722). Client 400 receives the redirection (708) and downloads the identified document from the redirected location (710). The downloaded document is displayed to the user (712).

FIG. 7B is a flowchart illustrating a process 740 performed by the server computer 500 for identifying content to provide to the user in response to the user's selection of a bookmark. For example, user selection of a bookmark may cause an HTTP request to be sent to the server, and the URL may include one or more parameters. The server 500 receives the request specified by the bookmark (714). A set of content items associated with the bookmark request is identified (742). For example, the identified set of items may include items associated with content feeds to which the user has subscribed.

During operation 744, the number of unread items in the identified set of items is tested against predefined criteria. If the number of unread items satisfies the predefined criteria, the document corresponding to the URL in the content item in the collection is identified (746). The item corresponding to the identified document is marked as read (748), and a redirection of the identified document is sent to the client computer 400 (722). However, if the number of unread items does not meet the predefined criteria, then the document corresponding to the home page of the unread items in the collection is identified (750). Additionally, the content feed corresponding to the unread item is marked as read (752), and a redirection to the identified document is sent to the client computer 400 (722). Alternatively, all unread items in the collection associated with the home page are marked as read (752), and a redirect to the identified document is sent to the client computer (722).

For example, consider the case where the most recent unread items from all content feeds to which the user has subscribed are news articles from a particular news provider. In response to the user's selection of a bookmark, the server 500 receives the request specified by the bookmark (714) and identifies the items including recent unread items (new articles) and all other items provided by the same particular news provider Collections (742). Now consider the predefined criterion is whether the number of unread items in the collection is less than 10. If the user's feed has less than 10 unread items from a particular news provider, the web page containing the most recent unread item (new article) will be identified (746), and the item will be marked as read (748), and a redirection to the webpage will be sent to the client 400 (722). However, if the user's feed has 10 or more unread items, the home page of that particular news provider will be identified (750), and the feed stream associated with the particular news provider will be marked as read ( 752) (or alternatively, all unread items in the feed stream will be marked as read), and a redirection to the home page will be sent to the client 400 (722).

7C is a flow diagram illustrating a process 760 performed by the server computer 500 for receiving and validating a request resulting from a user's selection of a bookmark. For security reasons, it is desirable to verify that the request is in fact an authorized request from the corresponding user feeding the reader system before processing the request. In some embodiments, a valid request (702) initiated by a user for a selection of a feed reader bookmark includes a token that uniquely corresponds to the requesting user's user identifier, and a login cookie containing the requesting user's user ID (also differentiated by referred to as objects, cookie files, or cookie objects). In one embodiment, the token is embedded as a parameter in the URL specified by the bookmark. A login cookie, if included in the request, was previously generated when the user logged into the feed reader system or a related system, such as a superior server system that provides various online services. It should be noted that in the embodiments described here, the token and user identifier are stored in separate objects (eg, bookmark and cookie) in order to protect the integrity of the user's feed reader account. As will be described next, unless the user holds a login cookie and a bookmark with a token corresponding to the user identifier in the cookie, requests generated by activating the bookmark will be rejected by the feed reader system .

Once the request is received (714), the server 500 checks to see if a login cookie containing the user ID created by a previous login to the feed reader system was received with the request (762). If no login cookie is received, server 500 sends client computer 400 a redirect (764) to the login web page from which the user can log in to the feed reader. Once a user has logged into the feed reader, the user may select a bookmark and thereby begin process 700 (FIG. 7A). If a login cookie is received, server 500 compares the token in the request with stored tokens associated with the user (as identified by the user identifier in the login cookie), the The token for is, for example, token 688 stored in user preference table 680 . If the received token matches the stored token, server 500 proceeds to identify the requesting user's set of content items (742) and then executes the subsequent steps of process 740 (FIG. 7B), as described above. However, if the received token does not match the stored token, the server 500 sends the client 400 a redirection to, for example, a web page displaying an error message or feeding the reader's home page (768).

In some embodiments, a content feed bookmark acts as a link to a URL corresponding to an online content feed aggregator. An example of a URL specified by a bookmark is http://www.domain1.com/reader/bookmark? mode=nextitem&token=5782174&label=news. In this example, the value "5782174" in the URL is a token that uniquely corresponds to the user's user identifier. The values shown for this token are illustrative only; in practice, the number of bits for the token may be chosen based on encryption considerations. The parameters "mode=nextitem" and "label=news" specify that the document to be identified in step 718 of process 700 is the next unread item in the News tab 306 . For example, a different mode setting may be specified to specify that the item to be identified in step 718 is the home page of a content feed, or to invoke process 740 (FIG. 7B). If no tags are specified, the document to be identified in response to selection of a bookmark may be provided by any content stream to which the user has subscribed.

FIG. 8A is a schematic screenshot of web browser 300 displaying web page 804 . The web browser 300 has a toolbar 802 containing a bookmark 800 . Selecting a bookmark 800, such as by clicking on it, begins the process 700 described with respect to FIG. 7A. Thus, instead of using a feed reader user interface such as the interface shown in FIG. 3A , a user can simply select a bookmark 800 to access a feed reader content item.

FIG. 8B is a schematic screenshot showing web browser 300 displaying web page 850 in response to user selection of bookmark 800 . In one embodiment, the web page 850 corresponds to the most recent unread content item in the content feed to which the user has subscribed. Web page 850 is identified by URL 852 corresponding to the source of the content item. In the example of FIG. 8B, web page 850 corresponds to content item 312 in FIG. 3A and content item 340 in FIG. 3B. In this example, web page 850 includes source 854 , title 856 , and text 858 corresponding to the source, title, and text of items 312 and 340 . In another embodiment, web page 850 corresponds to unread items identified according to other predefined selection criteria.

8C is a block diagram illustrating a user interface for installing a bookmark on a browser toolbar for accessing one or more items of one or more content feeds to which the user has subscribed, in accordance with some embodiments . The web browser 300 displays a web page 870 identified by a URL 872, which allows the user to create bookmarks on the toolbar 802 of the browser 300. Dragging bookmark link 874 onto toolbar 802 will create bookmark 800 (FIG. 8A). In some embodiments, selecting a bookmark created using bookmark link 874 will cause the browser to display recent unread content items from all content feeds to which the user has subscribed. However, the user may prefer to create a bookmark for a particular tag or folder in the user's feed reader account by selecting the tag from the drop-down menu 876 and then dragging the bookmark link 878 onto the toolbar 802 . In one embodiment, when selected, the resulting bookmark 800 will display the most recent unread content item in the content feed collection associated with the selected tab or folder. In other embodiments, other content items will be displayed according to predefined selection criteria.

The foregoing description, for purposes of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suitable for contemplated specific application.

Claims (15)

1. method that is used at the client computer place rendering content that is different from server system comprises:

Demonstration is from the list of content items of the ordering that comprises the first selected project and one group of other project of said server system reception; Comprise with compact schemes and show said other project and show the said first selected project with extended format simultaneously; Wherein institute's content displayed bulleted list is included at least one respective item that shows with compact schemes on said selected first project; And at least one respective item that below said selected first project, shows with compact schemes

Each of wherein said content item has the read state with respect to the user of said client computer that is associated; Wherein the said read state with respect to each content item of said user is stored in the said server system, and the project in the list of content items of wherein said ordering comprises the content feed project of one or more content feeds that the said user from said client computer has subscribed to;

User in response to second project that is different from said first project in institute's content displayed bulleted list selects; Again the list of content items that shows said ordering comprises with said extended format showing said second project and showing said first project with said compact schemes; And

Show with said extended format in response to said second project; With said second project mark for reading; Comprise that the information that will indicate said second project to be read sends to said server system, to upgrade said read state with respect to said user's said second project.

2. the method for claim 1, wherein when said second project that shows with said extended format during, show that again the list of content items of said ordering reduces the quantity of institute's items displayed greater than said first project that shows with said extended format.

3. the method for claim 1, the wherein said demonstration again comprises the tabulation that rolling shows, makes that after said second project was selected, the project that when said first project is item selected, is presented at the top of said tabulation no longer was shown.

4. like each described method of above-mentioned claim; Wherein, When showing with said extended format the demonstration size of respective item corresponding to said respective item in the quantity of content, and have consistent demonstration size with all items that said compact schemes show.

5. like each described method among the claim 1-3, said method further comprises:

Respond the user action of the 3rd project that is used for selecting the tabulation that shown through the list of content items that shows said ordering again; Comprise with said extended format and show said the 3rd project and show said first and second projects with said compact schemes; With said second project mark for reading; And the information that will indicate said the 3rd project to be read sends to said server system, to upgrade the said read state with respect to said user's said the 3rd project.

6. system that is used at the client computer place rendering content that is different from server system comprises:

Be used to show the device of the list of content items of the ordering that comprises the first selected project and one group of other project that receives from server system; The said device that is used to show said sorted lists comprises and is used for showing said other project and showing the device of said selected first project simultaneously with extended format with compact schemes; Wherein institute's content displayed bulleted list is included at least one respective item that shows with compact schemes on said selected first project; And at least one respective item that below said selected first project, shows with compact schemes

Each of wherein said content item has the read state with respect to the user of said client computer that is associated; Wherein the said read state with respect to each content item of said user is stored in the said server system, and the project in the list of content items of wherein said ordering comprises the content feed project of one or more content feeds that the said user from said client computer has subscribed to;

Be used for showing again the device of the list of content items of said ordering in response to user's selection of second project that institute's content displayed bulleted list is different from said first project; Comprise being used for showing said second project and showing the device of said first project with said compact schemes with said extended format, and

Be used in response to said second project shows with said extended format the device of said second project mark for having read; Comprise that the information that is used for said second project of indication has been read sends to said server system, with the device of renewal with respect to the said read state of said user's said second project.

7. system as claimed in claim 6, the wherein said demonstration again comprises the tabulation that rolling shows, makes that after said second project was selected, the project that when said first project is item selected, is presented at the top of said tabulation no longer was shown.

8. like claim 6 or 7 described systems; Further comprise: the device that is used for responding the user action of the 3rd project that is used to select the tabulation that shown through the list of content items that shows said ordering again; Comprise and be used for showing said the 3rd project and showing the device of said first and second projects with said compact schemes with said extended format; Be used for the device of said the 3rd project mark for having read; And be used for the information that said the 3rd project of indication has been read is sent to said server system, with the device of renewal with respect to the said read state of said user's said the 3rd project.

9. like claim 6 or 7 described systems, wherein, when showing with said extended format the demonstration size of respective item corresponding to said respective item in the quantity of content, and have consistent demonstration size with all items that said compact schemes show.

10. system as claimed in claim 8, wherein, when showing with said extended format the demonstration size of respective item corresponding to said respective item in the quantity of content, and have consistent demonstration size with all items that said compact schemes show.

11. a method that is used at the client computer place rendering content that is different from server system comprises:

Detection is selected the user of respective bookmark, and said bookmark is included in and online content the linking of the corresponding URL of polymerizer of feeding; And

User in response to said respective bookmark selects:

Download document from the network site that is associated with said bookmark; The content item of the content feed that wherein said document has been subscribed to corresponding to said user; Wherein said content item has the read state with respect to said user that is associated, and wherein the said read state with respect to said user's said content item is stored in the said server system;

Show the document of being downloaded; And

Said content item is labeled as reads, comprise that the information that the said content item of indication has been read sends to said server system, to upgrade said read state with respect to said user's said content item.

12. system as claimed in claim 11, wherein said content item is the content item of not reading recently of the content feed subscribed to of said user.

13. a system that is used at the client computer place rendering content that is different from server system comprises:

Be used to detect the device that the user to respective bookmark selects, said bookmark is included in and online content the linking of the corresponding URL of polymerizer of feeding;

Be used for the device selected in response to said user, comprise said respective bookmark:

Be used for downloading the device of document from the network site that is associated with said bookmark; The content item of the content feed that wherein said document has been subscribed to corresponding to said user; Wherein said content item has the read state with respect to said user that is associated, and wherein the said read state with respect to said user's said content item is stored in the said server system;

Be used to show the device of the document of being downloaded; And

Be used for said content item is labeled as the device of having read, comprise that the information that is used for the said content item of indication has been read sends to said server system, with the device of renewal with respect to the said read state of said user's said content item.

14. system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said content item is the content item of not reading recently of the content feed subscribed to of said user.

15. system as claimed in claim 13, not the reading of the content feed of wherein having subscribed to from said user according to predefined choice criteria selected said content item the content item set.

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