| INTUIT INC. Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
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| 20120136764 | ON-LINE TAX PREPARATION APPLICATION SCREEN NAVIGATION USING URL BOOKMARKS - Bookmarking interview screens of an electronic tax return prepared using an on-line tax preparation application. A widget or other element is executed by a user to request a URL bookmark of a screen. A bookmark program of or associated with the on-line tax preparation application dynamically generates a URL bookmark based at least in part upon context data of the screen identifying a path to the screen within hierarchical structure of screens. The URL bookmark is provided to the user and may be utilized to jump to the bookmarked screen without having retracing prior navigation steps through multiple screens before the subject screen. Embodiments may be utilized by technical support persons assisting end users, e.g., by requesting a URL bookmark in the form of a hypertext link and sending the link to a screen to an end user who may click on the link to jump to the bookmarked screen. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120128154 | ESTABLISHING A SECURE PROXIMITY PAIRING BETWEEN ELECTRONIC DEVICES - A technique for establishing a common encrypted link between a first electronic device and a second electronic device in physical proximity in a system is described. During operation of the system, a user of a first electronic device in the system provides a notification that initiates secure device pairing. In response to the notification, the first electronic device conducts a first key exchange in an audible audio spectrum to the second electronic device in the system using a first zero-knowledge protocol. After the first key is received by the second electronic device, the second electronic device conducts a second key exchange in the audible audio spectrum to the first electronic device using a second zero-knowledge protocol, thereby establishing the common encrypted link between the first electronic device and the second electronic device. | 05-24-2012 |
| 20120110565 | CHAINED DATA PROCESSING AND APPLICATION UTILIZATION - The disclosed embodiments provide a system that facilitates application usage. During operation, the system obtains a user context associated with a first user, wherein the user context includes at least one of a location of the first user, profile data for the first user, device data associated with a computing device for the first user, and data types associated with existing applications on the computing device. Next, the system obtains a first set of new applications matching the user context. Finally, the system provides the first set of new applications to the first user for installation and use by the first user. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120110564 | UPDATE WORKFLOW IN A PORTABLE DEVICE BASED ON METADATA - During an update technique, an update to a software application is received from a provider of a software application. Then, update information is either received from the provider or is generated. This update information, which is other than an application identifier and a version number associated with the update, specifies an update relationship between the update and at least a previous version of the software application. Subsequently, configuration information (such as whether the previous version of the software application is currently installed on a portable electronic device) is received from the portable electronic device. In response to the received configuration information, the update is provided to the portable electronic device along with update information. Using the update information, an application management system or the operating system installed on the portable electronic device determines whether an update workflow is executed. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120110563 | DYNAMIC APPLICATION IDENTIFIER FOR USE IN AN UPDATE WORKFLOW - During an update technique, an update for the software application is received from a provider of the software application. Then, update information is either received from the provider or is generated. This update information specifies an update relationship between the update and at least a previous version of the software application. Next, inventory information associated with a portable electronic device is accessed (such as whether the previous version of the software application is currently installed on the portable electronic device). In response to the accessed inventory information, an identifier associated with the update is dynamically generated, and the update and the dynamically generated identifier are provided to the portable electronic device. Using the dynamically generated identifier, an application management system or the operating system installed on the portable electronic device determines whether an update workflow is executed. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120109854 | CHECK FRAUD PROTECTION SYSTEMS AND METHODS - Check fraud protection method in which a customer is automatically enrolled in a check fraud protection service without separately subscribing to the service. In the event of fraudulent activity, the customer requests reimbursement from the financial institution and retains the exclusive right of recovery from a financial institution. The check fraud service provider serves as an advisor to the customer who retains exclusive right of recovery at all times. If customer is not fully compensated by the financial institution, the difference is paid to the customer by the check fraud protection service provider or insurer thereof, and new checks for a new checking account are provided to the customer free of charge. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120109792 | INSTANT TAX RETURN PREPARATION - A method involves generating a partially completed tax return based on basic user information without needing to obtain other user inputs through an extensive user interview. A list of simple and concise interview questions are generated or selected from an interview question collection based on the partially completed tax return to finalize the tax return. The method further involves using an inference engine to allow data collection at any time and in any order via specific, personalized questions geared toward completion of the tax return. Therefore the taxpayer spends time reviewing rather than preparing his or her tax documents. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120109691 | CHECK FRAUD PROTECTION SYSTEMS AND METHODS - Check fraud protection method in which customer is automatically enrolled in check fraud protection service without separately subscribing to the service. In the event of fraudulent activity, customer requests compensation from financial institution and retains the exclusive right of recovery from financial institution. If customer is not fully compensated by financial institution, the difference is paid to customer by service provider or an insurer thereof, and new checks for a new checking account are provided to customer free of charge. A custody indicator may also be used to determine chain of custody data that can be used to track the source of fraudulent activity if the fraud was perpetrated by someone involved in the check printing or delivery process, and for this purpose, a check order or individual checks may have respective indicators such as sequential serial numbers. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120084119 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR EXCESS INVENTORY MANAGEMENT - A method for managing excess inventory includes receiving a physical shipment of goods and submitting a description and expiration date of each inventory item in the physical shipment of goods to an inventory management application. The inventory management application tracks number of units of each inventory item at the merchant. The method further includes, at a predefined timeframe prior to the expiration date, receiving a notification when a forecast of the number of unit of an inventory item remaining in the inventory at the expiration date is greater than a pre-defined threshold, selecting a buyer network of a plurality of buyer networks for selling the inventory item to generate a selected buyer network, and selling the inventory item via the selected buyer network. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120082377 | RECOGNIZING A FEATURE OF AN IMAGE INDEPENDENTLY OF THE ORIENTATION OR SCALE OF THE IMAGE - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for recognizing a feature of an image independently of the orientation or scale of the image. During operation, the system receives an image. Next, the system identifies a feature within the image. The system then performs a principal component analysis (PCA) operation on the feature to determine an orientation of a primary component of the feature and a secondary component of the feature, wherein the PCA operation is performed while source data for the image is retained. Finally, the system recognizes the feature by analyzing the primary component of the feature and the secondary component of the feature. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120047250 | SCALABILITY BREAKPOINT CALCULATOR FOR A SOFTWARE PRODUCT - During a technique for estimating a scalability breakpoint of a software product, performance load tests of the software product are performed with different numbers of simulated concurrent users. For a given number of simulated concurrent users, a performance load test may include an associated set of transactions that are executed by the software product. Furthermore, during the performance load tests performance metrics for the transactions in the associated sets of transactions are measured. Then estimated total performance metrics for the transactions in the associated sets of transactions for the different numbers of simulated concurrent users are determined based on the measured performance metrics and the associated sets of transactions. Next, using the determined estimated total performance metrics, the estimated scalability breakpoint is calculated. | 02-23-2012 |
| 20120042021 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING A STATEFUL EXPERIENCE WHILE ACCESSING CONTENT USING A GLOBAL TEXTSITE PLATFORM - A method for providing access to content using a global textsite platform (GTP), including receiving, from a user device associated with a device identifier, a first user message including a first navigation state identifier of a sequential plurality of navigation state identifiers, identifying a first text page of the textsite associated with the first navigation state identifier, and identifying a second text page associated with a first navigating keyword, where the second text page is navigable from the first text page. The method also includes determining a second navigation state identifier sequentially after the first navigation state identifier, associating the second text page with the second navigation state identifier, and storing the association. The method also includes generating a GTP message of the first text page, including the first navigating keyword modified by the second navigation state identifier, and sending the GTP message for display on the user device. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120029919 | USING LINGUISTICALLY-AWARE VARIABLES IN COMPUTER-GENERATED TEXT - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for placing linguistically-aware variables in computer-generated text. During operation, the system receives a sentence at a computer system, wherein the sentence comprises two or more words. Next, the system analyzes the sentence to identify a first variable, wherein the first variable is a place-holder for a first word. The system then receives the first word. After that, the system automatically determines a gender of the first word. Next, the system analyzes the sentence to identify a first dependent word that is dependent on the first word, wherein a spelling of the first dependent word is dependent on the gender of the first word. The system then determines the spelling of the first dependent word that corresponds to the gender of the first word. Next, the system replaces the first variable in the sentence with the first word. If necessary, the system modifies the spelling of the first dependent word in the sentence to match the gender of the first word. Finally, the system outputs the sentence. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120027246 | TECHNIQUE FOR COLLECTING INCOME-TAX INFORMATION - A technique for collecting income-tax information is described. This collection technique allows a user (such as a taxpayer) to provide income-tax information by submitting an image of a document, such as an income-tax summary or form. After receiving the image, the income-tax information is extracted from the document, and a subset of the income-tax information that is relevant to the user is determined. This subset of the income-tax information is then provided to the user for validation, and the user subsequently provides feedback about the subset of the income-tax information, such as acceptance of the subset or correction of any errors. Furthermore, after receiving the user feedback, fields in an income-tax return of the user may be populated using the subset of the income-tax information. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120020532 | PROVIDING FEEDBACK ABOUT AN IMAGE OF A FINANCIAL DOCUMENT - A technique for providing feedback about an image of a financial document to a user is described. During this feedback technique, the user provides the image of a financial document, such as W-2 form. For example, the user may take a picture of or may scan the financial document. This image may be analyzed using predefined information in a set of financial documents (such as different types of income-tax documents), and a quality metric for the image may be determined using the analysis. Moreover, the feedback, which is based on the determined quality metric, may be provided to the user. For example, the user may be instructed to retake the image, and the instructions may include an image of the desired orientation and content. In this way, the user may be advised as to how to improve the quality metric in the revised image. | 01-26-2012 |
| 20110320424 | ASSESSING AND ADAPTING COMPONENT PARAMETERS - A parameter-selection technique that allows preferred permutations to be rapidly identified based on real-world user behavior is described. In particular, a set of web pages that include different permutations of the set of parameters are generated. Then, at least a subset of these web pages is provided to the users in response to their requests. For example, the requests may be associated with user selections of search results, which are associated with search queries provided by the users to a search engine. While the users interact with the subset of the set of web pages, their actions and the associated context (with respect to the different permutations) are tracked. Next, the tracked user actions are used to identify the web pages associated with the preferred permutations of the set of parameters. | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110319063 | METHODS SYSTEMS AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCTS FOR MASKING PHONE NUMBERS OF COMMUNICATION DEVICES - Communications involving mobile communication devices and an intermediate compute of a trusted third party host such that people can communicate with each other through the intermediate computer while not disclosing their phone numbers and/or other contact information to each other. Users register with the intermediate computer using a first form of communication that may involve non-voice communications such as text messages. After registration, users may communicate with each other through the intermediate computer using the same or different form of communication. For example, after registering with the intermediate computer via text messages, users may communicate with each other through a voice connection established through the intermediate computer. | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110314034 | CONCEPT-BASED DATA PROCESSING - The present embodiments provide a system that processes data. During operation, the system obtains, from a set of technical users, a set of concept definitions comprising filters against data in a data domain. Next, the system provides the concept definitions to a set of end users of the data. Finally, the system facilitates, for the end users, processing of the data by applying the concept definitions to the data. | 12-22-2011 |
| 20110294479 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ASSIGNING A SENDERID - A method for sending Short Message Service (SMS) messages includes receiving a request to generate a senderID, determining senderIDs based on a business name, and receiving a selected senderID from the senderIDs. The method further includes receiving a request to send an SMS message using the selected senderID, and sending a request to an SMS server to send the SMS message using the senderID. | 12-01-2011 |
| 20110282909 | SECREGATING ANONYMOUS ACCESS TO DYNAMIC CONTENT ON A WEB SERVER, WITH CACHED LOGONS - A system and method are provided for segregating access to dynamic content on multiple websites hosted by a web server. When a request is received for dynamic content from a website, a UserRetriever module identifies a path to the content and retrieves a username and password corresponding to the website, from a database that is separate from the web server and used for other purposes (e.g., billing). A UserImpersonator module requests a logon handle for that username from a logon cache manager. The logon handle is used to associate the request with the impersonated user account instead of the default anonymous user account with which the request was initially associated. The dynamic content is retrieved and served under the context of the restricted impersonated user account session, after which the applied logon handle is stripped off and the request is re-associated with the default anonymous user account. | 11-17-2011 |
| 20110281560 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING COST-OPTIMIZED MOBILE MESSAGING - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for facilitating cost-optimized mobile messaging. During operation, the system receives an encoded text message at a mobile device. Next, the system replaces a sub-string in the encoded text message with a corresponding sub-string from a data-dictionary to create a decoded text message. Finally, the system displays the decoded text message on the mobile device. Note that this helps to reduce costs since small sub-strings in the encoded text message can be replaced with large sub-strings in the decoded text message, thereby allowing a larger message to be sent via the SMS protocol without sending as many characters. | 11-17-2011 |
| 20110271108 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR SECURE EXCHANGE AND USE OF ELECTRONIC BUSINESS CARDS - Some embodiments provide a system that facilitates the use of an electronic business card. During operation, the system obtains one or more permissions for the electronic business card. Next, the system manages use of the electronic business card by a recipient of the electronic business card based on the permissions. | 11-03-2011 |
| 20110246277 | MULTI-FACTOR PROMOTIONAL OFFER SUGGESTION - The invention relates to a method to send a promotional offer from a business entity. The method steps include obtaining a profile of the business entity from a financial management application (FMA) executing on a central processing unit (CPU) and configured to manage operations of the business entity, analyzing a plurality of messages from a message source based on a pre-determined criterion to identify a keyword, qualifying the keyword to generate a qualified keyword with a keyword rating, wherein the keyword rating represents how relevant the keyword is to the business entity based on the profile of the business entity, searching for the qualified keyword in the promotional offer among a plurality of promotional offers in a library to generate a match between the qualified keyword and the promotional offer, adjusting a score of the promotional offer, in response to generating the match, based on the keyword rating, and sending the promotional offer to a consumer based on the score. | 10-06-2011 |
| 20110230214 | ACCESSING TEXTSITES USING TEXT MESSAGING SERVICE - A method for providing access to content using a global textsite platform (GTP) including receiving a user message identifying a registered unique keyword maintained by the GTP, wherein the registered unique keyword is registered with the GTP by a publisher for accessing a textsite comprising a plurality of text pages published by the publisher and indexed based on a plurality of navigating keywords defined by the publisher, retrieving authored content associated with the textsite based on the registered unique keyword, accessing the textsite based on the authored content to retrieve a navigating keyword indexing a text page, and sending a GTP message comprising the navigating keyword for the user to access the text page, wherein the user message and the GTP message comprise a text message transmitted using a text messaging service (TMS). | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110230213 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MAINTAINING TEXTSITES ON A GLOBAL TEXTSITE PLATFORM - A method for accessing content using a global textsite platform including registering a unique keyword received from a publisher, receiving content from the publisher for creating a textsite associated with the unique keyword, creating the textsite on behalf of the publisher, receiving, from a user, a request to access the textsite, processing the request from the user, and providing access to the textsite by sending the content of the textsite, via a text messaging service (TMS), to a user mobile device. | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110225648 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REDUCING THE USE OF INSECURE PASSWORDS - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for reducing the use of insecure passwords. During operation, the system receives a login request at a computer system, wherein the login request includes a username and a password. Next, the system saves the password to an attempted password list, wherein the attempted password list includes passwords that have been attempted during login. The system then receives a password change request, wherein the password change request includes a username and a new password. Next, the system determines whether the new password is a member of the attempted password list. If so, the system rejects the password change request. However, if not, the system processes the password change request. | 09-15-2011 |
| 20110213723 | AUDIO AGREEMENT - A method for providing a product use agreement. The method includes sending, to a user in response to a request for a product, a message that includes an address for accessing the product use agreement. The method further includes receiving, from the user, a call at the address and audibly playing, to the user, a pre-recorded product use agreement recording. The pre-recorded product use agreement recording includes a legal agreement for using the product between the user and a business entity providing the product. The method further includes receiving, from the user, acceptance of the product use agreement based on the pre-recorded product use agreement recording, and providing access to the product based on acceptance of the product use agreement. | 09-01-2011 |
| 20110208636 | MATCHING PARTIES TO A TRANSACTION FOR AN AGRICULTURAL COMMODITY - In general, in one aspect, the invention relates to a method for matching parties to a transaction of an agricultural commodity. The method involves receiving buyer criteria (e.g., purchase quantity, buyer price, transaction location at which to buy the agricultural commodity) sent from a mobile device used by a primary and secondary buyer. The method further involves receiving seller criteria sent from a seller mobile device. The method further involves matching, within a predetermined period of time after receiving the buyer criteria and the seller criteria, the primary and secondary buyer with the seller based on determining that a yield is sufficient to meet the purchase quantity and a transaction location at which to buy the agricultural commodity falls within a number of locations common the primary/secondary buyers and the seller. The method further involves sending the buyer criteria to the seller mobile device using short message service (SMS) format. | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110196734 | TECHNIQUE FOR RECOMMENDING ADVERTISING MESSAGES - A technique for identifying a recommended type of advertising message is described. In this technique, information about advertising messages directed from businesses to consumers and associated acceptance rates of the advertising messages by the consumers is received or accessed. Note that the advertising messages include different types of advertising messages for different types of businesses. Then, the recommended type of advertising message for a given business is identified based on an associated type of business and the received information. By leveraging the results obtained by other similar businesses, this technique may allow the given business to improve the effectiveness of a subsequent advertising campaign. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110173124 | AUTHENTICATION OF TRANSACTIONS IN A NETWORK - A technique for conducting a transaction via a network is described. In this technique, in response to receiving transaction information associated with the transaction via the network from a network browser in a computer, a computer system provides an encrypted version of the received transaction information via the network to an application that executes in the computer, which facilitates a comparison of the received transaction information with original transaction information provided by a user to the computer. Note that this application is separate from the network browser, and the communication with the application via the network is independent of the network browser. Moreover, if the received transaction information matches the original transaction information, the computer system receives approval for the transaction from the computer via the network. | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110106701 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING VOICE-BASED CREDIT CARD PROCESSING - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for performing voice-based credit card processing. During operation, the system receives voice input from a merchant at a computer via a telephone to initiate a credit card transaction. Next, the system authenticates the merchant. After authenticating the merchant, the system prompts the merchant for a credit card number. Next, the system authenticates a consumer associated with the credit card. Note that the system can authenticate the consumer with pre-registered information that is associated with the credit card. Once the consumer is authenticated, the system prompts the merchant for a transaction amount. Next, the system receives the transaction amount from the merchant. The system then authorizes the credit card transaction for the transaction amount. Finally, the system reports the result of the authorization to the merchant. Note that embodiments of the present invention enable the merchant to process credit card transactions at reduced cost without the need for any equipment other than a telephone, thus providing the ability to have instant credit card enabled merchants on demand. | 05-05-2011 |
| 20100332581 | CREATING A COMPOSITE PROGRAM MODULE IN A COMPUTING ECOSYSTEM - Methods are provided for creating a composite program module within a computing ecosystem. The ecosystem comprises physical and/or virtual computing resources of a company, department or other organization. When a user discovers a grouping of modules that is useful to him, the ecosystem or his workspace allows him to create a composite module that comprises the group of modules. He can then access their combined functionality by activating just the composite module, in which case all the modules are automatically opened, without having to activate each one individually. Further, the ecosystem may suggest complementary program modules to a user based on his pattern of activity with one or more other modules. A composite program module may be created to include a suggested complementary module, or just modules discovered independently by the user. | 12-30-2010 |
| 20100174647 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INITIATING A FUNDS TRANSFER USING A MOBILE DEVICE - The invention is directed to a method and apparatus for initiating an electronic funds transfer. The system includes a first mobile device, a payment engine, and a payment repository. The first mobile device includes functionality to display a notification of a sales transaction, obtain an authorization from the consumer to the electronic funds transfer based on the notification, instantiate a transfer entry form to obtain a transfer entry package, where the transfer entry package comprises the notification, a verification of the authorization, and consumer financial account information. The payment engine is operatively connected to the first mobile device and includes functionality to transmit the notification to the consumer of a sales transaction, generate the transfer entry form based on the authorization, and transmit the transfer entry package to a depository financial institution. The payment repository is operatively connected to the payment engine and includes functionality to store a record of the transfer entry package and the authorization. | 07-08-2010 |
| 20100161494 | TECHNIQUE FOR PERFORMING FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS OVER A NETWORK - Embodiments of a system (such as a computer system), a method, and a computer-program product (e.g., software) for use with the computer system are described. These embodiments may be used to perform financial transactions over a network. In particular, the system allows customers to use personal PIN pads when conducting financial transactions (such as debit-card transactions) with multiple merchants and their associated acquirer processors (which assist the merchants in processing financial transactions), even though different groups of merchants and acquirer processors may use different encryption techniques. For a given financial transaction, this capability may be implemented by decrypting financial information associated with a personal PIN pad from a customer and re-encrypting it using a separate encryption technique of a merchant and the associated acquirer processor. | 06-24-2010 |
| 20100107227 | SEGREGATING ANONYMOUS ACCESS TO DYNAMIC CONTENT ON A WEB SERVER, WITH CACHED LOGONS - A system and method are provided for segregating access to dynamic content on multiple websites hosted by a web server. When a request is received for dynamic content from a website, a UserRetriever module identifies a path to the content and retrieves a username and password corresponding to the website, from a database that is separate from the web server and used for other purposes (e.g., billing). A UserImpersonator module requests a logon handle for that username from a logon cache manager. The logon handle is used to associate the request with the impersonated user account instead of the default anonymous user account with which the request was initially associated. The dynamic content is retrieved and served under the context of the restricted impersonated user account session, after which the applied logon handle is stripped off and the request is re-associated with the default anonymous user account. | 04-29-2010 |
| 20100100463 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TIME TRACKING ON A MOBILE COMPUTING DEVICE - The invention relates to a method for tracking time using a mobile computing device. The method steps include providing a first event manager on the mobile computing device for managing a plurality of event records corresponding to a plurality of events, wherein each event record of the plurality of event records is synchronized via an exchange server to a corresponding event record managed by a second event manager on a client machine, generating a time tracking record comprising time entry information, wherein the time tracking record is generated based on input from a user of the mobile computing device, wherein the time tracking record is added to the plurality of event records as a surrogate event record, transmitting the surrogate event record via the exchange server to the second event manager, wherein the second event manager is operatively coupled to a client application on the client machine, extracting the time entry information from the surrogate event record using the client application for tracking time, and generating estimated time entry information automatically based on the event record, wherein the time entry information from the estimated time entry information is generated based on user review. | 04-22-2010 |
| 20100095311 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING A PERSISTENCE APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACE - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for implementing a persistence application programming interface (API) that is platform independent and can make up-calls to business logic. During operation, the system receives a request at the API to execute a command at a persistence tier of an n-tier distributed application. In response to the request, the system determines an entity type for an entity affected by the command. Next, the system identifies a function at a middle tier of the n-tier distributed application that is associated with the entity type and the command, wherein the middle tier includes the business logic. The system then sends an instruction to the middle tier to execute the function. Finally, upon receiving a confirmation at the API that the function executed, the system executes the command at the persistence tier. | 04-15-2010 |
| 20100082461 | ASSOCIATING A FOREIGN CURRENCY WITH AN ACCOUNTING OBJECT - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that automatically associates a foreign currency with an accounting object. First, a name is received from a user. Next, an association between the name and the foreign currency is determined, wherein the foreign currency is different from a home currency. Then, the accounting object is automatically associated with the foreign currency associated with the name. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20100076998 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR GENERATING A DYNAMIC HELP DOCUMENT - A method for generating a dynamic help document involves obtaining question-answer pairs associated with a client-server application, determining rankings of the question-answer pairs based on user feedback about the question-answer pairs, and determining a first preferred question-answer pair based on rankings of question-answer pairs. The method further involves generating the dynamic help document using the first preferred question-answer pair, updating rankings of the question-answer pairs based on additional user feedback about the question-answer pairs, determining a second preferred question-answer pair based on updated rankings of the question-answer pairs, and updating the dynamic help document by replacing the first preferred question-answer pair with the second preferred question-answer pair. | 03-25-2010 |
| 20100074509 | TECHNIQUE FOR CORRECTING CHARACTER-RECOGNITION ERRORS - Embodiments of a computer system, a method, and a computer-program product (e.g., software) for use with the computer system are described. These embodiments may be used to identify and correct errors in financial information that was extracted using character-recognition software, such as optical character recognition software and/or intelligent character recognition software. In particular, potential errors may be identified by comparing the financial information for a current financial transaction of a user with expected financial information from one or more previous financial transactions of the user. Error metrics for these potential errors may be determined and used to correct at least some of the potential errors. For example, values of the Levenshtein edit distance may be determined based on the comparison, and one or more potential errors associated with one or more minimum values of the Levenshtein edit distance may be corrected. | 03-25-2010 |
| 20090282370 | GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE FOR DATA ENTRY - A graphical user interface is provided for facilitating entry of data into a telephone, personal digital assistant or other computing device having a touch-sensitive input component (e.g., a touch screen). The interface includes multiple initial contact areas associated with different input (e.g., characters, numerical values, commands), a home area and spokes positioned between the initial contact areas and the home area. The interface is manipulated using gestures. A data input gesture begins by touching in or near an initial contact area and moving to or toward the home area, generally in proximity to the corresponding spoke. Other illustrative gestures include tracing directly from one initial contact area to another (e.g., to add the corresponding data values), performing a “throwing” gesture out of the home area (e.g., to delete the last input), gesturing backward/forward in the home area (e.g., to move backward/forward through a series of fields), etc. | 11-12-2009 |
| 20090276761 | WEIGHTED PERFORMANCE METRICS FOR FINANCIAL SOFTWARE - Embodiments of a computer system that determines a performance metric are described. During operation, the computer system determines the performance metric for tasks performed by financial software during a time interval. This performance metric is based on a weighted summation of contributions from the tasks, and a given weight associated with a given task is based on a frequency of occurrence of the given task. Then, the computer system performs a remedial action to improve the determined performance metric during a subsequent time interval. | 11-05-2009 |
| 20090276346 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CLASSIFYING A FINANCIAL TRANSACTION AS A RECURRING FINANCIAL TRANSACTION - A system that automatically classifies a financial transaction as a recurring financial transaction based on classification data obtained from a set of users is presented. The system can also determine the frequency at which the recurring financial transaction repeats. If the financial transaction is classified as a recurring financial transaction, the system can mark the financial transaction as a recurring financial transaction. Alternatively, the system can notify the user that the classification data indicates that the financial transaction can be classified as a recurring financial transaction. | 11-05-2009 |
| 20090265387 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ENTERING ITEMS INTO A GIFT REGISTRY - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that enters items into a gift registry. During operation, the system photographically captures images of items at stores containing the items. Moreover, the images include a set of barcodes identifying the items. Next, the system obtains a set of product codes for the one or more items from the barcodes in the images. Finally, the system enters the one or more items in the gift registry using the product codes. | 10-22-2009 |
| 20090265261 | DETERMINING TIME HISTORIES FOR FINANCIAL INFORMATION - Embodiments of a computer system that determines a time history are described. During operation, the computer system receives a single command which accesses information associated with the time history, wherein the command is received from a user, and the information is to be used by financial software. Then, the computer system generates multiple queries corresponding to the time history, where the multiple queries access multiple data sources. Next, the computer system executes the multiple queries to obtain the time history. | 10-22-2009 |
| 20090265253 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING GIFT REGISTRY SERVICES THROUGH A GIFT REGISTRY NETWORK - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that provides gift registry services to a user. During operation, the system enrolls a business with a registry system and identifies a first set of items offered for sale by the business. Next, the system populates the registry system with the first set of items. Finally, the system presents the first set of items to the user for inclusion in a gift registry associated with the user. | 10-22-2009 |
| 20090254878 | EXECUTABLE CODE GENERATED FROM COMMON SOURCE CODE - A computer system generates first executable code in a first programming language based on common source code, where the first executable code is configured to execute at a server in the client-server environment. Then, the computer system executes the first executable to produce relational objects that constitute a tree hierarchy, where a given relational object defines a relationship between nodes and end points in the common source code. Next, the computer system generates second executable code in a second programming language based on the tree hierarchy, where the second executable code is configured to execute at a client in the client-server environment, and where the second executable code implements a subset of the common source code associated with the relational objects which is based on a user context. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090254387 | TECHNIQUE FOR PERFORMING TRIPLE BOTTOM-LINE ASSESSMENTS - Embodiments of a computer system for determining a social responsibility metric are described. During operation, the computer system aggregates information associated with financial transactions of a user to determine the social responsibility metric. Note that the financial transactions may be included in a data structure associated with financial software, and the data structure may be stored in a computer-readable medium. Next, the computer system may provide the social responsibility metric to the user. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090254343 | IDENTIFYING AUDIO CONTENT USING DISTORTED TARGET PATTERNS - Embodiments of a system for identifying audio content are described. During operation, the system receives a data stream from an electronic device via a communication network. Then, the system distorts a set of target patterns which are used to identify the audio content based on characteristics of the electronic device and/or the communication network. Next, the system identifies the audio content in the data stream based on the set of distorted target patterns. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090253494 | EXCHANGING ASSETS BETWEEN ON-LINE VIRTUAL WORLDS - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that facilitates exchanging assets between online virtual worlds. During operation, the system receives a first asset from a representative of a first player who controls the first asset in a first virtual world, and receives a second asset from a representative of a second player who controls the second asset in the second virtual world. Next, the system provides the first asset to a representative of the second player in the first virtual world, and provides the second asset to a representative of the first player in the second virtual world. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090252314 | ESTABLISHING AND RECOVERING CONTEXT RELATED TO AN ON-GOING SEQUENCE OF COMMUNICATIONS - Apparatus, methods, and computer program products are disclosed that teach methods for establishing context of a subsequent electronic real-time communication. One method detects a connection attempt that is initiated by an instigator-identifiable for a subsequent electronic real-time communication that is directed to a target-identifiable. The instigator-identifiable is associated with a first identification characteristic and the target-identifiable is associated with a second identification characteristic. This method subsequently retrieves a reminder reference that is responsive to the first identification characteristic and the second identification characteristic and presents the reminder reference to the target-identifiable. The method also establishes the subsequent electronic real-time communication between the instigator-identifiable and the target-identifiable. The disclosed technology also includes apparatus that perform the methods and program products that contain computer instructions that cause a computer to perform the methods when the computer executes the instructions. | 10-08-2009 |
| 20090248789 | LEARNING AND COMMUNITY-BASED WEB AGGREGATION TECHNIQUES - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that facilitates access to a website from an application. During operation, the system obtains community data associated with interactions between a set of users and the website and examines the community data to identify an interactivity request made by the website to users of the website. Next, the system obtains user-specific data from a new user of the application, which includes a response to the interactivity request from the new user. Finally, the system uses the user-specific data to automate access to the website for the new user. | 10-01-2009 |
| 20090248594 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DYNAMIC ADAPTATION OF USER EXPERIENCE IN AN APPLICATION - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that executes an application. During operation, the system physiologically monitors a user of the application with a set of sensors as the application executes. Next, the system assesses a mental state of the user based on physiological data collected from the sensors. Finally, the system changes the behavior of the application based on the assessed mental state to facilitate use of the application by the user. | 10-01-2009 |
| 20090240605 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATED TRANSACTION SPLITTING - A system and method are provided for automated transaction splitting. A central repository gathers details of multi-category transactions between a first payee (e.g., merchant, investment firm) and one or more users. Each category's proportionate share of the total of the transactions is calculated and used to configure an average or model transaction. When a new transaction is received, it is automatically split among the categories based on the model transaction. Multiple types or tiers of model transactions may be applied. For example, a user-specific model transaction may reflect one specific user's history of transactions with the payee. A community model transaction may reflect multiple users' transactions. Similarly, one type of model transaction may reflect transactions with a single payee, while another type may reflect transactions with related payees (e.g., payees having similar businesses). | 09-24-2009 |
| 20090234761 | USER INTERFACE FOR RAPID ENTRY OF TIMESHEET DATA - A user interface for receiving time entries in a timesheet is described. This user interface includes a user-interface element in the form of a calendar, where the calendar contains one or more time entries associated with at least a financial activity. Moreover, a given time entry, which is associated with a corresponding block of time, is graphically represented as an adjustable region in the calendar. Additionally, a user can change one or more temporal parameters associated with the time entry by using a pointing device to select and modify one or more geometric properties of the adjustable region. | 09-17-2009 |
| 20090228560 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CLASSIFYING ELECTRONIC MAIL MESSAGES - A system for classifying an electronic mail message is presented. During operation of the system, type tags are included in an electronic mail message, wherein the type tag can be used to classify the electronic mail message. Furthermore, specified actions can be performed based on the type tags included in the electronic mail message. | 09-10-2009 |
| 20090199264 | DYNAMIC TRUST MODEL FOR AUTHENTICATING A USER - A system that that dynamically authenticates one or more users is described. During operation, the computer system determines a trust level for a user, where the trust level is a function of elapsed time since the user previously provided authentication information. Next, the computer system calculates a transaction risk level based on a type of user transaction performed by the user. Then, the computer system requests additional authentication information from the user based on the trust level and the transaction risk level. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090198708 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MANAGING METADATA ASSOCIATED WITH ENTITIES IN A COMPUTING SYSTEM - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates managing metadata associated with entities and entity types in a computing system. During operation, the system initializes a global static metadata cache containing global static metadata at the computing system. Next, the system initializes a global dynamic metadata cache containing global dynamic metadata at the computing system. The system then receives a command to initialize a session at the computing system. In response to the command, the system determines a realm for the session, wherein the realm is a virtual private partition of the computing system. The system then initializes a realm-scoped dynamic metadata cache containing realm-scoped dynamic metadata associated with the realm at the computing system. Finally, the system executes operations on the computing system in compliance with the global static metadata, the global dynamic metadata, and the realm-scoped dynamic metadata. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090198669 | CONFIGURATION-BASED SEARCH - A system that tunes search results is presented. During operation, the system receives content to be searched. The system then iteratively performs the following operations until search results meet specified criteria. The system generates an index of the content based on a set of configuration parameters. Next, the system performs a search against the index to produce the search results. The system then determines whether the search results meet the specified criteria. If the search results do not meet the specified criteria, the system modifies one or more of: the set of configuration parameters; and the content. If the search results meet the specified criteria, the system saves the set of configuration parameters into a configuration file which can be used to generate the index for the content. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090198602 | RANKING COMMERCIAL OFFERS BASED ON USER FINANCIAL DATA - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that ranks commercial offers for a user in a set of users. During operation, the system receives financial data for the set of users, wherein the financial data includes spending data for the set of users across a set of categories. Next, for a given user, the system computes an individual-strength vector based on financial data specific to the given user, wherein each entry in the individual-strength vector represents an amount of spending in a respective category for the given user. The system additionally computes a relative-strength vector for the given user based on the financial data for the set of users, wherein the relative-strength vector represents a relative-spending strength across the set of categories for the given user relative to the set of users. The system then ranks the commercial offers for a user based on both the set of individual-strength vectors and the set of relative-strength vectors for the set of users. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090198557 | TIMING COMMERCIAL OFFERS BASED ON LONG-TERM USER DATA - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that times commercial offers made to a user. During operation, the system starts by receiving financial history data for the user, wherein the financial history data includes purchase records for a set of purchases. The system then identifies a subset of purchases in the set of purchases, wherein the subset of purchases are semantically linked to a set of predetermined subjects. Next, the system identifies timing patterns in the subset of purchases based on timing information associated with the subset of purchases. The system then presents one or more commercial offers to the user at specific times based on the identified timing patterns. | 08-06-2009 |
| 20090193397 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING DIAGNOSTIC LOGGING FOR SOFTWARE COMPONENTS - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates diagnostic logging for software components. During operation, the system receives program code for a software component that was generated from an object model, where a key attribute has been specified for the object model. During execution of the program code, the system detects when an instance of the key attribute for the object model is accessed, and attaches state associated with the instance to a thread context in the runtime environment. The system then appends this state to a log during a logging operation to facilitate discovering and analyzing program faults. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090193391 | MODEL-BASED TESTING USING BRANCHES, DECISIONS , AND OPTIONS - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that tests a software program. During operation, the system creates a behavioral model of the software program using branches, decisions, and options. Next, the system generates a test case from the behavioral model and executes the test case on the software program. Finally, the system analyzes an output of the executed test case to determine a validity of the software program. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090193389 | REALTIME CREATION OF DATASETS IN MODEL BASED TESTING - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that tests a software program. During operation, the system creates a behavioral model of the software program using branches, decisions, and options. Next, the system applies a weight assignment technique to the behavioral model to create a set of global identifiers (IDs), which correspond to test cases of the behavioral model. The system then generates a test case from the behavioral model and executes the test case on the software program. Finally, the system analyzes an output of the executed test case to determine a validity of the software program. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090193358 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING INFORMATION ACCESS DURING A MODAL OPERATION - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates accessing information during a modal operation. The system operates by presenting an initial window for an application to a user in a display. The system then presents a subsequent window in the display for another function related to the application. During this process, the system presents these two windows in proximity to each other, and ensures that this proximity is maintained, even across user changes to one or both windows. At a later point, during operation, the system receives an input from the user that results in a modal operation for the application that restricts user changes to and/or user control of the initial window during the modal operation. Despite this modal operation, the system remains able to receive a subsequent input for the subsequent window from the user and, in response, update information displayed in the subsequent window during the modal operation. This allows the user to continue to access application information despite the modal operation. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090193080 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATING ORGANIZATIONAL TASKS USING A WIRELESS NODE NETWORK - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a wireless node network that includes a set of portable devices associated with members of an organization and a set of client nodes. During operation, the client nodes detect the portable devices in the vicinity of the client nodes and send records of detected portable devices to the server. The records are then stored by the server and are subsequently used to automate organizational tasks for the organization. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090193037 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISPLAYING DATA MODELS AND DATA-MODEL INSTANCES - Embodiments of the present invention provide systems and techniques for displaying data models and data-model instances. During operation, the system can use a model graph to represent the data model and an instance graph to represent the data-model instance. In the graph representation, a vertex can represent an entity or an entity instance, and an edge can represent a relationship or a relationship instance. The system can display the model graph and the instance graph, either separately or concurrently, thereby enabling the user to visually explore the data model and the data-model instance by exploring the associated graphs. The system can display paths in the graphs to the user, thereby enabling the user to visually explore how entities and entity instances are related to one another. The system can also enable a user to search for entities and relationships using various criteria. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090192926 | REAL-TIME PAYROLL - A system for compensating an employee before a payroll period is complete is presented. During operation, the system receives a request from the employee to be compensated before a payroll period is complete for uncompensated work which has been already performed. The system then determines whether the employee can be compensated for such uncompensated work. If so, the system determines the value of the uncompensated performed work and compensates the employee for the uncompensated performed work. The system also records the fact that the employee was compensated for the uncompensated performed work. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090192903 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUTHORIZING A FINANCIAL TRANSACTION - A system that authorizes a financial transaction is presented. During operation, the system receives a request to authorize accounts associated with one or more financial instruments to be used to fulfill the financial transaction. Next, the system determines a transaction location at which the financial transaction is being performed. The system then determines whether the accounts are authorized to be used at the transaction location. If so, the system authorizes the accounts to be used to fulfill the financial transaction. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090192761 | PERFORMANCE-TESTING A SYSTEM WITH FUNCTIONAL-TEST SOFTWARE AND A TRANSFORMATION-ACCELERATOR - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates testing a system-under-test with functional-test software and a transformation accelerator. During operation, the system receives a functional-test template at the transformation accelerator. The system also receives a test signal at the transformation accelerator, wherein the test signal comprises testing parameters. Next, the system manipulates the functional-test template at the transformation accelerator according to the testing parameters to create one or more functional-test transactions. The system then sends the one or more functional-test transactions to the system-under-test. Next, the system receives results for the one or more functional-test transactions from the system-under-test. Finally, the system queues the results. | 07-30-2009 |
| 20090187922 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TIME TRACKING - A method for tracking time, including obtaining a plurality of tasks; identify a first open event and a first close event associated with a first file; identifying a start idle event and an end idle event associated with the first file after identifying the first open event; generating a first open event time stamp for the first open event, a first close event time stamp for the first close event, a start idle event time stamp for the start idle event, and an end idle event time stamp for the end idle event; mapping the first file to a first task of the plurality of tasks; and presenting a report including the first task, the first open event time stamp, the first close event time stamp, the start idle event time stamp, and the end idle event time stamp. | 07-23-2009 |
| 20090187443 | VISUAL METAPHOR FOR ELAPSED TIME SPENT - An embodiment provides a system that visually indicates time spent on applications. During operation, the system can measure time spent on applications to obtain time spent data. The user can provide rules which specify when to start and when stop measuring time for an application. Next, the system can generate visual indicators based on the time spent data. A visual indicator can indicate an amount of time spent on an application by conveying the information in a non-textual manner. The system can then display the visual indicator to the user. The time spent data can be used to generate bills for clients by associating time spent records with client matters. | 07-23-2009 |
| 20090173784 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PERFORMING A CARD-PRESENT TRANSACTION USING IMAGE CAPTURE ON A PORTABLE DEVICE - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that processes a financial transaction involving a portable device and a transaction server. During operation, the system obtains transaction data associated with the financial transaction that includes a transaction amount, credit card information, and an image of a credit card. The system then sends the transaction data to the transaction server using the portable device. Next, the system verifies a card-present transaction using the transaction data and determines a validity of the transaction data. If the transaction data is valid, the transaction server processes the financial transaction and sends an authorization code confirming the financial transaction to the portable device. | 07-09-2009 |
| 20090125618 | OPEN PLATFORM FOR MANAGING AN AGENT NETWORK - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system for managing software agents. This system enables a user to configure agents and to specify wiring relationships between the agents and other system components. This system also includes a hub component, which is configured to route communications to and from the agents in accordance with user-specified wiring relationships. | 05-14-2009 |
| 20090113428 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING A LOCATION-BASED, DISTRIBUTED TO-DO LIST - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates a location-based, distributed to-do list. During operation, the system receives a request at a task-management system to create a task, wherein the request specifies a location for the task and an assignee for the task. In response to the request, the system creates the task. Next, the system receives a status update at the task management system, wherein the status update indicates a location of the assignee. Finally, when the location of the assignee substantially matches the location for the task, the system sends the task to the assignee. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090112807 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING A COLLABORATIVE SEARCH PROCEDURE - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates intelligent query operations by using a collaborative search procedure which employs tribal knowledge from a group of like-minded individuals. During operation, the system receives a search query from the user. The system then processes the query using the tribal knowledge obtained from like-minded individuals to produce a results list for the user. For example, this tribal knowledge can include the browsing habits of the collection of users as represented by their selection of websites and the session times for these website views, as well as any reviews posted by these users for the websites they browse. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090112746 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MONITORING AND VERIFYING A TRANSFER OF FINANCIAL SETTINGS - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that monitors and verifies a transfer of financial settings. During operation, the system receives a request to transfer a set of financial settings from an initial account to a destination account. In response to the transfer request, the system transfers the financial settings and then monitors the initial account following the transfer to determine whether any subsequent transactions occur. If so, the system analyzes each subsequent transaction to determine whether the subsequent transaction is associated with the transferred financial settings. By monitoring and analyzing subsequent transactions, the system verifies the success of the transfer. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090112745 | TECHNIQUE FOR REDUCING PHISHING - Embodiments of a system that performs authentication during a financial transaction are described. During operation, this system asks a prospective customer a subset of questions from a set of questions, where the subset of questions has a probability of being different from those asked while previously or subsequently asking questions of the prospective customer or another prospective customer. Next, the system receives answers to the subset of questions from the prospective customer, thereby confirming that the prospective customer is a customer associated with a financial transaction. Then, the system provides transitory information associated with the financial transaction that, for the customer, uniquely identifies a provider of the financial transaction, thereby completing the authentication. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090112688 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DETERMINING KEYWORDS FOR AN ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN - A system that for determines keywords to be used in an online advertising campaign for a merchant is presented. During operation, the system sends a request on behalf of the merchant to a user, wherein the request asks the user to search for a product or service offered by the merchant. In response to the request, the system monitors keywords that are used by the user to search for the product or service. Next, the system receives from the user an indication that a subset of the keywords produced search results for the product or service or for a similar product or service. The system then presents to the merchant a report which includes the keywords that the user used to search for the product or service so that the merchant can use one or more of the keywords for the online advertising campaign. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090112649 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ASSESSING FINANCIAL RISK ASSOCIATED WITH A BUSINESS ENTITY - A method for assessing financial risk associated with a business entity involves recording usage data associated with a consumer business software, where the usage data describes consumer behavior associated with the consumer business software, and where the consumer business software is associated with a business entity. The method further involves generating a financial risk assessment associated with the business entity based on the usage data, and determining an approval status based on the financial risk assessment, where the approval status indicates whether the business entity is approved to receive a financial service. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090109455 | Method and apparatus for improving data entry for a form - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that improves data entry for a form with one or more fields. During operation, the system displays both a printed representation of the form as well as an enhanced representation of the form that displays an enhanced view of the form's fields. When the system detects a user action related to a field displayed in one of the representations, the system adjusts the display of the field in the other representation (or in both representations) to indicate that the two fields are related. By indicating this relationship, the system facilitates entering and/or updating data for the form. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090043801 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SELECTING A DOCTOR BASED ON AN OBSERVED EXPERIENCE LEVEL - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that facilitates the selection of a doctor based on an observed experience level with a condition or a procedure. During operation, the system receives from a user a selection criteria for selecting of a doctor. The system also receives from the user a medical profile for the user. Next, the system receives from a third-party a plurality of doctors' profiles. Then, the system ranks the plurality of doctors' profiles into a ranked list based on the selection criteria and conditions within the medical profile. Finally, the system sends the ranked list to the user. | 02-12-2009 |
| 20090037461 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATIC RECOGNITION AND CATEGORIZATION OF TRANSACTIONS - A method for categorization of transactions, the method including receiving a request for a transaction from a user of a plurality of users, determining an availability of an object association for an object name of an object of the transaction, wherein the object association is a preferred object association of the user, selecting a collaborative object association for the object name when the preferred object association of the user is not available, wherein the collaborative object association is selected based on the preferred object association of the plurality of users for the object name, and providing the collaborative object association to the user. | 02-05-2009 |
| 20090037248 | AUTOMATED POLLING SYSTEM - Embodiments of the present invention provide a polling system. The system starts by receiving responses to a poll from one or more poll respondents. The system then uses information in a database to determine the reliability of the responses. Next, the system aggregates the poll responses. The system then displays the aggregated poll responses | 02-05-2009 |
| 20090024712 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR SUGGESTING AN EDITION OF PRODUCT SOFTWARE - In general, the invention relates to a method for facilitating usage of a product. The method includes obtaining a usage level of a first edition of the product by the user, determining an inactivity level of the user based on the usage level, suggesting a second edition of the product to the user based on the inactivity level and facilitating use of the second edition of the product by the user, where the first edition of the product includes at least one additional feature as compared to the second edition of the product. | 01-22-2009 |
| 20090024694 | USING AN INTERACTIVITY OBJECT TO FACILITATE WEB-BASED AGGREGATION - Some embodiments of the present invention provide a system that uses an interactivity object to facilitate interactivity during automated web site accesses. During operation, the system examines a web page on the web site to determine a data type for an interactivity request associated with the web page. Next, the system creates an interactivity object, which includes the interactivity request along with the determined data type for the interactivity request. Finally, the system sends the interactivity object to the user to solicit a response from the user. | 01-22-2009 |
| 20080270950 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IMPORTING DATA FROM AN APPLICATION INTO A SECOND APPLICATION - One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that automatically acquires data from an application and imports the data into a second application. During operation, the system receives at a data-acquisition tool a command from a user to acquire data from the application. In response to the command, the system overlays a semi-transparent layer over at least a portion of a display which is generated by the application, so that the data within the display is still visible to the user. Next, the system receives a drawing command from the user to draw a shape around an item of data within the display. In response to the drawing command, the system draws a shape around the item of data within the display, wherein the shape is drawn on the semi-transparent layer. The system then acquires the item of data bounded by the shape. | 10-30-2008 |
| 20080270310 | FACILITATING DYNAMIC CONFIGURATION OF SOFTWARE PRODUCTS - Embodiments of a system that provides access to at least a portion of a software product are described. During operation, this system receives purchase information from a first location, where the purchase information includes information about purchased software features to which a user purchased access and where the purchased software features are provided by a first subset of modules in the software product. Next, the system receives an access request from a second location from which the software product can be accessed, where the access request includes an identifier provided to the user when the user purchased access to the purchased software features. Next, the system provides configuration instructions to the second location, where the configuration instructions dynamically enable the first subset of the modules. | 10-30-2008 |
| 20080270180 | Method and system for health care data transfer - A method for transferring health care data between a consumer health care application and a plurality of health care information sources. The method includes requesting a first portion of health care data corresponding to a consumer from a first health care information source of the plurality of health care information sources, receiving the first portion of health care data from the first health care information source, storing the first portion of health care data in a health care data repository, requesting a second portion of health care data corresponding to the consumer from a second health care information source of the plurality of health care information sources, receiving the second portion of health care data from the second health care information source, storing the second portion of health care data in the health care data repository, and accessing the first portion of health care data and the second portion of health care data from the health care data repository. | 10-30-2008 |
