U.S. patent application number 11/687387 was filed with the patent office on 2007-08-23 for dynamic web page generation method and system.
Invention is credited to Shigetoshi Hayashi, Kumiko Igawa, Hiroshi Koike, Tetsuya Masuishi, Miyoko Namioka, Nobuya Okayama, Kouichi Shimasaki, Yuuichi Yoshida.
Application Number | 20070198924 11/687387 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 12947819 |
Filed Date | 2007-08-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070198924 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Koike; Hiroshi ; et
al. |
August 23, 2007 |
DYNAMIC WEB PAGE GENERATION METHOD AND SYSTEM
Abstract
In comparison to unnecessary page generation of the prior art,
the page generation time according to the current invention is
substantially reduced, and the generated page is efficiently
accessed. Since in response to at least one of a predetermined set
of update events, a page is dynamically generated in advance of a
user page request and the dynamically generated page is stored, the
current invention allows the efficient page access. The use of the
prior art technologies such as proxy servers in combination further
improves the cost of transmission of the page to the user according
to the current invention.
Inventors: |
Koike; Hiroshi; (Maebashi,
JP) ; Okayama; Nobuya; (Kawasaki, JP) ;
Namioka; Miyoko; (Yokohama, JP) ; Masuishi;
Tetsuya; (Machida, JP) ; Hayashi; Shigetoshi;
(Fujisawa, JP) ; Shimasaki; Kouichi; (Yokohama,
JP) ; Yoshida; Yuuichi; (Yokohama, JP) ;
Igawa; Kumiko; (Kawasaki, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Knoble & Yoshida, LLP;Eight Penn Center
Suite 1350
1628 John F. Kennedy Boulevard
Philadelphia
PA
19103
US
|
Family ID: |
12947819 |
Appl. No.: |
11/687387 |
Filed: |
March 16, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
09516699 |
Mar 1, 2000 |
7194678 |
|
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11687387 |
Mar 16, 2007 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
715/210 ;
707/E17.117 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 16/972
20190101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/526 |
International
Class: |
G06F 13/10 20060101
G06F013/10 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Mar 2, 1999 |
JP |
11-053615 |
Claims
1. A method of a page generation/access, comprising: a) storing
predetermined sets of a page update events, a file name and a page
generation command that are associated with each other, said page
generation command generating a dynamic page based upon a template
and at least one piece of data; b) generating the dynamic page by
executing one of said page generation commands in response to a
corresponds one of said page update events in advance of a user
page access request; c) storing said generated dynamic page as a
static page in a file that is named in associated with said page
update event; and d) outputting said stored page in response to
said user page access request, wherein said template includes one
of said page generation commands for generating a HTML page.
2. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said dynamic page includes data which is formatted by the
template, said step b) generating said dynamic page based upon a
corresponding pair of said data and said template.
3. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 2
wherein said template further includes immediate executable
commands and delayed executable commands, said step b) executing
immediate executable commands, said step b) also converting said
delayed executable commands into corresponding said executable
commands in said dynamic page.
4. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 3
wherein said step d) further comprising: e) executing said
converted executable commands in response to said user page access
request prior to said outputting.
5. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 4
wherein said step e) optionally incorporates in page information
from said user page access request.
6. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said page update events include a time trigger event, a
data update event and a user specified event.
7. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 6
wherein an update flag is initialized to off, in response to said
data update event, said update flag is turned on, said step b) is
performed based upon said update flag.
8. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said step b) is repeated between said steps c) and d) if
another one of said page update events occurs after said step
c).
9. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said dynamic page after said step b) is stored in a proxy
server.
10. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said steps a), b), c) and d) take place at a server
site.
11. The method of a page generation/access according to claim 1
wherein said steps a), b), c) and d) take place at a client
site.
12. A system for generating and accessing a page, comprising: a
batch page generation area definition for predetermined sets of a
page update event, a file name and a page generation command that
are associated with each other, the page generation command
instructing to generate a dynamic page based upon a template and at
least one piece of data, the template including one of the page
generation commands for generating a HTML page; a batch page
generation control unit connected to said bath page generation area
definition for determining a dynamic page to be generated in
response to one of the page update events; a batch page generation
unit connected to said batch page generation control unit for
generating the dynamic page in response to the one of said page
update events by executing one of the page generation commands in
advance of a user page access request; a memory unit connected to
said batch page generation unit for storing the newly generated
dynamic pages a static page in a file that is named in association
with the page update event; and an output unit connected to said
memory unit for outputting the stored dynamic page in response to
the user page access request.
13. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 12 wherein the dynamic page includes data that is formatted
by the template, said batch page generating unit generating the
dynamic page based upon a corresponding pair of the data and the
template.
14. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 13 wherein the template further includes immediate executable
commands and delayed executable commands, said batch page
generation unit executing the immediate executable commands, said
batch page generation unit also converting the delayed executable
commands into the executable commands in said page.
15. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 14 wherein said batch page generation unit further executing
the converted executable commands in response to the user page
access request prior to outputting.
16. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 15 wherein said batch page generation unit optionally
incorporates in page information from the user page access
request.
17. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 11 wherein page update events include a time trigger event, a
data update event and a user specified event.
18. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 17 wherein said batch page generation unit initializes an
update flag to off, in response to the data update event, said
batch page generation control unit turning the update flag on, said
batch page generation unit performing the page generation based
upon the update flag.
19. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 11 wherein said batch page generation unit repeats the page
generation after said memory unit stores the dynamic page and said
output unit outputs the dynamic page if another one of the page
update events occurs.
20. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 11 wherein said memory unit is located in a proxy server.
21. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 11 wherein said batch page generation control unit, said
batch page generation unit, said memory unit and said output unit
are located at a server site.
22. The system for generating and accessing a page according to
claim 11 wherein said batch page generation control unit, said
batch page generation unit, said memory unit and said output unit
are located at a client site.
23. A medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access, the computer executable
instructions performing the tasks of: a) storing predetermined sets
of a page update events, a file name and a page generation command
that are associated with each other, said page generation command
generating a dynamic page based upon a template and at least one
piece of data; b) generating the dynamic page by executing one of
said page generation commands in response to a corresponding one of
said page update events in advance of a user page access request;
c) storing said generated dynamic page as a static page in a file
that is named in associated with said page update event; and d)
outputting said stored page in response to said user page access
request, wherein said template includes one of said page generation
commands for generating a HTML page.
24. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said dynamic page includes data which is formatted by the template,
said step b) generating said dynamic page based upon a
corresponding pair of said data and said template.
25. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 24 wherein
said template further includes immediate executable commands and
delayed executable commands, said step b) executing immediate
executable commands, said step b) also converting said delayed
executable commands into corresponding said executable commands in
said dynamic page.
26. medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 25 wherein
said step d) further comprising: e) executing said converted
executable commands in response to said user page access request
prior to said outputting.
27. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 26 wherein
said step e) optionally incorporates in page information from said
user page access request.
28. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said page update events include a time trigger event, a data update
event and a user specified event.
29. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 28 wherein
an update flag is initialized to off, in response to said data
update event, said update flag is turned on, said step b) is
performed based upon said update flag.
30. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said step b) is repeated between said steps c) and d) if another
one of said page update events occurs after said step c).
31. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said dynamic page after said step b) is stored in a proxy
server.
32. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said steps a), b), c) and d) take place at a server site.
33. The medium containing computer executable instructions for
performing a page generation/access according to claim 23 wherein
said steps a), b), c) and d) take place at a client site.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The current invention is generally related to dynamic web
page generation, and more particularly related to an automatic web
page generation technique in response to a set of predetermined
events.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The access method is widely used to down load Web pages
based upon the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) or the Extensible
Markup Language (XML) to client personal computers (PC) through the
world-wide web (www) or the Internet. In the conventional
high-speed access methods, cash is primary used to maintain the
fixed or static web pages close to the client computers. These
techniques are designed to substantially reduce the cost of
transmitting the pages to the client computers. On the other hand,
to accommodate varied demands, a www page generation technique
dynamically generates web pages based upon the requests and users
at a www server site. The dynamic web pages are used, for example,
in a catalogue in electronic commerce or E-commerce. The dynamic
page generation method involves the costs associated with the page
generation and the transmission of the pages to the clients.
[0003] The web pages include information to generate the client's
display screen. In other words, in the www system, it is a unit of
information which is specified by an address or Universal Resource
Locator (URL) and is to be displayed via a www browser. The web
page information includes text data in the HTML or in the XML, and
graphics data in the Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) or in the
Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format. The term, page can
be also used outside the www system, and it means information which
is locally shown on the client PC screen.
[0004] To further illustrate the prior art page access or
generation techniques, some examples are described below. For
example, an article entitled, "WWW Interactive and Read-Ahead
System Design and Package," Computer Software, Pp. 48-61, Vol. 15,
No 2 (1998) discloses a technique to transmit a user site a static
page in response to a user page request and that the static page is
previously authored using an editor such as a HTML authoring tool.
FIG. 1 shows an exemplary conventional access method of the static
Web pages. An author generates static pages 90 and stores them in a
server 11. A user sends the server 11 a down-load request for one
or more of the stored static Web pages 90 via a browser 35 through
a network 2. In response to the down-load request, the server 11
downloads the browser 35 the requested Web pages to the user via
network 2. The static Web pages cannot be customized according to
user information and or user requests.
[0005] Now referring to FIG. 2, another prior art page access
technique involves a proxy server 40, which is a system cash for
cashing requested static page 90 into cashed page 91 from a server
22 in response to a user request via a browser 35 through a network
2. Later, in response to a request to the same cashed page 91 in
the proxy server 40, the proxy server 40 inquires the server 22
whether or not the cashed information 91 has been updated at the
server site 22 since the last cashing operation. If there has not
been any update on the requested static page 90, the page access
technique reuses the cashed page 91 via the proxy server 40. The
above Computer Software article discloses the proxy based page
access technique. In summary, the proxy based page access technique
reduces a number of transmissions of the static web pages from the
www server 22. To a heavy-access client, a copy of the cashed pages
is sent from the most closely situated proxy server so as to
process the page requests in a high-speed. In certain embodiments,
the proxy server resides within the browser. As described above,
the static Web pages cannot be customized according to user
information and or user requests.
[0006] FIG. 3 illustrates a prior art push access technique. An
example of the push access technique includes Microsoft's Active
Channel. A push server 94 has a push a push definition such as in
the Channel Definition Format (CDF). A push client 93 receives the
push definition 95 and downloads the web pages 95 from the push
server 94 into a client local cash 97 based upon the CDF in
response to a client's time trigger which is asynchronous with the
user page request. In other words, the web page is transparently
downloaded to the push client server 93 from the push server 94
without the user intervention. The CDF specifies not only the web
pages to be distributed or downloaded but also a distribution time.
The push client server 93 locally processes the user page request
and returns the locally cashed page 97 to the user if the user page
request specifies the locally cashed pages 97. Because of the
access to the client rather than the server, the push access
technique is advantageously high-speed. Chapter 3 of "First XML,"
Nikkei BP Publication (1997) discloses the above described push
access technique.
[0007] Still referring to FIG. 3, despite the above described
features, the push access technique has the following
disadvantages. While the push access technique enables the push
client server 93 to perform high-speed access, the push client
server 93 is unable to interactively download the information from
the push server 94. To customize the information, the push server
94 must generate and store various versions of the static web page
information. Furthermore, the CDF must be individually customized
to correspond to the various versions of the static web pages. As
described above, the static Web pages cannot be customized
according to user information and or user requests.
[0008] Now referring to FIG. 4, another prior art example of an
efficient page access technique includes the read-ahead technique
that is also disclosed in the above Computer Software article. The
read-ahead techniques are further grouped into an association type
and a statistic type. The association type read-ahead technique
scans a content of the static web page 90 that has been transmitted
from the www server 11 in response to an initial user request via a
www browser 35 via a network 2. Based upon the scanned web page 90
and a predetermined set of rules, a next-page analysis unit 98
determines other associated web pages that may be subsequently
requested, and a batch page calling unit 99 reads ahead these
associated web pages into a cash 91 in a proxy server 40 via the
network 2 independent of the user request. If the subsequent user
request indeed specifies the read-ahead web pages in the cash 91,
the www browser 35 has a high-speed access to the static web pages
in the cash 91 for displaying the web page information. In summary,
the association type read-ahead technique saves the download time
from the remote server 11 and stores the web pages in the local
cash 91 in the proxy server 40 in advance of the user requests. The
static read-ahead web pages in the cash 91 are shared among users
whose www browsers 35 share the proxy server 48. As described
above, the static Web pages cannot be customized according to user
information and or user requests.
[0009] Still referring to FIG. 4, the statistic type read-ahead
technique is generally similar to the above described association
type read-ahead technique except that the next-page analysis unit
98 statistically processes the scanned web page and determines
other associated web pages that may be subsequently requested based
upon statistics. Unfortunately, the statistic type read-ahead
technique increases the traffic and the benefit of the local cash
is marginal. The subsequent web page requests often end up
downloading the requested pages 90 from the www server 11 rather
than the cash 91 in the proxy server 40.
[0010] To customize web pages according to user information and or
user requests, referring to FIG. 5, a common gate way interface
(CGI) is illustrated. In general, in response to a user request via
a www browser 35 and a network, a page generation unit 23 in a www
server 11 generates a page 82 from data 22 and a template 23. In
particular, the page generation unit 23 dynamically generates a
HTML page 92 by inserting certain data from the data 22 into the
HTML template 23 according to a processing script in the template.
The www server 11 transmits the generated HTML page 92 back to the
www browser 35 via the network 2 for displaying the information in
the HTML page 82. Specifically, the Japanese Patent Publications
8-22498 and 9-26970 respectively disclose a search engine for an
item in a virtual shopping mall and the dynamically customized www
page generation. Using the above exemplary shopping environment,
the user specifies a specific one of the templates 23, and the page
generation unit 23 dynamically generates a specific shopping
catalogue for each user request based upon the specified template
23 and associated data from the data base 23. In contrast to the
above described conventional static web page per item, since the
dynamic pages allow the author of the web pages to substantially
reduce the development effort, the cost associated with the web
page development is also substantially reduced. Furthermore, the
dynamic page generation advantageously enables the generation of a
web page that contains information such as a user name which is not
available in advance of the user request. On the other hand, for
each access, the dynamic web page generation requires a certain
amount of time to get necessary data, to analyze the template and
to generate a web page.
[0011] In summary, the above described conventional static and
dynamic web page access techniques pose problems for the current
need for accessing the web pages. On one hand, although the static
web page access techniques allows high-speed access, these
conventional techniques fail to accomplish customization of the web
pages according to user information and or user requests. On the
other hand, although the conventional dynamic web page generation
technique allows customization of the web pages according to user
information and or user requests, the conventional dynamic
generation technique is incapable of high-speed access. The
conventional dynamic web page generation techniques unnecessarily
generates the same page when multiple page generation requests for
the same page are issued by a plurality of users. The server
resources are wasted on the unnecessarily repeated web page
generation. Let alone, the conventional dynamic web page generation
techniques do not generally take advantage of the proxy server.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] In order to solve the above and other problems, according to
a first aspect of the current invention, a method of a page
generation/access, including: determining a predetermined set of
page update events; generating a page in response to at least one
of the page update events in advance of a user page access request;
storing the generated page; and outputting the stored page in
response to the user page access request.
[0013] According to a second aspect of the current invention, a
system for generating and accessing a page, including: a batch page
generation control unit for determining a page to be generated in
response to at least one of a predetermined set of page update
events; a batch page generation unit connected to the batch page
generation control unit for generating the page in response to the
one of the page update events in advance of a user page access
request; a memory unit connected to the batch page generation unit
for storing the newly generated page; and an output unit connected
to the memory unit for outputting the stored page in response to
the user page access request.
[0014] These and various other advantages and features of novelty
which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity
in the claims annexed hereto and forming a part hereof. However,
for a better understanding of the invention, its advantages, and
the objects obtained by its use, reference should be made to the
drawings which form a further part hereof, and to the accompanying
descriptive matter, in which there is illustrated and described a
preferred embodiment of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary conventional access method of the
static Web pages.
[0016] FIG. 2 is another prior art page access technique involving
a proxy server.
[0017] FIG. 3 illustrates a prior art push access technique.
[0018] FIG. 4 is yet another prior art example of an efficient page
access technique which includes the read-ahead technique.
[0019] FIG. 5 is a prior art common gate way interface (CGI).
[0020] FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating one preferred
embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation system
according to the current invention.
[0021] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a general data flow
involved in the preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page
generation system according to the current invention.
[0022] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating acts involved in a
preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages and accessing
the dynamically generated WWW pages at a high-speed access
according to the current invention.
[0023] FIG. 9 illustrates one example of batch page generation
definitions used in the preferred process of dynamically generating
WWW pages according to the current invention.
[0024] FIG. 10 shows an exemplary template which is used in the
preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages according to
the current invention.
[0025] FIG. 11 shows an exemplary page that was generated from the
template of FIG. 10 and the searched data as the page was
dynamically generated according to the current invention.
[0026] FIG. 12 illustrate an exemplary display output generated by
a browser according to the HTML of FIG. 11.
[0027] FIG. 13 is a template and a data set that are used in the
first preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages.
[0028] FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary product data table.
[0029] FIGS. 15 and 16 illustrate generated pages that are
displayed on the browser.
[0030] FIG. 17 is a block diagram illustrating a second preferred
embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation system
according to the current invention.
[0031] FIG. 18 is the diagram illustrating other general data flows
involved in the preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page
generation system according to the current invention.
[0032] FIG. 19 is a flow chart illustrating acts involved in a
second preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages and
accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a high-speed
access according to the current invention.
[0033] FIG. 20 illustrates a first template, a second template and
a data set are used in the second preferred process of dynamically
generating WWW pages according to the current invention.
[0034] FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating a general data flow
involved in the third preferred embodiment of the high-speed
dynamic page generation system according to the current
invention.
[0035] FIG. 22 is a flow chart illustrating acts involved in a
third preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages and
accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a high-speed
access according to the current invention.
[0036] FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a data flow involved in
the E-commerce such as an electronic mall of the preferred
embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation system
according to the current invention.
[0037] FIG. 24 is a flow chart illustrating acts involved in the
exemplary use of a preferred process of dynamically generating WWW
pages and accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a
high-speed access according to the current invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
[0038] Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference
numerals designate corresponding structures throughout the views,
and referring in particular to FIG. 6, a block diagram illustrates
one preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation
system according to the current invention. The preferred embodiment
includes a server or a server computer 1, a client or a client
personal computer (PC) 3, and a network 2 that connects the server
1 and the client 3 via the Internet and Intranet. The client PC 3
further includes a central processing unit (CPU) 3d, a network
adapter 38, an output device such as a display unit 3a as well as
an input device such as a keyboard 3b and a mouse 3c. The CPU 3d
executes software instructions such as a communication unit 37 and
a world-wide web (WWW) browser 35. Using the input devices 3b and
3c, the user requests a world-wide web (WWW) page within the WWW
browser 35, and the client PC 3 formulates a WWW page request to
the server 1. In general, the server 1 receives the WWW page
request from the client PC 3 via the network 2. Upon receiving the
WWW page request, the server 1 processes the WWW page request so
that the WWW browser 35 receives the requested WWW pages that
resides in the server 1 via the network 2. The network 2 utilizes
the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) for transmitting WWW
information such as the WWW page request as well as the requested
WWW page between the communication unit 37 of the client PC 3 and a
communication unit 36 of the server 1 via the network adapters 8
and 38.
[0039] Still referring to FIG. 6, the preferred embodiment of the
server 1 according to the current invention dynamically generates a
customized WWW page according to user information and or user
requests. The server 1 includes a central processing unit 5, a
network adapter 8, a disk storage unit 7, a memory unit 4 and an
input/output device such as a display 9a and a keyboard 9b, and
these components are connected via a bus 6. The network adapter 8
receives and sends signals to and from the network 2, and the
signals include the a WWW page request and a requested WWW page. In
order to transmit the requested WWW page, the CPU 5 dynamically
generates a WWW page from the information stored in the disk
storage unit 7. The information includes a template group 30
containing a group of predetermined templates, a data table 31
containing a group of tables, a batch generation definition group
32 containing a group of page generation definitions and a page
group 33 containing a group of pages. A part or all of these groups
of the information is copied into the memory 4 at a corresponding
data area via a database management system unit (DBMS) 15. The
corresponding data areas include a template area 23, a data area
22, a batch page generation definition area 20 and a page area 24.
Using the information from the above areas, the CPU 5 executes a
batch generation unit or program 13 in a memory unit 4 with the
help of other software such as an operating system (OS) 21 and a
WWW server unit or program 11. According to one of the WWW page
requests from the client PC 3, the WWW server unit or program 11
retrieves a specified WWW page from the page group 33 into the page
area 24 before transmitting it back to the WWW browser 35.
According to another one of the WWW page requests, the WWW server
unit or program 11 outputs a page generation signal to a page
generation unit or program 12 to dynamically generate a WWW page
24. In response to the page generation signal, the page generation
unit or program 12 generates the dynamic WWW page 24 under the
control of the WWW server program 11 and/or a batch page generation
control unit 13. The dynamic WWW page 24 is generated based upon a
template in the template area 23 and data in the data area 22, and
during the interpretation of the template, certain data is obtained
from the data group 31 into the data area 22 to fill in the
template.
[0040] FIG. 6 also shows components involved in a batch page
generation process. A batch page generation control unit 13
receives batch page generation definitions from a batch page
generation definition area 20 and outputs a page generation signal
to the page generation unit or program 12 in response to a time
trigger signal from a timer unit 16 or a data update trigger signal
from a data update unit 14. The time trigger signal is generated
after a predetermined time period while the data update trigger
signal is generated when the data update unit 14 updates the data
in the data area 22 from the data table 31 via the DBMS 15. The
above described batch page generation process prepares the updated
dynamic WWW pages in advance of the user requests. This advance
dynamic WWW page generation enables high-speed access by
substantially eliminating on-the-fly page generation upon the user
requests. Because of the advance dynamic WWW page generation, the
preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation
system according to the current invention also takes advantage of a
proxy server on the network.
[0041] Now referring to FIG. 7, a diagram illustrates a general
data flow involved in the preferred embodiment of the high-speed
dynamic page generation system according to the current invention.
The data update unit or program 14 updates data 22 via the DBMS 15
of FIG. 6. For example, the DBMS 15 may be a commercially available
database management system for managing product data, a data
synchronization tool, a template update program, a program
installer or a set up program. Upon updating the data 22, the data
update unit 14 outputs a data update trigger signal to a batch page
generation control unit or program 13. The data update trigger
signal specifies that a certain type of batch generation or a
certain way to perform the batch generation. The data update
trigger signal indicates the time of the update and/or the updated
data such as a template or associated data. The information in the
data update trigger signal is collected not only from a timer unit
16 and the data update unit 14 but also from the program installer,
the set up program or a update command inputted by an operator.
Some implementations for sending the information to the batch page
generation control unit or program 13 includes the use of the OS
message exchange facility or a common memory area. The batch page
generation control unit 13 determines which page to be generated
based upon a batch page generation definition 20. The batch page
generation control unit 13 outputs a generation signal to a page
generation unit or program 12. Based upon the above determined
page, the page generation unit 12 receives the corresponding data
22 and the corresponding template 23. The page generation unit 12
generates the specified page based upon the data 22 and the
template 23. Finally, the batch page generation control unit 13
determines a file name for the newly updated or generated page 24
as specified in the batch page generation definition 20 so that the
newly updated or generated page 24 is stored with the file name in
a storage device for later access via a WWW server unit 11.
[0042] Still referring to FIG. 7, the diagram illustrates other
general data flows involved in the preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system according to the current
invention. Assuming that a page request from a WWW browser 35
refers to a WWW page that is not often updated and that the WWW
page has been recently updated, upon receiving the page request via
a network 2, the WWW server unit 11 usually transmits the
corresponding WWW page 24 from the page group 33 to the browser 35
via the network 2. In this case, a proxy server 40 may effectively
serve its function. Upon receiving the WWW page request, the proxy
server 40 determines whether or not a copy of the same recently
updated WWW page 24 exists in a cash 41 of the proxy server 40. If
the same WWW page does exists in the cash 41, the proxy server 40
transmits the WWW page from the cash 41 to the WWW browser 35 via
the network 2. As described above, the WWW page has been
dynamically generated or updated in advance of an actual user
request, and since a copy of the prepared WWW page is also stored
in the proxy server 41, the access to the WWW dynamically updated
page is optimized. On the other hand, when the above two
assumptions are not correct, the preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system generates a requested WWW
page in the following manner.
[0043] The preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page
generation system generates a requested WWW page when it confirms
that the requested page is neither available nor updated. When the
proxy server 40 determines that the requested page is not in the
cash 41 or that the requested page in the cash 41 has not been
updated, the proxy server 40 requests the batch page generation
control unit 13 to generate the requested page 24. In another case,
the requested page is not available in the cash 41 or in the page
group 33 in the WWW server unit. A certain WWW page changes every
time for each WWW page request. This is because the requested WWW
page incorporates certain information that is included in the WWW
page request. For example, a name of the user is incorporated in
the requested WWW page to customize the page. In this case, the WWW
browser 35 directly requests the WWW server unit 11 to generate a
new WWW page. In the above described situations, after the batch
page generation control unit 13 determines which page to be
generated, the page generation unit 12 generates the requested page
24.
[0044] Now referring to FIG. 8, a flow chart illustrates acts
involved in a preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages
and accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a high-speed
access according to the current invention. In general, the flow
chart illustrates two starting points 1000 and 1020. When data used
in a WWW page is to be updated, the preferred process starts at act
1000. In act 1001, the data is updated using a data update unit and
a data base manager. After the data update in the act 1001, a data
update trigger signal is generated to indicate to the batch page
generation control unit that the data update event had taken place
in act 1002. In response to the data update trigger signal, a page
to be generated is determined based upon a batch page generation
definition in act 1003. In act 1004, the selected page is generated
using a template and data that correspond to the selected page.
After the page is generated, a universal resource locator (URL) is
determined based upon the batch page generation definition in act
1005, and the generated page is stored in a storage device at a
location specified by the URL in act 1006. Thus, the page
generation in response to the data update event is completed in act
1007.
[0045] Still referring to FIG. 8, the other starting point 1020 for
the preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages occurs
when a user requests a WWW page through a browser in act 1021. It
is determined in act 1022 whether or not the requested WWW page
changes every time a request is made. To determine whether or not
the requested WWW page changes every time a request is made in the
act 1022, a WWW server uses the page request information. For
example, a static page URL is
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/a_g.sub.--1000a.html" while a dynamic page
URL is
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/cgi-bin/page?TEMPLATE=a.html&ITEM=1000a).
Because there is a difference in the page request format, the WWW
server uses the page request information to determine whether the
requested page is static or dynamic. When a static page such as a
product page is requested by a URL such as
"http://www.aaa.cojp/a_g.sub.--1000a.html," it is determined that
the page usually does not change for each page request in act 1022,
and an already generated signal is outputted in act 1023. Based
upon the already generated signal from the act 1023, the page that
has been generated in acts 1001 through 1006 is transmitted to the
user in act 1024. The WWW server unit usually transmits the
requested page through the network to the browser that originated
the page request. The transmitted page is displayed in the original
browser in act 1025. On the other hand, when it is determined that
the page usually changes for each page request in the act 1022, a
page generation request is issued in act 1030. In response to the
page generation request from the act 1030, a page generation starts
in act 1031. In act 1032, the requested page is generated according
to a selected template and data. The newly generated page is
transmitted to the browser that originated the page request via the
network in act 1033. Lastly, the transmitted page is displayed in
the original browser in the act 1025. The page display ends in act
1026.
[0046] FIG. 9 illustrates one example of batch page generation
definitions used in the preferred process of dynamically generating
WWW pages according to the current invention. In order to start a
batch page generation, an update trigger signal has to be generated
according to one of the predetermined trigger types and triggering
conditions. That is, a trigger type event satisfies a corresponding
trigger condition. For example, if a trigger type is time as shown
in a trigger ID 71, a template C has a time sensitive item that
needs to be updated when it is 6 AM. When the time is 6 AM for the
time trigger, an associated batch page generation command, "page
TEMPLATE=c.html" is issued to the page generation unit. The newly
generated file in response to the time trigger is named as
"c_g_.html." Similarly, for a data update type 72, when data for a
product A is updated, the batch page generation command "page
TEMPLATE=a.html & ITEM=1000a" is issued. ITEM=1000a indicates
that the template, a.html contains information for the item 1000a.
The batch page generation is limited to pages containing the item
1000a information. On the other hand, for a data update type 73,
when a template itself is updated, the batch page generation
command "page TEMPLATE=a.html & ITEM=*" is issued. ITEM=*
indicates that since the template, a.html is updated, all pages
that are to be generated from the information contained in the
template a.html are generated. It is also possible to specify a
certain group of items such as outdoor items by
"ITEM=Group=outdoor." In this example, all pages that contains the
outdoor item data are updated. As described above, based upon the
batch page generation definitions, the pages are generated in a
flexible and dynamic manner to reflect a life cycle of each page
according to the content of the page. In an alternative process of
dynamically generating WWW pages according to the current
invention, in stead of storing a predetermined name, a unique
generated page file name is determined based upon a combination of
the template name and the item name. Furthermore, in order to
determine a URL, the unique file name such as
"a_g.sub.--1000a.html" is appended to a predetermined location such
as "http:\www.aaa.co.jp\" so that the generated page is stored at a
unique address, http:\www.aaa.co.jp\a_g.sub.--1000a.html.
[0047] FIG. 10 shows an exemplary template which is used in the
preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages according to
the current invention. A single template is usually stored in a
single file in the disk storage unit of a server computer. The
exemplary template 40000A includes page data generation commands
40001 through 40017 in the HTML. For example, an ECEX sentence
40002 includes a command to search a RDB in a data group 31 as
shown in FIG. 6, and the result is substituted in $KEYWORD and
$NCOND. These results are used in HTML sentences 4064 and 405.
RPEAT in sentences 40004 and 40007 indicates that the sentences
40005 and 40006 are repeated for a number of searched records to
generate a corresponding number of items in a page.
[0048] FIG. 11 shows an exemplary page 40000B that was generated
from the template 40000A of FIG. 10 and the searched data as the
page was dynamically generated according to the current invention.
The page 40000B now has HTML sentences 40030 and 40031 whose
variables have been substituted by the results of the searches as
specified by the commands in the template 40000A in FIG. 10. For
example, a number of product variable $COUNT has been replaced by a
search result "184." This is a number of records in a data group
31. Each record has at least one of "text, voice, image and
animation." The search condition $CONDITION is blank, and an
initial page is generated. The generated product page is the same
for all the users, and it will change only when the product data is
updated. FIG. 12 illustrate an exemplary display output generated
by a browser according to the HTML page 40000B of FIG. 11. The HTML
page 40000B illustrates only a portion of the HTML sentences to
generate the display shown in FIG. 12. That is, the HTML page 4000B
shows the HTML sentences to display a portion 50, but it does not
show the HTML sentences to generate display portions 51 and 52.
When the user selects a certain item in the display, the search
condition is now specified for sub-classifications. The same
template 40000A is used for a search for the
sub-classifications.
[0049] To further illustrate a page generation, now referring to
FIG. 13, a template 65 and a data set 66 are used in the first
preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages. Initially,
the underlined EXEC commands in the template 65 are executed with a
parameter specification ITEM=1000a. To find the corresponding data
for ITEM=1000a, a product data table is opened as illustrated in
FIG. 14. In a product ID 60 column, data associated with the
product item 1000a is found in a row 61. Thus, for example, the
product name is found to be "Christmas dinner certificate" which
substitutes a variable $product name. As shown in FIG. 13, in
response to a data update trigger signal to control of a batch page
generation control unit 13, a page generation unit 23 substitutes
the variables in the template 65 with searched data 66 for
ITEM=1000a from the product data table of FIG. 14 to generate a
page 67. According the above described page generation process, the
generated page 67 is now displayed as shown in FIG. 15. When the
parameter is changed to ITEM=1000b, in a product ID 60 column, data
associated with the product item 1000a is found in a row 62, and
the page is generated accordingly. The generated page for
ITEM=1000b is now displayed as shown in FIG. 16.
[0050] In an alternative embodiment, a batch page generation is
sequentially performed. In other words, in stead of completing the
process to turn a template into a page upon the user page access
request, the page is prepared in advance of the user access request
and the prepared page is stored. At the first page generation, a
template becomes substantially static by substituting most or all
variables by searched data. Upon the user page access request, the
stored page is now used as a template. This sequential or layered
approach still advantageously reduces the page generation time at
the time of the user request. For example, after a user page access
request such as
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/cgi-bin/page?TEMPLATE=a.html&ITEM=1000a,"
a page is generated and stored as "a_g.html." In response to
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/cgi-bin/page?TEMPLATE=a_g.html&ITEM=1000a,"
the previously generated page is efficiently accessed. The addition
of a link relation "_g" allows the above efficient access. This
method is especially useful for a template that requires a lengthy
page generation process. Another advantage is that the page
generation is flexibly controlled. When the a_g.html file exists
upon the user page access request, the page is transmitted from the
existing file. On the other hand, when the a_g.html file does not
exist upon the user page access request, the page generation takes
place. For example, since the page file is being locked while the
corresponding page generation is in progress, when the page access
request arrives during the page generation, the new page generation
is switched to proceed from the corresponding template.
[0051] Now referring to FIG. 17, a block diagram illustrates a
second preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page
generation system according to the current invention. The second
preferred embodiment includes a server or a server computer 1, a
client or a client personal computer (PC) 3, and a network 2 that
connects the server 1 and the client 3 via the Internet and
Intranet. The client PC 3 further includes a central processing
unit (CPU) 3d, a network adapter 38, an output device such as a
display unit 3a as well as an input device such as a keyboard 3b
and a mouse 3c. The CPU 3d executes software instructions such as a
world-wide web (WWW) browser 35. Using the input devices 3b and 3c,
the user requests a world-wide web (WWW) page within the WWW
browser 35, and the client PC 3 formulates a WWW page request to
the server 1. In general, the server 1 receives the WWW page
request from the client PC 3 via the network 2. Upon receiving the
WWW page request, the server 1 processes the WWW page request so
that the WWW browser 35 receives the requested WWW pages that
resides in the server 1 via the network 2. The network 2 utilizes
the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) for transmitting WWW
information such as the WWW page request as well as the requested
WWW page between the client PC 3 and the server 1 via the network
adapter 8.
[0052] Still referring to FIG. 17, the preferred embodiment of the
server 1 according to the current invention dynamically generates a
customized WWW page according to user information and or user
requests. The server 1 includes a central processing unit 5, a
network adapter 8, a disk storage unit 7, a memory unit 4 and an
input/output device such as a display 9a and a keyboard 9b, and
these components are connected via a bus 6. The network adapter 8
receives and sends signals to and from the network 2, and the
signals include the a WWW page request and a requested WWW page. In
order to transmit the requested WWW page, the CPU 5 dynamically
generates a WWW page from the information stored in the disk
storage unit 7. The information includes a template group 30
containing a group of predetermined templates, a data table 31
containing a group of tables and a batch generation definition
group 32 containing a group of page generation definitions. A part
or all of these groups of the information is copied into the memory
4 at a corresponding data area via a database management system
unit (DBMS) 15. The corresponding data areas include a first
template area 101, a data area 22, a batch page generation
definition area 20 and a second template area 102. Using the
information from the above areas, the CPU 5 executes a batch
generation unit or program 13 in a memory unit 4 with the help of
other software such as an operating system (OS) 21 and a WWW server
unit or program 11. According to one of the WWW page requests from
the client PC 3, the WWW server unit or program 11 retrieves a
specified WWW page from the page group 33 into the page area 24
before transmitting it back to the WWW browser 35.
[0053] According to another one of the WWW page requests that is
not from the client PC 3, the WWW server unit or program 11 outputs
a page generation signal to a delay-capable page generation unit or
program 100 to dynamically generate a WWW page 24. In response to
the page generation signal, the delay-capable page generation unit
100 interprets a template A that has been read from the template
group 30 in the first template area 101. The delay-capable page
generation unit 100 generates a template A' in a memory area 102
under the control of the WWW server program 11 and/or a batch page
generation control unit 13. The template A' is generated based upon
the template A in the template area 101 and data in the data area
22, and during the interpretation of the template, certain data is
obtained from the data group 31. The batch page generation control
unit 13 stores the newly generated template A' in the template
group 30 in the disk storage unit 7 to be later retrieved by the
delay-capable page generation unit 100. Upon receiving the WWW page
request from the browser 35, the delay-capable page generation unit
100 generates the requested WWW page that corresponds to the stored
template A' in the area 102. The server 1 transmits the newly
generated WWW page to the client PC 3. The template A' has been
generated in advance to reflect a change in the server environment
so that the same process is eliminated at the page generation upon
receiving a WWW page request from a user. Upon receiving a user WWW
page request, the template A' is used to speed up the page
generation process even if the user information is processed to
generate the requested WWW page.
[0054] Now referring to FIG. 18, a diagram illustrates a general
data flow involved in the second preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system according to the current
invention. In the alternative, a timer program or unit 16 generates
a time trigger signal indicative of updating a certain
predetermined portion of data and outputs the time trigger signal
to the batch page generation control unit or program 13.
[0055] The data update unit or program 14 updates data 22. Upon
updating the data 22, the data update unit 14 outputs a data update
trigger signal to a batch page generation control unit or program
13. The data update trigger signal specifies that a certain type of
batch generation or a certain way to perform the batch generation.
The data update trigger signal indicates the time of the update
and/or the updated data such as a template or associated data. The
information in the data update trigger signal is collected not only
from a timer unit 16 and the data update unit 14 but also from the
program installer, the set up program or a update command inputted
by an operator. Some implementations for sending the information to
the batch page generation control unit or program 13 includes the
use of the OS message exchange facility or a common memory area.
The batch page generation control unit 13 determines which page to
be generated based upon a batch page generation definition 20. The
batch page generation control unit 13 outputs a generation signal
to a delay-capable page generation unit or program 100. Based upon
the above determined page, the delay-capable page generation unit
100 receives the corresponding data 22 and the corresponding first
template A 101. The first template A 101 has a delay execution
command, and the delay-capable page generation unit 100 interprets
this command to generate another template rather than a page. The
delay-capable page generation unit 100 generates a second template
A' 102 based upon the data 22 and the first template A 101. The
second template A' 102 is stored the template group 30 in the disk
storage unit 7 as shown in FIG. 17.
[0056] The delay execution commands are further illustrated. For
example, the first template A 101 includes the following delay
execution commands: TABLE-US-00001 <!@non EXEC
INERFACE=PDBManager Method=GetRead Param=(a>1)> <!@non
$product name>
[0057] The delay-capable page generation unit 100 interprets these
delay execution commands by identifying a condition, "non" and
generates the second template A' 102 by removing the condition.
Thus, the second template A' 102 contains the following commands:
TABLE-US-00002 <!@ EXEC INERFACE=PDBManager Method=GetRead
Param=(a>1)> <!@ $product name>
The above commands are identical to those before the interpretation
except that they are now immediately executable.
[0058] Still referring to FIG. 18, the diagram illustrates other
general data flows involved in the preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system according to the current
invention. Assuming that a page request from a WWW browser 35
refers to a WWW page that has been recently updated and that the
corresponding second template A' 102 is stored in the disk storage
7, upon receiving the page request via a network 2, the
delay-capable page generation unit 100 generates a requested WWW
page based upon the second template A' 102 and the data 22. The
execution delay commands in the first template A 101 are now
executed since these commands are stored as immediately executable
ones in the second template A' 102. The generated page is
transmitted via the network 2 to the browser 35, which issued the
page WWW request.
[0059] Now referring to FIG. 19, a flow chart illustrates acts
involved in a second preferred process of dynamically generating
WWW pages and accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a
high-speed access according to the current invention. In general,
the flow chart illustrates two starting points 2000 and 2020. When
data used in a WWW page is to be updated, the preferred process
starts at act 2000. In act 2001, the data is updated using a data
update unit and a data base manager. After the data update in the
act 2001, a data update trigger signal is generated to indicate to
the batch page generation control unit that the data update event
had taken place in act 2002. In response to the data update trigger
signal, a page to be generated is determined based upon a batch
page generation definition in act 2003. In act 2004, the selected
page is generated as a second template A' using a first template A
and data that correspond to the selected page. The delay execution
commands embedded in the HTML of the first template A are converted
into immediately executable commands in the second template A'.
After the second template A' is generated, a universal resource
locator (URL) is determined based upon the batch page generation
definition in act 2005, and the generated second template A' is
stored in a storage device at a location specified by the URL in
act 2006. Thus, the page generation in response to the data update
event is completed in act 2007.
[0060] Still referring to FIG. 19, the other starting point 2020
for the preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages
occurs when a user requests a WWW page through a browser in act
2021. The URL in the WWW page request is used to determine whether
or not the requested WWW page is the one corresponds to the first
template A and the second template A'. For example, a URL is
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/cgi-bin/page?TEMPLATE=ad.html&ITEM=1000a"
The WWW page request is sent to the server unit identified by
"http://www.aaa.co.jp/" in act 2022, and the server starts the page
generation in act 2023. In act 2024, the requested page is
generated according to the second template A' and data. The second
template A' is identified by "ad.html" while the data is identified
by "ITEM=1000a." The second template A' is stored at the location
specified in the act 2006 and has now immediately executable
commands. Only these immediately executable commands are now
executed. The newly generated page is transmitted to the browser
that originated the page request via the network in act 2025.
Lastly, the transmitted page is displayed in the original browser
in the act 2026. The page display ends in act 2027.
[0061] FIG. 20, a first template A, a second template A' and a data
set 66 are used in the second preferred process of dynamically
generating WWW pages. Initially, a delay-capable page generation
unit 23a execute the underlined EXEC commands without "$NOP" in the
first template A under the control of the batch page generation
control unit 13 in response to a data update trigger signal. The
delay-capable page generation unit 23a converts the delayed
execution commands into the immediately executable commands by
removing the "$NOP" notations, and the result is stored as a second
template A'. For example, the first template A includes "<$nop
$User Name>, and this delay command is converted into an
immediately executable command "<$User Name>, which is stored
in the second template A'. Later, upon receiving from a user WWW
browser a page request that corresponds to the first template A, a
WWW server 11 initiates the page generation to the delay-capable
page generation unit 23b. The delay-capable page generation unit
23b generates a requested page based upon the second template A'.
Using the same example, the delay-capable page generation unit 23
now executes the immediately executable command, $User Name in the
second template A' and substitutes the user name variable with the
name of the page requester, "Mr. Bando." Since other executable
commands have been already completed when the second template A'
was generated from the first template A, the page generation from
the second template A' is substantially speeded up.
[0062] The above described page generation is advantageous when a
requested page includes information that needs to be updated when
the corresponding data is modified and that is not available until
the user page request arrives. In other words, the second template
A' is prepared from the first template A in advance of a user page
request whenever the relevant data for the first template A is
modified or updated. The page is efficiently completed based upon
the second template A' and the incoming information when the user
page request occurs. This process allows efficient generation of a
customized page for an individual user. In addition to the above
described customized user name, more general information can be
used in a delayed manner. For example, the general information
includes the current time, a number of access to a certain page,
and the final page from the second template A' is generated
according to the general information. In an alternative embodiment,
in stead of the above described data update, other sources of
triggers are used to generate the second template A'. The examples
of the alternative trigger sources include a time-base trigger.
[0063] Now referring to FIG. 21, a diagram illustrates a general
data flow involved in the third preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system according to the current
invention. The data update unit or program 14 updates data 22. In
the alternative, a timer program or unit 16 generates a time
trigger signal indicative of updating a certain predetermined
portion of data and outputs the time trigger signal to a batch page
generation control unit or program 13. Upon updating the data 22,
the data update unit 14 outputs a data update trigger signal to the
batch page generation control unit or program 13. The data update
trigger signal specifies that a certain type of batch generation or
a certain way to perform the batch generation. The data update
trigger signal indicates the time of the update and/or the updated
data such as a template or associated data. The information in the
data update trigger signal is collected not only from a timer unit
16 and the data update unit 14 but also from the program installer,
the set up program or a update command inputted by an operator.
Some implementations for sending the information to the batch page
generation control unit or program 13 includes the use of the OS
message exchange facility or a common memory area. The batch page
generation control unit 13 determines which page to be generated
based upon a batch page generation definition 20. The batch page
generation control unit 13 further includes an update flag 104 for
each page in a delay generation function unit 103.
[0064] Upon receiving the data update trigger signal or the time
trigger signal a page corresponding to a first template A 101, the
batch page generation control unit 13 sets a corresponding one of
the update flag or tuns it on. While the update flag is set or on
for the page corresponding to the first template A 101, if the
delay-capable page generation unit 100 receives a page request for
the corresponding first template A 101, the delay-capable page
generation unit 100 generates a second template A' 102 based upon
the data 22 and the first template A 101. The second template A'
102 is stored the template group 30 in the disk storage unit 7 as
shown in FIG. 17. After the second template A' 102 is generated,
the corresponding flag is reset or turned off. On the other hand,
while the update flag is reset for the page corresponding to the
first template A 101, if the delay-capable page generation unit 100
receives a page request for the corresponding first template A 101,
the delay-capable page generation unit 100 simply returns the
already generated corresponding page. By confirming with the delay
generation function 103, it is guaranteed that the second template
A' 102 has been already updated.
[0065] Still referring to FIG. 21, the diagram illustrates other
general data flows involved in the third preferred embodiment of
the high-speed dynamic page generation system according to the
current invention. Assuming that a page request from a WWW browser
35 refers to a WWW page that has been recently updated and that the
corresponding second template A' 102 is stored in the disk storage
7, upon receiving the page request via a network 2, the
delay-capable page generation unit 100 generates a requested WWW
page based upon the second template A' 102 and the data 22. The
execution delay commands in the first template A 101 are now
executed since these commands are stored as immediately executable
ones in the second template A' 102. The generated page is
transmitted via the network 2 to the browser 35, which issued the
page WWW request.
[0066] Now referring to FIG. 22, a flow chart illustrates acts
involved in a third preferred process of dynamically generating WWW
pages and accessing the dynamically generated WWW pages at a
high-speed access according to the current invention. In general,
the flow chart illustrates two starting points 3000 and 3020. When
data used in a WWW page is to be updated, the preferred process
starts at act 3000. In act 3001, the data is updated using a data
update unit and a data base manager. After the data update in the
act 3001, a data update trigger signal is generated to indicate to
the batch page generation control unit that the data update event
had taken place in act 3002. Each of the update flag as defined in
the batch page generation definition is set or turned on in act
3003 to indicate that the relevant page should be later updated. In
act 3004, the initialization of the update flag is completed.
[0067] Still referring to FIG. 22, the other starting point 3020
for the third preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages
occurs when a user requests a WWW page through a browser in act
3021. A request for generating the selected page as a second
template A' from a first template A and the corresponding data is
made to the WWW server in act 3022. The WWW server initiates the
page generation in act 3023. The page generation unit inquires into
the status of the corresponding update flag in the delay generation
function unit in act 3024. If the update flag is OFF in act 3025, a
page is generated from the second template A' and the corresponding
data in act 3026. Only these immediately executable commands in the
second template A' are now executed. The newly generated page is
transmitted to the browser that originated the page request via the
network in act 3027. Lastly, the transmitted page is displayed in
the original browser in the act 3028. The page display ends in act
3029. On the other hand, if the update flag is ON in act 3025, the
page to be generated is determined according to the batch page
generation definition in act 3030. A second template A' is
generated based upon the first template A and the corresponding
data in act 3031, and if there any delayed commands in the first
template A, these commands are converted into immediately
executable commands in the second template A'. After the second
template A' is generated, a universal resource locator (URL) is
determined based upon the batch page generation definition in act
3032, and the generated second template A' is stored in a storage
device at a location specified by the URL in act 3033. The update
flag is now reset or turned off in act 3034. After the act 3034,
the preferred process proceeds to the act 3026.
[0068] Now referring to FIG. 23, a diagram illustrates a data flow
involved in the E-commerce such as an electronic mall of the
preferred embodiment of the high-speed dynamic page generation
system according to the current invention. The electronic or
virtual mall includes a store 201 and a customer 200. The store 201
maintains products information centrally in a virtual mall server
202. In response to the request to change certain product
information from a store 20, the data update unit or program 14
updates data such as product data 22, and page generation
definition data is defined to update a product catalogue whenever
its product data is modified. Upon updating the product data 22,
the data update unit 14 outputs a data update trigger signal to a
batch page generation control unit or program 13. The data update
trigger signal specifies that a certain type of batch generation or
a certain way to perform the batch generation. The data update
trigger signal indicates the time of the update and/or the updated
data such as a template or associated data. The batch page
generation control unit 13 determines which page to be generated
based upon a batch page generation definition 20. The batch page
generation control unit 13 outputs a generation signal to a page
generation unit or program 23. Based upon the above determined
page, the page generation unit 23 receives the corresponding data
22 and the corresponding template 101. The page generation unit 12
generates the specified product page based upon the data 22 and the
template 101. Finally, the batch page generation control unit 13
determines a file name for the newly updated or generated product
page 102 as specified in the batch page generation definition 20 so
that the newly updated or generated product page 24 is stored with
the file name in a storage device for later access via a WWW server
unit 11.
[0069] Still referring to FIG. 23, the diagram illustrates other
general data flows involved in the preferred embodiment of the
high-speed dynamic page generation system used for the E-commerce
according to the current invention. The customer 200 is interested
in a certain product and browses a catalogue at the virtual mall
202. Assuming that a page request from a WWW browser 35 refers to a
WWW page, upon receiving the page request via a network 2, the WWW
server unit 11 usually transmits the corresponding WWW page 24 from
the page group 33 to the browser 35 via the network 2. If a huge
number of pages needs to be updated for a product information
change, only certain pages that are frequently accessed or whose
generation process is lengthy are defined to be generated in the
batch page generation definition data 20. As described above, the
WWW page has been dynamically generated or updated in advance of an
actual user request, the access to the WWW dynamically updated page
is optimized. Furthermore, when the customer 200 searches certain
product, a product page is generated only after a search.
[0070] Now referring to FIG. 24, a flow chart illustrates acts
involved in the exemplary use of a preferred process of dynamically
generating WWW pages and accessing the dynamically generated WWW
pages at a high-speed access according to the current invention. In
general, the flow chart illustrates two starting points 4000 and
4020. When product data used in a WWW page is to be updated, the
preferred process starts at act 4000. In act 4001, a store
participating in a virtual mall wants to update its product
information, the product data is uploaded to a server where the
product information is kept. After the data upload in the act 4001,
the server sends the uploaded information to a data update unit in
act 4002. In response to the uploaded data, the data update unit
updates or replaces the corresponding product data with the newly
uploaded data, and an update trigger is sent to a batch page
generation definition control unit 13 in act 1003. In act 1004,
based upon the batch page generation definition data, the selected
page is generated using a template and the newly updated data that
correspond to the selected page. After the product page is
generated, the generated product page is stored in a storage device
at a location in act 4005. Thus, the page generation in response to
the data update event is completed in act 4006.
[0071] Still referring to FIG. 24, the other starting point 4020
for the preferred process of dynamically generating WWW pages
occurs when a customer requests a WWW page for the product
information through a browser in act 4021. The WWW server initiates
the page generation in act 4022. A new product page is dynamically
generated using the above stored product page as a template in act
4023. The newly generated page is transmitted to the browser that
originated the page request via the network in act 4024. Lastly,
the transmitted page is displayed in the original browser in the
act 4025. The page display ends in act 4026. The above virtual mall
example illustrates the flexible product information management as
well as the dynamic and efficient product page generation. As a
result, the customers are able to access the most updated product
information in an efficient manner.
[0072] Using the above described virtual mall example, a comparison
was made in efficiency for the page access between the prior art
access method as shown in FIG. 5 and the first preferred embodiment
according to the current invention as shown in FIG. 7. When the
following samples are made:
[0073] Sample 1: fifteen data calls in a store catalogue
[0074] Sample 2: eight data calls in a focus search page
[0075] Sample 3: twenty-five data calls in a product catalogue
[0076] In the above sample situations, when ten users
simultaneously accessed the same data, an amount of time to
complete the display of the accessed data was measured. The
measured time is shown as follows: TABLE-US-00003 1.sup.st
Preferred Prior Art Embodiment Efficiency Sample 1: 15 seconds 3
seconds 5 times Sample 2: 40 seconds 4 seconds 10 times Sample 3:
45 seconds 3 seconds 15 times
As shown above, the response time has improved from approximately
2.5 times to approximately 15 times. The dynamic page generation
according to the current invention is flexibly performed according
to the life of each page. In comparison to unnecessary page
generation of the prior art, the page generation time is
substantially reduced, and the generated page is efficiently
accessed. Since the dynamically generated page is stored in
advance, the current invention allows the use of the prior art
technologies such as proxy servers in combination to further
improve the performance in the cost of transmission of the page
information to the user.
[0077] In alternative embodiment according to the current
invention, in stead of the page generation at the server site, the
page generation takes place at a user site. For example, a batch
page generation unit or program as well as a batch page generation
control unit or program are located at a client PC. By accessing
the data and the template at the server, the client generates a new
page at the client site before displaying it on the browser. The
batch page generation unit or program as well as the batch page
generation control unit or program are delivered in an independent
medium such as CD-ROM. In an alternative embodiment, in stead of
HTML, other languages are used. For example, XML, PostScript, SGML
are alternatively used.
[0078] It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous
characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been
set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of
the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is
illustrative only, and that although changes may be made in detail,
especially in matters of shape, size and arrangement of parts, as
well as implementation in software, hardware, or a combination of
both, the changes are within the principles of the invention to the
full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in
which the appended claims are expressed.
* * * * *
References