U.S. patent application number 16/216992 was filed with the patent office on 2019-04-18 for organizing application-reported information.
The applicant listed for this patent is Facebook, Inc.. Invention is credited to Teck Chia, Deborah Liu, Vijaye Raji.
Application Number | 20190116233 16/216992 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 50882188 |
Filed Date | 2019-04-18 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20190116233 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chia; Teck ; et al. |
April 18, 2019 |
Organizing Application-Reported Information
Abstract
In one embodiment, a method includes a server computing device
receiving a plurality of notifications from a plurality of software
applications on a client computing device associated with a user.
The server computing device correlates each received notification
with the user and stores information associated with the correlated
notification in a database. At least some of the information, as
stored in the database, is configured to be used for targeting at
least one advertisement with interactable social-networking system
functionalities to the user, where interacting with the
advertisement causes information about the interaction to be
displayed in a profile page of the user on the social-networking
system.
Inventors: |
Chia; Teck; (Palo Alto,
CA) ; Liu; Deborah; (Palo Alto, CA) ; Raji;
Vijaye; (Palo Alto, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Facebook, Inc. |
Menlo Park |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
50882188 |
Appl. No.: |
16/216992 |
Filed: |
December 11, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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13712587 |
Dec 12, 2012 |
10187481 |
|
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16216992 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 4/21 20180201; H04L
67/22 20130101; H04L 67/306 20130101; G06Q 30/0255 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04L 29/08 20060101
H04L029/08; G06Q 30/02 20060101 G06Q030/02 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: by one or more server computing devices,
receiving a plurality of notifications from a plurality of software
applications on a client computing device associated with a user;
by the one or more server computing devices, for each notification,
correlating the notification with the user; and by the one or more
server computing devices, storing information associated with each
correlated notification in a database, wherein at least some of the
information, as stored in the database, is configured to be used
for targeting at least one advertisement with interactable
social-networking system functionalities to the user, wherein
interacting with the advertisement causes information about the
interaction to be displayed in a profile page of the user on the
social-networking system.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the social-networking system
functionalities associated with the at least one advertisement
enable the user to endorse the advertisement or share the
advertisement with other users on the social-networking system.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the client computing device
associated with the user is a mobile computing device of the
user.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein each received notification: is
sent by a software application on the client computing device;
indicates an event comprising user interaction with the software
application; and identifies the software application sending the
notification.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein a notification of the plurality
of notifications comprises information relating to an installation
or purchase of at least one of the plurality of software
applications on the client computing device.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein a notification of the plurality
of notifications comprises information relating to usage of at
least one of the plurality of software applications by the user on
the client computing device.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the information,
as stored in the database, indicates one or more characteristics of
the user.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the user is a user of the
social-networking system comprising a graph that comprises a
plurality of nodes and edges connecting the nodes, with at least
one node in the graph corresponding to the user.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein storing the information
associated with the correlated notification comprises storing the
information in one or more data stores associated with one or more
of the plurality of nodes or edges of the social-networking
system.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the database comprises
correlation information relating to user interactions by a
plurality of users with the plurality of software applications.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: modifying the
information in the database by removing at least part of the
correlation information based on privacy controls associated with
one or more of the plurality of users, wherein the privacy controls
are based on selections by the one or more users to opt out of the
correlation information to be removed; and providing to a provider
of one or more of the plurality of software applications access to
the modified information in the database.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the correlation information, as
stored in the database, is configured to be used for targeting one
or more advertisements to one or more users of the plurality of
users.
13. One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media
embodying software that is operable when executed to: receive a
plurality of notifications from a plurality of software
applications on a client computing device associated with a user;
correlate, for each notification, the notification with the user;
and store information associated with each correlated notification
in a database, wherein at least some of the information, as stored
in the database, is configured to be used for targeting at least
one advertisement with interactable social-networking system
functionalities to the user, wherein interacting with the
advertisement causes information about the interaction to be
displayed in a profile page of the user on the social-networking
system.
14. The media of claim 13, wherein the social-networking system
functionalities associated with the at least one advertisement
enable the user to endorse the advertisement or share the
advertisement with other users on the social-networking system.
15. The media of claim 13, wherein each received notification: is
sent by a software application on the client computing device;
indicates an event comprising user interaction with the software
application; and identifies the software application sending the
notification.
16. The media of claim 13, wherein a notification of the plurality
of notifications comprises: information relating to an installation
or purchase of at least one of the plurality of software
applications on the client computing device; or information
relating to usage of at least one of the plurality of software
applications by the user on the client computing device.
17. A system comprising: one or more processors; and a memory
coupled to the processors comprising instructions executable by the
processors, the processors operable when executing the instructions
to: receive a plurality of notifications from a plurality of
software applications on a client computing device associated with
a user; correlate, for each notification, the notification with the
user; and store information associated with each correlated
notification in a database, wherein at least some of the
information, as stored in the database, is configured to be used
for targeting at least one advertisement with interactable
social-networking system functionalities to the user, wherein
interacting with the advertisement causes information about the
interaction to be displayed in a profile page of the user on the
social-networking system.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the social-networking system
functionalities associated with the at least one advertisement
enable the user to endorse the advertisement or share the
advertisement with other users on the social-networking system.
19. The system of claim 17, wherein each received notification: is
sent by a software application on the client computing device;
indicates an event comprising user interaction with the software
application; and identifies the software application sending the
notification.
20. The system of claim 17, wherein a notification of the plurality
of notifications comprises: information relating to an installation
or purchase of at least one of the plurality of software
applications on the client computing device; or information
relating to usage of at least one of the plurality of software
applications by the user on the client computing device.
Description
PRIORITY
[0001] This application is a continuation under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.
120 of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/712,587, filed 12 Dec.
2012, which is incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] This disclosure generally relates to application-reported
information.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Users interact with software applications through client
computing devices. A user of a client device may interact with a
software application in any suitable manner, such as by a touch
screen on the device, using a peripheral such as a keyboard or
mouse associated with the device, using voice commands, or any
other suitable methods. In certain instances, a user may interact
with a software application by loading the software application
into the device's memory and interacting with the device by a user
interface on a display of the device. In certain instances, a user
may interact with a software application by altering settings or
preferences associated with the application.
SUMMARY OF PARTICULAR EMBODIMENTS
[0004] A user of a client computing device may interact with one or
more software applications on the client computing device. The
software applications send notifications of the interaction to a
server computing device. The notifications indicate that a user
interaction has occurred, and may describe the user interaction in
any suitable detail. The notification identifies the software
application sending the notification. For each received
notification, the server correlates the notification with the user
associated with the interaction, and stores information associated
with the notification. In particular embodiments, the information
is stored in a profile related to the user. In particular
embodiments, the interaction is stored in a database that may be
organized by any suitable index. In particular embodiments, the
stored information may be used to target advertisements to one or
more users. For example, the stored information may relate to
application installs or purchases, application usage, or user
demographics, and this information may be used to determine which
advertisements are most likely to be relevant to or valued by a
user.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 illustrates an example network environment associated
with a social-networking system.
[0006] FIG. 2 illustrates an example social graph.
[0007] FIG. 3 illustrates an example method for storing information
about interactions between users of client devices and software
applications on the client devices.
[0008] FIG. 4 illustrates an example computer system.
DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates an example network environment 100
associated with a social-networking system. Network environment 100
includes a client system 130, a social-networking system 160, and a
third-party system 170 connected to each other by a network 110.
Although FIG. 1 illustrates a particular arrangement of client
system 130, social-networking system 160, third-party system 170,
and network 110, this disclosure contemplates any suitable
arrangement of client system 130, social-networking system 160,
third-party system 170, and network 110. As an example and not by
way of limitation, two or more of client system 130,
social-networking system 160, and third-party system 170 may be
connected to each other directly, bypassing network 110. As another
example, two or more of client system 130, social-networking system
160, and third-party system 170 may be physically or logically
co-located with each other in whole or in part. Moreover, although
FIG. 1 illustrates a particular number of client systems 130,
social-networking systems 160, third-party systems 170, and
networks 110, this disclosure contemplates any suitable number of
client systems 130, social-networking systems 160, third-party
systems 170, and networks 110. As an example and not by way of
limitation, network environment 100 may include multiple client
system 130, social-networking systems 160, third-party systems 170,
and networks 110.
[0010] This disclosure contemplates any suitable network 110. As an
example and not by way of limitation, one or more portions of
network 110 may include an ad hoc network, an intranet, an
extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network
(LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless
WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a portion of the
Internet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network
(PSTN), a cellular telephone network, or a combination of two or
more of these. Network 110 may include one or more networks
110.
[0011] Links 150 may connect client system 130, social-networking
system 160, and third-party system 170 to communication network 110
or to each other. This disclosure contemplates any suitable links
150. In particular embodiments, one or more links 150 include one
or more wireline (such as for example Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)
or Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS)),
wireless (such as for example Wi-Fi or Worldwide Interoperability
for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), or optical (such as for example
Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) or Synchronous Digital
Hierarchy (SDH)) links. In particular embodiments, one or more
links 150 each include an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet,
a VPN, a LAN, a WLAN, a WAN, a WWAN, a MAN, a portion of the
Internet, a portion of the PSTN, a cellular technology-based
network, a satellite communications technology-based network,
another link 150, or a combination of two or more such links 150.
Links 150 need not necessarily be the same throughout network
environment 100. One or more first links 150 may differ in one or
more respects from one or more second links 150.
[0012] In particular embodiments, client system 130 may be an
electronic device including hardware, software, or embedded logic
components or a combination of two or more such components and
capable of carrying out the appropriate functionalities implemented
or supported by client system 130. As an example and not by way of
limitation, a client system 130 may include a computer system such
as a desktop computer, notebook or laptop computer, netbook, a
tablet computer, e-book reader, GPS device, camera, personal
digital assistant (PDA), handheld electronic device, cellular
telephone, smartphone, other suitable electronic device, or any
suitable combination thereof. This disclosure contemplates any
suitable client systems 130. A client system 130 may enable a
network user at client system 130 to access network 110. A client
system 130 may enable its user to communicate with other users at
other client systems 130.
[0013] In particular embodiments, client system 130 may include a
web browser 132, such as MICROSOFT INTERNET EXPLORER, GOOGLE CHROME
or MOZILLA FIREFOX, and may have one or more add-ons, plug-ins, or
other extensions, such as TOOLBAR or YAHOO TOOLBAR. A user at
client system 130 may enter a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or
other address directing the web browser 132 to a particular server
(such as server 162, or a server associated with a third-party
system 170), and the web browser 132 may generate a Hyper Text
Transfer Protocol (HTTP) request and communicate the HTTP request
to server. The server may accept the HTTP request and communicate
to client system 130 one or more Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML)
files responsive to the HTTP request. Client system 130 may render
a webpage based on the HTML files from the server for presentation
to the user. This disclosure contemplates any suitable webpage
files. As an example and not by way of limitation, webpages may
render from HTML files, Extensible Hyper Text Markup Language
(XHTML) files, or Extensible Markup Language (XML) files, according
to particular needs. Such pages may also execute scripts such as,
for example and without limitation, those written in JAVASCRIPT,
JAVA, MICROSOFT SILVERLIGHT, combinations of markup language and
scripts such as AJAX (Asynchronous JAVASCRIPT and XML), and the
like. Herein, reference to a webpage encompasses one or more
corresponding webpage files (which a browser may use to render the
webpage) and vice versa, where appropriate.
[0014] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
be a network-addressable computing system that can host an online
social network. Social-networking system 160 may generate, store,
receive, and send social-networking data, such as, for example,
user-profile data, concept-profile data, social-graph information,
or other suitable data related to the online social network.
Social-networking system 160 may be accessed by the other
components of network environment 100 either directly or via
network 110. In particular embodiments, social-networking system
160 may include one or more servers 162. Each server 162 may be a
unitary server or a distributed server spanning multiple computers
or multiple datacenters. Servers 162 may be of various types, such
as, for example and without limitation, web server, news server,
mail server, message server, advertising server, file server,
application server, exchange server, database server, proxy server,
another server suitable for performing functions or processes
described herein, or any combination thereof. In particular
embodiments, each server 162 may include hardware, software, or
embedded logic components or a combination of two or more such
components for carrying out the appropriate functionalities
implemented or supported by server 162. In particular embodiments,
social-networking system 164 may include one or more data stores
164. Data stores 164 may be used to store various types of
information. In particular embodiments, the information stored in
data stores 164 may be organized according to specific data
structures. In particular embodiments, each data store 164 may be a
relational, columnar, correlation, or other suitable database.
Although this disclosure describes or illustrates particular types
of databases, this disclosure contemplates any suitable types of
databases. Particular embodiments may provide interfaces that
enable a client system 130, a social-networking system 160, or a
third-party system 170 to manage, retrieve, modify, add, or delete,
the information stored in data store 164.
[0015] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
store one or more social graphs in one or more data stores 164. In
particular embodiments, a social graph may include multiple
nodes--which may include multiple user nodes (each corresponding to
a particular user) or multiple concept nodes (each corresponding to
a particular concept)--and multiple edges connecting the nodes.
Social-networking system 160 may provide users of the online social
network the ability to communicate and interact with other users.
In particular embodiments, users may join the online social network
via social-networking system 160 and then add connections (e.g.
relationships) to a number of other users of social-networking
system 160 whom they want to be connected to. Herein, the term
"friend" may refer to any other user of social-networking system
160 with whom a user has formed a connection, association, or
relationship via social-networking system 160.
[0016] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
provide users with the ability to take actions on various types of
items or objects, supported by social-networking system 160. As an
example and not by way of limitation, the items and objects may
include groups or social networks to which users of
social-networking system 160 may belong, events or calendar entries
in which a user might be interested, computer-based applications
that a user may use, transactions that allow users to buy or sell
items via the service, interactions with advertisements that a user
may perform, or other suitable items or objects. A user may
interact with anything that is capable of being represented in
social-networking system 160 or by an external system of
third-party system 170, which is separate from social-networking
system 160 and coupled to social-networking system 160 via a
network 110.
[0017] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
be capable of linking a variety of entities. As an example and not
by way of limitation, social-networking system 160 may enable users
to interact with each other as well as receive content from
third-party systems 170 or other entities, or to allow users to
interact with these entities through an application programming
interfaces (API) or other communication channels.
[0018] In particular embodiments, a third-party system 170 may
include one or more types of servers, one or more data stores, one
or more interfaces, including but not limited to APIs, one or more
web services, one or more content sources, one or more networks, or
any other suitable components, e.g., that servers may communicate
with. A third-party system 170 may be operated by a different
entity from an entity operating social-networking system 160. In
particular embodiments, however, social-networking system 160 and
third-party systems 170 may operate in conjunction with each other
to provide social-networking services to users of social-networking
system 160 or third-party systems 170. In this sense,
social-networking system 160 may provide a platform, or backbone,
which other systems, such as third-party systems 170, may use to
provide social-networking services and functionality to users
across the Internet.
[0019] In particular embodiments, a third-party system 170 may
include a third-party content object provider. A third-party
content object provider may include one or more sources of content
objects, which may be communicated to a client system 130. As an
example and not by way of limitation, content objects may include
information regarding things or activities of interest to the user,
such as, for example, movie show times, movie reviews, restaurant
reviews, restaurant menus, product information and reviews, or
other suitable information. As another example and not by way of
limitation, content objects may include incentive content objects,
such as coupons, discount tickets, gift certificates, or other
suitable incentive objects.
[0020] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 also
includes user-generated content objects, which may enhance a user's
interactions with social-networking system 160. User-generated
content may include anything a user can add, upload, send, or
"post" to social-networking system 160. As an example and not by
way of limitation, a user communicates posts to social-networking
system 160 from a client system 130. Posts may include data such as
status updates or other textual data, location information, photos,
videos, links, music or other similar data or media. Content may
also be added to social-networking system 160 by a third-party
through a "communication channel," such as a newsfeed or
stream.
[0021] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
include a variety of servers, sub-systems, programs, modules, logs,
and data stores. In particular embodiments, social-networking
system 160 may include one or more of the following: a web server,
action logger, API-request server, relevance-and-ranking engine,
content-object classifier, notification controller, action log,
third-party-content-object-exposure log, inference module,
authorization/privacy server, search module,
advertisement-targeting module, user-interface module, user-profile
store, connection store, third-party content store, or location
store. Social-networking system 160 may also include suitable
components such as network interfaces, security mechanisms, load
balancers, failover servers, management-and-network-operations
consoles, other suitable components, or any suitable combination
thereof. In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160
may include one or more user-profile stores for storing user
profiles. A user profile may include, for example, biographic
information, demographic information, behavioral information,
social information, or other types of descriptive information, such
as work experience, educational history, hobbies or preferences,
interests, affinities, or location. Interest information may
include interests related to one or more categories. Categories may
be general or specific. As an example and not by way of limitation,
if a user "likes" an article about a brand of shoes the category
may be the brand, or the general category of "shoes" or "clothing."
A connection store may be used for storing connection information
about users. The connection information may indicate users who have
similar or common work experience, group memberships, hobbies,
educational history, or are in any way related or share common
attributes. The connection information may also include
user-defined connections between different users and content (both
internal and external). A web server may be used for linking
social-networking system 160 to one or more client systems 130 or
one or more third-party system 170 via network 110. The web server
may include a mail server or other messaging functionality for
receiving and routing messages between social-networking system 160
and one or more client systems 130. An API-request server may allow
a third-party system 170 to access information from
social-networking system 160 by calling one or more APIs. An action
logger may be used to receive communications from a web server
about a user's actions on or off social-networking system 160. In
conjunction with the action log, a third-party-content-object log
may be maintained of user exposures to third-party-content objects.
A notification controller may provide information regarding content
objects to a client system 130. Information may be pushed to a
client system 130 as notifications, or information may be pulled
from client system 130 responsive to a request received from client
system 130. Authorization servers may be used to enforce one or
more privacy settings of the users of social-networking system 160.
A privacy setting of a user determines how particular information
associated with a user can be shared. The authorization server may
allow users to opt in or opt out of having their actions logged by
social-networking system 160 or shared with other systems (e.g.
third-party system 170), such as, for example, by setting
appropriate privacy settings. Third-party-content-object stores may
be used to store content objects received from third parties, such
as a third-party system 170. Location stores may be used for
storing location information received from client systems 130
associated with users. Advertisement-pricing modules may combine
social information, the current time, location information, or
other suitable information to provide relevant advertisements, in
the form of notifications, to a user.
[0022] FIG. 2 illustrates example social graph 200. In particular
embodiments, social-networking system 160 may store one or more
social graphs 200 in one or more data stores. In particular
embodiments, social graph 200 may include multiple nodes--which may
include multiple user nodes 202 or multiple concept nodes 204--and
multiple edges 206 connecting the nodes. Example social graph 200
illustrated in FIG. 2 is shown, for didactic purposes, in a
two-dimensional visual map representation. In particular
embodiments, a social-networking system 160, client system 130, or
third-party system 170 may access social graph 200 and related
social-graph information for suitable applications. The nodes and
edges of social graph 200 may be stored as data objects, for
example, in a data store (such as a social-graph database). Such a
data store may include one or more searchable or queryable indexes
of nodes or edges of social graph 200.
[0023] In particular embodiments, a user node 202 may correspond to
a user of social-networking system 160. As an example and not by
way of limitation, a user may be an individual (human user), an
entity (e.g. an enterprise, business, or third-party application),
or a group (e.g. of individuals or entities) that interacts or
communicates with or over social-networking system 160. In
particular embodiments, when a user registers for an account with
social-networking system 160, social-networking system 160 may
create a user node 202 corresponding to the user, and store the
user node 202 in one or more data stores. Users and user nodes 202
described herein may, where appropriate, refer to registered users
and user nodes 202 associated with registered users. In addition or
as an alternative, users and user nodes 202 described herein may,
where appropriate, refer to users that have not registered with
social-networking system 160. In particular embodiments, a user
node 202 may be associated with information provided by a user or
information gathered by various systems, including
social-networking system 160. As an example and not by way of
limitation, a user may provide his or her name, profile picture,
contact information, birth date, sex, marital status, family
status, employment, education background, preferences, interests,
or other demographic information. In particular embodiments, a user
node 202 may be associated with one or more data objects
corresponding to information associated with a user. In particular
embodiments, a user node 202 may correspond to one or more
webpages.
[0024] In particular embodiments, a concept node 204 may correspond
to a concept. As an example and not by way of limitation, a concept
may correspond to a place (such as, for example, a movie theater,
restaurant, landmark, or city); a website (such as, for example, a
website associated with social-network system 160 or a third-party
website associated with a web-application server); an entity (such
as, for example, a person, business, group, sports team, or
celebrity); a resource (such as, for example, an audio file, video
file, digital photo, text file, structured document, or
application) which may be located within social-networking system
160 or on an external server, such as a web-application server;
real or intellectual property (such as, for example, a sculpture,
painting, movie, game, song, idea, photograph, or written work); a
game; an activity; an idea or theory; another suitable concept; or
two or more such concepts. A concept node 204 may be associated
with information of a concept provided by a user or information
gathered by various systems, including social-networking system
160. As an example and not by way of limitation, information of a
concept may include a name or a title; one or more images (e.g. an
image of the cover page of a book); a location (e.g. an address or
a geographical location); a website (which may be associated with a
URL); contact information (e.g. a phone number or an email
address); other suitable concept information; or any suitable
combination of such information. In particular embodiments, a
concept node 204 may be associated with one or more data objects
corresponding to information associated with concept node 204. In
particular embodiments, a concept node 204 may correspond to one or
more webpages.
[0025] In particular embodiments, a node in social graph 200 may
represent or be represented by a webpage (which may be referred to
as a "profile page"). Profile pages may be hosted by or accessible
to social-networking system 160. Profile pages may also be hosted
on third-party websites associated with a third-party server 170.
As an example and not by way of limitation, a profile page
corresponding to a particular external webpage may be the
particular external webpage and the profile page may correspond to
a particular concept node 204. Profile pages may be viewable by all
or a selected subset of other users. As an example and not by way
of limitation, a user node 202 may have a corresponding
user-profile page in which the corresponding user may add content,
make declarations, or otherwise express himself or herself. As
another example and not by way of limitation, a concept node 204
may have a corresponding concept-profile page in which one or more
users may add content, make declarations, or express themselves,
particularly in relation to the concept corresponding to concept
node 204.
[0026] In particular embodiments, a concept node 204 may represent
a third-party webpage or resource hosted by a third-party system
170. The third-party webpage or resource may include, among other
elements, content, a selectable or other icon, or other
inter-actable object (which may be implemented, for example, in
JavaScript, AJAX, or PHP codes) representing an action or activity.
As an example and not by way of limitation, a third-party webpage
may include a selectable icon such as "like," "check in," "eat,"
"recommend," or another suitable action or activity. A user viewing
the third-party webpage may perform an action by selecting one of
the icons (e.g. "eat"), causing a client system 130 to send to
social-networking system 160 a message indicating the user's
action. In response to the message, social-networking system 160
may create an edge (e.g. an "eat" edge) between a user node 202
corresponding to the user and a concept node 204 corresponding to
the third-party webpage or resource and store edge 206 in one or
more data stores.
[0027] In particular embodiments, a pair of nodes in social graph
200 may be connected to each other by one or more edges 206. An
edge 206 connecting a pair of nodes may represent a relationship
between the pair of nodes. In particular embodiments, an edge 206
may include or represent one or more data objects or attributes
corresponding to the relationship between a pair of nodes. As an
example and not by way of limitation, a first user may indicate
that a second user is a "friend" of the first user. In response to
this indication, social-networking system 160 may send a "friend
request" to the second user. If the second user confirms the
"friend request," social-networking system 160 may create an edge
206 connecting the first user's user node 202 to the second user's
user node 202 in social graph 200 and store edge 206 as
social-graph information in one or more of data stores 24. In the
example of FIG. 2, social graph 200 includes an edge 206 indicating
a friend relation between user nodes 202 of user "A" and user "B"
and an edge indicating a friend relation between user nodes 202 of
user "C" and user "B." Although this disclosure describes or
illustrates particular edges 206 with particular attributes
connecting particular user nodes 202, this disclosure contemplates
any suitable edges 206 with any suitable attributes connecting user
nodes 202. As an example and not by way of limitation, an edge 206
may represent a friendship, family relationship, business or
employment relationship, fan relationship, follower relationship,
visitor relationship, subscriber relationship, superior/subordinate
relationship, reciprocal relationship, non-reciprocal relationship,
another suitable type of relationship, or two or more such
relationships. Moreover, although this disclosure generally
describes nodes as being connected, this disclosure also describes
users or concepts as being connected. Herein, references to users
or concepts being connected may, where appropriate, refer to the
nodes corresponding to those users or concepts being connected in
social graph 200 by one or more edges 206.
[0028] In particular embodiments, an edge 206 between a user node
202 and a concept node 204 may represent a particular action or
activity performed by a user associated with user node 202 toward a
concept associated with a concept node 204. As an example and not
by way of limitation, as illustrated in FIG. 2, a user may "like,"
"attended," "played," "listened," "cooked," "worked at," or
"watched" a concept, each of which may correspond to a edge type or
subtype. A concept-profile page corresponding to a concept node 204
may include, for example, a selectable "check in" icon (such as,
for example, a clickable "check in" icon) or a selectable "add to
favorites" icon. Similarly, after a user clicks these icons,
social-networking system 160 may create a "favorite" edge or a
"check in" edge in response to a user's action corresponding to a
respective action. As another example and not by way of limitation,
a user (user "C") may listen to a particular song ("Ramble On")
using a particular application (SPOTIFY, which is an online music
application). In this case, social-networking system 160 may create
a "listened" edge 206 and a "used" edge (as illustrated in FIG. 2)
between user nodes 202 corresponding to the user and concept nodes
204 corresponding to the song and application to indicate that the
user listened to the song and used the application. Moreover,
social-networking system 160 may create a "played" edge 206 (as
illustrated in FIG. 2) between concept nodes 204 corresponding to
the song and the application to indicate that the particular song
was played by the particular application. In this case, "played"
edge 206 corresponds to an action performed by an external
application (SPOTIFY) on an external audio file (the song
"Imagine"). Although this disclosure describes particular edges 206
with particular attributes connecting user nodes 202 and concept
nodes 204, this disclosure contemplates any suitable edges 206 with
any suitable attributes connecting user nodes 202 and concept nodes
204. Moreover, although this disclosure describes edges between a
user node 202 and a concept node 204 representing a single
relationship, this disclosure contemplates edges between a user
node 202 and a concept node 204 representing one or more
relationships. As an example and not by way of limitation, an edge
206 may represent both that a user likes and has used at a
particular concept. Alternatively, another edge 206 may represent
each type of relationship (or multiples of a single relationship)
between a user node 202 and a concept node 204 (as illustrated in
FIG. 2 between user node 202 for user "E" and concept node 204 for
"SPOTIFY").
[0029] In particular embodiments, social-networking system 160 may
create an edge 206 between a user node 202 and a concept node 204
in social graph 200. As an example and not by way of limitation, a
user viewing a concept-profile page (such as, for example, by using
a web browser or a special-purpose application hosted by the user's
client system 130) may indicate that he or she likes the concept
represented by the concept node 204 by clicking or selecting a
"Like" icon, which may cause the user's client system 130 to send
to social-networking system 160 a message indicating the user's
liking of the concept associated with the concept-profile page. In
response to the message, social-networking system 160 may create an
edge 206 between user node 202 associated with the user and concept
node 204, as illustrated by "like" edge 206 between the user and
concept node 204. In particular embodiments, social-networking
system 160 may store an edge 206 in one or more data stores. In
particular embodiments, an edge 206 may be automatically formed by
social-networking system 160 in response to a particular user
action. As an example and not by way of limitation, if a first user
uploads a picture, watches a movie, or listens to a song, an edge
206 may be formed between user node 202 corresponding to the first
user and concept nodes 204 corresponding to those concepts.
Although this disclosure describes forming particular edges 206 in
particular manners, this disclosure contemplates forming any
suitable edges 206 in any suitable manner.
[0030] FIG. 3 illustrates an example method 300 for storing
information about interactions between users of client devices and
software applications on the client devices. At step 310,
notifications containing information about a user's interaction
with a client device or application on the client device may be
received and/or stored by one or more server computing device
operated by, controlled by, or associated with a platform operator.
As an example and not by way of limitation, a client device may
include a computer system such as a desktop computer, notebook or
laptop computer, netbook, a tablet computer, e-book reader, GPS
device, camera, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld
electronic device, cellular telephone, smartphone, other suitable
electronic device, or any suitable combination thereof. Platform
operators may be an operator of an operating system on the client,
an operator of specific applications or software running on the
client device, an operator of a social-network, an operator of
servers communicating with the client device, or any other suitable
platform operator. A platform operator may specify particular
requirements that an application running on the client device must
meet, such as requirements that the application comply with
specifications regarding communication between the client device
and the platform operator. Specifications may be of any suitable
type, such as, for example, those described by software development
kits or requirements for particular features such as single sign-on
functionality. In addition or the alternative, a platform operator
may implement a uniform resource identifier ("URI") scheme that
provides information about a user's interaction with a client
device, such as information about what applications a particular
user has installed on their client device.
[0031] Notifications containing information about a user's
interaction with a client device may include information about
application installs and uninstalls, application usage, purchasing
history, or any other suitable information. In particular
embodiments, information about a user's interaction with a client
device may be stored on the client device. In particular
embodiments, information about a user's interaction with the client
device may be sent to a server operated by a platform operator, and
this information may be stored on the server or any other suitable
storage media associated with the network operator. In particular
embodiments, information about a user's interaction with the client
device may be stored locally on the client device and periodically
sent to a server, or may be sent to a server immediately after the
interaction occurs. Any suitable method for ensuring secure
transmission of electronic information may be used, such as
encryption, passwords, "handshake" methods, etc. In particular
embodiments, a user of the client device may select one or more
privacy options disabling, enabling, or controlling the
distribution and storage of information related to the user's
interaction with the client device.
[0032] In particular embodiments, notifications identify the
software application sending the notification, for example by
including a specific field that identifies the software
application, associating an ID received in the notification with
the software application, decoding an encoded or hashed data
object, or any other suitable method of identifying the software
application from the received notification.
[0033] When a server receives a notification, it may correlate the
notification with the user, as illustrated by step 320. While this
disclosure describes the same server that receives the notification
correlating the notification with the user, this disclosure
contemplates the receiving server forwarding the notification to
any other suitable server computing device or computing device
associated with the server computing device. In particular
embodiments, correlating a notification with a user may include
identifying the user associated with the interaction conveyed in
the notification. For example, the user associated with the
interaction may be identified by information included in the
notification, such as an ID, hash of an ID, or other suitable data
object associated with the user. As another example, the user
associated with the interaction may be identified by a user's
actions, such as when a notification is sent by an application that
the user has signed in to, thereby identifying the user; when the
user has signed into a set of applications using a single sign-on
feature; or when a user has signed on to a platform, such as a
social network, that has access to or communicates with the
notifying application. As another example, the user associated with
the interaction may be identified by information explicitly or
implicitly determined from the user's past and/or present
interactions with the notifying application or other applications.
For example, a user's identification may be determined from
information associated with nodes or edges relating to the user in
a social-networking system. In particular embodiments, information
identifying a user may be encrypted or only transmitted over a
secure connection. In particular embodiments, information
identifying a user may be conveyed in the notification itself, in a
separate communication accompanying the notification, or in a
separate communication that the sever device correlates with the
notification. In particular embodiments, privacy controls provide
the user the ability to opt out of any identifications or
correlations that the user does not wish to occur, whether on a
per-application, per-device, or per-usage basis.
[0034] After correlating a notification with a user, at step 330
the server device stores information associated with the
notification. Information associated with the notification includes
any suitable information describing the interaction, summarizing
the interaction, or otherwise indicating that the interaction has
taken place. In particular embodiments, storing such information
involves forwarding the information for storage to another server
device or another computing device associated with the server
device. In particular embodiments, the information is stored in a
profile specific to the particular user correlated with the
notification. In particular embodiments, the information is stored
in one or more databases or indices, which may be organized by any
suitable data field in the database or indices and may be retrieved
by any suitable query. In particular embodiments, at least some of
the stored information may be accessed by a software application,
although any information identifying the user may be disguised or
inaccessible to the application.
[0035] Particular embodiments may repeat one or more steps of the
method of FIG. 3, where appropriate. Although this disclosure
describes and illustrates particular steps of the method of FIG. 3
as occurring in a particular order, this disclosure contemplates
any suitable steps of the method of FIG. 3 occurring in any
suitable order. Moreover, although this disclosure describes and
illustrates particular components, devices, or systems carrying out
particular steps of the method of FIG. 3, this disclosure
contemplates any suitable combination of any suitable components,
devices, or systems carrying out any suitable steps of the method
of FIG. 3.
[0036] In particular embodiments, stored information may be used to
target one or more advertisements to a user. In particular
embodiments, an advertisement may be text (which may be
HTML-linked), one or more images (which may be HTML-linked), one or
more videos, audio, one or more ADOBE FLASH files, a suitable
combination of these, or any other suitable advertisement in any
suitable digital format presented on one or more web pages, in one
or more e-mails, in one or more applications, or in connection with
search results requested by a user. In addition or as an
alternative, an advertisement may be one or more sponsored stories
(e.g. a news-feed or ticker item on social-networking system 160).
A sponsored story may be a social action by a user (such as
"liking" a page, "liking" or commenting on a post on a page,
RSVPing to an event associated with a page, voting on a question
posted on a page, checking in to a place, using an application or
playing a game, or "liking" or sharing a website) that an
advertiser promotes by, for example, having the social action
presented within a pre-determined area of a profile page of a user
or other page, presented with additional information associated
with the advertiser, bumped up or otherwise highlighted within news
feeds or tickers of other users, or otherwise promoted. The
advertiser may pay to have the social action promoted. The social
action may be promoted within or on social-networking system 160.
In addition or as an alternative, the social action may be promoted
outside or off of social-networking system 160, where appropriate.
In particular embodiments, a page may be an on-line presence (such
as a webpage or website within or outside of social-networking
system 160) of a business, organization, or brand facilitating its
sharing of stories and connecting with people. A page may be
customized, for example, by adding applications, posting stories,
or hosting events.
[0037] A sponsored story may be generated from stories in users'
news feeds and promoted to specific areas within displays of users'
web browsers when viewing a web page associated with
social-networking system 160. Sponsored stories are more likely to
be viewed by users, at least in part because sponsored stories may
involve interactions or suggestions by the users' friends, fan
pages, or other connections. In connection with sponsored stories,
particular embodiments may utilize one or more systems, components,
elements, functions, methods, operations, or steps disclosed in
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/327,557, entitled "Sponsored
Stories Unit Creation from Organic Activity Stream" and filed 15
Dec. 2011, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. us 2012/0203831,
entitled "Sponsored Stories Unit Creation from Organic Activity
Stream" and filed 3 Feb. 2012 as U.S. patent application Ser. No.
13/020,745, or U.S. Patent Application Publication No. us
2012/0233009, entitled "Endorsement Subscriptions for Sponsored
Stories" and filed 9 Mar. 2011 as U.S. patent application Ser. No.
13/044,406, which are all incorporated herein by reference as an
example and not by way of limitation. In particular embodiments,
sponsored stories may utilize computer-vision algorithms to detect
products in uploaded images or photos lacking an explicit
connection to an advertiser as disclosed in U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 13/212,356, entitled "Computer-Vision Content Detection
for Sponsored Stories" and filed 18 Aug. 2011, which is
incorporated herein by reference as an example and not by way of
limitation. In contrast to a sponsored story, an organic story may
include the same information as a sponsored story (such as e.g. a
social interaction and a link to a webpage or product), may be
targeted in the same way as a sponsored story, and may appear in
the same areas as a sponsored story, but the organic story is not
promoted by an advertiser. Both organic stories and sponsored
stories may be ranked by relevance to the user viewing the
advertisement, and the organic and/or sponsored stories may be
selected for display to a user based on this rank.
[0038] As described above, an advertisement may be text (which may
be HTML-linked), one or more images (which may be HTML-linked), one
or more videos, audio, one or more ADOBE FLASH files, a suitable
combination of these, or any other suitable advertisement in any
suitable digital format. In particular embodiments, an
advertisement may be requested for display within third-party
webpages, social-networking-system webpages, or other pages. An
advertisement may be displayed in a dedicated portion of a page,
such as in a banner area at the top of the page, in a column at the
side of the page, in a GUI of the page, in a pop-up window, over
the top of content of the page, or elsewhere with respect to the
page. In addition or as an alternative, an advertisement may be
displayed within an application or within a game. An advertisement
may be displayed within dedicated pages, requiring the user to
interact with or watch the advertisement before the user may access
a page, utilize an application, or play a game. The user may, for
example, view the advertisement through a web browser.
[0039] An advertisement may include social-networking-system
functionality that a user may interact with. For example, an
advertisement may enable a user to "like" or otherwise endorse the
advertisement by selecting an icon or link associated with
endorsement. Similarly, a user may share the advertisement with
another user (e.g. through social-networking system 160) or RSVP
(e.g. through social-networking system 160) to an event associated
with the advertisement. In addition or as an alternative, an
advertisement may include social-networking-system context directed
to the user. For example, an advertisement may display information
about a friend of the user within social-networking system 160 who
has taken an action associated with the subject matter of the
advertisement.
[0040] Social-networking-system functionality or context may be
associated with an advertisement in any suitable manner. For
example, an advertising system (which may include hardware,
software, or both for receiving bids for advertisements and
selecting advertisements in response) may retrieve
social-networking functionality or context from social-networking
system 160 and incorporate the retrieved social-networking
functionality or context into the advertisement before serving the
advertisement to a user. Examples of selecting and providing
social-networking-system functionality or context with an
advertisement are disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication
No. US 2012/0084160, entitled "Providing Social Endorsements with
Online Advertising" and filed 5 Oct. 2010 as U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/898,662, and in U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2012/0232998, entitled "Selecting Social
Endorsement Information for an Advertisement for Display to a
Viewing User" and filed 8 Mar. 2011 as U.S. patent application Ser.
No. 13/043,424, which are both incorporated herein by reference as
examples only and not by way of limitation. Interacting with an
advertisement that is associated with social-networking-system
functionality or context may cause information about the
interaction to be displayed in a profile page of the user in
social-networking-system 160.
[0041] As mentioned above, information stored by the method of FIG.
3 may be used to target advertisements to users. For example, an
advertiser may realize higher conversion rates (and therefore
higher return on investment (ROI) from advertising) by identifying
and targeting users that are more likely to find its advertisements
more relevant or useful. In particular embodiments, targeting may
be based on stored information relating to a user's previous
application installs or purchases. For example, this information
may be used to optimize an advertiser's conversion rate. In
particular embodiments, targeting may be based on stored
information relating to a user's past usage of one or more
applications. For example, targeting may be based on stored
information relating to applications that the user interacts
regularly with or has purchased upgrades for. This information may
be used to target advertisements relating to similar applications
or advertisements relating to the same application(s) the user has
interacted with. As another example, a user's advertising
preferences, whether explicitly stated or determined from a user's
interactions with previous advertisements, may be used to target
advertisement to the user. Examples of a user's previous
interaction with advertisements that a client device could use to
select advertisements include the number of times a user has
previously been exposed to a similar advertisement. A user may
place less value on advertisements or advertising campaigns that a
user has been exposed to many times. In particular embodiments,
targeting may be performed by estimating what the user may value
based on information of what other individuals with one or more
similar, relevant characteristics may value. In other words,
information used to target an advertisement to a user may be
information stored in step 330 that relates to one or more other
users than the one being targeted. For example, targeting may be
performed using stored information relating to several users' likes
or feedback on a product or advertisement, which may be used to
determine the popularity of an advertisement or a product
association with the advertisement. In particular embodiments,
stored information used for targeting may be based on demographics
determined or estimated from information stored in step 330. For
example, if a user frequently interacts with applications primarily
used by one gender, the stored information relating to this
interactions may be used to estimate the user's gender. As another
example, interactions may include explicit descriptions by the user
of one or more of the user's demographics. While this disclosure
describes particular examples of stored information used to target
advertisements to users, this disclosure contemplates any suitable
information stored in step 330 used for targeting one or more
advertisements to one or more users.
[0042] In particular embodiments, information stored in step 330
may be stored in association with one or more nodes or edges of a
social-networking system, such as in one or more data stores
associated with the nodes or edges. In these embodiments, targeting
criteria used to identify and target users may include stored
information such as explicit, stated user interests on
social-networking system 160 or explicit connections of a user to a
node, object, entity, brand, or page on social-networking system
160. In addition or as an alternative, such targeting criteria may
include implicit or inferred user interests or connections (which
may include analyzing a user's history, demographic, social or
other activities, friends' social or other activities,
subscriptions, or any of the preceding of other users similar to
the user (based, e.g., on shared interests, connections, or
events)). Particular embodiments may utilize platform targeting,
which may involve platform and "like" impression data; contextual
signals (e.g. "Who is viewing now or has viewed recently the page
for COCA-COLA?"); light-weight connections (e.g. "check-ins");
connection lookalikes; fans; extracted keywords; EMU advertising;
inferential advertising; coefficients, affinities, or other
social-graph information; friends-of-friends connections; pinning
or boosting; deals; polls; household income, social clusters or
groups; products detected in images or other media; social- or
open-graph edge types; geo-prediction; views of profile or pages;
status updates or other user posts (analysis of which may involve
natural-language processing or keyword extraction); events
information; or collaborative filtering. Identifying and targeting
users may also include privacy settings (such as user opt-outs),
data hashing, or data anonymization, as appropriate.
[0043] As examples and not by way of limitation, particular
embodiments may target advertisements to users with the following:
invitations to or notice about events; information about coupons,
deals, or wish-list items; information about friends' life events;
information regarding groups; advertisements; or social
advertisements. Such targeting may occur, where appropriate, on or
within social-networking system 160, off or outside of
social-networking system 160, or on mobile computing devices of
users. When on or within social-networking system 160, such
targeting may be directed to users' news feeds, search results,
e-mail or other in-boxes, or notifications channels or may appear
in particular area of web pages of social-networking system 160,
such as a right-hand side of a web page in a concierge or grouper
area (which may group along a right-hand rail advertisements
associated with the same concept, node, or object) or a network-ego
area (which may be based on what a user is viewing on the web page
and a current news feed of the user). When off or outside of
social-networking system 160, such targeting may be provided
through a third-party website, e.g., involving an ad exchange or a
social plug-in. When on a mobile computing device of a user, such
targeting may be provided through push notifications to the mobile
computing device.
[0044] To target users with advertisements, particular embodiments
may utilize one or more systems, components, elements, functions,
methods, operations, or steps disclosed in the following, which are
all incorporated herein by reference as examples and not by way of
limitation: U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US
2009/0119167, entitled "Social Advertisements and Other
Informational Messages on a Social Networking Website and
Advertising Model for Same" and filed 18 Aug. 2008 as U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/193,702; U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2009/0070219, entitled "Targeting Advertisements
in a Social Network" and filed 20 Aug. 2008 as U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/195,321; U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2012/0158501, entitled "Targeting Social
Advertising to Friends of Users Who Have Interacted With an Object
Associated with the Advertising" and filed 15 Dec. 2010 as U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 12/968,786; or U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2012/0166532, entitled "Contextually Relevant
Affinity Prediction in a Social-Networking System" and filed 23
Dec. 2010 as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/978,265.
[0045] Targeted advertisements may be displayed to the intended
target. An advertisement may be presented or otherwise delivered
using plug-ins for web browsers or other applications, iframe
elements, news feeds, tickers, notifications (which may include,
for example, e-mail, Short Message Service (SMS) messages, or
notifications), or other means. An advertisement may be presented
or otherwise delivered to a user on a mobile or other computing
device of the user. In connection with delivering advertisements,
particular embodiments may utilize one or more systems, components,
elements, functions, methods, operations, or steps disclosed in the
following, which are all incorporated herein by reference as
examples and not by way of limitation: U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2012/0159635, entitled "Comment Plug-In for
Third-Party System" and filed 15 Dec. 2010 as U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 12/969,368; U.S. Patent Application
Publication No. US 2012/0158753, entitled "Comment Ordering System"
and filed 15 Dec. 2010 as U.S. patent application Ser. No.
12/969,408; U.S. Pat. No. 7,669,123, entitled "Dynamically
Providing a News Feed About a User of a Social Network" and filed
11 Aug. 2006 as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/503,242; U.S.
Patent Application Publication No. US 2008/0040475, entitled
"Providing a News Feed Based on User Affinity in a Social Network
Environment" and filed 11 Aug. 2006 as U.S. patent application Ser.
No. 11/503,093; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US
2012/0072428, entitled "Action Clustering for News Feeds" and filed
16 Sep. 2010 as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/884,010; U.S.
Patent Application Publication No. US 2001/0004692. In particular
embodiments, advertisements may be presented to a user a user in
pre-determined groups or number. As an example, a newsfeed of a
social networking website may have a predetermined number of spots,
such as three, for advertisements accompanying a story in the
newsfeed. In such instances the client device will only display the
appropriate number of ads. While this disclosure describes or
illustrates particular advertisements being delivered in particular
ways and in connection with particular content, this disclosure
contemplates any suitable advertisements delivered in any suitable
ways and in connection with any suitable content.
[0046] FIG. 4 illustrates an example computer system 400. In
particular embodiments, one or more computer systems 400 perform
one or more steps of one or more methods described or illustrated
herein. In particular embodiments, one or more computer systems 400
provide functionality described or illustrated herein. In
particular embodiments, software running on one or more computer
systems 400 performs one or more steps of one or more methods
described or illustrated herein or provides functionality described
or illustrated herein. Particular embodiments include one or more
portions of one or more computer systems 400. Herein, reference to
a computer system may encompass a computing device, and vice versa,
where appropriate. Moreover, reference to a computer system may
encompass one or more computer systems, where appropriate.
[0047] This disclosure contemplates any suitable number of computer
systems 400. This disclosure contemplates computer system 400
taking any suitable physical form. As example and not by way of
limitation, computer system 400 may be an embedded computer system,
a system-on-chip (SOC), a single-board computer system (SBC) (such
as, for example, a computer-on-module (COM) or system-on-module
(SOM)), a desktop computer system, a laptop or notebook computer
system, an interactive kiosk, a mainframe, a mesh of computer
systems, a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a
server, a tablet computer system, or a combination of two or more
of these. Where appropriate, computer system 400 may include one or
more computer systems 400; be unitary or distributed; span multiple
locations; span multiple machines; span multiple data centers; or
reside in a cloud, which may include one or more cloud components
in one or more networks. Where appropriate, one or more computer
systems 400 may perform without substantial spatial or temporal
limitation one or more steps of one or more methods described or
illustrated herein. As an example and not by way of limitation, one
or more computer systems 400 may perform in real time or in batch
mode one or more steps of one or more methods described or
illustrated herein. One or more computer systems 400 may perform at
different times or at different locations one or more steps of one
or more methods described or illustrated herein, where
appropriate.
[0048] In particular embodiments, computer system 400 includes a
processor 402, memory 404, storage 406, an input/output (I/O)
interface 408, a communication interface 410, and a bus 412.
Although this disclosure describes and illustrates a particular
computer system having a particular number of particular components
in a particular arrangement, this disclosure contemplates any
suitable computer system having any suitable number of any suitable
components in any suitable arrangement.
[0049] In particular embodiments, processor 402 includes hardware
for executing instructions, such as those making up a computer
program. As an example and not by way of limitation, to execute
instructions, processor 402 may retrieve (or fetch) the
instructions from an internal register, an internal cache, memory
404, or storage 406; decode and execute them; and then write one or
more results to an internal register, an internal cache, memory
404, or storage 406. In particular embodiments, processor 402 may
include one or more internal caches for data, instructions, or
addresses. This disclosure contemplates processor 402 including any
suitable number of any suitable internal caches, where appropriate.
As an example and not by way of limitation, processor 402 may
include one or more instruction caches, one or more data caches,
and one or more translation lookaside buffers (TLBs). Instructions
in the instruction caches may be copies of instructions in memory
404 or storage 406, and the instruction caches may speed up
retrieval of those instructions by processor 402. Data in the data
caches may be copies of data in memory 404 or storage 406 for
instructions executing at processor 402 to operate on; the results
of previous instructions executed at processor 402 for access by
subsequent instructions executing at processor 402 or for writing
to memory 404 or storage 406; or other suitable data. The data
caches may speed up read or write operations by processor 402. The
TLBs may speed up virtual-address translation for processor 402. In
particular embodiments, processor 402 may include one or more
internal registers for data, instructions, or addresses. This
disclosure contemplates processor 402 including any suitable number
of any suitable internal registers, where appropriate. Where
appropriate, processor 402 may include one or more arithmetic logic
units (ALUs); be a multi-core processor; or include one or more
processors 402. Although this disclosure describes and illustrates
a particular processor, this disclosure contemplates any suitable
processor.
[0050] In particular embodiments, memory 404 includes main memory
for storing instructions for processor 402 to execute or data for
processor 402 to operate on. As an example and not by way of
limitation, computer system 400 may load instructions from storage
406 or another source (such as, for example, another computer
system 400) to memory 404. Processor 402 may then load the
instructions from memory 404 to an internal register or internal
cache. To execute the instructions, processor 402 may retrieve the
instructions from the internal register or internal cache and
decode them. During or after execution of the instructions,
processor 402 may write one or more results (which may be
intermediate or final results) to the internal register or internal
cache. Processor 402 may then write one or more of those results to
memory 404. In particular embodiments, processor 402 executes only
instructions in one or more internal registers or internal caches
or in memory 404 (as opposed to storage 406 or elsewhere) and
operates only on data in one or more internal registers or internal
caches or in memory 404 (as opposed to storage 406 or elsewhere).
One or more memory buses (which may each include an address bus and
a data bus) may couple processor 402 to memory 404. Bus 412 may
include one or more memory buses, as described below. In particular
embodiments, one or more memory management units (MMUs) reside
between processor 402 and memory 404 and facilitate accesses to
memory 404 requested by processor 402. In particular embodiments,
memory 404 includes random access memory (RAM). This RAM may be
volatile memory, where appropriate Where appropriate, this RAM may
be dynamic RAM (DRAM) or static RAM (SRAM). Moreover, where
appropriate, this RAM may be single-ported or multi-ported RAM.
This disclosure contemplates any suitable RAM. Memory 404 may
include one or more memories 404, where appropriate. Although this
disclosure describes and illustrates particular memory, this
disclosure contemplates any suitable memory.
[0051] In particular embodiments, storage 406 includes mass storage
for data or instructions. As an example and not by way of
limitation, storage 406 may include a hard disk drive (HDD), a
floppy disk drive, flash memory, an optical disc, a magneto-optical
disc, magnetic tape, or a Universal Serial Bus (USB) drive or a
combination of two or more of these. Storage 406 may include
removable or non-removable (or fixed) media, where appropriate.
Storage 406 may be internal or external to computer system 400,
where appropriate. In particular embodiments, storage 406 is
non-volatile, solid-state memory. In particular embodiments,
storage 406 includes read-only memory (ROM). Where appropriate,
this ROM may be mask-programmed ROM, programmable ROM (PROM),
erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM),
electrically alterable ROM (EAROM), or flash memory or a
combination of two or more of these. This disclosure contemplates
mass storage 406 taking any suitable physical form. Storage 406 may
include one or more storage control units facilitating
communication between processor 402 and storage 406, where
appropriate. Where appropriate, storage 406 may include one or more
storages 406. Although this disclosure describes and illustrates
particular storage, this disclosure contemplates any suitable
storage.
[0052] In particular embodiments, I/O interface 408 includes
hardware, software, or both, providing one or more interfaces for
communication between computer system 400 and one or more I/O
devices. Computer system 400 may include one or more of these I/O
devices, where appropriate. One or more of these I/O devices may
enable communication between a person and computer system 400. As
an example and not by way of limitation, an I/O device may include
a keyboard, keypad, microphone, monitor, mouse, printer, scanner,
speaker, still camera, stylus, tablet, touch screen, trackball,
video camera, another suitable I/O device or a combination of two
or more of these. An I/O device may include one or more sensors.
This disclosure contemplates any suitable I/O devices and any
suitable I/O interfaces 408 for them. Where appropriate, I/O
interface 408 may include one or more device or software drivers
enabling processor 402 to drive one or more of these I/O devices.
I/O interface 408 may include one or more I/O interfaces 408, where
appropriate. Although this disclosure describes and illustrates a
particular I/O interface, this disclosure contemplates any suitable
I/O interface.
[0053] In particular embodiments, communication interface 410
includes hardware, software, or both providing one or more
interfaces for communication (such as, for example, packet-based
communication) between computer system 400 and one or more other
computer systems 400 or one or more networks. As an example and not
by way of limitation, communication interface 410 may include a
network interface controller (NIC) or network adapter for
communicating with an Ethernet or other wire-based network or a
wireless NIC (WNIC) or wireless adapter for communicating with a
wireless network, such as a WI-FI network. This disclosure
contemplates any suitable network and any suitable communication
interface 410 for it. As an example and not by way of limitation,
computer system 400 may communicate with an ad hoc network, a
personal area network (PAN), a local area network (LAN), a wide
area network (WAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), or one or
more portions of the Internet or a combination of two or more of
these. One or more portions of one or more of these networks may be
wired or wireless. As an example, computer system 400 may
communicate with a wireless PAN (WPAN) (such as, for example, a
BLUETOOTH WPAN), a WI-FI network, a WI-MAX network, a cellular
telephone network (such as, for example, a Global System for Mobile
Communications (GSM) network), or other suitable wireless network
or a combination of two or more of these. Computer system 400 may
include any suitable communication interface 410 for any of these
networks, where appropriate. Communication interface 410 may
include one or more communication interfaces 410, where
appropriate. Although this disclosure describes and illustrates a
particular communication interface, this disclosure contemplates
any suitable communication interface.
[0054] In particular embodiments, bus 412 includes hardware,
software, or both coupling components of computer system 400 to
each other. As an example and not by way of limitation, bus 412 may
include an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) or other graphics bus,
an Enhanced Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, a front-side
bus (FSB), a HYPERTRANSPORT (HT) interconnect, an Industry Standard
Architecture (ISA) bus, an INFINIBAND interconnect, a low-pin-count
(LPC) bus, a memory bus, a Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, a
Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, a PCI-Express (PCIe)
bus, a serial advanced technology attachment (SATA) bus, a Video
Electronics Standards Association local (VLB) bus, or another
suitable bus or a combination of two or more of these. Bus 412 may
include one or more buses 412, where appropriate. Although this
disclosure describes and illustrates a particular bus, this
disclosure contemplates any suitable bus or interconnect.
[0055] Herein, a computer-readable non-transitory storage medium or
media may include one or more semiconductor-based or other
integrated circuits (ICs) (such, as for example, field-programmable
gate arrays (FPGAs) or application-specific ICs (ASICs)), hard disk
drives (HDDs), hybrid hard drives (HHDs), optical discs, optical
disc drives (ODDs), magneto-optical discs, magneto-optical drives,
floppy diskettes, floppy disk drives (FDDs), magnetic tapes,
solid-state drives (SSDs), RAM-drives, SECURE DIGITAL cards or
drives, any other suitable computer-readable non-transitory storage
media, or any suitable combination of two or more of these, where
appropriate. A computer-readable non-transitory storage medium may
be volatile, non-volatile, or a combination of volatile and
non-volatile, where appropriate.
[0056] Herein, "or" is inclusive and not exclusive, unless
expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context.
Therefore, herein, "A or B" means "A, B, or both," unless expressly
indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Moreover,
"and" is both joint and several, unless expressly indicated
otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Therefore, herein, "A
and B" means "A and B, jointly or severally," unless expressly
indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context.
[0057] The scope of this disclosure encompasses all changes,
substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the
example embodiments described or illustrated herein that a person
having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. The scope of
this disclosure is not limited to the example embodiments described
or illustrated herein. Moreover, although this disclosure describes
and illustrates respective embodiments herein as including
particular components, elements, functions, operations, or steps,
any of these embodiments may include any combination or permutation
of any of the components, elements, functions, operations, or steps
described or illustrated anywhere herein that a person having
ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. Furthermore, reference
in the appended claims to an apparatus or system or a component of
an apparatus or system being adapted to, arranged to, capable of,
configured to, enabled to, operable to, or operative to perform a
particular function encompasses that apparatus, system, component,
whether or not it or that particular function is activated, turned
on, or unlocked, as long as that apparatus, system, or component is
so adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or
operative.
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