Populating online forums
AssigneeAdobe Systems Incorporated
InventorsBrandyn Webb, Kirk B. Gould, Michael Kaplan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In general, in one aspect, a forum for user interaction is provided. A clone of the forum is created, thereby allowing any number of users to be in the same forum while limiting the number of users in each instance of the forum. It is determined whether a relationship exists between a user entering the forum and one or more other users entering the forum or with one or more other users already in the forum. If a relationship exists, the user entering the forum is placed in a clone of the forum based on the relationship.
Claims20
A method, comprising:
- creating a forum on an online service in which users interact with each other;
- creating multiple instances of the forum on the online service;
- receiving a string of information from a user joining a particular instance of the forum, the string containing user information;
- and
- determining which of the multiple instances of the forum the user should be placed in based on the string of information.
A server system comprising one or more server computers implementing an online service, wherein each server computer is programmed to perform operations comprising:
- creating a forum on the online service in which users interact with each other;
- creating multiple instances of the forum on the online service;
- receiving a string of information from a user joining a particular instance of the forum, the string containing user information;
- and
- determining which of the multiple instances of the forum the user should be placed in based on the string of information.
A computer program product, embodied on a computer-readable storage medium, including instructions operable to cause a data processing apparatus to:
- create a first forum having multiple instances thereof, wherein a first user is a current member of a particular instance of the first forum;
- create a second forum having multiple instances thereof, wherein a second user is a current member of a particular instance of the second forum;
- receive a string of information associated with the second user, the string of information including a request to join the first forum;
- use the string of information to identify an interaction that occurred between the first and second users at a time when the first user belonged to the particular instance of the second forum;
- and
- determine which of the multiple instances of the first forum the second user should be placed in based on identification of the interaction.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.