US 5,706,502 A · Internet-enabled portfolio manager system and method

Abstract

A portfolio management system (PMS) is disclosed that allows users to manage, create, edit, debug and compile software portfolios that can include several different types of components, or projects. For example, projects can be Java applets, standalone executable programs, image files, Java class libraries or remote Java applets. The software portfolios and/or their constituent projects can be stored on the system hosting the portfolio management system or on any remote system that can be accessed via the Internet using standard Internet communications protocols, such as FTP or HTTP. The PMS includes portfolio files, each of which includes links to the projects that compose a portfolio and project files that set out the attributes of one project. The PMS also provides portfolio methods that allow users to create, choose, import and remove entire portfolios and project methods that allow users to create, import, choose, edit, remove, run, copy and paste projects. The contents of a particular portfolio or project file determines how the PMS implements the aforementioned methods. For example, if a user wants to import a portfolio from a remote system, the PMS invokes an integrated Web browser, which downloads the desired portfolio onto the local system. The PMS also allows users to publish portfolios and projects on the Internet to be used by others within certain limits set by the publisher. For example, the publisher can restrict copying of source programs while allowing copying of executables.

Claims35

Dependent claims

A portfolio management system for portfolios of software projects that are distributed over a set of networked computers connected to the Internet, said portfolio management system being resident on a first computer of said set of networked computers and comprising:

a set of portfolio files, each of a subset of said set of portfolio files representing one portfolio and including respective references to members of a set of project files, said references being selected from a file name when said project file member is local to said first computer or a URL when said project file member is remote from said first computer;
each member of said set of project files respectively specifying project attributes of one member of a set of projects, said set of projects being the projects associated said one portfolio;
a portfolio manager including a set of user-selectable portfolio methods that are configured to process said portfolios based on information in said portfolio files;
and
a Web browser that is configured to download to said portfolio manager system selected remote portfolio files from the Internet as said selected portfolio files are needed by said portfolio methods to process said portfolios.

2 more elements

A method for use in a local computer connected via the Internet with a set of remote computers, said method enabling a user of said first computer to perform software development operations on software portfolios that are collections of projects, said method comprising the steps of:

displaying a set of software development icons, including a portfolio manager icon and a project manager icon;
enabling said user to select one of said icons;
executing a software development object corresponding to the selected software development icon, said portfolio manager and project manager icons being respectively associated with a portfolio manager software development object and a project manager software development object;
displaying a set of options associated with said executing software development object that correspond to said executing object's associated software development methods;
enabling said user to select one of said set of options associated with said executing software development object and to specify as said object's input a software entity selected from a portfolio or a project;
said software entity not being constrained to be located solely on said local computer, and
executing said selected option's associated method on said selected software entity.

4 more elements

In a set of networked computers connected to the Internet that includes a first computer and a subset of remote computers, a computer-readable memory configured to direct said first computer to process software portfolios that can be located on said remote computers and whose components, or projects, can be distributed across said remote computers, said computer-readable memory comprising:

a set of portfolio files, each of a subset of said set of portfolio files representing one portfolio and including respective references to members of a set of project files, said references being selected from a file name when said project file member is local to said first computer or a URL when said project file member is remote from said first computer;
each member of said set of project files respectively specifying project attributes of one member of a set of projects, said set of projects being the projects associated said one portfolio;
an executable portfolio manager object including a set of user-selectable portfolio methods that are configured to direct said first computer to process said portfolios based on information in said portfolio files;
and
an executable browser object that is configured to direct said first computer to download selected remote portfolio files from the Internet as said selected portfolio files are needed by said portfolio methods.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Internet-enabled portfolio manager system and method

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Internet-enabled portfolio manager system and method

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Abstract

Claims35