Real time push of product availability information

A method of pushing changes in product shipment dates to a catalog comprising:

• sending an original availability date for products to said catalog;
• maintaining a capacity scheduling system that utilizes a series of capacity buckets to represent said product shipment dates, wherein each capacity bucket represents an additional shipment delay period and wherein said maintaining includes decreasing quantities in said capacity buckets as orders for said products are placed and increasing quantities in said capacity buckets as said products are produced;
• and
• sending a push signal to said catalog when a capacity bucket of a product becomes full and when said capacity bucket of said product becomes empty
• wherein said push signal includes a revised availability date for said product in said catalog;
• wherein said revised availability date is different than said original availability date by said shipment delay period;
• wherein the timing of when said push signal is sent to said catalog is dependent only upon said quantities in said capacity buckets;
• and wherein said catalog comprises an online catalog connected to said capacity scheduling system via a network.

A method at pushing changes in product shipment dates to a catalog comprising:

• sending an original availability date for products to said catalog;
• maintaining a capacity scheduling system that utilizes a series of capacity buckets to represent said product shipment dates, wherein each capacity bucket represents an additional shipment delay period and wherein said maintaining includes decreasing quantities in said capacity buckets as orders for said products are placed and increasing quantities in said capacity buckets as said products are produced;
• and
• sending a push signal to said catalog only when a capacity bucket of a product comes within a predetermined percentage of full and when said capacity bucket of said product comes within a predetermined percentage of empty
• wherein said push signal includes a revised availability date for said product in said catalog;
• wherein said revised availability date is different than said original availability date by said shipment delay period;
• wherein the timing of when said push signal is sent to said catalog is dependent only upon said quantities in said capacity buckets;
• and wherein said catalog comprises an online catalog connected to said capacity scheduling system via a network.