Patents Represented by Attorney, Agent or Law Firm Owen J. Gamon
  • Patent number: 7480733
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment dynamically allocate client requests to target servers based on prepare messages sent by the target servers. The addresses of target servers are added to a queue in response to the prepare messages from the target servers. A network interface is then prepared to receive an incoming call request from a client. After the call request arrives from a client, one of the addresses is selected from the queue. The call request is then sent through a tunnel to the target server associated with the selected address.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 20, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Bob Richard Cernohous, Christopher Thomas Gloe, Scott Jon Prunty
  • Patent number: 7478268
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and computer-readable storage medium that, in an embodiment, set uncorrectable error indicators in logical memory blocks in response to detecting an uncorrectable error in memory pages associated with the logical memory blocks. If the logical memory block is allocated to a hypervisor, the memory page may be deallocated in response to detection of the uncorrectable error. When an IPL of a partition is subsequently performed, a determination is made whether a logical memory block allocated to the partition previously encountered the uncorrectable error via the uncorrectable error indicator. If the logical memory block did previously encounter the uncorrectable error, the logical memory block is deallocated from the partition. In an embodiment, if spare memory exists, the logical memory block with the previously encountered uncorrectable error is replaced with the spare memory and the IPL of the partition is continued with the spare memory.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Daniel James Henderson, Alongkorn Kitamorn, Wayne Lemmon, Naresh Nayer, Wade Byron Ouren
  • Patent number: 7478219
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, retrieve event data from a processor for sampling intervals, where the sampling intervals are evenly distributed, but the control points at which the event data is retrieved are unevenly distributed. The processor executes instructions for logical partitions, and the event data is associated with events that are detected by the processor during the sampling intervals. In response to an interrupt received from the processor at the control point, a determination is made whether the sample point has been reached. If the sample point has been reached, the event data is retrieved from the processor and an event counter is reset to a value that is calculated to cause the processor to include an identical number of the events in the sampling intervals. The value is calculated based on the event counter at the time control point, the event counter at a time of the sample point, and the number of events in the sampling interval.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2005
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John Michael Attinella, Randall Ray Heisch
  • Patent number: 7472115
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment receive a keyword from a client, create search results for the keyword via an index. Context information is determined from the search results using a file name and a topic name as a key. A context tag is then created in a search-results page. The context tag includes the context information. When the context tag is interpreted at the client, it causes the context information to be displayed after the search results are selected. In this way, a user may more easily determine the relevant search results.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2004
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Darel Vincent Benysh, David Joseph Borrillo, Matthew Jacob Bruzek, Nikolay Alexis Coates
  • Patent number: 7467295
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, receive a command that requests a name of a boot image and a network address of a boot server that contains the boot image, invoke a plug-in to determine the name of the boot image and the network address of the boot server based on an address of a client that sent the command, and send the name of the boot image and the network address of the boot server to a client that sent the command. In various embodiments, the address of the client may be a network address or a MAC (Media Access Control) address. The client retrieves the boot image via the name and the network address of the boot server, and the boot image initializes the client when executed at the client. In various embodiments, the name of the boot image or the network address of the boot server are changed to second names or addresses and sent to the client in response to another command.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Steven C. Erickson, David Joseph Gimpl, Fraser Allan Syme
  • Patent number: 7464370
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment determine whether a block of code associated with a copy-and-paste operation or a punch-out operation has a size greater than a threshold. If the size is greater than the threshold, then a method is created and the block of code is pasted into the method. Also, an invocation to the newly created method is added at the copied-from location and the intended pasted-to location (in the case of the copy-and-paste operation) or an invocation to the newly created method is added at the copied-from location (in the case of the punch-out operation). In this way, future modifications to the block of code need only be made in one place: the method, instead of at all locations where duplicate code exists. Thus, embodiments of the invention may reduce the fragility of the code.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Lawrence Barsness, Richard Dean Dettinger, Brian Edward Olson
  • Patent number: 7464341
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, receive a close command directed to a window, and determine whether the close command was received within a close threshold time of the display of the window. If the close command was received within the threshold time, in various embodiments, a close dialog is displayed, the window is faded, the window is shrunk, or a status message is displayed indicating that the window is closing. If a cancel command is received within a cancel-close threshold, the closing of the window is canceled. If the number of times the cancel command has been received for the window exceeds a cancel threshold, then in various embodiments, the close threshold is increased, magnification is recommended, a sound option is recommended, or speech recognition is recommended. In an embodiment, in response to a close command directed to a window, a determination is made whether the number of times the window has been resized is greater than a resize threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Paul Reuben Day, Brian Robert Muras
  • Patent number: 7457806
    Abstract: A method, that in an embodiment receives a key parameter from a container-managed persistent bean, determines that the container-managed persistent bean is associated with a non-relational data store, creating a web service input message with the key parameter, and invokes a web service function with the web service input message to interface with a non-relational data store. The determination that the container-managed persistent bean is associated with a non-relational data store may be based on deployment description extension settings specified by a bean assembler. In this way, a container-managed persistent bean may be used to access a non-relational data store.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John William Alcorn, Eric Nels Herness, Anh-Khoa Dinh Phan
  • Patent number: 7450008
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, receive service data at a computer system from an RFID tag, where the service data was sent to the RFID tag from an RF transmitter while the computer system was powered off. The RFID tag includes tag memory and an antenna, and the RFID tag is attached to the computer system. In another embodiment, the computer system sends the service data to the RFID tag, and the service data is received by an RF scanner from the RFID tag via the antenna while the computer system is powered off. In various embodiments, the service data identifies the computer system or a product within the computer system. In another embodiment, the service data includes log information associated with the computer system. In this way, in an embodiment, service data associated with a computer system, such as vital product service data and log information may be accessed and updated even while the computer system is powered off.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Steven C. Erickson, Ivory Wellman Knipfer, Jeffrey George Komatsu, Fraser Allan Syme
  • Patent number: 7440956
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, receive a constraint command that specifies a parent table, a primary key in the parent table, a child table, and a foreign key in the child table, and enforce that all values for the primary key in the parent table are present in the foreign key in the child table. In an embodiment, the enforcing may include receiving an insert command, wherein the insert command specifies a target key, a target value for the target key, and a target table; determining whether the target table matches the parent table and whether, within a transaction that includes the insert command, the child table includes at least one row with a foreign key value that equals the target value of the primary key; inserting the target value in the target table if the determining is true; and returning an error otherwise.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2005
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Mark Gregory Megerian
  • Patent number: 7441242
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment collect a performance metric of a first partition in a logically-partitioned computer. If the difference between the performance metric and an expected performance metric exceeds a threshold, then a job or another partition is shut down or suspended. The expected performance metric is calculated based on the performance that is expected if the first partition is the only partition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 21, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Eric Lawrence Barsness, John Matthew Santosuosso
  • Patent number: 7406625
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, prohibit breakpoints from being set within a protected range. In an embodiment, a protected range may be an atomic operation synchronization code range, either based on instructions generated by a compiler or based on source statements that are compiler directives. When a command, such as an add breakpoint command is received, the address of the breakpoint is compared to the protected range, and if the address is within the protected range, the breakpoint is not set. In another embodiment, if the address is within the protected range, the breakpoint is set before the start or after the end of the protected range. In this way, the problems of endless loops may be obviated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: John Charles Brock, Gregory Alan Chaney, Kevin J. Erickson
  • Patent number: 7398523
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, determine the classes that are needed during a first invocation of an application and preload those classes during a subsequent invocation of the application. In various embodiments, the classes may be preloaded if they are within a specified package, if they were needed greater than a threshold number of times, if the class path did not change between the first invocation and the subsequent invocation, or if the jar files the contain the classes are in a class path. In this way, an embodiment of the invention may increase the performance of class preloading.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2004
    Date of Patent: July 8, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Brian Keith Martin, Daniel John Moravec, Thomas Edward Musta, Eric Jon Van Norman
  • Patent number: 7395403
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, simulate allocation of a simulated resource to simulated partitions in a simulated logically-partitioned computer and determine whether the allocation conflicts. The simulation may include summing amounts of the simulated resource for the simulated partition in an order, where the order of the simulated partitions is received via a user interface. In various embodiments, the allocation may conflict if the allocation exceeds the capacity of the simulated logically-partitioned computer or if the simulated resource is restricted to exclusive allocation. The result of the simulation, including whether the allocation conflicts, is presented via the user interface. In various embodiments, the simulated resource may be memory, an I/O controller, or a storage device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Gregory Richard Hintermeister, Cale T. Rath, George James Romano
  • Patent number: 7392367
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in various embodiments determine whether to execute a command in a queue or whether to wait until another command or commands completed. The determination is based on a combination of an in-use vector and a scorecard vector. The in-use vector indicates which slots in various queues contain commands. The scorecard vector indicates the dependencies between various queues. In this way, the scorecard vector, and the thus the queue dependencies can be set and modified after the logic that processes the commands has been designed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Scott D. Clark, Scott M. Willenborg
  • Patent number: 7383539
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment determine whether to stop execution of a program at a breakpoint based on a previous value of a variable. In another embodiment, an attribute is applied to all breakpoints in a breakpoint group. The attribute includes data that is used to decide whether to halt the program upon encountering the breakpoints or allow the program to continue to execute. In another embodiment, breakpoints are excluded or included on the basis of the thread in which the breakpoint is encountered by the program.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Cary Lee Bates, Paul W. Buenger, Steven Gene Halverson
  • Patent number: 7382353
    Abstract: In various embodiments, changing the function involves disabling an input device, disabling an output device, changing a display mode of the output device from portrait to landscape, or increasing volume of the output device. In an embodiment, the change of the function is delayed by a time period, and the delay for changing the output device is longer than the delay for changing the input device. If the electronic device is upright, the input device and the output device are enabled. The tilt is sensed by a sensing device, signals from the sensing device are filtered, and a delay is introduced. In this way, premature disabling or enabling of the electronic device is avoided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Philip E. Grady, Paul Andrew Hakenewerth, Kursad Urungu Oney, Kevin Laverne Schultz
  • Patent number: 7360204
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment find all those breakpoints that meet a selection criteria and add the breakpoints to a breakpoint group. In various embodiments, the selection criteria may be a condition criteria, a hierarchy criteria, or a skipping criteria. In this way, the programmer is freed from needing to individually add breakpoints to the group and all the breakpoints in the group may be enabled, disabled, or removed as a group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Cary Lee Bates, Paul W. Buenger
  • Patent number: 7360114
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment determine whether to log an exception based on whether the exception has already occurred. In an embodiment, exceptions that repeatedly occur at the same source and location within the source are logged on the first occurrence, and not logged thereafter. In this way, data can be saved about the exception, yet system resources are not consumed by repeated logging.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Francis Gerard Malin, Charles James Redlin, Hany A. Salem, James W. Stopyro
  • Patent number: 7356613
    Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment determine the active partitions of an application and assign the active partitions among servers via a routing table. The routing table is sent to a client, who uses the routing table to send requests and/or messages to the active partitions. In an embodiment, the routing table includes identifiers of the active partitions and the associated partitions. If one of the servers fails or if the partitions have a loading imbalance, the partitions are reassigned via the routing table.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2008
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Gennaro A. Cuomo, Donald Francis Ferguson, William T. Newport