Abstract: Mechanisms for natively rendering and optimizing Internet contents on different displays of mobile computing devices receive screen description for a webpage from a server supporting a Web server hosting a software application and prepare and transmit an inquiry to multiple painters to inquire whether these painters have native capability and functionality to paint a single screen for optimal viewing experiences on displays of mobile computing devices having different sizes or resolutions. A receiving painter includes its own decision mechanism to respond to the inquiry either affirmatively or negatively. A painter is selected from one or more painters receiving the inquiry and responding affirmatively. When no receiving painters respond affirmatively to the inquiry, a web view screen painter is selected to paint the screen on a mobile communication device display in a way that the screen resembles or appears exactly like the webpage when displayed on a computer display.

Abstract: A system for calculating an estimated result for an electronic tax return to be prepared before a user begins to prepare the electronic tax return using an electronic tax return preparation program includes a server computer having a predictive model, and a user computer having a browser program. The user computer and the browser program are operatively coupled to the server computer and the predictive model by a network. The server computer is configured to obtain a first taxpayer datum associated with a taxpayer and execute the predictive model, which generates a predicted taxpayer datum for the taxpayer based on the first taxpayer datum. The server computer is configured to calculate the estimated result using the predicted taxpayer datum. The user computer is configured to display the estimated result to the user before the user begins to prepare the electronic tax return using the electronic tax return preparation program.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to simulating the capture of images. In some embodiments, a document and a camera are simulated using a three-dimensional modeling engine. In certain embodiments, a plurality of images are captured of the simulated document from a perspective of the simulated camera, each of the plurality of images being captured under a different set of simulated circumstances within the three-dimensional modeling engine. In some embodiments, a model is trained based at least on the plurality of images which determines at least a first technique for adjusting a set of parameters in a separate image to prepare the separate image for optical character recognition (OCR).

Abstract: Computer-implemented methods, system and computer program products for determining questions or potential questions to present to a user of a tax preparation application based at least in part upon analysis of pre-determined semantic dependencies of interview questions. Questions that are determined to be independent or free of semantic dependency can be selected as questions to be presented to the user or questions that are the subject of non-binding suggestions generated by a rule module and provided to an interface controller, which processes the non-binding suggestions.

Abstract: Disclosed are techniques for implementing software products or services with dynamic conditions and dynamic actions. These techniques identify a plurality of flow nodes for a software application. One or more dynamic conditions may be identified or determined for the plurality of flow nodes; and one or more dynamic actions may be identified or determined for the one or more dynamic conditions. A dynamic flow may be determined with the plurality of flow nodes, the one or more dynamic conditions, and the one or more dynamic actions, without hard coded inter-dependency between two or more flow nodes of the plurality of flow nodes.

Abstract: User satisfaction with answers that may be provided through a question and answer based customer support system is predicted by pre-submission analysis of the attributes of the question itself before the answer is generated. Questions being entered into the question and answer based customer support system that are not likely to satisfy either an asking user submitting a question, or subsequent searching users accessing the resulting question and answer pair, are labeled improperly formatted questions, or low quality format questions. The question data representing improperly formatted questions is then either filtered out, avoided completely, or, proactively corrected by providing the user with a set of personalized question format transformation instructions to transform improperly formatted questions into a re-phrased/re-formatted properly formatted questions having a question format predicted to provide a significantly higher probability of user satisfaction with any answer eventually provided.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for gathering user-related tax data for use with tax preparation software includes a computing device executing a data capture utility configured to connect to one or more remotely located data sources, wherein the data capture utility captures user-specific tax data from the one or more remotely located data sources and stores the captured data in a data store. The computing device executes a tax logic engine configured to read data from the data store and determine the completeness of the data contained within the data store. The computing device communicates a message to the user regarding the level of completeness of the data contained within the data store.

Abstract: A method and system generates extended patterns from base patterns and tests the extended patterns. The patterns correspond to configurations for implementing cloud-based applications. The patterns are extendable to make additional extended patterns. Extended patterns carry the characteristics of the patterns from which they were extended. Updating a base pattern with new security measures causes a cascade effect that updates all extended patterns that descend from the base pattern. The method and system automatically stacks and launches applications according to the extended patterns.

Abstract: Disclosed are techniques for capturing and classification of digital data and providing recommendations in real-time or nearly real-time. These techniques identify a plurality of agent computing or communication devices in communication with a server and identify a plurality of communications between the plurality of agent computing or communication devices and a plurality of user communication or computing devices of a plurality of users into real-time service data. One or more actions are determined for a communication of the plurality of communications based in part or in whole upon at least one communication class into which the communication is classified. One or more post-classification tasks are performed based in part or in whole upon the one or more actions determined at the recommendation module.

Abstract: A method for automatically tracking mileage may include detecting a connection between a wireless sensor of a mobile device of a user and a wireless device, determining that the wireless device corresponds to a vehicle of the user, initiating tracking of a trip of the vehicle in response to detecting the connection, detecting termination of the connection using the wireless sensor, stopping tracking of the trip in response to detecting the termination of the connection, determining that the termination of the connection was caused by a dropped connection, and resuming tracking of the trip in response to determining that the termination of the connection was caused by the dropped connection.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to automatically detecting software defects and determining the source of the defect. An example method generally includes receiving an output data set from a host server executing a test operation and comparing the output data set to a performance model. A test system identifies that a defect exists in software executing on the host server based on determining that the output data set deviates from the performance model by more than a threshold. The test system retrieves a source code update from a source code repository that was committed to the source code repository before the execution of the test operation. The test system compares a scope of the source code update to the defect and notifies a development team related to the source code update of the defect upon determining that the scope of the source code update and the defect match.

Abstract: A method and system improves content searching in a question and answer customer support system by using a crowd-machine learning hybrid predictive model, according to one embodiment. The question and answer customer support system determines which customer support content to provide to users by using the hybrid predictive model, according to one embodiment. The question and answer customer support system receives a search query from a user and applies the search query (or a representation of the search query) to the hybrid predictive model, according to one embodiment. The hybrid predictive model generates a likelihood that particular customer support content is relevant to a user's search query, according to one embodiment. The question and answer customer support system acquires user feedback from users and updates/trains the hybrid predictive model based on the user feedback, according to one embodiment.

Abstract: Disclosed are techniques for classifying inquiries and providing recommended actions. These techniques identify or generate a data model that receives and classifies an inquiry into at least one class in real-time or nearly real-time. One or more actions may be determined based at least in part on the at least one class and presented in a user interface to a user who first submitted the inquiry.

Abstract: A hierarchical cryptographic key management system encrypts data at a granular level with a data key generated by the system, and the data key is encrypted by a wrap key acquired from a key provider system. The encrypted form of the wrap key, the encrypted form of the data key, and the encrypted form of the data are stored in a cloud data store.

Abstract: A method for conducting financial transactions with an automated teller machine (ATM), including: receiving, by a mobile device, a first authentication credential from a user; authenticating, by the mobile device, the user for access to a financial account based on the first authentication credential; wirelessly transmitting, by the mobile device and to the ATM, a first request to establish a direct short range wireless connection with the ATM after authenticating the user; establishing, by the mobile device, the direct short range wireless connection with the ATM after transmitting the first request; and sending, over the direct short range wireless connection, an identifier of the user to the ATM, where the user makes a selection of a cash amount for withdrawal from the financial account, and where the ATM dispenses the cash amount to the user.

Abstract: Disclosed methods and systems crowdsource the detection of usability issues in user experience pages of a tax return preparation system, according to one embodiment. Testing and debugging combinations and sequences of user experience pages can be time consuming and costly, and crowdsourcing the detection of usability issues can reduce the length of time typically consumed in detecting issues in a user experience flow, according to one embodiment. The methods and system include monitoring users' navigation behavior (e.g., system access data) within user experience pages, using predictive models to detect when users are experiencing a potential issue, and providing issue resolution content to both help the users and characterize the potential issue, according to one embodiment.

Abstract: A method and system detects and addresses financial account swaps in a financial management system. The method and system include obtaining financial transaction data related to financial transactions associated with a plurality of financial accounts of the user. The method and system include detecting, for each financial account, a change point in a characteristic distribution of the financial transactions of the financial account. The method and system include, if two or more of the change points correlate with each other and time, swapping the financial transactions between the two or more financial accounts until the change points disappear and determining that an account swap occurred in the financial data collection feeds associated with the financial accounts. The method and system include adjusting financial data collection feeds to repair the account swaps.

Abstract: An invisible light sensing device senses invisible light from a plurality of invisible light emitting objects in which each of the invisible light emitting objects emits invisible light in an identification pattern that is distinct from other identification patterns. An identification pattern is based on one or more apertures through which invisible light is emitted to form the identification pattern. An identification pattern is also based on a plurality of invisible light emitters in which at least a portion of the invisible light emitters are positioned and activated to form the identification pattern.

Abstract: A method and system provides access control encryption for a file system. A resource management module manages access to data on a storage container and hosts a virtual file system including files representing the data on the storage container. An access control and encryption module encrypts each of the files with a respective file encryption key. The access control module generates a plurality of application containers each associated with a respective user and that include respective lists of files that the respective user is authorized to access. The access control and encryption module generates decrypts the files and allows access to files based on the lists of files in the application containers.

Abstract: A system and method for use with a data management service that provides a finite state machine with machine learning based generation of tests to ensure exhaustive coverage of the compound states of an application undergoing modification. The finite state machine is modified with inputs of feedback from production usage of the application. A continuous virtual test pool utilizes the finite state machine to replicate numerous instances of users simulating the possible states of the application.