Abstract: Various embodiments include a conversation engine for facilitating a conversation between member accounts (e.g., personal accounts) and social network entities (e.g., corporate accounts) in a social networking system. The conversation engine can enable interactions between a member account and a social network entity via a messaging application when an end-user device associated with the member account is in proximity to a physical establishment associated with the social network entity. The end-user device can scan for available access points and determine its location based on the wireless source identifier(s) of the available access points. The end-user device and/or the social networking system can compare the wireless source identifier(s) to a set of known wireless source identifiers to determine the end-user device's location. Messages can be generated by the conversation engine that include content that is generated based at least in part on the location of the end-user device.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture to reflect routes from a virtual route reflector are disclosed. An example method includes requesting, at a virtual route reflector remote from an autonomous system, topology information and external route information from the autonomous system. The external route information identifies a plurality of border routers through which a remote destination can be reached. The example method also includes selecting, using the topology information, a first path from among a plurality of paths emanating from a selected node in the autonomous system, the plurality of paths exiting the autonomous system at respective border routers of the plurality of border routers. The example method further includes advertising, from the virtual route reflector to a client router in the autonomous system, a route to the remote destination, the route including a first border router at which the first path exits the autonomous system.

Abstract: In an example, a hierarchical chaining gateway (hCG) includes a first communication interface corresponding to a first domain using a first chaining protocol, and a second communication interface corresponding to a second domain using a second and different chaining protocol. The hCG receives a service packet including a first service function chain header via the first communication interface. The hCG also identifies a key identifier in the service packet, and retrieves a second service function chain header based on the key identifier. Then, the hCG transforms the service packet by substituting the first service function chain header corresponding to first domain in the service packet with the second service function chain header corresponding to the second domain. Next, the hCG transmits the service packet including the second service function chain header via the second communication interface corresponding to the second domain.

Abstract: The innovation disclosed and claimed herein, in one aspect thereof, comprises systems, methods and computer program products that enable provisioning of a hybrid cloud services solution to predetermined users. The innovation enables provisioning to be completed with a integration layer component and a provisioning component that integrate rules, such as enterprise-wide or industry-wide rules into out of band touch points, even touch points that the user may not be aware of, and may typically not be called upon to be aware of.

Abstract: A system, computer-readable storage medium storing at least one program, and a computer-implemented method for facilitating deduplication of operations to be performed is presented. An operation to be performed is received. A mapping function is applied to at least one parameter of the operation to produce a mapping value in a target mapping space, the target mapping space being partitioned between target servers in a set of target servers proportional to resource capacities of the target servers in the set of target servers. A target server in the set of target servers whose portion of the target mapping space includes the mapping value is identified. The operation is issued to the target server.

Abstract: A content streaming system and methodology for facilitating the management of content streaming. A video packaging and origination service receives streaming content that is organized according to content segments. Individual content segments will be encoded according to a plurality of encoding bitrates including a reference bitrate and one or more additional renditions. The one or more additional renditions include pointers to the baseline rendition.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a method and a server for allocating game resources, which belongs to the field of network technology. The method includes: receiving a game participation request including game subzone information sent by a user; when the user enters a game subzone identified by the game subzone information, assigning the user to a waiting queue corresponding to the user in the game subzone in accordance with a predetermined condition; and when the user is successfully assigned to the waiting queue, selecting participants to play in the same group with the user from waiting queues other than the waiting queue of the user, and allocating game resources for the user and the selected participants. The present technical solution can effectively reduce occurrence of the game participants' cheating.

Abstract: A method for creating at least one new thread associated with an online conversation is provided. The method may include monitoring the online conversation to detect a new or updated element of the online conversation. The method may also include extracting the detected new or updated element. The method may further include analyzing the online conversation and the extracted detected new or updated element to determine if a new online conversation has started. The method may include extracting a plurality of members associated with the online conversation. The method may also include extracting a plurality of content associated with the extracted detected new or updated element. The method additionally include prompting a user to determine if a new online conversation should be created. The method may also include creating the new online conversation. The method may further include notifying the plurality of extracted members about the created new online conversation.

Abstract: In non-limiting examples of the present disclosure, systems, methods and devices for assisting with provisioning individualized application instances are provided. A request to render an individualized instance of an application may be received. A determination may be made based on the request as to whether a sparse metadata chunk exists for each of a plurality of user interface elements associated with the application. A sparse metadata application artifact may be generated for each user interface element for which a sparse metadata chunk is determined to exist. A base user interface chunk of metadata may be identified for each user interface element for which a sparse metadata chunk is determined not to exist. A base metadata application artifact may be generated for each identified base user interface chunk of metadata, and the individualized instance of the application may be caused to be displayed.

Abstract: One embodiment provides a method, including: receiving, at an information handling device, an indication to initiate a contextual session associated with a context; receiving, at the device, at least one context input during a duration of the contextual session; and responsive to receiving the at least one context input, extending the duration of the contextual session, wherein the extended duration does not require receipt of subsequent indications. Other aspects are described and claimed.

Abstract: A plurality of subscribers are registered to receive, from a publisher component, at client devices, via a broker component, at least one of messages and content pertaining to a first topic. Each of the subscribers is caused to generate one of N random numbers. A different one of the N random numbers is generated by each of the subscribers. Each of the subscribers is instructed to listen only for the messages and content pertaining to the first topic and corresponding to the corresponding one of the N random numbers. The at least one of messages and content pertaining to the first topic are published to those of the subscribers associated with each one of the N random numbers, number by number, until the at least one of messages and content pertaining to the first topic has been published to all of the plurality of subscribers.

Abstract: A method, device, and computer program product for fingerprint based status detection in a distributed processing system is provided. The method comprises: generating and sending, at a root node, an initial fingerprint based on the output message ID to be sent; at a middle node, generating and sending an updated fingerprint based on a received input message ID, an output message ID to be sent and a received fingerprint; sending, at the leaf node, a final updated fingerprint to a tracking task point; and obtaining, at the tracking task point, status information based on the final updated fingerprint. As the method does not generate traffic at each node but only generates tracking traffic at leaf nodes, the approach according to the present disclosure reduces tracking overhead significantly while guaranteeing the reliability of data processing.

Abstract: An example method comprises receiving, by at least one computing device, a first notification from a first mobile computing device and a second notification from a second mobile computing device. The method may further comprise determining, based at least in part on a comparison of the first notification to the second notification, that the first mobile computing device has initiated a phone call with the second mobile computing device. The method may additionally comprise responsive to determining that the first mobile computing device has initiated the phone call with the second mobile computing device, sending, a first message to the first mobile computing device using a first data connection, and sending, a second message to the second mobile computing using a second data connection, wherein the first message and the second messages each indicate that the first and second mobile computing devices are able to exchange application data.

Abstract: A test system for triggering or searching in input data decoded with a user defined protocol is provided. The test system comprises a processor and a display. The processor is configured to control the display to display a graphical user interface (GUI), and to receive input data. The GUI is configured to provide an input structure for a user to define protocol layer frames for decoding the input data. Based on the defined protocol layer frames, the processor is configured to generate a set of trigger or search options, and to control the display to display the set of trigger or search options.

Abstract: A user is writing an email or other message. The message is inspected for a predetermined word and for at least one of: a predetermined phrase or a template match. A score is generated if the predetermined phrase or the template match is detected. A suggestion is provided to a user that the message may need an attachment if the predetermined word is detected or if the score is greater than a predetermined score. The inspection may begin when the user begins creating the message, indicates that the message should be sent, or at some point in between. The user may provide feedback that the suggestion is accepted or that the suggestion is rejected.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes a communication unit and a control unit. The communication unit is communicable with a plurality of client apparatuses over the same network that are capable of buffering and reproducing data transmitted from a server by progressive download. The control unit is capable of regularly obtaining buffer time information indicating a buffer time that expresses an amount of data buffered by the plurality of client apparatuses using a time necessary for reproduction of the data. Further, the control unit is capable of determining a client apparatus whose buffer time is minimum among the plurality of client apparatuses as a priority apparatus to which the data should be preferentially transmitted.

Abstract: A system and methods are provided for conveying connection-oriented communications (e.g., textual messages among multiple users) via a protocol such as HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol). When a device operating a communication application that features a custom application layer protocol for formatting messages for transmission cannot connect to the system hosting the application using a default protocol stack that include the custom application layer protocol, it instead connects using HTTP's chunked mode of transfer encoding. Each outgoing communication is encapsulated in a separate HTTP chunk, and communications to multiple different users may be conveyed via the one connection. Incoming communications (e.g., from the multiple users) are received as separate chunks and are unwrapped or de-encapsulated to retrieve the communication for presentation to a user.

Abstract: Disclosed is a system and method for optimization of data transfer to a software service. In exemplary embodiments, a computer-implemented method for determining a transit appliance for data traffic to a software service through one or more interconnected networks comprising a plurality of network appliances, comprises determining performance metrics for each of the plurality of network appliances to at least one IP address associated with the software service, and selecting a transit appliance for data transfer to the IP address, the selected transit appliance based at least in part on the performance metrics.

Abstract: A method and electronic device are provided for maintaining a message store having a plurality of messages includes maintaining at the electronic device a client bookmark indicating a point in the message store up to which the content of the message store maintained at the electronic device is known to be complete, and a maximum message identifier (ID) indicating the largest message identifier of the plurality of messages of the message store that the electronic device has received, sending to a server a sync request message for the message store, the sync request message including the client bookmark in response to determining at least one of the client bookmark and the maximum message ID do not match, and the electronic device connecting with the server after a period of being disconnected.

Abstract: An online cloud-based service processing system, an online evaluation method and a computer program product thereof are provided. The online evaluation method includes: running at least one application service unit of the processing system; executing at least one evaluation registration procedure for at least one application service evaluation unit of the processing system in response to at least one registration request; running the at least one application service evaluation unit; dispatching at least one online service request respectively to the at least one application service unit and the at least one application service evaluation unit, and generating at least one output result corresponding to the at least one online service request; and calculating at least one ranking for each of the at least one application service evaluation unit based on output result(s) generated by the at least one application service evaluation unit among the at least one output result.