Abstract: Automatic categorization of a financial transaction based upon a mapping of useful characters from the transaction's description to a financial category. The description of the financial transaction is parsed to identify one or more useful strings of characters. A data file of business names is then searched for a match with the parsed string or strings from the transaction description. The data file is optimized to minimize both lookup times and the size of the data file by representing business-name-to-financial-category mappings using a serialized trie accessed via a memory mapped file. Nodes of the trie having children but no siblings are compressed into dangling nodes. A table of shared suffixes is also used. If a match is found in the business name data file, then the transaction is categorized according to the corresponding business name to financial category mapping. Otherwise, the transaction may be categorized based upon a match found in a database of financial transaction description keywords.

Abstract: A database management system maintains a system catalog for storing information regarding the data definitions of the managed data objects, where all information necessary for the recreation of the data definitions must be available or inferable from the stored information. The inventive database management system also maintains log records or a journal of changes which occur within the database system, especially to the system catalog information. When a drop of a managed data object occurs, the deletion of the system catalog data definition information is recorded in the log. To recreate the data definitions of the dropped objects, first the information about the dropped objects, deleted from the system catalog, is located in the log records. Second, the log records are read and extracted. Third, the definition information is extracted or inferred from the log records.

Abstract: A method and system for backing up primary nodes onto backup nodes where the primary nodes can each originate a distributed transaction and can participate in a distributed transaction. The backup nodes, after a primary node failure, undo all transactions whose state is unknown on the backup node and all committed transactions which, if kept, would lead to an inconsistent set of backup nodes. First, committed transactions are undone if commits for them were not received on all back up nodes to the primary nodes that participated in the transaction. Second, all committed transactions that potentially depend on the committed transactions that were undone are also undone. Only those transactions that are provably independent of the committed transactions that were undone are kept. The result is a set of back up nodes which can support operations until the failing primary node is restored.

Abstract: The invention provides a digital content delivery system appropriate for outputting a digital content in an easy-to-view layout to a user. A content delivery terminal includes a user information registration DB that stores a plurality of layout definition files defining output layouts of digital contents. When user information, including a destination address and a selection of an output layout, is input, the input user information is associated with the selected layout definition file before the input user information and the layout definition file are registered in the user information registration DB. Based on the layout definition file in the user information registration DB, the output layout of a digital content is determined, and the digital content is produced. The produced digital content is delivered to a destination address corresponding to the layout definition file used to produce the digital content.

Abstract: The invention relates to a system in which given search keys are evaluated, segment by segment, to search through tree-structured tables for finding an output information corresponding to the longest matching prefix. For at least one of the segments, only selected bits of the search key segment are used as index for accessing an associated table where test values are stored which are to be compared to the respective search key segment. The bits to be selected are determined by an index mask, reflecting the distribution of the valid test values in the table entries (and valid search key segment values). This allows table compression for minimizing storage requirements and search time. A procedure is disclosed for generating an optimum index mask in response to the set of valid test values.

Abstract: Techniques used in database systems for dealing with metadata associated with multimedia objects. The database system includes a generic representation for metadata values. The representation includes a stratum specifier that specifies the stratum to which a metadata value applies, an extent specifier that specifies a portion of the stratum to which the metadata value applies, and a metadata item specifier that specifies the metadata value. The generic representation is implemented in an object-oriented relational database system. The generic representation of the metadata for a given multimedia object is contained in the object in the database that represents the multimedia object. Values of the representation may be returned by a query or may be used to select other values to be returned by a query, including the portion of an object associated with a metadata value.

Abstract: A system and method for efficiently generating cluster groupings in a multi-dimensional concept space is described. A plurality of terms are extracted from each document in a collection of stored unstructured documents. A concept space is built over the document collection. Terms substantially correlated between a plurality of documents within the document collection are identified. Each correlated term is expressed as a vector mapped along an angle &thgr; originating from a common axis in the concept space. A difference between the angle &thgr; for each document and an angle &sgr; for each cluster within the concept space is determined. Each such cluster is populated with those documents having such difference between the angle &thgr; for each such document and the angle &sgr; for each such cluster falling within a predetermined variance.

Abstract: The invention provides systems and methods for continuous back up of data stored on a computer network. To this end the systems of the invention include a synchronization process that replicates selected source data files data stored on the network and to create a corresponding set of replicated data files, called the target data files, that are stored on a back up server, This synchronization process builds a baseline data structure of target data files. In parallel to this synchronization process, the system includes a dynamic replication process that includes a plurality of agents, each of which monitors a portion of the source data files to detect and capture, at the byte-level, changes to the source data files.

Abstract: File system cells are linked together to form a meta file system that appears to a user or application program to be a single file system. Each file system cell may have a conventional file system format, and can be indistinguishable from a conventional file system except for information, such as directory entry attributes, indicating one or more links to other file system cells. These external links may include direct links that are hidden from the user or application program and define a hierarchy of the meta file system cells, and indirect links that appear in the user-visible file system. The meta file system substantially reduces crash recovery time because each file system cell functions as a consistency unit that can be repaired only if needed. The meta file system also permits the file system cells to be accessed concurrently by multiple processors in a file server.

Abstract: A method for maintaining relationships between entities in a computer system, each entity having a plurality nodes, includes the steps of: modifying one of the plurality of nodes; searching for a plurality of dependent nodes from the plurality of nodes coupled to the one node; ordering the plurality of dependent nodes into an order; and evaluating the plurality of dependent nodes in the order.

Abstract: There is provided a system and method for representing a data subset of server data. According to the method, a folder definition is generated for the data subset. The generation of the folder definition includes the substeps of identifying portions of the server data to be included in the data subset, generating declarations of value constraints and usage constraints with respect to at least some of the data of the data subset, and generating parameters to be supplied or selected by a user of a client device for further identifying the portions of the server data to be included in the data subset. The declarations are used for enforcing the value constraints and the usage constraints in subsequent renderings of the data subset on a client device. A folder instance is then generated based on the folder definition and parameters provided by a user of a client device or by default. The provided parameters (user provided or default) correspond to the generated parameters.

Abstract: A database management system and associated methods for parallelizing file archival and retrieval in an extended database management system. The system includes a set of copy agents that selectively acquire the backup tasks from a copy queue, and a set of retrieval agents that selectively acquire the restore tasks from a restore queue. The chances of contention between any two copy agents or any two retrieve agents acquiring the same copy or restore task is significantly minimized. Once specific copy agents are assigned backup tasks, the backup process is implemented to determine the optimal way to write the backup files to one or more targets, in parallel. In addition, the present system enables the efficient and expeditious retrieval of the desired files without having to search all the targets.

Abstract: Disclosed is a computer program product and method that operate an enterprise information system of at least one server and a number or personal computers communicating with each other and with the server. The program product and method create object models that have a consistent structure from and about information assets that are of diverse types and come from diverse software, and display browse cards about the information assets in a time-ordered stream, together with glance views related to the document object models. The glance views are displayed essentially in real time in response to passing a cursor over respective browse cards on the display.

Abstract: A database including vertical tables useful for storing large numbers of objects having potentially thousands of attributes in, e.g., e-commerce applications. To support querying the vertical database using conventional SQL, a horizontal view over the underlying vertical tables is defined, and then queries are posed against the view. The queries are automatically transformed and executed against the vertical tables. If desired, the query results can be transformed back to a horizontal format. In this way, it appears to the user that a conventional horizontal data format is being used.

Abstract: A system and method for providing at least one hidden markup attribute to convey additional information to target recipients. At least one hidden markup attribute is included in a communication from a server. When a browser at a client/user location receives the communication with the at least one hidden markup attribute, the browser will be able to decode the hidden markup attribute portion of the markup only if it has a correct render key. The render key may be predefined and exchanged between the server and the client. Alternatively, the render key may be communicated to the client with the hidden markup attribute communication. The latter scenario is useful when a server must dynamically calculate the render key based upon the client's capabilities (e.g., discovered during the establishment of communication between the entities). A server may alternatively have a generic default render key for all users.

Abstract: An optimizer function of a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) generates alternative query execution plans (QEPs) for executing a query, provides an execution model of each of the QEPs, chooses one of the QEPs for execution based on the model associated therewith, and exploits an empirical measurement from the execution of the chosen QEP to validate the model associated therewith, by determining whether the model is in error, and by computing one or more adjustments to the model to correct the determined error.

Abstract: This invention relates to a computer implemented automated remote support in a computing system that utilizes machine learning to provide constantly improving support capability. It comprises a means for parsing input requests, means for automatically executing test cases, a Database for storing data pertaining to behaviour of products and Multiproduct combinations, as well as searching means for searching through the Database for previous occurrences of similar requests. An Expert System utilizing machine learning capabilities generates the final solution and constantly updates the organization of the data in the Database in order to improve the effectiveness of subsequent searches.

Abstract: A method for pushing a list element onto a linked list without locking the linked list. The linked list includes a head element having a pointer to a first list element. The method includes the steps of (a) reading the pointer, (b) writing the pointer to a list element address field, and (c) atomically comparing the pointer written to the list element address field with the pointer to the first list element and exchanging an address of the list element for the pointer if the values compared are equal, else repeating steps (a) through (c). A non-blocking pop operation is also disclosed.

Abstract: A data file mirroring application that monitors data files stored in a source directory for archiving to at least two other backup data storage locations. Preferably, one of these backup data storage locations is on the Internet. The other may be a local data storage location, meaning a location that the host computer can access without using the Internet, e.g., a floppy drive, hard drive, high-density storage medium drive, etc. The user interface of the mirroring application flexibly allows the user to specify the source data to be backed up and the two or more backup data storage locations.

Abstract: A technique is disclosed which makes it possible to easily control access to personal information of a user. A management server stores personal information such as a name, telephone number, address, and electronic mail address of each user. For example, if a user of a computer transmits a request command to the management server to transmit personal information of a user of a portable telephone device, the management server determines, in accordance with access restriction information, whether or not providing of the personal information of the user of the portable telephone is restricted. If the providing of the personal information requested by the user of the computer is restricted, the management server inquires of the user of the portable telephone device, who is the owner of the personal information, whether to give permission to provide the personal information. If permission is given, the management server provides the personal information to the user of the computer.