Abstract: An apparatus and method define the concept of a “database breakpoint.” One or more conditions in the database are specified as a database breakpoint in a debug environment for debugging a computer program that accesses the database. When the database conditions exist, one or more debug functions may be performed with respect to the execution of the computer program. Examples of debug functions include halting execution of the computer program and halting operations to the database by other programs. With both the computer program and database halted, the user may then interrogate the database to determine its state, and may interrogate the program to determine its state. Database breakpoints greatly enhance the utility of a debugger by providing additional conditions for debugging a computer program that accesses a database.

Abstract: A program which is linked or bound by reference (referenced program) into one or more other programs supports multiple valid export signatures, each corresponding to a respective version of the referenced program. When a program is built, it records the current signature of each referenced program it is bound to. When subsequently determining whether to rebuild the program, the previously recorded signature of any referenced program is compared with all currently supported signatures of the referenced program, and only if none of the supported signatures matches does the program need to be re-built to ensure compatibility with the referenced program. Preferably, the referenced program is a program library containing supporting procedures, intended to be used by multiple applications programs which are bound to it.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that, in an embodiment, log trace data in response to an exception if the exception meets a filter criteria and create quality data from the trace data if a class in a call stack associated with the exception is owned by a user defined in a user table. In an embodiment, the quality data includes an identification of the user, a count of a number of times the exception was encountered by the user, and an identification of the exception. In various embodiments, the filter criteria may be an exception type, classes that initiate the exception, or packages that contain the classes that initiate the exception.

Abstract: A database spread over multiple nodes allows each node to store a journal recording changes made to the database and also allows a journaling component to manage the memory space available for journaling. Two threshold size values may be specified for the journal. The first threshold value specifies a journal size at which to being pruning the journal on a given node. A journal pruning algorithm may be used to identify journal entries that may be removed. For example, once a given transaction completes (i.e., commits) the journal entries related to that transaction may be pruned from the journal. The second threshold value specifies the maximum size of the journal. After reaching this size, journal entries may be written to disk instead of the in-memory journal.

Abstract: A database spread over multiple nodes allows each node to store a journal recording changes made to the database and also allows a journaling component to manage the memory space available for journaling. Two threshold size values may be specified for the journal. The first threshold value specifies a journal size at which to being pruning the journal on a given node. A journal pruning algorithm may be used to identify journal entries that may be removed. For example, once a given transaction completes (i.e., commits) the journal entries related to that transaction may be pruned from the journal. The second threshold value specifies the maximum size of the journal. After reaching this size, journal entries may be written to disk instead of the in-memory journal.

Abstract: A database system has a contention monitor which determines when the level of contention for accessing or inserting records in the database rises above a threshold, and inhibits non-critical access to the database to reduce the level of contention. In a preferred embodiment, the level of contention is determined by periodically measuring the time for an INSERT operation on the database, and comparing the time to a threshold derived from a baseline time measurement for the operation during a time of normal database activity. Thus the contention level is inferred from the time to do the operation, in this case the INSERT query. In one embodiment, the contention monitor notifies a system administrator to take action to reduce the contention. In another embodiment, the contention monitor informs the system to take action automatically according to predetermined selections by the system administrator.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method, system and computer product including a scheduling manager residing in memory; whereby the scheduling manager dynamically manages access of additional computer resources to be applied to work items of a program based on their valuations relative to the processing costs thereof.

Abstract: In an embodiment, content is received on a channel between a scheduled start time and a scheduled stop time. A schedule specifies a planned transmission of a scheduled program between the scheduled start time and the scheduled stop time. The received content is recorded to a saved program. A determination is made that the saved program includes interruption content that is different from lost content of the scheduled program. A request for the lost content is sent to a content provider, the lost content is received from the content provider, and the interruption content is replaced in the saved program with the lost content. The request includes a begin time of the lost content relative to a beginning of the scheduled program and an amount of the lost content.

Abstract: A query processor includes a HAVING clause processing mechanism that processes the HAVING clause in a query when generating the intermediate results, instead of generating the intermediate results without regard to the HAVING clause, then applying the HAVING clause to the intermediate results. As a result, the size of the intermediate results may be significantly reduced, and effort is not wasted in placing data into the intermediate results in one step that would be removed were the HAVING clause processed separately.

Abstract: A query access plan for executing a database query is dynamically selected from among multiple alternative query access plans based on the availability of computer resources allocated for running the query. Preferably, a first query access plan is generated based on resources then available, and if it is possible to provide additional resources, one or more alternative plans are generated based on the additional resources. If an alternative plan is significantly better than the original plan based on a comparison of query related parameters, the alternative is chosen for executing the query. Additional resources for running the query may be provided from logically partitioned and/or grid environments.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment track a history of statements that query data from a database. When a new statement is received, the history is searched for a correlation between the new statement and previous statements. The correlation is based on host variables in the history and the new statement. When a correlation is found, a prediction is made for the next statement to be received based on the previous statement in the history for which the correlation was found. The prediction is then used to retrieve pages from the database into a cache, which may be used by a subsequent statement.

Abstract: An apparatus, program product and method dynamically optimize prepared statements resident in a statement pool to permit subsequent reuses of such statements to utilize the optimized representations of such statements. The optimization of pooled statements may be performed responsive to the tracked usage of the statements in a statement pool, to direct the overhead associated with such optimization to those statements that are more likely to be utilized in the future. Among a multitude of possible optimizations, a pooled statement that requests data in a format other than that utilized by the database being accessed may be modified to request the data in the format used by the database, thereby decreasing the overhead in the database associated with format conversions.

Abstract: Advertisements may be selected for display to a user in a computer game environment based at least in part on one or more of a personality trait of the user as determined from monitoring a behavior of the user as the user is participating in the computer game environment, a user affinity for a subject of another advertisement as determined from monitoring activity of the user after the user views the other advertisement while the other advertisement is displayed in the computer game environment, and a characteristic of the user as determined from a username selected by the user.

Abstract: A web server computer system includes a virus checker and mechanisms for checking e-mails and their attachments, downloaded files, and web sites for possible viruses. The virus checker allows a web server to perform virus checking of different types of information real-time as the information is requested by a web client. In addition, a web client may also request that the server perform virus checking on a particular drive on the web client. If this case, the web server may receive information from the web client drive, scan the information for viruses, and inform the web client whether any viruses were found. In the alternative, the web server may download a client virus checker to the web client and cause the client virus checker to be run on the web client. The preferred embodiments thus eliminate the need for virus checking software to be installed on each web client.

Abstract: A deterministic UDF processing mechanism processes user-defined functions (UDFs) using multiple hash tables. Data access patterns for a UDF are collected, and an appropriate hash table set is then determined for the UDF from the data access patterns. If a UDF accesses some similar columns and some disjoint columns, the similar columns are grouped together, and one or more hash tables are allocated to the similar columns. Disjoint columns are allocated their own hash tables. In addition, the allocation of hash tables may be adjusted based on historical access patterns collected over time. By dynamically allocating and adjusting sets of hash tables to a deterministic UDF, the performance of the UDF is greatly increased.

Abstract: An apparatus and program product monitors performance of a computer system via a result size including a result set size of accesses to a database and a page size. Preferred embodiments are directed to a performance monitor that correlates data from existing tools that report data concerning access to the database and the use of system resources. Other embodiments are directed to a performance monitor that is included in an application server associated with the database.

Abstract: An apparatus and program product monitor performance of a computer system via a result size including a result set size of accesses to a database and a page size. Preferred embodiments are directed to a performance monitor that correlates data from existing tools that report data concerning access to the database and the use of system resources. Other embodiments are directed to a performance monitor that is included in an application server associated with the database.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for a multi-partition query governor in a partitioned computer database system. In preferred embodiments a query governor uses data of a query governor file that is associated with multiple partitions to determine how the query governor manages access to the database across multiple partitions. Also, in preferred embodiments, the query governor in a local partition that receives a query request communicates with a query governor in a target partition to accumulate the total resource demands of the query on the local and target partitions. In preferred embodiments, a query governor estimates whether resources to execute a query will exceed a threshold over all or a combination of database partitions.

Abstract: According to the preferred embodiments, a database relationship constraint is defined for a first column that specifies a set of allowable values for the first column that depend on a set of data values in a second column that may be of a different type than data in the first column. In a first embodiment, a database relationship constraint specifies allowable values for one column in a database table based on one or more data values in a different column in the same database table. In a second embodiment, a database relationship constraint specifies a set of allowable values in a first column based on one or more data values in a second column in a different database table. In both cases, the data in the second column may be of a different type than data in the second column.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention provide for a method, system and article of manufacture for operating vending machines. In general, a plurality of vending machines are nodes of a network. Each node is configured to send, receive and process signals carrying inventory, pricing, reservation and/or refund information. In particular, a first signal is sent to one or more nodes requesting inventory/price information from other nodes. Those nodes carrying the product may reply with a second signal. In this manner, the location of vending machines carrying one or more items specified by a customer may be determined. In another embodiment, vending machine items may be reserved from a remote location. In still another embodiment, vending machines may be configured to provide refunds under controlled conditions. A consumer may request a refund in cases where the consumer was improperly charged for goods are services that were not provided.