Abstract: A system and method for transferring annotations associated with a media file. An annotation associated with a media file is indexed to a first instance of that media file. By comparing features of the two instances, a mapping is created between the first instance of the media file and a second instance of the media file. The annotation can be indexed to the second instance using the mapping between the first and second instances. The annotation can be processed (displayed, stored, or modified) based on the index to the second instance.

Abstract: Structured data sets including one or more attributes are identified, each structured data set associated with, for example, a particular user. Values corresponding the at least one of the one or more attributes in each structured data set are identified. A condition established by a content provider, for instance, an advertiser, is compared to the identified values to determine if the condition is satisfied. When the condition is satisfied, one or more content items are identified to the users associated with the structured data sets containing identified values satisfying the condition.

Abstract: A system and method for transferring annotations associated with a media file. An annotation associated with a media file is indexed to a first instance of that media file. By comparing features of the two instances, a mapping is created between the first instance of the media file and a second instance of the media file. The annotation can be indexed to the second instance using the mapping between the first and second instances. The annotation can be processed (displayed, stored, or modified) based on the index to the second instance.

Abstract: A system and method to target advertisements to a user search query using a previously entered user search query as well as the current search query. The previously entered search query can accompanying the current search query in a query referrer, or can be determined separately from the current search query. The relevance of the previous search query is determined with respect to the current search query, and if found relevant a combination of the two query terms is used to find a set of advertising keywords from which candidate advertisements to be targeted and served to the user with search results are found. The process can be extended to additional search queries.

Abstract: A custodian profile, e.g., a user profile, associated with a first content item, e.g., an associated web page in a social network, can be identified as a first content item. The first content item can be utilized to identify one or more second content items, e.g., advertisements, that are displayed when the first content item is presented, e.g., viewed by another user of the social network.

Abstract: Open profile data in a user profile, e.g., free-form fields in a user profile, are processed to identify interests and preferences of the user. The interests and preferences are utilized to identify categories associated with the user profile, and content items, e.g., advertisements, can be identified based on the categories.

Abstract: An entity relationship defining an entity, e.g., a friendship relation in a social network, user groups, etc., can be identified and entity content based on the entity relationship, e.g., user profile data of user accounts, group memberships, etc., can be processed to identify entity topics. One or more content items, e.g., advertisements, can be identified based on the entity topics.

Abstract: A system generates a text document from a received document image. Searchable metadata elements may be assigned to all or part of the text document by a user or by a template used to generate the text document. The text document and the associated metadata elements may be stored to facilitate subsequent searching and retrieval of the text document based on contents of the text document and/or its associated metadata elements.

Abstract: A system generates a text document from a received document image. Metadata elements may be assigned to all or part of the text document by a user or by a template used to generate the text document. The text document and the associated metadata elements may be stored to facilitate subsequent searching and retrieval of the text document or the document image based on contents of the text document and/or its associated metadata elements.

Abstract: A system and method for transferring annotations associated with a media file. An annotation associated with a media file is indexed to a first instance of that media file. By comparing features of the two instances, a mapping is created between the first instance of the media file and a second instance of the media file. The annotation can be indexed to the second instance using the mapping between the first and second instances. The annotation can be processed (displayed, stored, or modified) based on the index to the second instance.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for converting numeric queries into substantially equivalent textual queries are described. In general, the systems and techniques discussed use search query logs to accurately select a most probably mapping for a numeric-to-text conversion. This mapping can occur when a system (e.g., a server-side search system) receives a series of numeric inputs (e.g., from a cell phone keypad) that may correspond to more than one word. For example, a search server may receive input 22737, which corresponds to both the words ACRES and CASES, as part of a query. The server uses current entries in query logs to create mappings for words from the numeric input. If recent queries indicate that the term ACRES is currently more popular than the term CASES, the mapping may match the entry 22737 to the text ACRES.

Abstract: Advertiser repository information (e.g., a list of HTML pages) may be used to automatically generate a page-ad and associated ad information for each page using a subset of features of the page. Subsequently, a page-ad index for all pages from different advertisers may be created. After creating a page-ad index, if a client issues a query (e.g., from a search engine), candidate page-ads may be selected using the page-ads index. If necessary (e.g., if there are more candidate page-ads than requested ads), the candidate page-ads may be entered into an arbitration (e.g., auction). Then, the arbitration may determine a set of one or more winning page-ads to be served for rendering.

Abstract: A system receives a request from a client and provides an aerial image to the client in response to the request. The aerial image includes an advertisement superimposed on the aerial image.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus, including systems and computer program products, to provide clustering of users in which users are each represented as a set of elements representing items, e.g., items selected by users using a system. In one aspect, a program operates to obtain a respective interest set for each of multiple users, each interest set representing items in which the respective user expressed interest; for each of the users, to determine k hash values of the respective interest set, wherein the i-th hash value is a minimum value under a corresponding i-th hash function; and to assign each of the multiple users to each of the respective k clusters established for the respective user, the i-th cluster being represented by the i-th hash value. The assignment of each of the users to k clusters is done without regard to the assignment of any of the other users to k clusters.

Abstract: In a relational database system, a set of physical design structures is enumerated that optimizes database performance over a given workload consisting of workload entries that include queries and updates that have been executed against the database. An individual benefit is calculated for each candidate structure relevant to a given workload entry and these individual benefits are summed over the entries in the workload examined thus far. A workload entry is selected from the workload and a set of candidate structures relevant to the workload entry is identified.

Abstract: The embodiments disclosed herein include new, more efficient ways to collect product reviews from the Internet, aggregate reviews for the same product, and provide an aggregated review to end users in a searchable format. One aspect of the invention is a graphical user interface on a computer that includes a plurality of portions of reviews for a product and a search input area for entering search terms to search for reviews of the product that contain the search terms.

Abstract: The embodiments disclosed herein include new, more efficient ways to collect product reviews from the Internet, aggregate reviews for the same product, and provide an aggregated review to end users in a searchable format. One aspect of the invention is a graphical user interface on a computer that includes a plurality of portions of reviews for a product and a search input area for entering search terms to search for reviews of the product that contain the search terms.

Abstract: A method of estimating the Results of a database query are estimated by performing a sampling of weighted tuples in a database based on a probability of usage of tuples required in executing a workload. A probability is associated with each tuple sampled. And, can aggregate is computed over values in each sampled tuple while multiplying by the inverses of the probabilities associated with each tuple sampled.

Abstract: An outlier index for a database and a given workload is generated by identifying sub-relations of tuples in the database induced by selection and group by conditions in queries in the workload. A variance is then generated for values in each sub-relation. Sub-relations having higher variances are selected, and outliers from such sub-relations having higher variances are generated.

Abstract: Aggregation queries are performed by first identifying outlier values, aggregating the outlier values, and sampling the remaining data after pruning the outlier values. The sampled data is extrapolated and added to the aggregated outlier values to provide an estimate for each aggregation query. Outlier values are identified by selecting values outside of a selected sliding window of data having the lowest variance. An index is created for the outlier values. The outlier data is removed from the window of data, and separately aggregated. The remaining data without the outliers is then sampled to provide a statistically relevant sample that is then aggregated and extrapolated to provide an estimate for the remaining data. This sampled estimate is combined with the outlier aggregate to form an estimate for the entire set of data.