WIDGET MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND ADVERTISING SYSTEMS RELATED THERETO
Systems and methods disclosed herein support use, re-use, and recomposition of widgets and other web content, such as by providing a user interface for controlling the interrelationship and display of widgets and the like. In one aspect, an OPML-based system expresses relationships among discrete components of web content through an OPML outline. In another aspect, a URL-based service dynamically creates composite web content according to functional calls posted to a web-accessible URL.
1 - 22 . (canceled)
23 . A method comprising:
receiving a request at a server from a client, the request including a URL specifying a network address of the server, an identification of the location of remote content, and a description of how the remote content is to be composed into a web page;
fetching the remote content to the server; and
composing the remote content into the web page according to the description.
24 . The method of claim 23 further comprising responding to the request with the web page.
25 . The method of claim 23 further comprising transmitting the web page to a remote host and responding to the request with a URL of the web page at the remote host.
26 . The method of claim 23 further comprising transmitting status information concerning the request to the client.
27 . The method of claim 26 wherein transmitting status information includes transmitting a URL.
28 . The method of claim 26 wherein transmitting status information includes transmitting a message using one or more of electronic mail and an instant message.
29 . The method of claim 23 further comprising transmitting error information concerning the request to the client.
30 . The method of claim 29 wherein the error information concerns availability of one or more sources of the remote content.
31 . The method of claim 23 wherein the remote content includes web content.
32 . The method of claim 23 wherein the remote content includes a widget.
33 . The method of claim 23 wherein the remote content includes one or more of a syndicated data feed, a network-accessible database, and multimedia.
34 . The method of claim 23 further comprising including an advertisement in the web page.
35 . The method of claim 34 further comprising receiving bids for placement of the advertisement within the web page according to one or more of size, position, and content.
36 . The method of claim 34 further comprising controlling selection of the advertisement according to the description.
37 . The method of claim 34 wherein the description includes a request to withhold advertising from the web page, the method including assessing a fee for the request when no advertisement is included in the web page.
38 . A computer program product embodied on a computer readable medium that, when executing on one or more computing devices, performs the steps of:
receiving a request at a server from a client, the request including a URL specifying a network address of the server, an identification of the location of remote content, and a description of how the remote content is to be composed into a web page;
fetching the remote content to the server; and
composing the remote content into the web page according to the description.
39 . The computer program product of claim 38 further comprising code that performs the step of responding to the request with the web page.
40 . The computer program product of claim 38 further comprising code that performs the step of transmitting the web page to a remote host and responding to the request with a URL of the web page at the remote host.
41 . The computer program product of claim 38 further comprising code that performs the step of transmitting status information concerning the request to the client.
42 . The computer program product of claim 41 wherein transmitting status information includes transmitting a URL.
43 - 52 . (canceled)