Aggregation system for social network sites
View Patent ↗Machine, method for use and method for making, and corresponding products produced thereby, as well as data structures, computer-readable media tangibly embodying program instructions, manufactures, and necessary intermediates of the foregoing, each pertaining to digital aspects of a computerized aggregation system. The system can include a user computer system interposed between a segment of a network allowing communication between the user computer system and at least one server system, and other segments allowing communication between the user computer system and a plurality of third party server systems. The one server system enables the user computer system to access the plurality of other servers. The access permits forming an aggregation of information obtained from the third party server systems.
1. A social networking aggregation apparatus, comprising:
a computer,
a display controlled by the computer, and
networking hardware connecting the computer to the Internet,
the computer programmed so that the social networking aggregation apparatus: connects to a plurality of social networking sites on the Internet; and then authenticates itself with each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then
retrieves social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then parses the social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites so as to produce an aggregation of the parsed social networking information; and then
renders the aggregation as output.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computer controls display of the output by acting as a website sending information to a web browser on a computer, where the display occurs.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computer controls display of the output by rendering a web page that can then be displayed on a computer, where the display occurs.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computer is a user's personal computer and the output is displayed as the personal computer's normal display.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein computer authenticates itself by accessing a database is stored on another computer and is retrieved using the networking hardware.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computer is a user's personal computer, and the user's personal computer retrieves the social networking information from each of the social networking sites by using a proxy applet running on the user's personal computer, so that the IP address of the user's personal computer is used.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the social networking information comprises messages.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the social networking information comprises social status messages.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the social networking information comprises information automatically generated by one of the social networking sites.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the social networking information comprises content generated by a user of the site.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the social networking information comprises comments.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the social networking information comprises wall posts.
13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the social networking information comprises social network profiles.
14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the social networking information comprises friend lists.
15. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the aggregation includes a leaderboard which is a summary of a user's frequent social network correspondents.
16. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the leaderboard is calculated by combining a total of messages and wall posts or messages and comments for a time period selected by the user.
17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computer renders the output with color-coding to identify a social network in a display.
18. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the aggregation comprises an aggregated stream of status messages.
19. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the aggregation does not include email or instant messaging.
20. The apparatus of claim 1 where aggregation includes the user selectively filtering based on the social networking site.
21. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein aggregation includes the user selectively filtering based on the friend.
22. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a display of the aggregation is produced by aggregating on a client side of a client server system.
23. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a display of the aggregation is produced by aggregating on a server side of a client server system.
24. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein a display of the aggregation is produced by aggregating on a client side and on a server side of a client server system.
25. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computer is a mobile device.
26. A method of using a computer, the method comprising:
providing a computer programmed produce an aggregation from social networking sites;
connecting said programmed computer to networking hardware so as to allow communication with the Internet in:
producing, an output aggregation from social networking sites by the computer:
connecting to a plurality of social networking sites on the Internet; and then
authenticating itself with each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then
retrieving social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then
parsing the social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites so as to produce an output aggregation.
27. Computer-readable media, tangibly embodying program instructions, which when executed by a computer connected with networking hardware so as to allow communication with the Internet, will cause the computer to:
connect to a plurality of social networking sites on the Internet; and then
authenticate itself with each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then
retrieve social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites; and then
parse the social networking information from each of the plurality of social networking sites so as to produce an aggregation of the parsed social networking information; and then
render the aggregation as output.