Consolidated User Access History in Collaborative Documents
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current collaborative document systems lack efficient recording and management of user access history, leading to inefficiencies in communication and collaboration, as they often rely on third-party trackers and separate user interfaces, which degrade performance and user experience.
Innovation Solution
A cloud-based system that records and displays user access history directly within the collaborative document interface, eliminating the need for third-party trackers and reducing transitions between interfaces, allowing users to view access data and perform actions directly from the same UI.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If third-party trackers are used to record user access data, then access tracking capability is achieved, but system performance degrades and user experience is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the access tracking functionality from third-party trackers and integrates it directly into the cloud-based collaborative document system. The server automatically records access data (user identity, timestamp, document location) without requiring external tracking services, thereby eliminating the performance degradation and user experience issues associated with third-party trackers while maintaining complete access tracking capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The cloud-based server performs multiple functions: it stores the collaborative document, tracks user access, manages permissions, and provides the user interface all within a single integrated system. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate third-party trackers and improves overall system performance by reducing external dependencies.
2Adaptability or versatility
If separate user interfaces are used for document viewing and access history, then functional separation is achieved, but user experience deteriorates due to interface transitions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the access history display and document viewing functionality into a single integrated user interface. The access history is presented as a sidebar or overlay within the same interface that displays the collaborative document, allowing users to view access information and the document simultaneously without transitioning between separate interfaces. This maintains functional separation while significantly improving user experience.
Solution Approach 2:
The access history is displayed in an additional dimensional space within the user interface (such as a sidebar, tooltip, or overlay layer) rather than requiring a complete interface transition. This allows both the document and access history to coexist in the same interface context, improving ease of operation while maintaining functional versatility.
3Ease of operation
If access data is recorded and displayed within the same UI, then user experience is enhanced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The user interface is segmented into distinct functional regions: the main document viewing area and the access history display area. This segmentation allows the access history to be displayed within the same UI without creating a monolithic complex interface. Each region serves its specific purpose, making the overall interface more manageable and less confusing for users while enhancing the integrated experience.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of providing user access history for a collaborative document includes receiving, by a server, a first request for the collaborative document from a client device of a user of a plurality of users that have permission to access the collaborative document; providing the collaborative document to the client device for presentation to the user in a user interface on the client device; determining whether a collaborator type of the user matches a predefined collaborator type; responsive to determining that the collaborator type of the user matches the predefined collaborator type: creating a first user access history for the collaborative document based on accesses of the collaborative document by one or more of the plurality of users, and providing the first user access history for the collaborative document to the client device for display within a consolidated view of the user interface presenting the collaborative document.