A communication system includes a terminal having a first storage section for storing a number of pieces of content information, a second storage section for storing a number of pieces of the content information, a storage control section for placing a content ID stored in the second storage section into purchase information for each terminal and stored in the second storage section, an access control section for controlling access to the content information corresponding to the content ID stored in the second storage section, and an accounting setting section for setting an amount of a fee to be imposed on the terminal in response to the purchase information.

A system and method for communicating information relating to a network resource. A server computer and a client computer for displaying related information about another document or information requested. Guiding individuals to places of interest on a network where information is stored, and/or displaying or otherwise presenting useful information to the user.

A network storage system comprises data storage, one or more file system APIs, and a metadata handler. The data storage can comprise file data and associated metadata. The file system APIs can be configured to read and write file data and metadata to and from the data storage. The metadata handler can have a library of functions for handling the metadata. The library can include a metadata blob creation function and a metadata blob extraction function. The metadata blob creation function cooperates with the file system APIs to read source metadata associated with specified file data and creates and populates a metadata blob from which a substantial copy of the source metadata can be generated. The metadata blob extraction function receives at least a metadata blob, extracts information from the metadata blob, and cooperates with the file system APIs to generate destination metadata, a substantial copy of the source metadata.

An electronic media distribution/play system includes a service facility that has a communications network interface and maintains a data file catalog. The catalog is sent over the network to requesting users, and the system processes payments from customers in establishing file access authorizations. Encrypted user-selected files and a player program are transmitted to each customer for metered access to received data files as limited by the authorization, and customers can make additional selections and play the encrypted files freely while the authorization remains established. The system can transmit the data files from local storage, and also provide links to encrypted files that are stored at remote vendor facilities. Authorizations can be for selected portions or class levels of the catalog, and for terms measured as calendar time, play time, and collective number of plays. Also disclosed is a method for facilitating the distribution and accessing of electronic files.

Exemplary systems and methods for server management are provided. An exemplary system comprises a plurality of servers, with each server having the ability to access a database or, in some embodiments, be configured to perform a calculation, computation or make a determination of a particular value, values or other information. A communications network delivers queries to each server whereby a look-up table directs query processing by the servers. Further embodiments of the system feature a program logic controller for rebalancing the workload of the network servers. Exemplary methods of processing queries on the system comprise submitting a query to the network, communicating the query to each server in the network and each server looking-up on a look-up table the processing responsibilities of the servers in the network. The query is processed by the server having primary responsibility for processing the query while other the servers monitor query processing. Transmission of a query result to a user typically completes the process.

A computer-implemented system and method for identifying relevant documents is provided. A set of documents each associated with one or more concepts is identified. At least a portion of the documents in the set are clustered based on the concepts. A matrix that provides a summary of the documents most relevant to one such concept is generated by determining for each document a measure of similarity between a concept frequency occurrence and concept weights of each cluster. The matrix is populated with the calculated measures of similarity. Those documents associated with a threshold measure of similarity are identified as the most relevant documents to one such concept.

High-risk database statements are identified. A DBMS performs a series of experiments by generating sets of statistics describing data over which particular database statements run. The DBMS submits each of these sets of statistics to a query optimizer, which returns information for an execution plan that the optimizer would use to implement the statements given the submitted set of data statistics. If the DBMS determines that the optimizer changes the established execution plan for the database statements for any of the submitted sets of statistics, the DBMS performs one or more actions to mitigate the risk of changing execution plans, such as automatically tuning the database statements or the entire workload, and/or sending information about the database statements to a database administrator. Techniques are also described for calculating diagnostic values based on the results of such experiments, which quantify the sensitivity of the execution plans to changes in data statistics.

Classifying an electronic document in a computer-based system is disclosed. For each classification instance in a plurality of classification instances, a confidence data indicating a degree of confidence that the electronic document is associated with that classification instance is determined. A classification, based on a first classification instance in the plurality of classification instances, is assigned without human intervention to the electronic document if the confidence data associated with the first classification instance exceeds a first threshold.

An information retrieval system includes a query revision architecture that integrates multiple different query revisers, each implementing one or more query revision strategies. A revision server receives a user's query, and interfaces with the various query revisers, each of which generates one or more potential revised queries. The revision server evaluates the potential revised queries, and selects one or more of them to provide to the user. A session-based reviser suggests one or more revised queries, given a first query, by calculating an expected utility for the revised query. The expected utility is calculated as the product of a frequency of occurrence of the query pair and an increase in quality of the revised query over the first query.

Provided is a document managing apparatus that can eliminate the complexity of operation related to designation of confidential information, and yet reliably prevents leakage of confidential information. First, a receiving circuit receives target files from a client terminal. Therefore, a file managing circuit manages, of the received target files, a file that is designated as confidential, having been subjected to output restriction, as a confidential designated file. In addition, the file managing circuit manages a file that is not designated as confidential, as a user file. In addition, the file analyzing circuit compares the user file with the confidential designated file. If the content of the user file is similar to the content of the confidential designated file at a rate equal to or higher than a certain value (for example, 80%), the file analyzing circuit applies output restriction to the user file.