JP2008046985A - Information management device, control method thereof, and program thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manage public information by applying a part of a capacity of a user's storage area to a capacity of a storage area of public information to be extended, and efficiently using a storage capacity of an entire site. <P>SOLUTION: An information management device includes: a first use capacity acquisition means which adds a capacity of public information received from an information providing device to acquire a use capacity of a storage area of an information owner; a request reception means which receives a request from an information browsing device; and a second use capacity acquisition means which adds the capacity of public information to a use capacity of a storage area of an information provider to acquire the addition result as the use capacity of the storage area of the information provider, in response to the request. The first use capacity acquisition means doesn't add the capacity of public information added by the second use capacity acquisition means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for uploading data such as images from a user's information device via the Internet and distributing the data to a third party.

  As a type of information providing service using the communication infrastructure such as the Internet, there is a service that allows a user to upload image data taken with a digital camera to a server on the network and access the server when the user desires to view the image data. . Hereinafter, a provider that provides such a network service is referred to as a photo site.

  A case where the image data of the owner user is disclosed to a third party (hereinafter referred to as an invited user) designated by the user (hereinafter referred to as the owner user) who uploaded the image data by the photo site will be described below.

  First, the owner user starts a Web browser on a PC (Personal Computer), accesses a photo site, uploads image data, and notifies the name of the invited user, an e-mail address, and the like. The photo site generates a URL (Universal Resource Locator) for accessing uploaded image data or an image data group (hereinafter referred to as photo album (collectively referred to as image data and photo album)). . At this time, the generated URL is a unique address for the image data and uses a random number that cannot be uniquely predicted. An example is shown below.

http: //○○○.com/PhotoSite/Album/AlbumEntry.cgi? AlbumID = AJNWDMF
The photo site describes this URL in a message, and transmits an e-mail with the e-mail address of the invited user as a destination via the Internet. The invited user who has received the e-mail can view the image data of the owner user by starting a web browser on the PC and inputting the URL described in the e-mail. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

In addition, when the owner user publishes image data, a date and time for ending the publication can be set, and a mechanism is provided so that the uploaded image data is automatically deleted upon completion of the publication. As a result, in the situation of a photo site where only a limited upload area is provided to the owner user, it is possible to easily use the disk area easily without having to manage the image data uploaded by the owner user himself / herself. it can.
JP 2003-108815 A

  In the above-described conventional technology, when the publication end date / time is set in the image data, the image data that has been made public is displayed after the publication end date of the image data has passed, regardless of whether or not the invited user has viewed the image data. Since it is automatically deleted, the invited user cannot view it. This is not detrimental to invited users who are not willing to browse, but for example, invited users who do not have time to view all the details of the current public album, or invited users who tried to browse again, This is a big disadvantage for invited users who are willing to browse.

  Therefore, if the period during which the public information can be browsed is postponed, the storage area corresponding to the public album remains as a photo site without being deleted. For this reason, it is necessary for the photosite side to have a large storage capacity, and it is necessary to increase the site scale, resulting in a cost problem.

  Therefore, the present invention can efficiently use the storage capacity of the entire site by allocating a part of the invited user's storage area capacity to the storage area of the public information that is to be stored without being deleted. Provide information management technology.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the present invention stores reception means for receiving public information transferred from an information owner via an information providing device, and public information received by the reception means. An information management apparatus comprising: storage means; and distribution means for distributing public information stored in the storage means to an information recipient via an information browsing device, the information management device comprising: In response to the request, the first used capacity acquisition means for adding the capacity and acquiring the used capacity of the storage area of the information owner, the request receiving means for receiving a request from the information browsing device, A second used capacity acquisition unit configured to add the capacity of public information to the used capacity of the storage area of the information provider to acquire the used capacity of the storage area of the information provider; The capacity utilization acquisition unit does not add the volume of the public information added by the second capacity utilization acquisition unit.

  The present invention also includes a step of receiving public information transferred from an information owner via an information providing device, a step of storing the received public information, and a step of storing the stored public information via an information browsing device. And delivering to the information provider, the information management device control method comprising: adding the capacity of the public information received from the information providing device to increase the used capacity of the storage area of the information owner A first acquisition step of acquiring, a receiving step of receiving a request from the information browsing device, and in response to the request, adding the capacity of the public information to the used capacity of the storage area of the information provider A second acquisition step of acquiring the used capacity of the storage area of the information recipient, and in the first acquisition step, the public information added in the second acquisition step is added. Not adding the capacity of information.

  According to the present invention, the information management apparatus can efficiently use the entire storage capacity for storing public information.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  The embodiment described below is an example as means for realizing the present invention, and should be appropriately modified or changed according to the configuration and various conditions of the apparatus to which the present invention is applied. It is not limited to the embodiment.

[System configuration and basic operation]
First, an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an information providing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  In the following description, a party who uploaded image data to a photo site on the Internet is simply referred to as an owner user, and a third party permitted to view the owner user's image data is referred to as an invited user.

<Acquisition of image data>
Reference numeral 101 denotes an image input device. Examples of the image input device 101 include a digital still camera that can shoot a subject and record it as still image data, a digital video camera that can record it as moving image data, or a scanner that reads a document and records it as still image data. Can be mentioned. The image input device 101 converts an optical image, which is image information, into an electrical signal, performs predetermined image processing, and then records / reproduces it as digital information.

  Reference numeral 102 denotes a personal computer (PC). In this embodiment, the PC 102A is an owner user, and the PC 102B is an apparatus used by an invited user.

  Reference numeral 103 denotes a data transfer interface for transferring image data input by the image input device 101 to the PC 102A. The data transfer interface 103 is a wired interface typified by USB (Universal Serial Bus) or IEEE 1394, or a wireless interface typified by IrDA or Bluetooth.

  The image data transferred from the image input device 101 to the PC 102A via the data transfer interface 103 is stored in a storage area 104A of an information storage device represented by an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) of the PC 102A. The image data transfer from the image input device 101 to the PC 102A is realized by an OS (Operating System) or dedicated software installed in the PC 102A. In other words, the CPU (Central Processing Unit) of the PC 102A executes the OS or dedicated software installed in the PC 102A, and executes it by reading out the image data stored in the storage area 104A of the information storage device of the image input device 101. Is done. Alternatively, according to the transfer command issued by the image input device 101 to the PC 102A, the OS of the PC 102A or the dedicated software secures the storage area 104A of the information processing apparatus of the PC 102A and receives the image data from the image input device 101. Executed.

<Uploading image data>
In this way, the image data transferred to the PC 102A is uploaded to the photo site 107 connected to the Internet 106 by the following procedure.

  A browser 105A having a standard protocol capable of transferring information on the Internet 106 operating on the PC 102A accesses the photosite 107 using a standard protocol such as the http protocol. Then, the browser 105A displays information linked with multimedia information such as images and sounds created in a description language such as HTML and XML managed by the server PC of the photo site 107. With this operation, the PC 102A can receive a service using the Internet 106 as a communication infrastructure provided by the photo site 107.

  Next, the image data taken by the image input device 101 stored in the information storage area 104A of the PC 102A is transferred to the photosite 107 at the request of the user of the PC 102A (this transfer operation is called image upload). ). The image upload may be transferred in conjunction with the image upload request action by selecting the image data to be transferred from the browser 105A described above. In addition, image data may be selected using image upload software or the like and transferred directly from the image upload software described above. In either case, it is executed based on a protocol available on the Internet such as http or ftp. A module that executes this series of operations at the photo site 107 is a photo sharing module 108.

  The uploaded image data is checked by the photo sharing module 108 to be data that can be used by the photo site 107. As a result, when it is determined that the image can be used, the uploaded image is stored in the image database (DB) 110 and the attribute information and the like are stored in the information database (DB) 111. At this stage, the photo sharing module 108 notifies the PC 102A that the image data has been successfully uploaded.

  In the attribute information DB 111, in addition to the attribute information of the image data, data of user attribute information registered in the photo site 107 and various data of attribute information of the print service provider (hereinafter, print site) are centrally managed. ing. The user of the PC 102A can browse the image designated through the browser 105A for the image data uploaded in this way. Regarding this browsing, the uploaded image data may be managed as an album with a plurality of images as a unit.

<Print image data>
Next, a print order procedure for uploaded image data will be described.

  Among the image data uploaded to the photo site 107, the user of the PC 102A can browse the image data uploaded by the user via the browser. The selection of browsing images can be done by selecting images sequentially in units of a single image, or by registering a plurality of the above-mentioned images as one album, selecting an album that the user wants to browse from a plurality of album groups, There is a method of selecting individual images managed by the selected album.

  The photo site 107 requests a print order of image data uploaded from the user from a print provider that provides a printout of the image data as a solution. This print provider is a print site 112 that requests printout of uploaded image data. Although one print site is shown in FIG. 1, there are usually a plurality of requested print sites, and the number is not limited.

  The user of the PC 102A selects image data to be printed out from the uploaded image browsing screen. Next, the user of the PC 102A selects the print site 112 that can be provided by the photo site 107 and the print site that the user wants to order. The user selects a print site to be ordered in consideration of services provided by each print site, price, delivery date, and the like.

  A user who wants to place a print order selects image data that he / she wants to place a print order on from the browsing screen and notifies the photo site 107 of the image data. The photo site 107 generates a temporary print order for the image data requested to be printed out, and sends an estimate request to the print site 1112 via the Internet 106.

  The print site 112 that has received the temporary print order from the photo site 107 calculates a price from the contents of the temporary print order by a charging module (not shown) as a charging means, and sends the estimated price to the photo site 107 via the Internet 106. Notice. The photo site 107 can receive the estimated price information in real time, transfer it to the PC 102A as information, and dynamically present the price presented by the print site 112 to the user who places the print order.

  When the user of the PC 102A who placed the print order confirms the purchase at the presented price and returns an approval action to the photo site 107, the payment module 109 accepts this and performs the payment process. When the settlement is completed, the photo site 107 sends a formal print order to the print site 112.

  When the print site 112 receives the official print order, the print site 112 acquires image data necessary for printout from the image DB 110 of the photo site 107. The image data obtained in this way is printed out using a printing means such as the printer 113 owned by the print site 112 and output as a printed matter 114. The printed matter 114 that has been printed out is delivered to a delivery destination designated by the PC 102A that requested the printing out by some transportation means.

  The above is the outline of the system for the user who uploaded the image data photographed by the image input device 101 via the PC 102A to browse the photo site 107 and make a print order. Here, the PC has been described as an example of a terminal for uploading images, but the information providing system according to the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an image can be uploaded from a portable terminal, or an image can be uploaded directly from an image input device such as a digital camera, digital video, scanner, or copying machine.

<Browsing invited users>
Next, a method for viewing image data uploaded to the photo site 107 and stored in the image DB 110 via the Internet 106 by a user other than the user who uploaded the image data to the photo site 107 will be described.

  The photo site 107 provides browsing and print ordering services for “uploaded images” or “album that manages a plurality of uploaded images as one archive” for invited users specified by the uploading user To do.

  The user who uploaded the image data to the photo site 107 notifies the photo site 107 of attribute information such as the name of the invited user and the e-mail address that he / she allows to browse using the web browser 105A.

  When publishing an image to an invited user, the photo site 107 first generates a URL (Universal Resource Locator) necessary for publication. At this time, a URL that uses a unique address and a random number that cannot be uniquely predicted is assigned as the generated URL. An example is shown below.

http: //○○○.com/PhotoSite/Album/AlbumEntry.cgi? AlbumID = AJNWDMF
Hereinafter, such a uniquely unpredictable URL is referred to as a random URL.

  The photo site 107 adds the password information necessary for browsing the random URL generated as described above as necessary, and notifies the inviting user by E-Mail via the Internet 106. The invited user who has received the E-mail accesses the Internet 106 from the PC 102B, and inputs the random URL notified by the E-Mail to the Web browser 105B. As a result, the Web browser 105B accesses the photo site 105 and requests an image. In response to this request, the photo site 105 delivers display control information including the image to the web browser 105B in order to display the image on the web browser 105B. As a result, the Web browser 105B displays the image on the display, so that the invited user can view the image or album designated by the user who uploaded the image.

  In the photo site 107, the user sets the ending date and time of publishing for an image or album, and when the ending date and time comes, the user automatically deletes the image (all images included in the album in the case of an album) Such a function can also be provided. Also, it is possible to provide a function of automatically deleting an image that has been released in the same manner even when there is no access for a certain period of time set in operation, instead of setting the release end date and time. With this automatic deletion function, the user automatically deletes and organizes the image data in the image DB 110 of the photo site 107 without explicitly deleting the image data at a timing when it is no longer necessary upon completion of the publication. Thereby, the user can effectively utilize the area in the image DB 110 on the photo site 107.

<Invited user print order>
Next, a method will be described in which an invited user who uses the PC 102B places a print order on the image data that can be viewed in this way.

  The photo site 107 places an image data print order from the inviting user to the print site 112 that provides a printout of the image data.

  The inviting user of the PC 102B selects image data that he / she wants to print out as a product by printing out from the browsing screen. Next, the invited user using the PC 102B selects the print site 112 that can be provided by the photo site 105. The inviting user selects the print site 112 he / she places an order in consideration of the service provided by each print site 112, the unit price, the delivery date, and the like.

  When the inviting user selects image data that he / she wishes to print from the browsing screen and notifies the photo site 107, the photo site 107 generates a temporary print order for the image data requested to be printed out. Then, the temporary print order is transmitted via the Internet 106 to request the print site 112 for an estimate. The print site 112 that has received the temporary print order from the photo site 107 acquires image data necessary for the selected image information from the image DB 110 of the photo site 107 and generates selected image information. By transmitting the selected image information to the PC 102B via the Internet 106, the invited user can input the print format, the number of sheets, and the like for each image selected on the Web browser 105B in the PC 102B.

  The print site 112 calculates an estimated amount by a fee calculation (billing) module based on information such as the print format and the number of prints for each selected image, and the calculated estimate amount is sent to the photo site 107 via the Internet 106. Send to. The photo site 107 receives information on the estimated amount transmitted from the print site 112 in real time. In the case of an invited user who does not have personal information of the user, the estimated amount transmitted from the print site 112 to the PC 102B is transferred as Web information. In addition, in the case of an invited user who has the user's personal information, the estimated information is dynamically presented to the invited user who has placed the print order by transferring the amount of presentation including the point to the estimated amount as Web information. can do.

  When the invited user of the PC 102B who placed the print order accepts the purchase at the price presented here and returns an approval action to the photo site 107, the payment module 109 as a payment means accepts it and performs payment processing. When the settlement is completed, the photo site 107 sends a formal print order to the print site 112. The print site 112 receives this official print order, and acquires image data necessary for printout from the image DB 110 of the photo site 107. The image data acquired in this way is printed out using a printing means such as the printer 113 owned by the print site 112 and output as a printed matter 114. The printed material 114 that has been printed out is delivered to the invited user of the PC 102B who requested the printing by some means of transportation.

  The above is an overview of the information providing system for browsing image data and ordering prints based on information received from the photo site 107 by the invited user who has received permission to browse the image or album from the user who uploaded the image. It is.

<Database configuration>
The configuration of the database of the information providing system according to this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an image information table 200 that stores information related to each image, which is stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 according to the present embodiment.

  In the image information table 200, when the owner user uploads image data from the client PC, one record is created for one piece of image data.

  The image information table 200 includes an image ID 201 of each image, an album ID 202 to which the image belongs, and a title (image name) 203 used for the image. The image information table 200 includes a file path 204 of the original image on the image DB 110, a file path 205 to a thumbnail image displayed on the Web, and a file path 206 to a detailed display image on the Web. Furthermore, the image information table 200 includes a comment 207 set by the owner of the image, a date 208 when the image was created (uploaded), and an image capacity 209. In the present embodiment, the date and time indicated in the image creation date and time 208 is held as a total second with “0” set to 0:00:00 on January 1, 1970, but any date and time can be specified. Anything can be used. The image capacity 209 is set to a value calculated on the server side when the image is uploaded.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the album data table 300 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 according to the present embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, the image data held by the user is stored in units of a group of one or a plurality of images (hereinafter referred to as an album), so when the user creates an album on the screen (not shown). In addition, one record of the album data table 300 is created. The album data table 300 has an album ID 301, a user ID 302 of the owner of the album, a display order number 303 of the album, and a public extension flag 304. In this embodiment, the public extension flag 304 is set to a value indicating “public extension” when the public extension process is performed on the album. The setting method and the usage method will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an album information table 400 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 according to this embodiment.

  Since the album information table 400 is information associated with the album as in the album data table 300 of FIG. 3, when the user creates an album on the screen (not shown), one record is created.

  The album information table 400 includes an album ID 401, an album name 402, a comment 403 for the album, a permission flag 404 indicating whether the album may be disclosed, and a permission flag 405 indicating whether a password is set. The album information table 400 has an album password 406 set for the album, a flag 407 for whether or not to allow the invited user to print, and a flag 408 for whether or not to display the original image to the invited user. Further, the album information table 400 includes a number 409 indicating a display format for displaying the layout of the album, an album release end date 410, an album usage capacity 411, and an album cover ID 412. The used capacity 411 of the album is calculated by adding the size of each image every time an image is uploaded to the album.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a user information management table 500 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 according to this embodiment.

  In the user information management table 500, one record is created when a user is registered in the photo site 107 (not shown). The user information management table 500 has a user ID 501 and a final display album ID 502.

  FIG. 6 is a view showing the public extension information management table 600 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 of this embodiment.

  In the public extension information management table 600, one record is created when the inviting user performs the public extension application process for the public album for the first time. That is, it is created at the time of the first application, and is not newly created in the case of the second and subsequent persons, and the record is updated. The public extension information management table 600 has an album ID 601, a current area size 602 to be shared by the user who applied for extension, and the number of people 603 who want to extend. The creation flow and usage of this table, and the role of each item will be described later.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a public extension applicant management table 700 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site 107 according to the present embodiment.

  In the publication extension applicant management table 700, one record is created when an invited user performs a publication extension application process for a publication album. The public extension applicant management table 700 has an album ID 701, a user ID 702 as a registrant of an invited user who wished to extend, and a date and time 703 when the extension process was performed. The creation flow and usage of this table, and the role of each item will be described later.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the tables shown in FIGS. 2 to 7 stored in the attribute information DB 111 of the photosite 107 according to this embodiment.

  A user can have a plurality of albums, and a mechanism is such that a plurality of image data can be registered in one album. In addition, it manages the storage capacity to be applied (substitute) by those who applied for extension of public albums and each extension applicant.

  Although the configuration of the database according to the present embodiment has been described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 7, the configuration is not limited to the above as long as the above requirements are satisfied.

<Photo site operation>
Hereinafter, the setting operation of the end date and time at the time of album release by the information providing system of the present embodiment will be described.

(End date setting when releasing album)
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the setting operation of the end date and time for the album.

  In the present embodiment, the user image data has a unit of a group called an album in which one or a plurality of images are grouped. However, the present invention is not limited to the unit of the unit.

  In step S901, although not shown, an album to be released from an album already created by the user is selected on the screen. It is assumed that the album name 402, the comment 403, the disclosure possibility 404, and the password permission 405 are set in the album information table 400 on the attribute information DB 111 at this selected stage. Furthermore, it is assumed that an album password 406, original display permission / inhibition 408, display format number 409, album cover ID 412, and the like are set. Then, on the displayed album editing screen, a function for publishing the album is selected. When the function for publishing an album is selected, the screen is switched to the publishing setting screen 1000 shown in FIG.

  In step S902, various data for publication are set on the displayed publication setting screen 1000. In the publication setting screen 1000, the title character string 1001 displays the title of the album published by the user.

  The character string 1002 displays the album capacity that is the sum of the image sizes included in the album.

  An input area 1003 is an area for inputting an email address of an invited user who publishes an album. To invite multiple people, enter the email addresses of the invitees separated by “,”.

  The input area 1004 is a field for inputting the name of the sender. When the user inputs his / her name or already exists in the attribute information DB 111 of the photo site, this character string is set as a default value. Is displayed.

  An input area 1005 is a field for inputting a sender address, and is displayed as a default value if the user inputs his / her mail address or if it is on the attribute information DB 111 as described above.

  An input area 1006 is a field for inputting a subject of a mail to be transmitted, and the subject can be set by the user inputting an arbitrary character string.

  A radio button 1007 sets a publication end date and time for an album to be published. When the setting “Yes” is selected, it is necessary to input the date / time input area 1008, and the input date / time is set as the publication end date / time 410 of the album information table 400. At this time, it is no longer possible to set a date and time that exceeds the open upper limit date and time set in operation. If the date and time exceeding the upper limit date and time of publication is set and the send button 1010 is pressed, an error screen 1100 of FIG. 11 to be described later is displayed, and a character string that informs the user that the set date and time exceeds the upper limit date and time of disclosure. Is displayed. When the setting “None” is selected, input to the date / time input area 1008 is not necessary, and the publication end date / time 410 is automatically set to the publication upper limit date / time set in the operation described above. .

  The input area 1009 is a field for inputting the content of the mail to be transmitted, and the user can set the content of the mail by inputting an arbitrary character string.

  A send button 1010 is a button to be pressed when sending an e-mail to a specified publication destination after confirming each input content on the screen 1000.

  A cancel button 1011 is a button to be pressed when canceling each input content on the screen 1000 and returning to the screen in which the album in step S901 is selected.

  In step S903, when the input on the publication setting screen 1000 is finished in step S902 and the send button 1010 is pressed, the publication illustrated in FIG. 13 is shown for the email address of each invited user set in the destination 1003. An email with the contents is sent.

  If the contents set on the public setting screen 1000 are incomplete when the send button 1010 is pressed, the error screen 1100 shown in FIG. 11 is displayed on another screen, and the mail is not sent. The error screen 1100 includes a character string 1101 representing the error content and a button 1102 for the user to accept the error content and return to the public setting screen 1000. In this example, the character string 1101 representing the content of the error includes a character string representing that there is a deficiency regarding the setting content of the destination 1003, but it goes without saying that this character string is selected according to the error. Yes.

  Further, when the transmission button 1010 is pressed, the upper limit date and time set in the operation is set for the albums that are not incompletely set and the publication end date and time setting 1007 is not set. The value is set to the publication end date 410 of the album information table 400. Next, the information screen 1200 shown in FIG. 12 is displayed to inform the user of the existence of the value. The information screen 1200 has a character string 1201 for informing the user of the date and time of publishing and a button 1202 for closing the information screen 1200 and returning to the original album screen.

  FIG. 13 shows an example of the contents of the email transmitted to the publication destination, and the contents entered on the publication setting screen 1000 are reflected on each item.

  In addition, when the album is normally released, the value indicating that the album release is “permitted” regardless of the setting value on the album editing screen regarding the release permission 404 in the album information table 400 on the attribute information DB 111. Is set automatically.

(Application for extension to invited user's public album)
Next, an operation in which an invited user makes an application for extending the release to a public album will be described.

The inviting user accesses the public album by clicking on the URL for access in the mail text indicating the publication in FIG. The processing for accessing this public album will be described later together with the request for extension. Here, the description is started from the state in which the access to the public album is made. When the access to the public album is permitted, the public album cover screen 1400 shown in FIG. 14 is displayed. In the public album cover screen 1400, the character string 1401 is the title of the album released by the owner, and the character string set in the album name 402 of the album information table 400 is displayed.

  The image thumbnail 1402 is a cover image set for the album by the owner user, and the image set in the cover image file path 206 of the image information table 200 is displayed with the album cover ID 412 of the album information table 400 set to Key. When a cover image is not set, a thumbnail set by the system is displayed.

  The character string 1403 describes the publication end date and time set for this public album, and the date and time set in the publication end date and time 410 of the album information table 400 is displayed. This means that after this date and time, the invited user cannot access this album.

  A character string 1404 is a comment set for this public album, and the character string set in the comment 403 of the album information table 400 is displayed.

  The input area 1405 is an area for inputting a password set for this public album, and is displayed when the password permission flag 405 of the album information table 400 is set to “permitted”, and is set to “not permitted”. Is not displayed. When the same character string as the character string of the album password 406 is input in this input area, the contents of the album are displayed. Since the present invention is not limited to the display of the contents of the album, the illustration is omitted.

  A button 1406 is a button for browsing this public album. When the password input described above is necessary, the album is displayed when the input password matches the character string of the password 406 in the album information table 400. Can be viewed. When it is not necessary to input a password, the album can be automatically browsed by pressing a button.

  A button 1407 is a button for selecting a function for extending the release end date of this public album. The processing after this button is pressed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S1501, when the button 1407 in FIG. 14 is pressed, the login screen 1600 in FIG. 16 is displayed in a separate window from the public album cover screen 1400, and the user who applied for extension is a registered user of the photo site. Check whether or not. In the present invention, since the free space of the storage allocated as the registered user by the invited user is allocated to the album capacity extended to the public, it is assumed that the invited user is the registered user of the photo album.

  In the login screen 1600, an input area 1601 is an area for inputting a user ID, and an input area 1602 is an area for inputting a password.

  A button 1603 is a button for performing user authentication and transitioning to the next step by pressing the button after inputting a user ID / password. If the input user ID / password is normal, the process proceeds to step S1502 for applying for extension. If the input user ID / password is abnormal or if the input is incomplete, the process proceeds to step S1507 and an error screen is displayed (not shown).

  A button 1604 is a function for canceling the login process. When the button 1604 is pressed, the login screen 1600 is closed and the screen returns to the state where one window of the public album cover screen 1400 is displayed.

  In step S1502, the process is performed when the login in step S1501 is normal, and the record of the public extension information management table 600 is searched for the album ID of the public album. If no record is found, it is determined that this is the first extension application for this public album, and one new record is created with the album ID 601 of the public album as the key. ”Is substituted. The value of the current burden capacity 602 is set when the application is completed in step S1506, which will be described later. When the search is made, the value of the number of applicants for extension 603 is extracted.

  Next, the current burden capacity is calculated. The current burden capacity is obtained by dividing the value of the album use capacity 411 in the album information table 400 of the public album by the value obtained by adding the number of applicants (= 1) to the value of the number of applicants for extension 603. The calculated present burden capacity is A.

In step S1503, following step S1502, the free space of the storage allocated as the registered user of the invited user who applied for extension is calculated.
First, the album data table 300 is searched with the user ID as the registered user of the invited user, and the public extension flag 304 matches the value representing “normal (not extended)” in the album ID 302 owned by the invited user. Get a list of things to do. This is because, as described above, when the public extension is made, the size of the album capacity of the registered user is calculated as “0”, so it is necessary to exclude the extended album capacity from the logic for calculating the free capacity size. Because there is. The album information table 400 is searched for each album ID in the list of album IDs for which the public extension flag 304 obtained as described above is “normal”, the respective album usage capacities 411 are acquired, and the entire list is used. Add capacity.
Further, the public extension applicant management table 700 is searched with the user ID as the registered user of the invited user, and the albums of other users who bear the storage capacity are acquired. If a burden is retrieved, the public extension information management table 600 is retrieved with the album ID 701 to obtain the current burden capacity 602.
Then, a value obtained by adding the value obtained by adding the total used capacity of the entire list to the present burden capacity is obtained as the used capacity of the storage area of the invited user.

  Finally, by taking the difference in the used capacity of the invited user who applied for extension from the predetermined disk usage limit, the free capacity as the registered user of the invited user can be calculated. Let this value be B. The value of B is premised on that it does not become a negative value because the amount of data exceeding the free space is not uploaded by the control at the time of image upload.

  In step S1504, the formula of A <B is evaluated using the values of A and B calculated in steps S1502 and S1504. If the evaluation of this mathematical expression is correct, it means that the burden capacity to take over is smaller than the free capacity of the storage allocated as the registered user of the invited user who applied for extension. That is, it is determined that “should be replaced” and the process proceeds to step S1505, which is a process for displaying a screen for confirming the extension application. On the other hand, if the evaluation of this formula is not correct, it means that the capacity to replace is larger than the free capacity, that is, it is determined that it is `` impossible to replace '' and an error screen for not accepting the extension application is displayed. The process proceeds to step S1507, which is a process for displaying.

  This embodiment is based on the premise that cancellation after an application for extension has been successfully accepted will not be accepted, and the value of the number of applicants for extension will decrease while the value of the album usage capacity is always constant. Never do. In other words, since the value A of the current burden capacity is obtained by (album usage capacity) / (number of extension applicants), the value of A monotonously decreases. If this condition is satisfied, the direction of this inequality sign will not be reversed. Therefore, it is only necessary to check whether substitution is possible at the time of application, and there is no problem if the number of applicants for extension increases later. The finally determined capacity is notified to the user along with the extension shown in FIG. 21 during the album release completion process of FIG. 20 described later.

  In step S1505, when it is determined in step S1504 that "substitution is possible", the public album extension application screen 1700 of FIG. 17 is displayed. In the public album extension application screen 1700, a character string 1701 is a character string representing the title of the album, and the character string set in the album name 402 of the album information table 400 in the public album is displayed.

  A character string 1702 is a character string representing the used capacity of the album, and the value of A searched in step S1502 is displayed.

  A button 1703 is a button for displaying a help screen (not shown) regarding the extension application. In the help screen, an explanation is given regarding a system in which the capacity used for the public album is replaced by the capacity allocated by the invited user who has applied for extension as the registered user.

  The character string 1704 describes the extended period of the end date and time of the public album. Here, as the extension period, a preset value (“30 days” shown in FIG. 17) predetermined in operation is applied and displayed in the public album extension application screen 1700.

  The character string 1705 describes the number of users who are currently applying for extension and the capacity shared by the user. The number of users who have applied for extension uses the value of the number of applicants for extension 603 retrieved in step S1502, and the capacity shared by them uses the value of the current burden capacity 602 (= A) calculated in step S1502. .

  In the character string 1706, in this embodiment, since it is premised that the cancellation after the application for extension is accepted, a note for alerting the user who makes an application explicitly is described. Has been.

  A button 1707 is pressed when an inviting user who makes an extension application agrees with the contents of the character strings 1704, 1705, and 1706 described in the public album extension application screen 1700 and executes the extension application. When the button 1707 is pressed, the extension process in step S1506 is executed.

  A button 1708 is pressed when the inviting user does not agree with the contents of the character strings 1704, 1705, 1706 described in the public album extension application screen 1700 and cancels the extension application. When this button 1708 is pressed, the public album application screen 1700 is closed and the screen returns to the state where one window of the public album cover screen 1400 is displayed.

  In step S1506, when the button 1708 on the public album extension application screen 1700 is pressed in step S1505, various public album extension processes are performed. First, a new record in the public extension applicant management table 700 is newly created, and a user ID 702 as a registered user of an invited user who wishes to extend this public album is set. Set to 703. As the user ID set above, the value acquired when the login authentication process is performed in step S1501 is used.

  Next, for the corresponding record in the public extension information management table 600, the value of the number of applicants for extension 603 is first incremented and updated. The reason for incrementing is to count the number of invited users who have made an application for extension this time as described above.

  Next, the value of the current burden capacity A calculated in step S1502 is set (updated) in the field of the current burden capacity 602 in the corresponding record of the public extension information management table 600.

  Finally, the system notifies the invited user who made the extension application that the extension application has been successfully received.

  FIG. 19 exemplifies the contents of the email transmitted to the invited user who made the extension application, and includes information equivalent to the contents displayed on the public album extension application screen 1700 of FIG.

  In step S1507, processing for displaying an error screen when the login process in step S1501 fails and an error screen when “should not be replaced” in step S1504 are performed. The former error screen is not shown here because it may be an error screen that displays a character string indicating that login has failed as described above.

  An error screen 1800 in FIG. 18 is an example of an error screen in the latter case.

  A character string 1801 on the error screen 1800 describes a character for indicating to the inviting user that the shoulder cannot be replaced.

  A button 1802 is pressed when the user agrees to the error screen or closes the error screen.

  A button 1803 is pressed to display a help screen indicating what procedure can be used to apply for an extension when the user cannot replace the shoulder. In addition, illustration about the screen regarding help is abbreviate | omitted.

  Through the processes in steps S1501 to S1507, the inviting user can make a public album extension request.

(Operation at the end of public album release)
Next, the operation at the end of public album release will be described.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing the operation at the end date and time of the public album.

  In step S2001, when the end date of the public album has come, the public extension information management table 600 is searched for the album ID of the public album to determine whether or not the corresponding record exists. The presence of the corresponding record means that the invited user has applied for extension of the publication end date and time for this public album, so the process continues to step S2002. If there is no corresponding record, it means that there has been no application for extension for this public album, and the process proceeds to a normal public end process in step S2003.

  In step S2002, various extension processes are performed on the public album. First, the corresponding record in the album data table 300 is searched for the album ID of the public album. A value representing “public extension” is set in the public extension flag 304 of the searched record. As described above, when the value indicating “public extension” is set in the public extension flag 304, the extended album capacity is excluded from the logic for calculating the free capacity of the registered user, so the size of the album capacity of the registered user is “ 0 ”does not exist.

  Next, the corresponding record in the album information table 400 is searched for the album ID of the public album. The value of the publication end date / time 410 of the retrieved record is extracted, and the date of the publication extension date / time (30 days in FIG. 17) set in operation is added to the extracted date. The added new publication end date / time is updated as the value of the publication end date / time 410 of the corresponding record.

  Finally, the invitation user who has applied for public extension is notified that the public album extension process has been performed. FIG. 21 shows an example of an e-mail sent to the invited user. The contents include that the public album has been extended, the extended period (number of days), the final allocated capacity, and the URL for access. ing. The URL described in the e-mail at the time of extension has a form in which an argument of the e-mail address of the invited user is added to the URL at the time of album release shown in FIG. This is because, as will be described later, when accessing an album whose release has been extended, only an invited user who has applied for extension is allowed to access the album, so that it is used as its identifier.

  In step S2003, the process is performed when there is no application for extension to the public album in step S2001, and the album is deleted when the publication ends. Thus, by automatically performing the album deletion process, the owner user who released the album increases the free space of his / her album and can use the photo site efficiently.

  By the above steps 2001 to 2003, the process at the end of the public album release is performed.

(Operation when accessing a public album)
Next, the operation when accessing a public album will be described below.

  FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing an operation when accessing a public album.

  In step S2201, when the invited user clicks on the URL described in the e-mail at the time of publication or the e-mail at the time of extension, it is determined whether the album ID included in the URL is correct. Here, the album information table 400 is searched for the notified album ID, and whether or not the album ID is correct is determined based on whether or not the corresponding record is searched.

  If the album ID is a sequential numerical value, the album ID in the email is sent in an encrypted form because the album ID in the URL of the email notified by the inviting user is altered so that other public albums can be seen. Is described in the URL. Note that the present invention is not limited to this encryption format. If it is determined to be correct, the process proceeds to the subsequent step S2202, and if it is determined to be incorrect, the process proceeds to step S2205 to display an error screen.

  In step S2202, the album data table 300 is searched for the album ID of the public album determined to be correct in step S2201, the value of the public extension flag 304 of the corresponding record is extracted, and “normal” or “public extension” is extracted. Determine whether. If the public extension flag 304 is a value indicating “normal”, since access is permitted to all the invited users who have accessed, the process proceeds to step S2204 where the cover page of the album is displayed. On the other hand, when the public extension flag 304 is a value indicating “public extension”, the process proceeds to step S2203 in which it is determined whether the accessed invited user is a user who has applied for extension.

  In step S2203, the process is performed when it is determined in step S2202 that the album has been extended to the public, and it is determined whether the invited user who has accessed the user has applied for the public extension. As described above, the URL in the e-mail at the time of public extension shown in FIG. 21 includes the argument of the e-mail address of the user who applied for the extension. Extract email address. Whether or not the mail address is encrypted does not limit the present invention.

  Next, the corresponding record in the public extension applicant management table 700 is searched for the extracted mail address and the album ID of the public album. If the corresponding record is found, it can be determined that the inviting user who has accessed has applied for the extension, and the process proceeds to step S2204 for displaying the cover page of the album. On the other hand, if the corresponding record is not searched, it is determined that there is no invited user who has applied for extension, and the process proceeds to step S2205 to display an error screen.

  In step S2204, a public album cover screen is displayed. The public album cover screen is the public album cover screen 1400 shown in FIG. 14, and detailed description thereof is omitted here.

  In step S2205, if it is determined in step S2201 that the album ID is incorrect, or if there is an access from an invited user who has not applied for an extension to the publicly extended album in step S2203, an error screen (not valid) is displayed. Display).

[Modification]
In the above embodiment, the period during which the publication can be extended has been described as a uniform value set in operation, but the date and time may be explicitly specified on the inviting user side. In that case, it is only necessary to distribute at a rate corresponding to the length of the extended period, instead of making the shared capacity of each invited user who applied for the extension uniform.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the invitation user who applied for extension was set as the mechanism which cannot cancel the application, the mechanism which enables cancellation is also considered. For example, when one invited user tries to cancel, the share capacity of other invited invitation users naturally increases. Therefore, it is also possible to provide a mechanism that accepts a cancellation application only when the increased shared capacity falls within the free capacity of other invited users, and does not accept a cancellation application when it does not fit.

  According to the above embodiment, the invited users whose extension end date / time can be extended are limited to registered users of the photo site, and the storage area of the extended album is allocated to the storage area assigned to the invited user who wishes to extend. (Let me shoulder). As a result, for the owner user who released the album, regardless of whether or not the end date of the public album has been extended, the storage area required for the public album becomes zero, and the storage capacity for other albums etc. is made effective. Can be used.

  In addition, although the storage capacity for the album that should be deleted at the end of publishing will remain for the entire photo site, the increase in the capacity required for the entire photo site will be suppressed by the amount of capacity of the invited user. be able to. In other words, it is not necessary to increase the upper limit of the capacity of the entire photo site or to estimate the size of the photo site larger.

  Also, since the capacity of the album extended to the public is allocated to the free space allocated as the registered user instead of the capacity of the owner user, the storage capacity of the entire photo site is efficiently and effectively used. be able to.

[Other Embodiments]
The present invention includes a case where the computer program for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is achieved by supplying the system or apparatus directly or remotely. In that case, a computer such as a system reads and executes the computer program.

  Therefore, in order to realize the functional processing of the present invention with a computer, the computer program itself installed in the computer also implements the present invention.

  In that case, as long as it has the function of a program, it may be in the form of object code, a program executed by an interpreter, script data supplied to the OS, or the like.

  Examples of the recording medium (storage medium) for supplying the program include a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, and a magneto-optical disk. In addition, there are MO, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card, ROM, DVD (DVD-ROM, DVD-R) and the like.

  As another program supply method, a client computer browser can be used to connect to a homepage on the Internet, and the computer program itself of the present invention can be downloaded from the homepage. It can also be supplied by downloading a compressed file including an automatic installation function to a recording medium such as a hard disk. It can also be realized by dividing the computer program constituting the program of the present invention into a plurality of files and downloading each file from a different homepage. That is, a WWW server that allows a plurality of users to download a program file for realizing the functional processing of the present invention on a computer is also included in the present invention.

  In addition, the program of the present invention is encrypted, stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, distributed to users, and a user who satisfies predetermined conditions downloads key information for decryption from a homepage via the Internet. You can also. In this case, the downloaded key information is used to execute the encrypted program and install it on the computer.

  In addition to the functions of the above-described embodiments being realized by the computer executing the read program, the OS or the like operating on the computer based on the instruction of the program may be a part of the actual processing. Alternatively, it can be realized by performing all of them.

  Furthermore, after the program read from the recording medium is written in the memory of a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the CPU of the board or the like performs a part of the actual processing. Alternatively, it can be realized by performing all of them.

  The present invention can be applied not only to a photo site, but also to all systems that realize a data sharing service in which data from a user is stored on the site and released to a third party.

It is a figure showing the whole information service system composition of an embodiment concerning the present invention. It is a figure which illustrates the image information table managed in the photo site of embodiment which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which illustrates the album data table managed in the photo site of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the album information table managed in the photo site of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the user information management table managed in the photo site of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the public extension information management table managed in the photo site of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the public extension applicant management table managed in the photo site of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the relationship of each table shown in FIG. 2 thru | or FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement which a registered user selects an album and publishes by this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the screen for performing the public setting of the album shown in FIG. It is a figure which illustrates the error screen displayed when there is an error in the input value on the album release setting screen shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram exemplifying an information screen for notifying a registered user that a system operation value has been applied when a publication end date / time is not set on the album publication setting screen shown in FIG. 10. It is a figure which illustrates the text of the email transmitted to an invited user when publishing a photo album. It is a figure which illustrates the public album cover screen displayed when an inviting user accesses a public album. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement in which an inviting user makes a public extension application with respect to a public album. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a login screen displayed when a public extension application is made in FIG. 15. It is a figure which illustrates the application screen for an inviting user to perform a public extension application with respect to a public album. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an error screen when an error occurs when a public extension application is made in FIG. 15. It is a figure which illustrates the text of the email transmitted to an inviting user when the public extension application of a photo album is received. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement performed at the end date of a public album. It is a figure which illustrates the text of the email transmitted to an invited user, when notifying an invited user that the public album extension process was performed. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement until a public album cover screen is displayed when accessing a public album.

Explanation of symbols

101 Image input device 102A, 102 PC
103 Data transfer interface 104A, 104B Storage area 105A, 105B Browser 106 Internet 107 Photo site 108 Photo sharing module 109 Payment module 110 Image DB
111 Attribute information DB
112 Print site 113 Printer 114 Printed matter

Claims (6)

Receiving means for receiving public information transferred from an information owner via an information providing apparatus, storage means for storing public information received by the receiving means, and information browsing apparatus for public information stored in the storage means A distribution means for distributing to the information provider via the information management device,
A first used capacity acquisition means for adding the capacity of the public information received from the information providing device to acquire the used capacity of the storage area of the information owner;
Request receiving means for receiving a request from the information browsing device;
In response to the request, a second used capacity acquisition unit that adds the capacity of the public information to the used capacity of the storage area of the information provider and acquires the used capacity of the storage area of the information provider And
The information management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first used capacity acquisition unit does not add the capacity of the public information added by the second used capacity acquisition unit. A free capacity obtaining means for obtaining a free capacity of the information provider by subtracting a used capacity of the storage area of the information provider from a predetermined usage limit;
Comparing means for comparing the capacity of the public information with the acquired information provider's free capacity;
As a result of the comparison, if the acquired free space of the information provider is greater than the capacity of the public information, the capacity of the public information is not added by the first used capacity acquisition means, and the second The information management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit that performs control so as to be added by the used capacity acquisition unit. A period setting means for setting a distribution period of the public information stored in the storage means;
The information management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the request includes an instruction to extend the distribution period.   The information management apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a deletion unit that deletes the public information whose distribution period has elapsed from the storage unit. Receiving public information transferred from an information owner via an information providing device; storing the received public information; and storing the public information to an information provider via an information browsing device. A method for controlling the information management apparatus comprising:
A first acquisition step of adding the capacity of the public information received from the information providing device to acquire the used capacity of the storage area of the information owner;
Receiving a request from the information browsing device;
In response to the request, a second acquisition step of adding the capacity of the public information to the usage capacity of the storage area of the information provider and acquiring the capacity as the usage capacity of the storage area of the information provider Prepared,
In the first acquisition step, the capacity of the public information added in the second acquisition step is not added.   A program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 5.

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