The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Aug. 03, 1999
Filed:
May. 10, 1996
B Winston Hendrickson, San Jose, CA (US);
Gregory Scown, Sunnyvale, CA (US);
James E Palmer, Redwood City, CA (US);
Robert Bowers, Cupertino, CA (US);
Jeffrey R Cobb, Sunnyvale, CA (US);
Apple Computer, Inc., Cupertino, CA (US);
Abstract
A software manager enables a computer user to administer software elements within a computer operating system. The software manager comprises a configuration database storing information including a prevailing state and a dependency listing for each of the software components within the system. The software manager also comprises a user interface which allows the computer user to view the stored information and permits the user to specify changes to the prevailing states. Finally, the software manager comprises a software manager server which communicates with the user interface and the configuration database, effects the user specified changes, and updates the stored information to reflect those changes. A user of the software manager can readily obtain an overall 'picture' of a prevailing system configuration, use that picture to make intelligent decisions with respect to system modification, and thereby administer the operating system environment in a seamless, efficient, and robust manner.