Method and apparatus for remote interaction with and configuration of a WAN-based knowledge base

Abstract

A system for selling products and services over the Internet, or other wide area network, comprises a knowledge base and a knowledge base configurator both executing on a network-connected server hosted by the enterprise offering products and/or services. A GUI user interface application is downloaded from the server to any platform used by a client wishing to purchase products or services. Having downloaded the user interface, the client can manipulate the configurator over a data link between the client's station and the server to configure the knowledge base to define products and/or services to be orders, and can complete orders. A preferred implementation is with the server as an enterprise-hosted server connected to the Internet, and clients as users connected typically through Internet Service Providers to the Internet.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method for configuring a knowledge-based object model located at a server platform from a client platform via a data network, comprising steps of: 
 (a) providing the object model and a configurator at the server platform;    (b) transporting, from the server platform to the client platform, a GUI user-interface application capable of manipulating the configurator over the data network; and    (c) invoking the GUI user-interface application at the client platform by a client, and using the GUI user-interface application to configure the object model at the server from the client platform.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the GUI user-interface application is a Java-based applet.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the server platform is a first Internet-connected computer and the client platform is a second Internet-connected computer.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the GUI user-interface application is a WEB-browser plug-in.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the client platform connects to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP).  
     
     
         6 . The method of claim I wherein the server platform is hosted by an enterprise, and the client uses the downloaded GUI user-interface application to configure the object model to select and order a product or service offered by the enterprise.  
     
     
         7 . A system for selling products and services from a computerized server in a wide area network, comprising: 
 a knowledge base stored at or accessible to the server;    a configurator executable at the server platform to configure the knowledge base;    a GUI user-interface application capable of manipulating the configurator over the data network, executable on a client platform connected to the server platform by a data link; 
 wherein a client uses the GUI user-interface application over the data link to manipulate the configurator to configure the knowledge base.  
   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7  wherein the GUI user-interface application is a Java-based applet.  
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 7  wherein the server platform is a first Internet-connected computer and the client platform is a second Internet-connected computer.  
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the GUI user-interface application is a WEB browser plug-in.  
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the client platform connects to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP).  
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 7  wherein the server platform is hosted by an enterprise, and the client uses the downloaded GUI user-interface application to configure the object model to select and order a product or service offered by the enterprise.