Abstract:
Systems and methods for generating search results are provided. In some aspects, a method includes receiving a query, obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query, obtaining content from a social networking service that is responsive to the query and related to the search result, modifying the search result to include a first portion associated with the content from the social networking service, providing for display the modified search result and an interface component for receiving a request for interacting with the content, and modifying the search result to include a second portion of the content and to provide an interface to facilitate an interaction, in response to receiving a request for interacting with the content.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S. C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/599,395, filed Feb. 15, 2012, and entitled “Modifying Search Results,” the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The subject technology generally relates to information retrieval, and in particular to generating search results. 
     A search engine results page usually includes a list of search results returned by a search engine in response to a query (e.g., a text or image query). Each search result may include a link to a web page, and a section of the web page showing content from the web page that is responsive to the query. 
     SUMMARY 
     The disclosed subject matter relates to generating search results. The method includes receiving a query, obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query, obtaining content from a social networking service that is responsive to the query and related to the search result, modifying the search result to include a first portion associated with the content from the social networking service, providing for display the modified search result and an interface component for receiving a request for interacting with the content, and modifying the search result to include a second portion of the content and to provide an interface to facilitate an interaction in response to receiving a request for interacting with the content. 
     The disclosed subject matter relates to a non-transitory computer-readable medium that includes instructions. The instructions include code for receiving a query, obtaining a search result that is responsive to the query, issuing a second query to a social networking service to obtain content that is responsive to the query and related to the search result, modifying the search result to include a first portion associated with the content from the social networking service, providing for display the modified search result and an interface component for receiving a request for interacting with the content, and modifying the search result to include a second portion of the content and to provide an interface to facilitate an interaction in response to receiving a request for interacting with the content. 
     The disclosed subject matter relates to a system that includes a computer. The computer is configured to receive a query, obtain a search result that is responsive to the query, issue a second query to obtain content from a social networking service that is responsive to the query and related to the search result, modify the search result to include a first portion associated with the content from the social networking service, provide for display the modified search result and an interface component for receiving a request for interacting with the content, modify the search result to include a second portion of the content and to provide an interface to facilitate an interaction in response to receiving a request for interacting with the content, and provide for display information received during the interaction together with the modified search result. 
     Various configurations of the subject technology are shown and described by way of illustration. As will be realized, the subject technology is capable of other and different configurations and its several details are capable of modification in various other respects, all without departing from the scope of the subject technology. Accordingly, the drawings and detailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIGS. 1A and 1B  illustrate examples of search engine results pages with interactive posts. 
         FIGS. 2A and 2B  illustrate examples of search engine results pages with interactive posts. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates an example of a search engine results page with interactive posts. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a block diagram of an example of a system for providing interactive posts inline on a search engine results page. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a block diagram of an example of a user device shown in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a block diagram of an example of the search engine shown in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 7  illustrates a block diagram of an example of the social networking server shown in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 8  illustrates a flowchart of an example of a method for providing interactive posts on a search engine results page. 
         FIG. 9  illustrates an example of a search engine results page with interactive posts. 
         FIG. 10  conceptually illustrates an example electronic system with which some implementations of the subject technology are implemented. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description of various configurations of the subject technology and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the subject technology may be practiced. The appended drawings are incorporated herein and constitute a part of the detailed description. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the subject technology. However, the subject technology is not limited to the specific details set forth herein and may be practiced without these specific details. 
     Some search engine results pages include annotations of posts from a social networking site. However, to read more details of the posts and interact with the posts, a user may have to leave the search engine results page and log in the social networking site. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a method and system for integrating posts from a social networking site into search engine results pages and making the posts interactive inline. 
       FIG. 1A  illustrates an example of a search engine results page  100 A with interactive posts. As shown, the search engine results page  100 A may include a list of search results  101 ,  102 ,  103 ,  104  and  105  returned by a search engine in response to a query from a user. Each search result may include a link to a web page, and a section of the web page showing where the query has matched content within the web page. Underneath the search result  101 , there are post summaries  1011  and  1012  which are related to the search result  101 . For example, a post summary may include, but is not limited to, a name or picture of the author of the post, timestamp, visibility of the post (e.g., public or private), and a section of the post. The posts may be from a social networking site, and may be public posts or social posts from the user&#39;s contacts in the social networking site. When the user clicks on a post summary, e.g.,  1012 , the entire post may be displayed inline on the search engine results page  100 B, as shown in  FIG. 1B , so that the user may interact with the post (e.g., read the post, comment on it or share it) inline on the search engine results page  100 B, e.g., instead of leaving the search engine results page and logging in the social networking site to read and share the post. As shown, a “Comment” button  1013  and a “Share” button  1014  may be displayed with the post  1012 . Similar graphical components may be used. 
       FIG. 2A  illustrates an example of a search engine results page  200 A with interactive posts. Like the search engine results page  100 A, the search engine results page  200 A may include a list of search results  201 ,  202 ,  203 ,  204  and  205  returned by a search engine in response to a query, and each search result may include a link to a web page and a section of the web page showing where the query has matched content within the web page. Underneath the search result  201 , there are post summaries  2011 ,  2012  and  2013  which are related to the search result  201 . The post summaries  2011 ,  2012  and  2013  may only include a picture of the author of the post. When a user clicks on a post summary, e.g., the post summary  2013 , the entire post may be displayed inline on the search engine results page  200 B, as shown in  FIG. 2B , so that the user may read the post and interact with it without leaving the search engine results page  200 B. As shown, a “Comment” button  2014  and a “Share” button  2015  may be displayed with the post  2013 . Similar graphical components may be used. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an example of a search engine results page  300  with interactive posts. In addition to the search results and interactive posts on the search engine results page  100 A shown in  FIG. 1A , the search engine results page  300  may also include expert post summaries  301  and  302  related to the query. When the user clicks on an expert post summary, e.g.,  301 , the entire expert post may be displayed inline on the search engine results page, so that the user may read the post, comment on it or share it inline on the search engine results page. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a block diagram of an example of a system  400  for providing interactive posts inline on a search engine results page. As shown, the system  400  may include a plurality of user devices (e.g., user devices  401  and  402 ) coupled to a search engine  404  and a social networking server  405  over a network  403 . The search engine  404  and the social networking server  405  may be coupled to a storage device  406 . The network  403  may include one or more of the Internet, an intranet, a local area network, a cellular network or other networks. 
     In some implementations, the may be indexed, and information associated with the index can indicate whether an author of a post is an expert on a particular topic. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates a block diagram of an example of the user device  401  shown in  FIG. 4 . The user device  401  may be any computing device capable of displaying content, for example, via a web browser or via a specialized application. The user device  401  may be a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a netbook, a physical machine or a virtual machine. Other devices can also implement the functionalities of the user device  401 . A user may interact with the search engine  404  and the social networking server  405  at the user device  401 . 
     The user device  401  may include a processor  4011 , a network interface  4012  and a memory  4013 . The processor  4011  is configured to execute computer instructions that are stored in a computer-readable medium, for example, the memory  4013 . The processor  4011  may be a central processing unit (CPU). The network interface  4012  is configured to allow the user device  401  to transmit and receive data in the network  403 . The network interface  4012  may include one or more network interface cards (NICs). The memory  4013  stores data and instructions. As illustrated, the memory  4013  may store a web browser  4014 . With the web browser  4014 , a user may submit a query to a search website (e.g., a search website run by the search engine  404 ), get a search engine results page in response, click on links on the search engine results page to view the results, and interact inline with posts on the search engine results page. A user may also log in a social networking site (e.g., a social networking site run by the social networking server  405 ) to create and change social graphs. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a block diagram of an example of the search engine  404  shown in  FIG. 4 . The search engine  404  may be coupled to the user devices (e.g.,  401  and  402 ), the social networking server  405  and the storage device  406  via the network  403 . The search engine  404  may include a processor  4041 , a network interface  4042 , and a memory  4043 . The processor  4041  is configured to execute computer instructions that are stored in a computer-readable medium, for example, the memory  4043 . The processor  4041  may be a central processing unit (CPU). The network interface  4042  is configured to allow the search engine  404  to transmit and receive data in the network  403 . The network interface  4042  may include one or more network interface cards (NICs). The memory  4043  stores data and instructions. As illustrated, the memory  4043  may store a search module  4044 . The search module  4044  may further include an interactive post module  4045 . The search module  4044  may perform a search in response to a query and generate a search engine results page including interactive posts, e.g., the search engine results pages  100 A,  200 A, or  300  shown in  FIGS. 1A ,  2 A and  3 . If the user clicks on a post summary (e.g.,  111 ,  112 ,  211 ,  212 ,  213 ,  301  or  302  shown in  FIGS. 1A ,  2 A and  3 ), the interactive post module  4045  may issue a query to the storage device  406  to access the post, and display it inline on the search engine results page, as shown in  FIGS. 1B and 2B . If the user interacts with the post (e.g., by commenting on it), the interactive post module  4045  may store data received during the interaction in the storage device  406 , so as to update the social networking site run by the social networking server  405 . 
       FIG. 7  illustrates a block diagram of an example of the social networking server  405  shown in  FIG. 4 . The social network server  405  may be coupled to the user devices (e.g.,  401  and  402 ), the search engine  404  and the storage device  406  via the network  403 , and may include a processor  4051 , a network interface  4052 , and a memory  4053 . The processor  4051  is configured to execute computer instructions that are stored in a computer-readable medium, for example, the memory  4053 . The processor  4051  may be a central processing unit (CPU). The network interface  4052  is configured to allow the social network server  405  to transmit and receive data in the network  403 . The network interface  4052  may include one or more network interface cards (NICs). The memory  4053  stores data and instructions. As illustrated, the memory  4053  may store a social networking module  4054  which may provide social networking services to allow users to, e.g., create and change social graphs, add new circles, add a member to a circle, add, reply to, share or comment on posts, and approve or remove tags. 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a flowchart of an example of a method for providing interactive posts inline on a search engine results page. Although  FIG. 8  is described with reference to the configurations of  FIG. 4 , the process of  FIG. 8  is not limited to such configurations and can be applied to other systems and configurations. At  801 , a query may be received, e.g., at the search engine  404  from a user. At  802 , a search engine results page may be generated, e.g., by the search engine  404 . In some implementations, the search engine results page may include one or more post summaries  1011 ,  1012 ,  2011 ,  2012  or  2013 , as shown in  FIGS. 1A and 2A . The posts may be public posts or social posts from the user&#39;s contacts in a social networking site. The post summaries may include a user interface component which may respond to a user input, e.g., a click or a voice command. 
     In some implementations, the search engine results page may also include one or more expert post summaries, e.g., expert post summaries  301  or  302  shown in  FIG. 3 . In some implementations, a score may be computed for each author based on a number of factors, e.g., the quality of each of his/her posts, the number of his/her followers, the amount of engagement with his/her posts, and/or the frequency he/she posts, so as to determine whether the author is an expert on a particular topic. In some implementations, only authors with highest scores, e.g., top  100 , may be considered and labeled as experts. In some implementations, only posts from experts with the highest scores, e.g., top  5 , may be considered as expert posts. 
     In some implementations, the search engine results page may also include search results from other sources, e.g., web chat and comments on the web. 
     At  803 , it may be determined whether there is a user input on a post summary (e.g., the post summary  1011 ,  1012 ,  2011 ,  2012 ,  2013 ,  301  or  302  shown in  FIGS. 1A ,  2 A and  3 ) on the search engine results page, e.g., a click or a voice command “expand”. If not,  803  may be repeated. Otherwise, at  804 , the post may be accessed. In some implementations, public posts and social posts from the user&#39;s contacts in the social networking site may be accessed. In some implementations, expert posts may be accessed from as well. 
     At  805 , the entire post may be displayed inline on the search engine results page, as shown in  FIGS. 1B and 2B . At  806 , it may be determined whether there is any request for interacting with the post, e.g., whether the “Comment” or “Share” button in  FIGS. 1B and 2B  is clicked on. In some implementations, a share box may be displayed on the search engine results page as well, and it may be determined whether there is any interaction with the share box. If not,  806  may be repeated. Otherwise, at  807 , an interface may be displayed to receive user input (e.g., comments on the post or an email address to share the post) and the user input may be displayed inline on the search engine results page. At  808 , the user input can be used to update the social networking site run by the social networking server  405 . 
       FIG. 9  illustrates an example of a search engine results page  900  with an interactive post. As shown, the search engine results page  900  includes a search result  902  returned by a search engine in response to a query from a user. Each search result may include a link to a web page, and a section of the web page showing where the query has matched content within the web page. Search result  902  includes a link to “en.thebook.org/theb/The_league_of_Awesome_Dance” and has an associated excerpt of “The league of Awesome Dance, commonly knows as The LAD, . . . ” Underneath the search result  902  is an associated post summary  904  that is related to the search result  902 . Post  904  has information about the user who generated the post, a date of the post, and to whom the post is accessible. Additionally, the post summary  904  contains all or part of the post “Happy Halloween and check out our homepage Scribbled today . . . 2011-”. When the user clicks on a post summary, e.g., post  904 , the entire post may be displayed inline on the search engine results page  900 . Although search results page  900  illustrates only one search result  902  and one associated post summary  904 , a search results page may display multiple search results and associated post summaries. 
       FIG. 10  conceptually illustrates an electronic system  1000  with which some implementations of the subject technology are implemented. For example, one or more of the user devices  401  and  402 , the search engine  404  and the social networking server  405  may be implemented using the arrangement of the electronic system  1000 . The electronic system  1000  can be a computer (e.g., a mobile phone, PDA), or any other sort of electronic device. Such an electronic system includes various types of computer readable media and interfaces for various other types of computer readable media. Electronic system  1000  includes a bus  1005 , processing unit(s)  1010 , a system memory  1015 , a read-only memory  1020 , a permanent storage device  1025 , an input device interface  1030 , an output device interface  1035 , and a network interface  1040 . 
     The bus  1005  collectively represents all system, peripheral, and chipset buses that communicatively connect the numerous internal devices of the electronic system  1000 . For instance, the bus  1005  communicatively connects the processing unit(s)  1010  with the read-only memory  1020 , the system memory  1015 , and the permanent storage device  1025 . 
     From these various memory units, the processing unit(s)  1010  retrieves instructions to execute and data to process in order to execute the processes of the subject technology. The processing unit(s) can be a single processor or a multi-core processor in different implementations. 
     The read-only-memory (ROM)  1020  stores static data and instructions that are needed by the processing unit(s)  1010  and other modules of the electronic system. The permanent storage device  1025 , on the other hand, is a read-and-write memory device. This device is a non-volatile memory unit that stores instructions and data even when the electronic system  1000  is off. Some implementations of the subject technology use a mass-storage device (for example a magnetic or optical disk and its corresponding disk drive) as the permanent storage device  1025 . 
     Other implementations use a removable storage device (for example a floppy disk, flash drive, and its corresponding disk drive) as the permanent storage device  1025 . Like the permanent storage device  1025 , the system memory  1015  is a read-and-write memory device. However, unlike storage device  1025 , the system memory  1015  is a volatile read-and-write memory, such a random access memory. The system memory  1015  stores some of the instructions and data that the processor needs at runtime. In some implementations, the processes of the subject technology are stored in the system memory  1015 , the permanent storage device  1025 , or the read-only memory  1020 . For example, the various memory units include instructions for providing a search engine results page in accordance with some implementations. From these various memory units, the processing unit(s)  1010  retrieves instructions to execute and data to process in order to execute the processes of some implementations. 
     The bus  1005  also connects to the input and output device interfaces  1030  and  1035 . The input device interface  1030  enables the user to communicate information and select commands to the electronic system. Input devices used with input device interface  1030  include, for example, alphanumeric keyboards and pointing devices (also called “cursor control devices”). Output device interfaces  1035  enables, for example, the display of images generated by the electronic system  1000 . Output devices used with output device interface  1035  include, for example, printers and display devices, for example cathode ray tubes (CRT) or liquid crystal displays (LCD). Some implementations include devices for example a touchscreen that functions as both input and output devices. 
     Finally, as shown in  FIG. 10 , bus  1005  also couples electronic system  1000  to a network (not shown) through a network interface  1040 . In this manner, the electronic system  1000  can be a part of a network of computers (for example a local area network (“LAN”), a wide area network (“WAN”), or an Intranet, or a network of networks, for example the Internet. Any or all components of electronic system  1000  can be used in conjunction with the subject technology. 
     The above-described features and applications can be implemented as software processes that are specified as a set of instructions recorded on a computer readable storage medium (also referred to as computer readable medium). When these instructions are executed by one or more processing unit(s) (e.g., one or more processors, cores of processors, or other processing units), they cause the processing unit(s) to perform the actions indicated in the instructions. Examples of computer readable media include, but are not limited to, CD-ROMs, flash drives, RAM chips, hard drives, EPROMs, etc. The computer readable media does not include carrier waves and electronic signals passing wirelessly or over wired connections. 
     In this specification, the term “software” is meant to include firmware residing in read-only memory or applications stored in magnetic storage, which can be read into memory for processing by a processor. Also, in some implementations, multiple software technologies can be implemented as sub-parts of a larger program while remaining distinct software technologies. In some implementations, multiple software technologies can also be implemented as separate programs. Finally, any combination of separate programs that together implement a software technology described here is within the scope of the subject technology. In some implementations, the software programs, when installed to operate on one or more electronic systems, define one or more specific machine implementations that execute and perform the operations of the software programs. 
     A computer program (also known as a program, software, software application, script, or code) can be written in any form of programming language, including compiled or interpreted languages, declarative or procedural languages, and it can be deployed in any form, including as a stand alone program or as a module, component, subroutine, object, or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment. A computer program may, but need not, correspond to a file in a file system. A program can be stored in a portion of a file that holds other programs or data (e.g., one or more scripts stored in a markup language document), in a single file dedicated to the program in question, or in multiple coordinated files (e.g., files that store one or more modules, sub programs, or portions of code). A computer program can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers that are located at one site or distributed across multiple sites and interconnected by a communication network. 
     These functions described above can be implemented in digital electronic circuitry, in computer software, firmware or hardware. The techniques can be implemented using one or more computer program products. Programmable processors and computers can be included in or packaged as mobile devices. The processes and logic flows can be performed by one or more programmable processors and by one or more programmable logic circuitry. General and special purpose computing devices and storage devices can be interconnected through communication networks. 
     Some implementations include electronic components, for example microprocessors, storage and memory that store computer program instructions in a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (alternatively referred to as computer-readable storage media, machine-readable media, or machine-readable storage media). Some examples of such computer-readable media include RAM, ROM, read-only compact discs (CD-ROM), recordable compact discs (CD-R), rewritable compact discs (CD-RW), read-only digital versatile discs (e.g., DVD-ROM, dual-layer DVD-ROM), a variety of recordable/rewritable DVDs (e.g., DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, etc.), flash memory (e.g., SD cards, mini-SD cards, micro-SD cards, etc.), magnetic or solid state hard drives, read-only and recordable Blu-Ray® discs, ultra density optical discs, any other optical or magnetic media, and floppy disks. The computer-readable media can store a computer program that is executable by at least one processing unit and includes sets of instructions for performing various operations. Examples of computer programs or computer code include machine code, for example is produced by a compiler, and files including higher-level code that are executed by a computer, an electronic component, or a microprocessor using an interpreter. 
     While the above discussion primarily refers to microprocessor or multi-core processors that execute software, some implementations are performed by one or more integrated circuits, for example application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). In some implementations, such integrated circuits execute instructions that are stored on the circuit itself. 
     As used in this specification and any claims of this application, the terms “computer”, “server”, “processor”, and “memory” all refer to electronic or other technological devices. These terms exclude people or groups of people. For the purposes of the specification, the terms display or displaying means displaying on an electronic device. As used in this specification and any claims of this application, the terms “computer readable medium” and “computer readable media” are entirely restricted to tangible, physical objects that store information in a form that is readable by a computer. These terms exclude any wireless signals, wired download signals, and any other ephemeral signals. 
     To provide for interaction with a user, implementations of the subject matter described in this specification can be implemented on a computer having a display device, e.g., a CRT (cathode ray tube) or LCD (liquid crystal display) monitor, for displaying information to the user and a keyboard and a pointing device, e.g., a mouse or a trackball, by which the user can provide input to the computer. Other kinds of devices can be used to provide for interaction with a user as well; for example, feedback provided to the user can be any form of sensory feedback, e.g., visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from the user can be received in any form, including acoustic, speech, or tactile input. In addition, a computer can interact with a user by sending documents to and receiving documents from a device that is used by the user; for example, by sending web pages to a web browser on a user&#39;s client device in response to requests received from the web browser. 
     The subject matter described in this specification can be implemented in a computing system that includes a back end component, e.g., as a data server, or that includes a middleware component, e.g., an application server, or that includes a front end component, e.g., a client computer having a graphical user interface or a Web browser through which a user can interact with an implementation of the subject matter described in this specification, or any combination of one or more such back end, middleware, or front end components. The components of the system can be interconnected by any form or medium of digital data communication, e.g., a communication network. Examples of communication networks include a local area network (“LAN”) and a wide area network (“WAN”), an inter-network (e.g., the Internet), and peer-to-peer networks (e.g., ad hoc peer-to-peer networks). 
     The computing system can include clients and servers. A client and server are generally remote from each other and typically interact through a communication network. The relationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer programs running on the respective computers and having a client-server relationship to each other. In some aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a server transmits data (e.g., an HTML page) to a client device (e.g., for purposes of displaying data to and receiving user input from a user interacting with the client device). Data generated at the client device (e.g., a result of the user interaction) can be received from the client device at the server. 
     It is understood that any specific order or hierarchy of steps in the processes disclosed is an illustration of example approaches. Based upon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the processes may be rearranged, or that all illustrated steps be performed. Some of the steps may be performed simultaneously. For example, in certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Moreover, the separation of various system components illustrated above should not be understood as requiring such separation, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems can generally be integrated together in a single software product or packaged into multiple software products. 
     Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, where reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated, but rather “one or more.” Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. Pronouns in the masculine (e.g., his) include the feminine and neuter gender (e.g., her and its) and vice versa. Headings and subheadings, if any, are used for convenience only and do not limit the subject technology. 
     A phrase for example an “aspect” does not imply that the aspect is essential to the subject technology or that the aspect applies to all configurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating to an aspect may apply to all configurations, or one or more configurations. A phrase for example an aspect may refer to one or more aspects and vice versa. A phrase for example a “configuration” does not imply that such configuration is essential to the subject technology or that such configuration applies to all configurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating to a configuration may apply to all configurations, or one or more configurations. A phrase for example a configuration may refer to one or more configurations and vice versa.