Patent Document ID: 7984078
Application ID: 12657936

Base Claim:
1. A method for ranking and improving answers supplied by users to an online database system, the method employing: an online computer database system for supplying and retrieving answers (answer DBS), this answer DBS including processors, memory, online input/output, software, and a user interface for: creating user accounts, including accounts for funds entering a question and supplying a corresponding answer entering a question and retrieving a corresponding answer entering a bet offer, directed at a specified user accepting a bet offer entering a bet decision, the method comprising the following steps that the answer DBS executes: a first author enters a question and supplies the first answer to that question, the answer DBS: storing the answer to correspond to the question designating the answer as the current answer, the current answer to be output in response to the question being entered by consumer users designating the author as the current author then, a second author enters the same question and supplies a different answer, the answer DBS: storing the answer to correspond to the question designating the answer as a challenger answer in relation to the current answer designating the second author as the challenger author in relation to the current author and the current author's answer requiring the second author to enter a bet offer, directed at the current author, claiming that the challenger author's answer is better than the current author's answer registering the challenger author's bet offer alerting the current author to the challenger author's bet offer if the current author does not accept the bet offer, the answer DBS: designating the challenger author's answer as the current answer and the challenger author as the current author if the current author accepts the bet offer, the answer DBS: registering the acceptance alerting a judge to decide the bet registering the judge's bet decision if the judge finds that the current answer is better, the answer DBS maintaining the current answer as the current answer; if the judge finds that the challenger author's answer is better, then the answer DBS designating the challenger author's answer as the current answer and designating the challenger author as the current author.

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Claim 4:
4. The method of claim 1 in which the answer DBS includes steps for enabling the current and challenger authors to solicit the opinions of consumer users before a bet agreement has been made regarding which answer is better, the current answer or the challenger answer.