초록 ▼

A system for monitoring a user's usage of a target application. Such a target application can, as examples, be a software program running on a computer or a workstation, an image forming device, an appliance, etc. The target application includes a user interface with a plurality of commands which a

A system for monitoring a user's usage of a target application. Such a target application can, as examples, be a software program running on a computer or a workstation, an image forming device, an appliance, etc. The target application includes a user interface with a plurality of commands which a user can select. In the example of the target application being a software program, the commands may be icons displayed on a computer screen which a user can point to with a mouse pointer and then click on. In the case of the target application being an image forming device or an appliance, the interface may be an operation panel with buttons, a touch pad, etc. which a user can press. The present invention monitors the user's usage of such interfaces and logs data of the user's usage of such interfaces. The logged data is stored in a map mapping key data to value data. The logged data can then be communicated by the sending unit by Internet mail to a designated location.

대표청구항 ▼

The invention claimed is: 1. A system comprising:an image forming device having direct network access and including an operation panel, the operation panel comprising a plurality of buttons to be selected by a user;a monitoring unit configured to monitor data of selecting of the plurality of buttons

The invention claimed is: 1. A system comprising:an image forming device having direct network access and including an operation panel, the operation panel comprising a plurality of buttons to be selected by a user;a monitoring unit configured to monitor data of selecting of the plurality of buttons of the operation panel by the user, including monitoring each of a sequence, timing, and frequency of selecting of the plurality of buttons, and to generate a log of the monitored data, the log of the monitored data being in a form of a map mapping each of key data in a key portion of the map to respective value data in a corresponding value data portion;a communicating unit configured to receive a command to send information based on the log of the monitored data, and to send the information of the monitored data through the direct network access, andwherein the monitoring unit and communicating unit are self-contained in the image forming device prior to any initial external communication connection by the communication unit, and the monitoring unit is configured to generate the log of the monitored data without any initial external communication connection by the communicating unit.