Providing rewards and metrics for completion of microtasks

Abstract

Edits on a content item, such as a document, are divided into microtasks. The microtasks associated with a document can be automatically identified based on a workflow or can be identified by a user associated with the content item or an administrator. At a later time, the user can complete the microtasks for a content item using an application associated with their smart phone or tablet. The application may present the microtasks in a game-like environment where the user can compete with other users based on metrics such as number of microtasks completed in a day or fastest completion time. In addition, the user can earn rewards such as badges, coupons, or credits by completing microtasks. In this way, users can use time that would have been wasted playing games to complete their content items, while still experiencing some of the fun and competition associated with the games.

What is claimed: 
     
         1 . A computer-implemented method comprising:
 receiving computer-implemented identifiers of a plurality of computer-implemented microtasks for a computer-implemented content item;   receiving a computer-implemented selection of a selected microtask of the microtasks;   in response to the selection, providing the selected microtask for completion;   receiving a computer-implemented prediction model that has been generated or updated by one or more computer components based on prior results for use in task completion;   completing the selected microtask using the prediction model, wherein the completing of the selected microtask comprises performing one or more operations on the content item in a computer system using the prediction model, and wherein the completing of the selected microtask comprises generating computer-implemented results of the completing of the selected microtask; and   providing the results of the completing of the selected microtask.   
     
     
         2 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the content item comprises a document, and the selected microtask comprises one or more of editing the document, re-writing the document, shortening the document, summarizing the document, reviewing the document, or proofreading the document. 
     
     
         3 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises presenting a graphical indicator of a metric for the selected microtask, and present a graphical indicator of a metric associated with at least one microtask that is different than the selected microtask. 
     
     
         4 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises:
 calculating an average metric for a plurality of microtasks that include the selected microtask; and   presenting a graphical indicator of the calculated average metric.   
     
     
         5 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , where the method further comprises:
 presenting a computer-implemented graphical indicator of the completed microtask;   receiving a computer-implemented indication of acceptance or a computer-implemented indication of rejection of the completed microtask; and   updating the prediction model based on the indication of acceptance or the indication of rejection.   
     
     
         6 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the content item comprises an image database, and the selected microtask comprises one or more of editing an image of the image database, tagging one or more faces in an image of the image database, or culling one or more images from the images of the image database. 
     
     
         7 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising determining that a user associated with the content item is available, and presenting graphical indicators of one or more of the microtasks at a computing device associated with the user. 
     
     
         8 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 7 , wherein the computing device associated with the user comprises one or more of a smart phone or a tablet computer. 
     
     
         9 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein each of the microtasks is associated with metadata, and the method further comprises presenting graphical indicators of one or more of the microtasks, the presenting of the graphical indicators comprising presenting graphical indicators of one or more of the microtasks based on the metadata. 
     
     
         10 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing at least one reward based on the results of the completing of the selected microtask and a completion time. 
     
     
         11 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one reward comprises one or more of a graphical badge, a coupon, an achievement, a credit for the purchase of an application, and a credit for an in-application purchase. 
     
     
         12 . A computer system comprising:
 at least one processing unit;   at least one memory comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the at least one processing unit perform acts comprising:
 receiving a computer-implemented content item; 
 identifying a computer-implemented workflow for the content item by the computer system; 
 identifying at least one computer-implemented microtask for at least a portion of the content item corresponding to the identified workflow by the computer system; 
 completing the at least one microtask using a computer-implemented prediction model by the computer system, wherein the completing of the at least one microtask comprises performing one or more operations on the content item in the computer system using the prediction model, and wherein the completing of the at least one microtask comprises generating computer-implemented results of the completing of the at least one microtask; 
 receiving a computer-implemented indication of feedback regarding the completing of the at least one microtask by the computer system; and 
 updating the prediction model based on the received indication of feedback by the computer system. 
   
     
     
         13 . The computer system of  claim 12 , wherein identifying the at least one microtask comprises matching a pattern associated with the at least one microtask and the workflow with the at least a portion of the content item. 
     
     
         14 . The computer system of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one microtask comprises one or more of editing a document, re-writing the document, shortening the document, summarizing the document, reviewing the document, or proofreading the document. 
     
     
         15 . A computer system comprising:
 at least one processing unit;   at least one memory comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the at least one processing unit perform acts comprising:
 receiving a computer-implemented selection of a selected microtask of a plurality of available microtasks by the computer system; 
 in response to the selection, providing the selected microtask for completion by the computer system; 
 receiving a computer-implemented prediction model that has been generated or updated by one or more computer components based on prior results for use in task completion; and 
 completing the selected microtask using the prediction model by the computer system, wherein the completing of the selected microtask comprises performing one or more operations on a computer-implemented content item in the computer system using the prediction model, and wherein the completing of the selected microtask comprises generating computer-implemented results of the completing of the selected microtask; and 
 receiving computer-implemented results associated with the completion of the selected microtask by the computer system. 
   
     
     
         16 . The computer system of  claim 15 , wherein the acts further comprise:
 determining that the received results or a metric for the selected microtask qualifies for at least one reward by the computer system; and   providing a graphical indicator of the at least one reward by the computer system;   wherein the at least one reward comprises one or more of a graphical badge, a coupon, an achievement, a credit for the purchase of an application, and a credit for an in-application purchase.   
     
     
         17 . The computer system of  claim 15 , wherein the selected microtask comprises one or more of editing a document, re-writing the document, shortening the document, summarizing the document, reviewing the document, or proofreading the document. 
     
     
         18 . The computer system of  claim 15 , wherein the acts further comprise presenting a graphical indicator of a metric for the selected microtask, and a graphical indicator of a metric associated with at least one microtask that is different than the selected microtask. 
     
     
         19 . The computer system of  claim 15 , wherein the acts further comprise:
 calculating an average metric for a plurality of microtasks that include the selected microtask; and   presenting a graphical indicator of the calculated average metric.   
     
     
         20 . The computer system of  claim 15 , wherein the received results comprise an indication of acceptance or an indication of rejection of the completed microtask, and wherein the acts further comprise updating the prediction model based on the indication of acceptance or the indication of rejection.