Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
1997-12-12
2001-10-30
Bayerl, Raymond J. (Department: 2173)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
C345S215000, C345S215000, C707S793000, C709S201000, C709S203000, C709S218000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06310630
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates in general to a data processing system and, more particularly, to the generation and organization of Internet web page data.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The worldwide network of computers commonly known as the “Internet” has seen explosive growth in the last several years. This growth has been typically fueled by the introduction and widespread use of “web” browsers that allow for simple graphical user interface-based access to network servers. Such network servers typically support documents formatted as “web pages.” The “World Wide Web” (WWW) is a hypertext information and communication system used on the Internet with data communications operating according to a client/server model using a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). HTTP is a known application protocol that provides users access to files using a standard page description language referred to as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). It should be noted that HTML is an application of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), an international standard (ISO 8879) for text information processing. Furthermore, the files that are accessed using HTML may be provided in different formats, such as text, graphics, images, sound, and video, among others. HTML provides basic document formatting and allows the developer to specify “links” to other servers and files. Links are then specified using a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) when an HTML-compliant client browser is used. Upon specification of a URL, a client may make a TCP/IP request to the server identified in the link and receive a “web page” in return, where the “web page” is a document formatted according to HTML.
Links are important tools that may be interactively used within a web page. Links, which may be highlighted text, pictures, or icons, point to a different area on the same web page, a different web page, or some other resource on the Internet. By accessing a URL associated with a link, a user may travel from web page to web page. Successive web pages may be either on the same server as the linking page, or on a different server. It should be noted that links are typically accessed by a user using a traditional “point and click” methodology.
If a user clicks on a link, the browser may then transfer the user from the current document to another document associated with the link. In turn, the destination document may contain additional links that go to yet more documents. In this manner, the user may navigate through multiple hierarchical layers of documents or various sites by continuing to select links.
As users navigate among documents and sites, most browsers track this activity using a linear history mechanism. The pages visited are simply added to a linear list. The current page is at the top of the list, and pages appear in inverse chronological order thereafter. Subsequently visited pages are added to the top of the list. This includes pages that have been previously visited and which the user has revisited. Thus, in a particular session, the linear history may contain multiple references to the same web page. These multiple references are not necessarily useful to the user, and increase the burden of revisiting the web page that has been pushed down the list by the repeated entries. The list may eventually become unwieldy, or if the list is limited in length, become limited in usefulness, because it largely contains redundant information. Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved method and apparatus for maintaining browsing histories in which redundant information is excluded, and which provide random access to any page previously retrieved.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The previously mentioned needs are addressed by the present invention. In a first form, a method of generating browsing histories is implemented in which a current server is identified, and it is determined whether a data record associated with the server exists in a list of such data records. If no data record exists, a new data record associated with the current server is added to the list. Each data record in the list includes a list of web page identifiers corresponding to the web pages visited on the server. If the current page's identifier is not in the list of identifiers, it is added to the list. In another embodiment, each web page identifier list includes a portion containing the contents of the corresponding web page. In yet another embodiment, each web page identifier list includes a portion containing a sorting value whereby ordering of the web page identifier list may be effected.
In a second form of the present invention, a data processing system is provided. The data processing system includes circuitry for determining if a current server corresponds to a data record in a list of server associated data records. The data processing system has circuitry for adding such a data record wherein each data record includes a portion including a list of web page identifiers. Circuitry for incorporating the current web page's identifier into the list of identifiers is included in the data processing system of the present invention. If the identifier is in the list, the circuitry does not add it to the list. In another embodiment, the data processing system of the present invention has circuitry for including a sorting value in a portion of each identifier list, and also includes circuitry for ordering the identifier list using the sorting values.
There is also provided a machine readable program storage device embodying program instructions for generating a browsing history. The program instructions include programming for determining if a current server has a corresponding data record in a list of data records associated with web servers, and programming to add a data record associated with the current server, if no such data record exists. Programming for adding a web page identifier of the current web page to a list of such identifiers included in the data record is also contained in the machine readable program of the present invention. Before adding a web page identifier to the list, the program determines if the identifier already appears in the list, and bypasses the program instructions for adding a page identifier if the identifier so appears. In another embodiment, the machine readable program of the present invention includes programming for incorporating a sorting value in a portion of the web page identifier, and programming to order the web page identifier list according to the sorting value. In yet another embodiment, the program has programming for adding the contents of the web page corresponding to the web page identifier in another portion of the web page identifier list.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention.
These and other features, and advantages, will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is important to note the drawings are not intended to represent the only form of the invention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5500929 (1996-03-01), Dickinson
patent: 5588109 (1996-12-01), Dickinson et al.
patent: 5673322 (1997-09-01), Pepe et al.
patent: 5712979 (1998-01-01), Graber et al.
patent: 5727129 (1998-03-01), Barrett et al.
patent: 5778367 (1998-07-01), Wesinger, Jr. et al.
patent: 5801702 (1998-09-01), Dolan et al.
patent: 5802516 (1998-09-01), Shwarts et al.
patent: 5809250 (1998-09-01), Kisor
patent: 6018344 (2000-01-01), Harada et al.
patent: 6037935 (2000-03-01), Bates et al.
Kulkarni Salil Janardan
Sterling Merle Douglas
Bayerl Raymond J.
International Business Machines - Corporation
LaBaw Jeffrey S.
Newberger Barry S.
Thai Cuong T.
LandOfFree
Data processing system and method for internet browser... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Data processing system and method for internet browser..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Data processing system and method for internet browser... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2569447