Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Computer network managing – Computer network monitoring
Reexamination Certificate
1997-09-12
2001-06-12
Maung, Zarni (Department: 2152)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Computer network managing
Computer network monitoring
C709S246000, C709S203000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06247050
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of data communications for personal computers, and in particular to a system for dynamically collecting and displaying performance improvement information.
2. Related Art
The Internet is quickly becoming the preferred data communications medium for a broad class of computer users ranging from private individuals to large multinational corporations. Such users now routinely employ the Internet to access information, distribute information, correspond electronically, and even conduct personal conferencing. An ever-growing number of individuals, organizations and businesses have established a presence on the Internet through “Web pages” on the World-Wide Web (WWW).
At the same time that the Internet's popularity has been growing, the trend in personal computer (PC) design has been towards increased portability. This trend is best evidenced by the rapid growth in popularity of so-called “notebook” or “laptop” computers. Unfortunately, while PCs are becoming both more powerful and more portable, advances in communications infrastructure have not necessarily kept pace.
A primary limitation on the ability of personal computers to exploit the Internet to full benefit is a lack of sufficient communications bandwidth. Similar problems may be caused by such conditions as high network traffic, even for high-speed Internet access lines. Outside of an office environment, for example, PCs typically connect to the Internet via POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) or wireless modems at speeds ranging from 9.6 to 14.4 kbps. Such speeds are substantially lower than typical office LAN (Local Area Network) bandwidths. This limited data communications capability can translate into long user-visible latencies when interacting with the Internet.
A number of approaches have been (and are being) developed to address the problem of slow data communications in the context of Internet applications. One such approach involves using one or more intermediate devices, such as a “network proxy,” arranged between a client device and content servers on the Internet to enhance client
etwork data communications. Network proxies may be used, for example, to cache network content so that subsequent client requests may be satisfied without having to re-retrieve a requested data object from a content server. Network proxies may also be used to “transcode” data objects into a form that may be downloaded more quickly. Such transcoding might comprise, for example, techniques such as data compression and image quality reduction which tend to reduce the amount of data to be downloaded.
As techniques for improving the performance of client
etwork data communications are being developed, it is desirable to be able to quantify the performance benefits derived from those techniques and to communicate such information to users. There is therefore a need for methods and apparatus to collect and display performance improvement information for a client device, including when performance improvement benefits are provided to a client device in a distributed manner by a plurality of other devices.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for collecting and displaying performance improvement information. Embodiments of the present invention have particular applicability to an environment in which a client device retrieves content from a network, such as the Internet. Such embodiments may be applied, for example, to quantify and display on a client device performance improvement benefits attributable to an intermediate device through which the client device accesses network content.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method for providing performance improvement information to a client device includes the steps of receiving a request from the client device for network content; retrieving the requested network content; and transmitting the network content to the client computer with information relating to a performance improvement associated with the retrieval and/or transmission of the network content.
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Bakshi Bikram Singh
Knauerhase Robert Conrad
Man-Hak Tso Michael
Cardone Jason D.
Intel Corporation
Kenyon & Kenyon
Maung Zarni
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