Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
1998-06-30
2001-06-05
Zimmerman, Mark (Department: 2671)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
active
06243089
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention pertains to network browsers, with particular application to browsers commonly used on the Internet and World Wide Web.
Web browsers in use today display information to their users in discrete pages that are downloaded from a (usually remote) network server. Each downloaded page usually is cached in a local hard file. Visible links enable the user to request access to a previously displayed page. In order to speed up operations and avoid unnecessary network communications, a browser receiving a request for a previously displayed page, usually retrieves that page either entirely from cache, or partly from cache and partly from the originating network server. Partial retrieval via the network usually occurs automatically (i.e. without explicit user request) when a requested page contains information requiring interaction between the browser and the originating server.
A problem related to this cached handling of page information is that an inexperienced user may be unaware that a page currently being redisplayed contains “old” information (i.e. information retrieved from cache), when the user expects to see only “new” information; expected, for instance, when the information is susceptible of changing somewhat frequently, such as product information in an advertiser's “home” page. Although browsers generally provide a “reload” selector (e.g. a function selectable on the display screen, such as a menu item, icon or button), the inexperienced user requiring new information may not realize that he or she is viewing old information, and therefore fail to explicitly request reloading of the respective page. Also, the inexperienced user may be unaware of the reload function and/or its use. Consequently, information in a re-displayed page could be mis-interpreted by the user, with resulting degradation of productivity of the user per se and their computer equipment.
The present invention seeks to provide a solution to this problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, viewable status indications are provided on the browser display screen containing the page currently being viewed. In a preferred embodiment, these indications differentiate information currently being viewed as entirely new, at least partly old, or entirely old.
In one embodiment, these indications are presented as icons illuminated in different colors that distinguish between new, old and partially old. In another embodiment, the indications appear as illuminated text denoting new, old and partially old status.
In variations of these embodiments, the indications are reduced in size to occupy less of the currently available display screen space. The reduction is accomplished by either completely eliminating the “new” status indication or both the “new” and completely “old” status indications. In the latter usage, a single status indication is illuminated to indicate either “partly old” or “old” (e.g. by blanking or turning off highlighting on the word “partly”).
In another variation, the status indications are positioned adjacent a graphic symbol representing a “reload” selection button, for associating the two. The reload selection button is selectable by a user (e.g. by “clicking” on it with a pointing device such as a mouse) to effect reloading of the currently viewed page from a remote network server containing the most up-to-date version of the page. In yet another variation, a status icon is incorporated into the reload selection button, to indicate that data in a currently viewed page is old or at least partially old and to make selection of the reload function a natural extension of that status indication.
The foregoing and other features, advantages, uses and advantages of this invention will be more fully understood and appreciated by considering the following description and claims.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5842216 (1998-11-01), Anderson et al.
Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, H. Shrikumar, Thinternet: life at the end of a tether, 1994, pp 375-385.
$ld: index.html, v1.4, Feb. 26, 1996, Martin Samilton, Other Frequently Asked Questions about WWW Caching, pp 1-7.
International Business Machines - Corporation
Lieber Robert
Tomlin Richard A.
Vo Cliff
Zimmerman Mark
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