U.S. patent application number 11/767884 was filed with the patent office on 2007-10-11 for system and method for visual history presentation and management.
This patent application is currently assigned to NOKIA CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Arto Astala, Marcus Davidsson, Charlotta Willstedt.
Application Number | 20070240076 11/767884 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 27085475 |
Filed Date | 2007-10-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070240076 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Astala; Arto ; et
al. |
October 11, 2007 |
System and Method for Visual History Presentation and
Management
Abstract
A method and computer program for managing and presenting a
visual history of web pages accessed by a user. This method and
computer program is able to create a screen of thumbnail snapshots
of web pages for presentation to a user. These thumbnail snapshots
are reduced images of the actual web pages themselves that the user
has visited. Associated with each thumbnail snapshot is a universal
resource locator for the web page. The history of the web pages
visited may be displayed in a toolbar which is scrollable.
Inventors: |
Astala; Arto; (Vantaa,
FI) ; Willstedt; Charlotta; (Linkoping, SE) ;
Davidsson; Marcus; (Linkoping, SE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BANNER & WITCOFF, LTD.
1100 13th STREET, N.W.
SUITE 1200
WASHINGTON
DC
20005-4051
US
|
Assignee: |
NOKIA CORPORATION
Keilalahdentie 4
Espoo
FI
02150
|
Family ID: |
27085475 |
Appl. No.: |
11/767884 |
Filed: |
June 25, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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|
09708093 |
Nov 8, 2000 |
7251775 |
|
|
11767884 |
Jun 25, 2007 |
|
|
|
09607276 |
Jun 30, 2000 |
|
|
|
09708093 |
Nov 8, 2000 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
715/800 ;
707/E17.114 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04L 69/329 20130101;
H04L 67/02 20130101; G06F 16/9562 20190101; H04L 67/36 20130101;
H04L 67/04 20130101; H04L 29/06 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/800 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/048 20060101
G06F003/048 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: accessing a web page; reducing the size of
the accessed web page to a thumbnail snapshot; comparing the
accessed web page content to a previously accessed web page
content; and displaying the thumbnail snapshot of the accessed web
page in an area of a screen if the accessed web page content and
the previously accessed web page content are not the same, wherein
the thumbnail snapshot provides one or more options that, when
selected, store the thumbnail snapshot as a bookmark.
2. The method recited in claim 1, wherein prior to the reducing the
size of the accessed web page to a thumbnail snapshot, further
comprising: checking a history file to determine if the accessed
web page is in the history file; and reducing the size of the web
page only when the accessed web page is not in the history
file.
3. The method recited in claim 2, wherein the thumbnail snapshot is
displayed to in a toolbar.
4. The method recited in claim 3, wherein the toolbar is able to
scroll and display a plurality of thumbnail snapshots from the most
recent to the least recent.
5. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising: displaying
one or more thumbnail snapshots of bookmarked web pages in a second
area of the screen.
6. A computer program embodied on a computer readable medium and
executable by a computer, that, when executed performs, a method
comprising: accessing a web page; reducing the size of the accessed
web page to a thumbnail snapshot; comparing the accessed web page
content to a previously accessed web page content; and displaying
the thumbnail snapshot of the accessed web page in an area of a
screen containing history information only if the accessed web page
content and the previously accessed web page content are not the
same.
7. The computer program recited in claim 6, wherein prior to the
reducing the size of the accessed web page to a thumbnail snapshot,
further comprising: checking a history file to determine if the
accessed web page is in the history file; and reducing the size of
the accessed web page only when the web page is not in the history
file.
8. The computer program recited in claim 7, wherein the thumbnail
snapshot is displayed in a toolbar.
9. The computer program recited in claim 8, wherein the toolbar is
able to scroll and display a plurality of thumbnail snapshots from
the most recent to the least recent.
10. The computer program recited in claim 6, further comprising:
displaying one or more thumbnail snapshots of bookmarked web pages
in a second area of the screen.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the area of a screen containing
only history information displays a plurality of thumbnail
snapshots of previously accessed web pages simultaneously.
12. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the screen is embodied
in a cellular phone or a personal digital assistant.
13. The method recited in claim 5, wherein the screen is embodied
in a cellular phone the thumbnail snapshots of the bookmarked web
pages being arranged in a polar spatial organizational scheme.
14. The computer program recited in claim 6, wherein the screen is
embodied in a cellular phone or a personal digital assistant.
15. The computer program recited in claim 10, wherein the thumbnail
snapshots of the bookmarked web pages are arranged in a polar
spatial organizational scheme.
16. A terminal, comprising: a processor; a screen; and a computer
program embodied on a computer readable medium and executable by
the processor for presenting and managing a history of web pages
accessed, when executed performing a method comprising: accessing a
web page; reducing the size of the accessed web page to a thumbnail
snapshot; comparing the accessed web page content to a previously
accessed web page content; and displaying the thumbnail snapshot of
the accessed web page in an area of the screen containing history
information only if the accessed web page content and the
previously accessed web page content are not the same.
17. The terminal recited in claim 16, wherein, when executed, the
computer program, prior to the reducing the size of the accessed
web page to a thumbnail snapshot, further performs: checking a
history file to determine if the accessed web page is in the
history file; and reducing the size of the accessed web page only
when the web page is not in the history file.
18. The terminal recited in claim 16, wherein the thumbnail
snapshot is displayed in a toolbar.
19. The terminal recited in claim 18, wherein the toolbar is able
to scroll and display a plurality of thumbnail snapshots from the
most recent to the least recent.
20. The terminal recited in claim 16, wherein, when executed, the
computer program further performs: displaying one or more thumbnail
snapshots of bookmarked web pages in a second area of the
screen.
21. The terminal recited in claim 16, wherein the area of a screen
containing only history information displays a plurality of
thumbnail snapshots of previously accessed web pages
simultaneously.
22. The terminal recited in claim 16, wherein the terminal is a
cellular phone or a personal digital assistant.
23. The terminal recited in claim 20, wherein the thumbnail
snapshots of the bookmarked web pages are arranged in a polar
spatial organizational scheme.
24. A terminal comprising: means for accessing a web page; means
for reducing the size of the accessed web page to a thumbnail
snapshot; means for comparing the accessed web page content to a
previously accessed web page content; and means for displaying the
thumbnail snapshot of the accessed web page in an area of a screen
if the accessed web page content and the previously accessed web
page content are not the same, wherein the thumbnail snapshot
provides one or more options that, when selected, store the
thumbnail snapshot as a bookmark.
25. The terminal of claim 24, further comprising means for:
checking a history file to determine if the accessed web page is in
the history file prior to the reducing the size of the accessed web
page to a thumbnail snapshot; and reducing the size of the web page
only when the accessed web page is not in the history file prior to
the reducing the size of the accessed web page to t thumbnail
snapshot.
26. The terminal of claim 24, wherein the thumbnail snapshot is
displayed to a toolbar.
27. The terminal of claim 26, wherein the toolbar is configured to
scroll and display a plurality of thumbnail snapshots from the most
recent to the least recent.
28. The terminal of claim 24, further comprising: means for
displaying one or more thumbnail snapshots of bookmarked web pages
in a second area of the screen.
Description
[0001] This application is a continuation of 09/708,093, filed on
Nov. 8, 2000, entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VISUAL HISTORY
PRESENTATION AND MANAGEMENT," which is a continuation-in-part of
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/607,276, filed on Jun. 30,
2000, entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR STORING BOOKMARKS AND HISTORY
INFORMATION SPATIALLY ON A DISPLAY."
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0002] This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/607,369 filed on Jun. 30, 2000, entitled
"USER INTERFACE CONSTRUCTED FROM COMPONENTS CREATED FROM A SET OF
TAGS" co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/609,581 filed
on Jun. 30, 2000, entitled "NETWORK WITH MOBILE TERMINALS HAVING
WIRELESS ACCESS TO THE INTERNET AND METHOD FOR DOING SAME",
co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/659,416 filed on
Jun. 30, 2000, entitled "INTELLIGENT TERMINAL FUNCTIONING AS
BROWSER", and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. filed on
entitled "SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VISUAL BOOKMARK PRESENTATION AND
MANAGEMENT" all assigned to and commonly owned by Nokia Corporation
of Espoo, Finland and are herein incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The invention relates to a system and method for visual
history presentation and management. More particularly, the
invention is a system and method in which compressed snapshots of
web pages may be displayed on a screen to indicate the web sites a
user has most recently visited.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] With the explosion in Internet access and usage individuals
have discovered that they may now receive a large amount of
information in their homes and offices almost immediately from any
number of sources. These sources include everything from the latest
news, weather, and sports to stocks, bond and commodity prices.
Currently, a typical Internet user would have a browser installed
in his local computer or server such as Internet Explorer.TM. or
Netscape.TM. . Using this browser, the user would access an
Internet service provider (ISP), such as America-On-Line (AOL.TM.),
via a modem over the local public switched telephone network
(PSTN). Once logged onto the Internet server, the user may utilize
one of the many search engines, such as Yahoo.TM. or Lycos.TM. , to
specify search terms. The user may also use a web crawler, spider
or robot to attempt to find a product, service or information
desired. The search engine or web crawler would then respond with a
list of web sites which matched the search terms the user provided.
The user would then log onto a web site and view the products or
services available for sale or receive the information desired.
Further, if the user discovers a web site he prefers, the user may
store the universal resource locator (URL) in a favorites'
directory for later quick access. This storage of the URL in a
favorites' directory is often referred to as bookmarking the entry
and the entry is then referred to as a bookmark. In addition to
bookmarks, the browser may keep in a history of the web pages
visited by storing each URL accessed. Thereafter, the user may
revisit the web page by accessing the favorites' directory and
searching for a title for the web page associated with a URL.
However, once some number of bookmarks has been accumulated, the
user may find it difficult to identify the bookmark desired based
on the title alone. Further, in some instances the designers of the
web page may not necessarily create a title for a web page as in
the case of purely graphic web pages. Therefore, the user may be
forced to try and recognize the bookmark using solely the URL. The
user under the circumstances would find it frustrating to look
through a large number of bookmarks by title and URL to identify
the web page desired. In addition, the user may often need to
access several web pages before discovering the bookmark associated
with the desired web page. This also applies to the history file. A
user or system administrator would often have to access the web
site to determine the nature of the content therein.
[0005] To overcome this problem of inadequate description of
bookmarks Nielsen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,963,964, issued on Oct. 5,
1999, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference,
proposes substituting a thumbnail snapshot of the web page itself
for the title or the URL used as a bookmark. However, in the case
of a history file, it is still necessary to open the file and
access the history by time period.
[0006] Therefore, what is needed are a system and method in which a
history of web pages accessed may be organized for presentation as
web pages so that they may be easily discovered and accessed by a
user. The system and method should further present to the user the
history of web page access as thumbnail snapshots. Further, this
system and method should display these thumbnail snapshots to the
user in such a fashion that the user may identify the web page of
interest and access it quickly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] An embodiment of the present invention provides for a method
or computer program for presenting and managing bookmarks. This
method begins by having the user enter the name of a map. This map
represents a screen layout having several thumbnail snapshots
contained in the screen. The user then selects a web page to be
stored as a bookmark. The web page is reduced in size to that of a
thumbnail snapshot. The user then positions the thumbnail snapshot
on the map. Thereafter, the thumbnail snapshot is stored with the
map in a bookmark database.
[0008] These and other features of this device, method and computer
program will become more apparent from the following description
when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which show,
for purposes of illustration only, examples in accordance with the
present invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The foregoing and a better understanding of the present
invention will become apparent from the following detailed
description of exemplary embodiments and the claims when read in
connection with the accompanying drawings, all forming a part of
the disclosure of this invention. While the foregoing and following
written and illustrated disclosure focuses on disclosing example
embodiments of the invention, it should be understood that the same
is by way of illustration and example only and the invention is not
limited thereto. The spirit and scope of the present invention are
limited only by the terms of the appended claims.
[0010] The following represents brief descriptions of the drawings,
wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1 is a block diagram representation of a communication
network having mobile terminals that are capable of communicating
with a system having a server with related services;
[0012] FIG. 2 is a more detailed block diagram representation of
the server of the system of the network shown in FIG. 1;
[0013] FIG. 3A is a more detailed block diagram of a terminal,
which shows the spatial storage of bookmarks and history on the
display with a toolbar, operating within the system shown in FIG.
1;
[0014] FIG. 3B is a more detailed block diagram of a mobile
terminal, which shows the spatial storage of bookmarks and history
on the display, operating within the system shown in FIG. 1;
[0015] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the process for establishing a
shared session and an individual session between the terminal and
the server of FIG. 1;
[0016] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the process for establishing a
communication link between the terminal and the server; and
[0017] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a process for generating a history
of web pages visited that can be easily recognized and
accessed.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] Before beginning a detailed description of the subject
invention, mention of the following is in order. When appropriate,
like reference numerals and characters maybe used to designate
identical, corresponding or similar components in differing figure
drawings. Further, in the detailed description to follow, exemplary
sizes/models/values/ranges may be given, although the present
invention is not limited to the same.
[0019] FIG. 1 is a block diagram representation of a communication
network having mobile terminals that are capable of communicating
with a system having a server with related services. In FIG. 1, a
network 10 includes a terminal 20 coupled to an access point 22.
This terminal 20 may be, but not limited to, WAP-capable cellular
telephone, a HTML-capable cellular telephone, or a processor-based
system connected to a cellular telephone. This processor-based
system may be, but not limited to, a palm computer, lap-top
computer or personal computer. Further, the terminal 20 is not
limited to the use of a cellular phone and may also use the public
switched telephone network (PSTN) or a satellite telephone or any
form of communications lines 30 such as standard twisted pair phone
lines, coax cable and fiber optics. These communications lines 30
may be leased lines including: T1 lines capable of transmitting at
1.54 Mbits/sec; T3 lines capable of transmitting at 45 Mbits/sec;
E1 lines capable of transmitting at 2.048 Mbits/sec; and E3 lines
capable of transmitting at 34 Mbits/sec. Therefore, communications
lines 30 may take the form of any radio frequency based
communications or any form of line or cable based
communications.
[0020] The terminal 20 using communications lines 30 connects to an
access point 22 coupled to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) 24
through communications lines 32, which is coupled to an Internet
26. Again, communications lines 32 may take the form of any radio
frequency based communications or any line or cable based
communications system. Since the access point 22 is coupled to the
Internet 26 it has an Internet address relative to the Internet
address of the ISP 24. Additionally, in an example embodiment, the
ISP 24 is coupled to a server 28 that provides the user, through
the terminal 20, with specific services and features, which will be
discussed in detail ahead. In another example embodiment, the
server 28 is coupled directly to the Internet 26 and, hence, the
terminal 20 would access the server 28 through the Internet 26.
[0021] Still referring to FIG. 1, the terminal 20 includes a
virtual keyboard, a two-fingered navigational tool, which is the
subject of related U.S. application Ser. No. 09/607359 entitled
"SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING A VIRTUAL KEYBOARD FOR A WIRELESS
TERMINAL"; a two-fingered pressure sensitive special
click-drag-drop feature, which is the subject of related U.S.
application Ser. No. 09/607638 entitled "METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR
TOUCH SCREEN INPUT"; and a unique Graphical User-Interfaces (GUI),
which is the subject of related U.S. application Ser. No.
09/607369; entitled "USER INTERFACE CONSTRUCTED FROM COMPONENTS
CREATED FROM A SET OF TAGS". The server 28 provides services such
as email, calendar functions, notes, the ability to shop online
with the necessary authentication, as well as third party services
and information, which is the subject of related U.S. applications
Ser. No. 09/609581, entitled "NETWORK WITH MOBILE TERMINALS HAVING
WIRELESS ACCESS TO THE INTERNET AND METHOD FOR DOING SAME", U.S.
application Ser. No. 09/607637 entitled "NETWORK WITH MOBILE
TERMINALS AS BROWSERS HAVING WIRELESS ACCESS TO THE INTERNET AND
METHOD FOR USING SAME."
[0022] Still referring to FIG. 1, terminal 20 may represent any
number of similar or different terminals as previously discussed
above. Terminal 20 is connected to the access point 22 via
communications line 30 enabling the user have access to the
Internet 26 and the services provided by the server 28. In an
example embodiment where terminal 20 is a cellular telephone with
WAP- capability or a cellular phone connected to a palm computer, a
personal digital assistant (P.A.), or a laptop, the user would have
mobile access to Internet 26 and server 28. Additionally, a
personal computer (PC) terminal 21 is coupled to the access point
22 via a landline 31. The terminal 21 can be used to access the
server 28 using special authentication by any user authorized to
access the information and services provided by the server 28.
However, the authentication for the user using the terminal 21,
which is discussed in further detail ahead, is slightly different
from the authentication procedure for the terminal 20, where
terminal 20 is a mobile terminal. More specifically, the terminal
20 is coupled to the access point 22 using a Wireless
Local-Area-Network Gateway (PLAN GO) (not shown) that is installed
at a specific location, such as the user's home or place of
business. In an example embodiment, the PLAN GO interface uses
Ethernet 802.11 transfer protocol. However, other wireless
interface protocols, such as GARS of Global System for Mobile
Communications (GSM+), Universal Mobile Telecommunication Systems
(UMTS), or any type of local area network (LAN), may be used
without limiting the spirit and scope of the present invention as
set forth in the claim claims. If the terminal 20 is powered on and
within range of the access point 22, then an Ethernet protocol may
be used as a transfer protocol in order to establish and maintain a
communication link.
[0023] Although the example embodiment shows the terminal 20
coupled to the server 28 through the ISP 24, the scope of the
present invention, as set forth in the claims, is not limited
thereby. For example, the terminal 20 may be coupled directly to
the server 28 through the access point 22. Regardless of how the
terminal 20 is coupled to the server 28, once the terminal 20 is
authenticated, as will be discussed ahead, it can function as an
Internet browser to access the Internet 26 with the additional
ability to retrieve services and information from the server 28.
Furthermore, in the example embodiments set forth herein, the ISP
24 is separate from and not acting as the server 28 and vice versa,
even though it is possible to combine them into one unit.
[0024] As would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art
and as previously discussed, even though the example embodiments
show the access point 22 coupled to the ISP 24 through a
communications line 32, the scope of the present invention as set
forth in the claims is not limited thereby. For example, the access
point 22 can be wirelessly by any means of radio frequency
communications or by any wire or cable based communications system
coupled to the ISP 24. Thus, in the example embodiments, the
terminal 20 accesses the ISP 24 through the access point 22 and,
thus, the user can access, navigate through, and retrieve
information from the Internet 26 using the terminal 20.
[0025] Still referring to FIG. 1, in order for a terminal, such as
terminal 20, to have access to the services of the server 28, the
server 28 must authenticate and authorize the terminal's access.
Although only the authentication and authorization procedure
relating to the terminal 20 are discussed in detail, the teachings
set forth herein are also applicable to other types of terminals.
Upon proper authentication of terminal 20, the user can access the
services of the server 28 at the authorized level of
authentication.
[0026] Generally if the terminal 20 is powered on and authenticated
by the server 28, then information or services from the server 28
are downloaded to the terminal 20. The server 28 downloads
information, such as profile settings for a group. One profile
setting that can be downloaded is language preferences for a shared
communication session. Other information or services may include
configuration data, driver or application related software or
portions thereof, partial sections of system software, or
configurable parameters depending on the level of authentication
that has occurred with respect to the user. Additionally, the
terminal 20 can have access through proper authentication and
service purchases, third party publications available from a
content provider or vendor 33. This content may include items such
as national or international news, related information found in
magazine publications or the daily newspaper. As would be
appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art this information
may be purchased by the user and then transmitted by the vendor 33
upon request of the user's group at the server 28 and then to all
terminals within the group of the terminal 20; alternatively, the
information could be purchased by an operator/owner of the services
provided by the terminal 28 and then resold to each group as
requested. Thus, a group profile can also include access to the
information services of the vendor 33 that can be made available to
the group or just the user, depending on the authentication.
[0027] There are two levels of authentication that provide access
to the services and information of the server 28. The first is at
the group level and the second is at the individual level. The
group level is a level of authentication that occurs based on the
identity of the terminal 20 in order to initiate a shared session.
In order to create a group, at least one terminal is needed, but
typically there are several terminals 20 that make up a group, and
each terminal 20 has a unique identity that allows that terminal
access to a shared session at the group level. Furthermore, each
group includes a specific group profile and this group profile is
downloaded during a shared session from the server 28. Thus, anyone
having access to the terminal 20 would have access to the group
level information and services, such as calendar functions, e-mail,
bookmarks, cookies, and e-publication, all of which are set up for
the group. As will be discussed ahead, these same services may be
available to the user at the individual level, but the content of
the information would vary. The server 28 includes storage capacity
for storing data related to the group in a group specific storage
unit that can be accessed and used by all terminals within the
group once the terminal has been authenticated and the shared
session initiated.
[0028] In an example embodiment, the group level authentication is
based on the identity of the hardware of the terminal 20 and the
authentication occurs automatically to initiate the shared session
once the terminal 20 is powered on. Even though the authentication
at the group level occurs automatically, the scope of the invention
as set forth in the claims is not limited thereby. For example, the
terminal 20 could request input from the user in order to initiate
the group level authentication process. Once the terminal 20 is
authorized to access the services, then each user of a terminal 20
is able to access information and services that are available to
all users in the group as well as initiate an individual
communication session to access individual information and services
available only to that user, provided the user has a profile
associated with group and associated with the terminal that has
established the shared session that is in progress.
[0029] Still referring to FIG. 1, unlike the shared session at the
group level, an individual session at the individual level is a
level of authentication that requires input from the user to allow
the user of a terminal 20 to access information intended only for
that user. For example, the user could use any terminal 20 that is
within the user's group and initiate an individual session to
access information and services specific to that user. The
authentication can be done using anything that is unique and only
known by that user, such as a password. Thus, the user can initiate
an individual session regardless of which terminal is being used.
When the user activates an individual session then configuration
parameters, which are specific to the user, are downloaded to the
terminal 20. Although in the preferred embodiment a user must have
a profile associated with the same group that the terminal's
profile is associated, the scope and spirit of the present
invention is not limited thereby. For example, the network 10 could
be set up to allow a user access from any terminal 20 or 21
regardless of the association between the user, the terminal 20,
and the group as long as the user can be authenticated by the
server 28. This is similar to the manner by which a user would gain
access to the server 28 from the terminal 21.
[0030] As indicated above, anyone having access to the terminal 20
would have access to the group level information and services,
because authentication is based on the terminal 20 and occurs
automatically and the shared session is always active when the
terminal 20 is powered on. Even though any user of the terminal 20
can have access to information and services at the group level,
only a designated user can change the group or take actions on
behalf of the group. In an example embodiment, one or two users
within the group are typically designated to have administrative
rights for the group. The user/users with administrative rights are
called a group administrator. The group administrator has the right
to alter group profiles and the information related to the group
administrator is stored in the server 28 and administration access
can be authenticated by a password. The group administrator, once
authenticated, can alter the group profile settings, add or delete
terminal profiles form the group profile, and add or delete user
profiles form the group profile.
[0031] One group setting that the group administrator can select is
the language setting for the shared sessions. However, each user
can select his or her own language preference for the individual
sessions. For example, in a multilingual group, the group language
can be one specific language, while the language for each user may
be different during the individual session for that user. Then
depending on the session type, which is either family or
individual, the terminal 20 will show text in the selected
language, which is established in the group or individual profile,
respectively.
[0032] Additionally, the group administrator can have access to
purchasing services that may require the ordering party to be of
legal age for the purpose of ordering or purchasing additional
services, such as news or publication services. Thus, while all
users of the terminal would have access to group level services,
such as access to the Internet 26, they would not be able to make
administrative decision, unless they were authenticated as the
group administrator. Accordingly, the group is protected from
unauthorized or unwanted alteration of group profile as well as
financial commitments from occurring at the group level from the
terminal 20, especially given that the identity of the user of the
terminal 20 is not unknown at the group level yet that user has
access to the server 28 as well as the Internet 26 through the
terminal 20 coupled to the ISP 24.
[0033] Still referring to FIG. 1, in addition to the ISP 24, the
access point 22 is also coupled to a global unit or content
provider 34. In an example embodiment, the access point 22 may
communicate with the content provider 34 through a link 35A.
Alternatively, the access point 22 may communicate with the content
provider 34 through a communication line 32, the ISP 24, and a link
35B. In yet another alternative embodiment, the access point 22 may
communicate with the content provider 34 through a communication
line 32, the ISP 24, the Internet 26, and a link 35C.
[0034] Still referring to FIG. 1, the content provider 34 includes
a global address server 36, a global upgrade server 38, and a
firewall unit 40. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art
that the firewall unit 40 functions to provide secured access to
the global address server 36 and the global upgrade server 38. In
an example embodiment, the Internet address of the content provider
34 with the global address server 36 is permanently contained in
the memory of the terminal 20. Even though reference is made
hereinafter only to the Internet address of the global address
server 36 without specific reference to the Internet address of the
content provider 34, as would be appreciated by one of ordinary
skill in the art the Internet addresses for the two may be the same
or could be slightly different depending on configuration
parameters. The global address server 36 is a place from which all
the terminals 20 can fetch the Internet address of their respective
server. The advantage of having the terminal 20 store the Internet
address of the global address server 36 is that if the terminal 20
was relocated near another access point, then the terminal 20 can
still obtain the Internet address location of the server 28 simply
by knowing the Internet address of the global address server 36.
However, the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims is
not limited thereby. For example, the Internet address of the
server 28 could be stored on the terminal 20 and the memory of the
terminal 20 could be updated as needed.
[0035] Still referring to FIG. 1, an advantage to storing the
Internet address of the global address server 36 on the terminal 20
is that the association between terminal and server as well as
changes in the Internet address of servers can be easily and
efficiently updated without having to update the memory of each
terminal. The global update server 38 updates the global address
server 36 each time there is a change in the association between
terminal 20 and server 28, when there are new terminals 20 to
associate with a server 28, or if the Internet address of a
particular server 28 is changed.
[0036] Still referring to FIG. 1, with the Internet address of the
global address server 36 stored in the memory of the terminal 20,
the terminal 20 is able to request and retrieve the Internet
address of the server 28 from the global address sever 36. The
global address server 36 stores information about the location of
the server 28 and all other servers in the network and the
corresponding relation between each terminal 20 and its server 28.
Thus, the terminal 20A is always able to obtain the address of the
server 28, which is the server designed to serve the terminal 20.
For example, the terminal 20A coupled through an access point 42 to
an ISP 44 can retrieve the Internet address of the server 28 from
the global address server 36, provided that the server 28 is the
server designated to and serve the terminal 20A and that the
terminal 20A is authenticated by the server 28 as an authorized
user of the services.
[0037] FIG. 2 is a more detailed block diagram representation of
the server of the system of the network shown in FIG. 1. In FIG. 2,
the server 28 includes a support server 46, a response handler or
application server 48, a network application server 50, and a
directory server 52. As would be appreciated by one of ordinary
skill in the art the referenced connections do not depict the
physical connections between the elements but merely logical
connections. The support server 46 provides services oriented
towards enabling and supporting the services provided to the
terminal 20. The support server 46 includes an upgrade service unit
54, a bookmark service database unit 55, a login services unit 56,
a bookmark database 57, a profile services unit 58, a client log
unit 59 for collecting information about clients, an advertisement
services unit 60, a system log unit 61 for collecting information
about events in the server 28 from the client log unit 59, an
administrative services unit 62, a defined services unit 64, and a
directory client unit 66.
[0038] Still referring to FIG. 2, the upgrade services unit 54 is
dedicated to controlled software upgrade of the software for the
support server 46. Updates are transmitted from the global upgrade
server 38 to the upgrade service unit 54. The login services unit
56 provides for authentication of the user and the terminal 20 that
is being used to access the services based on information provided
by the client unit 66. Additionally, the login services unit 56 is
also responsible for log-off activities, such as individual session
termination. The profile services unit 58 provides for modifying a
user's profile information. This modification of a user's profile
may include modifying the group and individual information and
preferences. The administration services unit 62 provides for
administration of the support server 46 and the application server
48. The advertisement services unit 60 provides for the server 28
to tailor advertisements to the user and the terminal 20 according
to the user's profile information. The defined services unit 64 is
a classification of "other services" containing items such as
bookmark management services, help services, log services, name
management services, and general management services. The directory
client unit 66 is coupled to the directory server 52 to provide
client verification.
[0039] FIGS. 3A and 3B are a more detailed block diagram of a
terminal, which shows the spatial storage of bookmarks and history
on the display operating within the system shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3A
differs from FIG. 3B in that toolbar 73 is depicted in FIG. 3A have
not in FIG. 3B. Therefore, both FIGS. 3A and 3B will be discussed
simultaneously.
[0040] Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the terminal 20 includes a
display 70, a user interface (UI) framework 72, a browser 74, a
driver 76, and processor 78. Each element is shown here for
reference only and the location of each element is not intended to
be a defined location of one element relative to the other
elements. For example, the user interface 72 may be located in the
display, as a part of the display, or independent of the display.
The display 70 is spatially divided for visual storage of
thumbnails 71A-71G of the bookmarks selected by the user. In one
example embodiment, the display 70 in FIG. 3A includes a tool bar
portion 73 that contains history 73A-73D of various web pages or
URLs visited. In another example embodiment, shown in FIG. 3B, the
spatial structure of the display 70 is used to store the history
73A-73D of various web pages or URLs visited. It will be apparent
to those of ordinary scale in the art that various ways can be used
to generate thumbnails of the bookmarks and the history. With
respect to the present embodiment, a view of the display 70
illustrates thumbnails 71A, 71B, 71C stored on the display in a
vertical orientation in the upper right hand portion of the display
70. Thus, the user has a visual display of the thumbnails of the
bookmarks, which are spatially organized in a vertical manner.
Similarly, the user has selected to organize and group the
bookmarks 71D, 71E, 71F and 71G in another portion of the display
70 in accordance with a polar spatial organizational scheme. It
will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that the any
spatial organizational scheme can be utilized in response to how
the spatial division of the area of display 70. Thus, the user's
ability to recall the content of a bookmark is greatly enhanced,
even if the bookmark does not include textual reference to its
content because of the spatial location of the bookmark relative to
other bookmarks. Therefore, the user may more easily find selected
bookmarks based solely on their location of the screen.
[0041] Still referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, similarly, the
thumbnails of the history 73A, 73B, 73C and 73D can be spatially
organized. For example, the history 73A, 73B, 73C and 73D are
organized linearly and include a thumbnail snap shot of the pages
visited. In the example embodiments discussed, the latest history
is visually shown as a snapshot in a selected spatial area of the
display 70 and selecting a history item will show the content of
the page as it was when the history information was collected and
stored. Thus, spatial organization is utilized so that the user can
easily select the desired history thumbnail corresponding to the
web page that the user wants to re-visit. The visual thumbnails of
each history includes the URL address of the selected Internet
address object, which may be shown as a hint. The spatial position
of each thumbnail on the display 70 as well as what information is
stored about each web page, depending on whether it is bookmark or
history, is defined by the user and controlled by the driver
76.
[0042] Still referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the driver 76 resides in
the memory of the processor 78 along with other data, such as the
Internet address of the global address server 36 and software, such
as the browser 74. As the terminal 20 is turned on, the driver 76
retrieves data relating to the Internet address of the global
address server 36. In an example embodiment, the driver 76 may be
EPOC6, which is operating system software that handles hardware
related functions in the terminal as well as offer a functioning
environment to the application layer programs. Once the terminal 20
is power on, it is coupled to the access point 22 and the ISP 24.
Thus, the terminal 20 is able to obtain its own Internet
address.
[0043] Using the Internet address of the global address server 36,
the terminal 20 is coupled to the global address server 36 and
sends a request in order to obtain the Internet address of the
server 28. Once the terminal 20 has the Internet address of its
server 20, it is then connected to the server 28. The server 28
authenticates, using the unique identity of the processor 78 of the
terminal 20, that the terminal 20 has shared or group access
privileges. Accordingly, the terminal 20 is authenticated and
logged onto the server 28 to begin a shared session at a shared or
group level. Thus, the user can now access services or retrieve
information from the server 28 or the Internet 26. In order for the
user to initiate an individual session and retrieve individual
information, the user must use the terminal 20 and provide further
authentication to the server 28 to gain access at the individual
level. Then each terminal includes a unique identification and
which is reserved and used by members belonging to the same group.
Each of the unique identifications of the terminals is recognized
in the server 28 to be used by the members of the group. Every
member belonging to the respective group may use the same terminal.
When one or more terminals, each of the terminals having a unique
terminal identification, is switched on, then each terminal
belonging to the same group requests from the global address server
36 with terminal unique identification the address of the server 28
in which the applications and services are stored and ready for
use. Then each of the terminals belonging to the same group will
get address of the same server 28 into which each of the terminals
are connected. As would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in
the art, either at shared/group or at individual level, the user is
able to the retrieve the information related to the group of users
as well as browse the Internet 26 to retrieve information.
[0044] Still referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the browser 74 is a
typical browser and includes such features as Hyper-Text Transfer
Protocol (HTTP), JAVA script, and cascade style sheet capability.
As with typical Personal Computers (PCs), the browser 74 helps the
user to navigate through and retrieve information from the Internet
once the user is connected to the ISP 24 through the terminal 20.
The user utilizes the terminal 20 to connect to both the ISP 24 and
the server 28 using authentication protocol as discussed in detail
herein. The terminal 20 is the primary means of access by the user
to the server 28 and the related services and applications.
However, the user can also access the ISP 24 and the server 28
using the terminal 21 or non-mobile terminal using appropriate
shared/group access authentication initiated manually.
[0045] Still referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, in order to retrieve
information or request services from the server 28 or the Internet
26, the user provides input through the user interface (UI)
framework 72. The user can provide input using a virtual keyboard
displayed on the display 70. Even though the virtual keyboard is
used as the user retrieves information from the Internet 26, such
as a web page, the user can receive the information at the display
70 of the terminal 20 in a full screen format. Full screen format
is available because the UI framework 72 disappears when the user
types a Universal Resource Locator (URL) or follows a hyperlink
while navigating the Internet 26. In order to return to the UI
framework 72, the user presses a button 80 and the virtual keyboard
as well as the header and footer related to the services are
presented again. Additionally, once the user presses the button 80,
the web page, which was a full screen displayed prior to pressing
the button 80, is reduced to a thumbnail view and positioned in the
display 70, such as in the bottom left corner of the footer.
Consequently, the user has a shortcut to quickly access the web
page that was previously visited or to save that web page as a
bookmark.
[0046] Before entering into a discussion of the remaining figures
it should be noted that the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 4 and 5,
contain software, firmware, processes or operations that
correspond, for example, to code, sections of code, instructions,
commands, objects, or the like, of a computer program that is
embodied, for example, on a storage medium such as, but not limited
to, floppy disk, CD Rom, EP Rom, RAM, hard disk, etc. Further, the
computer program can be written in any language such as, but not
limited to, for example C++.
[0047] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the process for establishing a
shared session and an individual session between the terminal and
the server of FIG. 1. In FIG. 4, the process of authenticating a
terminal 20 at the shared or group level in order to initiate a
shared or group session and authenticating the user at the
individual level to initiate an individual session, beings in
operation 400 and immediately proceeds to operation 402. In
operation 402, it is determined whether the terminal is powered on.
At operation 404, if it is determined that the terminal is not
powered on, then a communication link cannot be established through
an access point 22 to the server 28 and, hence, the process returns
to operation 402 until the terminal is powered on.
[0048] However, if the terminal 20 is powered on, then the terminal
20 establishes a connection to the access point 22 and, hence, to
an ISP 24 and a global address server 36. Thereafter, in operation
408, the terminal obtains the Internet address of its server from
the global address server 36.
[0049] Still referring to FIG. 4, in operation 410, the terminal 20
communicates with the server 28 and is authenticated as an
authorized terminal 20 with access to information and services at
the shared or group level and the shared or group session begins
and continues until the terminal is turned off. Additionally, the
group profile is downloaded to the terminal 20 when the shared
session is active. Once the server 28 recognizes the terminal 20,
establishing the shared session is an automatic background activity
carried out by the terminal 20 and transparent to the user, which
is further discussed with respect to FIG. 5. In order for the user
to establish an individual session and access individual
information and services, the user has to log in as an individual
user at the individual level.
[0050] Still referring to FIG. 4, in operation 412 it is determined
if the user is an authorized individual user. At operation 414, if
the user is not authenticated as an individual user, then the user
will only be given access to a shared session with the shared level
information and services. However, in operation 416, if the user is
an authorised individual user, then an individual session is
established and the user is allowed access to the individual
information and services. Although the individual level information
and services may be the same for all users, the content will vary
from user to user.
[0051] Processing then proceeds to operation 418, in the individual
session the user retrieves information and uses the individual
level services provided by the server. In operation 420, it is
determined if the user wants to terminate the individual session
and return to the shared level. If it is determined that the user
does not want to terminate the individual session, then the user
continues the individual session at the individual level and the
process returns to operation 418. However, if it is determined that
the user wants to terminate the individual session, then at
operation 422, the individual session is terminated and the user
goes from the individual level to the shared or group level.
Thereafter in operation 424, it is determined if the terminal 20 is
still powered on. If the terminal is powered on, then the process
returns to operation 412 with the user at the shared or group level
in a shared/group session. However, if the terminal is turned off,
then the shared session is also terminated that the terminal 20 is
logged off of the server 28 and the process ends in operation
426.
[0052] Therefore, once the server authenticates the terminal 20,
then a shared session begins at the shared/group level. Once the
user is recognized as an individual user, then an individual
session is initiated. Consequently, an individual session remains
in effect until the user explicitly terminates the individual
session, whereas a shared/group session remains in effect until the
terminal is turned off. Additionally, during a shared session when
a predetermined period of time expires without any input from the
user, then the terminal 20 can enter standby mode in order to
conserve battery life until the terminal 20 (in the case of a
mobile terminal) receives an input from the user. Other features
can be included, such as termination of the individual session if
no input is received from the user after a predetermined period of
time.
[0053] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the process for establishing a
communication link between the terminal and the server. In FIG. 5,
the process of establishing a communication link to an access
point, operation 406 of FIG. 4, and obtaining the Internet address
of an server 28 for that terminal 20, operation 408 of FIG. 4, for
initiating a shared session at the shared level, begins in
operation 500 can immediately proceeds to operation 502. In
operation 502, the terminal establishes a communication link with
the access point 22. In operation 504, the terminal 20 obtains its
Internet address from the access point 22 based on the Internet
address of the access point 22 with which the terminal 20 has
established the communication link. Thereafter, in operation 506,
the terminal 20 establishes a communication link 32 with the ISP
coupled to the access point 22. In operation 508, the terminal 20
retrieves the Internet address of the global address server 36 from
its memory. Thereafter, in operation 510, the terminal 20 sends a
request to the global address server 36 for the Internet t address
of the server 28 that is associated with the terminal. Processing
then proceeds to operation 512, the global address server returns
the Internet address of the appropriate server 28 to the terminal
20. In operation 514, the terminal 20 sends its identification
information to the server 28 located at the Internet address
provided by the global address server 36 in order to establish a
communication link with the server 28. Then in operation 516, the
server 28 authenticates the terminal 20 and a shared/group session
at the shared/group level is established between the server 28 and
the terminal 20. Then in operation 518 a family or group session
then begins.
[0054] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a process for generating a history
of web pages visited that can be easily recognized and accessed. A
history of web pages accessed by the user is depicted and FIG. 3A
and FIG. 38. It should be noted that in FIG. 3A histories 73A
through 730 are shown contained within the toolbar 73, while in
FIG. 38 the histories 73A through 730 are shown as contained within
displays 70. Providing the histories 73A through 730 within toolbar
73 enables the user to scroll from left to right in order to view
the most recent to the least recent web pages accessed. As in the
case of thumbnail snapshots 71A through 71G the histories 73A
through 730 are depicted as thumbnail snapshots. Therefore, by
viewing these histories 73A through 730 it is possible for user to
quickly determine any web site the user wishes to revisit. Also
sends it is likely that the most recent web pages accessed would be
the ones most likely to be revisited the user may quickly revisit
these web pages since they would be displayed on the users
screen.
[0055] The processing illustrated in FIG. 6 begins in operation 600
and immediately proceeds to operation 615. In operation 615,
processor 78 determines whether the user has accessed a web page.
If the user has not accessed a web in operation 615 then processing
looks back to operation 615 until the user accesses a web page.
[0056] However, if the user accesses a web page then processing
proceeds to operation 620.
[0057] In operation 620, it is determined if the web page accessed
is different from the last entry in the history. This is done in
order to a sure that duplicate thumbnail snapshots of the same web
page without the year in toolbar 73 or display 70. If the web page
is the same as the last entry in the history then processing loops
back to operation 620 until the change in web pages occurs. Again,
this prevents multiple identical entries of a web page from being
placed in toolbar 73 or display 70. However, if the user has
accessed a new web page previously not stored in the history then
processing proceeds to operation 625. In operation 625 the web page
is accessed and reduced in size to a thumbnail snapshot. This
thumbnail snapshot appears in the lower left-hand corner of display
70 or toolbar 73 for the user to view. Thereafter, in operation 635
the remaining thumbnail snapshots are moved to the right as shown
in toolbar 73 and display 70 in FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B. Processing
then proceeds to operation 640 where execution terminates in the
case of the user exiting the system.
[0058] Therefore, a history of web sites accessed is maintained and
visually presented to the user. This history would be depicted as
either in the form of a toolbar 73 which the user could manipulate
to access and entire history or simply as a portion of a display
70.
[0059] The benefit provided by the example embodiments of the
present invention is that the user may revisit desired web pages by
viewing thumbnail snapshots. The most recent thumbnail snapshots of
web sites accessed are displayed for the user and may be quickly
selected for reviewing.
[0060] While we have shown and described only a few examples
herein, it is understood that numerous changes and modifications as
known to those skilled in the art could be made to the present
invention. For example, the layout of a screen may vary based upon
individual needs. Further, example embodiments of the present
invention may be incorporated into any browser for accessing a
history. Still further, the positioning a history on a screen may
be done by the user or performed by an automatic function based on
alphabetical order or date of access to the web site. Therefore, we
do not wish to be limited to the details shown and described
herein, but intend to cover all such changes modifications as are
encompassed by the scope of the appended claims.
* * * * *