JP2002541694A - Internet communication and presentation software and methods - Google Patents

Abstract

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an Internet web browser by instructing a browser to access preselected internet resources (50), such as web pages, in a preselected order. A method for providing a presentation to a user is included. On the other hand, it prevents the user from using the browser to navigate to resources other than the selected resource or to change the order of the presentation. The content of the Internet resource received by the user and the additional content may be modified. The method includes real-time generation of the presentation. Such real-time generation may be used during communication by telephone or other method so that the creator and recipient may simultaneously view the selected Internet resource. The presentation may be in the form of a file readable by a general purpose web browser without the need for special software. The presentation file supplies a series of instructions to a browser running on the user's computer to generate the presentation. The presentation displays the current content of various pre-selected websites, variations of such content, and presentations of additional text, graphic and audio content for a selected time and in a selected order. During the presentation, the browser connects to and receives information from websites or other Internet resources. During the presentation, the user cannot access links on the website or other Internet resources, and the particular displayed resources are controlled by the presentation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to communication over computer networks, including the Internet, and more particularly, to networks using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The Internet is emerging as a dynamic new communication tool. The two main reasons for its explosive growth can be announced and searched (searchable)
Is a uniform standard in the amount and accessibility of information, i.e. anyone can access it with standard tools. One such standard is the World Wide Web (WWW) browser, which allows information stored in an appropriate format to be searched and displayed from anywhere in the world. The browser is an application that runs on a computer that has an operating system.

One way to communicate information contained on the World Wide Web (WWW) is to provide the address of a website to the recipient of the communication. This presents various difficulties (problems). One way to try this would be:

[0004] 1. Paste the required Internet address into the email. 2. In the e-mail, create a message related to each address that describes something relevant within each site. 3. Attach a file with a similar message. 4. Email it to anyone who wants to receive this communication.

[0005] The recipient may or may not follow the sequence of hyperlinks, is inconvenienced by the need to copy or type the address, and may follow each hyperlink within each site. You may or may not see and review the comments in the email at the same time you view (browse) the site.

[0006]

Objects and advantages of the invention

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages and to provide a method and system for generating and displaying a presentation that includes a resource on a network, such as a World Wide Web page on the Internet. And to realize the software.

An advantage of the present invention is that the aforementioned objects are achieved.

[0008] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.

[0009]

Summary of the Invention

In summary, the invention includes a method for providing a presentation to a user of an Internet web browser having a general purpose computer. The general-purpose computer has, as usual, a central processing unit, a memory device, input and output devices, and a display, and a bus and controller (controller).
And has an OS (operating system) and an Internet web browser program. The browser operates by instructing the browser to access a preselected internet resource, such as a web page, in a preselected order, while the user operates
Using the browser to navigate to resources other than the selected resource or to reorder the presentation is prevented. The method modifies (deforms) the content of the Internet resource received by the user,
Including providing additional content. The method may provide for multiple users accessing the same presentation simultaneously. The method may include providing real-time generation of the presentation,
Such real-time generation may be used, for example, during communications, such as by telephone or otherwise, to allow the creator and recipient to simultaneously view the selected Internet resource. The presentation may be in the form of a file that can be read by a general purpose web browser without requiring special software. The presentation file gives the browser running on the user's computer a series of instructions to generate the presentation. The presentation displays the current content at various pre-selected websites at a selected time and in a selected order;
Displaying such content variations (modifications) and displaying a presentation of additional text, graphic and audio content may be included. During the presentation, the browser connects to a website or other Internet resource and receives information from the website or other Internet resource. During the presentation, the user has no access to links or other Internet resources on the website, and the particular displayed resource is controlled by the presentation.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a method, system, and software for generating a presentation are provided. The software runs on a normal general-purpose computer using an operating OS, and performs selectable functions, such as selecting Internet resources to include in the presentation, existing at a location other than Internet resources, or Select new content, watch Internet resources and other content, view current presentations, recall (recall) and edit existing (current) presentations,
The order and timing of storing (storing) the presentation as a file in the memory device are selected. The presentation may control a normal browser. The system includes a general-purpose computer having the functions described above. Methods of creating, recalling, and editing presentations that can control a web browser program include selecting Internet resources, determining the order of presentation of Internet resources, changing (modifying) presentation of Internet resources, and other than Internet resources. Embedded in the presentation and storing the presentation in a memory device.

The methods, software and systems also generate the presentation in real time and send the presentation to the user's computer to determine the website or other resource accessed and displayed by the browser.

[0012]

[Detailed description of preferred embodiments]

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated various computer systems on a network using the method according to the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a computer system 10 of a presentation creator (composer). The presentation creator's computer system 10 may be any general-purpose computer system, such as an Intel-based system running an OS, such as Windows 98, for example. This is only an example and could be done with any other system. The presentation creator's computer system 10 runs a presentation creation and editing program 20 thereon. The presentation generation and editing program 20 causes a presentation to be generated. The presentation is stored in storage associated with the computer system 10. The computer system 10 accesses a network having resources. In the example of FIG. 1, the network is the Internet and the resources are pages on the World Wide Web (WWW). The nature of the network is not limited and may be, for example, an intranet of a company or other facility. The nature of the resource is not limited to World Wide Web pages or pages accessible through the Hypertext Transfer Protocol, but may include resources accessible through other communication standards.

The computer system 10 operates the browser 30 thereon. The term browser is used herein to mean a computer program for accessing resources over a network, and is not limited to browsers using the hypertext transfer protocol. Users of the presentation generation and editing program 20 access resources using a browser. The presentation generation and editing program 20 is preferably configured to immediately copy the resource address from the browser 30 and store that address in the presentation file. Presentation generation and editing program 20
Are stored in a storage medium (storage medium). The storage medium may include a fixed magnetic disk, a floppy magnetic disk, a CD-ROM, or other known or future storage medium.

During the generation of the presentation, the user causes the browser 30 to access the resources. In the example of FIG. 1, the resource is a worldwide web page 50 accessed via the Internet 40. Worldwide·
The URL of the web page 50 is stored in the presentation file by the presentation generation and editing program 20. The user of the presentation generator and editing program 20 selects the order in which the resources are presented. The user may also include options such as a button for the viewer to view (browse) a given resource, or a button for the viewer to press to move to the next item. May be. The user may capture the image or text and add it to the presentation. Such items may be included as separate items before or after the resource during the presentation, or may be superimposed on the resource. For example, a note may appear over a portion of the displayed resource in the form of a contrasting color graphic display.
The presentation generation and editing program may include text generation and editing functions, for example, to facilitate adding text to a presentation. Also, the program may include a drawing function or an image manipulation function. The presentation
The file contains instructions to prevent the browser running the presentation from independently selecting resources. For example, a user is prevented from selecting a web page by typing a URL in a window or by clicking on a hyperlink until the presentation is complete or finished. The browser displays the site but does not launch the hyperlink. The user may or may not choose to accept automated redirection, as is commonly done when a site changes its URL. Standard programming techniques may be applied to generate this result. It will be appreciated that the presentation may provide some choice of resources. For example, a presentation may provide a user with a selection of more than one (two or more) resources at some point in the presentation. These resources may have been selected by the creator of the presentation. For example, alternative resources may be provided depending on the particular interest of the viewer.

Also shown is the viewer's computer system 100. The viewer's computer system 100 has processors and other usual requirements.
The viewer's computer system 100 has a browser 110 running thereon. The presentation file 60 is provided to the currently displayed (viewing) computer system 100 by various methods. For example, presentation file 60 may be sent in an e-mail message. The presentation file 60 may be downloaded from a bulletin board (bulletin board) or a website. The presentation file 60 is stored on a storage medium accessible to the viewer's computer system 100. While the presentation file 60 is running, the browser 30 displays the resource 50 according to the instructions described in the presentation file 60. The time to view (browse) each resource may be pre-selected.

Further, a presentation for simultaneous viewing (view, display) may be generated using a presentation editor. The viewer may be directed to a particular site where the presentation can be downloaded periodically (periodically).

Referring to FIG. 2, key features 20 of presentation generation and editing software, also referred to as generation software, are shown. These functions are the functions of the browser interface 21, the resource selection / deletion 22, the additional content selection / deletion 23, the order selection 24, and the operation 25 of the content overlay. The browser interface allows the page that directed (pointed to) the browser 30 to be stored in the presentation file by the user. The interface also allows the presentation to be presented from the presentation generation software 20. The resource selection / deletion (function) 22 allows the user
It is possible to select the resources to be included in the file, especially the resource address information. Resources already stored in the presentation file may not be selected (deselected). Additional content selection / deletion (function) 23
Allows the user to select content other than resources. Such content may include text or images in a suitable format. The order selection (function) 24 allows to select the order of display of resources and other materials. Operational content overlay 25 allows the user to place additional content as an overlay on the displayed web page identified by the resource address. For example, text and arrows may be provided at certain portions of the displayed page to draw the user's attention. Color to present (present) the portion of the page that is emphasized in contrast color
An overlay may be provided. Many other examples are possible.

The present invention solves the problems (difficulties) both when generating communications using the Internet or other network resources and when viewing and understanding the communications. For example, rather than copying shortcuts or trying to describe what the viewer should focus on in an email, the creator of the presentation may use presentation generation and editing software 20. Is used.

A viewer of the presentation generation and editing program 20 allows the creator of the presentation to present each resource or website in the presentation in turn. The order of the reproduction may be edited by an appropriate editing tool (tool, means). As described above, for example, a graphic display similar to a notebook with a small contrast color may be included in the experience of the viewer of the site. Also, the experience of the site, when displayed to the viewer, could be altered (corrected) by highlighting particular areas, text or other information in the resource. The audio file may also be included in the presentation file (with) using appropriate instructions to play the audio portion through the audio capabilities of the viewer's machine. The audio may include newly recorded or generated material specific to the presentation. Similarly, including a video would be technically practical. However, including video will unnecessarily increase the size of the presentation file for most users. The resource or website is of course not affected by such variations and additional information. These features make the identification of information that the author wants the reader to focus on much less complicated (easy) to describe.

Once a creator has finished his presentation, the creator may use any number of distribution methods. The creator may email the presentation file to an individual or use the contact management system (
Through a contact management system, the presentation can also be broadcast to any number of recipients, such as, for example, clients, customers or prospects.
The feature also includes the ability for the creator to print the presentation, and to print out or fax the current content of each site in hard copy. You may have it. Any person or entity with a website will be able to post a presentation on the site for download.
For example, a company could post a presentation on its online customer access website. The presentation may be aimed at a particular user, a class of users, or the global for general consumption, using existing security configurations on the website.
Post the presentation file to an Internet address,
It may also be available for electronic bulletin boards and hyperlinks from other websites.

The presentation generation software and method of the present invention make it much easier for authors to create presentations. Also, the viewer experience is very advantageous. Viewers or users are giving up their browser control over the presentation. Other than exiting the presentation, the user can only move forward or backward through the content, even if the presentation file has options. Thereby, the presented information is presented to the user in an editorial format in the order and manner intended by the creator. Even without a presentation of the present invention, by communicating (transmitting) information from a single web page using current conventional means, such as emailing a link or posting a hyperlink on a website. , Viewers have full access to any other links on the website. In the absence of a presentation of the present invention, it is simply that much of the information that would be available to form a communication when it is (or is not) is not actually available. The reason is that sending a link to a page having the desired content exposes the viewer to the risk (danger) of activating a link to another site containing the undesired content. Using the prior art, the creator of Internet-based communications
The risk of including any hyperlinks or shortcuts must be carefully considered. The reason is that once it is activated, the user can go wherever the linked site allows. Viewers can quickly become confused at linked sites, often wandering about irrelevant information that disrupts the intended communication.

Also, using the present invention, two or more users can be connected to one browser session, simultaneously view the same session on the Internet, and send messages (eg, chat rooms) by phone. Via a video conferencing system.

The present invention is also used to provide business customer information and services from a website. For example, customers of an electronic securities brokerage (intermediary) company often look up their accounts online. The customer may have questions or questions, for example, the value of the account may appear to be significantly reduced. Clicking on the live web presentation customer service icon posted on the electronic broker site pulls up the 800 call center number that the customer calls (calls). The call center has a list of currently active customer live web presentations, answers the phone, asks for the customer's name or ID, or asks for any favorite method of identifying the customer. And then control the live presentation. The customer and call center could, for example, exchange control of the session initiated by the client showing a screen to the call center showing an unexpectedly low total account value. The call center agent then takes control to, for example, a portfolio details section of the company's website indicating that an unpriced bond exists in the account. Could move to.

Of course, this is only one example of using the present invention to view (display) the same page simultaneously. Services of this type include, for example, online product catalogs, technical services and support, review of account information and transactions,
It may be used in any field, such as electronic learning, sales, marketing and entertainment.

Those skilled in the art will understand the details of the methods and systems described and illustrated above to illustrate the features of the present invention without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention.
Various changes in material and arrangement can be made.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 schematically shows a computer system on a network using the method according to the invention.

FIG. 2 schematically shows the main modules of the software according to the invention.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (81) Designated country EP (AT, BE, CH, CY, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, IE, IT, LU, MC, NL, PT, SE ), OA (BF, BJ, CF, CG, CI, CM, GA, GN, GW, ML, MR, NE, SN, TD, TG), AP (GH, GM, KE, LS, MW, SD, SL, SZ, TZ, UG, ZW), EA (AM, AZ, BY, KG, KZ, MD, RU, TJ, TM), AE, AL, AM, AT, AU, AZ, BA, BB, BG, BR, BY, CA, CH, CN, CR, CU, CZ, DE, DK, DM, EE, ES, FI, GB, GD, GE, GH, GM, HR, HU, ID , IL, IN, IS, JP, KE, KG, KP, KR, KZ, LC, LK, LR, LS, LT, LU, LV, MA, MD, MG, MK, MN, MW, MX, NO, (72) Invention of NZ, PL, PT, RO, RU, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, TJ, TM, TR, TT, TZ, UA, UG, UZ, VN, YU, ZA, ZW David Bee Looper Virginia, United States of America 23001 Mitsudrojian Maichou Crossing Lane 207 F-term (reference) 5B082 GC04 HA05 5C062 AA14 AA29 AB38 AC41 AC42 BA04 [Continued Summary] The current content of various websites pre-selected in the website, variants of such content, and the presentation of additional text, graphics and audio content Display the session. During the presentation, the browser connects to and receives information from websites or other Internet resources. During the presentation, the user will not be able to access websites or other links on the Internet resources, and certain displayed resources will be controlled by the presentation.

Claims (24)

[Claims] 1. A method of providing a presentation to a user of a browser running on a processor, the method comprising instructing the browser to access a preselected resource on a network through instructions generated in another processor. , While restricting the browser from accessing resources on the network other than the selected resource. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of instructing comprises instructing the browser to select preselected resources in a preselected order. 3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of allowing the user of the browser to select a resource. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of altering content viewed by the user of one or more of the preselected resources.
The method described in. 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding content to the presentation. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the presentation is provided to browsers on multiple processors simultaneously. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the presentation is generated substantially simultaneously with providing to the user. 8. A storage medium storing a plurality of instructions, wherein the plurality of instructions are selected by a browser operating on the processor when executed by the processor, except when permitted by the instructions. A storage medium for executing a step of accessing a preselected resource on the network without accessing a resource on the network other than the selected resource. 9. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions cause the browser to access the preselected resources in a preselected order. 10. The storage medium according to claim 8, wherein the instruction causes the browser to display content in addition to the resource. 11. A method for generating a presentation for viewing on a network browser, the method comprising: selecting one or more resources on a network; and providing an address of each resource of the one or more resources to the presentation. And b. A method comprising: 12. The method further comprises the step of selecting an order in which to view the resources.
The method according to claim 11. 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising selecting each resource for viewing. 14. The method of claim 11, further comprising incorporating additional content into the presentation. 15. The method of claim 11, further comprising storing the presentation as a presentation file on a memory device. 16. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the presentation file to a presentation viewer's computer system.
5. The method according to 5. 17. The method of claim 11, further comprising selecting a time period for viewing each of said selected resources. 18. A system for generating a presentation for viewing on a network browser, comprising: means for selecting one or more resources on a network; A system comprising: means for including in a file; and means for including, in the presentation file, instructions for causing a browser in which the presentation file is executed to access at least one of the resources. 19. The system of claim 18, further comprising: means for selecting an order in which to view the resources. 20. Further, based on the presentation file,
19. The system of claim 18, including means for causing a presentation to display each selected resource. 21. The system of claim 18, further comprising means for incorporating content into the presentation file in addition to the address of the resource. 22. A storage medium storing a plurality of instructions, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to select one or more resources on a network; Causing the presentation file to include the address of each of the one or more resources; and providing instructions in the presentation file to cause a browser to access at least one of the resources. Is a storage medium. 23. The storage medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions cause the processor to further execute a step of selecting an order in which to view the resources. 24. The storage medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions cause the processor to further perform a step of incorporating additional content into the presentation file.