JP2000227886A - Device and method for information source observation and recording medium where program which executes information source observing processing is recorded - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To sum up what kind of URL pages are referred to by users as reference sources and to present a list of the reference sources to the users in a hypertext system such as WWW. SOLUTION: A reference information extracting means 4 extracts the URL of a reference source from a request header which is issued by a client computer 3 and data type of a data file from a response header issued by a server computer 1. These pieces of reference information are stored on a reference information storing means 5. When the number of the reference information becomes larger than a specific number, the respective URLs of reference sources are summed up by data type by a counting means 7 and the summed result is presented to the users as the information source list.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system in which a server computer and a client computer are connected via a network, for example, when a data file having a hyperlink structure on the server computer is browsed on the client computer. The present invention relates to an information source observation device, an information source observation method, and a recording medium on which a program for executing an information source observation process is recorded.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a plurality of server computers and a plurality of client computers are connected via a network, multimedia data having a hypertext structure is stored in each server computer, and in each client computer, software called a browser is used. Systems capable of browsing such multimedia data have become widespread. An example of such a system is, for example, a system called the World Wide Web (WWW) on the Internet.

[0003] A document including multimedia data is described in a description language called, for example, Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML), and includes applications such as text documents, still images, moving images, music data, and Java (registered trademark) applets. It is possible to include programs and the like. Such a document (hereinafter, HTML)
A unique address called a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is assigned to each of the page and the multimedia data. The user can specify a URL on the browser to obtain a desired H.
It can access TML pages or multimedia data. In addition, a link for accessing another page or multimedia data is embedded in the HTML page, and the user points to this link on the browser to display the linked page or multimedia data. It is also possible to move.

HTM in client computers
As a browser that is L display software, for example,
Netscape Communicator from Netscape Communications
(Registered trademark) or Microsoft Internet Explorer
(Registered trademark) products are widely used. In these browsers, URLs of accessed HTML pages and multimedia data, access date and time, titles, and the like can be stored as history data on a hard disk in a client computer. When the user wants to access the previously accessed HTML page or multimedia data again, the user can easily access the desired HTML page or multimedia data by referring to the history data.

[0005] For example, in Netscape Communicator, based on history data, an HTM that has been accessed in the past is used.
The L pages and the URLs of the multimedia data can be displayed in the order of frequency or date and time.

Further, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-143519 discloses a method and apparatus for ordering URLs accessed by a user in the past based on frequency and viewing time, and displaying the result. ing.

[0007] For example, JP-A-9-204347 and JP-A-10-21134 disclose in a gateway computer that relays a URL between a server computer and a client computer, a relay cache is built in the gateway computer. In this case, a method is disclosed in which a frequency is calculated for a URL relayed in the past, a list is created, and the gateway computer voluntarily updates the cache in order of the frequency.

[0008] A common feature of these methods is that, with regard to HTML pages and URLs of multimedia data accessed in the past, the frequency is focused on, the frequency is calculated by performing statistical processing on the URL, and the frequently used HT is accessed.
The ML page and the multimedia data are determined to have a high user demand.

[0009]

Here, a system comprising a plurality of server computers for providing information, a gateway computer, and a client computer is assumed. The gateway computer is a computer for interconnecting different networks / systems.

[0010] For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the URL is “http://www.news” on a certain server computer.
An HTML page indicated by “/” exists, and the URL is “http: //www.hello.nara/” on another server computer.
Assume that there is an HTML page indicated by.

An HTML page whose URL is indicated by “http://www.news/” contains certain news information (“Mainichi Shimbun”).
Is a page that provides the “Newsletter Information (“ http: //www.n
ews / 1.html ”)”, “Weather forecasts (“ http://www.news/2.
html ”)”, “Company A's new product (“ http://www.news/3.htm
l ”)”, “Company B's new product (“ http://www.news/4.htm
l ”)” and “Company C's new product (“ http://www.news/5.h
tml ")" are linked to the five HTML pages.

The URL is "http: //www.hello.nara"
The HTML page indicated by “/” is a page that provides Nara area information, and is described in “Stock Information (“ http: //www/a.mo.
v ”)” and “road information (“ http: //www/b.mov ”)”
Two video data, and "Notices (" http: // www
/index.html ")" is linked to the HTML page.

[0013] Here, when a certain user operates a client computer, first, the URL is "http://www.news.
The user accesses the HTML page indicated by “/”, browses the five HTML pages (text data) linked from this page, and then changes the URL to “http: //www.h
ello.nara / ”to access the HTML page,
It is assumed that two moving image data and one HTML page (text data) linked from this page are browsed.

At this time, an access log as shown in Table 1 below is recorded in the gateway computer.

[0015]

[Table 1]

In Table 1, the URL is "http: // w
The reason that the HTML page indicated by “ww.news/” is counted only once is as follows: for example, the HTML page indicated by “http://www.news/” From the link "new book information (" ht
tp: //www.news/1.html ”)” page, and after browsing, press the back button (back button) of the browser to return to the “http://www.news/” page again Assume that the user has similarly moved to the other four link destinations. At this time, a certain amount of cache is usually stored in the browser, and "news information (" http://www.news/1.html ")"
When returning to the page of “http://www.news/” from the page of “http://www.news/”, the data of the page of “http://www.news/” is extracted from this cache. In this case, since the URL acquisition request is not transmitted to the gateway computer, the access log of the gateway computer includes the HTM indicated by “http://www.news/”.
The L page will appear only once.

According to the tabulation results shown in Table 1, which URL
Is a single appearance frequency, and thus, according to the method of determining the user's request degree based on the appearance frequency as described above, the user's request degree is considered to be the same for all URLs. However, in practice, the user will be required to
Is an HTML page indicated by “http://www.news/”
HTM whose URL is indicated by “http: //www.hello.nara/”
If the user accesses the L page again and a new link is created, it is expected that an access operation of accessing the new link is likely to be performed. At this time, the already accessed URL “http://www.news/1.
html "and" http://www.news/2.html "are not expected to be accessed again.

That is, as described above, in the case of the method of judging the degree of request of the user based on the frequency of appearance, the judgment reflecting the actual degree of request of the user is not performed. Therefore, the result shown by such a method includes a lot of useless data, and it may not be possible to say that useful information for the user is shown.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to determine what page a user refers to as a reference page in a hypertext system such as WWW. It is to talli up and present the list of the referrers to the user.

[0020]

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information source observing apparatus which stores a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected to a network on a client computer. In an information source observation device used for browsing, a reference information storage unit that stores, as reference information, a URL of a reference source of a data file accessed from a client computer, and stores the reference information in each of the URs serving as reference sources.
And a counting means for counting each L.

According to the above arrangement, the URL of the reference source of the data file accessed by the client computer is stored as reference information by the reference information storage means, and the reference information is used as the reference source by the counting means. Since aggregation is performed for each URL, it is possible to grasp URLs frequently used as reference sources. That is, it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the information source observation apparatus according to the first aspect, when a client computer accesses a data file on a server computer, the information source observation device refers to a request header issued from the client computer. It is characterized by further comprising reference information extracting means for extracting information of the original URL.

According to the above arrangement, the reference information extracting means extracts the URL information as the reference source from the request header issued from the client computer.
Since such a request header is based on the specification of HTTP 1.0, the URL as a reference source can be used without specially requesting data from the client computer.
Information can be obtained.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information source observing apparatus according to the second aspect, the reference information extracting means is configured such that when the client computer accesses a data file on the server computer, The data type of the data file is extracted from the response header issued from the server.

According to the above arrangement, the reference information extracting means, when the client computer accesses the data file on the server computer,
The data type of the data file is extracted from the response header issued from the server computer. Since such a response header is based on the specification of HTTP 1.0, the data is specially transmitted to the server computer. You can get the data type of the data file without request.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the information source observing apparatus according to the third aspect further comprises a sorting means for totalizing the reference information for each URL as a reference source for each data type. Features.

According to the above arrangement, the sorting means converts the reference information for each data type into each reference U
Since aggregation is performed for each RL, it is possible to grasp a URL frequently used as a reference source for each data type. That is, it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user according to the data type.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information source observing apparatus according to the first aspect, the reference information storing means further stores a text accompanying a data file accessed by the client computer. I have.

According to the above configuration, the text accompanying the data file accessed by the client computer is further stored as reference information by the reference information storage means, so that when presenting a URL useful to the user, The content that the user prefers can also be presented.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the information source observing device according to the first or fourth aspect, an information storage means for storing a predetermined amount of a data file accessed from a client computer as a cache, Based on the result, of the cache, a data file of a URL serving as a reference source and a U
Information updating means for updating a data file linked to the RL data file at a predetermined link level by accessing a corresponding server computer at predetermined time intervals is further provided.

According to the above arrangement, the information storage means stores a predetermined amount of the data file accessed by the client computer as a cache, and the information update means stores the data file in the cache based on the totaling result of the reference information. Updating the data file of the URL serving as a reference source and the data file linked to the data file of the reference URL at a predetermined link level by accessing the corresponding server computer at predetermined time intervals Therefore, information collection starts from URLs that are frequently used by the user as reference sources, and accurate information collection that is highly likely to be used by the user can be performed. As a result, even when the user accesses data linked from the URL of the reference source, the data can be extracted from the cache data, thereby improving the access speed and reducing the network traffic. it can.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information source observing apparatus according to the sixth aspect, the information source observing apparatus further comprises a search means for performing a search process on the data file in the cache.

According to the above arrangement, the search means
Since the search process is performed on the data file in the cache, the search is performed on the file object whose information is collected based on the information source of the user, which is compared with a general Internet search engine or the like. ,
It is possible to provide search results with high freshness of information and suitable for user needs.

The information source observing method according to claim 8 is an information source observing method for browsing, on a client computer, a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected to a network. It is characterized in that it has a step of storing the URL of the reference source of the existing data file as reference information, and a step of totalizing the reference information for each URL as the reference source.

According to the above method, the URL of the reference source of the data file accessed by the client computer is stored as reference information, and the reference information is totaled for each URL serving as the reference source. URLs that are frequently used can be grasped. That is, it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium storing a program for executing the information source observing process, wherein the information source for browsing a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected via a network on a client computer is provided. A process of storing a URL of a reference source of a data file accessed by a client computer as reference information on a recording medium storing a program for executing an observation process, and tabulating the reference information for each URL serving as a reference source The program is characterized by being readable by a computer in which a program for causing a computer to execute the process is recorded.

According to the above arrangement, a program for storing the URL of the reference source of the data file accessed by the client computer as reference information and totalizing the reference information for each URL as the reference source is recorded. Therefore, it is possible to provide a program capable of grasping a URL frequently used as a reference source.
That is, it is possible to provide a program capable of accurately presenting a URL useful for the user.

[0038]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a computer network system according to the present embodiment. The computer network system includes a server computer 1, information source observation means (information source observation device) 2,
And a client computer 3. Although only one server computer 1 is shown in the figure, the server computer 1 is an innumerable server computer on the Internet.

The server computer 1 holds HTML pages and various multimedia data.
Server software called a TTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) daemon manages these data and access from external computers.

The client computer 3 uses HTML
The system is provided with software called a browser capable of displaying pages and various multimedia data, and the user can browse desired HTML pages and various multimedia data by operating the browser on the client computer 3. .

The information source observing means 2 corresponds to, for example, a gateway computer provided on a firewall or an HTTP proxy server computer provided on the Internet, and basically relays HTTP requests and responses. The information source observing means 2 includes a reference information extracting means 4, a reference information storing means 5, a counting means 6, a sorting means 7, a data converting means 8, an information updating means 9, an information storing means 10, and a searching means 11. I have. The description of each of these means will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 2, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the information source observation means 2 is built in the client computer 3. As described above, as an HTTP proxy server that can be built in the client computer 3, there is Sharp Mobile Proxy (product name) manufactured by Sharp Corporation.

Further, the information source observing means 2 can be configured as software as a part of a browser in the client computer 3.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the client computer 3. As shown in FIG. 3, the client computer 3 has a CPU (Central Process).
ingUnit) 12, a memory 13 such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a nonvolatile memory 14 such as a hard disk or a flash memory, and a network I / O serving as an interface with an external network.
(Input / Output) 15, an input device 16 including a keyboard and a mouse, and a display device 17.
These are connected by a bus 18. The client computer 3 having such a configuration is configured by a computer generally called a personal computer.

Here, the operation of the information source observing means 2 when browsing an HTML page on the WWW by a browser in the client computer 3 will be described.

First, it is assumed that, from a state in which a certain HTML page is displayed on a browser, a link embedded in the HTML page is pointed with a mouse cursor and clicked to access the URL of the link destination. I do. For example, in the example shown in FIG.
It is assumed that the RL clicks the link indicating the HTML page of "newsbook information" while the RL is displaying the HTML page indicated by "http://www.news/". At this time, in the client computer 3, the network I / O
15 to the information source observing means 2 via TCP / IP
(TransmissionControl Protocol / Internet Protocol)
Is opened, and a request header as shown in FIG. 4 is issued.

The Referer header included in the request header is issued by the browser, and indicates the reference source information of the requested URL. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the URL “http://www.ne.
ws / 1.html ”is the HTM with the URL“ http://www.news/ ”
This indicates that the request is made by a link from the L page. Such a request header is a standard header defined in the specification of HTTP 1.0. Such information of the request header is defined on the assumption that it is normally recorded by a server computer.

The information source observing means 2 receives the request header as described above, establishes a connection to the server computer 1 whose URL is indicated by “www.news”, receives the corresponding file (1.html), Transfer to the browser of the client computer 3. At this time, the response data received by the information source observation means 2 from the server computer 1 includes a response header and text data (HTML data) as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 5, the Content-
The Type header indicates the multimedia type of the following data, and in the example shown in FIG. 5, indicates that the following data is text data (HTML data).

The information source observing means 2 in this embodiment comprises:
Using the information included in the request header and the response header as described above, the reference source information and the multimedia type of the URL indicating the normal response among the accessed URLs are obtained and recorded as the items of the access log. I have. Thus, for example, if the tally is performed by paying attention to the reference source information in the access log, the URLs that have been the reference sources of the accessed URLs can be rearranged in order of frequency and presented to the user as an information source list. .

Also, the reference source information can be totaled for each multimedia data type. For example, it is also possible to classify data types such as text data, moving image data, and music data and present them to the user as an information source list.

As the information source observation means 2, HTTP
In the case of a computer that accumulates a cache, such as a proxy server computer or a gateway computer, a configuration in which the cache is spontaneously updated for a URL frequently referred to as a reference source based on the information source list Is also possible.

Next, the flow of processing in the information source observation means 2 will be described with reference to FIG. 2 and based on the flowchart shown in FIG. In the following description, it is assumed that the information source observation means 2 is built in the client computer 3, but substantially the same processing is performed in a configuration provided outside the client computer 3.

First, the information source observing means 2 opens a server socket using the network I / O 15 and enters a standby state for receiving a relay request (step 1 and thereafter).
Notation like S1). If a relay request has been received, the process proceeds to S2. As described above, when the information source observation means 2 is built in the client computer 3, the information source observation means 2 communicates with the browser 3A via the memory 13.

Next, when the information source observing means 2 receives the relay request, the reference information extracting means 4 extracts the Referer header which is reference source information from the request header, and temporarily stores the contents in the memory 13. (S2).

Next, the information source observing means 2 opens a connection to the server computer 1 and relays the request header (S3). At this time, if the requested URL does not exist, an error message is presented to the user by the display device 17 of the client computer 3, and the information of the Referer header temporarily stored in the memory 13 is discarded (S4).

When the requested URL exists (when the response code is normal), response data from the server computer 1 corresponding to the URL is received, and the response data is transmitted to the browser 3A in the client computer 3. . At the same time, the requested URL is stored by the reference information storage unit 5 in a data type detected based on the Content-type header included in the response header, reference source information detected based on the Referer header,
The reference information is recorded and stored in the nonvolatile memory 14 as reference information together with the title of the reference source (S5). Table 2 shows an example of the stored data of the stored reference information.

[0059]

[Table 2]

Here, the data type of the data to be stored is text / html or the like, but only the data type specified in advance may be stored. Note that when the Content-type header is text / html, the HTML data of the response data is parsed, and <title>
> By extracting the part enclosed by tags, it may be saved as the title of the corresponding page at the same time.

The storage processing of the reference information as described above is repeatedly performed until the stored data reaches a certain number (S
6). When the number of stored data reaches a certain number, the process proceeds to the next step (S7).

For the stored data that has reached a certain number, the counting means 6 totals the number of times used for reference for each reference source information to create total data (S7). Then, the aggregation data is sorted by data type by the sorting means 7 (S8). Table 3 shows an example of this sort result.
And Table 4. Table 3 shows the data type of text / h in the example of the reference information storage data shown in Table 2.
Table 4 shows the result of counting only text / html as the data type.

[0063]

[Table 3]

[0064]

[Table 4]

The data of the reference information sorted in this manner is converted into a data format, such as HTML data, which can be displayed by a user on a browser, by a data conversion means, and the converted data is displayed on the display device 17 as an information source list. By displaying, it is presented to the user (S9). FIG. 7 shows an example of such an information source list.

Since information indicating the title of the page of the reference source information is attached to the information source list, it is necessary to know what information the user who uses the client computer 3 is required to request. Can be. That is, this information source list can be used as a preference database. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 7, it can be seen that the user considers the daily newspaper, local information of Nara prefecture, and the like to be important as information sources. In addition, since the sum of the reference source information is presented for each data type, it is possible to grasp important reference source information for each data type.

Here, the information source observing means 2 uses the accessed URL data as a cache as an information storing means 10
Let us consider a case where a certain amount is accumulated in the storage area. in this case,
The information updating means 9 executes the server computer 1 at predetermined time intervals based on the data of the sorted reference information.
, And the data stored in the information storage means 10 is updated (S10). Such information update processing is performed based on the sorted reference information data, for example, in the order of high frequency as the reference source in all data types, or in the high frequency as the reference source in the data type specified by the user. Done.

In the information updating process by the information updating means 9, if a process of automatically collecting file objects at a link level of 2 or higher is performed on the URLs listed in the information source list, the URL is linked from the URL as a reference source. The stored data, that is, data that is likely to be accessed by the user, is automatically stored in the information storage unit 10. In other words, if you increase the link level,
Automatic collection of related information from a URL as a reference source to a wide range of linked information will be performed automatically. However, since the information is collected from URLs used by the user as reference sources, there is a possibility that the user may use the information. High and accurate information collection becomes possible. As a result, even when the user accesses data linked from the URL of the reference source, the data can be extracted from the cache data, thereby improving the access speed and reducing the network traffic. it can.

Further, as described above, the search means 1 searches the file objects automatically collected at a predetermined link level or higher for the URLs listed in the information source list.
It is also possible to perform a search according to 1 and present the result to the user. In this case, a search is performed on the file object for which information has been collected based on the information source of the user.
It is possible to provide search results with high freshness of information and suitable for user needs.

The steps from S1 to S10 as described above are repeatedly performed by the information source observation means 2.

As described above, URLs frequently used by the user as reference sources are ranked higher in the result of totalizing the reference information and sorting them in the order of appearance frequency.
Therefore, if such a sort result is presented to the user, the user can discover from the information source list where the desired information can be obtained, and follow the link from the information source list. Thus, information can be easily obtained.

Here, in the case where the information source observing means 2 is built in the client computer 3,
An example of how each unit included in the information source observation unit 2 is configured in the client computer 2 will be described. First, the non-volatile memory 14 stores a program code for performing the processes from S1 to S10 and an OS (Operating System) code capable of executing the program code. In addition, ROM (R
A code for performing a process of loading the OS code into the memory 13 when the power is turned on is stored in a nonvolatile memory 14 such as an ead only memory. That is, each means included in the information source observation means 2 is realized by loading the program code and the OS code stored in the nonvolatile memory into the memory 12 and executing the program code and the OS code by the CPU 12. Further, even when the information source observation means 2 is provided in an external computer different from the client computer 3, the information source observation means 2 is realized by a configuration substantially similar to the above.

When the information source observing means 2 is incorporated in an information home appliance such as an Internet television or an Internet telephone, for example, the program code for performing the above processing is directly stored in a ROM or the like. The program code is stored in a non-volatile memory, and is executed by the CPU reading this program code from the ROM. Also, in such information home appliances, O
It is also possible to adopt a configuration including S, and to execute a program on the OS.

[0074]

As described above, the information source observation device according to the first aspect of the present invention is used when browsing a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected to a network on a client computer. In the information source observation device, the URL of the reference source of the data file accessed by the client computer
Is stored as reference information, and counting means is provided for counting the reference information for each URL as a reference source.

As a result, there is an effect that a URL frequently used as a reference source can be grasped. That is, there is an effect that it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user.

The information source observation device according to the invention of claim 2 is
When the client computer accesses a data file on the server computer, the client computer further includes reference information extracting means for extracting URL information as a reference source from a request header issued from the client computer.

Thus, in addition to the effect of the configuration of the first aspect, there is an effect that the information of the URL as the reference source can be obtained without specially requesting the data from the client computer.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information source observation apparatus comprising:
The reference information extracting means extracts the data type of the data file from a response header issued from the server computer when the client computer accesses the data file on the server computer.

Thus, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 2, there is an effect that the data type of the data file can be obtained without specially requesting data from the server computer.

An information source observation device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises:
The above reference information is divided into U
This configuration is further provided with a sorting unit for totalizing each RL.

Thus, in addition to the effect of the configuration of the third aspect, there is an effect that it is possible to grasp a URL frequently used as a reference source for each data type. That is, there is an effect that it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user according to the data type.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information source observation apparatus comprising:
The reference information storage unit is configured to further store a text accompanying the data file accessed by the client computer.

According to this, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 1, when presenting a URL useful for the user,
This has the effect that the content that the user prefers can also be presented.

An information source observation device according to the invention of claim 6 is
An information storage unit that stores a predetermined amount of a data file accessed from a client computer as a cache; and a data file of a URL serving as a reference source and a reference source in the cache based on a totaling result of the reference information. An information updating means for updating a data file linked to a data file of a given URL at a predetermined link level by accessing a corresponding server computer at predetermined time intervals.

Thus, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 1 or 4, information collection starts from the URL that the user frequently uses as a reference source, and accurate information collection that is highly likely to be used by the user is achieved. It becomes possible. As a result, even when the user accesses data linked from the URL of the reference source, the data can be extracted from the cache data, thereby improving the access speed and reducing the network traffic. It has the effect of being able to.

The information source observation device according to the invention of claim 7 is:
The configuration further includes a search unit that performs a search process on the data file in the cache.

As a result, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 6, a search is performed for the file object whose information has been collected based on the information source of the user, which is compared with a general Internet search engine or the like. As a result, it is possible to provide a search result that is high in freshness of information and suitable for the needs of the user.

The information source observing method according to the invention of claim 8 is as follows:
An information source observing method for browsing a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected via a network on a client computer,
The method includes a step of storing, as reference information, a URL of a reference source of a data file accessed by a client computer, and a step of totalizing the reference information for each URL as a reference source.

As a result, there is an effect that a URL frequently used as a reference source can be grasped. That is, there is an effect that it is possible to accurately present a URL useful for the user.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium storing a program for executing an information source observing process, wherein a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected via a network is browsed on a client computer. In a recording medium on which a program for executing an information source observation process is recorded, a U which is a reference source of a data file accessed from a client computer
This is a computer-readable configuration in which a program for causing a computer to execute a process of storing an RL as reference information and a process of totalizing the reference information for each URL serving as a reference source is recorded.

Thus, there is an effect that a program capable of grasping a URL frequently used as a reference source can be provided. That is, there is an effect that a program capable of accurately presenting a URL useful for the user can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an information source observing means according to an embodiment of the present invention, and a relationship between the information source observing means and a server computer and a client computer connected thereto.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration in a case where the information source observation means is built in a client computer.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing components of the information source observation means.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a request header issued from a client computer.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a response header issued from a server computer.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in an information source observation unit.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example when data generated by a data conversion unit included in the information source observation unit is displayed.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a state of a link between an HTML page and a data file on the WWW.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 server computer 2 information source observing means (information source observing device) 3 client computer 4 reference information extracting means 5 reference information storing means 6 counting means 7 sorting means 8 data converting means 9 information updating means 10 information storing means 11 searching means

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G06F 15/419 320

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. An information source observation device used when browsing a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected via a network on a client computer, wherein a reference source of the data file accessed by the client computer is provided. An information source observation device, comprising: reference information storage means for storing the URL of the reference information as reference information; and counting means for counting the reference information for each URL serving as a reference source. 2. The client computer further comprises reference information extracting means for extracting URL information as a reference source from a request header issued from the client computer when accessing a data file on the server computer. 2. The information source observation device according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The reference information extracting means extracts a data type of the data file from a response header issued from the server computer when the client computer accesses a data file on the server computer. 3. The information source observation device according to claim 2, wherein: 4. The information source observation apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a sorting means for totalizing the reference information for each URL as a reference source for each data type. 5. The information source observation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said reference information storage means further stores a text attached to a data file accessed by a client computer. 6. An information storage means for storing a predetermined amount of a data file accessed by a client computer as a cache, a data file of a URL serving as a reference source in the cache based on a totaling result of the reference information, and,
Information updating means for updating a data file linked at a predetermined link level to a data file of a URL serving as a reference source by accessing a corresponding server computer at predetermined time intervals. The information source observation device according to claim 1 or 4, wherein: 7. The information source observation device according to claim 6, further comprising a search unit for performing a search process on the data file in the cache. 8. An information source observing method for browsing a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected via a network on a client computer, wherein a URL of a reference source of the data file accessed from the client computer is provided. An information source observing method, comprising: a step of storing the reference information as reference information; and a step of totalizing the reference information for each URL serving as a reference source. 9. A recording medium on which a program for executing an information source observation process when a data file having a hyperlink structure on a server computer connected by a network is browsed on a client computer is recorded. A computer-readable program that records a program for causing a computer to execute a process of saving the URL of the reference source of the existing data file as reference information, and a process of totalizing the reference information for each URL serving as the reference source A recording medium, characterized in that: