JPH10260889A - Disk cache system in reading system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simultaneously achieve plural targets among three such targets that reading is fast, latest information can be obtained, and the communication cost can be reduced, which contradict one another, by comparing header information that is read with stored header information, accessing them on internet when contents differ and updating the data content of a disk cache. SOLUTION: HD7 is controlled by an HD controller 6 and it can load/save data. The disk cache is arranged in the HD7. At the time of accessing the home page of the disk cache for the first time, header information on a pertinent server is read and header information is compared with the data content which is disk-cached. When both information differ, the server is accessed. When they have the same contents, the disk cache is read. Consequently, latest information is prevented from being overlooked and it can immediately be read.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a disk cache system in a browsing system used for browsing home pages on the Internet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional example of this kind of browsing system, there is a browser system of Netscape. This browser system has a system configuration for browsing each home page on the Internet using a communication line via a modem. More specifically, the following (1) to (1)
This is a system in which one of the three settings (3) can be freely selected.

(1) The homepage stored in the disk cache is set to be always read from the disk cache, and is not read from the server via communication.

(2) Regarding access to each homepage from the start of the browser to the end thereof, it is set so that the latest information is read from the server only once and read from the disk cache from the second time.

(3) Reading from a server is always performed via communication without using a disk cache.

[0006] Another browsing system is disclosed in
There is a disk cache system disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-98050.

[0007]

By the way, in the above-mentioned browser system, the method (1) is set to always read from the disk cache. Therefore, there is an advantage that reading is quick and communication cost is not required.
Since a method of subsequently updating information (data) stored in the disk cache is not adopted, there is a disadvantage that only old information stored in the cache can be obtained.

The method (2) reads the latest information from the server only once within the time range from the start of the browser to the end of the browser, so that the new information can be obtained, but the communication cost is high. There are certain restrictions in reducing the amount.

The method (3) has a merit that the latest information, which changes every moment, can be obtained because the data is always read from the server via the communication, but the communication cost is always high at the time of access. There is.

Therefore, this browser system has a drawback that the latest information cannot be read at a low communication cost and at a high speed.

On the other hand, the disk cache system disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-98050 does not employ a method of updating the contents of the disk cache on a shared disk. The disadvantage is that only cached content can be read.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and has a plurality of conflicting objectives, such as quick reading, obtaining the latest information as much as possible, and reducing communication costs. It is an object of the present invention to provide a disk cache system in a browsing system that can simultaneously achieve the above objects.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A disk cache system of a browsing system according to the present invention has a terminal side capable of accessing a desired homepage on the Internet at a higher speed than an access to a server through communication. Save the contents of the latest data accessed recently on the hard disk, and then, when there is a request for access to the same homepage, the disk cache for accessing the hard disk and the access to the desired homepage after the second time In the case of (1), the server prefetching means for prefetching only the header information of the desired homepage on the Internet, the header information read by the server prefetching means, and the header information stored in the disk cache are compared. Disk cache comparison means If the contents of both the header information is different accesses on the Internet, and a disk cache update means for updating the data contents of the disk cache, the object is achieved.

Further, the disk cache system of the browsing system according to the present invention, when accessing a desired homepage on the Internet, has recently accessed a terminal side hard disk which can be accessed faster than an access to a server via communication. The contents of the latest data that has been saved are saved, and the next time there is a request for access to the same homepage, there is a disk cache that accesses the hard disk, and there is no access from the terminal when browsing the homepage on the Internet. In the non-communication state, for an anchor with a link that has accessed the currently viewed home page at least once, a server pre-reading means for pre-reading the server of the data of the linked home page during the non-communication state. Read by the server prefetch means A disk cache comparing unit that compares the stored data with data stored in the disk cache; a disk cache updating unit that updates the data content of the disk cache when the two data are different; If it is continued, the link destination is read ahead and compared with the data of the corresponding disk cache. If the data content is different, a link destination reading disk cache updating means for continuously updating the data content of the disk cache is provided. Therefore, the above object is achieved.

[0015] Preferably, among the anchors at the link destination, for an anchor that has been accessed at least once,
When the link destination has been updated by the link destination read disk cache updating unit, a link destination update display unit for displaying a blinking anchor display or a message notifying that the anchor display has been changed is provided.

Preferably, the total number of accesses to a desired homepage on the Internet is totalized, and whether or not to activate the server prefetch means depends on whether or not the number of accesses has reached a prescribed number. Is configured to include a pre-reading determination unit that determines

[0017] Preferably, an elapsed time from a previous access to a desired homepage on the Internet is counted, and the count value is compared with a predetermined time set in advance. A configuration is provided that includes a prefetch determination unit that determines whether to operate.

[0018] Preferably, when prefetching access to a desired homepage on the Internet, if the homepage of the link destination is different from the homepage currently being accessed, the prefetch judgment is made so that the server prefetch means is not operated. Means.

Preferably, when prefetching an access to a desired homepage on the Internet, it is determined whether or not the number of links exceeds a preset maximum number of links. A configuration is provided that includes a prefetch determination unit that does not operate the unit.

The operation of the present invention will be described below.

When a homepage with a disk cache is accessed for the first time, the header information on the corresponding server is read, and the header information is compared with the data content of the disk cache. However, according to the system configuration in which the disk cache is read if the contents are the same, the latest information is not missed, and if the disk cache has the latest information, it can be read immediately. The communication cost can be reduced as a whole. Note that the header information refers to the file size and creation date.

When there is no access from a terminal at the time of browsing a home page on the Internet and there is no communication, an anchor having a linked site that has accessed the currently viewed home page at least once is linked to the linked page. During the condition of the no-communication state, prefetches and compares the data with the corresponding disk cache.If the data is different, updates the data content of the disk cache. However, if the contents differ from the corresponding disk cache, the system configuration that continuously updates the data contents of the disk cache can effectively utilize the time during which the contents of frequently visited links are not being communicated. Information can be read, so you can quickly read the latest information on future homepages It becomes possible. Note that an anchor means that there is further linked information.

Also, when browsing a homepage on the Internet, among anchors having link destinations, for anchors accessed once or more, it is read in advance whether or not the link destination has been updated. According to the system configuration that blinks the anchor display or informs that the anchor display has been changed, it is sufficient to read only the anchor whose content of the linked link is updated, so that the content of the desired home page can be quickly read. And communication costs can be reduced.

Further, according to the system configuration in which the total number of accesses to a desired homepage on the Internet is counted and the header information of the desired homepage is prefetched only when the number of accesses exceeds a prescribed number, the system frequently reads the information. Since the homepage can be specified and useless access can be eliminated, high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

When accessing a desired homepage on the Internet, the elapsed time since the last access is counted, the count value is compared with a predetermined time, and the server prefetch means is operated based on the comparison result. According to the system configuration that determines whether or not the update period, the update period may be determined depending on the homepage, and even if the update period is not determined, the approximate period can be determined. Communication time can be saved because it is possible to suppress undesired access. For this reason, high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

When prefetching access to a desired homepage on the Internet, if the linked homepage is different from the currently accessed homepage,
According to the system configuration that does not access prefetching, if the linked homepage is different from the currently accessed homepage, the contents are not created for the currently viewed homepage, but are linked for reference only. Since there are many cases, it is possible to eliminate wasteful reading of such information. Therefore, communication time can be saved, so that high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

According to a system configuration in which access to a desired home page on the Internet is not performed more than a set maximum number of links when prefetching access to a desired home page, the hierarchy of the linked home page is determined. Is read ahead only for a certain level,
Useless access can be suppressed, and communication time can be saved. Accordingly, high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

[0028]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

First, the system configuration of the disk cache system of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This disk cache system has a CPU 1, a RAM 2, an R
OM3, printer controller 4, printer 5, hard disk (HD) controller 6, hard disk (H
D) 7, mouse interface 8, mouse 9, display device 10, display controller 11, pen 12, pen interface 13, keyboard 14, key interface 1
5, floppy disk (FD) 16, FD controller 17, IC card 18, IC card interface 1
9, pen tablet 20, pen tablet interface 21, optical character reader (OCR) interface 22, optical character reader (OCR) 23, timer 2
4, timer interface 25, modem (MOD
EM) Controller 26 and modem (M0DEM)
27.

Hereinafter, the functions of the above members will be briefly described.
The CPU 1 is a control center of the system, and executes a program described later. The RAM 2 stores various data during execution of the program. The ROM 3 stores a control program and fixed data.

HD7, FD6, IC card 18
Are controlled by the HD controller 6, FD controller 17, and IC card interface 19, respectively, so that data can be loaded / saved.

The key interface 15 determines a key pressed on the keyboard 14 and converts the key into data corresponding to the key. Further, the mouse interface 8 and the pen interface 13 determine the coordinates on the screen designated by the mouse 9 and the pen 12, respectively, and convert the coordinates into XY coordinates and output.

The pen tablet interface 21
Determines the coordinates input to the pen tablet 20, converts the coordinates into XY coordinates, and outputs the converted coordinates. The OCR interface 22 converts the image read by the OCR 21 into bitmap data and outputs the bitmap data.

The timer 24 outputs a time through a timer interface 25. Also, MODE
M27 is controlled by the MODEM controller 26, and inputs and outputs data through a communication line.

Next, works used in the disk cache system of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

In the RAM 2, as shown in FIGS. 3A to 3J, [URL information table] 31, [access frequency condition] 32, [access specified frequency] 33, [access elapsed time condition] 34 , [Access rule elapsed time] 3
5, work items such as [same homepage condition] 36, [access link number] 37, [URL prefetch table] 38, and [bookmark] 40 are arranged. In the HD 7, a [disk cache] 39 is arranged. The functions of these works will be described below.

[URL information table] 31 is a URL
(Page) is a storage area for storing various information.
[Access count condition] 32 is a storage area for storing a value indicating whether or not to pre-read header information of a home page according to the access count. For example, when 00 is stored (none), the number of accesses is ignored. F
When F is stored (present), the number of accesses is checked.

[Specified access count] 33 is a storage area for storing a specific count when [Access count condition] 32 is present. [Access elapsed time condition] 34 is a storage area for storing a value indicating whether or not to read ahead the header information of a desired homepage based on the elapsed time since the last access. For example, when 00 is stored (absent), the elapsed time is ignored. When the FF is stored (present), the elapsed time is checked.

The [access specified elapsed time] 35 is a storage area for storing a specific elapsed time when the [access elapsed time condition] 34 exists. [Same homepage condition] 36 is a storage area for storing a value indicating whether or not to read ahead the header information of a desired homepage depending on the difference between the linked homepage and the currently accessed homepage. For example, when 00 is stored (absent), whether or not the home page is the same is ignored. FF
Is stored (there is), it is checked whether it is the same homepage.

[Access link number] 37 is a storage area for storing the specific number of prefetched links when [Access number condition] 32 is present. The [URL pre-reading table] 38 is a storage area for storing header information collected using the idle time in communication. [Bookmark] 40 is a storage area for storing a URL of a necessary homepage.

The [disk cache] 39 is a storage area for storing the contents of the home page obtained by accessing.

FIG. 3 shows a screen of the display device 10 for setting the disk cache 39. The mode of the present invention is set by checking the use of the prefetch disk cache 39. FIG. 4 shows a display device 1 for setting the number of accesses in the prefetch disk cache 39.
0 is shown in FIG. 5, and FIG.
5 shows a screen of the display device 10 for setting the elapsed time in the display device. 6 shows a screen of the display device 10 for setting access to the same home page in the prefetch disk cache 39, and FIG. 7 shows a display device 10 for setting the number of links in the prefetch disk cache 39. The screen of FIG. These settings will be described in terms of settings for the entire browser. However, if more detailed settings are to be made for each homepage, they are set in the [bookmark] 40.

Next, a control procedure of the disk cache system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. However, FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a main flow,
9 and 10 are flowcharts showing a subroutine.

When this program stored in the ROM 3 starts and the CPU 1 accesses a homepage on the Internet, the CPU 1 first sets its name to a URL (step S101). Next, the set URL
Before accessing the server of the homepage, it is checked from the [URL information table] 31 whether or not the data is cached in the disk (step S102).

If it is determined in step S102 that there is no disk cache, the CPU 1 then proceeds to step S120.
It is determined whether or not communication is in progress, and if the communication line is not currently connected, connection to the provider is executed (step S12).
1) The operation shifts to the operation of reading the data content from the URL destination (step S117).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S102 that there is a cache, it is checked whether or not the communication line is currently connected (step S103). If not, the data is retrieved from the disk cache 39 (step S116). Move on to If it is determined that the communication line is being connected, it is next checked whether or not [access number condition] 32 exists (step S104).

If it is determined that there is no [access count condition] 32, the process proceeds to the presence / absence check of the [access elapsed time condition] 34 (step S106). On the other hand, if it is determined that the [access count condition] 32 is present, it is checked whether the [access count count] 33 is equal to or more than (step S10)
5).

If the number is less than the specified number, the process shifts to a process of extracting data from the disk cache 39 (step S116). Here, the prescribed number of times is the number of times the home page has been visited in the past. For example, if the number of times is five or less, it is determined that the home page is not so important, the disk cache 39 is accessed, and unnecessary home pages are accessed. Do not look ahead. On the other hand, if the number is equal to or more than the specified number, it is checked whether or not the [access elapsed time condition] 34 exists (step S106).

If it is determined that the [access elapsed time condition] 34 does not exist, the “URL prefetch table” 38
The process proceeds to check whether there is an RL (step S108).
On the other hand, if it is determined that the [access elapsed time condition] 34 is present, it is checked whether it is within the range of the [access specified elapsed time] 35 (step S107).

When it is determined that the time is outside the specified elapsed time, the data is taken out from the disk cache 39 (step S).
116). On the other hand, if it is determined that it is within the prescribed elapsed time,
It is checked whether or not a URL exists in the [URL prefetch table] 38 (step S108).

If it is determined that the URL exists in the [URL prefetch table] 38, the information in this table is extracted (step S109), and the process proceeds to a check as to whether the creation date / size, ie, the header information, is the same (step S115). On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no data, pre-reading of only the header information of the URL is performed (step S110), and it is checked whether the creation date and size are the same (step S115).

[URL] containing the cache information
If the creation date and size of the information table 31 and the prefetched URL prefetch table are determined to be the same, it is determined that the contents are the same as the contents of the disk cache 39 previously cached, and the data is read from the disk cache 39 (step S116). If the creation date and size are different, it is determined that the cache cache is different from the previously cached disk cache 39, and the contents of the home page on the server are extracted (step S117).
Is updated (step S118), and the process proceeds to updating the [URL information table] 31 (step S119).

Since the page of the desired URL is opened by the above-described processing, the browsing operation on this page is performed (step S130). When the browsing operation is completed and the user wants to move to the homepage of another URL (step S1)
31), the process jumps to step S101 in order to set the URL of the homepage in step S101.

On the other hand, when it is desired to browse the anchor destination on the current page (step S132), a routine (subroutine) for browsing the anchor destination on the current page having the contents shown in FIG. 9 is executed. Here, the anchor indicates that there is further linked information, and the character string of the anchor part is underlined to distinguish it from the character string without a link destination (FIG. 11).
Etc.). To open a linked page with an anchor, the linked page is opened by clicking with a pointing device such as the mouse 9 or the pen 12.

Further, the attribute of the character string of the anchor that opened the link destination page is changed to distinguish it from the anchor indicating the link destination that has not been opened yet. Usually, the color of the character string is changed (see FIG. 11 and the like).

Next, when the current page is being browsed and no communication access has been made (step S134), the URL of the current page and the number of visited anchors (step S1)
A prefetch routine during non-communication (step S137) described with reference to FIG. 10 is executed using the information of (35) and the number of link destination layers (step S136) as parameters.

When ending the browsing of the homepage (step S138), a browsing ending process is performed. As the end processing, the contents of the disk cache 39 are updated. If it does not end, it performs browsing work on the current page.

Next, the routine for browsing the anchor of the current page in FIG. 9 will be described. First, in step S201, the CPU 1 sets the URL of an anchor having a link destination in the currently viewed homepage.

Subsequently, in step S202, it is checked from the [URL information table] 31 whether or not the disk is cached before accessing the server of the set URL home page.

If it is determined that there is no disk cache, it is determined in step S214 whether or not communication is in progress. If no communication line is currently connected, connection to the provider is executed (step S215), and data contents are read from the URL destination. The operation moves on (step S216).

On the other hand, if it is determined that there is a disk cache, it is first checked whether or not the communication line is currently connected (step S203). If not, the process proceeds to a process of extracting data from the disk cache 39 (step S213). ).

When the communication line is being connected,
Next, the presence / absence of the [access frequency condition] 32 is checked (step S204). If it is determined that the [access frequency condition] 32 is not present, the process proceeds to the [access elapsed time condition] 34 (step S206). If it is determined that there is 32, then it is checked whether or not [access specified number] 33 or more (step S205).

If the number is less than the specified number, the process proceeds to a process of extracting data from the disk cache 39 (step S213). On the other hand, if the number is more than the specified number,
In step S206, the presence or absence of the [access elapsed time condition] 34 is checked.

If it is determined that there is no [access elapsed time condition] 34, the process proceeds to a check whether the URL of the anchor destination is the same homepage (step S208). On the other hand, when it is determined that the [access elapsed time condition] 34 exists, it is checked whether or not it is within the range of the [access specified elapsed time] 35 (step S207).

If it is outside the specified elapsed time range, the data is retrieved from the disk cache 39 (step S213). On the other hand, if it is within the prescribed elapsed time range, it is next checked whether or not the URL of the anchor destination is the same homepage (step S208).

If it is determined that the home pages are not the same, the process proceeds to a process of retrieving data from the disk cache 39 (step S213). On the other hand, if it is determined that they are the same homepage, the URL
It is checked whether or not there is (step S209).

If it is determined that the URL exists in the [URL prefetch table] 38, the information in this table is extracted (step S210), and the process proceeds to check whether the creation date and size are the same (step S212). If it is determined that there is no URL in the [URL prefetch table] 38, the URL
Only the header information is read ahead (step S21).
1) Check whether the creation date and size are the same (step S212).

If the creation date and size of the URL table containing cache information and the URL look-ahead table read ahead are the same, the disk cache 39 previously cached is used.
Is determined to be the same as the content of the disk cache 3
9, the contents of the disk cache 39 are displayed on the screen (step S213), this routine ends, and the flow returns to the main flow.

On the other hand, if the creation date and size are different, it is determined that the contents are different from the contents of the disk cache 39 previously cached, the contents of the home page on the server are taken out and displayed on the screen (step S216). Is updated (step S217),
[URL information table] 31 is updated (step S
218), end this routine, and return to the main flow.

Next, the routine of FIG. 10 will be described. This routine takes advantage of the absence of communication access when browsing the homepage on the Internet, prefetches the currently visited anchor that has been visited more than once, and predicts that it will be browsed in the future. This is a routine for reading ahead in advance.

First, in step S301, the number of previously visited anchors on the current page is counted. Next, the number of link destination layers is set to determine to what level the link destination page is prefetched. Normally, settings are made up to three levels so that unnecessary prefetching is not performed (step S302).
After that, U of the anchor with the link in the homepage
RL is set (step S303).

Then, first, [access condition] 32
Is checked (step S304). If it is determined that the [access frequency condition] 32 does not exist, the process proceeds to [access elapsed time condition] 34) (step S306). On the other hand, when it is determined that the [access count condition] 32 is present, it is checked whether or not the [access specified count] 33 or more (step S305).

If the number is less than the specified number, the prefetching process is not performed, and the process proceeds to the process of reducing the number of anchors visited on the current page by one (step S320). On the other hand, if the number of times is equal to or more than the specified number, the presence or absence of the [access elapsed time condition] 34 is checked (step S306).

If it is determined that there is no [access elapsed time condition] 34, the process proceeds to a check to determine whether the URL of the anchor destination is the same homepage (step S308). On the other hand, when it is determined that the [access elapsed time condition] 34 exists, it is checked whether or not it is within the range of the [access specified elapsed time] 35 (step S307).

If it is outside the specified elapsed time range, the prefetching process is not performed, and the process shifts to the process of reducing the number of anchors visited on the current page by one (step S320). on the other hand,
If it is within the specified elapsed time range, then the URL of the anchor destination
Is checked whether they are the same homepage (step S20)
8).

If it is determined that the home pages are not the same, the prefetching process is not performed, and the process proceeds to a process of reducing the number of anchors visited on the current page by one (step S320). on the other hand,
If it is determined that the homepages are the same, it is checked whether or not the URL exists in the [URL prefetch table] 38 (step S309).

If it is determined that the URL exists in the [URL prefetch table] 38, the information in this table is extracted (step S310), and the process proceeds to check whether the creation date and size are the same (step S312). On the other hand, [UR
L look-ahead table] 38, there is no URL,
Only the header information at the URL destination is read ahead (step S3).
11) Check whether the creation date and size are the same (step S312).

Then, the URL table containing the cache information and the creation date of the prefetched URL prefetch table
If the sizes are the same, the process proceeds to a process of reducing the number of previously visited anchors by one on the current page (step S320). On the other hand, if the creation date and size are different, it is determined that the contents are different from the contents
The [URL prefetch table] 38 is updated (step S313), and the attribute of the anchor of the link destination is blink-displayed (step S314). Subsequently, the number of linked layers is reduced by one (step S315). If the number of linked layers is not 0, the URL of the current page, the number of visited anchors (step S135), and the number of linked layers (step S136) This routine itself, that is, the prefetch routine during non-communication, is called again using the information of ()) as a parameter (step S319). If this link destination layer number is 0 and there is no link destination, the number of visited anchors on the current page is set to 1
The process is performed (step S320).

Next, the presence / absence of an unread look-ahead visited anchor is checked (step S321). If all anchors have been visited, this routine is terminated and the process returns to the main flow. On the other hand, if there is an unvisited anchor, the prefetch URL of the next anchor destination is set, and the processing after step S304 is repeated.

In this way, all the previously visited anchors are prefetched, and only the hierarchy for which the hierarchy of the visit has been set is traced and prefetched by following the link destination. For this reason, when moving to the operation of tracing the anchor on the page being viewed, the anchor that has been changed even if it was previously cached is blinked, so if you follow the almost blinked anchor, the contents of the homepage will be The browsing can be performed quickly and without omission.

Next, the screen display will be described with reference to FIGS. FIGS. 11A to 11G show the contents browsed before and the contents stored in the disk cache 39 of each page. Even if the content of each home page is changed, it is also a browsing screen in which the present invention is not implemented. FIG.
In FIG. 1, an underlined portion indicates an anchor portion having a link, and a black portion indicates that the user has once visited the anchor destination.

FIGS. 12 (a) to 12 (g) correspond to FIGS.
The data is updated after (g), and represents the data after the content of each home page has been updated. In addition,
FIG. 12 shows a case where the anchor display is not blinking or a message notifying that the anchor display has been changed is not displayed. On the other hand, FIG. 13 shows an embodiment in which a blink display or a message notifying the change is displayed in this case.

FIG. 14 shows a screen display example in which the present invention is not implemented (see FIG. 14A) and a screen display example after implementation (see FIG. 14B). FIG. 15 shows a screen display example in which the present invention is not implemented (see FIG. 15A) and a screen display example after implementation (see FIGS. 15B to 15D).

[0084]

According to the disk cache system of the browsing system of the present invention described above, when accessing a homepage having a disk cache for the first time, the header information on the corresponding server is read, and the header information and the disk cache are read. Compare the data contents and access the server if the two information are different. If the contents are the same, read the disk cache. If there is such information, it can be read immediately, so that the communication cost can be reduced as a whole.

Further, according to the disk cache system of the browsing system according to the second aspect, when there is no access from a terminal at the time of browsing the home page on the Internet, and in a non-communication state, the home page being viewed once is displayed once. For an anchor with a linked destination accessed above, the data of the linked page is read ahead during the non-communication condition and compared with the corresponding disk cache,
If they are different, update the data contents of the disk cache.If no communication continues, follow the link destination and read ahead.If they are different from the corresponding disk cache, update the data contents of the disk cache. Since the system configuration is continued, it is possible to effectively use the time when the contents of frequently visited links are not being communicated and to read the information in the disk cache, so that the latest information on the websites to be visited in the future can be quickly read become.

According to the disk cache system in the browsing system according to the third aspect, when browsing a home page on the Internet, among the anchors having a link destination, the anchor which has been accessed more than once is selected. Is read in advance to see if it has been updated, and if it has been updated, the anchor display is blinked or a system configuration is provided to inform the user that the display has been changed. Since only the anchor needs to be read, there is an advantage that the contents of the desired home page can be read quickly and the communication cost can be reduced.

Further, according to the disk cache system in the browsing system according to the fourth aspect, the total number of accesses to a desired homepage on the Internet is counted, and only when the number of accesses exceeds a specified number, the desired number is counted. Since the system configuration for pre-reading the header information of the home page is adopted, the frequently viewed home page can be specified, and unnecessary access can be eliminated, so that high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

Further, according to the disk cache system in the browsing system according to the fifth aspect, when accessing a desired homepage on the Internet, the elapsed time from the last access is counted, and the count value is set in advance. Since the system configuration is used to determine whether to activate the server prefetch means based on the comparison result, the update period may be determined by the homepage. If the period can be determined and the pre-reading is controlled based on the information, useless access can be suppressed, and communication time can be saved. For this reason, high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

Further, according to the disk cache system in the browsing system according to the sixth aspect, when prefetching access to a desired homepage on the Internet, if the linked homepage is different from the currently accessed homepage, Since the system configuration does not access prefetching, if the linked homepage is different from the currently accessed homepage, the contents are not created for the currently viewed homepage, but are linked for reference only. Since there are many cases, it is possible to eliminate wasteful reading of such information. Therefore, communication time can be saved, so that high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

Further, according to the disk cache system in the browsing system according to the seventh aspect, when prefetching the access to a desired homepage on the Internet, the access to the linked homepage is set to the set maximum number of links. Since the above system is configured not to perform the above, only the certain level of the hierarchy of the linked home page is read ahead, so that useless access can be suppressed and communication time can be saved. Accordingly, high-speed reading and reduction of communication cost can be achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a disk cache system in a browsing system of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a list of works used in a disk cache system in the browsing system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view showing an example of a screen for setting a disk cache;

FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of a screen for setting the number of accesses in a prefetch disk cache.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for setting an elapsed time in a prefetch disk cache.

FIG. 6 is a view showing an example of a screen for setting access to the same homepage in a prefetch disk cache.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an example of a screen for setting the number of links in a prefetch disk cache.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a main flow in a disk cache system in the browsing system of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of FIG. 8 and showing a browsing routine of an anchor destination of a current page.

FIG. 10 is a subroutine of FIG. 8, in which, when browsing a home page on the Internet, effectively utilizing a case where there is no access on communication, prefetches an anchor which is currently being browsed and has visited once or more, 7 is a flowchart showing a routine for predicting that the content will be browsed in the future and performing prefetching in advance.

FIGS. 11 (a) to (g) are contents browsed previously,
The figure which shows the content currently stored in the disk cache of each page.

FIGS. 12A to 12G are diagrams showing data after data is updated after FIGS. 11A to 11G and the content of each home page is updated.

13A to 13G are diagrams illustrating examples of screens when displaying a blink or displaying a message notifying that a change has been made;

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a screen display example in which the present invention is not implemented (FIG. (A)) and a screen display example after implementation (FIG. (B)).

FIG. 15 shows a screen display example in which the present invention is not implemented (FIG. (A)) and a screen display example after implementation (FIG. (B) to FIG.
FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 CPU 2 RAM 3 ROM 4 Printer controller 5 Printer 6 Hard disk controller 7 Hard disk 8 Mouse interface 9 Mouse 10 Display device 11 Display controller 12 Pen 13 Pen interface 14 Keyboard 15 Key interface 16 Floppy disk 17 Floppy disk controller 18 IC card 19 IC card Interface 20 Pen tablet 21 Pen tablet interface 22 OCR interface 23 OCR 24 Timer 25 Timer interface 26 MODEM controller 27 MODEM 31 [URL information table] 32 [Access count condition] 33 [Access count count] 34 [Access elapsed time condition] 35 [ Access regulation elapsed time] 3 6 [Same homepage condition] 37 [Number of access links] 38 [URL prefetch table] 39 [Disk cache] 40 [Bookmark]

Claims (7)

[Claims] When accessing a desired homepage on the Internet, the content of the latest data that has been recently accessed is stored on a hard disk of a terminal which can be accessed at a higher speed than access to a server via communication. When a request for access to the same homepage is made next, a disk cache for accessing the hard disk, and when a desired homepage is accessed for the second time or later,
A server prefetching means for first prefetching only header information of a desired homepage on the Internet; and a disk cache comparison for comparing the header information read by the server prefetching means with the header information stored in the disk cache. A disk cache system of a browsing system, comprising: means for accessing the Internet when the contents of the header information are different from each other, and a disk cache updating means for updating data contents of the disk cache. 2. When accessing a desired homepage on the Internet, the contents of the most recently accessed data are stored on a hard disk of a terminal which can be accessed at a higher speed than access to a server via communication. The next time there is a request for access to the same homepage, the disk cache that accesses the hard disk, and the current browsing status if there is no access from the terminal when browsing the homepage on the Internet, For an anchor having a link destination that has accessed the home page at least once, server pre-reading means for pre-reading the server while the data of the linked home page is in a non-communication state, and data read by the server pre-reading means. When,
A disk cache comparing means for comparing data stored in the disk cache; a disk cache updating means for updating data contents of the disk cache when the two data are different; A read-ahead disk cache of a browsing system comprising: a link destination read disk cache updating unit that reads ahead and compares the data with the corresponding disk cache data if the data contents are different, and continuously updates the data contents of the disk cache. system. 3. When the link destination is updated by the link destination reading disk cache updating means for an anchor that has been accessed at least once among the anchors having the link destination, the anchor display is blinked or changed. 3. A disk cache system for a browsing system according to claim 2, further comprising link destination update display means for displaying a message notifying that the browsing has been performed. 4. A total number of accesses to a desired homepage on the Internet is counted, and whether to operate the server prefetch means is determined based on whether or not the number of accesses reaches a prescribed number. The disk cache system of the browsing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a prefetch determination unit. 5. Counting an elapsed time since a previous access to a desired homepage on the Internet, comparing the count value with a predetermined time set in advance,
2. A read-ahead determining unit that determines whether to operate the server pre-reading unit based on a comparison result.
A disk cache system for the browsing system according to claim 3. 6. A pre-reading judging unit which does not operate the server pre-reading unit when pre-reading access to a desired home page on the Internet when the linked home page is different from the currently accessed home page. The disk cache system of the browsing system according to claim 2 or 3, wherein: 7. When prefetching an access to a desired homepage on the Internet, it is determined whether or not the number of links exceeds a preset maximum number of links, and if so, the server prefetch means is operated. 4. The disk cache system of a browsing system according to claim 2, further comprising a pre-read determination unit that does not allow the content to be read.