Delivery and display of page previews during page retrieval events
First Claim
1. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising a computer-executable browser module configured to cause a user computing device to at least:
- receive, from an intermediary system in response to a first request for a content page, a preview version of the content page for temporary display, the preview version comprising multiple screenshots, each of a different respective portion of the content page, wherein the preview version additionally includes an image map specifying a location, within a first screenshot of the multiple screenshots, of a user-selectable link imaged within the first screenshot;
display the preview version of the content page on a display screen of the user computing device;
receive a non-preview version of the requested content page while the preview version is displayed on the display screen;
detect that the non-preview version of the content page is ready for display on the user computing device; and
in response to detecting that the non-preview version is ready for display on the user computing device, automatically display the non-preview version of the content page on the display screen in place of the preview version of the content page;
wherein the preview version is a modified version of the content page and is at least partially optimized to reduce a loading time, such that a user-perceived load time of the content page is reduced.
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Abstract
A system and process are disclosed for providing users with page previews during page loading events, such that the delay experienced before the display of page content is reduced. The previews may include screenshots of the pages or of portions thereof, and may be generated periodically and cached by the system for delivery to user devices. The process of generating and delivering the previews via the Internet or some other network may be implemented partly or wholly within an intermediary system that sits logically between the user devices and content servers. The process may be used with existing browsers without the need for any browser modifications, or may be used with a “preview-aware” browser that includes special program code for providing page previews.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising a computer-executable browser module configured to cause a user computing device to at least:
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receive, from an intermediary system in response to a first request for a content page, a preview version of the content page for temporary display, the preview version comprising multiple screenshots, each of a different respective portion of the content page, wherein the preview version additionally includes an image map specifying a location, within a first screenshot of the multiple screenshots, of a user-selectable link imaged within the first screenshot; display the preview version of the content page on a display screen of the user computing device; receive a non-preview version of the requested content page while the preview version is displayed on the display screen; detect that the non-preview version of the content page is ready for display on the user computing device; and in response to detecting that the non-preview version is ready for display on the user computing device, automatically display the non-preview version of the content page on the display screen in place of the preview version of the content page; wherein the preview version is a modified version of the content page and is at least partially optimized to reduce a loading time, such that a user-perceived load time of the content page is reduced. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon a browser application comprising executable program instructions that direct a user device to perform a process that comprises:
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transmitting, to an intermediary system, a request for a content page hosted by a source other than the intermediary system; receiving from the intermediary system, and displaying on a display screen of the user device, a preview version of the content page, the preview version transmitted to the user device in response to the request, the preview version comprising a plurality of screenshots, each of a different respective portion of the content page, wherein the preview version comprises an image map for a first screenshot of the plurality of screenshots, the image map specifying coordinates within the first screenshot of one or more user-selectable page elements imaged in the first screenshot; receiving from the intermediary system, separately from the preview version of the content page, a non-preview version of the content page, the non-preview version transmitted to the user device in response to the request; detecting that the received non-preview version of the content page is ready for display on the user device; and in response to detecting that the non-preview version is ready for display, automatically displaying the non-preview version on the display screen in place of the preview version; wherein the preview version is at least partially optimized to reduce a loading time, such that a user-perceived load time of the content page is reduced. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A system, comprising:
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an intermediary computing system comprising one or more computing devices, the intermediary computing system configured to operate as an intermediary between user devices and content sites; a first code module that directs the intermediary computing system to at least; retrieve a content page from a content site; generate an initial version of the content page that is at least partially optimized to reduce a loading time relative to the retrieved content page, wherein generating the initial version comprises generating a plurality of screenshots, each of a different respective portion of the content page, wherein generating the initial version further comprises generating an image map for a first screenshot of the plurality of screenshots, the image map specifying coordinates within the first screenshot of one or more user-selectable page elements imaged in the first screenshot; and store a representation of the initial version, including the plurality of screenshots, in a cache of the intermediary computing system; and a second code module that directs the intermediary computing system to respond to a request from a user device for the content page by a process that comprises; sending to the user device the initial version represented in the cache of the intermediary computing system, the initial version including the plurality of screenshots; concurrently with sending the initial version to the user device, retrieving a current version of the content page from the content site; and sending a representation of the retrieved current version to the user device, said representation of the retrieved current version enabling the user device to update a display of the initial version to correspond to the current version, wherein the representation of the retrieved current version is an update that is based on one or more differences detected between the current version and the initial version. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A system, comprising:
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an intermediary computing system comprising one or more computing devices, the intermediary computing system configured to operate as an intermediary between user devices and content sites; a first code module that directs the intermediary computing system to at least; retrieve a content page from a content site; generate an initial version of the content page that is at least partially optimized to reduce a loading time relative to the retrieved content page, wherein generating the initial version comprises generating a plurality of screenshots, each of a different respective portion of the content page; and store a representation of the initial version, including the plurality of screenshots, in a cache of the intermediary computing system; and a second code module that directs the intermediary computing system to respond to a request from a user device for the content page by a process that comprises; sending to the user device the initial version represented in the cache of the intermediary computing system, the initial version including the plurality of screenshots; concurrently with sending the initial version to the user device, retrieving a current version of the content page from the content site; and sending a representation of the retrieved current version to the user device, said representation of the retrieved current version enabling the user device to update a display of the initial version to correspond to the current version, wherein the representation of the retrieved current version is an update that is based on one or more differences detected between the current version and the initial version; wherein generating the initial version comprises generating a first screenshot of an upper portion of the content page that is visible prior to page scrolling, and a second screenshot of a portion of the content page falling below the upper portion, and wherein sending the initial version to the user device comprises sending the first screenshot before sending the second screenshot.
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Specification