Presenting HTML content on a small screen terminal display

• US 20040107403A1
• Filed: 09/04/2003
• Published: 06/03/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Opera Software ASA
• Original Assignee: Opera Software ASA
• Inventors: Tetzchner, Jon Stephensen von
• Application Number:
  US10/654,455
• Publication Number:
  US 20040107403A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/513
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/145 related to small screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2370/027 Arrangements and methods specific for the display of internet documents
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for presenting a HTML document on a display on a mobile client terminal. The method comprises the steps of reformatting the HTML document by enforcing at least one client-side style sheet, thus adapting the width of the reformatted document to the width of the display, and presenting the reformatted document on the display. In particular, the step of reformatting the HTML document includes converting table cells in the HTML document to block-level elements. Image blocking/reduction and transformation of space characters is advantageously also employed in the reformatting step. The invention also relates to a mobile terminal and a computer program for performing the method.

Claims

1. Method for presenting a HTML document (130) on a display (180) on a small screen client terminal (140), comprising the steps of

reformatting (210) the HTML document by enforcing at least one client-side style sheet (170), thus adapting the width of the reformatted document to the width of the display (180), and

presenting (240) the reformatted document on the display (180).

2. Method according to claim 1, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document includes

converting (212) table cells in the HTML document to block-level elements.

3. Method according to claim 2, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document includes

ignoring (220, 222) images whose width exceeds a first predetermined size, thus omitting images which are huge compared to the size of the display.

4. Method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document includes

ignoring (220, 222) images whose size is less than a second predetermined size, thus omitting images which likely represent ornamental graphics.

5. Method according to one of the claims 2-4, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document includes

ignoring (220, 222) images whose width and height equals one of a predetermined set of widths and heights, thus omitting images which likely represent commercial advertisements.

6. Method according to one of the claims 2-5, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document includes

downscaling (224, 226) images whose size exceeds a third predetermined size, thus reducing images which are large compared to the size of the display.

7. Method according to one of the claims 3-6, wherein the size of the image is determined (216, 218) as a pseudo-attribute if a parameter of the size is not present as an attribute in the HTML document.

8. Method according to one of the claims 2-7, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document further includes

converting (214) positioned elements in the HTML document to block-level elements.

9. Method according to one of the claims 2-8, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document further includes

ignoring (228) subsequent line breaks, thus reducing the vertical size of the reformatted document.

10. Method according to one of the claims 2-9, wherein the step (210) of reformatting the HTML document further includes

converting (230) non-breaking space characters into normal space characters, thus reducing the horizontal size of the reformatted document.

11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising the feature of zooming a page in and out.

12. Client terminal (140) arranged to present a HTML content on a small sized display (180), comprising

a communication device (160) and

a formatting device (150), said formatting device including a processing device and a memory device,

wherein the formatting device (150) is arranged to perform a method according to one of the claims 1-11 in order to present the HTML content on the small sized display (180).

13. Computer program, comprising instructions which, when interpreted by an application program executed by a processing device, performs a method according to one of the claims 1-11.

14. Computer program according to claim 13, wherein the instructions are style sheet instructions, and wherein the application program is a browser program which supports style sheet interpretation.

15. Computer program according to claim 14, embodied as a client-side style sheet.

16. Computer program according to claim 14, further comprising the browser program.

17. Computer program according to one of the claims 13-16, embodied on a computer readable medium, or in a memory, or on a propagated signal.