Universal interface for retrieval of information in a computer system

• US 20050080783A1
• Filed: 12/01/2004
• Published: 04/14/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Computer Incorporated (Apple Inc.)
• Inventors: Arrouye, Yan, Mortensen, Keith
• Granted Patent: US 8,086,604 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

The present invention provides convenient access to items of information that are related to various descriptors input by a user, by means of a unitary interface which is capable of accessing information in a variety of locations, through a number of different techniques. Using a plurality of heuristic algorithms to operate upon information descriptors input by the user, the present invention locates and displays candidate items of information for selection and/or retrieval. Thus, the advantages of a search engine can be exploited, while listing only relevant object candidate items of information.

Claims

1. A method for locating information in a network, comprising:

receiving an inputted information identifier;

providing said information identifier to at least two heuristics that search for information associated with the received identifier, wherein at least one of said heuristics searches at least one location different from another of said heuristics;

providing at least one candidate item of located information; and

displaying a representation of said candidate item of information.