Method and apparatus for searching web browser using zoom

• US 20090006938A1
• Filed: 05/02/2008
• Published: 01/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Lea, Jong-Ho, Chung, Ji-Hye, Kim, Yeun-Bae, Yoo, Byung-In, Lee, Hye-Jeong
• Application Number:
  US12/149,523
• Publication Number:
  US 20090006938A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation

Abstract

Disclosed is a method and apparatus for searching a web browser using a zoom operation. A method of searching a web browser according to an aspect of the invention includes locating a pointer on a web browser using an input device, selecting one or more hyperlinks on the basis of the distance between the pointer and hyperlinks and displaying the hyperlinks, and outputting, when a screen of the web browser is enlarged and the size of the screen is out of a predetermined enlargement range, a page, which is linked to one of the selected and displayed hyperlinks, to an entire screen of the web browser.

Claims

1. A method of searching a web browser, comprising:

locating a pointer on a web browser using an input device;

selecting one or more hyperlinks on the basis of the distance between the pointer and hyperlinks, and displaying the hyperlinks; and

outputting, when a screen of the web browser is enlarged and a size of the screen is out of a predetermined enlargement range, a page, which is linked to one of the selected and displayed hyperlinks, to an entire screen of the web browser.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined number of hyperlinks, which are close to the pointer, are selected by comparing the distance between the pointer and the hyperlinks.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the hyperlinks, which exist within a range of the predetermined distance from a location of the pointer, are selected.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the boundaries between the selected hyperlinks are highlighted and displayed.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, in the outputting of the page to the entire screen, a page, which is linked to a hyperlink closest to the pointer among the selected and displayed hyperlinks, is output to the entire screen of the web browser.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the outputting of the page to the entire screen comprises;

displaying a preview thumbnail showing content of a page that is linked to each of the selected and displayed hyperlinks, while the screen is enlarged.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the size of the preview thumbnail increases as the screen is enlarged.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the transparency of the preview thumbnail decreases as the screen is enlarged.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the size of the preview thumbnail increases when the distance between the pointer and the preview thumbnail decreases.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the transparency of the preview thumbnail decreases when the distance between the pointer and the preview thumbnail decreases.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein:

the preview thumbnail is displayed at the center of the hyperlink, and

a preview thumbnail of a hyperlink, which is closest to the pointer among the selected and displayed hyperlinks while the screen is enlarged, moves to the center of the web browser.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the preview thumbnail is displayed on an adjacent surface of the hyperlink so as not to block the hyperlink.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

outputting, when the screen of the web browser is reduced and the size of the screen is out of a predetermined reduction range, a screen right before the page, which is linked to one of the selected and displayed hyperlinks output to the entire screen of the web browser.

14. An apparatus for searching a web browser using a zoom function, comprising:

an input device locating a pointer on a web browser and enlarging and reducing a screen of the web browser;

a distance-calculating unit calculating the distance between the pointer and hyperlinks;

a hyperlink-selection/display unit selecting one or more hyperlinks on the basis of the distance and displaying the selected hyperlinks; and

a screen-converting unit outputting, when the screen of the web browser is enlarged and the size of the screen is out of a predetermined enlargement range, a page, which is linked to one of the selected and displayed hyperlinks, to an entire screen of the web browser.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the hyperlink-selection/display unit selects the predetermined number of hyperlinks, which are close to the pointer, by comparing the distance between the pointer and the hyperlinks.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the hyperlink-selection/display unit selects the hyperlinks that exist within a range of the predetermined distance from the pointer location.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the hyperlink-selection/display unit displays the selected hyperlinks by highlighting the boundaries between the selected hyperlinks.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the screen-converting unit outputs a page, which is linked to a hyperlink closest to the pointer among the selected and displayed hyperlinks, to the entire screen of the web browser.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

a preview-thumbnail-display unit displaying a preview thumbnail showing content of a page that is linked to each of the selected and displayed hyperlinks while the screen is enlarged.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail such that a size of the preview thumbnail increases as the screen is enlarged.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail such that the transparency of the preview thumbnail decreases as the screen is enlarged.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail such that the size of the preview thumbnail increases when the distance between the pointer and the preview thumbnail decreases.

23. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail such that the transparency of the preview thumbnail decreases when the distance between the pointer and the preview thumbnail decreases.

24. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail at the center of the hyperlink, and moves a preview thumbnail of a hyperlink, which is closest to the pointer among the selected and displayed hyperlinks while the screen is enlarged, to the center of the web browser.

25. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the preview-thumbnail-display unit displays the preview thumbnail on an adjacent surface of the hyperlink so as not to block the hyperlink.

26. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the screen-converting unit outputs, when the screen of the web browser is reduced and the size of the screen is out of a predetermined reduction range, a screen right before the page, which is linked to one of the selected and displayed hyperlinks, is output to the entire screen of the web browser.