Personalized real time information display as a portion of a screen saver
First Claim
1. A server system comprising:
- a first memory storing information received from a plurality of information sources;
a second memory maintaining a user profile containing preferences for information content expressed by a user of a remotely located electronic device having a visual display, said device being coupled to a communication network, wherein said user profile further contains information identifying said device so that said information content may be transmitted thereto in a format appropriate for display thereon;
an interface coupled to the communication network; and
a processor, coupled to said memory and said interface, for controlling the transmission of signals to said remote device in accordance with said user profile, said signals representing at least a portion of said information content and being displayable as a screen saver on the remote display of said device.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Information "feeds" received from multiple information sources are aggregated, re-formatted and stored in a personalized real time information display system. When the display system receives a request from a user having a personal computer or other similar display device, the system is arranged to respond with information needed to display a screen saver that includes personalized, up to date information, such as traffic, weather and sports, that is of interest to that particular user. Each user has a personalized user profile indicating (a) the categories or types of information that the user desires to receive, such as sports information, weather, investment advisories, and so on, and (b) parameters that specify, for that user, the exact information desired to be received in each category. If the user'"'"'s personal computer display has remained inactive for a predetermined period of time, the screen saver is activated, causing the personal computer to access the service node, and after interchange of prestored user identification and password data, retrieve information, obtained by the system from a variety of sources, based on the user'"'"'s individual profile. The retrieved information is displayed on the screen without interrupting the screen saver function, and the displayed personalized data is thereafter updated in the same manner, at user-specified time intervals.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A server system comprising:
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a first memory storing information received from a plurality of information sources; a second memory maintaining a user profile containing preferences for information content expressed by a user of a remotely located electronic device having a visual display, said device being coupled to a communication network, wherein said user profile further contains information identifying said device so that said information content may be transmitted thereto in a format appropriate for display thereon; an interface coupled to the communication network; and a processor, coupled to said memory and said interface, for controlling the transmission of signals to said remote device in accordance with said user profile, said signals representing at least a portion of said information content and being displayable as a screen saver on the remote display of said device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A system for communicating information to at least one device having a visual display, said device using said information to create varying image patterns of a screen saver, comprising:
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a first memory for storing user preferences for information; a database; an information feed interface arranged to obtain information from one or more information providers and to store said information in said database; and a server that includes a communication manager for down-loading at least a portion of said information to the device in accordance with said user preferences so that said portion of the information is displayable on said display as the screen saver; and a second memory for storing information identifying the device so that said information may be transmitted thereto in a format appropriate for display thereon. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10)
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11. A computer readable medium having a computer program encoded thereon, comprising:
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a first portion of said medium having a first program segment for facilitating the selection of preferences for information content to be displayed as part of a screen saver; a second portion of said medium having a second program segment for receiving over a communication network information from at least one service provider in accordance with said selected preferences; a third portion of said medium having a third program segment for facilitating electronic storage of said information; and a fourth portion of said medium having a fourth program segment for displaying at least a portion of said information as a screen saver. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method of operating a personal computer having a visual display, the personal computer coupled to a communication network, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. transmitting over the communication network preferences for information content from a user of said personal computer; b. receiving information signals from an information service over the communication network, wherein said information signals reflect said preferences for information content expressed by a user of said personal computer; c. subsequent to step (b), receiving updated information signals from said information service over the communication network; d. displaying a screen saver on the visual display of the personal computer, which screen saver reflects select updated information signals from said communication network, said select updated information signals corresponding to at least one transmitted preference for information content; and e. transmitting over the communication network information identifying the personal computer so that information may be transmitted thereto in a format appropriate for display thereon. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
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26. A method for displaying updated information on at least one visual display of an electronic device, said method comprising the steps of:
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a. maintaining a user profile containing preferences for information content expressed by a user of said device; b. collecting information that includes a first set of data from a plurality of information sources; c. storing said collected information in a service node; d. transmitting at least a portion of said collected information to the device in accordance with said user profile; e. collecting from said information sources updated information that updates said collected information, said updated information including a second set of data such that the first set of data is rendered outdated by said second set of data; and f. transmitting at least a portion of said updated information to the device in accordance with said user profile to replace a portion of said collected information appearing on the display, wherein the transmitting steps include the step of transmitting different portions of said collected information to different devices in accordance with different user profiles. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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Specification