Method and system for displaying internet shortcut icons on the desktop

• US 5,877,765 A
• Filed: 09/11/1995
• Issued: 03/02/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Allard, James E., Abdala, Luis Fernando Talavera, Dickman, David R., Schwartz, Kerry
• Primary Examiner(s): Breene, John E.
• Application Number:
  US08/526,314
• Time in Patent Office: 1,268 Days
• Field of Search: 395/326-358, 395/806-807, 395/762, 395/200.04, 395/200.03, 395/200.47, 395/200.48, 395/200.49, 345/326-356, 345/302, 701/501
• US Class Current: 715/738
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance

Abstract

A client computer has a facility for encapsulating location information, such as a uniform resource locator (URL), for a resource that is available on a server computer. The facility is especially well-adapted for use with Internet documents. The location information for such a resource is encapsulated into an object known as an Internet shortcut. The Internet shortcut appears to a user as an icon that may be used to gain access to the underlying resource. The Internet shortcut icon holds a link to a remote resource and will automatically activate the web browser when selected. The Internet shortcut icons may be implemented as objects that are visible on the desktop of the operating system. File operations such as copy, delete, and copy may be performed on the Internet shortcut icon through a context menu. In addition, Internet shortcuts may be transferred to E-mail, facsimile, floppy disk destinations through a context menu.

Claims

1. In a client computer system that runs an operating system that provides a name space of objects that are visible to a user on an output device and that is coupled to a network having a server for providing a resource, said resource having an associated uniform resource locator (URL), said operating system enabling a web browser to employ the associated URL to locate a web page that provides access to the resource, a method comprising:

(a) searching the network with the web browser to locate the web page that provides access to the resource;

(b) entering a create shortcut command from within said web browser for encapsulating the URL associated with the resource into a shortcut object;

(c) displaying a virtual desktop generated by said operating system on said output device;

(d) displaying a visual representation of the shortcut object on the virtual desktop;

(e) storing the shortcut object in the client computer system so that it is visible in the name space; and

(f) automatically activating said web browser to locate and access the resource with said web browser when said shortcut object is selected.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the display of the visual representation of the shortcut object on the virtual desktop includes a graphic for identifying the shortcut object as a shortcut to the resource.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the visual representation of the shortcut object is an icon.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the client computer includes a pointing input device that is adapted for enabling the user to drag and drop the visual representation of the shortcut object in response to the selection of the shortcut object by the pointing input device.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the shortcut object is a shortcut to access the resource.

6. A client computer system that is coupled to a server computer that has a resource for access by the client computer system, said resource having a uniform resource locator (URL) for enabling location of the resource by the client computer system, said operating system enabling a web browser to locate and access the resource, said client computer system comprising:

(a) a storage device for storing at least one object;

(b) an operating system that provides a name space for at least one object;

(c) an output device for displaying each object in said name space to a user;

(d) a navigation module for searching the network with the web browser to locate and access the resource;

(e) a module for encapsulating the URL of the resource into a shortcut object that is visible in the name space, said module performing said encapsulation of the URL when a create shortcut command is performed by said browser; and

(f) an access module for using the URL encapsulated in the shortcut object to automatically activate the web browser to locate and access the resource on behalf of the client computer system when said user activates said shortcut object.

7. The client computer system of claim 6 further comprising an output device for generating a display that includes a visual representation of the shortcut object.

8. The client computer system of claim 7 further comprising a facility for enabling the visual representation of the shortcut object to be dragged and dropped on the display.

9. In a client computer system that runs an operating system that provides a name space of objects that are visible to a user on an output device and that is coupled to a network having a server for providing a resource, said resource having an associated uniform resource locator (URL), said operating system enabling a web browser to locate a web page that provides access to the resource, a method comprising:

(a) searching the network with the web browser to locate the web page that provides access to the resource;

(b) executing a create shortcut command from within said web browser to encapsulate the URL for the resource into a shortcut object;

(c) displaying a virtual desktop generated by said operating system on said output device;

(d) displaying a visual representation of the shortcut object on the virtual desktop;

(e) storing the shortcut object in the client computer system so that it is visible in the name space; and

(f) automatically activating said web browser to provide access to the resource when said shortcut object is selected.

10. A client computer system that is coupled to a server computer that has a resource for access by the client computer system, said resource having a uniform resource locator (URL) for enabling location of the resource by the client computer system, said operating system enabling a web browser to locate and access the resource, said client computer system comprising:

(a) a storage device for storing at least the object;

(b) an operating system for providing a name space for at least one object;

(c) an output device for displaying each object in said name space to a user;

(d) a navigation module for employing the web browser to locate the resource;

(e) a module for encapsulating the URL of the resource into a shortcut object that is visible in the name space, said module performing said encapsulation of the URL when a create shortcut command is received by said web browser; and

(f) an access module that employs the web browser and the URL encapsulated in the shortcut object to automatically activate the web browser to locate and access the resource on behalf of the client computer system when said shortcut object is selected.

11. In a computer system, a method for producing a shortcut for a user to access a resource on a network, comprising:

(a) searching the network with a web browser to locate a resource, the web browser being adapted for a user to determine how the search for the resource is performed;

(b) employing the web browser to encapsulate a URL for the resource into a shortcut object when the resource is located, the shortcut object being separately visible in a name space of an operating system;

(c) displaying the shortcut object on a display generated by the operating system, the displayed shortcut object being selectable by the user; and

(d) automatically activating the web browser when the shortcut object is selected, so that the web browser will employ the URL encapsulated in the shortcut object to locate and provide access to the resource.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein searching the network with the web browser, further comprises locating a web page that provides access to the resource.

13. A medium having computer executable instructions for performing the method recited in claim 11.