System for providing easy access to the World Wide Web utilizing a published list of preselected Internet locations together with their unique multi-digit jump codes

• US 6,049,835 A
• Filed: 08/30/1996
• Issued: 04/11/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Internet Media Interactive Corp.
• Original Assignee: Internet Media Corporation
• Inventors: Gagnon, Eric F.
• Primary Examiner(s): De Cady, Albert
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ton, David
• Application Number:
  US08/705,967
• Time in Patent Office: 1,320 Days
• Field of Search: 348/27, 348/8, 348/13, 386/83, 709/218, 709/229, 709/219, 709/245, 709/227, 345/335, 707/3, 235/375
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]

Abstract

A system for quickly and easily accessing preselected desired addresses or URLs on the Internet is disclosed in which a published list of Internet or World Wide Web sites together with their unique jump codes is utilized in connection with a corresponding specialized Web site which is accessed by a user using either a personal computer or a TV Internet Terminal and remote control, after which access a jump code corresponding to the preselected desired URL is entered by the user and software contained in the specialized Web site immediately and automatically accesses the desired Web site.

Claims

1. A system for providing automatic access to preselected locations on the Internet, comprising:

a published compilation of preselected Internet locations, said published compilation including a unique predetermined multi-digit jump code assigned to each of said preselected Internet locations published therein;

a predetermined published Internet location having an address published in said published compilation, said predetermined published Internet location including means for capturing a desired multi-digit jump code assigned to each preselected Internet location after said multi-digit jump code has been entered by a user after accessing said predetermined published Internet location;

means for accessing said predetermined published Internet location;

means for receiving said desired multi-digit jump code from said means for capturing and means for converting said received multi-digit jump code to a URL address corresponding to the desired preselected Internet location; and

means for automatically accessing said desired preselected Internet location using said URL address corresponding to said desired preselected Internet location, whereby said user need only enter said desired multi-digit jump code to access a desired preselected Internet location without having to enter said corresponding URL address.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said means for accessing said preselected published Internet location comprises a personal computer.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said means for accessing said preselected published Internet location comprises a television Internet device.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said television Internet device comprises a remote control device having a plurality of push buttons for controlling said television Internet device.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said preselected locations on the Internet are in the World Wide Web.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said published compilation of preselected Internet locations is published as printed matter.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said published compilation of preselected Internet locations is published on-line in said predetermined published Internet location on the Internet.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said means for capturing a desired multi-digit jump code entered by a user after accessing said predetermined Internet location comprises an on-screen HTML form.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said multi-digit jump code is a four digit number.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said published compilation comprises a review of each of said preselected Internet locations.

11. A method for providing automatic access to preselected locations on the Internet, comprising the steps of:

publishing a compilation of preselected Internet locations, said published compilation including a unique predetermined multi-digit jump code assigned to each of said preselected Internet locations published therein;

providing a predetermined Internet location having an address published in said published compilation, said predetermined Internet location comprising means for capturing a desired multi-digit jump code assigned to said preselected Internet location, said desired multi-digit jump code being entered by a user after said predetermined Internet location has been accessed;

accessing said predetermined Internet location and entering said desired multi-digit jump code into said predetermined Internet location;

receiving said multi-digit jump code entered into said predetermined Internet location after said multi-digit jump code has been captured at said predetermined Internet location;

converting the received multi-digit jump code to a URL address corresponding to the desired preselected Internet location; and

automatically accessing said desired preselected Internet location using said URL address corresponding to said desired preselected Internet location corresponding to said received multi-digit jump code.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said step of accessing said predetermined Internet location comprises using a personal computer to enter said multi-digit jump code.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said step of accessing said predetermined Internet location comprises using a television Internet device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein said television Internet device comprises a remote control device having a plurality of push buttons for controlling said television Internet device.

15. The method of claim 11 wherein said preselected locations on the Internet are on the World Wide Web.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein said step of publishing a compilation of preselected Internet locations comprises publishing said compilation as printed matter.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein said step of publishing a compilation of preselected Internet locations comprises publishing said compilation on-line in said predetermined Internet location.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein said means for capturing a desired multi-digit jump code entered by a user after accessing said predetermined Internet location comprises an on-screen HTML form.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein said multi-digit jump code is a four digit number.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein said published compilation comprises a review of each of said preselected Internet locations.