Integrated information browsing and multiple-participant application with a persistency control configured to monitor and to prevent attempts to replace data within the information browser

• US 6,182,073 B1
• Filed: 05/20/1997
• Issued: 01/30/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Kukkal, Puneet
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Colbert, Ella
• Application Number:
  US08/859,055
• Time in Patent Office: 1,351 Days
• Field of Search: 707/526, 709/204-206, 709/207, 709/237, 370/260, 713/400, 345/345, 345/330-331
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2743 Video hosting of uploaded data from client
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP

Abstract

In an integrated information browsing and video conferencing interface, a conferencing application is executed and displayed in a first portion of a web browser window.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

executing a multple-participant application;

registering a persistency control with an information browser, said persistency control configured to monitor and selectively prevent attempts to replace data within the information browser;

embedding an output of the multiple-participant application in a first portion of an information browser window, wherein said embedding persists per the persistency control and is non-responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser until such persistency is disabled; and

providing a second portion of the browser information window responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

wherein the first portion is a first browser frame defined within the information browser window, and the second portion is a second browser frame defined within the information browser window.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a view synchronization option; and

sending an identifier of a most recently received web page to another multiple-participant application via a network response to user selection of the view synchronization option.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein executing the multiple-participant application comprises automatically executing the multiple-participant application upon receipt of an incoming application-execution signal for the multiple-participant application.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the multiple-participant application comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

6. An article of manufacture comprising a computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of instructions, which when executed by a processor, are capable of directing the processor

to execute a multiple-participant application,

register a persistency control, with a network browser, said persistency control configured to monitor and selectively prevent attempts to replace data within the network browser,

to persistently embed an output of the multiple-participant application in a first portion of a network browser window per said persistency control so that such embedding is non-responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser until such persistency is disabled, and

to provide a second portion of the network browser window responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser.

7. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the plurality of instructions are further

to implement a function to embed the first portion in a first network browser frame defined within the network browser window, and

to display the second portion in a second network browser frame defined within the network browser window.

8. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the plurality of instructions are further to implement a function to provide a view synchronization option, and to send an identifier of a most recently received web page to a host system via a network response to user selection of the view synchronization option.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the plurality of instructions for implementing a function to execute the multiple-participant application comprise instructions for implementing

a function to automatically execute the multiple-participant application upon receipt of an incoming application execution signal for the multiple-participant application.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the plurality of instructions for implementing a function to execute the multiple-participant application comprise instructions for implementing

a function to execute an audiovisual conferencing application.

11. An apparatus comprising:

control logic to execute a multiple-participant application;

persistency control logic to selectively persist data within a first portion of an information browser window of an information browser by preventing replacement of such persistent data by the information browser, the information browser window having a second portion responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser window;

embedding logic, communicatively coupled with said persistency control logic, to persistently embed an output of the multiple-participant application in a first portion of an information browser window non-responsive to attempts to replace information within the information browser until such persistency is disabled.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the persistency control logic is further operative to

embed the first portion in a first frame defined within the information browser window, and to

display the second portion in a second frame defined within the information browser window.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the persistency control logic is further operative to send an identifier of a most recently received web page to a host system via a network in response to user selection of a view synchronization option.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the control logic is further operative to automatically execute the multiple-participant application upon receipt of an incoming application execution signal for the multiple-participant application.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the multiple-participant application comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

16. A method, comprising:

executing an information browser having a persistency control configured to monitor and selectively prevent attempts to replace data within the information browser; and

embedding an output from a first application program in a first portion of an information browser window;

wherein said embedding persists per the persistency control and is non-responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser until such persistency is disabled, and wherein the information browser window has a second portion responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

wherein the first portion is a first frame defined within the information browser window, and the second portion is a second frame defined within the information browser window.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

providing a synchronization option; and

sending an identifier of a most recently received web page, in response to selection of the synchronization option, to a second application program in communication with the first application program over a network.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the first application program is a conferencing application, and wherein executing the conferencing application comprises automatically executing the conferencing application upon receipt of an incoming conferencing call.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the first application program comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

21. A medium having encoded thereon instructions capable of directing a processor to:

execute an information browser having a persistency control configured to monitor and selectively prevent attempts to replace data within the information browser; and

embed output from a first application program in a first portion of an information browser window;

wherein said embedding is persistent so as to prevent replacement of said output until such persistency is disabled by the persistency control.

22. The medium of claim 21, said instructions further including instructions to direct the processor to:

present control information for the first application program in a second portion of the information browser window;

embed the first portion in a first frame defined within the information browser window; and

embed the second portion in a second frame defined within the information browser window.

23. The medium of claim 21, said instructions further including instructions to direct the processor to:

provide a synchronization option; and

send an identifier of a most recently received web page, in response to selection of the synchronization option, to a second application program in communication with the first application program over a network.

24. The medium of claim 21, wherein the first application program is a conferencing application, and said instructions further include instructions to direct the processor to:

automatically execute said conferencing application upon receipt of an incoming conferencing call.

25. The medium of claim 21, wherein the application program comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

26. A system, comprising:

means for executing a first user-perceptible application;

persisting means for monitoring and selectively preventing attempts to replace data within an information browser such that the information browser has contemporaneous persistent and non-persistent data; and

means for embedding an output of the first user-perceptible application in a first portion of an information browser window;

wherein said embedding persists as controlled by said persisting means so as to prevent replacement of said output until such persistency is disabled.

27. The system of claim 26, further comprising:

means for presenting the output of the first user-perceptible application in a first frame defined within the information browser window.

28. The system of claim 26, further comprising:

means for providing a perception synchronization option; and

means for sending an identifier of a most recently received web page, in response to selection of the perception synchronization option, to a second user-perceptible application in communication with the first user-perceptible application over a network.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein the user-perceptible application is a conferencing application, the system further comprising:

means for automatically executing the conferencing application upon receipt of an incoming conferencing call.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the first user-perceptible application comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

31. A method comprising:

providing an information browser having a persistency control configured to monitor and selectively prevent attempts to replace data within the information browser so that the information browser may have contemporaneous persistent and non-persistent data;

accessing a first host system on a network;

receiving first user-perceptible data from said accessing;

displaying said first user-perceptible data in a first portion of an information browser window, wherein said displaying persists in accordance with the persistency control and is non-responsive to attempts to replace data within the information browser until such persistency is disabled;

accessing a second host system on the network;

receiving second user-perceptible data from said accessing; and

non-persistently displaying said second user-perceptible data in a second portion of the information browser window.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

executing an application program which produces said second user-perceptible data.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein said application program comprises an audiovisual conferencing application.

34. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

receiving a first request identifying the first host system.

35. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

wherein the first request comprises selecting a user-selectable region of the information browser corresponding to the first host system.

36. The method of claim 34, further comprising:

executing the information browser on a host system;

receiving a second request identifying the host system; and

accessing the host system and receiving an executable program responsive thereto;

wherein executing the executable program generates said second user-perceptible data.

37. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

wherein said first user-perceptible data comprises web page data.

38. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

defining plural browser frames within the information browser window;

wherein said first portion of the information browser window is within a first frame of said plural frames, and second portion of the information browser window is within a second frame of said plural frames.