Content modification of internet web pages for a television class display

• US 6,226,642 B1
• Filed: 09/11/1997
• Issued: 05/01/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/11/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Beranek, Michael J., Lita, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALAM, SHAHID AL
• Application Number:
  US08/927,596
• Time in Patent Office: 1,328 Days
• Field of Search: 707/513, 707/501, 707/523, 707/10, 707/104, 709/217, 709/203, 709/219, 711/219, 345/335, 345/327, 345/357, 348/552, 348/734
• US Class Current: 348/211.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/917 Text

Abstract

A method of controlling how a Web document is presented for display on a browser of a Web appliance. The Web appliance typically includes a television class monitor associated therewith. The Web document typically is formatted according to a markup language such as HTML. The method uses a client side HTTP caching proxy to intercept the Web document and then dynamically rewrite the document before it is displayed on the browser of the Web appliance. In particular, as the Web document is received from the server, the HTML is parsed to identify the format of the document and the information therein. A filter mechanism is then used to reformat the Web document according to some given protocol, and the re-formatted Web document is then passed to the browser for display on the monitor. Dynamic alteration of the HTML in this manner enables control of the “look and feel” of the browser display irrespective of the monitor resolution and/or quality.

Claims

1. A data processing system, comprising:

a remote control unit; and

a base unit connectable to a monitor for providing Internet access under the control of the remote control unit, the base unit comprising;

a processor having an operating system;

a browser application run by the operating system;

means for parsing a Web document as the Web document is received from a server to identify markup language formatting information in the Web document; and

means responsive to the parsing means for re-formatting the Web document for display on the monitor.

2. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the monitor is a television class monitor.

3. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the markup language is HTML and the means for re-formatting alters at least one characteristic of the HTML formatting information to create a modified Web document for display on the monitor by the browser.

4. The data processing system as described in claim 3 wherein the at least one characteristic of the HTML formatting information includes an HTML markup tag selected from the group of HTML markup tags consisting essentially of:

<

BODY>

, <

TITLE>

, <

H>

, <

P>

, <

BR>

, <

FONT>

, <

A HREF>

, <

IMG SRC>

, <

FRAMESET>

, <

FRAME>

, <

FRAME SRC>

, <

TABLE>

, <

TR>

, <

TD>

, <

FORM INPUT>

, <

ALIGN>

, <

MARGIN>

, <

HSPACE>

, <

VSPACE>

, <

EMBED> and

<

LAYER>

.

5. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the means for re-formatting is activated upon a given event.

6. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the remote control unit controls the parsing means.

7. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the means for re-formatting includes means for generating a display region on the Web document.

8. The data processing system as described in claim 7 wherein the means for re-formatting further includes means for displaying a display object in the display region.

9. The data processing system as described in claim 8 wherein the display object is scrolling text.

10. The data processing system as described in claim 1 wherein the base unit further includes a cache.

11. A method of controlling presentation on a Web apparatus of a Web document formatted according to a markup language and supported on a server, the Web apparatus having a television class monitor associated therewith and including a browser, the method comprising the steps of:

as the Web document is received from a server, parsing the Web document to identify formatting information;

re-formatting the Web document at the Web apparatus;

delivering the re-formatted Web document to the browser; and

displaying the re-formatted Web document on the television monitor using the browser.

12. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the markup language is Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).

13. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the step of re-formatting the Web document is effected using filter information stored in a cache of the Web appliance.

14. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted upon a given event.

15. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to include a new background color.

16. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to include a new font color.

17. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to vary spacing between given text characters.

18. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to modify a frame of a frameset.

19. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to modify a hypertext link reference.

20. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to add a hypertext link reference.

21. The computer program product as described in claim 20 wherein the markup language is HTML and the means for altering modifies information associated with an HTML markup tag selected from the group of HTML markup tags consisting essentially of:

<

BODY>

, <

TITLE>

, <

H>

, <

P>

, <

BR>

, <

FONT>

, <

A HREF>

, <

IMG SRC>

, <

FRAMESET>

, <

FRAME>

, <

FRAME SRC>

, <

TABLE>

, <

TR>

, <

TD>

, <

FORM INPUT>

, <

ALIGN>

, <

MARGIN>

, <

HSPACE>

, <

VSPACE>

, <

EMBED> and

<

LAYER>

.

22. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to modify a table format.

23. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 11 wherein the Web document is re-formatted to include a reserved display region.

24. The method of displaying a Web document as described in claim 23 further including the step of displaying a display object in the reserved display region.

25. A computer program product in computer-readable media for use in controlling presentation on a Web apparatus of a Web document formatted according to a markup language and supported on a server, the apparatus including a browser and connectable to the server via a computer network, the Web apparatus further having a television class monitor associated therewith, the computer program product comprising:

means for parsing the Web document as the Web document is received from the server to identify formatting information associated with the markup language;

means responsive to the parsing means for altering at least one characteristic of the formatting information to create a modified Web document; and

means responsive to the altering means for passing the modified Web document to the browser for display on the monitor.

26. The computer program product as described in claim 25 further including a means for caching control information for controlling the parsing means.

27. A system connectable to the Internet, comprising:

a television class monitor;

a processor having an operating system;

a browser application run by the operating system;

a proxy having a cache associated therewith and including;

means for parsing a Web document as the Web document is received from a server to identify markup language formatting information in the Web document; and

means responsive to the parsing means for re-formatting the Web document;

means for delivering the re-formatted Web document to the browser for display on the monitor using the browser.

28. A method of controlling presentation on a Web apparatus of a Web document formatted according to a markup language and supported on a server, the Web apparatus having a television class monitor associated therewith and including a browser, wherein the television class monitor has an associated display area, the method comprising the steps of:

as a data stream comprising the Web document is received from a server, parsing the data stream to identify formatting information in the Web document;

inserting control information into the data stream such that when the Web document is displayed on the browser, a portion of the display area of the television class monitor is reserved for display of given content;

using the browser to display the Web document on the display area of the television class monitor, wherein the control information inhibits display of the Web document in the portion of the display area reserved for display of the given content.

29. The method of controlling presentation as described in claim 28 further including the step of displaying given content in the portion of the display area of the television class monitor.

30. The method of controlling presentation as described in claim 29 wherein the given content includes a message.

31. A method of controlling presentation on a Web apparatus of a Web document formatted according to a markup language and supported on a server, the Web apparatus having a television class monitor associated therewith and including a browser, wherein the television class monitor has an associated display area, the method comprising the steps of:

discovering a display system type associated with the Web apparatus, the display system type defined at least in part by display characteristics of the television class monitor;

as a data stream comprising the Web document is received from a server by the Web apparatus, parsing the data stream to identify formatting information in the Web document; and

inserting control information into the data stream to reformat the Web document for display on the browser, wherein the control information is selected based on the discovered display screen type.

32. A computer program product in computer-readable media for use in controlling presentation on a Web apparatus of a Web document formatted according to a markup language, the computer program product supported on a proxy server running on the Web apparatus and comprising:

means for parsing the Web document to identify formatting information associated with the markup language; and

means responsive to the parsing means for reformatting the Web document information in accordance with the display system type.

33. The computer program product as described in claim 32 wherein the markup language is HTML and the means for altering modifies information associated with an HTML markup tag selected from the group of HTML markup tags consisting essentially of:

<

BODY>

, <

TITLE>

, <

H>

, <

P>

, <

BR>

, <

FONT>

, <

A HREF>

, <

IMG SRC>

, <

FRAMESET>

, <

FRAME>

, <

FRAME SRC>

, <

TABLE>

, <

TR>

, <

TD>

, <

FORM INPUT>

, <

ALIGN>

, <

MARGIN>

, <

HSPACE>

, <

VSPACE>

, <

EMBED> and

<

LAYER>

.

34. The computer program product as described in claim 32 wherein the display system type is associated with a display system at a client machine.