Browser controller

• US 6,263,365 B1
• Filed: 03/18/1999
• Issued: 07/17/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Open Invention Network LLC
• Original Assignee: Raindance Communications Incorporated (West Corporation)
• Inventors: Scherpbier, Andrew W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Rinehart, Mark H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cardone, Jason D.
• Application Number:
  US09/272,642
• Time in Patent Office: 852 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/218, 709/217, 709/219, 709/202, 709/203, 709/229, 709/246, 709/227, 709/209, 709/205, 707/10, 707/501, 707/513
• US Class Current: 709/218
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2216/15 Synchronised browsing

Abstract

A pilot computer can control the Web browser of at least one passenger computer. The user of the passenger computer is instructed to log onto a control site, which downloads an active control, such as an applet, to the passenger computer. An active control is also provided to the pilot computer. If the pilot computer desires to present a particular Web page to both the pilot computer and the passenger computer for, e.g., discussing the page during a conference call, the pilot computer transmits the appropriate URL to the control site, which then retrieves the Web page. Next, the control site sanitizes the page by disabling its hyperlinks, and then the control site causes the passenger computer'"'"'s active control to download the sanitized page. Also, the control site filters the page such that the hyperlinks are not disabled, but are rather encoded to point back to the control site, and this filtered page is downloaded to the pilot computer. The pilot computer can then “click” on a hyperlink, causing the control site to decode the hyperlink, retrieve the appropriate Web page, and instruct the passenger computer'"'"'s active control to download the page after sanitizing the page.

Claims

1. A computer program device comprising:

a computer program storage device readable by a digital processing system; and

a program means on the program storage device and including instructions executable by the digital processing system for performing method steps for enabling a first computer to cause at least one second computer to display a predetermined page from a computer network by transmitting, from the first computer to a control site in the computer network, a request for the predetermined page, the method steps comprising;

(a) retrieving the predetermined page;

(b) if the predetermined page includes pointers to other pages in the network, (1) encoding the pointers to thereby render a first page wherein the pointers, when selected by a computer user viewing the page, direct the user'"'"'s computer to the control site, and (2) disabling the pointers from the predetermined page to thereby render a second page;

(c) transmitting the first page to the first computer; and

(d) transmitting the second page to the second computer.

2. The computer program device of claim 1, wherein the method steps further comprise:

(e) if the first computer has accessed a secondary page, causing the second computer to display the secondary page.

3. The computer program device of claim 2, wherein the method steps further comprise:

in response to the second computer transmitting a valid code to the control site, downloading from the control site to the second computer an active control; and

executing steps (d) and (e) by instructing the active control to cause the second page to be downloaded.

4. The computer program device of claim 3, wherein the method steps further comprise;

if the first computer selects, on the first page, a pointer associated with a hyperlink site, defining the hyperlink site to be the predetermined page and then repeating steps (a)-(d).

5. The computer program device of claim 4, wherein the method steps further comprise:

reporting to the first computer the status of the second computer displaying the second page.

6. The computer program device of claim 5, wherein the method steps further comprise:

in response to the entry of data by the first computer in connection with the first page, electronically combining the data with the first page for simultaneous display thereof.

7. The computer program device of claim 6, in combination with the digital processing apparatus.

8. The combination of claim 7, in further combination with the computer network.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising the steps of:

receiving an encoded recognized pointer from the first computer, the encoded recognized pointer identifying a secondary page in the network to which the recognized pointer corresponding to the received pointer pointed in the predetermined page;

retrieving the secondary page;

recognizing in the secondary page pointers to other pages in the network;

rendering a third page from the secondary page by encoding the pointers recognized in the secondary page to point to the control site;

rendering a fourth page from the secondary page by disabling the pointers recognized in the secondary page;

transmitting the third page to the first computer; and

transmitting the fourth page to the second computer.

9. A method for enabling a first computer to cause at least one second computer to display a predetermined page from a computer network, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving a request for the predetermined page;

retrieving the predetermined page;

recognizing in the predetermined page pointers to other pages in the network;

rendering a first page from the predetermined page by encoding the recognized pointers to point to a control site;

rendering a second page from the predetermined page by disabling the recognized pointers;

transmitting the first page to the first computer; and

transmitting the second page to the second computer.