Transferring selected formatted documents over a computer network using interface script
First Claim
1. An internet-based automated document and data transfer system comprising:
- an internet network server with a resident server gateway interface script configured to attach selected documents to an e-mail addressed to a designated e-mail address, the server gateway interface script and the documents residing in a CGI bin of the network server, the server gateway interface script being a CGI sending script instructing said network server to send the e-mail to a user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail a user-selected document in a selected document format, wherein each of the documents is stored on the network server in plural word processing formats, plural spreadsheet formats, and plural databases formats respectively.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for transmission of documents including word processing, spread sheets, and other formatted documents, over a computer network with no need for additional formatting software by using a CGI sending script to send e-mail with the selected document, in its native format, as an attachment to e-mail submissions or obtained directly from websites using standard word processing programs, with end user prerequisites for using the method and system being standard word processing software and e-mail capability; the form may returned to the server in electronic form, and the accompanying data posted to one or more databases, or automatically stored on disk, printed, or routed to other e-mail addresses.
108 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An internet-based automated document and data transfer system comprising:
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an internet network server with a resident server gateway interface script configured to attach selected documents to an e-mail addressed to a designated e-mail address, the server gateway interface script and the documents residing in a CGI bin of the network server, the server gateway interface script being a CGI sending script instructing said network server to send the e-mail to a user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail a user-selected document in a selected document format, wherein each of the documents is stored on the network server in plural word processing formats, plural spreadsheet formats, and plural databases formats respectively. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
said network server hosts plural documents and said CGI listing script; said CGI listing script provides a user at a user terminal a list of available documents from the plural documents;
said CGI listing script provides the user a list of available document formats;
said CGI listing script solicits from the user the user e-mail address, a document-select input indicating the selected document to be transferred from the list of available documents, and a selected document-format input indicating the selected document format from the list of available document formats; and
said CGI sending script instructs said network server to send the e-mail to the user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail the selected document indicated by the document-select input in the selected format indicated by the document-format input.
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3. The computer network document and data transfer system of claim 2, wherein said CGI listing script solicits the user e-mail address from browser cookies.
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4. The computer network document and data transfer system of claim 3, wherein said CGI listing script solicits the user selected document format from browser cookies.
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5. The computer network document and data transfer system of claim 1, wherein said CGI sending script residing on said network server instructs said network server to send an e-mail to each of a plurality of user e-mail addresses and to attach to each of the e-mails a selected document in a selected document format.
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6. The computer network document and data transfer system of claim 5, further comprising:
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an e-mail list residing on said network server, said e-mail list comprising addressee records, each said addressee record comprising an e-mail address entry and a selected format entry.
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7. The computer network document and data transfer system of claim 1, further comprising:
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a database related to said documents, the database being stored on said network server; and
a CGI listing script hosted on said server, wherein, said CGI listing script provides an internet user at a user terminal a browser window listing available documents from the documents residing on the network server;
said CGI listing script provides the user a list of available document formats;
said CGI listing script solicits from the user the user e-mail address, a document-select input indicating the selected document to be transferred from the list of available documents, and a selected document-format input indicating the selected document format from the list of available document formats;
said CGI sending script solicits data from said database relating said selected document; and
said CGI sending script instructs said network server to send the e-mail to the user e-mail address, to attach to the e-mail the selected document indicated by the document-select input in the selected format indicated by the document-format input, and to include in the e-mail the data solicited from said database.
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8. An automated document transfer method enabling a user to remotely automatically select and locally receive a user-selected document in a user-selected document format from a network server, comprising the steps of:
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hosting plural documents on a network server, each of the plural documents being stored on the network server in plural document formats; and
a CGI sending script residing on the network server sending instructions to the network server to originate and send an e-mail to a user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail a selected document, from the plural documents, in a selected document format, wherein the selected document format is at least one of a word processing format, a spreadsheet format, and a database format. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
providing a CGI listing script on the network server;
utilizing the CGI listing script to provide a user at a user terminal a list of available documents from the plural documents;
utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user a list of available document formats;
utilizing the CGI listing script to solicit from the user the user e-mail address, a document-select input indicating the selected document to be transferred from the list of available documents, and a selected document-format input indicating the selected document format from the list of available document formats; and
utilizing the CGI sending script to instruct the network server to send the e-mail to the user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail the selected document indicated by the document-select input in the selected format indicated by the document-format input.
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10. The method of claim 9, wherein the network server communicates with the user over the Internet.
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11. The method of claim 9, wherein the network server communicates with the user over an Intranet.
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12. The method of claim 11, wherein the network server communicates with other users over the Internet.
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13. The method of claim 9, wherein said step of the CGI listing script soliciting the user e-mail address comprises the further step of soliciting the user e-mail address from the user'"'"'s browser cookies.
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14. The method of claim 13, wherein said step of the CGI listing script soliciting the user selected document format takes the user selected document format from the user'"'"'s browser cookies.
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15. The method of claim 14, wherein said step of utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user a list of available document formats, shows as the selected document format, the user selected document format solicited from the user'"'"'s browser cookies.
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16. The method of claim 14, wherein said step of utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user a list of available document formats, lists the user selected document format solicited from the user'"'"'s browser cookies prior to other possible document formats.
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17. The method of claim 8, further comprising the steps of:
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hosting plural documents and a database related to the plural documents on the network server;
hosting a CGI listing script on the network server;
utilizing the CGI listing script to provide a user a list of available documents from the plural documents residing on the network server;
utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user a list of available document formats;
soliciting from the user, with the CGI listing script, the user e-mail address, a document-select input indicating the selected document to be transferred from the list of available documents, and a selected document-format input indicating the selected document format from the list of available document formats;
utilizing the CGI sending script to read data from the database relating the selected document;
from the CGI sending script instructing the network server to send the e-mail to the user e-mail address, to attach to the e-mail the selected document indicated by the document-select input in the selected format indicated by the document-format input, and to include in the e-mail the data solicited from the database.
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18. The automated document transfer method of claim 8, comprising the further steps of:
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the network server communicating with the user over the Internet;
hosting data on the network server, the plural documents including plural procurement documents;
providing a CGI listing script on the network server;
utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user at a user terminal a list of available procurement documents from the plural procurement documents;
utilizing the CGI listing script to solicit a user e-mail address, a document-select input indicating the selected procurement document to be transferred from the list of available procurement documents, and a selected document-format input indicating a procurement document format from the list of available procurement document formats associated with the solicited user e-mail address; and
using the solicited user e-mail address, document-select input, and selected document-format input by the CGI sending script to instruct the network server to send the e-mail to the user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail the selected procurement document indicated by the document-select input in the selected procurement document format indicated by the document-format input.
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19. The method of claim 18, wherein said steps of utilizing the CGI listing script to solicit a user e-mail address and a selected document-format input indicating a procurement document format associated with the solicited user e-mail address is accomplished by utilizing the CGI listing script to provide the user a list of available e-mail address lists, each of which e-mail address lists including plural records comprising a user e-mail address field data and a selected document-format field data indicating the selected document format associated with the e-mail address field data of that record, and
wherein the selected procurement document includes data fields for bidders to enter data.
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20. An internet-based automated document and data transfer system comprising:
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an internet network server hosting plural selectable documents, the selectable documents being selectable from an internet browser screen offering plural documents to a remote internet user;
a resident server gateway interface script configured to originate an e-mail and to attach a user-selected document to the e-mail, the resident server gateway interface script including a CGI sending script residing on said network server, said CGI sending script instructing said network server to originate and send the e-mail to a user e-mail address and to attach to the e-mail the selected document in a user-selected document format, wherein the selectable documents include data fields, each of the selectable documents being stored on the network server in plural document formats; and
a CGI data extracting script which extracts user-entered data entered into data fields of a selected document returned from the user e-mail address and updates the database file with the extracted data by opening and amending the database file.
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Specification