Software execution contingent on home page setting

• US 6,430,739 B1
• Filed: 07/16/1999
• Issued: 08/06/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LF Capital Partners, LLC
• Original Assignee: Acceleration Software International Corporation
• Inventors: Ballard, Clinton L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Khatri, Anil
• Application Number:
  US09/354,951
• Time in Patent Office: 1,117 Days
• Field of Search: 717/1, 717/11, 717/168, 717/174, 717/177, 717/100, 717/178, 345/500, 700/17, 707/22, 707/513, 707/524, 707/203, 709/200
• US Class Current: 717/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/128 involving web programs, i.e. using technology especially used in internet, generally interacting with a web browser, e.g. hypertext markup language [HTML], applets, java

Abstract

The functionality of software is contingent upon the home page setting for a user. Each time a user logs onto the World Wide Web, a home page manager program checks the home page setting. If the setting is the predetermined home page, then normal operation of contingent software ensues. If the setting is not the predetermined home page, then access to the contingent software is limited or disabled. The predetermined home page is any one of a prescribed set of home pages listed at a control site. In rotational mode a plurality of prescribed home pages are rotated as the predetermined home page. In long term mode the user selects one home page from the plurality of prescribed home pages as the predetermined home page. The home page manager software also allows (i) access to a user'"'"'s alternative home page, and (ii) monitoring the level of activity of software.

Claims

1. A computer system for communicating among a global information network of resources, wherein for each resource there is a corresponding URL address, the system comprising:

a processor for executing instructions, the instructions being organized logically into a plurality of computer programs, including a first computer program having a plurality of computing features;

means for accessing a resource of the global information network according to a URL address corresponding to the accessed resource;

memory means comprising a home page setting which stores a specific URL address, the home page setting being read when going online within the global information network to identify a first resource to be accessed upon going online;

means for testing whether the home page setting is set to a prescribed URL address, and

means for controlling enablement of the computing features of said first computer program, wherein unrestricted enablement to the computing features is contingent upon the home page setting being the prescribed URL address, and wherein enablement of the computing features is limited when the home page setting is not set to the prescribed URL.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said unrestricted enablement is independent of whether the resource corresponding to the prescribed URL address is accessed, and wherein said enablement is independent of whether the resource corresponding to the prescribed URL address is accessed.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the controlling means comprises means for disabling execution of the first computer program when the home page setting is not set to the prescribed URL.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory means further comprises a list of authorized URL addresses, the system further comprising means for selecting the prescribed URL address from the list of authorized URL addresses.

5. The system of claim 1 as a first computer system in combination with another computer system, wherein the prescribed URL address is for a common gateway interface program which executes upon attempted access to the prescribed URL address, the common gateway interface program causes said another computer system to identify another URL address, wherein a corresponding web page for said another URL address is routed to the first computer system to be displayed as a home page when going online to the global information network.

6. The combination of claim 5, wherein said another computing system comprises:

means for accessing a list of participating URL addresses and selecting one of the participating URL addresses to be said another URL address upon common execution of the gateway interface program, wherein the first computer system home page for accessing the global information network varies for different connections to go online to the global information network according to the selected one of the participating URL addresses.

7. The combination of claim 6, further comprising means for altering the list of participating URL addresses.

8. The combination of claim 6, further comprising:

means for weighting each URL address in the list of participating URL addresses to select one URL address among the list of participating URL addresses to be said another URL address.

9. The combination of claim 6, in which the selected one URL address within the list of participating URL addresses is rotated upon initiating an online connection in the global information network.

10. The combination of claim 5, further comprising:

means for sending an identification of the first computer program to said another computer system when the home page setting is set to the prescribed URL address and the prescribed URL address is accessed.

11. The combination of claim 5, in which the first computer system further comprises:

means for monitoring a level of activity of the first computer program; and

means for sending data pertaining to the level of activity of the first computer program to said another computer system when the home page setting is set to the prescribed URL address and the prescribed URL address is accessed.

12. A computer system in combination with a sever computer, the computer system for communicating among a global information network of resources, wherein for each resource there is a corresponding URL address, the computer system accessing the global information network through the server computer, the server computer controlling a plurality of features available to the computer system for accessing the global information network,

the computer system comprising:

means for requesting access to a resource of the global information network according to a URL address corresponding to the accessed resource; and

memory means comprising a home page setting which stores a specific URL address, the home page setting being read when going online within the global information network to identify a first resource to be accessed upon going online;

the server computer comprising;

a processor for executing instructions, the instructions being organized logically into a plurality of computer programs, including a plurality of plug-in computer programs contingently accessible to client computers for accessing the global information network;

means for testing whether the home page setting of the computer system is set to a prescribed URL address; and

means for controlling which of the plug-in computer programs are available for providing the computer system said plurality of features, wherein unrestricted enablement of the plurality of plug-in computer programs is contingent upon the home page setting being the prescribed URL address, and wherein access to the plurality of plug-in computer programs is restricted when the home page setting is not set to the prescribed URL.

13. The combination of claim 12, wherein the computer system memory means further comprises a list of authorized URL addresses, the computer system further comprising means for selecting the prescribed URL address from the list of authorized URL addresses.

14. The combination of claim 13, wherein the prescribed URL address is for a common gateway interface program which executes upon attempted access to the prescribed URL address, the common gateway interface program causes said another computer system to identify another URL address, wherein a corresponding web page for said another URL address is routed to the computer system to be displayed as a home page when going online to the global information network.

15. The combination of claim 14, wherein said server computer comprises:

means for accessing a list of participating URL addresses and selecting one of the participating URL addresses to be said another URL address upon execution of the common gateway interface program, wherein a web page sent to the computer system to serve as a home page for accessing the global information network varies for different connections to the global information network according to the selected one of the participating URL addresses.

16. The combination of claim 15, wherein the server computer further comprises means for altering the list of participating URL addresses.

17. The combination of claim 15, wherein the server computer further comprising:

means for weighting each URL address in the list of participating URL addresses to select one URL address among the list of participating URL addresses to be said another URL address.

18. The combination of claim 15, in which the selected one URL address within the list of participating URL addresses is rotated by the server computer each time the computer system requests to go online in the global information network.