Software system and methods for resubmitting form data to related web sites

• US 6,549,941 B1
• Filed: 11/22/1999
• Issued: 04/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Alexa Internet Inc (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Alexa Internet Inc (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jaquith, Tracey, Morris, Seth
• Primary Examiner(s): Wiley, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): BOUTAH, ALINA A
• Application Number:
  US09/447,392
• Time in Patent Office: 1,240 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/219, 709/217, 709/203, 709/225, 705/10
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A client program executes in conjunction with a web browser on a user computer. The client program captures submitted form data from HTTP requests and presents the user with the option of resubmitting the form data to related web sites based upon information transmitted to the client program from a metadata server. A processing engine, located in the client program or on the metadata server, extracts the submitted data from an HTTP request and creates data resubmission blocks using the extracted data. The data resubmission blocks replace related forms on related web sites but incorporate the extracted data. Instructions based upon which the processing engine extracts the data and creates data resubmission blocks are stored on the metadata server. The data resubmission blocks are displayed to the user through the web browser and can be submitted by the user without the need to re-enter data, in order to resubmit the extracted data to the related web sites. In a preferred embodiment, the system is used to capture a query submitted to a search engine of one web site, and to present the user an option to submit the same query to the search engines of one or more related web sites. When the user conducts a search of a merchant'"'"'s web site, the related web sites may be those of merchants that carry the same or similar products.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of assisting a user in locating items sold by merchants, comprising:

identifying a first merchant web site being browsed by a user;

capturing, on a client computer of the user, a query entered by the user into a search field of the first merchant web site;

identifying a second merchant web site that is related to the first merchant web site; and

presenting to the user an option initiate a search on the second merchant web site using the captured query;

wherein the method further comprises retrieving from a server a set of instructions for capturing the query and for submitting the query to the second merchant site.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein the method is performed at least in part by a browser plug-in program.

3. The method as in claim 1, further comprising presenting the user an option to modify the query prior to initiating the search on the second merchant web site.

4. A computer system than embodies the method of claim 1.

5. A system for facilitating the resubmission of submitted form data to related web sites, the system comprising:

a metadata server configured to store parsing rules and data resubmission instructions;

a client program configured to execute in conjunction with a web browser on a user computer, the client program further configured to display data resubmission blocks on the web browser; and

a processing engine configured to capture, using the parsing rules, form data submitted by a user through the web browser, the processing engine further configured to create the data resubmission blocks using the data resubmission instructions.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the client program is further configured to capture HTTP requests generated by the web browser, and wherein the processing engine is further configured to extract the form data from the captured HTTP requests.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the processing engine executes on the user computer.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing engine is a part of the client program.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the processing engine executes on the metadata server.

10. A method of facilitating form submissions to web sites, the method comprising:

(A) capturing, on a user computer, data submitted by a user in response to a first form located on a first web site, wherein capturing the data comprises (A-1) capturing a first HTTP request generated by a web browser in response to the first form, and (A-2) extracting the data from the captured first HTTP request;

(B) identifying a second form in response to which the captured data can be submitted, the second form being located on a second web site;

(C) submitting or presenting to the user an option to submit the captured data to the second web site;

(D) providing a client program configured to execute in conjunction with the web browser on the user computer, wherein the client program performs (A-1);

(E) providing a metadata server that communicates with the user computer through a computer network; and

(F) transmitting, from the metadata server to the client program, a rules file for the first form, wherein the client program uses the rules file to perform (A-2) and (C).

11. The method of claim 10, wherein (C) comprises:

(C-1) creating a data resubmission page, and (C-2) displaying the data resubmission page on the web browser.

12. A method of facilitating form submissions to web sites, the method comprising:

(A) capturing, on a user computer, data submitted by a user in response to a first form located on a first web site, wherein capturing the data comprises (A-1) capturing a first HTTP request generated by a web browser in response to the first form, and (A-2) extracting the data from the captured first HTTP request;

(B) identifying a second form in response to which the captured data can be submitted, the second form being located on a second web site;

(C) submitting or presenting to the user an option to submit the captured data to the second web site;

(D) providing a client program configured to execute in conjunction with the web browser on the user computer, wherein the client program performs (A-1);

(E) providing a metadata server that communicates with the user computer through a computer network, wherein the metadata server performs (A-2); and

(F) transmitting, from the client program to the metadata server, the first HTTP request.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein (C) comprises (C-1) the metadata server creating a data resubmission page, (C-2) the client program displaying the data resubmission page on the web browser, and (C-3) transmitting the data resubmission page from the metadata server to the client program.

14. A method of facilitating form submissions to web sites, the method comprising:

(A) capturing, on a user computer, data submitted by a user in response to a first form located on a first web site, wherein the first form uses a GET method for submitting form data, and wherein capturing the data comprises (A-1) capturing a first HTTP request generated by a web browser in response to the first form, and (A-2) extracting the data from the captured first HTTP request by at least;

(A-2-i) extracting, on the user computer, the URL, including any appended URL encoded data, from the first HTTP request, (A-2-ii) transmitting the extracted URL from the client program to the metadata server, and (A-2-iii) extracting, from the extracted URL, the data submitted by the user in response to the first form;

(B) identifying a second form in response to which the captured data can be submitted, the second form being located on a second web site;

(C) submitting or presenting to the user an option to submit the captured data to the second web site by at least (C-1) creating a data resubmission page, (C-2) displaying the data resubmission page on the web browser, and (C-3) transmitting the data resubmission page from the metadata server to the client program;

(D) providing a client program configured to execute in conjunction with the web browser on the user computer, wherein the client program performs (A-1), (A-2-i), (A-2-ii), and (C-2); and

(E) providing a metadata server that communicates with the user computer through a computer network, wherein the metadata server performs (A-2-iii) and (C-1).

15. A method of facilitating form submissions to web sites, the method comprising:

(A) capturing, on a user computer, data submitted by a user in response to a first form located on a first web site, wherein capturing the data comprises (A-1) capturing a first HTTP request generated by a web browser in response to the first form, and (A-2) extracting the data from the captured first HTTP request;

(B) identifying a second form in response to which the captured data can be submitted, the second form being located on a second web site;

(C) submitting or presenting to the user an option to submit the captured data to the second web site by at least (C-1) creating a data resubmission block for the second form, the data resubmission block having the same destination URL as the second form, the data resubmission block incorporating the captured data, and (C-2) displaying the data resubmission block on the web browser;

(D) providing a client program configured to execute in conjunction with the web browser on the user computer, wherein the client program performs (A-1);

(E) providing a metadata server that communicates with the user computer through a computer network; and

(F) transmitting, from the metadata server to the client program, a rules file for the first form, wherein the client program uses the rules file to perform (A-2) and (C).

16. A method of facilitating form submissions to web sites, the method comprising:

(A) capturing, on a user computer, data submitted by a user in response to a first form located on a first web site, wherein capturing the data comprises (A-1) capturing a first HTTP request generated by a web browser in response to the first form, and (A-2) extracting the data from the captured first HTTP request;

(B) identifying a second form in response to which the captured data can be submitted, the second form being located on a second web site;

(C) submitting or presenting to the user an option to submit the captured data to the second web site by at least (C-1) creating a data resubmission block for the second form, the data resubmission block having the same destination URL as the second form, the data resubmission block incorporating the captured data, and (C-2) displaying the data resubmission block on the web browser;

(D) providing a client program configured to execute in conjunction with the web browser on the user computer, wherein the client program performs (A-1) and (C-2);

(E) providing a metadata server that communicates with the user computer through a computer network, wherein the metadata server performs (A-2) and (C-1); and

(F) transmitting, from the client program to the metadata server, the first HTTP request;

wherein (C) further comprises (C-3) transmitting the data resubmission block from the metadata server to the client program.