System and method for providing contextual and dynamic information retrieval

• US 6,563,514 B1
• Filed: 04/13/2000
• Issued: 05/13/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Extensio Software Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Extensio Software Incorporated
• Inventors: Samar, Vipin
• Primary Examiner(s): Cabeca, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): DETWILER, BRIAN J
• Application Number:
  US09/548,586
• Time in Patent Office: 1,125 Days
• Field of Search: 345/711, 345/714, 345/715, 345/747, 345/772, 707/2, 707/3, 707/4, 707/5
• US Class Current: 715/711
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation

Abstract

In accordance with a set of previously defined options relating to such things as information retrieval, applications, items of interest, payment options, etc., a software program configures the computer system on which it executes to access information on an item over which a pointer has hovered for a preset time without the user having to provide any additional inputs. The information may be retrieved from a local or remote location. The information may be free, paid for by the user, a sponsor, or a third party. The information desired by the user is presented visual, audibly, or both.

Claims

1. A method of providing information to a user of a processing system, the method comprising:

providing a set of user-selectable options, including a plurality of information retrieval options, each information retrieval option corresponding to a different type of information;

determining a position of a user-controlled pointer displayed on a display device of the processing system;

when the position of the pointer coincides with a specified item displayed on the displayed device, sending a request for information relating to the specified item, wherein a plurality of types of information are available to said processing system for the specified item, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options;

receiving information to the specified item from an information source in response to the request, wherein the received information is of a type that corresponds to currently selected one of the information retrieval options; and

presenting the received information to the user in association with the specified item.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the information source is selected according to which of the plurality of information retrieval options is selected.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the received information is dynamic at a location where the information is stored.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said method is performable in the processing system during execution of any of a plurality of software applications in the processing system, and wherein the nature of the received information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the processing system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said sending a request for information is done without any user input except the user positioning the pointer to coincide with a specified item.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the received information comprises separate elements of information aggregated from a plurality of separate information sources.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the information relating to the specified item is filtered on a remote server prior to said receiving the information.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said presenting the received information to the user comprises displaying the received information on the display device within a subset of a display area of the display device in proximity to the specified item.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, wherein presenting the received information to the user comprises superimposing the received information over images displayed on the display device.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said sending a request for information relating to the specified item comprises sending the request to a remote processing system via a network after determining that the information relating to the specified item is not present in a local database.

11. A method of providing information to a user of a processing system, the method comprising:

displaying, on a display device of the processing system, content from one of a plurality of remote content sites having content accessible from the processing system;

providing a set of user-selectable options, including a plurality of information retrieval options, each information retrieval option corresponding to a different type of information that can be retrieved, wherein the plurality of information retrieval options depend upon from which of the remote content sites the content originates;

determining a position of a user-controlled pointer displayed on the display device;

when the position of the pointer coincides with a specified item, sending a request for information relating to the specified item;

receiving information relating to the specified item from an information source in response to the request, wherein the received information is of a type that corresponds to a currently selected one of the information retrieval options and is dependent on a current context of the specified item, wherein a plurality of types of information are available to said processing system for the specified item displayed on the display device, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options, and wherein the received information is dynamic at said information source; and

displaying the received information on the display device within a subset of a display area of the display device in proximity to the specified item;

wherein said method is performed during execution of, and within a context of, a software application executing in the processing system, and wherein said method is implemented in the processing system in a software program that executes on top of the software application.

12. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein the information source is selected according to which of the plurality of information retrieval options is selected.

13. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein said method is performable in the processing system within a context of any of a plurality of software applications in the processing system, and wherein the nature of the received information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the processing system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

14. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein the received information comprises separate elements of information aggregated by a remote server from a plurality of separate information sources.

15. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein the information relating to the specified item is filtered on a remote server prior to said receiving the information.

16. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein said displaying the received information comprises superimposing the received information over images displayed on the display device.

17. A method as recited in claim 11, wherein said sending a request for information relating to the specified item comprises sending the request to a remote processing system via a network after determining that the information relating to the specified item is not present in a local database.

18. A method of providing information to a user of a client system, the method comprising, in a server system:

receiving from the client system, over a network, a request for information related to a specified item displayed on a display device of the client system, the request having been sent by the client system when a position of a user-controlled pointer coincides with the specified item;

in response to the request, identifying information related to the specified item according to a currently selected information retrieval option, wherein the currently selected information retrieval option is one of a plurality of information retrieval options selectable by a user of the client system, wherein the identified information is of a type dependent upon the currently selected information retrieval option, and wherein the server system has access to a plurality of types of information for the specified item, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options;

accessing the identified information from at least one information source;

filtering the accessed information according to a set of information filtering rules;

sending the filtered information to the client system over the network, for displaying on the display device of the client system in proximity to the specified item.

19. A method as recited in claim 18, wherein said identifying information comprises selecting an information source from which to access the information related to the specified item according to the currently selected information retrieval option.

20. A method as recited in claim 18, wherein the client system can execute any of a plurality of software applications in the processing system, and wherein the nature of the identified information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the processing system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

21. A method as recited in claim 18, wherein said accessing the identified information comprises aggregating separate elements of information from a plurality of separate information sources.

22. A method as recited in claim 18, wherein the identified information is dynamic in the information source.

23. A client system comprising:

means for providing a set of user-selectable options, including a plurality of information retrieval options, each information retrieval option corresponding to a different type of information;

means for determining a position of a user-controlled pointer displayed on a display device of the client system;

means for sending, when the position of the pointer coincides with a specified item, a request for information relating to the specified item;

means for receiving information relating to the specified item from an information source in response to the request, wherein the received information is of a type that corresponds to a currently selected one of the information retrieval options, and wherein a plurality of types of information are available to said client system for the specified item displayed on the display device, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options; and

means for presenting the received information to the user in association with the specified item.

24. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the information source is selected according to which of the plurality of information retrieval options is selected.

25. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the received information is dynamic at a location where the information is stored.

26. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the received information is dependent on a current context of the specified item.

27. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the nature of the received information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the client system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

28. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein said sending a request for information is done without any user input except the user positioning the pointer to coincide with a specified item.

29. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the received information comprises separate elements of information aggregated from a plurality of separate information sources.

30. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein the information relating to the specified item is filtered on a remote server prior to said receiving the information.

31. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein said means for presenting the received information to the user comprises means for displaying the received information on the display device within a subset of a display area of the display device in proximity to the specified item.

32. A client system as recited in claim 31, wherein said means for presenting the received information to the user comprises means for superimposing the received information over images displayed on the display device.

33. A client system as recited in claim 23, wherein said means for sending a request for information relating to the specified item comprises means for sending the request to a remote server via a network after determining that the information relating to the specified item is not present in a local database.

34. A client system comprising:

a processor;

a display device and

a memory storing a first software program which, when executed by the processor, causes content to be displayed on the display device, the content from one of a plurality of remote content sites having content accessible from the client system;

the memory further storing a second software program to provide a set of user-selectable options, including a plurality of information retrieval options, each information retrieval option corresponding to a different type of information that can be retrieved, wherein the plurality of information retrieval options depend upon from which of said remote content sites the content originates;

the second software program including instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the client system to perform a processor comprising

determining a position of a user-controlled pointer displayed on the display device;

when the position of the pointer coincides with a specified item, sending a request for information relating to the specified item;

receiving information relating to the specified item from an information source in response to the request, wherein the received information is of a type that corresponding to a currently selected one of the information retrieval options, and wherein the received information is dynamic at said information source; and

displaying the retrieval information on the display device within a subset of a display area of the display device in proximity to the specified item;

wherein the first software program is for execution during execution of, and within a context of, the second software program, and wherein the first software program executes on top of the second software program.

35. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein a plurality of types of information are available to the client system for the specified item displayed on the display device, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options.

36. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein the information source is selected according to which of the plurality of information retrieval options is selected.

37. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein said process is performable in the client system within a context of any of a plurality of software applications in the client system, and wherein the nature of the received information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the processing system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

38. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein the received information comprises separate elements of information aggregated by a remote server from a plurality of separate information sources.

39. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein the information relating to the specified item is filtered on a remote server prior to said receiving the information.

40. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein said displaying the received information comprises superimposing the received information over images displayed on the display device.

41. A client system as recited in claim 34, wherein said sending a request for information relating to the specified item comprises sending the request to a remote processing system via a network after determining that the information relating to the specified item is not present in a local database.

42. A server system comprising:

means for receiving from the client system, over a network, a request for information related to a specified item displayed on a display device of the client system, the request having been sent by the client system when a position of a user-controlled pointer coincides with the specified item;

means for identifying, in response to the request, information related to the specified item according to a currently selected information retrieval option, wherein the currently selected information retrieval option is one of a plurality of information retrieval options selectable by a user of the client system, wherein the identified information is of a type dependent upon the currently selected information retrieval option, and wherein the server system has access to a plurality of types of information for the specified item displayed on the display device of the client system, each of the types of information corresponding to a different one of the user-selectable information retrieval options;

means for accessing the identified information from at least one information source;

means for filtering the accessed information according to a set of information filtering rules;

means for sending the filtered information to the client system over the network, for display on the display device of the client system in proximity to the specified item.

43. A server system as recited in claim 42, wherein said means for identifying information comprises means for selecting an information source from which to access the information related to the specified item according to the currently selected information retrieval option.

44. A server system as recited in claim 42, wherein the client system can execute any of a plurality of software applications in the processing system, and wherein the nature of the identified information is dependent upon which particular software application is active in the processing system when the position of the pointer coincides with the specified item.

45. A server system as recited in claim 42, wherein said means for accessing the identified information comprises means for aggregating separate elements of information from a plurality of separate information sources.

46. A server system as recited in claim 42, wherein the identified information is dynamic in the information source.