Web browser graphics management
First Claim
1. A network communications system comprising a plurality of user stations and a plurality of service provider host systems coupled via a data network, wherein each user station comprises respective processing and display means configured to access, process and display pages of data from selected one of said host provider systems, including storage means into which a data page may be downloaded via the network whilst display of data from another page is underway, wherein one or more of said service host systems provides all graphics attributes of a predetermined collection of pages within a single dummy page, with a user station configured to download said dummy page to said storage means whilst display of data from a first of said collection of pages takes place and wherein the data network comprises a bi-directional network.
2 Assignments
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Accused Products
Abstract
A network communications system comprises a plurality of user stations (16, 18, 20, 22, 24), each with respective processing and display capability. At least some of the stations are provided with a predictor mechanism which determines, for a given downloaded data page, the most likely next page, calls that data page up over the network, and downloads it to local cache storage whilst the user is still viewing the first page. To reduce some of the worst delays, due to graphic image downloads, one or more service provider host systems coupled via a data network such as the Internet packages all the graphics data for a particular group of pages into a single dummy page which the user systems then background-download to cache.
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Citations
7 Claims
- 1. A network communications system comprising a plurality of user stations and a plurality of service provider host systems coupled via a data network, wherein each user station comprises respective processing and display means configured to access, process and display pages of data from selected one of said host provider systems, including storage means into which a data page may be downloaded via the network whilst display of data from another page is underway, wherein one or more of said service host systems provides all graphics attributes of a predetermined collection of pages within a single dummy page, with a user station configured to download said dummy page to said storage means whilst display of data from a first of said collection of pages takes place and wherein the data network comprises a bi-directional network.
Specification