Browsing methods, articles and apparatus

• US 6,985,896 B1
• Filed: 09/30/2002
• Issued: 01/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cary D. Perttunen
• Original Assignee: Cary D. Perttunen
• Inventors: Perttunen, Cary D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jung, David
• Application Number:
  US10/260,751
• Time in Patent Office: 1,198 Days
• Field of Search: 707 3- 6, 707101-102, 705/50, 705/80, 705 26- 27
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/34 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/904 Browsing; Visualisation therefor for navigating the web G06F16/954; browsing optimisation for the web G06F16/957
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/957 Browsing optimisation, e.g. caching or content distillation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation

Abstract

A browsing sequence for a plurality of items is provided. A tree which relates the plurality of items is also provided. The tree is non-unary and has a height of at least two. A user selection to prune the browsing sequence based on a selected one of the items is received. Based on the user selection, all items which are tree-descendants of the selected one of the items are removed from the browsing sequence.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

performing a search based on a search expression to yield a plurality of search results;

providing a browsing sequence for the plurality of search results;

providing a tree which non-categorically relates the plurality of search results, the tree being non-unary and having a height of at least two;

enabling a user to make one or more decisions of how to prune the browsing sequence based on which of the search results in the browsing sequence are deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user;

receiving a user selection to prune the browsing sequence based on a user-selected one of the search results; and

based on the user selection which is a decision of the user, pruning the browsing sequence of at least one other potentially irrelevant or undesirable search result by removing all search results from the browsing sequence which are tree-descendants of the user-selected one of the search results that is deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the browsing sequence has the search results sorted according to a plurality of corresponding similarity values with the search expression.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the browsing sequence has the search results sorted chronologically.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the browsing sequence comprises a depth-first search sequence of the tree.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the browsing sequence comprises a breadth-first search sequence of the tree.

6. A method comprising:

outputting a first signal to display a visible representation of a set of purchasable items;

enabling a user to make a decision of how to prune the displayed set of purchasable items based on a user-selected purchasable item deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user;

receiving a first user input to prune the set based on the user-selected purchasable item;

based on the first user input, removing from the set of at least one other purchasable item potentially irrelevant or undesirable to the user by removing from the set at least one of the purchasable items that is a descendant of the user-selected purchasable item in a non-categorical tree; and

outputting a second signal to update the visible representation to indicate that the at least one of the purchasable items has been removed from the set.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the non-categorical tree represents a degree of similarity between the user-selected purchasable item and its related purchasable items.

8. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

before receiving the first user input, outputting a third signal to display content associated with the user-selected purchasable item; and

after outputting the second signal, outputting a fourth signal to display content associated with a purchasable item that remains in the set.

9. The method of claim 6 further comprising performing a transaction for at least one of the purchasable items.

10. A computer-readable medium whose contents cause a computer to:

perform a search based on a search expression to yield a plurality of search results;

provide a browsing sequence for the plurality of search results;

provide a tree which non-categorically relates the plurality of search results, the tree being non-unary and having a height of at least two;

enable a user to make one or more decisions of how to prune the browsing sequence based on which of the search results in the browsing sequence are deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user;

receive a user selection to prune the browsing sequence based on a user-selected one of the search results; and

based on the user selection which is a decision of the user, prune the browsing sequence of at least one potentially irrelevant or undesirable search result by removing all search results from the browsing sequence which are tree-descendants of the user-selected one of the search results that is deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the browsing sequence has the search results sorted according to a plurality of corresponding similarity values with the search expression.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the browsing sequence has the search results sorted chronologically.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the browsing sequence comprises a depth-first search sequence of the tree.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the browsing sequence comprises a breadth-first search sequence of the tree.

15. A method comprising:

outputting a first signal to display a visible representation of a set of purchasable items;

enabling a user to make a decision of how to prune the displayed set of purchasable items based on a user-selected purchasable item deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user;

receiving a first user input to prune the set based on the user-selected purchasable item;

based on the first user input, removing from the set at least one other purchasable item potentially irrelevant or undesirable to the user by removing from the set at least one of the purchasable items that is similar to the user-selected purchasable item deemed irrelevant or undesirable to the user;

outputting a second signal to update the visible representation to indicate that the at least one of the purchasable items has been removed from the set;

outputting a third signal to display content associated with a purchasable item that remains in the set;

receiving a second user input; and

performing a transaction for the purchasable item in response to the second user input.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein said removing is based on a respective similarity value between the user-selected purchasable item and each of the at least one of the purchasable items.

17. The method of claim 15 further comprising:

communicating the first signal via an internet;

communicating the second signal via the internet; and

communicating the third signal via the internet.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the first signal is representative of code in a markup language.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the visible representation is textual.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein the visible representation is graphical.