System and media for simplifying web contents, and method thereof

• US 7,058,695 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2001
• Issued: 06/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Twitter Inc (X Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Takagi, Hironobu, Asakawa, Chieko
• Primary Examiner(s): Thompson, Marc D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MANIWANG, JOSEPH R
• Application Number:
  US09/682,145
• Publication Number:
  US 20020065842A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,776 Days
• Field of Search: 709/245, 709/217, 709/219, 715/501.1, 715/513, 707/2, 707/3, 707/6, 707/10
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents

Abstract

A technique for the simplification of Web pages in order to access necessary information rapidly, when displaying or outputting Web pages using a small screen device or a voice browser. A method for simplifying Web contents includes the steps of acquiring a target page subject to simplification, acquiring adjoining pages that adjoin the target page and performing a difference operation to delete objects that are common among the target page and the adjoining pages from the target page to generate a simplified page.

Claims

1. A method for simplifying web contents, said method comprising:

requesting access to a target page, said target page comprising a web page;

acquiring said target page;

acquiring adjoining pages that adjoin said target page in accordance with a Document Object Model comprising image nodes and text nodes;

performing a difference operation to delete objects that are common among said target page and said adjoining pages from said target page to generate a simplified page, wherein said difference operation comprises calculating a significance of the objects included in said target page, wherein if said significance exceeds a predetermined threshold, said objects are not deleted even if said objects are common with the objects of said adjoining pages; and

audibly outputting said simplified page.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said acquiring of adjoining pages further comprises:

determining pages of URLs whose directory is common with a URLs of said target page or a URLs of links included in said target page;

determining pages of URLs whose parent directory is common with the URLs of said target page or the URL of the links included in said target page;

or

determining a top page of each directory under a root directory that includes the URL of said target page.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said acquiring of adjoining pages further comprises:

determining a past page of said target page;

determining pages of links included in said past page;

or

determining past pages of said adjoining pages.

4. The method according to claim 1, farther comprising prioritizing URLs of said adjoining pages after acquiring said adjoining pages.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein said prioritizing is determined based on either or both of an edit distance between a URL of said target page and URLs of said adjoining pages, or a relevance among URLs bused on a number of co-occurrences or a number of cross-references between said target page and said adjoining pages.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said performing uses DP matching to determine whether said objects are common.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said calculating of the significance is represented by a sum of weighted feature values;

wherein said feature values comprising a character size of said objects, a numerical value assigned to fonts and other character attributes, a numerical value to identify whether said objects are a banner, a displacement value of said objects from a canter of a screen, a number of keywords included in said objects, a numerical value assigned to information indicating whether said objects are added or updated, a ratio of updated characters of said objects, a numerical value assigned to information indicating whether said objects are one character, and a numerical value assigned to a tag class of said objects.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after said performing, deleting an object which has a significance less than said predetermined threshold included in simplified pages, or a table element or list element whose content is empty.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising, after said performing;

a post-processing process comprising restoration of a list tide, restoration of information at the top of or on a side of table, movement of a form to a rearward of the page, or reference of annotation information.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request from a user terminal;

in response to said request, selecting a simplified page which has the least amount of information among said simplified pages; and

sending the selected simplified page to said user terminal.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising providing any of a computer system in which a voice browser operates or an information terminal that has a display with a small screen us said user terminal.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein said user terminal or a computer system connecting to said user terminal provides a voice recognition function and voice synthesis function;

the method further comprising;

inputting said request by voice; and

outputting said simplified page by voice.

13. A computerized system for simplifying web contents comprising a server computer and a user computer arranged in a network, said server computer comprising:

a first server element for acquiring a target page;

a second server element for generating URLs of adjoining pages which are to be compared with said target page;

a third server element for acquiring said adjoining pages in accordance with a Document Object Model comprising image nodes and text nodes;

a fourth server element for comparing each object included in said target page and said adjoining pages;

a fifth server element for determining commonality of said objects and deleting common objects from said target page to generate a simplified page;

a computer-implemented module for calculating a significance of the objects included in said target page;

a computer-implemented module for not deleting said objects if said significance exceeds a first threshold, even if said objects are common with the objects of said adjoining pages; and

a computer-implemented module for deleting said object if said significance is less than a second threshold, or a content of said objects is an empty table element or list element;

wherein said user computer comprising a user browser for audibly outputting said simplified page.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein said second server element for generating URLs comprising:

a first computer-implemented module for generating URLs whose directory is common with a URL of said target page or a URL of links included in said target page;

a second computer-implemented module for generating URLs whose parent directory is common with the URL of said target page or the URL of the links included in said target page;

or

a directory module for generating a directory under a root directory that includes the URL of said target page.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein said second server element for generating URLs comprising:

a computer-implemented module for generating a URL of a past page of said target page;

a computer-implemented module for generating URLs of links included in said past page;

or

a computer-implemented module for generating URLs of past pages of said adjoining pages.

16. The system according to claim 13, further comprising a sixth server element for prioritizing URLs of said adjoining pages, wherein said prioritizing is determined based on either or both of an edit distance between a URL of said target page and URLs of said adjoining pages, or a relevance between said target page and said adjoining pages.

17. The system according to claim 13, wherein said fifth server element comprises a computer-implemented module for calculating DP matching.

18. The system according to claim 13, further comprising post-processing means for restoration of a list title, restoration of information at a top of or on a side of table, movement of a from to a rearward of the page, or reference of annotation information.

19. The system according to claim 13, wherein said server computer further comprising:

a receiving device for receiving a request from said user terminal;

a selection device for selecting a simplified page which has the least amount of information among said simplified pages; and

a transmitting device for sending the selected simplified page to said user terminal.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein said user terminal comprises any of a computer system in which a voice browser operates or an information terminal which has a display with a small screen.

21. The system according to claim 19, wherein any of said user terminal or a computer system connecting to said user terminal provides a voice recognition function and voice synthesis function;

the server computer of said system further comprising;

a seventh server element for inputting said request by voice; and

an eighth server element for outputting said simplified page by voice.

22. A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions, which when executed by a machine, perform a method for simplifying web contents, said method comprising:

requesting access to a target page, said target page comprising a web page;

acquiring a target page;

acquiring adjoining pages tat adjoin said target page in accordance with a Document Object Model comprising image nodes and text nodes;

performing a difference operation for deleting objects that are common among said target page and said adjoining pages mini said target page, wherein said difference operation comprises calculating a significance of the objects included in said target page, wherein if said significance exceeds a predetermined threshold, said objects are not deleted even if said objects are common with the objects of said adjoining pages;

generating a simplified page; and

audibly outputting said simplified page.

23. A method for simplifying web contents, said method comprising:

requesting access to a target page, said target page comprising a web page;

acquiring said target page;

acquiring adjoining pages that adjoin said target page in accordance with a Document Object Model comprising image nodes and text nodes, wherein said acquiring of adjoining pages further comprises;

determining pages of URLs whose directory is common with a URL of said target page or a URLs of links included in said target page;

determining pages of URLs whose parent directory is common with the URL of said target page or the URL of the links included in said target page;

or

determining a top page of each directory under a root directory that includes the URL of said target page;

prioritizing URLs of said adjoining pages, wherein said prioritizing is determined based on either or both of an edit distance between a URL of said target page and URLs of said adjoining pages, or a relevance among URLs based on a number of co-occurrences or a number of cross-references between said target page and said adjoining pages;

performing a difference operation to delete objects that are common among said target page and said adjoining pages from said target page to generate a simplified page, wherein said performing uses DP marching to determine whether said objects are common, wherein said difference operation comprises calculating a significance of the objects included in said target page, wherein if said significance exceeds a predetermined threshold, said objects are not deleted even if said objects are common with the objects of said adjoining pages, wherein said calculating of the significance is represented by a sum of weighted feature values;

wherein said feature values comprising a character size of said objects, a numerical value assigned to fonts and other character attributes, a numerical value to identify whether said objects are a banner, a displacement value of said objects from a center of a screen, a number of keywords included in said objects, a numerical value assigned to information indicating whether said objects are added or updated, a ratio of updated characters of said objects, a numerical value assigned to information indicating whether said objects are one character, and a numerical value assigned to a tag class of said objects;

deleting an object which has a significance less than said predetermined threshold included in simplified pages, or a table element or list element whose content is empty;

performing a post-processing process comprising restoration of a list tide, restoration of information at the top of or on a side of table, movement of a form to a rearward of the page, or reference of annotation information; and

audibly outputting said simplified page.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein said acquiring of adjoining pages further comprises:

determining a past page of said target page;

determining pages of links included in said past page;

or

determining pad pages of said adjoining pages.

25. The method according to claim 23, further comprising:

receiving a request from a user terminal;

in response to said request, selecting a simplified page which has the least amount of information among said simplified pages;

sending the selected simplified page to said user terminal; and

providing any of a computer system in which a voice browser operates or an information terminal that has a display with a small screen as said user terminal,

wherein said user terminal or a computer system connecting to said user terminal provides a voice recognition function and voice synthesis function;

the method further comprising;

inputting said request by voice; and

outputting said simplified page by voice.