Enhancing touch and feel on the internet

• US 8,738,471 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2007
• Issued: 05/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scott C Harris
• Original Assignee: Scott C Harris
• Inventors: Harris, Scott C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Misiaszek, Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/841,781
• Publication Number:
  US 20090055290A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,472 Days
• Field of Search: 705/26, 705 261- 272
• US Class Current: 705/27.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 Catalogue ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0633 Lists, e.g. purchase orders, compilation or processing

Abstract

A system for enabling touch and feel over the internet provides a three-dimensional representation of a good being sold, that three-dimensional representation being viewable from a number of different directions. In one embodiment, the good being sold is in a package and the package is displayed from the number of different directions. Another embodiment has the good being a book, and the inside and outside covers of the book are displayed and specified pages of the book can be displayed. The user can read from either the label or the covers just like as if the were actually handling the good.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

on a server computer, producing an output signal that displays an electronic version of a book, said output signal including digital images of multiple pages of the book, each page representing only a part of the information in the book, and each page formatted to resemble a formatting of actual book pages;

said producing comprising supplying access to a user of multiple of said pages, but only a limited number of said pages, prior to purchase of the book, so that a prospective purchaser can only read said multiple pages of the book prior to said purchase, where said multiple pages of the book includes digital images of only part of the whole said book, where each page provides only a portion of the information that can be read prior to purchase of the book, and said producing providing a control which switches between said multiple pages prior to said purchase of the book;

said server computer operating for receiving a book reading fee, that is charged for allowing reading an entire book including all of said digital images forming the whole said book; and

said producing comprising supplying access and allowing the user to read said all of said digital images forming the whole said book, where said whole book includes all the digital images of all of said multiple pages of the book, only after obtaining said book reading fee from said user,

where said server computer detects a request from the user for more pages, and determines whether to return said more pages based on whether the book reading fee has been received, and based on the pages that are requested,

where pages beyond a specified threshold are not returned if the book reading fee has not been received,

and where said pages beyond the specified threshold are returned if the book reading fee has been received.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein the server computer allows said book to be read from the server computer, onto a remote client computer in multiple sessions after paying said book reading fee.

3. A method as in claim 1, wherein said server computer allowing the user to download the entire book after paying said book reading fee, said download being in a second format different than a first format showing said only a limited number of said pages, but both said first format and said second format showing multiple separated pages of the book which are paged between using a control.

4. A method as in claim 1, further comprising providing a bookmark function which marks a location of reading and enables navigating back to said location of reading at a later time, said bookmark being sent by the server computer as a cookie.

5. A method as in claim 1, wherein the threshold is a count of a number of book pages that have been returned.

13. A method as in claim 1, further comprising providing a control for the user that increases a size of a single book page on a screen on which said pages are displayed.

14. A method as in claim 13, wherein said increases the size of the book page on the screen shows enhanced detail for the book page.

15. A method as in claim 13, wherein said enabling comprises showing only two pages of the book on the screen at a time, and said control changes to showing only a single page of the book on the screen at a time, with a zoomed size for the single page relative to a size of each page for the two pages.

19. The method as in claim 1, wherein said digital images are images of actual multiple pages of the book.

6. A method comprising:

on a server computer, first producing outputs allowing a user to read only a portion of a book, and not the entire book, electronically on a electronic book reading computer without paying any fee, wherein the portion of the book includes at least one digital file in a first format that is interpreted by the book reading computer to show views of multiple pages of the book, with only a viewed portion being seen at any one time, said viewed portion comprising showing either one page or two pages at as said viewed portion, and a control that obtains additional pages other than said viewed portion, said control allowing viewing multiple different viewed portions without paying any fee, but not showing an entirety of the pages of the book without paying any fee;

on the server computer, accepting a fee from the user to read the entire book electronically; and

responsive to said accepting said fee, second allowing, from the server computer, the user to read the entire book including all of its pages electronically,

wherein said entire book includes views in said at least one digital file showing views of pages comprising the entire book,

wherein said first allowing comprises allowing the user to read only the portion of the book electronically without paying any fee and said second allowing allows the user to read the entire book electronically, where said server computer detects a request from a user for more pages, and determines whether to return said more pages based on whether the book reading fee has been received, and based on the pages that are requested,

where pages beyond a specified threshold are not returned if the book reading fee has not been received,

and said pages beyond the specified threshold are returned if the book reading fee has been received.

7. A method as in claim 6, further comprising enabling download of the electronic book, said download being in a second format different than said first format of said only a limited number of said pages, but both said first format and said second format showing multiple separated pages of the book which are moved between using said control.

8. A method as in claim 7, wherein the electronic book is encrypted.

9. A method as in claim 8, further comprising, responsive to said accepting a fee, decrypting said electronic book to allow it to be read.

10. A method as in claim 6, wherein the server computer allows said book to be read from the server computer, onto a remote client computer in multiple sessions after paying said book reading fee.

11. A method as in claim 6, further comprising a bookmark function, which allows marking a last-place of reading, said bookmark being sent by the server computer as a cookie.

12. A method as in claim 6, wherein the threshold is a count of a number of book pages that have been returned.

16. A method as in claim 6, wherein said allowing comprises providing a control for the user that increases a size of a single book page on a screen of the book reading computer.

17. A method as in claim 16, wherein said increases the size of the book page on the screen shows enhanced detail for the book page.

18. A method as in claim 16, wherein said allowing comprises showing only two pages of the book on the screen at a time, and said control changes to showing only a single page of the book on the screen at a time, with a zoomed size for the single page relative to a size of each page for the two pages.

20. A method, comprising:

on a server computer, producing an output signal that displays an electronic version of a book,

said output signal including digital images of the book in a first format prior to receiving a book reading fee,

said server computer operating for receiving a book reading fee, that is charged for allowing reading an entire book including all of said digital images forming the whole said book; and

said producing comprising supplying access and allowing the user to read said all of said digital images forming the whole said book, where said whole book includes all the digital images of all of said multiple pages of the book, only after obtaining said book reading fee from said user, wherein said server computer allowing the user to download the entire book after paying said book reading fee, said download being in a second format different than said first format, where said server computer detects a request from a user for more pages, and determines whether to return said more pages based on whether the book reading fee has been received, and based on the pages that are requested,

where pages beyond a specified threshold are not returned if the book reading fee has not been received,

and said pages beyond the specified threshold are returned if the book reading fee has been received.

21. The method as in claim 20, wherein said images in said first format are only a limited number of said pages presented prior to purchase of the book, so that said prospective purchaser can only read said multiple pages of the book prior to said purchase, where said multiple pages of the book includes digital images of only part of the whole said book, where each page provides only a portion of the information that can be read prior to purchase of the book, each page representing only a part of the information in the book, and each page formatted to resemble a formatting of actual book pages;

said pages presented prior to purchase of the book comprising supplying access to a user of multiple of said pages, and said producing providing a control which switches between said pages.