Information control system, information processing support server, information processing terminal, information processing method, storage storing information processing program, and program transmission apparatus

• US 20010016872A1
• Filed: 11/30/2000
• Published: 08/23/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/1999
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kusuda, Rika
• Application Number:
  US09/727,083
• Publication Number:
  US 20010016872A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

An information Control system makes it possible for a plurality of users to share attached-information by registering the attached-information, which is added to WWW contents, in a server by associating the attached-information with the WWW contents. The information control system includes an information processing support server 100, and a plurality of information processing terminals 200 that obtain WWW contents via this information processing support server 100 and perform work using these WWW contents, the information processing terminal 200 including a client application 220 adding attached-information to the WWW contents obtained, the information processing support server 100 including a cache manager 122 retaining the attached-information, added to the WWW contents, and a URL of the WWW contents by associating them with each other, and a URL list selector 124 transmitting a Web content, having this URL, and the attached-information, associated with this URL, to an information processing terminal if an access request from the information processing terminal corresponds to the URL retained.

Claims

1. An information control system supporting collaboration for a plurality of information processing terminals that treat a Web content, comprising:

an information processing support server connected to a Web server via a communication network; and

the plurality of information processing terminals that obtain a Web content provided by the Web server via the information processing support server and perform work using the Web content, the plurality of information processing terminals each comprising;

an attached-information adding-section adding predetermined attached-information to the Web content obtained, the information processing support server comprising;

an attached-information managing-section retaining attached-information, added to the Web content by the information processing terminal, and a URL of the Web content with associating them with each other; and

an attached-information transmitter transmitting the Web content, having the URL, and the attached-information, associated with the URL, to the information processing terminal if an access request from the information processing terminal corresponds to the URL retained in the attached-information managing-section.

2. The information control system according to

claim 1

, wherein:

the information control system includes at least annotation data for performing drawing on a Web content as the attached-information;

in the information processing support server, the attached-information managing-section associates a URL of the Web content with a file name of the annotation data;

the attached-information transmitter transmits the Web content relating to an access request and the annotation data specified with the file name associated with the URL of the Web content to the information processing terminal according to the access request from the information processing terminal; and

wherein the information processing terminal synthesizes and displays the Web content and annotation data by using a browser.

3. The information control system according to

claim 1

, wherein:

the information control system includes at least data filled in a form for the Web content as the attached-information;

in the information processing support server, the attached-information managing-section associates a URL of the Web content with the data itself filled in the form, and the attached-information transmitter embeds the data, which is associated with the URL of the Web content, in a form of the Web content relating to an access request according to the access request from the information processing terminal and transmits the Web content to the information processing terminal; and

the information processing terminal displays the Web content, in the form of which the filled data is embedded, by using a browser.

4. The information control system according to

claim 1

, wherein the information processing support server further comprises:

a URL list generator generating a URL list of the Web content, where the attached-information is added, according to a request from the information processing terminal; and

a URL list transmitting the URL list, which is generated, to the information processing terminal.

5. The information control system according to

claim 4

, wherein:

the URL list generator in the information processing support server generates the URL list as a Web content; and

the information processing terminal requests the information processing support server to obtain the Web content, where the attached-information is added, by clicking a desired URL in the URL list provided as the Web content.

6. The information control system according to

claim 4

, wherein the URL list generator in the information processing support server recognizes a user of the information processing terminal, and generates the URL list of the Web content that the user can access.

7. The information control system according to

claim 6

, wherein the URL list generator in the information processing support server sets the Web content, which the user can access, on the basis of a kind of the Web content or contents of attached-information.

8. An information control system supporting collaboration for a plurality of information processing terminals that treat a Web content, comprising:

the plurality of information processing terminals each of which is connected to Web server via a communication network, obtains a Web content provided by the Web server, and adds predetermined attached-information as work for the Web content; and

an information processing support server that associates the attached-information, added to the Web content by the information processing terminal, with a URL of the Web content and retains them,

the information processing support server returning the attached-information corresponding to an access request to the information processing terminal when receiving the access request, corresponding to a URL associated with the attached-information, from the information processing terminal, and

the information processing terminal that receives the attached-information from the information processing support server, obtains the Web content having the URL corresponding to the access request from the Web server, and synthesizes the attached-information and the Web content.

9. An information processing support server supporting collaboration for a plurality of information processing terminals that treat a Web content, comprising:

a cache manager that obtains the Web content from Web server, connected to a communication network, according to an access request from the information processing terminal, and further transmits the Web content, which are obtained, to the information processing terminal having issued the access request; and

a session information controller that recognizes start of a session by the information processing terminal owing to the access request received from the information processing terminal, manages session information including a URL of the Web content that will be processed in the session, receives attached-information added to the Web content by the information processing terminal, associates the session information with the attached-information, and manages them.

10. The information processing support server according to

claim 9

, wherein the session information controller allows a transmission and receiving section to transmit the Web content with a URL, included in the session information, and the attached-information, associated with the session information, to the information processing terminal if an access request from the information processing terminal corresponds to the session information in the session recognized.

11. The information processing support server according to

claim 10

, wherein the session information controller embeds filled data in a form of a Web content and allows the transmission and receiving section to transmit transmits the Web content to the information processing terminal if the Web content obtained in the session recognized are a Web content with a form, and the filled data in the form is associated with its URL as the attached-information.

12. The information processing support server according to

claim 10

, further comprising a URL list generator generating a URL list of the Web content as a Web content, to which the attached-information is added, according to a request from the information processing terminal, wherein the cache manager returns the URL list, generated by the URL list generator, to the information processing terminal.

13. An information processing terminal comprising:

a connecting section for transmitting and receiving data including a Web content with being connected to Web server; and

a browser that displays a Web content received from the server via the connecting section, adds predetermined attached-information to the Web content displayed, and transmits the Web content to the server via the connecting section,

the browser being capable of synthesizing and displaying the Web content and annotation data if data received from the server is the Web content and the annotation data as attached-information added to the Web content.

14. The information processing terminal according to

claim 13

, wherein the browser obtains annotation data by using a file name, synthesizes the Web content and annotation data, and displays them if data received from the server is the Web content and the file name of the annotation data as attached-information added to the Web content, and the annotation data can be obtained from predetermined storage apparatus except the server.

15. An information processing terminal comprising:

a connecting section for transmitting and receiving data including a Web content by being connected to a server via a communication network;

a synthesis processor that obtains a Web content with a URL via the communication network and synthesizes the Web content and the attached-information at the time of receiving the attached-information, associated with the predetermined URL, from the server via the connecting section; and

a browser that displays the Web content, which are received from the server via the connecting processor and with which the attached-information is synthesized by the synthesis processor, adds predetermined attached-information to the Web content displayed, and transmits the Web content to the server via the connecting section.

16. An information processing method for supporting collaboration for a plurality of information processing terminals that treat a Web content, comprising the steps of:

adding predetermined attached-information to the Web content;

associating the attached-information, added to the Web content, with a URL of the Web content and retaining them; and

transmitting the Web content with the URL and the attached-information associated with the URL to the source of an access request according to the access request corresponding to the URL associated with the attached-information.

17. The information processing method according to

claim 16

,

wherein at least annotation data for performing drawing on the Web content is included as the attached-information at the step of adding the attached-information;

wherein the step of retaining the attached-information includes a step of generating a data file after receiving the annotation data and associating a file name of the data file with a URL of the Web content if the attached-information is the annotation data; and

wherein the step of adding the attached-information to a Web content includes a step of adding a data file of the annotation data specified by the file name to the Web content if information associated with the URL is the file name of the annotation data, and

further including a step of synthesizing the Web content and the annotation data at the time of displaying the Web content.

18. The information processing method according to

claim 16

,

wherein at least data filled in a form of the Web content is included as the attached-information at the step of adding attached-information;

wherein the step of retaining attached-information includes a step of associating the data itself with the Web content if the attached-information is the data filled in the form; and

wherein the step of adding the attached-information to a Web content includes a step of embedding the data, filled in the form, in a concerned place of the Web content having the form if information associated with the URL is the data filled in the form.

19. The information processing method according to

claim 16

, wherein, before the step of adding attached-information, the information processing method further comprises a step of generating a URL list of the Web content having attached-information associated at the step of retaining attached-information.

20. The information processing method according to

claim 19

, wherein the step of generating a URL list comprises the steps of:

recognizing a user of the information processing terminal; and

generating the URL list of the Web content that the user can access.

21. A storage that stores an information processing program executed by a computer so that input means of the computer can read the information processing program, the storage storing the information processing program making the computer execute:

processing of obtaining a Web content from Web server, connected to a communication network, according to an access request from an information processing terminal and transmitting the Web content to the information processing terminal having issued the access request;

processing of receiving attached-information added to the Web content by the information processing terminal and retaining the attached-information and a URL of the Web content with associating them with each other; and

processing of transmitting the Web content, having the URL, and the attached-information, associated with the URL, to the information processing terminal if an access request from the information processing terminal corresponds to the URL associated with the attached-information.

22. A storage that stores an information processing program executed by an information processing terminal so that an input unit of the information processing terminal can read the information processing program, the storage storing the information processing program making the information processing terminal execute:

processing of receiving a Web content from a server;

processing of synthesizing the Web content and annotation data if the annotation data is added to the Web content received from the server;

processing of adding predetermined attached-information to the Web content displayed; and

processing of transmitting the attached-information, which is added, to the server.

23. A storage that stores an information processing program executed by an information processing terminal so that an input unit of the information processing terminal can read the information processing program, the storage storing the information processing program making the information processing terminal execute:

processing of receiving attached-information associated with a predetermined URL by a server;

processing of obtaining a Web content having the URL corresponding to the attached-information received;

processing of synthesizing the Web content and the attached-information obtained; and

processing of displaying the Web content where the attached-information is synthesized.

24. A program transmission apparatus comprising:

a storage unit for storing a program making an information processing terminal execute;

processing of receiving a Web content from a server;

processing of synthesizing the Web content and annotation data if the annotation data is added to the Web content received from the server;

processing of adding predetermined attached-information to the Web content displayed; and

processing of transmitting the attached-information, which is added, to the server; and

a transmission unit for reading the program from the storage means and transmitting the program.

25. An information control system that comprises a plurality of information processing terminals and an information processing support server supporting collaboration for the plurality of information processing terminals that treat a Web content, the information processing support server comprising:

a storage unit for storing a program executed by the plurality of information processing terminals; and

a transmission unit for reading the program from the storage unit according to a request from the information processing terminal and transmitting the program,

the program, which is stored in the storage unit , making the information processing terminal execute;

processing of receiving and displaying the Web content;

processing of adding predetermined attached-information to the Web content displayed;

processing of transmitting the attached-information, which is added, to the information processing support server; and

processing of synthesizing the Web content and annotation data at the time of receiving the Web content and the annotation data associated with the Web content.