WO2015139083A1

WO2015139083A1 - System and method for network browsing

Info

Publication number: WO2015139083A1
Application number: PCT/AU2015/050109
Authority: WO
Inventors: Chris Lacy
Original assignee: Digital Ashes Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2014-03-19
Filing date: 2015-03-17
Publication date: 2015-09-24

Abstract

A method and system for network browsing enable a user of a computing device, in particular a mobile computing device, to open any number of links to Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) for downloading content in a background, allowing the user to continue using an application containing the links. The method includes intercepting a first URL request initiated by a user activating a first embedded link associated with a first URL in a first application that is displaying first application data to the user; continuing to display the first application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the first URL; downloading the content associated with the first URL; and enabling the user to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the first URL.

Description

TITLE

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR NETWORK BROWSING

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001 ] This invention relates generally to a system and method for network browsing, and in particular to an application for browsing using a mobile device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Many applications, such as Twitter® and Facebook®, contain embedded links to Uniform Resource Locators (URLs). The links allow a user to view content associated with the URL directly from the application. Upon activating a link, a web browser is opened and a web page loads the content associated with the URL in the web browser. However, depending on a variety of factors, web pages often take a considerable time to load. Thus if the user wishes to continue to use the application, the user must exit the web browser and re-open the previous application, which can be a frustrating and time consuming process for the user. Further, such problems can be exacerbated when using an application on a mobile device such as a Smartphone or tablet, as it can be more difficult to switch between applications on a mobile device than on a personal computer. In addition, web pages can often take considerably more time to load when using mobile Internet access or mobile broadband or public WiFi than when using dedicated Internet access through fixed infrastructure such as fibre optic cable.

[0003] Thus there is a need for an improved method for network browsing.

[0004] The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that the prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia or elsewhere.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION It is an object of some embodiments of the present invention to provide consumers with improvements and advantages over the above described prior art, and/or overcome and alleviate one or more of the above described disadvantages of the prior art, and/or provide a useful commercial choice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] In one form, although not necessarily the only or the broadest form, the invention resides in a method for network browsing including:

intercepting a first Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by a user activating a first embedded link associated with a first URL in a first application that is displaying first application data to the user;

continuing to display the first application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the first URL;

downloading the content associated with the first URL; and

enabling the user to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the first URL.

[0007] In one embodiment, the method further includes:

intercepting a second URL request initiated by the user activating a second embedded link associated with a second URL in the first application that is displaying the first application data to the user;

continuing to display the first application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of the content associated with the second URL; downloading the content associated with the second URL; and

enabling the user to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the second URL.

[0008] In another embodiment, the method further includes:

intercepting a second Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by the user activating a second embedded link associated with a second URL in a second application that is displaying second application data to the user;

continuing to display the second application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the second URL;

downloading the content associated with the second URL; and

enabling the user to interact with the second application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the second URL.

[0009] In yet another embodiment, the method further includes:

intercepting a third Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by the user activating a third embedded link associated with a third URL in a second application that is displaying second application data to the user;

continuing to display the second application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the third URL;

downloading the content associated with the third URL; and

enabling the user to interact with the second application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the third URL.

[0010] Preferably, the application data is displayed on a mobile device such as a Smartphone or tablet.

[001 1 ] Preferably, the status icon indicates how much of the content has been downloaded. Preferably, the status icon includes an animated graphic according to how much content has been downloaded. Preferably, the status icon indicates a percentage of the content that has been downloaded.

[0012] Preferably, the status icon includes an indication of when all of the content has been downloaded. Preferably, the content is displayed to the user when all of the content has been downloaded.

[0013] Preferably, the status icon indicates a number of URLs that have been downloaded.

[0014] Preferably, individual status icons, according to a respective URL, are displayed to the user when the user activates the status icon.

[0015] Preferably, a size, colour, or animation of a status icon is changed to indicate specific content that is being displayed. [0016] Preferably, one or more action icons may be displayed to the user when the user activates the status icon. The action icons may include one or more share icons, or a delete icon. Preferably, the method includes executing an action according to a selected action icon. Preferably, the action is selected by a user moving the status icon at or adjacent the action icon. Preferably, the action icons may be configured by the user.

[0017] In another form, the invention resides in a system for network browsing including:

a processor; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory including program code instructions configured to cause the processor to:

intercept a first Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by a user activating a first embedded link associated with the first URL in a first application that is displaying first application data to the user;

continue to display the first application data and simultaneously display a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the first URL;

download the content associated with the first URL; and

enable the user to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the first URL.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] An embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for network browsing according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system for network browsing according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a screenshot illustrating application data of an application displayed on a screen of the computing device of FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a screenshot illustrating a status icon displayed while content is being downloaded according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a screenshot illustrating downloaded content according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a screenshot illustrating a status icon indicating a number of links that have been activated according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a screen shot illustrating simultaneous use of a number of individual status icons according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a screen shot illustrating a number of action icons according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 diagrammatically illustrates a computing device, for example a Smartphone, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0019] Elements of the invention are illustrated in concise outline form in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are necessary to understanding the embodiments of the present invention, but so as not to clutter the disclosure with excessive detail that will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the present description.

[0020] In this patent specification, adjectives such as first and second, left and right, front and back, top and bottom, etc., are used solely to define one element from another element without necessarily requiring a specific relative position or sequence that is described by the adjectives. Words such as "comprises" or "includes" are not used to define an exclusive set of elements or method steps. Rather, such words merely define a minimum set of elements or method steps included in a particular embodiment of the present invention. It will be appreciated that the invention may be implemented in a variety of ways, and that this description is given by way of example only.

[0021 ] The present invention allows a user of a computing device, such as a Smartphone that is running a software application, to open a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) within the application associated with a link. Content associated with the URL is then downloaded in the background, enabling the user to continue interacting with the current application while the download occurs. When the content has been downloaded, the content, for example a web page, may be viewed. An advantage of the present invention is that a user does not have to wait for the content to download before continuing to use a third party application. Thus the user's time is not wasted watching as content is downloaded.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram 100 illustrating a method for network browsing according to an embodiment of the present invention. At step 101 a first URL request initiated by a user activating a first embedded link associated with the first URL in a first application that is displaying first application data to the user, is intercepted. At step

102, the first application data continues to be displayed, while simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of content associated with the first URL. At step

103, content associated with the first URL is downloaded, and at step 104 the user is able to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the first URL.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system 200 for network browsing according to an embodiment of the present invention. The system 200 includes a computing device 210 connected to the Internet 220 in order to download content associated with a URL from one or more remote server(s) 230. The computing device 210 may be, for example, a personal computer, a laptop, a notebook, a tablet or a Smartphone. The computing device 210 includes a processor coupled to a memory, and the memory includes program code components configured to cause the processor to perform the method of the present invention.

[0024] Although the invention may be performed on any suitable computing device 210, it is envisaged that the present invention is best suited to mobile devices such as Smartphones, as generally these devices have smaller screen sizes and have slower download speeds.

[0025] FIG. 3 is a screenshot 300 illustrating application data of an application displayed on a screen of the computing device 210 of FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the present invention. Application data includes all visual and functional aspects of the application. The third party application is any suitable application that includes any number of embedded links 301 , 302, 303 associated with a respective URL for downloading content such as a web page, a file or a document. Although FIG. 3 shows embedded links 301 , 302, 303 in the form of a URL, it should be appreciated that the link may be in the form of normal text, an image such as embedded link 304, or any other suitable embedded link. Some examples of third party applications include social media applications, an email client and a search application. However it should be appreciated that the invention is not limited to such applications.

[0026] Referring to FIG. 3, a first embedded link 301 is associated with a first URL, a second embedded link 302 is associated with a second URL, and a third embedded link 303 is associated with a third URL. When a user activates one or more of the links 301 , 302, 303, for example by tapping on the link, 301 , 302, 303 in the case of a touch screen of a Smartphone, the computing device 210 intercepts the resulting URL request associated with a respective link 301 , 302, 303 and downloads content associated with the URL while continuing to display the application.

[0027] In addition, the computing device 210 simultaneously displays a status icon indicating how much of the content has been downloaded. For example, the status icon may be any suitable indicator such as text or an animated graphic such as an hour glass, an animated circle or an animated pie chart. Once the content has been downloaded, the status icon may include a static graphic such as a thumbnail of the content, or a graphic associated with the content. For example in the case of a Portable Document Format (PDF) document, the status icon may include a PDF icon. In another embodiment, if the downloaded content is a company website, the graphic may be a company logo.

[0028] FIG. 4 is a screenshot 400 illustrating a status icon 401 that is displayed while content is being downloaded according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the status icon 401 includes an animated pie chart 402 which progresses as the content is downloaded. In one embodiment, when the download has completed, the pie chart is filled in.

[0029] The status icon 401 is positioned at the side of the display of the computing device 210 so that a user may continue to browse the application. If required, the user may move the status icon by dragging the status icon to another part of the screen to allow the user to view an area of the screen hidden by the status icon 401 .

[0030] Once the content has been downloaded, the content may be displayed to the user, either automatically or when activated by the user. FIG. 5 is a screenshot 500 illustrating downloaded content according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a status icon 501 is positioned in a top centre location of the screen, and includes an icon 502, in this case a square, associated with the downloaded content. It should be appreciated that the status icon 501 may be positioned in any suitable location of the screen. In one embodiment, a portion of the third party application is displayed in a first section 510 of the screen, and the content is displayed in a second section 520 of the screen. However it should be appreciated that the content may be displayed in the whole display while also displaying the status icon 501 . The user can also scroll through the content, for example the user may scroll through multiple pages of a web page or a PDF document within the second section 520 of the screen. Furthermore, the user may revert back to the third party application by tapping within the first section 510 of the screen.

[0031 ] As previously mentioned, although in one embodiment the content is automatically displayed to the user once the content has been downloaded, it should be appreciated that embodiments of the present invention may also be configured to display the content only when activated by the user, for example by tapping on the status icon 501 .

[0032] In another embodiment, content associated with a plurality of URLs may be downloaded in parallel, for example by clicking on each of the links 301 , 302, 303 of FIG. 3, in succession. In this embodiment, the status icon may indicate how much of a total content for all the URLs has been downloaded. In addition, the status icon may also indicate a number of URLs from which content is being simultaneously downloaded, or has been downloaded.

[0033] FIG. 6 is a screenshot illustrating a status icon 601 including a numerical flag 602 that indicates the number of links that have been activated according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this example, a user has tapped on each of the three links 301 , 302, 303 in FIG. 3. Thus the flag 602 displays the number 3. In order to view content associated with a link 301 , 302 303, the user taps on the status icon 601 to reveal individual status icons.

[0034] FIG. 7 is s screen shot illustrating a number of individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Each of the individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 is associated with a respective link 301 , 302 303. Although FIG. 7 shows that each of the individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 is aligned at a top of the screen, it should be appreciated that the individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 may be positioned anywhere on the screen. In addition, one or more of the individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 may be dragged by a user to a desired position on the screen.

[0035] In this embodiment, a first individual status icon 701 is associated with the first link 301 , a second individual status icon 702 is associated with the second link 302, and a third individual status icon 703 is associated with the third link 303.

[0036] In order to view the content, a user taps on a chosen individual status icon 701 , 702, 703, and the content is shown in a second section 720 of the screen. In addition, the size of the chosen individual status icon 701 , 702, 703 is increased to indicate which content is being displayed.

[0037] In the example of FIG. 7, the user has selected the first individual status icon

701 , thus a size of the first individual status icon 701 is larger than the second and third individual status icons 702, 703. Although in one embodiment, the size of the individual status icon 701 , 702, 703 indicates the chosen individual status icon 701 , 702, 703, it should be appreciated that the chosen individual status icon 701 , 702, 703 may be highlighted in any suitable manner. For example, the chosen individual status icon 701 ,

702, 703 may flash to indicate that it has been selected.

[0038] Similar to the embodiment of FIG. 5, a portion of the third party application may be displayed in a first section 710 of the screen. Furthermore, each of the individual status icons 701 , 702, 703 includes an icon which may be associated with content from the associated URL. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 the first individual status icon 701 includes a square graphic, the second individual status icon 702 includes a triangular graphic, and the third individual status icon 703 includes a padlock graphic.

[0039] Each URL, associated with a respective link 301 , 302, 303 and hence an individual status icon 701 , 702, 703, may be shared, for example by email, a text message, or on social media such as Facebook® and Twitter®. To share one or more of the URLs, the user activates the status icon 601 of FIG. 6, for example by long pressing on the status icon 601 . Alternatively, the user may choose to share a single URL by long pressing on one of the individual status icon 701 , 702, 703 in FIG. 7. In response, the computing device 210 displays one or more action icons.

[0040] FIG. 8 is a screen shot illustrating a number of action icons 810 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Each of the action icons 810 may be configured to perform a particular task, for example to share a URL using social media or to share a URL via email. In addition the action icons 810 can be configured to delete the downloaded content associated with links 301 , 302, 303 and a respective URL.

[0041 ] In one example, a first action icon 81 1 is configured to delete the content associated with one or more URLs. A second action icon 812 is configured to share one or more URLs using social media, and a third action icon 813 is configured to share one or more of the URLs via email.

[0042] In order to perform a desired action, the user drags status icon 801 on, or adjacent to the desired action icon 81 1 , 812, 813 associated with an action . The computing device 210 may display further prompts on the screen suitable for the action. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8 the status icon 801 is dragged towards the second action icon 812 as indicated by the broken arrow.

[0043] Although the above description has been described for use on a mobile device with a touch screen, it should be appreciated that the invention may be performed on any suitable device. For example if the computing device 210 includes a mouse, instead of "tapping", or "long pressing" to perform an action, a mouse may be used to "click" on an embedded link, or to "right click" on a the status icon.

[0044] The above embodiments describe downloading content associated with one or more links within a single third party application. However it should be appreciated that the user may download content associated with a first URL via a first link in a first application (for example a social media application such as Facebook®), and switch to a second application and download content associated with a second URL via a second link in the second application (for example an email application). Thus the user can store content from multiple URLs in the background for later viewing, or continue browsing the third party application.

[0045] Advantages of the present invention include allowing a user of a computing device, in particular a mobile computing device, to open any number of links to URLs for downloading content in the background, allowing the user to continue using an application containing the links. Thus the user's experience with an application can be enriched.

[0046] FIG. 9 diagrammatically illustrates a computing device 900, for example a Smartphone, according to an embodiment of the present invention. As an example, the method 100 of FIG. 1 can be implemented using the computing device 900.

[0047] The computing device 900 includes a central processor 902, a system memory 904 and a system bus 906 that couples various system components, including coupling the system memory 904 to the central processor 902. The system bus 906 may be any of several types of bus structures including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. The structure of system memory 904 is well known to those skilled in the art and may include an operating system, such as IOS® or Android® stored in a read only memory (ROM) and one or more program modules such as application programs and program data stored in random access memory (RAM).

[0048] The computing device 900 can also include a variety of interface units and memory for reading and writing data, for example the content downloaded from the URL.

[0049] In particular, the computing device 900 includes an internal memory interface 908 and a removable memory interface 910, respectively coupling an internal memory 912 and a removable memory 914 to the system bus 906. Examples of removable memory 914 include Secure Digital (SD) cards and Micro SD cards. The internal memory 912 and the removable memory 914 provide storage of computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules and other data for the computer system 900.

[0050] The computing device 900 may include additional interfaces for connecting devices to the system bus 906. FIG. 9 shows a universal serial bus (USB) interface 918 which may be used to couple a device, such as a keyboard or a mouse, to the system bus 906.

[0051 ] The computing device 900 can operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote computers or other devices, such as a server, a router, a network personal computer, a peer device or other common network node, a wireless telephone or wireless personal digital assistant. The computing device 900 includes a network interface 922 that couples the system bus 906 to a local area network (LAN) 924. Networking environments are commonplace in offices, enterprise- wide computer networks and home computer systems. The network interface 922 may be a wireless LAN or a mobile Internet connection through a cellular phone network or a mobile network.

[0052] It will be appreciated that the network connections shown and described are exemplary and other ways of establishing a communications link between computers can be used. The existence of any of various well-known protocols, such as TCP/IP, Ethernet, FTP, HTTP and the like, is presumed, and the computing device 900 can be operated in a client-server configuration to permit a user to retrieve data from, for example, a web-based server.

[0053] The computing device 900 may also include a touch screen interface 926 for interfacing the system bus 906 with a touch screen 920 for receiving input from the user and for displaying content to the user.

[0054] The operation of the computing device 900 can be controlled by a variety of different program modules. Examples of program modules are routines, programs, objects, components, and data structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The present invention may also be practiced with other computer system configurations, including other hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, personal digital assistants and the like. Furthermore, the invention may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

[0055] The above description of various embodiments of the present invention is provided for purposes of description to one of ordinary skill in the related art. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to a single disclosed embodiment. As mentioned above, numerous alternatives and variations to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art of the above teaching. Accordingly, while some alternative embodiments have been discussed specifically, other embodiments will be apparent or relatively easily developed by those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, this patent specification is intended to embrace all alternatives, modifications and variations of the present invention that have been discussed herein, and other embodiments that fall within the spirit and scope of the above described invention.

Claims

1 . A method for network browsing, comprising:

downloading the content associated with the first URL; and

2. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , further comprising: intercepting a second URL request initiated by the user activating a second embedded link associated with a second URL in the first application that is displaying the first application data to the user;

continuing to display the first application data and simultaneously displaying a status icon indicating downloading of the content associated with the second U RL; downloading the content associated with the second URL; and

3. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , further comprising: intercepting a second URL request initiated by the user activating a second embedded link associated with a second URL in a second application that is displaying second application data to the user;

downloading the content associated with the second URL; and

4. The method for network browsing according to claim 2, further comprising: intercepting a third Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by the user activating a third embedded link associated with a third URL in a second application that is displaying second application data to the user;

downloading the content associated with the third URL; and

5. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the application data is displayed on a mobile device such as a Smartphone or tablet.

6. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the status icon indicates how much of the content has been downloaded.

7. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the status icon includes an animated graphic according to how much content has been downloaded.

8. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the status icon indicates a percentage of the content that has been downloaded.

9. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the status icon includes an indication of when all of the content has been downloaded.

10. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the status icon indicates a number of URLs that have been downloaded.

1 1 . The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein individual status icons, according to a respective URL, are displayed to the user when the user activates the status icon.

12. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein a size, colour, or animation of a status icon is changed to indicate specific content that is being displayed.

13. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein one or more action icons are displayed to the user when the user activates the status icon.

14. The method for network browsing according to claim 13, wherein action icons include one or more share icons, or a delete icon.

15. The method for network browsing according to claim 13, further comprising executing an action according to a selected action icon.

16. The method for network browsing according to claim 15, wherein the action is selected by a user moving the status icon at or adjacent the action icon.

17. The method for network browsing according to claim 13, wherein the action icons are configured by the user.

18. The method for network browsing according to claim 1 , wherein the content is displayed to the user when all of the content has been downloaded.

19. A system for network browsing, comprising:

a processor; and

intercept a first Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request initiated by a user activating a first embedded link associated with a first URL in a first application that is displaying first application data to the user;

download the content associated with the first URL; and enable the user to interact with the first application simultaneously while downloading the content associated with the first URL.