Realtime communications and network browsing client

A computer-readable data storage apparatus comprising a memory component storing executable instructions that are operable to be executed by a processor integrating web browsing and network data stream processing for realtime communications, wherein the memory component comprises:

• executable instructions to navigate to an address of a web page to establish a presence for a first user of a first client network in a virtual area hosted by a server network node executing a server application comprising a specification of the virtual area and one or more switching rules specifying one or more respective connections or disconnections of one or more data sources and one or more data sinks of client network nodes of users who are present in the virtual area;
• executable instructions to, based on the established presence for the first user, automatically establish a communications connection with a second network node of a second user who is present in the virtual area;
• executable instructions to transmit outgoing data streams to and receive incoming data streams from the second client network node over the communications connection, wherein the incoming and outgoing data streams comprise one or more time-critical types of data streams and one or more non-time-critical types of data streams;
• executable instructions to process the one or more time-critical types of data streams and the one or more non-time-critical types of data streams;
• executable instructions to monitor at least one metric characterizing transmission of one or more data streams over the communications connection with the other client network node;
• and
• executable instructions to, based on a determination that the at least one metric fails to satisfy at least one performance target, throttle a rate at which packets of at least one of the time-critical types of data streams and the non-time-critical types data streams are provided to a network layer of the first client network node.

A system, comprising

• a communication interface arranged to:
• navigate to an address of a web page to establish a presence for a first user of a first client network in a virtual area hosted by a server network node executing a server application comprising a specification of the virtual area and one or more switching rules specifying one or more respective connections or disconnections of one or more data sources and one or more data sinks of client network nodes of users who are present in the virtual area;
• based on the established presence for the first user, automatically establish a communications connection with a second network node of a second user who is present in the virtual area;
• transmit outgoing data streams to and receiving incoming data streams from the second client network node over the communications connection, wherein the incoming and outgoing data streams comprise one or more time-critical types of data streams and one or more non-time-critical types of data streams;
• a processor arranged to:
• process the one or more time-critical types of data streams and the one or more non-time-critical types of data streams;
• monitor at least one metric characterizing transmission of one or more data streams over the communications connection with the other client network node;
• and
• based on a determination that the at least one metric fails to satisfy at least one performance target, throttle a rate at which packets of at least one of the time-critical types of data streams and the non-time-critical types data streams are provided to a network layer of the first client network node.