Browse by prompted keyword phrases with an improved method for obtaining an initial document set

A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of sequences of instructions, said plurality of sequences of instructions including sequences of instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause said processor to:

• prompt a computer-user to construct a search expression;
• communicate the search expression to a plurality of web searching engines;
• prompt each of the plurality of web searching engines to concurrently inspect a respective plurality of web pages and to identify web pages containing text consistent with the search expression;
• linguistically analyze the identified web pages to obtain keyword phrases therefrom;
• and
• display the keyword phrases obtained from the identified web pages in a navigable cross-index.

A computer system comprising:

• a bus;
• a processor coupled to said bus;
• a user input device coupled to said bus;
• a display coupled to said bus;
• a computer-network access device coupled to said bus;
• and
• a memory coupled to said bus, said memory being readable by said processor and having sequences of instructions stored therein which, when executed by said processor, cause said processor to:
• prompt a computer-user to construct a search expression;
• communicate the search expression to a plurality of web searching engines on the World Wide Web via said computer-network access device;
• prompt each of the plurality of web searching engines to concurrently inspect a respective plurality of web pages and to identify web pages containing text consistent with the search expression;
• linguistically analyze the identified web pages to obtain keyword phrases therefrom;
• and
• display the keyword phrases obtained from the identified web pages in a navigable cross-index.

A method for obtaining web pages containing text consistent with a search expression, said method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

• prompting a computer-user to construct a search expression;
• starting a plurality of web agents to communicate the search expression to respective web searching engines;
• concurrently receiving in each of the plurality of web agents universal resource locators (URLs) identifying respective web pages containing text consistent with the search expression;
• linguistically analyzing the identified web pages to obtain keyword phrases therefrom;
• and
• displaying the keyword phrases obtained from the identified web pages in a navigable cross-index.

A method for examining electronic mail, said method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

• reading a plurality of electronic mail messages from a mail server;
• linguistically analyzing each of the plurality of electronic mail messages to identify for a user keyword phrases therein;
• prompting the user to construct a query expression in which at least one of the keyword phrases is an operand;
• and
• sorting the plurality of electronic mail messages based on the query expression.