US 6,154,752 AGranted

Chronological identification of hyper text links during back tracking

AssigneeLockheed Martin Corporation

InventorRobert Ryan

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Abstract

A browser is provided in which the color of a selected linking word in a document is changed to a color that indicates the relative order in which the linking word was selected. As an example, consider a document with three hyperlinking words and the colors red, yellow and green, with red specifying the most recent hyperlink selected, yellow the next most recent, and green the least recent of the three. When the first linking word is selected, its color is changed from, for example the prior art blue, to red when the user drills back to the original web page document. When the next link is selected, it is colored red when the user returns to the original document and the first selected linking word is colored yellow. When a third hyperlinked word is selected, it is colored red on return, the first selected hyperlink word, which was yellow, is colored green, and the second selected hyperlink word, which was red, is colored yellow. The user, looking at the document, can easily determine the sequence or order in which the document was drilled. Here it will be appreciated that the term linking word is not limited to alpha characters, but also includes numerics and icons.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A web browser method including:

(a) displaying a first document on a browser controlled processor display screen, said first document including a plurality of hyperlinks that serve as links to other documents;
(b) selecting one of said plurality of hyperlinks;
(c) displaying a second document linked to said one of said plurality of hyperlinks selected in said step (b);
(d) backtracking to and displaying said first document displayed in said step (a);
(e) changing a displayed color of said one of said plurality of hyperlinks selected in said step (b) to a first color representing a relative chronological selection order of said one of said plurality of hyperlinks selected;
(f) selecting another of said plurality of hyperlinks from said first document displayed in said step (d);
(g) displaying a third document linked to said another of said plurality of hyperlinks selected in said step (f);
(h) backtracking to and displaying said first document displayed in said step (a);
(i) changing a displayed color of said another of said plurality of selected in step (f) to said first color representing a relative chronological selection order of said another of said plurality of hyperlinks selected;
(j) changing said displayed color of said one of said plurality of hyperlinks selected in said step (b) to a second color representing a relative chronological selection order of said one of said plurality of hyperlinks selected;
(k) continuing to display said first document initially displayed in said step (a), and for each remaining additional hyperlink selected from said plurality of hyperlinks, upon displaying an additional document linked to said each remaining additional hyperlink selected, and upon backtracking to and displaying said first document, changing a displayed color of said each remaining additional hyperlink selected such that a most recently selected of said plurality of hyperlinks is changed to said first color, and such that a next most recently selected of said plurality of hyperlinks is changed to said second color, and such that for said each remaining additional hyperlink, a displayed color of is changed to another color representing relative recency of selection of said each of said remaining additional hyperlinks so that said displayed colors of said plurality of hyperlinks previously selected and backtracked from to said first document convey a relative chronological selection order of said plurality of hyperlinks previously selected.

8 more elements

A computer program product comprising a computer usable medium having computer program logic stored therein, wherein said computer program product comprises a web browser including means for displaying the sequence in which links were selected from a document, said computer program logic comprising:

means for enabling a computer to display a first document, said first document including a plurality of means for enabling the computer to link to other documents;
means for enabling the computer to select one of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link;
means for enabling the computer to display a second document linked to said one of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link, responsive to said means for enabling a computer to select;
means for enabling the computer to backtrack to and display said first document;
means for enabling the computer to change the color of said one of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link to a first color;
means for enabling the computer to select another of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link from said first document;
means for enabling the computer to display a third document linked to said another of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link;
means for enabling the computer to backtrack to and display said first document from said third document;
means for enabling the computer to change the color of said another of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link to said first color;
means for enabling the computer to change the color of said one of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link to a second color;
means for enabling the computer to change the color of all selected means for enabling the computer to link of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link in said first document, including means for enabling the computer to change the color of the most recently selected of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link to said first color and means for enabling the computer to change the color of each previously selected of said plurality of means for enabling the computer to link so that the color of said selected means for enabling the computer to link in said first document indicates the sequence in which said selected means for enabling the computer to link were selected.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.