System and Method for Enhanced Information Retrieval

Abstract

An improved document retrieval system. In response to detecting that the user has moved a pointing device cursor over a display element in a first web page within a web browser window, retrieving information from a second web page before the user requests that the second web page be displayed within the web browser window.

1 . (canceled)  
   
   
       2 . A computer readable storage medium having computer program instructions stored on it, where the computer program instructions are executable on a client computer operated by a user, and where the computer program instructions cause the client computer to be capable of carrying out the operations of: 
 (a) monitoring input from the user operating the client computer;    (b) receiving a search query as input to the client computer, where the search query is entered by the user using an input device associated with the client computer;    (c) submitting the search query to a search query processor, where the search query processor uses the search query to find a plurality of search documents that may be of interest to the user based on the search query, where the search query processor finds the plurality of search documents from among a large number of documents that may be available to the client computer over a connection providing access to the large number of documents;    (d) identifying a first document as a document that the user may wish to display on a display screen associated with the client computer, where the first document is one of the search documents found by the search query processor, and where the first document is a document that the user may wish to display on the display screen at least because it is a search document found by the search query processor;    (e) monitoring input from the user for a first user action, where the first user action indicates that the user has requested that the first document be written to the display screen associated with the client computer;    (f) retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen, where the information that can be used to display the first document is retrieved over the connection by the client computer from a remote location relative to the client computer, where the information that can be used to display the first document is retrieved after the operation of submitting the search query to the search query processor and before detecting the first user action, and where the information that can be used to display the first document is retrieved in anticipation of quickly writing to the display screen the first document upon detecting the first user action;    (g) storing the information that can be used to display the first document in local storage associated with the client computer;    (h) continuing to monitor input from the user for the first user action;    (i) detecting the first user action as input from the user; and    j) upon detecting the first user action as input from the user, writing the first document to the display screen by accessing the information that can be used to display the first document stored in local storage associated with the client computer so that the first document is quickly written to the display screen for the user upon detecting the first user action.    
   
   
       3 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 2 , where the computer program instructions further cause the client computer to be capable of carrying out the operations of: 
 (k) identifying a second document as a document that the user may wish to display on the display screen associated with the client computer, where the second document is one of the search documents found by the search query processor, and where the second document is a document that the user may wish to display on the display screen at least because it is a search document found by the search query processor;    (l) monitoring input from the user for a second user action, where the second user action indicates that the user has requested that the second document be written to the display screen associated with the client computer;    (m) retrieving information that can be used to display the second document on the display screen, where the information that can be used to display the second document is retrieved over the connection by the client computer after the operation of submitting the search query to the search query processor and before detecting the second user action, and where the information that can be used to display the second document is retrieved in anticipation of quickly writing to the display screen the second document upon detecting the second user action;    (n) storing the information that can be used to display the second document in local storage associated with the client computer;    (o) monitoring input from the user for the second user action while the first document is being displayed on the display screen;    (p) detecting the second user action as input from the user; and    (q) upon detecting the second user action as input from the user, writing the second document to the display screen by accessing the information that can be used to display the second document stored in local storage associated with the client computer so that the second document is quickly written to the display screen for the user upon detecting the second user action.    
   
   
       4 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 2 , where the plurality of search documents each consist of a picture; and 
 where the operation of identifying a first document includes the operation of identifying a search document that has been assessed as having a higher degree of relevance to the search query than another search document.    
   
   
       5 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 2 , 
 where the operation of identifying a first document includes the operation of identifying a search document that has been assessed as having a higher degree of relevance to the search query than another search document;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions that are downloaded over the network; and    where the computer program instructions are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer.    
   
   
       6 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 3 , 
 where the plurality of search documents each consist of a picture;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen includes the operation of retrieving the entire first document over the connection before detecting the first user action;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions that are downloaded over the network; and    where the computer program instructions are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer.    
   
   
       7 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 3 , 
 where the plurality of search documents each consist of a picture; and    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen includes the operation of retrieving the entire first document over the connection before detecting the first user action.    
   
   
       8 . The computer readable storage medium of  claim 3 , 
 where the plurality of search documents each consist of a picture;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen includes the operation of retrieving the entire first document over the connection before detecting the first user action;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the first document on the display screen is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions that are downloaded over the network; and    where the computer program instructions are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer.    
   
   
       9 . A system for providing access to information on a network, where the network includes a first server and a second server, and where a first web page that is available at the first server includes a link to a second web page that is available at the second server, the system comprising: 
 (a) an apparatus including a third server connected to the network, where the apparatus is configured to carry out the operations of:    retrieving the second web page over the network from the second server, and    making a smaller-sized version of the second web page available on the network at the third server, where the smaller-sized version of the second web page is made available at the third server so that it can be retrieved over the network from the third server more quickly than the second web page can be retrieved over the network from the second server at least because fewer bits need to be transferred over the network for the smaller-sized version of the second web page; and    (b) a storage medium having computer program instructions stored on it, where the computer program instructions are executable on a client computer operated by a user and connected to a network, and where the computer program instructions cause the client computer to be capable of carrying out the operations of:    monitoring input from the user operating the client computer, where the operation of monitoring input includes monitoring input from a pointing device associated with the client computer, and where the pointing device controls a pointing device cursor that is displayed on a display screen associated with the client computer,    detecting a first user action as input from the user operating the client computer, where the first user action indicates that the user has requested that the first web page be displayed on the display screen associated with the client computer,    retrieving the first web page over the network to the client computer, where the first web page is retrieved over the network from the first server located at a remote location relative to the client computer,    displaying the first web page in a web browser window on the display screen associated with the client computer, where the link to the second web page included within the first web page is selectable by the user through the pointing device associated with the client computer, thereby enabling the second web page to be displayed within the web browser window,    continuing to monitor input from the user operating the client computer,    detecting a second user action as input from the user operating the client computer, and    in response to detecting the second user action as input from the user, retrieving the smaller-sized version of the second web page over the network from the third server to the client computer,    where the smaller-sized version of the second web page is made available at the third server prior to the operation of detecting the second user action as input from the user operating the client computer, and    where the smaller-sized version of the second web page is retrieved over the network from the third server more quickly than if the second web page were retrieved over the network from the second server.    
   
   
       10 . The system of  claim 9 , where the computer program instructions further cause the client computer to be capable of carrying out the operations of: 
 upon retrieving the smaller-sized version of the second web page over the network, displaying the smaller-sized version of the second web page on the display screen associated with the client computer.    
   
   
       11 . The system of  claim 9 , 
 where the second user action is moving the pointing device over the link to the second web page; and    where the operation of retrieving the smaller-size version of the second web page is carried out without removing the first web page from the web browser window.    
   
   
       12 . The system of  claim 9 , 
 where the second user action is moving the pointing device over an object corresponding to the link to the second web page; and    where the operation of retrieving the smaller-size version of the second web page is carried out while continuing to display the first web page in the web browser window.    
   
   
       13 . The system of  claim 9 , 
 where the smaller-sized version of the second web page is stored at the third server in a single file that includes within it an object referenced by the second web page.    
   
   
       14 . The system of  claim 9 , 
 where the operation of retrieving the smaller-sized version of the second web page is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions that are downloaded over the network;    where the computer program instructions are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer; and    where the first web page is responsive to a search query entered as input by the user, and where the second web page is a search document.    
   
   
       15 . The system of  claim 9 , 
 where the smaller-sized version of the second web page is retrieved by the client computer using fewer network requests compared to retrieving the second web page available at the second server.    
   
   
       16 . A storage medium having computer program instructions stored on it, where the computer program instructions are executable on a client computer operated by a user and connected to a network, and where the computer program instructions cause the client computer to be capable of carrying out the operations of: 
 monitoring input from the user operating the client computer, where the operation of monitoring input includes monitoring input from a pointing device associated with the client computer, and where the pointing device controls a pointing device cursor that is displayed on a display screen associated with the client computer;    detecting input from the user operating the client computer, where the input from the user indicates that the user has requested that a first web page be displayed on the display screen associated with the client computer;    retrieving the first web page over the network to the client computer, where the first web page is retrieved over the network from a first server located at a remote location relative to the client computer;    displaying the first web page in a web browser window on the display screen associated with the client computer,    where the first web page includes a link to a second web page that is stored on a second server, where the link to the second web page is selectable by the user through the pointing device associated with the client computer, thereby enabling the second web page to be displayed within the web browser window, and    where the first web page includes a small display object positioned in the first web page near the link to the second web page;    continuing to monitor input from the user operating the client computer;    detecting that the user has moved the pointing device cursor over the small display object positioned in the first web page near the link to the second web page that is displayed within the first web page in the web browser window on the display screen associated with the client computer;    in response to detecting that the user has moved the pointing device cursor over the small display object, retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page over the network to the client computer while continuing to display the first web page in the web browser window;    continuing to monitor input from the user operating the client computer;    detecting that the user has selected the link to the second web page through the pointing device associated with the client computer; and    upon detecting that the user has selected the link to the second web page, displaying the second web page by replacing the first web page displayed in the web browser window with the second web page.    
   
   
       17 . The storage medium of  claim 16 , 
 where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions that are downloaded over the network that are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer; and    where the first web page is responsive to a search query entered as input by the user, and where the second web page is a search document.    
   
   
       18 . The storage medium of  claim 16 , 
 where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page includes the operation of retrieving over the network an alternate version of the second web page that is stored on the network;    where the alternate version of the second web page comprises a file that includes within it an object referenced by the second web page; and    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page is carried out at the direction of computer program instructions embedded within the first web page, and where the computer program instructions are subject to security restrictions imposed by the client computer.    
   
   
       19 . The storage medium of  claim 16 , 
 where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page includes the operation of retrieving over the network an alternate version of the second web page that is stored on the network; and    where the alternate version of the second web page is retrieved by the client computer with fewer network requests and by transferring fewer bits to the client computer compared to retrieving the second web page available at the second server.    
   
   
       20 . The storage medium of  claim 16 , 
 where the first web page is responsive to a search query entered as input by the user, and where the second web page is a search document;    where the operation of retrieving information that can be used to display the second web page includes the operation of retrieving over the network an alternate version of the second web page that is stored on the network; and    where the alternate version of the second web page comprises a file that includes within it an object referenced by the second web page.    
   
   
       21 . The storage medium of  claim 16 , where the operation of displaying the second web page includes the operation of retrieving the second web page from the second server.