Enhanced search engine

Abstract

A search engine system capable of displaying indicative information to a user from searches performed by entities connected directly or indirectly to the user, where the system includes at least one host computer processor connectable to one or more network(s), a database accessible over the network(s), a plurality of data input devices connectable to the network(s) the search engine being accessible over the network(s).

1 . A search engine system capable of displaying indicative information to a user from searches performed by one or more entities connected directly or indirectly with the user. 
     
     
         2 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said entities are denoted as ‘user contacts’. 
     
     
         3 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein, each user contact includes a connection factor indicative of the degree of separation between the user contact and the user. 
     
     
         4 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 2 - 3 , wherein at least one user is provided with an interface between said search engine system and with a private personal contacts network of user contacts unique to said user. 
     
     
         5 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 2 - 3 , including a private personal contacts network of user contacts accessible by at least one user. 
     
     
         6 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein each said private personal contacts network is unique to an individual user. 
     
     
         7 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 4 - 6 , wherein said private personal contacts network provides interrelationship context information between said entities. 
     
     
         8 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 4 - 6 , wherein said private personal contacts network provides interrelationship context information between a user contact and the user. 
     
     
         9 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 4 - 8 , wherein said interrelationship context information includes said connection factor. 
     
     
         10 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 4 - 9 , wherein said interrelationship context information includes one or more entity attributes. 
     
     
         11 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 10 , wherein said system entity attributes include at least one identifying characteristic. 
     
     
         12 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 10 , wherein said system entity attributes includes information regarding personal details, interests; friends; relations; school alumni; employment factors; business colleagues; professional acquaintances; sexual preferences, persuasions, or proclivities; sporting interests; entertainment, artistic, creative or leisure interests; travel interests, commercial, religious, political, theological or ideological belief or opinions; academic, scientific, or engineering disciplines; humanitarian, social, security/military or economic fields and any combination of same. 
     
     
         13 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said searches include any interrogation of a database via a network, including a search of web-sites via the internet. 
     
     
         14 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each search includes user-inputted keywords and an output listing of search results. 
     
     
         15 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said indicative information includes search suggestions. 
     
     
         16 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said indicative information includes search results weighting. 
     
     
         17 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein said suggestions include;
 recent searches denoting recent keywords or search results associated with the keywords used by the user contacts;   recent web-sites denoting recent web sites accessed by the user contacts either directly, or via recent searches;   popular web-sites denoting a ranking of web sites most regularly visited by, and/or recommended by the user contacts;   popular searches denoting a ranking of the most popular keywords or search results associated with the keywords used by the user contacts,   high-flying searches denoting a list of keywords or search results associated with the keywords ranked according to their rate of increase in the popular searches ranking;   high-flying web-sites denoting a list of web-sites ranked according to their rate of increase in the popular web-sites ranking;   popular or recently accessed paid web listings.   
     
     
         18 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 15 - 17 , wherein the suggestions are based on a selective input from the user contacts. 
     
     
         19 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 18 , wherein said selective input is filtered according to at least one filter criteria including elapsed period since the suggestion creation, the interrelationship context information, the connection factor and/or entity attributes of the user contact. 
     
     
         20 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 7 - 19 , wherein said interrelationship context information includes a connection factor indicative of the separation between user contacts in said private personal contacts network. 
     
     
         21 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 7 - 19 , wherein, access to the interrelationship context information between the user and said entities is restricted. 
     
     
         22 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 21 , wherein said restricted access is defined by the user. 
     
     
         23 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 11 - 23 , wherein said identifying characteristic includes at least one of the group including; the entity's name, means of contacting the entity, including an e-mail address; telephone and/or facsimile number, postal address and/or any communication means capable of individually communicating with the entity or any combination of same. 
     
     
         24 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 11 - 24 , wherein said identifying characteristics includes at least one said entity attribute. 
     
     
         25 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 24 , wherein said identifying characteristics include supplementary attributes of said user. 
     
     
         26 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein entities agreeing to inclusion in a user's personal contacts network are said to be direct user contacts. 
     
     
         27 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein two entities linked through any number of intermediate entities are defined as “connected”. 
     
     
         28 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein two entities existing independently in a personal contact network without any intermediate connecting entities are defined as “disconnected”. 
     
     
         29 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 3 - 28 , wherein said connection factor includes a connection path length between two entities, given by the minimum possible number of connections in a chain of entities separating said two entities. 
     
     
         30 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 29 , wherein the said connection factor is equal to the shortest connection path length of all the available connection paths between the entities. 
     
     
         31 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 29  or  30 , wherein an entity that is directly connected to another entity is said to be a direct contact giving a “1 st  degree contact,” and has a connection path length of one; two entities connected via one intermediate entity are said to be “2 nd  degree contacts,” and have a connection path length of two, and wherein any two entities whose shortest connection path is via “N−1” intermediate entities (if any), with a path length of “N” are an “N th ” degree contact, where “N” is an integer. 
     
     
         32 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 29 - 31 , wherein entities having a 2 nd  or higher degree contact are termed indirect contacts, or indirectly connected. 
     
     
         33 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 29 - 32 , wherein said system is configured to allow a user to apply a selective input to the user's suggestions by using a filter criteria for controlling the N th  degree contact of entities to be included, where N is a variable determined by the user. 
     
     
         34 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 33 , wherein the filter criteria for said selective input is linked to a predetermined activity. 
     
     
         35 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 33 , wherein a user engaged in one or more said predetermined activities may specify the action to apply to;
 all degrees of contact in the user's personal contacts network, at any connection path length, or   all user contacts, including those disconnected from the user.   
     
     
         36 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 33 - 35 , wherein said selective input is receivable from networks outside the system network. 
     
     
         37 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 33 - 36 , wherein said suggestions are a weighted average of direct contacts and indirect contacts. 
     
     
         38 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 33 - 36 , wherein the selective input is user-definable. 
     
     
         39 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 15 - 38 , wherein user contacts associated with the suggestions most frequently chosen by a user are designated preferred user contacts. 
     
     
         40 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 39 , wherein said designation of preferred user contact is performed directly by the user, or calculated by the system by determining the user contact associated with the most popular suggestions previously selected by the user. 
     
     
         41 . A search engine system as claimed any one of  claims 39 - 40 , wherein the selective input may be at least partially weighted by suggestions from the preferred user contacts. 
     
     
         42 . A search engine system as claimed any one of  claims 39 - 40 , wherein the selective input is varied according to factors associated with the user contact, including the interrelationship context information, the connection factor and/or entity attributes associated with the contributing user contact. 
     
     
         43 . A search engine system as claimed any one of  claims 39 - 42 , wherein the search results associated with a keyword may be weighted according to a selective input from the user contacts. 
     
     
         44 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 43 , wherein said selective input from the user contacts, includes filter criteria related to the interrelationship context information, the connection factor and/or entity attributes associated with the user contact. 
     
     
         45 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein a user contact who last performed a search, or recommended a particular web-site/search result is contactable via a link adjacent to the keyword search terms and/or web-sites. 
     
     
         46 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein a partner web-site is given a unique link to the search engine, configured such that users clicking on the search engine link are linked to a search page with the participating partner web-site listed as the top of the popular searches and/or recent web-sites suggestions listing. 
     
     
         47 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 46 , wherein said partner web-sites include a link to the search engine web-site whereby both web-sites are listed under the suggestions at both websites. 
     
     
         48 . A search engine system as claimed in either  claim 46  or  claim 47 , wherein said partner web-site displays a list of suggestions obtained from the generic search activities of all partner web-site users. 
     
     
         49 . A search engine system as claimed in either  claim 45 - 46 , wherein said partner web-site displays a list of suggestions for users having their own private personal contacts network obtained from the suggestions associated by the activities of their user contacts on the partner web-site. 
     
     
         50 . A search engine system as claimed in  claims 14 - 49 , wherein on a commercial web-site, a recommendation to related products to the keywords being searched for which were bought, viewed, subscribed to may be made by previous user contacts to the site. 
     
     
         51 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein provided to a user as a toolbar. 
     
     
         52 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 51 , wherein said tool bar monitors web-sites accessed by the user directly without conducting a keyword search as an input to the suggestions data and search weightings. 
     
     
         53 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 51  or  claim 52 , wherein said tool bar may also display or provide access to the most recent suggestions data from the user contacts. 
     
     
         54 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 51 - 53 , wherein upon accessing a web-site, the user is optionally notified by the toolbar of their user contacts who visited that site. 
     
     
         55 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 53 , wherein upon accessing a web-site, the user is optionally notified which subsequent sites the user contact accessed. 
     
     
         56 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the search engine is configured to provide the user with notifications of further specified occurrences, including access of a specified (or book-marked) web-site by a user contact and/or an associated recommendation to same, or further sites accessed after the book-marked site, or of any new material at, or links to, the specified site. 
     
     
         57 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the search engine includes means for linking an appraisal with a search result and/or suggestion. 
     
     
         58 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 57 , wherein said appraisal may include an (optionally graded) recommendation and/or user comments. 
     
     
         59 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 57 - 58 , wherein said appraisals are performed via links associated with individual results on search results listing. 
     
     
         60 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 57 - 58 , wherein said appraisals are be performed whilst accessing the search result or suggestion web-site via a link to the search engine. 
     
     
         61 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 58 , wherein the user comments are unrestricted typed comments and/or selected from a predetermined list of appraisal gradings. 
     
     
         62 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 57 - 61 , wherein said user recommendations are used as a factor in weighting the search results. 
     
     
         63 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 57 - 61 , wherein users are accorded a predetermined number of recommendations according to a predetermined user recommendation credibility criteria. 
     
     
         64 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 63 , wherein said recommendation credibility may be determined by active or automatic affirmations of said user recommendations by the user contacts. 
     
     
         65 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 63 , wherein recommendation credibility criteria may include a fixed quota of recommendations over a specified time period, or linked to particular entity attributes for recommendations for web-sites associated with said entity attributes. 
     
     
         66 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said system is user-configurable to provide the ability for a user to delete searches or web-activity from incorporation in said indicative information. 
     
     
         67 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each user is provided with an editable history log of previous searches they have performed and web-sites accessed. 
     
     
         68 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 15 - 67 , wherein users can submit recommendations for sites limited to specific keywords. 
     
     
         69 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of  claims 10 - 67 , wherein the weighting of individual user contacts may be passively/automatically or actively adjusted based on criteria defined by the user including usefulness of the user contact's browsing, reliability of results, personal tastes, and/or any entity attribute known to the system. 
     
     
         70 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, incorporating a book-marking system, whereby a user accessing a given web-site may use a book-marking feature on the search engine web-site to add the bookmarked web-site to a compilation list of other bookmarked sites. 
     
     
         71 . A method of brokering services utilising a search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, said services being provided by a partner web-site or broker acting as an intermediary between advertisers and partner web-sites and/or websites featuring the search engine system and including the provision of suggestions relevant to the advertiser product(s), service(s), web-site(s), or company(ies) on said partner web-site, and/or the search engine. 
     
     
         72 . A method as claimed in  claim 71  wherein a partner web-site offers said service directly to advertisers or representatives of advertisers. 
     
     
         73 . A method as claimed in  claim 71  or  claim 72  wherein said offer of suggestion(s) to the advertiser is made available to all or a subset of the users of the partner web-site. 
     
     
         74 . A method as claimed in any one of  claims 71 - 73 , wherein said suggestion(s) are recommendations. 
     
     
         75 . A method as claimed in any one of  claims 71 - 74 , wherein said suggestion(s) would be displayed to those partner web-site users who had previously accessed related suggestion(s). 
     
     
         76 . A method as claimed in  claim 71 , wherein said brokering service is provided between advertisers and partner web-sites. 
     
     
         77 . A method as claimed in  claim 76 , wherein said partner web-sites provide access to their users for the displaying of suggestions and distribution of recommendations without said partner web-sites being involved in the selection of advertisers and suggestions 
     
     
         78 . A method as claimed in  claim 71 , wherein said brokering service are provided to other brokers or companies providing internet-searching advertising, whereby sponsored search results are offered to advertisers at fixed-price or via auction in exchange for providing the advertiser a negotiated ranking position in a keyword search results presented to a users performing a search on the keyword purchased by the advertiser. 
     
     
         79 . A method as claimed in  claim 78 , wherein said services further include the ability for advertisers to bid for, or buy the rights to be included in suggestions to partner website users, individual users and/or search engine system users who have previously accessed similar, related or identical suggestions or recommendations. 
     
     
         80 . A search engine system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims capable of displaying indicative information to a user from searches performed by entities (or ‘user contacts’) connected directly or indirectly with the user, wherein said system includes;
 at least one host computer processor connectable to one or more network(s), 
 a database accessible over said network(s), 
 a plurality of data input devices connectable to said network(s), 
 a search engine accessible over said network(s), 
 wherein said system is capable of forming said private personal contacts network for each of one or more users by receiving input from the said user including at least one identifying characteristic of the user and of one or more chosen entities known to said user, 
 recording said identifying characteristic of each entity including the user to form one or more corresponding entity data records in said database, 
 notifying the or each chosen entity of their recordal on said system and requesting input of at least one identifying characteristic of one or more further entities known to the or each said chosen entity, 
 recording the identifying characteristic of each further entity inputted by the or each said chosen entity to form further corresponding entity data records, 
 repeating the above steps of successive notification of further entities and recordal of the identifying characteristic of each further entity chosen as further entity data records, 
 providing searchable access to at least part of the entity data records stored in said database and to the internet. 
 
     
     
         81 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 80 , wherein said searchable access to an entity data record may be restricted by the entity to said user contacts. 
     
     
         82 . A search engine system as claimed in  claims 80  or  claim 81 , wherein said data input devices include computer terminals, PDAs, telephones, mobile phones, laptops, notebooks, any other portable personal computing device connectable to said network. 
     
     
         83 . A search engine system as claimed in  claim 82 , wherein said data input devices provide at least one of webpage, e-mail, text message, DTMF tone, voice or video access to the said host computer or between entities and/or web-browsing access to said host computer via a dedicated web-site interface. 
     
     
         84 . A method of creating a private personal contacts network for interaction with a search engine system as described above, said method including the steps performed by, a processor of a data processing and storage system, of:
 receiving input from the said user including at least one identifying characteristic of the user and at least one chosen entity known to said user and hereinafter referred to as a user contact recording said identifying characteristic of each user contact including the user to form at least one corresponding user contact data record in said database;   notifying the or each user contact of their recordal on said system and requesting input of at least one identifying characteristic of at least one further entity known to the user contact;   recording the identifying characteristic of each further entity inputted by the or each user contact to form further corresponding user contact data records;   repeating the above steps of successive notification of further entities and recordal of the identifying characteristic of each further entity chosen as further user contact data records;   providing searchable access to at least part of the user contact data records stored in said database.