Internet browser zoom function

Abstract

Methods are described to preload and display a plurality of webpages from a hyperlink list either previously saved or returned by one or more search engines, where said webpages are displayed in a web browser. The web browser has been augmented to display multiple webpages simultaneously and to allow changing the number of webpages displayed and their physical arrangement within the web browser display. Hyperlinks associated with any portion of this plurality of webpages can be saved as a list of hyperlinks (group bookmark) for later retrieval. Preloading may be dynamically altered to take advantage of network bandwidth availability and processor non-saturation. Descendant webpages of preloaded webpages may also be preloaded to further speed performance. The zoom factor for a displayed webpage may be altered by clicking on a zoom icon or alternately rotating a mouse wheel while the cursor is held over the zoom icon.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for operating a zoom function on a web browser, comprising:
 presenting to a user an icon shown on a web browser display wherein said icon directly controls a zoom function (hereinafter zoom icon) for one or more selected webpages displayed in at least an active window of said web browser, wherein the zoom icon comprises:
 a zoom-in button; 
 a zoom-out button; 
 an appearance indicating a current zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages; 
   wherein a single selection of the zoom-in button on the zoom icon directly causes the web browser to perform both of the following actions:
 changing zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages to increase the zoom factor; 
 changing appearance of the zoom icon to indicate the current zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages; 
   wherein a single selection of the zoom-out button on the zoom icon directly causes the web browser to perform both of the following actions:
 changing zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages to reduce the zoom factor; and 
 changing appearance of the zoom icon to indicate the current zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages. 
   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein changing appearance of the zoom icon in response to a single selection of the zoom-in button further comprises changing appearance of the zoom icon to indicate an increased zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein changing appearance of the zoom icon in response to a single selection of the zoom-out button further comprises changing appearance of the zoom icon to indicate an decreased zoom factor for said one or more selected webpages. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the zoom icon is presented to the user by a software add-on to the web browser wherein said browser is capable of interacting with webpages found on the Internet and presenting to a user an active window displaying a webpage, and wherein the software add-on provides the zoom function. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein selection of the zoom icon is performed by a mouse click by a user on said zoom icon. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the web browser display comprises a plurality of webpages displayed simultaneously in separate windows within the web browser display, and wherein selection of the zoom icon by a user causes the zoom factor to change for one or more selected webpages of the plurality of webpages. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6  wherein the plurality of webpages within the web browser display are webpages from different websites having different domain URL locations. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6  wherein the plurality of webpages within the web browser display may be different from one another. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6  wherein the plurality of simultaneously displayed webpages are fully functional webpages, and any of said plurality of simultaneously displayed fully functional webpages may be operated on independently without altering the state of another of said plurality of simultaneously displayed fully functional webpages. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein selection of the zoom icon is performed by a user rotating a mouse wheel while a cursor is positioned over said zoom icon, and wherein the zoom factor for the one or more selected webpages changes in response to rotation of the mouse wheel while the cursor is positioned over said zoom icon, and
 wherein rotation of the mouse wheel controls up/down scrolling for one or more webpages while the cursor is positioned over said at least an active window and not over said zoom icon.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein rotation of the mouse wheel in a first direction while the cursor is positioned over said zoom icon causes an increase in the zoom factor for the one or more selected webpages, and wherein rotation of the mouse wheel in a second direction opposite the first direction while the cursor is positioned over said zoom icon causes an decrease in the zoom factor for the one or more selected webpages. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein rotation of the mouse wheel while the cursor is positioned over said zoom icon causes a change in the zoom factor by a set factor.