System and method for web browsing

Abstract

A system and method for web browsing contemporaneously displays multiple web pages, advertisements, or other applications, preferably within a single window, for a user to view. In a preferred embodiment, a current web page, a past web page, a future web page, and/or an advertisement or other application are contemporaneously displayed in a single window. In this embodiment, the present invention tracks a past web page and renders it in a first panel, renders the current web page in a second panel, and identifies a hyperlink in the current web page to retrieve and render the future web page in a third panel. In other embodiments, a host provides a list of web pages that are to be displayed in the panels. In other embodiments, a user selects a list of web pages that are to be displayed in the panels. In other embodiments, hyperlinks are filtered and/or prioritized to determine which web pages are to be displayed in the panels. In this manner, the user contemporaneously views the current web page, the past page, and the future web page, or alternately, multiple web pages in the single window. Preferably, the present invention is implemented as a web browsing room in a three-dimensional space where walls of the rooms correspond to various ones of the aforementioned panels and a floor of which may be used to display advertisements or provide other applications. The user can view the web pages in the browsing room using various three-dimensional navigation techniques.

1 - 38 . (canceled) 
     
     
         39 . A method for browsing web pages with a computer that comprises a first display device and a second display device, the method comprising:
 in response to a user action, requesting, by the computer, first web page data from a source of web page data;   receiving, by the computer, said first web page data including a reference to second web page data;   locating, by the computer, said reference to said second web page data in said first web page data;   automatically requesting, by the computer, said second web page data using said reference;   receiving, by the computer, said second web page data;   rendering, by the computer using a plurality of instances of a web browsing engine, a first web page from said first web page data and a second web page from said second web page data;   presenting, by the computer, the first web page on the first display device in a first panel; and   presenting, by the computer, the second web page on the second display device in a second panel.   
     
     
         40 . The method of  claim 39 , wherein the first display device and the second display device comprise a tri-monitor. 
     
     
         41 . The method of  claim 39 , wherein the first display device provides a full screen view for the first panel and the second display device provides a full screen view for the second panel. 
     
     
         42 . The method of  claim 39 , wherein the computer further comprises a third display device, and wherein the method further comprises:
 locating, by the computer, a second reference to third web page data in said second web page data;   automatically requesting, by the computer, said third web page data using said second reference to third web page data;   receiving, by the computer, said third web page data;   rendering, by the computer, a third web page using said third web page data; and   presenting, by the computer, the third web page on the third display device in a third panel.   
     
     
         43 . The method of  claim 42 , wherein the first display device, the second display device, and the third display device comprise a tri-monitor. 
     
     
         44 . The method of  claim 39 , further comprising:
 requesting, by the computer, third web page data;   receiving, by the computer, said third web page data; and   rendering, by the computer, a third web page in said first panel from said third web page data.   
     
     
         45 . A method for browsing web pages with a computer that comprises at least one display device, the method comprising:
 in response to a user action, requesting, by the computer, first web page data from a source of web page data;   receiving, by the computer, said first web page data including a reference to second web page data;   locating, by the computer, said reference to said second web page data in said first web page data;   automatically requesting, by the computer, said second web page data using said reference;   receiving, by the computer, said second web page data; and   utilizing, by the computer, a plurality of instances of a web browsing engine to:
 render a first web page using said first web page data for presentation on the at least one display device in a first panel; and 
 render a second web page using said second web page data for presentation on the at least one display device in a second panel. 
   
     
     
         46 . The method of  claim 45 , wherein said at least one display device comprises a first display device and a second display device,
 wherein rendering the first web page using said first web page data for presentation on the at least one display device in the first panel comprises
 rendering the first web page on the first display device, and 
   wherein rendering the second web page using said second web page data for presentation on the at least one display device in the first panel comprises
 rendering the second web page on the second display device. 
   
     
     
         47 . The method of  claim 45 , wherein said at least one display device comprises a first display device and a second display device. 
     
     
         48 . The method of  claim 45 , wherein said at least one display device comprises a first display device, a second display device, and a third display device. 
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 45 , wherein said at least one display device comprises a tri-monitor. 
     
     
         50 . The method of  claim 45 , further comprising:
 presenting the first web page in the first panel; and   presenting the second web page in the second panel.   
     
     
         51 . The method of  claim 50 , wherein the first web page and the second web page are contemporaneously displayed. 
     
     
         52 . The method of  claim 50 , wherein the first web page and the second web page are contemporaneously displayed in a single window. 
     
     
         53 . The method of  claim 45 , further comprising rendering, by the computer, a third web page for presentation on the at least one display device in a third panel. 
     
     
         54 . The method of  claim 53 , wherein the plurality of instances of the web browsing engine comprises three instances of the web browsing engine. 
     
     
         55 . The method of  claim 45 , further comprising:
 locating, by the computer, a second reference to third web page data in said second web page data;   requesting, by the computer, said third web page data using said located second reference to third web page data; and   rendering, by the computer, a third web page in a third panel.   
     
     
         56 . A method for browsing web pages with a computer that comprises a first display device, a second display device, and a third display device, the method comprising:
 operating a web browser on the computer;   producing a first panel, a second panel, and a third panel;   displaying the first panel on the first display device with a current web page in the first panel;   while the first panel is displayed on the first display device with the current web page in the first panel, displaying the second panel on the second display device with a past web page in the second panel; and   displaying the third panel on the third display device with a future web page in the third panel, while the first panel is displayed on the first display device with the current web page in the first panel and while the second panel is displayed on the second display device with the past web page in the second panel.   
     
     
         57 . The method of  claim 56 , wherein said displaying the first panel on the first display device with the current web page and said displaying the second panel on the second display device with the past web page comprises
 the first display device and the second display device displaying different content.   
     
     
         58 . The method of  claim 56 , wherein operating the web browser on the computer comprises operating a plurality of instances of a web browser engine on the computer.