Patent ID: 6236661
Filing Date: 2001-05-22
Classification: G06F,H04L

Abstract:
A method for reducing latency time for viewing documents stored in a wide area network of network server computers, in which latency time is from a time at which a request to view a given document is made until a later time that such document is presented for viewing, the method comprising the steps of:loading a transportable media into a first computer, the transportable media storing (i) a plurality of documents located on the wide area network, (ii) corresponding wide area network address identifications for said documents, and (iii) a time stamp;forming an on-line connection between the first computer and the wide area network;generating a command at the first computer to obtain a version date for a specific document stored on the wide area network, wherein said command is routed over the on-line connection to the wide area network;receiving the version date in response to the routed command;reading the time stamp for the specific document;comparing the returned version date for the specific document to the time stamp;displaying the specific document as stored on the transportable storage media;wherein the time stamp is one of a plurality of time stamps stored on the transportable storage media, wherein there is a time stamp for each of the plurality of documents; and wherein the step of reading comprises reading said one time stamp corresponding to said specific document;further comprising after the step of comparing, the steps of:downloading the specific document from the wide area network when the version date is more current than the time stamp for the specific document;displaying the specific document as downloaded from the wide area network either one of after or during the step of downloading; andeither one of after or during the step of downloading, comparing the downloaded document with the corresponding document as stored on the transportable storage media, and after the step of comparing the downloaded document, the step of displaying the specific document as downloaded from the wide area network when select content of the downloaded document differs from corresponding content in the corresponding document as stored on the transportable storage media.