Patent ID: 6061738
Filing Date: 2000-05-09
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
A method for accessing network information using simplified network addressing, comprising the steps:a) providing a platform having network access and accepting inputs for accessing network information, wherein the platform providing step additionally includes providing a message aliasing function comprising: (i) intercepting operating system level messages sent to predetermined message receivers, the operating system providing an original callback function for each message receiver, (ii) creating a shadow callback function, and for saving, and then replacing, the original callback function with the shadow callback function the first time a message is intercepted for a predetermined message receiver, and (iii) creating and substituting an alias message in place of the intercepted message and for sending the alias message to the intended receiver of the intercepted message;b) accepting a simplified network address corresponding to a network address of the network information;c) converting the simplified network address to a URL defining the network address of the information, wherein the conversion is carried out by a network accessible database of correspondence relations, and further including the steps: (i) providing a network server-based database defining a correspondence relation between simplified network addresses and corresponding URLs, (ii) providing the database server with a search engine for searching the database and accepting a search key, (iii) organizing the database such that a search of the database using the simplified network address as the search key returns the corresponding URL, (iv) receiving the simplified network address, (v) forming a conversion request network access command including a copy of the received simplified network address, the formed command being addressed to the database server, (vi) sending the formed command to the database server, additionally comprising using the message aliasing function to intercept the simplified network address and to replace the simplified network address with the formed command using a copy of the simplified network address, (vii) the database server using the search engine to search the database using the received simplified network address as the search key, and (viii) the database server returning the corresponding URL portion of the matching correspondence relation, via the network, as the result of the conversion, wherein the database conversion is performed by a server-based system which receives the simplified network address as part of an http://network address command, locates a matching simplified network address in the database, and returns the corresponding URL;d) using the URL to form a network access command, ande) using the formed network access command to access the network information via the platform, wherein a simplified network address is inputted which is then converted to a command selected from the group consisting of http://URL/commands and TCP/IP commands, for retrieving the network information.