INFORMATION ACCESS SYSTEM

Abstract: For facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of entities via a computer network, a network server system allocates a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to each entity for which information is retrievable. Data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding entity is stored in the network server system. The network server system responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. By providing that the system both allocates the unique alphanumeric identifiers and administers the routing of information in response to queries from a client, reliable location of the information relating to an entity (e.g., a product, service, etc.) can be achieved. Moreover, the use of an alphanumeric identifier means that the identifier can be kept short. This in turn enables easy entry of the identifier and makes it easier to remember a particular identifier. The same unique alphanumeric identifier can be used as an e-mail address to facilitate the sending of an e-mail to at least one address associated with an entity.

Description: INFORMATION ACCESS SYSTEM Background of the Invention The present invention relates to an information access system. In particular, it relates to a system for accessing information over the Internet. More and more information is becoming available from networks, in particular from the Internet. However, gaining efficient access to this information is not easy, especially as the mass of data and information available continues to increase at a very rapid pace. The invention is concerned with facilitating access to information about entities, for example about purchasable products and services. In the light of this, there is a need to provide a user-friendly method and system for accessing information from the Internet. Various proposals have been made to address this problem. For example, US patents 5,193,210, 5,950,173 and 5,918,214 suggest the use of a Universal Product Code (UPC) as a key for accessing information about products labelled by the UPC. The UPC code is the coding system typically used for bar codes. However, such codes, if presented in human readable form, are typically not easily readable, and if they are, then they are not easy to remember, being a sequence of numbers. US patent 5,812,776 suggests the use of a telephone number as a descriptor for providing access to network services. However, the use of a telephone number suffers from at least some of the same disadvantages as the use of the UPC. Other examples of computer systems where identifiers are used for identifying entities are mentioned below. European patent application EP-A2-0-774-723 discloses a virtual file management system in which file identifiers incorporating specific (non-alphabet and non- numeric) characters are used. EP-A2-0-774-722 relates to a system and method for indexing, querying and retrieving information in an on-line multimedia publishing system, in which title layout and content are separated. WO- A 1-97/49044 discloses a system for extracting links from hypertext documents and assigning them numerical identifiers that can be used to cause the system to fetch an associated URL. WO-A2-96/42041 discloses a system in which a numerical telephone number is used to direct a browser to an associated URL. An article by J. Angel, published in Network, on 1 August 1999 and entitled "Directories and the Internet" (ISSN 1093-8001) discusses DNS servers relating generally to hierarchically structured domain names incorporating specific characters. An article by E. Bott, published on pages 308 and 309 of PC/Computing, Volume 10, Number 4 in April 1997 and entitled "Mastering Mailing Lists" discusses Internet mailing lists in which mail is received at a single address and forwarded on to a plurality of other addresses contained in a mailing list, the addresses incorporating specific characters and identifying hierarchically distributed "entities" to which information is sent. However, none of the prior art documents adequately facilitates access to information about entities, for example about purchasable products and services. Accordingly, there remains a need to provide a method of providing reliable access to network services and to information associated with entities available over, for example, the Internet. Summary of the Invention In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer- implemented method of facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable entities via a computer network. The method comprises: a network server system allocating a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each purchasable entity for which information is retrievable; recording, in the network server system, data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and the network server system responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. The references to purchasable entities relate to any entity such as a product or service that can be purchased using e-commerce techniques, for example by the Internet or the like. Each identifier is allocated to and is unique with respect to the purchasable entity, rather than being allocated to some part of a computer system. By providing an integrated system of allocating the unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers and administering the routing of information in response to queries from a client, reliable access to the information relating to a purchasable entity (e.g., a product, service, etc.) can be achieved. This performance of both functions by a network server system is in contradistinction to conventional systems, for example the UPC and telephone approaches, where the codes are allocated independently of a routing system for queries. The use of an alphanumeric-coded identifier means that an identifier can be kept short. This in turn enables easy entry of the identifier and makes it easier to remember a particular identifier. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the same unique alphanumeric-coded identifier can be used as at least one e-mail address to facilitate the sending of an e- mail to an address or addresses associated with a purchasable entity. Thus, where the network server system supports an Internet domain, the method can comprise: recording, in the network server system, data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to an e-mail address associated with the corresponding purchasable entity; and an e-mail router responding to an e-mail addressed to the unique alphanumeric coded identifier at the Internet domain to access said e-mail address associated with the corresponding purchasable entity for redirecting the e-mail thereto. Alternatively, or in addition embedded code can be held in a page at the network server that can be referenced by a client query that includes the unique alphanumeric- coded identifier as part of an address. The embedded code can be operable to query the data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored for redirecting the client query to the network location(s). The unique identifier can be provided with an extension code (e.g., a prefix or suffix) for defining a sub-set of information for the corresponding purchasable entity. In one example, the extension code defines an access to a purchase option (e.g. a web- page for placing an order) for the purchasable entity, whereby automatic ordering of a product or service represented by the unique alphanumeric-coded identifier can be effected. In a preferred example of the invention, the allocation of the unique alphanumeric- coded identifiers and the response to a query are effected by a single computer. These functions can, however, be performed by different computers forming part of the network server system. A subset of the data recorded in the server system can be exported to a customer system to enable queries to be effected at the customer system. A customer is an organisation that is registered with the network server system as having UAIDs. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program product for implementing the method of the invention. In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program product for controlling the operation of a customer system for facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable-entities via a computer network. The computer program product can include computer program code on a carrier medium, for example, a storage medium or a transmission medium. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a network server system connectable to a computer network, the server system comprising: a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier allocation mechanism operable to allocate a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each of a plurality of purchasable entities; a database operable to record data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to a corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and a query engine operable to respond to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a customer computer system connectable to a computer network, the customer computer system comprising: storage operable to record data linking each of at least a subset of unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers allocated in a server system, to at least one page supported at the customer system at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable-entity is stored; and a query engine operable to respond to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information for the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer network comprising a network server system as defined above and a client device comprising a query generator for effecting a query including a unique alphanumeric coded identifier for accessing information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to the unique alphanumeric coded identifier. The client device preferably supports a web browser. Brief Description of the Prior Art An exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described hereinafter, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like reference signs relate to like elements and in which: Figure 1 is a schematic overview of a network on which an embodiment of the invention may be implemented; Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional components of a server system for the network of Figure 1 ; Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a computer for implementing a server system of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a representation of a web page for the input of a query for the server system of Figure 2. Figure 5 is a flow diagram representing the operation of a unique identifier allocation sub-system of the server system of Figure 2; Figure 6 is a flow diagram representing the operation of a query sub-system of the server system of Figure 2; and Figure 7 is a flow diagram representing the operation of an e-mail sub-system of server system of Figure 2. Description of the Preferred Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention applied to an Internet-based system will be described in the following by way of example only. Figure 1 is a schematic overview of a network on which an embodiment of the invention may be implemented. In the specific example shown in Figure 1 , the network 10 is the Internet, although in other embodiments it may be formed by an intranet, or indeed any other type of telecommunications network. A first computer system 12 connected by a connection 13 to the Internet 10 forms a server system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. A further computer system 14, connected to the network 10 via a connection 15, forms a client computer system. Further computer systems 16 and 18, connected to the network 10 via respective connections 17 and 19, form customer computer systems on which data is stored relating to one or more entities of potential interest to a client at the client computer system 14. It will be appreciated that Figure 1 is merely schematic and that in practice many customer and client computer systems may be connected to the network 10. Also, as will be explained later, the server system may be implemented on one, or more than one, computer connected via one, or more than one, connection to the network 10. Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional components of a server system 20 for the network of Figure 1. Various of the functional components illustrated in Figure 2 could be implemented by respective software components on a single computer forming the first computer system 12 of Figure 1 , or by a network of computers forming the first computer system 12 of Figure 1 and connected to the network 10 by the connection 13, or by a plurality of computer systems such as the first computer system 12, each connected to the network 10 via a respective connection 13. As shown in Figure 2, the server system 20 includes a database 21. a network gateway (NG) 28, an Identifier Allocation Mechanism 22, a Query Engine (QE) 24 and an E- mail Server Sub-system (ESS) 26. The database 21 contains data identifying relationships between Unique Alphanumeric-encoded IDentifiers (UAIDs), each UAID being allocated uniquely by the server system to identify a respective entity, and corresponding locations on the network at which data relating to the respective entities are to be found. The Identifier Allocation Mechanism 22 is responsive to requests for identifiers from customers to allocate unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers for entities. The Query Engine 24 is responsive to a query request from a client computer system 14, which query request includes a UAID, to query the database for the location or locations identified in the database 21 as being associated with the UAID, and with the entity identified by the UAID. The query engine provides information to the client, in the preferred embodiment by means of a redirect command, to enable the client to access the data relating the entity identified by the UAID at the location identified in the database 21. As an alternative to querying the database 21 , the query engine could be provided with a copy 25 of the appropriate content of the database 21 to enable the queries to be effected. The copy 25 of relevant content of the database 21 is updated at an appropriate frequency, depending on the system usage and the frequency with which the underlying database is updated, for example as a result of new UAIDs being created. The query can be received in different formats. For example a query could be accepted in the format www.xxxx.yyyy.com, where xxxx is a UAID held in the database and yyyy.com or the like is the domain name for the server system 20. To handle this addressing mode, an entry at a DNS level will point to a page at yyyy.com. A query could be accepted in the format www.yyyy.com/xxxx, where xxxx is a UAID held in the database and yyyy.com or the like is the domain name for the server system 20. This addressing mode does not require a DNS entry other than that required for the domain name yyyy.com itself. What happens here is that within a folder called, in this instance, "xxxx", a default page (also called the home page, or index page) contains a script that issues a query to the database 21. The query string would include the UAID as an argument - in this case "xxxx". When someone enters the URL www.yyyy.com/xxxx, the default page in the folder is fetched, causing the embedded script to send a query (including the "xxxx" argument) to the database 21. The result of this query is the web address of the underlying product information in conjunction with a redirect command. The browser would then be redirected to this address and the user would thus end up on the product information web page for the specified UAID. The advantage of this method over hard-coding in the default page a redirection to the URL of the product information, is that in the event of a change of address (due, say, to a website redesign), a single change entered into the IPID database is sufficient to update the whole system. A hard-coded version could be used but this would require two changes to be made for each change in the details of the redirection, with the consequence of potential errors creeping in, one of the changes being overlooked etc. The first change would be in the hard-coded default page and the second in the IPID database. The E-mail server sub-system 26 includes an e-mail Router that enables the server system to be responsive to a received e-mail having an address of the form or the like, where xxxx is a UAID held in the database and yyyy.com or the like is the domain name for the server system 20. The E-mail Router accesses the database 21 to generate an e-mail address applicable for the entity identified by the UAID and to effect rerouting of the e-mail to that address. As an alternative to accessing the database 21 , the E-mail Router 26 could be provided with a copy 27 of the relevant content of the database 21 to enable the routing of the e-mail to be effected. The copy 27 of relevant content of the database 21 is updated at an appropriate frequency, depending on the system usage and the frequency with which the database is updated, for example as a result of new UAIDs being created. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the components of the server system 20 shown in Figure 2 are implemented by means of respective computer program products on a single computer. However, as mentioned above, in other embodiments of the invention, other implementations can be envisaged. Figure 3 is schematic block diagram illustrating an exemplary configuration of a computer for implementing a server system of Figure 2. As shown in Figure 3, the computer includes a bus 30 to which a number of units are connected. A processor (CPU) 32 is connected to the bus 30. Read only memory 34 and random access memory 36 are also connected to the bus 30. A display adapter 37 connects the display 38 to the bus 30. A communications interface 39, for example a network interface and/or a telephonic interface such as a modem, ISDN or optical interface, enables the computer 12 to be connected via the connection 13 to the network 10. Optionally, an input device interface 40 connects one or more input devices, for example a keyboard 41 and a mouse 42, to the bus 30. A storage interface 43 enables access to one or more hard disks 44. An optical drive interface 45 provides access to one or more CD ROMs, DVDs 46 or the like, and a floppy drive interface 47 provides access to one or more floppy disk drives 48. Optionally, a printer interface 49 also connects a printer 50 to the bus 30. It will be appreciated that one or more of the components illustrated in Figure 3 may be omitted and/or additional components may be provided, as required for a particular implementation. There now follows a more detailed description of an embodiment of the invention and the operation thereof. A UAID (in a preferred embodiment termed an Internet Product IDentifier (IPID)) in accordance with the invention is an alphanumeric code (possibly with other keyboard symbols too) that acts as a unique index or key to an entity. Entities may take a huge variety of forms. In a most common aspect, an entity may be a product or a component, but it could more generally be a service, a place, a geographical feature, an item of knowledge, or indeed virtually anything. In a system in accordance with the invention, a UAID is allocated by the server system 20. The server system 20 is able to ensure the uniqueness of the UAID before it is allocated by interrogating the database of UAIDs already allocated. By the use of an alphanumeric encoding, UAIDs can be kept short so that they may be presented concisely and be readily remembered. All UAIDs already allocated are held in the database 21 maintained by the server system 20. The server system can readily be accessed via a web page at the server system (e.g., at a domain such as IPID.com). The database 21 stores network (web) addresses of data or information that can then be accessed by means of the UAID, as well as other items of information such as keyword descriptions, logging data, accounting data and associated e-mail addresses. The web addresses stored in this database may include bookmarks. These are standard in web addresses and define a specific place in a given web page. They are useful when pages are too long to fit on a screen and provide a means of directing a browser to somewhere other than the top of a page, which is what happens when no bookmark is specified. These bookmarks are recorded and defined in the appropriate markup language (e.g. HTML) code within a web page description. In an embodiment of the invention, only upper case alpha characters are used, although lower case alpha characters could also be used. As mentioned above the UAIDs are exclusively issued, controlled and allocated by the server system 20. The UAID can then be used as a convenient method for defining a web address: the record indexed by the UAID is uniquely specified by the UAID, and any web addresses stored in this record can be fetched using standard database processes. As also mentioned above, a standard web redirect operation can be used to permit a browser to display these web pages automatically. Because the UAID can consist of any combination of alpha and/or numeric characters 36 possibilities per character (for example assuming using only upper or only lower case alphas and numeric keyboard characters are used) can be provided. It thus forms a very compact method of addressing. Four characters allow 1.6 million addresses, five characters allow 60.4 million, six characters allow 2.1 billion addresses, and so on. The alphanumeric code is encoded, for example in ASCII, in the computer system, to preserve the full range of options covered by such a coding. In an embodiment of the invention, the UAID can also double as an e-mail address. Such an address takes the form xxxx@yyyy.com where xxxx is the UAID and yyyy is the domain name of the server system 20. Any e-mails sent to this address can then be forwarded to e-mail addresses associated with the UAID. These e-mail addresses are recorded in the database record that is uniquely identified by the UAID. In this way, the UAID e-mail address can act as an alias for a second e-mail address. The benefit of this system is best shown by example. If UAID C45T is assigned to a product such as a spectrometer, and the manufacturer makes use of the e-mail forwarding facility and requests that e-mails about the product are sent to joebloggs@manufacturer.co.uk, the server system (say IPID.com) can be programmed to forward automatically e-mails sent to C45T@IPID.com on to joebloggs@manufacturer.co.uk. The UAID is thus acting both as a sufficient identifier of a record in a database providing redirection facilities AND as an e-mail address. With an embodiment of the invention it is intended that the controlling company of the server system is the only body authorized to issue UAIDs. There may be commercial reasons for wishing to license the issuance process to third parties, but ultimate control over the process still remains with the controlling company. It would be possible for third parties to act as agents for the controlling company, along the lines of affiliate marketing programs in which the third party earns commission for sales of new UAIDs and either has an order entry form included somewhere in their own website, or has a link to an ordering page of the server system 20 on their site. Alternatively, the server system 20 could issue in advance a block of UAIDs for sale to customers by the third party. A commission or agency discounting pricing structure could reward third parties for their sales. Accordingly, the source of the order is recorded in a data field that is passed to the server system 20 for the order to be processed. However, in each case, it would be necessary for the new UAID to be registered with the server system 20. Until a new UAID has been registered or recorded with the server system 20, and the server system 20 has confirmed the uniqueness of the UAID and has recorded appropriate information in the database 21, the UAID is not operative. It will be appreciated that the underlying web addresses and e-mail forwarding addresses may change with time: a manufacturer may change the location of product information for example. This would require updating the details in the database. It is envisaged that specific UAIDs may rented out for short periods only. In this, certain very memorably UAIDs such as "00" or "Al" can be rented to advertisers for a limited time only. This could enable them to be able to get their target audience to find out more about whatever it is that they are advertising by going to the server system 20 (e.g., IPID.com) and entering "00" etc. This UAID could be allocated to a different advertisement a few months later after a dormant quarantine period. An appropriate charging level for such high premium UAIDs may be charged. Thus this introduces the possibility that a UAID, although uniquely associated with a given entity at any one time, may be allocated to a different entity at a different time. There is no reason in principle why two UAIDs should not refer to the same network address, which means that there can be no guarantee that the data stored in each record within the database will be different. However, this will still mean that at any one time a UAID is uniquely identified with an entity, it is just that two such UAIDs may relate to the same entity. A further development of the e-mail routing described above is that e-mails may be extension (prefix or suffix) encoded to allow messages to be sent to different locations according to the code added to an e-mail address. An extension code (e.g., a prefix or suffix code) is a character or set of characters that can be added to a UAID to make the database look-up process more specific or to set in place other automated system processes. The UAID refers uniquely to a record in a database. Certain extension codes (e.g., prefix or suffix) added to the UAID can used to refer specifically to fields within this record. So, for example, if R45T is provided as a UAID, R45T# can be used to refer to a specific field within the record defined by R45T. For example, if a UAID is allocated to a physical product and is used fetch information online about that product, R45T may fetch the web address of the product's "home page", and R45T# may fetch the web address of a page containing other information about the product, for example its specification. Examples of possible extension codes are: + Online ordering page Λ Manufacturer's home page ! Warranty information page ? Product instructions page [ Product applications information # Product specifications page * New models / notes / enhancements page % Selling information page & Accessories page $ Current pricing < Feedback page I Customer registration page { Frequently asked questions Contact details page ~ Maintenance/cleaning/servicing advice page / Advertisement coding Of course, additional extension codes could be provided, and/or different extension codes may be used. The allocation of UAIDs could be dependent on the type of entity (e.g. different categories of UAIDs could be used for products and services). Alternatively, a record field in the database could identify the type of entity. A suffix code "/" is provided for to perform a distinct data logging function although in principle any specific character would do. When the server system 20 detects the suffix code "/" some or all the following information, and possibly further information, can be recorded in a file, namely: time, date, source of enquiry, UAID and also whatever follows the "/" symbol. This enables codes after the "/" to be used to refer to specific advertisements and enable monitoring of the effectiveness of certain advertising campaigns. Advertisers can print on their advertisements the UAID that takes the browser to the underlying information, but would also include the suffix and a short code following this. This code might depend on the media used to advertise in. So for example, an advertisement in a given newspaper for the product with an UAID R45T might state "For more information, see R45T/2 @ yyyy.com." The interested consumer would enter R45T/2 on the server system web site, and the server system 20 would essentially record along with standard logging information, that the source of the enquiry was given the code 2. The advertiser would know that enquiries coded with a 2 corresponded to those produced by the advertisement in that newspaper. The suffix is then stripped from the data to leave just the UAID that is then used in the normal way to find the web address of the information sought. It is envisaged that prefix and/or suffix codes are provided as appropriate, e.g. #R45T or #R45T/12. The server system 20 website provides a data input screen, an underlying database system and various peripheral but commercially important web pages such an online UAID ordering pages. Table 1 below is an example of the information that can be held at the server system database 21. It should be noted that some or all of the information may be held in the server system database or indeed that other information may be stored instead or as well as the information shown in Table 1. TABLE 1 FIELD NAME FIELD DESCRIPTION NOTES UAID Unique Record Identified Alphanumeric primary key Entity details Name Name of entity Description Description of entity Model type/number Secondary description Generic entity descriptor Generic type of entity i e Product or Service etc Keywords Keywords relevant to entity for search purposes Category Generic category entity falls into e g instrumentation Web page addresses Default Default or main page address for entity Default page home page Address of manufacturer's home page or suppliers, etc ordering On line ordering address warranty Warranty information address instructions Instructions address specifications Specifications address FAQ Frequently asked questions address pricing Pricing information address feedback Address of page for providing feedback applications Address of information about applications new Address of information about new models, etc selling Address of information to aid selling process accessories Address of information about accessories, etc contact Address of contact information registration Address of a customer registration page maintenance Maintenance/cleaning information address other etc Other address emaiH E-mail forwarding address 1 emaιl2 E-mail forwarding address 2 emaιl_other etc E-mail forwarding address 3 etc Logging information Number of accesses Record number of times record accessed other_detaιls Other logging records Status details E-mail Indicates whether e-mail forwarding active Payment Indicates whether any payments are overdue Issue date Date of original issue of IPID Issue time Time of original issue of IPID Expiry date Date when IPID will expire unless renewed Live Indicates if operation suspended Advertisement coding Indicates if advertisement coding active Enquiry logging Indicates if enquiry logging is active Other Other status data Administration information Customer number Key to file containing customer information Links to customer file Other Other administration information The data for each UAID may be stored using any appropriate storage methodology. , for example in a simple table, or by means of a linear or hierarchical linked list, or indeed in any other suitable form. Access to the data for a particular UAID is effected by using the UAID as an address, either directly or indirectly. Figure 4 is a schematic representation of an example of a server system website home page 60. This includes a first data input field referred to as the primary input field 62. which is where people enter a desired UAID. This can be displayed at a client computer system in response to the client user accessing the webpage using a conventional browser. Once an UAID is entered in the primary input field, a query is sent to the server system 20, where the query engine 24 is responsive to the query to access address information (e.g., a Universal Resource Locator (or URL) for the Internet) from a record addressable by means of the UAID in the database 21. The addressing information is returned to the client computer system to enable the client's browser to be redirected to a new web page at which the data relating to the entity identified by the UAID is to be found. A second input field 64 can be provided in the form of a menu (e.g., a drop down menu, radio buttons, etc.) This lists applicable extension codes (possibly with the exception of an extension code used for advertisement coding), and acts both as a guide to codes available and as a means of adding a suffix code automatically. Suffix codes can be added by means of the menu or alternatively by directly entering them (e.g., typing them) in the primary input field. In the event of a conflict between the suffix code selected from the menu and a code entered in the primary input field, the code in the primary input field takes precedence in the present example, although of course this need not be the case in other examples. It is to be noted that the design of the home page may vary. Also different approaches may be employed for the entry of extension codes. Indeed, it is not necessary that a conventional web page be used as the input tool. For example. UAIDs could be entered using alphanumeric keying on, for example a mobile telecommunications device such as a mobile telephone, where a web page is not actually displayed, but where a data input field is provided to the client user. Indeed, although in the above description, reference is made above to a client computer, in fact the client device could be any device capable of network (e.g., Internet) access. In addition to providing access via the server system 20, UAIDs can be used to access desired information when at other sites, subject to the necessary mechanisms being provided. Thus, for example, a micro-page, or input field, could be provided on a customer site with underlying control logic for implementing UAID processing being provided. Thus, a special input field can be added to third party customer websites to allow clients to access the UAID database via the customer website. In this case, an input field is displayed on the third party customer web page together with a submit button or hotspot. When a client enters an UAID into this field, with or without an extension (prefix/suffix) code, and clicks on the submit button or hotspot or otherwise instigates an operation, the server system 20 can receive a query from the customer website to look up the UAID in the database 21 and to issue an appropriate redirect instruction to the browser or web-access device. A code can be passed to the server system 20 from the customer system to enable recording of the origin of the query. Such an arrangement enables third party customer web sites to offer the UAID service and for the server system 20 to monitor usage by these sites for commercial reasons. As an alternative to this arrangement, relevant parts of the information from the database 21 may be sold or rented to such a customer system. For example, relevant extracts from the database 21 relating to UAIDs and the associate information for entities (e.g., products) of that customer could be provided to the customer to enable internal forwarding of UAID queries. In such a case, only the local addressing information needs to be held on the customer system. The concept of a micro-page has been mentioned above. This forms a minimum input page for UAID look up. It consists of an input field and a submit button or hotspot. This can enable a window in which it is displayed to be reduced in size and thus occupy only a small amount of screen area. There are advantages in such an approach. In the first case, it can sit discreetly on a screen whilst the rest of the area is used for other purposes. This can be useful in a retail environment where the retailer may want a logo or similar occupying the main part of the screen. Also, it can be used on Internet access systems that only have a small display such as mobile phones or personal organisers. In a preferred embodiment of the invention for use on the Internet, database processes are implemented on the server system web site using Active Server Pages (ASP), which are based on Visual Basic, although other approaches could be employed. Active Server Pages allow mark-up language (e.g. HTML) code to be created dynamically on request. This allows control as to the data that is sent to a browser or web-access device when a particular page is requested. A trivial example might be that it is desired to display the time on the page when it is requested. This cannot be achieved by "hard coding" the time into the page markup language because the time will not be updated. With ASP it is possible to define a command to "Print the time" at a particular location in the page, which causes the VisualBasic code to fetch the time from the computer system, and insert the value found into the markup language code before it is sent to the client Active Server Pages are called from the server in the same way as are normal web pages with the distinction that they usually have the file type or extension ".asp" in the name. These pages are then processed by the server before sending markup language data etc. back to the browser. This allows the output to the browser to depend on automatic processes, including database processes. A request for an UAID look up calls an ASP page that first runs a database query to see if the UAID refers to a record in the redirection database. If it finds such a record, the appropriate fields are returned to the ASP for further processing. In particular, web addresses will be fetched from the record and then incorporated into a RESPONSE. REDIRECT statement that is then sent to the browser. This causes the browser to load the web page indicated in the RESPONSE. REDIRECT statement. The ASP incorporates the code that parses the request, performs the logging, database processes etc. The code of the ASP itself is not sent to the browser. Only the output of the code is sent, which means that some limited degree of protection over the source code is available. In addition to the major processes discussed below, other data processing functions will be performed. These will include database update processes, accounting processes, data integrity checks and backup processes etc. These do not have to be performed using ASP. Any reasonable technique operable on the server system can perform these functions, although ASP may be used. These processes are not relevant to an understanding of the present invention and are accordingly not described in more detail herein. Figure 5 is a flow diagram representing the operation of a unique identifier allocation sub-system of the server system of Figure 2. Figure 5 illustrates two methods of allocating a UAID. In a first method 70, a new UAID can be called off sequentially or in some other order and allocated. In a second method 80, a specific IPID can be requested that can be checked for uniqueness and, if acceptable, can then be allocated. The allocation process involves reserving the UAID for a specific use and creating a record in the server system database 21. This record is then uniquely addressed by the UAID concerned and is used to store web addresses of information pages, e-mail addresses and keywords etc. that are to be linked with the UAID. In the first method 70, in step 71, a request is received by phone, fax, e-mail, post etc. or directly via an order input screen on the server system web site with no UAID being indicated. The information on the order form is entered into an order processing system. In step 72, a next available UAID is fetched from a table or from some other allocation mechanism. In step 73, a check for uniqueness is made by reference to the database 21. If the uniqueness test is passed (i.e. the UAID is not found in the database) then in step 74 a record is created in the database 21 with fields taking on specific values or default values if specific values are not specified. In step 75, the requestor is notified that that the UAID has been allocated and a billing process to charge the customer is initiated, if applicable. In the second method 80, in step 81, a request is received by phone, fax, e-mail, post etc. or directly via an order input screen on the server system web site with a preferred UAID being indicated. The information on the order form is entered into an order processing system. In step 82, a check for uniqueness is made by reference to the database 21. If the uniqueness test is passed (i.e. the UAID is not found in the database) then in step 83 a record is created in the database 21 with fields taking on specific values or default values if specific values are not specified. In step 84, the requestor is notified that that the UAID has been allocated and a billing process to charge the customer is initiated, if applicable. In both of the first and second methods described above, once a UAID has been allocated, the web addresses (URL's) of web information corresponding to the underlying product/service/concept etc. would be recorded in a record in the database. One of these fields becomes the default field whose value is fetched either if no suffix code is present, or if the page type requested by a specific code is not available. For example, if a code + is used to fetch an on line ordering page and no on line ordering facility existed for the product / service etc referred to by the UAID, then the default page would be fetched instead. Certain fields in this record can then be accessed using the suffix code system. Also, keywords about the product can be added to the database to permit searching facilities. Billing system applications also form part of the database. Charges can be made for set-up and monthly rental for a UAID. Preselected UAIDs and certain UAIDs can attract a higher charge that certain UAIDs and certain UAIDs can attract allocated by the system in the method of step 70. Figure 6 is a flow diagram representing the operation of a query sub-system 24 of the server system of Figure 2. The method 90 of querying the server system 20 includes the following steps. In step 91, a query request for identifying a web page giving information about an entity are made when a UAID is entered into an input field at a client system, either on the server system web site page, or on a third party web site page with a link to the server system. In principle, there may be other ways in which requests are received. The common element is that a UAID, with or without a suffix code, is received by the server system 20 for processing. Included in the request may be information about the source of the request. In step 92 any hidden codes, if provided, are evaluated to confirm the source of the query, which may involve challenge and response handshaking, and logging processes are run to log the source of the query, the UAID, any extension codes, advertisement codes, etc. In step 93 the query request is parsed to find the UAID to search for the record in the database 21 that is uniquely addressed by the UAID. If a record for the UAID is found, the record is fetched in its entirety, or in part, in step 94. In step 95, the query request is parsed to identify if any extension (suffix and/or prefix) codes were included in the request. In step 96, if no codes are received, the default information page is specified. The value in the appropriate field is then used as an address to send to the client's browser. Alternatively, if an extension code is supplied, the appropriate alternative information page is specified. The value in the appropriate field is then used as the address to send to the client's browser. Additional functions can be included as well. For example, one field in the IPID record will store data indicating that payments are up to date. This will act as a credit checking device. Also, in the event that an IPID is not found due to keyboard errors say, a special error message page will be displayed on the browser instead. As described above, a customer system, such as the systems 16 and 18 of Figure 1, could be allowed indirectly to use the functions of the query engine 24 of Figure 2, or even to incorporate a limited query engine with a subset of the data from the server system database (similar to the subset 25 of Figure 2). In the latter case, the subset would typically relate to the records for the UAIDs for the customer's own products. The processing performed by the limited query engine of the customer system would be generally as shown in Figure 6, except that the address information would relate to address information on the customer's own website and would provide the local addresses of pages within the customer ' s website. Figure 7 is a flow diagram representing the operation of an e-mail server sub-system of server system of Figure 2. As described above, the UAID can have a dual function. As well as acting as a short cut concise addressing system for the Internet, it can optionally also act as an e-mail address. For example, in step 101, e-mails can be sent to an address consisting of the server system domain and the standard e-mail format "@yyyy.com" or the like, where yyyy is the server system domain. For example, if IPID is the server system domain, then an e-mail may be sent for forwarding to one or more e-mail addresses associated with an entity having the UAID R45T to the address "R45T@IPID.com". The e-mail server subsystem 26 searches the database 21, or a subset 27 of the database information for the record identified by the UAID. If, in step 103, an entry is found, then the e-mail is automatically forwarded to a separate e-mail address retrieved from the server system database 21 in the record uniquely addressed by the UAID. Thus the UAID not only acts as a sufficient identifier of a record in this database, it also acts as a separate e-mail address in its own right. If no entry is found, a "not found" e-mail can be returned to the client which initiated the original e-mail. In step 104, the logging processes log information about each e-mail forwarding request. Figure 7 illustrates the use of a file 27 of the forwarding addresses, the file forming the aforementioned subset of the information from the database 21. Step 105 provides a step of updating the file 27 from the database 21 at regular intervals subject to the forwarding facility being activated. This can be on a UAID by UAID basis. As an extension to the e-mail forwarding process, extension codes can be (prefix or suffix) codes can be added to UAIDs when they are used as e-mail aliases to permit more sophisticated forwarding services to operate. In summary, the e-mail forwarding process works as follows. An incoming e-mail is received addressed to xxxx@IPID.com where xxxx is the UAID of the product/service etc to which the UAID has been assigned. The xxxx part of the address is identified and used to fetch the appropriate record in the server system database 21 or the subset 27 thereof. In this record, the field containing the forwarding e-mail address is fetched and used as a forwarding address for the incoming e-mail. The e-mail is then resent to this new address. The e-mail server sub-system may in practice use a copy of part of the IPID database to redirect e-mails rather than run a query over the main database every time an e-mail is received for forwarding. This copy would then be synchronized with the main database periodically. This can reduce the load on the database 21. The e-mail server subsystem and the query engine can be implemented on the same or different computers. Every time a request is made to the server system, to look up a UAID, a log entry can be made into a database to record time, date, UAID, extension code(s) and source and type of enquiry. This database can then be queried to find useful information about accesses made to server system by enquirers. Some of this information may have commercial value. It can also be used automatically to provide billing services. In the event that e-mail forwarding is not selected by a UAID subscriber/customer, a standard e-mail would be returned to the originating client stating that the e-mail functionality was not available for that UAID. When third parties use the server system resources, all requests for a search include a data string that uniquely identifies the source of the request. This can then be used by server system for commercial purposes. This data string is automatically added to the request. It is recorded as a "hidden" field (a standard web-page concept) and is passed to server system along with the contents of the input field. On receipt of a request from such a field, the server system validates the value of the query to check the source is both known and has sufficient authority to proceed, possibly by means of a challenge-response exchange, before processing the enquiry in the usual way. As an extension to the data entry/ordering process, keywords could be entered that describe the product service etc. This approach could be used to enable users to find products/services etc. by means other than the UAID. A further extension can provide a registration system that will let users define what product or service areas are of interest to them. This is to be used in conjunction with a section of the website that is devoted to new products and services. Information about a newly launched product for example can then be sent by e-mail directly to all registered users who have expressed an interest in the relevant product area. In the described embodiment, a computer implementation employing computer program code for storage on a data carrier or in memory can be used to control the operation of the processor of a computer. The computer program can be supplied on a suitable carrier medium, for example a storage medium such as solid state memory, magnetic, optical or magneto-optical disk or tape based media. Alternatively, it can be supplied on a transmission medium, for example a medium with a carrier such as a telephone, radio or optical channel. It will be appreciated that although particular embodiments of the invention have been described, many modifications/additions and/or substitutions may be made within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the particular example described is intended to be illustrative only, and not limitative. Thus, for example, although the described embodiment employs a computer program operating on a conventional computer, for example a conventional computer server, in other embodiments special purpose hardware could be used. For example, at least some of the functionality could be effected using special purpose circuits, for example a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A computer-implemented method of facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable entities via a computer network, the method comprising: a network server system allocating a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each purchasable entity for which information is retrievable; recording, in the network server system, data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and the network server system responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said network server system supports an Internet domain, the method comprising: recording, in the network server system, data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one e-mail address associated with the corresponding purchasable entity; and an e-mail router responding to an e-mail addressed to the unique alphanumeric coded identifier at the Internet domain to access said e-mail address(es) associated with the corresponding purchasable entity for forwarding the e-mail thereto. 3. A method according to claim 1 , wherein said network server system supports an Internet domain, the method comprising: recording in a page at the network server, which page is referenced by a client query- that includes the unique alphanumeric-coded identifier as part of an address, embedded code operable to query the data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored for redirecting the client query to the network location(s). 4. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the unique identifier is associated with an extension code for defining a sub-set of information for the corresponding purchasable entity. 5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the extension code defines an access to a purchase option for the purchasable entity for enabling ordering of a product or service represented by the unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 6. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the allocation of the unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers and the response to a query are effected by a single computer system. 7. A method according to any claims 1 to 5, wherein the allocation of the unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers and the response to a query are effected by different computer systems. 8. A method according to any preceding claim, comprising a step of exporting at least a subset of the linking data recorded in the server system to a customer system to enable queries to be effected at the customer system. 9. A method of controlling the operation of a customer system for facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable entities via a computer network, the method comprising: allocating a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each purchasable entity for which information is retrievable; recording data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 10. A computer program product for controlling the operation of a server system for facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable entities via a computer network, the computer program product comprising program code for: allocating a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each purchasable entity for which information is retrievable; recording data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 11. A computer program product according to claim 10. wherein said network server system supports an Internet domain, the computer program product comprising program code for: recording data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one e- mail address associated with the corresponding purchasable entity; and responding to an e-mail addressed to the unique alphanumeric coded identifier at the Internet domain to access said e-mail address(es) associated with the corresponding purchasable entity for forwarding the e-mail thereto. 12. A computer program product according to claim 10, wherein said network server system supports an Internet domain, the computer program product comprising program code for: providing in a page at the network server, which page is referenced by a client query that includes the unique alphanumeric-coded identifier as part of an address, embedded code operable to query the data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored for redirecting the client query to the network location(s). 13. A computer program product according to any of claims 10 to 12, wherein the unique identifier is associated with an extension code for defining a sub-set of information for the corresponding purchasable entity. 14. A computer program product according to claim 13, wherein the extension code defines an access to a purchase option for the purchasable entity for enabling ordering of a product or service represented by the unique alphanumeric identifier. 15. A computer program product according to any one of claims 10 to 14. wherein computer program product is operable on a single computer to allocate the unique alphanumeric identifiers and to respond to a query. 16. A computer program product according to any one of claims 10 to 14, wherein computer program product is operable on a plurality of computers to allocate the unique alphanumeric identifiers and to respond to a query. 17. A computer program product according to any one of claims 10 to 16, the computer program product comprising program code for exporting at least a subset of the linking data recorded in the server system to a customer system to enable queries to be effected at the customer system. 18. A computer program product for controlling the operation of a customer system for facilitating access to information relating to a plurality of purchasable entities via a computer network, the computer program product comprising program code for: recording data linking each of at least a subset of unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers, allocated in a server system according to the allocating step of any one of claims 1 to 8, to at least one page supported at the customer system at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and responding to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 19. A computer program product according to claim 18, wherein the unique identifier is associated with an extension code for defining a sub-set of information for the corresponding purchasable entity. 20. A computer program product according to any one of claims 10 to 19 comprising computer program code on a carrier medium. 21. A computer program product according to claim 20, wherein the carrier medium is a storage medium. 22. A computer program product according to claim 20, wherein the carrier medium is a transmission medium. 23. A network server system connectable to a computer network, the server system comprising: a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier allocation mechanism operable to allocate a unique alphanumeric-coded identifier comprising alpha and/or numeric characters to each of a plurality of purchasable entities; a database operable to record data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to a corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and a query engine operable to respond to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 24. A network server system according to claim 23 that supports an Internet domain, wherein: the database records data linking each unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to at least one e-mail address associated with the corresponding purchasable entity; and the network server system comprises an e-mail router operable to respond to an e-mail addressed to the unique alphanumeric coded identifier at the Internet domain to access said e-mail address(es) associated with the corresponding purchasable entity for forwarding the e-mail thereto. 25. A network server system according to claim 23 that supports an Internet domain, wherein said network server system supports an Internet domain and is operable to provide in a page at the network server, which page is referenced by a client query that includes the unique alphanumeric-coded identifier as part of an address, embedded code operable to query the data linking each unique alphanumeric- coded identifier to at least one network location at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored for redirecting the client query to the network location(s). 26. A network server system according to any of claims 23 to 25, wherein the unique identifier is associated with an extension code for defining sub-set of information for the corresponding purchasable entity. 27. A network server system according to claim 26, wherein the extension code defines an access to a purchase option for the purchasable entity for enabling ordering of a product or service represented by the unique alphanumeric identifier. 28. A network server system according to any one of claims 23 to 27, comprising a single computer operable to provide the allocation of the unique alphanumeric identifiers and the response to a query. 29. A network server system according to any one of claims 23 to 27, comprising a first computer operable to provide the allocation of the unique alphanumeric identifiers and a second computer operable to provide the response to a query. 30. A network server system according to any one of claims 23 to 29, operable to 5 export at least a subset of the linking data recorded in the server system to a customer system to enable queries to be effected at the customer system. 31. A customer computer system connectable to a computer network, the customer computer system comprising: 0 storage operable to record data linking each of at least a subset of unique alphanumeric-coded identifiers allocated in a server system by a method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, to at least one page supported at the customer system at which information relating to the corresponding purchasable entity is stored; and 5 a query engine operable to respond to a query from a client including a said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier to provide the client with the linking data for addressing the information relating to the purchasable entity corresponding to said unique alphanumeric-coded identifier. 0 32. A computer network comprising a network server system according to any one of claims 23 to 30, and a client device comprising a query generator for effecting a query including a unique alphanumeric coded identifier for accessing addressing data from the network server system for the purchasable entity corresponding to the unique 5 alphanumeric coded identifier. 33. A computer network according to claim 32, wherein the client device supports a web browser. 30 34. A computer network according to claim 32, wherein the client device is a computer system. 35. A computer network according to any one of claims 32 to 34, further comprising a customer computer system according to claim 31.

Inventors: CHARLWOOD WILLIAM ROBERT, CHARLWOOD, WILLIAM, ROBERT
Applicants: CHARLWOOD WILLIAM ROBERT, IPID COM LTD, CHARLWOOD, WILLIAM, ROBERT, IPID.COM LIMITED
Application year: 2000
Main classification: G06F17
IPC codes: G06F17, H04L29