Patent ID: 7185095

Claim:
A network server connected to a terminal device via prescribed communication means, comprising: receiving means for receiving an authentication request including information for user authentication and information about terminal specification in response to said terminal device detecting insertion of a memory device storing said user authentication information, wherein said memory device is divided into areas designated by a memory map, one of said areas containing personal information relating to a user of the memory device and another of said areas containing each terminal information relating to a specific kind of said terminal device; recording means for recording said user authentication information in said server in association with said information about terminal specification for future communication with said terminal device associated with said information about terminal specification when said user authentication information is authenticated; transmission means for converting information to be transmitted to said terminal device into conformed information conformed to said terminal device based on said information about terminal specification, and transmitting said conformed information to said terminal device; and group forming means for forming a group of a plurality of users by producing a group ID in response to a group forming request transmitted by said terminal device, for recording an other terminal device into said group in response to receiving said group ID from said other terminal device, and for transmitting information sent from a user belonging to said group to another user belonging to said group.