Patent ID: 8224801

Claim:
A data storage medium having computer program instructions encoded on it, where the computer program instructions are executable on a client computer that can be operated by a user and that can be connected to a network, and where the computer program instructions configure the client computer to carry out operations comprising: (a) displaying a first web page in a web browser window on a display screen associated with the client computer, where the first web page has been retrieved over the network from a web server at the direction of the user, and where the first web page includes a link to a second web page; (b) monitoring input, including monitoring input from a pointing device associated with the client computer for a selection action performed on the link to the second web page, and including monitoring input for an alternative selection action performed on the link to the second web page, where the alternative selection action includes use of the pointing device by the user, but is interpreted differently by the client computer than the selection action; (c) detecting that the user has performed the alternative selection action on the link to the second web page; and (d) in response to detecting that the user has performed the alternative selection action on the link to the second web page, retrieving information from the second web page over the network to the client computer, where the operation of retrieving information from the second web page is carried out without making the second web page visible on the display screen in a manner that allows the user to interact with links within the second web page; and (e) enabling the user to request that the client computer immediately display the second web page, where the user can perform the request by interacting with an object on the display screen that is different from the link to the second web page.