Patent ID: 7516164

Claim:
A data transfer method for use in a system including a first server computer, a second server computer, a first hand-held information terminal and a second hand-held information terminal, the method comprising the steps of: generating index information including (a) data identification information for identifying data stored in the first server computer and (b) an address of the first server computer on a network and transmitting the index information from the first server computer to the first hand-held information terminal, in response to an index information request from the first hand-held information terminal; receiving the index information from the first server computer at the first hand-held information terminal; transmitting the received index information, which includes the data identification information and the network address of the first server computer, from the first hand-held information terminal to the second hand-held information terminal; transmitting a request signal from the second hand-held information terminal to the first server computer in accordance with the first server computer network address in the index information, the request signal including the data identification information and an address of the second server computer on a network and the request signal requesting the first server computer to transmit the data stored in the first server computer to the second server computer; and establishing a connection between the first server computer and the second server computer using the network address of the second server computer in the request signal by the first server computer in response to reception of the request signal and transmitting the data identified by the data identification information in the request signal to the second server computer by the first server computer.