Patent ID: 7072884

Claim:
A method of providing to a client computer product search results from a server computer in communication with the client computer, the method comprising: receiving at the server computer from the client computer a search request specifying a plurality of search parameters; determining at the server computer if one or more products in a database satisfy all of the plurality of search parameters; if one or more products in the database satisfy all of the plurality of search parameters, providing from the server computer to the client computer a hyperlink used to access information about the one or more products in the database satisfying all of the plurality of search parameters; if no products in the database satisfy all of the plurality of the search parameters, for each of one or more of the plurality of search parameters: providing from the server computer to the client computer for display on the client computer a number of products in the database satisfying at least the search parameter; and when one or more products in the database satisfy at least the search parameter, providing from the server computer to the client computer a hyperlink used to access information about the one or more products in the database satisfying at least the search parameter; and using an order in which the plurality of search parameters were specified in the search request when determining if one or more products in the database satisfy all of the plurality of search parameters, wherein the steps of providing a number of products in the database satisfying at least the search parameter and providing a hyperlink used to access information about the one or more products in the database satisfying at least the search parameter are performed using combinations of the plurality of search parameters formed using the order in which the plurality of search parameters were specified in the search request, and wherein the combinations of the plurality of search parameters are formed by successively adding each of the plurality of search parameters following the order in which the plurality of search parameters were specified in the search request.