Patent ID: 7472349

Claim:
The method of obtaining information via the Internet from each of a plurality of diverse data resources having different characteristics in response to a request from a requesting application program which comprises, in combination, the steps of: storing a separate service description for each given data resource in a database, said service description including: an Internet address to which an output information request directed to said given data resource may be transmitted, a specification of the nature of input information to be supplied by said requesting application program, and a description of the nature of output information to be returned to said requesting application program in response to said output information request, establishing an application program interface for accepting service requests in standard form from said requesting application program, issuing a service request from said requesting application program to said application program interface, said service request identifying a particular resource, and executing a service interface program in response to said service request, said service interface program performing the steps of: obtaining the particular service description for said particular resource from said database, obtaining input information conforming to said specification contained in said particular service description from said requesting application program, producing an information request message that includes said input information, transmitting said information request message to the Internet address included in said particular service description thereby supplying said input information to said particular resource, and routing output information provided by said particular resource in response to said information request to said requesting application program.