JPH11338666A - Method for providing printable page and device distributing hard copy - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable tracking by generating a JAVA applet advertisement banner and distributing print contents by performing a process for formatting a printable page at a request from a user agent. SOLUTION: The user of a user system 14 transfers a request to a web page 20 through an IP network 16 by using a web browser 24. A web server 18 receives the request from the web browser 24 through the IP network 16 and packages and transfers a web page 26 and an applet 28 to the web browser according to the web page 20 and applet 22 stored on a host system 12. After the web page 26 and applet 28 are downloaded, the web browser 24 can display the web page 26 to the user of the user system 14 and execute the applet 28.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to web printing, and more specifically, to the distribution of printed information, such as product information and market collateral, or coupons from web advertising banners. And other forms of hard copy output delivery such as gift certificates, tickets, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The Internet, which was started in the late 1960's, is composed of a large number of small networks and a huge computer spread all over the world.
Network. The Internet has grown at an exponential rate, and millions of users, from individuals to businesses, are now connected or dialed in to access the world-wide, constantly updated Internet.
Connected up. Some computers or computer networks connected to the Internet are known as "hosts", and the databases to which they provide general access cover information on almost all disciplines. The entities that support such hosts can be as diverse as universities, government agencies, and many commercial organizations. Information on the Internet is provided for general use via a “server”. A server is a system that runs on a host on the Internet and makes available files and documents stored on the host. Such files are typically stored on a magnetic storage device located locally at the host, such as a tape drive or fixed disk. Internet servers can deliver information to computers requesting files on the host. The computer that issues such a request is called a “client”, and is, for example, a workstation or an electronic bulletin board system connected to the Internet, or a personal computer (PC) used at home.

[0003] TCP / IP (Transmission)
Control Protocol / Interne
t Protocol) is one of the network protocols that allows full use of the Internet. T
Every computer on a CP / IP network requires a unique ID code. That is, each of the computer and the host on the Internet is connected to the IP (Int)
(Ethernet Protocol) number or a unique number code known as an IP address. The IP address uniquely corresponds to the name of a network or a computer. In the past, Internet users could only access Internet resources by specifying a pass-through directory in a host computer or host storage device and searching for a request file. However, various navigation tools have come to assist in exploring resources on the Internet, and users have to
You no longer need to know the address. However,
These tools still require substantial technical knowledge of the Internet.

[0004] The World Wide Web (Web)
One way to access information on the Internet, without IP address or other technical knowledge
It enables intuitive guidance of users to Internet resources. The Web does not require a command line utility that requires a user to transfer a command set to communicate with an Internet server. Instead, the web is made up of hundreds or thousands of "pages" or documents interconnected, which can be displayed on a computer monitor. The web page is served by a host running a special server. The software running such a web server is relatively simple and available on a wide variety of computer platforms, including PCs. Similarly, client software known as a web "browser" is also available. Web browsers, like traditional non-web files on the client system,
Used to display web pages. Today, the number of Internet hosts serving as web servers is growing at a rate of over 300 each month, making it the preferred method of Internet communication.

Since its founding in 1991, the Web has adopted the concept of "hypertext" and the term "HTTP"
It is based on a transfer method known as text transfer protocol. HTTP was originally designed to run over TCP / IP, and uses standard Internet settings where a server publishes data and a client displays or processes it. One format for information transfer is to create a document using Hypertext Description Language (HTML). HTML
The page contains standard text, as well as format codes that dictate how the page should be displayed. A web client, or browser, reads such a code and displays the page.

[0006] Web pages may include images and sounds in addition to text. Connections to other pages, known as "hyperlinks" (or simply "links") are hidden behind text, images, or audio. The linked pages may be on the same server or on other computers in the Internet. For example, links may be visually displayed as words or phrases that are underlined or displayed in another color. Each link is a URL (UniformR)
It is directed to a web page using a special name called the resource locator. web·
The URL allows the browser to directly access any file held on any web server. Alternatively, the user can jump to another web page by writing the known URL directly to the command line on the web page.

The URL naming system has three parts: a transfer format, a host name of a machine holding a file, and a file path. An example of the URL is as follows.

Http://www.hp.com/peripherals/main.html Here, “http” indicates a transfer protocol. A colon and two forward slashes (: //) are used to separate transfer format and hostname. "Www
w. hp. “com” is the host name, and “www” indicates that the requested file is a web page. “/ Peripheral /” is a three-part directory name or a path on the host machine. “Main.html” is a file name, and includes an indication that the file is described in the HTML format.

[0009] The Web has been a successful means of communication between a central site connected to the Internet and individual users on the Internet who wish to communicate with the site. This communication is 2
Controlled by one program. One is a web browser running on the user's computer, and the other is a web server running on the site computer. The web browser forwards the transfer to the web server using the HTTP protocol. The request is MIME ("Multipurpose
Internet Mail Extension
s ". IETF RFC1341, 1342, 1521
) And sent back to the web browser. The MIME stream includes a content type header, which is data indicating how the web browser should handle the transmitted data. For example, the MIME type "text / html"
Indicates that the data is in Hypertext Description Language (HTML) format and should be interpreted according to that format. Also, the MIME type "image / gif"
Indicates that the data is a "gif" image file and that the data in the file should be represented as an image after unpacking.

[0010] Web servers typically service requests by returning files stored locally on the server or by running programs. The output of the service offering is sent back to the browser as a MIME stream. As mentioned above,
The web typically utilizes a hypertext format to display information to a user or to receive input from a user. With hypertext, the body of information can be organized into a hierarchical system. In a layered system, a user can follow details in a vast hierarchy by following various hypertext links that lead from one document to the next.
A typical system for displaying text in hypertext format (a web browser) displays a document in a form in which some words or phrases are highlighted.
The highlighted phrase indicates that other documents related to the phrase are in the system. If the person viewing the document selects one of the highlighted words or phrases, points and clicks with the pointing device, the next document associated with the word or phrase will be It is sent to the user's screen. The user can return to the original document at any time by selecting the "back" option on the viewing screen.

[0011] Information display of this type has been widely accepted on the Internet because of its simple operation. Users located at terminals on the network
Connect to a server on the network that has a "home page" in hypertext format. Then, the home page is displayed on the user's screen by the browser. When the user selects the highlighted word, the browser forwards the user's selection to the server in the form of a MIME data stream. In response, the server transfers the corresponding file over the network to the user's machine. The browser on the user's machine then displays this file to the user.

[0012] Even with conventional browsers, the user can enter text on the user's screen,
When the user selects a graphic element such as a "button", the input text is transferred to the server. Therefore,
Provided that the server is programmed to use such information, the user can exchange information with the server beyond predefined hypertext link information.

[0013] From the standpoint of a homepage provider on a server, the hypertext mode of an information organization is efficient. The homepage is described in HTML format. HTML is a word processing format that allows users to define pages in the manner that they do in a conventional word processor. In fact, programs for converting various conventional word processing formats to HTML are commercially available. For each phrase to provide a link, the user may describe the phrase with start and end "tags". In this way, the user can define another hypertext file containing the document to be displayed in response to the user selecting the phrase. Thus, a server program is as simple as a set of HTML documents created using a conventional word processing system and stored on the server.

If the interaction between the user and the server is basically a pre-defined, essentially static transfer of information, a simple "set document" mode will suffice. However, if the transfer information requires some form of processing prior to transfer, a simple hypertext engine may not be ideal. Consider an application in which a server must execute a program to collect and calculate data that forms part of the hypertext material to be returned to the user. In order to provide such a service, the server performs a specific calculation process specific to the application, that is, performs a predetermined calculation process, and generates a processing result in accordance with the format of a hypertext document distributed over a network. You have to keep the program. The HTTP protocol uses the common gateway interface (C
GI), which defines a general mechanism for processing programs as described above. Programs that use this mechanism are often called CGI programs.

With the above interaction between the web server and the web browser via the IP network,
A relatively simple and increasingly popular means for accessing remote information is provided. However, conventional navigation through information in a web page is a linear process. Web pages provide links that correspond one-to-one with other web pages and resources. Thus, one action (eg, a mouse click) performed within a web page can trigger one link that leads to another web page.

One way to enhance a web page is
The use of an executable program downloaded with the associated web page and executed by the web browser, attached to the web page. Such an executable program is generally called an applet, and is composed of a programming language executable by a web browser. Applets, once executed on a web browser, provide programmed functionality. For example, according to the JAVA programming language established by Sun Microsystems, to provide a means for creating a JAVA applet that can be pasted into a web page and enhance the functionality of the displayed web page. Can be. One example of a function generated by an applet is an image animation for generating an object that moves on a web page. Applets have also been used to create spots that can be executed in a web page, such that a graphic on the spot moves when the mouse pointer enters a predetermined target area. Other features generated by the applet include generating and displaying another window on top of the web page in response to a mouse click within the web page. Such a window can provide a menu bar on top of the window or provide options to the user within the window. However, this is not in the web page itself. Of course, there are many other functions that can be implemented by using applets in association with web pages. However, conventional web pages and applets do not modify the linear navigation process.

JAVA is a language with strong object orientation, similar to the grammar of the C language. Because Java compilers and runtime code mechanisms enforce type safety, they do not use wild pointers or other references that violate the language type system. Thus, for example, there is no "void *" and all casts are activated in real time.

[0018] The JAVA language is typically compiled into machine-independent byte code. And JA
The VA virtual machine interprets the byte code, and
Execute the A program. JAVA can be integrated into a web browser. In this case, as part of browsing the document, a set of JAVA byte codes can be downloaded line by line and executed on the client machine. Because JAVA is completely type-safe, client browsers can use JAVA without compromising the security and integrity of the client.
You can be confident that the A program is running safely. Regarding JAVA, "The JAVA Language" by Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Specification is described in more detail.

According to a script language system such as JAVA, it is possible to create a JAVA program which has excellent portability and is designed to be developed in various heterogeneous environments. Therefore, without any changes to the JAVA program, the JAVA program can be
RB (Object Request Broker)
It is hoped that s) can be used. Since the generated stub becomes a part of the JAVA program, the JAVA program and the associated stub may be any OR
The stub needs to be ORB independent, so that it can be used in B.

A more detailed technical background can be found in W.W. H. "DevelopingClient / Ser" written by Inmon
ver Application "(QED Publ
ising Group of Wellesley
M, 1993), "RPC fo" written by Guy Eddon.
r NT "(R & D Publicationsof
Lawrence KS, 1994), by Gordon Blair et al., "Object-Oriented Lang."
uage, System and Applicat
ions "(Halted Press of Ne)
w York, 1991), "Advanced Windows NT" by Jeffrey Rictor (Mic
software Press of Redmond W
A, 1994), "Le," written by Stefan R. Davis.
arn JAVA ++ Now "(Microsoft
Press of Redmond WA, 199
6), "HTML 3.2 and CGI Unleas", co-authored by John December and Mark Ginsberg.
hed "(Sams Publishing 199
6) and references included therein.

Advertisements are available on the Internet, especially WWW
Is becoming more and more important. However, depending on the current linear navigation process, the ad provider may have to provide some of the web pages in order to ultimately provide the potential consumer with the desired information. You must guide potential consumers through the layers. Some sites that are popular and frequently visited have advertising banners that are updated frequently. Prior to the present invention, it was common to click on a banner to take a web surfer to a commercial homepage. In other words, it was up to web surfers to be able to successfully guide them to find the appropriate information.

[0022]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for providing printable pages.

The present invention also relates to a print-enabled J
It is intended to provide a solution for generating AVA applets, advertising banners, distributing and tracking print content written in HTML (and CSS), and providing the best possible print output. I do.

[0024]

According to one aspect of the invention, a method for providing a printable page receives a hardcopy request for a printable page from a user agent. Retrieving information for generating a printable page; determining a type of user agent; formatting a printable page according to the type of user agent; enabling printing; Inserting the code into the printable page and sending the printable page to the user agent.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method for delivering a dynamically printable page to a web browser, comprising the steps of requesting a dynamically printable page; A first retrieval step for retrieving a template used to generate dynamic printable pages, a second retrieval step for retrieving dynamic information used to generate dynamic printable pages, and dynamic printing Placing dynamic information in a template to generate a printable page; formatting a dynamically printable page;
Delivering the dynamically printable page to a web browser.

Further in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for distributing a hardcopy from a hypermedia object, comprising: a request handler for validating and routing an appropriate hardcopy request; An HTML processor for extracting and formatting information for generation and a responder for transmitting a formatted hard copy.

First, a hardcopy request for a print-enabled page from a user agent is received. The information for generating a print-enabled page is then retrieved. The retrieved information is formatted based on the user agent. The code required to make it printable is then embedded in the print-enabled page. Finally, the print enablement page is sent to the user agent.

[0028]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described below. The present invention relates to JAV
A printable advertising banner with applet (banne
r: to generate headings, signs, distribute and track print content written in HTML (and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)) format, and to provide the best possible print output and user experience This is a solution in a broad sense. The print content is described in HTML format, and therefore, due to the limited capabilities of web browsers, HTML must be adapted to the selected or default printer. Currently, there are two types of printable content. One is the HTML content that does not change, and the other is the HTML content that can change from session to session or from user to user. In accordance with the present invention, to obtain high quality print content, web users and hosts need only get a single click (no need for click-through) request from a web advertisement. That is,
According to the present invention, literary print products, personal information, sales receipts, invoices, purchase orders and confirmations, barcodes, coupons, gift certificates, tickets, etc. can be directly web-based without the need to build a web site. Can be delivered. In addition, the end user's web browser, computer platform, operating system
Based on the capabilities of the system, the optimal method of delivering and presenting print content can be automatically selected. In addition, it is possible to measure and track incidental print distribution. It does not require any additional advertising agency development work beyond the development of creatives (hypermedia banners) and print content.

The present invention extends the technology to advertising banners (JAVA applets) and allows multiple print requests to be created with a single click from a single banner in a client-server architecture. This client-server architecture is extensible to support dynamically generated print content. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, print capabilities are distributed within web advertisements to support a wide range of printers. The implementation of the present invention includes order confirmation forms from e-commerce advertisements, product specification sheets, mail-in certificates and other market materials, dealer lists for cases where a real visit is required when making a purchase decision, etc. Includes prints such as store locations.

Here, reference is made to FIG. The figure shows the IP
FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of a web server 18 and a web browser 24 in an (Internet protocol) network 16. IP network 16 may be, for example, the public Internet or a private intranet. Further, the host system 12 and the user system 14 may communicate via the IP network 16 using the hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP).

[0031] Host system 12 and user system 14 may be, for example, a personal computer or a computer workstation, and generally include a data storage device, a memory device, a processor, and a display. A memory device in the host system 12 stores code for executing the web server 18,
The processor can do this. The data storage device in the host system 12 is a web page 20
Alternatively, the associated applet 22 and hypermedia object 56 can be stored. The web page 20 can be described in a hypertext description language (HTML) format. Also, the applet 22
It can be described in a translatable language such as AVA. Hypermedia object 56 is G
It can be configured in many formats, such as IF, JPEG, REAL VIDEO, MPEG, or ENLIVEN movie, and may require a dedicated server (not shown) for these objects. Like the host system 12, the memory device of the user system 14 stores the code as a web browser 24, which the processor can execute. The memory device of the user system 14 can store downloaded web pages 26, as well as associated applets 28 and hypermedia objects. The web browser 24 is a web browser that can accept applets and applet scripts.
6 can be displayed and the applet 28 can be executed.

In operation, a user of the user system 14 transmits a request for a web page 20 over the IP network 16 to the web browser 2.
4 can be used. The request may be, for example,
URL (uniform Reso) for page 20
source Locator). Web server 1
8 can receive requests from web browser 24 via IP network 16 and, in response, package web pages 26 and applets 28 and forward them to web browser 24. Web server 18 packages web pages 26 and applets 28 based on web pages 20 and applets 22 stored in host system 12.
After downloading the web page 26 and the applet 28, the web browser 24
Can display a web page 26 or run an applet 28 to other users. Applet 28
Need only be downloaded once and executed by the web browser 24. When a link is selected in web page 26, a request is sent to web server 18 via IP network 16 to allow the selected page to be forwarded. Execution of the applet 28 by the web browser 24 causes the web page 26
Function is improved. The applet can initiate a request for a URL based on interactive input from the user.

FIG. 2 shows a hypermedia advertisement banner 5.
2 illustrates a web page containing 0-52. FIG.
As shown, the display window generated by the web browser 24 is indicated generically by the reference numeral 30. The display window 30 can include a menu bar 32 and a plurality of buttons 34 that provide various functions of the web browser 24 to the user. The display window 30 may also include a location field 36 that provides a dual function of displaying the URL of the current location and user input of a new destination URL. According to the illustrated example, the web browser 24
The URL used to navigate the public Internet and indicated in the location field 36 is the URL of a page on the World Wide Web.
Further, the display window 30 displays the web browser 24
A status bar 38 that provides information about the operation of the device. The items in the menu bar 32 and the buttons 34 and the schematic layout of the display window 30 shown in FIG. 2 are features common to the Netscape Navigator which is a web browser provided by Netscape Communications.

Display window 30 includes a display of a web page, indicated by generic reference numeral 40. This displayed web page is based on the downloaded web page 26 and the associated applet 28,
It is generated by the web browser 24.
The display web page 40 provides the user of the web browser 24 with the information content accessed from the web server 18. The user generally makes an interactive input to the display window 30 or the display web page 40 using a pointing device (for example, a mouse). That is, the pointing device controls the position of the pointer 42 and allows the user to initiate an action (eg, via a mouse click). In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, as shown in each of FIGS.
Page 40 is a single interactive hypermedia JAVA
It includes a snapshot of the frame composed of the advertising banners 50, 51, 52 of the applet. This interactive hypermedia banner is made up of hypermedia objects 56, as shown in FIG. According to the present invention, if the web browser 24 detects that the mouse has clicked on the area 60 in FIG. 4, the page shown in FIG. 6 is printed on the printer 54. If the mouse is clicked in the area 61, the page shown in FIG. As can be seen with reference to FIG. 4, one or more types of print content can be requested from a single banner. In particular, the user may select a product sheet (see FIG. 6).
And a mail-in certificate (see FIG. 5).

FIGS. 5 and 6 are examples of pages containing information that does not change. The types of content delivered for printing include (1) non-changing content, (2) dynamically generated content such as an individualized brochure, and (3) secure content-ie, Non-reproducible content with monetary value,
There are three types. The system according to the invention is designed to provide the first two types of content instantly and to provide the third type of content where technically feasible.

The HTML code shown below relates to a page that does not change the content. The execution result of the HTML is as shown in FIG. HTML below
Contains a print enablement script, which is inserted by the HC server 53.

[0037]

[Table 1] <HTML> <HEAD> <!-*** Start of section inserted by Enliven / HardCopy ***-> <META http-equiv NAME = "Cache" CONTENT = "No-Cache"> < SCRIPT LANGUAGE = "VBScript"> <!-On Error Resume Next sub EnlivenPrint On Error Resume Next thebrowser.ExecWB 6, 1 end sub-> </ SCRIPT> <OBJECT ID = "thebrowser" WIDTH = 0 HEIGHT = 0 CLASSID = "CLSID: 8856F961-34OA-11DO-A96B-00C04FD705A2"> </ OBJECT> <SCRIPT LANGUAGE = "JAVAScript1.2"> function EnlivenPrint () {window.print ();} </ SCRIPT> <!-End of section inserted by Enliven / HardCopy-> <TITLE> HP720C Series Printers </ TITLE> <STYLE TYPE = "text / css"> .features {font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 12pt font-family: "times new roman"; font-variant: normal; font-style: normal;} .writeup {font-weight: normal; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 12pt; font-family: " times new roman "; font variant: normal; font-style: normal;} </ STYLE> <HEAD> <!-*** Start of section modified by Enliven / HardCopy ***-> <BODY BGCOLOR =" #ffffff "ONLOAD =" EnlivenPrint () "> <!- -End of section modified by Enliven / HardCopy-> <TABLE BORDER = 0 CELLSPACING = 0 CELLPADDING = 0 WIDTH = 590 ALIGN = CENTER> <!-DJ Image row-> <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP" COLSPAN = "4" ALIGN = "CENTER"> <IMG SRC = "hp720c.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "l55" VALIGN = "TOP"> &nbsp; <TD WIDTH = "40" VALIGN = "TOP"> &nbsp; <TD WIDTH "365" VALIGN = "TOP"> &nbsp; </ TR> <!-Heading and Content rows (Content uses tables within tables for layout)-> <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP" COLSPAN = "2"> <p> <B> Features </ B> <TD WIDTH = "40" VALIGN = "TOP" ALIGN = "CENTER" ROWSPAN = "9"> < IMG SRC = "border.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "365" VALIGN = "TOP" ROWSPAN = "9"> <p> <B> Looking for a high-performance printer that creates great-looking output every time? < / B> <P class = "writeup"> Then take a second look at the HP DeskJet 720C and 722C. They give you brilliant photo quality and speed on any paper.Exclusive HP photo resolution Enhancement technology II (PhotoRetII) delivers a smaller ink drop size and more shades of color for clear, vibrant, natural-looking results on any type of paper. <P class = "writeup"> HP ColorSmart II ensures perfect color every time by automatically adjusting color settings, so what you see on screen is what you get on paper.Effortlessly. <P class = "writeup" "> The HP DeskJet 720C and 722C both also get your printing done quickly-up to 8 pages per minute In black and 4 pages per minute in color. <P class =" writeup "> The HP DeskJet 720C series printers and specially designed for Microsoft &#174; Windows &#174; 3.1x, Windows95 and Windows NT 4.0 operating systems. <P class = "writeup"> With superior color on any type of paperand fast performance, the HP DeskJet 720C and 722C are the color printers that do it all. <P class = "writeup"> The HP DeskJet 722C Includes bonus software to help you with creative projects. * <P class = "writeup" ALIGN = "RIGHT"> * The DeskJet 722C is available in North America only. </ P> </ TR> <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Bril liant photo quality and performance on any paper with HP's industry-leading PhotoRetII technology <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Crisp, professional quality black text and vibrant color with HP's patented inks <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif" > <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Fast printing up to 8 pages per minute in black, 4 pages per minute in color <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Smallest Ink drop size which delivers fewer visible dots and more shades of color <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Quietest ink jet printer! <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "checkmark.gif"> <TD WIDTH = "155" VALIGN = "TOP"> <P class = "features"> Sleek , compact design which saves space <TR> <TD WIDTH = "30" VALIGN = "TOP"> <IMG SRC = "ch eckmark gif "> <TD WIDTH =" 155 "VALIGN =" TOP "> <P class =" features "> Supports Intel &#174; MMX &#8482; technology for faster color processing </ TABLE> <!-*** Start of section inserted by Enliven / HardCopy ***-> <SCRIPT LANGUAGE = "JAVAScript"> defaultStatus = status = "Close me." SetTimeout ('self.close ()', 30000); // WARNlNG: do not set this lower than 1000! </ SCRIPT> <!-End of section inserted by Enliven / HardCopy-> </ BODY> </ HTML>

The following HTML sample is an example of a receipt generated for a purchase made by a banner. Special tags indicating the information provided from the banner to the hardcopy server 53 are shown in bold.
Banners are the default source for insertable information, but tag encoding techniques can extend any number of name-value pairs (parameters) separated by ";". Other foreseeable tag parameters are SOURCE and STYLE. The SOURCE parameter references a URL or local content generator, such as an application that generates a barcode image. The STYLE parameter refers to a predefined CSS class.

[0039]

[Table 2] <HTML> <TITLE> 1-800-Flowers Receipt </ TITLE> <HEAD> <BODY> <H1> 1-800-Flowers sales receipt for <!-Enliven; FIELD = "CustomerName"- > </ H1> <p> Keep this receipt as for your records. <P> You have ordered <!-Enliven; FIELD) = "Quantity"-> of <!-Enliven; FIELD = "ProductName"- -> for a total of <!-Enliven; FIELD = "Total"->. <p> Your order confirmation number is <!-Enliven; FIELD = "Confirmation"->. <p> Thank you for your order. </ TABLE> </ BODY> </ HTML>

At the highest level, a more detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention follows. FIG. 7 shows a flowchart schematically illustrating the system according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, HTTP GET request, HT
TP POST request or 'window. It is assumed that a request such as an open () 'call in a JAVA script format is embedded. Such a request is transferred to the hard copy server 53, and the HT to be printed is returned as a return value.
Receive ML content. Hard copy of this embodiment
The server 53 and the web page 20 reside on one host web server, but need not necessarily be the same web server.

When the web browser 24 or the banner itself receives a mouse click (step 501), the '
It is determined whether print-from-a-banner 'has been clicked on the energized area or object (step 503). If the result of the determination is negative, the process proceeds to step 531 where other processing is performed for a mouse click. If 'print-f
If rom-a-banner 'has been clicked on the activated area or object, a request is sent to web server 18 via IP network 16 (step 505). Web server 18 forwards the request to hardcopy server 53 (step 507). In step 511, the HC server 53 reads the template or the content specified by the URL. Browser type (ie, H
Based on the “user agent” id) in the TTP GET request header (step 513), the HC server 53 sends the HTML, JAVA script and / or V
An appropriate combination of B scripts is automatically inserted (step 515). At this point, the HC server 53 also determines what is the best option for the current browser and platform. The response to the request, along with the appropriately prepared content, is sent to the browser 24 via the web server 18 and the IP network 16 (step 517).

The browser temporarily opens a new window containing the content to be printed (step 519). This is what is referred to as a "pop-up" window that closes itself after a timeout period of a few seconds-that is, enough time to start a print job on the user's computer. If the browser 24 can support automatic printing (step 521), a print confirmation dialog appears (step 523). To complete the print request, the user must click on either 'Yes' or 'No'. The click operation gives the user the opportunity to set printer properties or to select a non-default printer or fax. If the browser does not support the automatic print function (step 521), instructions for manually printing a new web page are displayed in a popup window or within the page itself (step 533). Not all browsers support pop-up features.

The system according to the invention is designed in such a way that future technological advances can also be modularized and incorporated into the system. In this client-server design, the task of selecting appropriate print content and optimizing delivery is performed independently of the client. In the system according to the present invention,
The high-quality print materials, the rules for automatically enabling printable content, and the technology for generating print requests from banners are each designed as independent entities, each of which can be used without affecting other features at any time. Can be changed.

As described briefly above, the HC server 53 automatically enables the print material based on the user agent id column. Among the various user agents (eg, web browsers) today, there are significant differences in the support and implementation of different types of web technologies. For example, there are significant differences in the way different web browsers output HTML and CSS to screens and printers. Due to platform differences, differences exist even in similar types of web browsers. There are significant differences between different web browsers with regard to JAVA script support. The HC server 53 arbitrates for all such restrictions.

The HC server 53 is a web server 18
(Hereinafter also referred to as an HTTP server)
Is on. The HC server 53 automatically injects the required print enablement code into the pages rendered according to the current HTML Document Type Definition (DTD) and CSS specifications. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, H
C server 53 can be a CGI or a module dynamically loaded during the web server process (NSAPI,
Or ISAPI). All actions performed by the HC server 53 are HTTP and HT
Performed in accordance with the latest W3C technical recommendations and technical reports on ML.

FIG. 8 illustrates the configuration of the HC server 53. As shown in the figure, the HC server 53 includes a request handler 601, an HTML processor and a print material builder (including processing of special field tags of real-time data) 602, and a user agent selection. Each module includes a rule 603, a print enabling rule 607, a request logger 605, an error handler 606, and a resbonder 604. The function of each module will be described below.

The request handler 601 sends an HTT from the banner.
Receive all requests issued to the P server. Then, the request handler 601 determines that the received request is
It is determined whether it is PGET or HTTP POST, and if the determination result is affirmative, the information included in the request for all other modules is decoded. If any errors occur during this process, the error handler 606 is called.

The HTML processor and print material builder 602 are the main functional blocks.
This module responds to the upcoming distribution by the responder module 604, and is written by an advertiser or advertising agent in HTML, CSS, GIF, JP
Process content 608 described in EG or XML or other defined format. As determined by the user agent selection rule 603, the request issued by the printable user agent is supplied in the form of a combination of JAVA script, VBS script and HTML, so that the request is once loaded into the web browser. Then, the HTML page can be automatically printed. Also, the HTML processor 602 may time out the JAVA necessary to close the window containing the print material.
Insert a script.

The content 608 is made printable by the HC server 53 using the best possible means. The printing methods and standards that are consistently available for all web browsers are not yet defined. Therefore, empirical data about each web browser version is used to determine the most reliable way that a print job can be initiated with minimal user interaction input and minimal visual elements. Need to collect.

There are several ways to submit a print job at a client user agent. One embodiment of submitting a print job is achieved by embedding a function call for a <BODY> tag in the HTML page to be printed. If supported, once the page is loaded, printing is triggered. This is
Implemented by calling the print job routine in the 'onload' event tag within the BODY> tag. Another embodiment for submitting a print job is print material (ie, H
At the end of TML file), JAVA script or V
Uploading a single pixel image with a call to the print routine described in the B script.

For print materials containing information that changes, field names, data sources, value data types, presentation
Techniques are provided for encoding rules in special tags used in templates to display information generated in real time. The field value is
Can be specified by the banner user and HC
It can also be provided by other sources available to server 53. HTML processor 602 determines the appropriate HT for each real-time field tag encountered.
Insert ML. Please refer to the following example of a dynamic page.

Support for the integration of dynamically determined (ie, real-time) content in the template should be implemented in the form of external modules added on a standard HC server 53. This means that custom code needed to support print content containing real-time or personal information should simply be added or referenced as a standard HC server 53 module. Means that Preferably, an approach should be taken that separates the requirement from having special knowledge of the corresponding module. If the information to be printed is provided by the banner user, the request must provide values for the fields defined in the template. If the information to be printed comes from a third source, the HC server 53 must have network or local access to the information or data generator.

[0053] Via the user agent selector 603, the user's web browser (ie, the user agent), based on the 'User-Agent' header element in the HTTP GET or POST request, (server component). ). Currently, Netscape 4. x and Microsoft
Internet Explorer 4. The web called x
Only the browser supports launching a print job directly from within an HTML page. Netscape4. x web browser supports JAVA script 1.2, but 'window. p
Print enabled by using the print () 'call. 3. Microsoft Internet Explorer compatible with 32-bit Windows x is a web browser called 'Web Brow
It is print enabled by using OLE to perform ser print command '. This is realized by a combination of a VB script and an <OBJECT> tag. This combination
Ignored in JAVA scripts. The HTML processor 602 cooperates with the user agent selector 603 to operate the Internet
Explorer version (and platform)
Provide the correct CLASSID corresponding to HTML
Print enablement routines generated by the processor will continue to drive future innovations and improvements in HTML and web browser scripting.

If the user agent selector 6
03 identifies the user agent as a non-printable browser, the HTML processor 602
Must issue a command to manually print the resulting HTML page. Depending on the capabilities of the web browser, these instructions are expressed in any of the following ways. An intermediate HT that redirects print content
In an ML page: In an intermediate HTML page that provides a link to load print content: In an HTML that loads print content in one frame and indicates a print request in another frame
Within the frameset: • The measurement and reporting of print material delivery in a popup window launched from within the window containing the content to be printed is an important part of the present invention. Request logger 605
Logs the following: The total number of print requests to date for each part of the content.The total number of print requests to date for each site.The content part with the highest number of requests for each site. It may include the total number of print distributions. The percentage delivered to the printable browser for the total number may be supplied. One skilled in the art will readily recognize that other statistical data can be logged and reported.

The responder module 604 sends processed print material (ie, H) to the requestor (ie, the client's user agent).
TML) is returned with the appropriate HTTP header. If an error occurs during processing, HTTP
HTT with 203 status code instead of header
A P error header is sent.

Now that the server has been described in detail,
The client is relatively easy to understand. In this embodiment, the client is a banner that has been made printable by inserting a hardcopy server request as described above. The banner can take the form of a Macromedia Director file or an image or video in GIF 89a format, but is not limited to such a multimedia format. One type of banner currently used is N
Trade name EN provided by arrative
LIVEN.

The clients are typically delivered to the host system by an advertisement rotation engine or an advertisement target engine known in the art. The client is embedded by any type of engine (as an HTML fragment) in an HTML page provided by the publisher web site to the user agent.

Although the banner can take a wide variety of forms, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the banner is A
This is a JAVA applet embedded by a PPPLE tag or an OBJECT tag. HTML that embeds the Enliven banner is a Java applet
scripting privileges "must be specified. For example, APPLE
Embed the "MAYSCRIPT" command in the T tag.

As described above, the 'print-from'
-A-banner 'is an HTTP GET request, HTT
P POST request or 'wi' of JAVA script
ndow. It has an embedded request associated with the active area, such as an open () 'call. This request is guided to the hard copy server 53, and the HTML content to be printed is returned as a return value. HTTP GET
For requests generated by a banner using the method, the file name of the source HTML is QUERY_STR
An ING environment variable, and a directory including the source HTML is a PATH_INFO environment variable. For example,
In the case of a banner for printing a coupon as shown in FIG. 5, the directory / hardcopy / hp722c / is stored in a host HTTP server (for example, som).
esserver. narrative. com) based on the document root. "coupo
n. html "(or a template if real-time data is included)
hardcopy / hp722c / coupon. ht
ml and is located in the host HTTP server. Also, all relevant image files are placed in this directory. Hardcopy server 53
(In this case, described as CGI) is / hard
copy / enlivehardcopy. It is placed in a path called cgi.

The button clicked to print the coupon on the banner is http: // somese
rver. narrative. com / hardco
py / enlivenhardcopy. cgi / hp
722c? coupon. html. When the user clicks on the relevant area, the browser simply requests the page.

Optimizing a print is different from optimizing a screen. The rules for determining what is best for each type of web browser are derived empirically. Some of the guidelines currently used to test print materials are listed below. The delay between the print content request and its response must be minimized or kept within the range expected by the general end user. Generally, the total file size of the content to be printed does not exceed a size that requires a download time of more than one minute. The parameters for this time limit are based on the average amount of throughput of typical commercial and home use networks.

The fidelity of the print material must be as close as possible to the real appearance of traditionally published brochures and coupons. The limitations of presentation and layout on the current web must be taken into account. The constraints associated with the time delay should be replaced with this requirement.

The quality of the print output is measured by comparing the visual quality to the best possible output by modern HP laser jet printers and HP desk jet printers. The best possible output for a printer is a print product that clearly demonstrates an improvement in print technology, such as realistic photographic shades or anti-aliased font shaping. Optimal quality is achieved if the above two requirements are met to obtain the best possible output based on testing of the printer used.

A process for generating an optimum print page cannot be defined in an arithmetic expression. For this reason, experiments have shown print materials that, in most cases, provide guidelines (described below) for creating printouts from banners that satisfy the above requirements.

By using a JPEG image, the GIF
It is possible to obtain a higher quality print image than PNG or PNG. However, compared to GIF and PNG, J
JPEG should be used, considering that the file size of PEG images will generally be large.

Many traditional web browsers use HTML
There is still a need to generate the supplemental pages as a single GIF or JPEG image, as the level of presentation required to obtain good print content from the GIF cannot be supported. Such supplementary pages can be created as snapshots of high quality HTML / CSS / XML pages.

Although the bitmap image of the font may look good on the screen, it tends to degrade when printed. Users expect better visual quality on paper. Therefore, it is preferable to minimize the use of type styles and instead make the layout more creative until web presentation technology improves.

In order to improve print quality, presentation, positioning, style, and layout are performed by HTML tables and CSS. Table elements should be specified in relative dimensions, but tables should be specified according to fixed dimensions. Font size and style should be specified in CSS.

Description will be made again with reference to FIG. To create web page 26, web server 18 and web browser 24 may be accessed via another web server 9. For example, web browser 2
4 is a web page 2 existing on the web server 9
6 may be requested. The banner appears as a hyper object 56. In response to clicking on the banner page, the browser links with the web server 18, and more specifically with the HC server 53. Since the HC server 53 prepares a printable page, the HC server 53 may request information from a plurality of other web servers. Thus, there are several servers. In the schematic example shown in FIG.
And the HC server 53. These servers do not need to be on the same host system.

In the above, a hypermedia banner is used as a means for a user to interactively request information. However, this is not intended to limit the invention to such banners. One of ordinary skill in the art can read moving images, still images, or other J
It will be appreciated that the invention is equally applicable to AVA-activated applets.

As a further modification of the hard copy server 53, an image file (for example, GIF or JP) embedded in HTML distributed for printing is provided.
EG) using real-time modules that can dynamically generate barcodes. These barcode modules support the printing of coupons and tickets until other technologies for creating print content securely and uniquely are included in user agents, printing devices, and HTML. Have been used to

While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims of the present application. It is.

[0073]

According to the present invention, a method for providing a printable page can be provided. Also, according to the present invention, a print enabled JAVA applet
Generate ad banners, distribute and track print content written in HTML (and CSS),
A solution is provided that provides the best print output possible.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a web server and a web browser on a network.

FIG. 2 shows hypermedia related to the teachings of the present invention.
1 illustrates a web page containing an advertising banner.

FIG. 3 shows a hypermedia system related to the teachings of the present invention.
1 illustrates a web page containing an advertising banner.

FIG. 4 shows a hypermedia system related to the teachings of the present invention.
1 illustrates a web page containing an advertising banner.

FIG. 5: “print-from-a-banne”
FIG. 9 illustrates a sample printout generated as a result of selecting a region or object with “r” enabled.

FIG. 6: “Print-from-a-banne”
FIG. 9 illustrates a sample printout generated as a result of selecting a region or object with “r” enabled.

FIG. 7: “Print-from-a-banne”
and "r" is a flowchart of a system for generating a hardcopy output as a result of selecting an enabled region or object.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a hard copy server according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

9 Other web server 12 Host system 14 User system 16 IP network 18 Web server 20 Web page 22 Applet 24 Web browser 26 Web page 28 Applet 53 HC server 54 Printer 56 Hypermedia object

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Robert E. Steven Jr. 11900 Lake Hazel Road, Boise, Idaho 83709 USA 11900

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A method for providing a printable page comprising: receiving a hardcopy request for a printable page from a user agent; and retrieving information for generating the printable page. Determining the type of user agent; formatting a printable page according to the type of user agent; inserting a print enablement code into the printable page; Sending to the agent, the method comprising: providing a printable page comprising: 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said inserting step further comprises the step of adding an automation code for a user agent to automatically print the printable page. the method of. 3. The method for providing a printable page according to claim 2, further comprising the steps of: executing the automation code by the user agent; and printing the printable page by the user agent. 4. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of: displaying, in response to the absence of the automation code, instructions for the user agent to print the printable page.
For providing a printable page as described in. 5. A method for delivering a dynamically printable page to a web browser, the method comprising: requesting a dynamically printable page; and providing a template used to generate the dynamically printable page. A first retrieval step of retrieving; a second retrieval step of retrieving dynamic information used to generate the dynamically printable page; and a dynamic information in the template to generate the dynamically printable page. Placing the dynamically printable page on the web browser, comprising: placing the dynamically printable page on the web browser;
Method for delivering to browsers. 6. The method of claim 5, further comprising determining a type of the user agent and using the determined type to insert a print enablement code into the dynamically printable page. A method for delivering a described dynamically printable page to a web browser. 7. The method for delivering a dynamically printable page to a web browser according to claim 5, further comprising the step of: optimizing the print quality of the dynamically printable page based on the determined type. Method. 8. The method for delivering a dynamically printable page to a web browser according to claim 5, further comprising the step of logging each time said delivering step is performed. 9. An apparatus for delivering hardcopy from a hypermedia object, comprising: a request handler for validating and routing a suitable hardcopy request; and an HTML for retrieving and formatting information for generating the hardcopy. An apparatus for delivering a hardcopy from a hypermedia object comprising a processor and a responder for transmitting a formatted hardcopy. 10. The apparatus for delivering a hardcopy from a hypermedia object according to claim 9, further comprising a request logger that logs each hardcopy request.