Pointcast, Inc.

Gregory P Hassett

Jason Brant Douglas

Vibha Dayal

Max Mancini

Harry Collins

James P Reilly

An apparatus and computer-implemented method for distributing information to a plurality of client devices on a network is disclosed. The computer-implemented method includes the steps of: 1) receiving a variety of information from a plurality of sources, 2) organizing the variety of information into information categories, and 3) distributing the variety of information to the plurality of client devices based on the information categories requested by the plurality of client devices. The invention further includes the steps of: 4) accepting user input at the client device to specify information categories for retrieval from a server, 5) generating a user profile based on the information categories specified by the user input, and 6) retrieving information at predetermined intervals from the server based on the user profile.

Utilization of information &ldquo;push&rdquo; technology

A server services client requests in an improved manner by a utilizing a combination of sending an id of the last article that has been previously sent to the client, load balancing servers to provide efficient servicing of clients and providing redundant servers so that a failure of any one server does not result in the termination of server services to clients.

Apparatus, method and article of manufacture for servicing client requests on a network

In summary, the present invention is an information and advertising distribution system. A data server stores and updates a database of information items and advertisements. The information items and advertisements are each categorized so that each has an associated information category. Workstations remotely located from the data server each include a display device, a communication interface for receiving at least a subset of the information items and advertisements in the data server's database and local memory for storing the information items and advertisements received from the data server. An information administrator in each workstation establishes communication with the data server from time to time so as to update the information items and advertisements stored in local memory with at least a subset of the information items and advertisements stored by the data server. An information display controller in each workstation displays on the workstation's display device at least a subset of the information items and advertisements stored in local memory when the workstation meets predefined idleness criteria. At least a subset of the workstations include a profiler for storing subscriber profile data. The subscriber profile data represents subscriber information viewing preferences, indicating information categories for which the subscriber does and does not want to view information items. The information display controller includes a filter for excluding from the information items displayed on the display device those information items inconsistent with the subscriber profile data.

Growing community of inventors

Cupertino, CA, United States of America

Gregory P Hassett