Method and apparatus for accessing a remote location with a reader having a dedicated memory system

Abstract

A method of accessing a remote location on a network using an optical reader. The optical reader has an optical scanning system and a dedicated address memory system. The optical scanning system, in response to the user scanning an encoded indicia therewith, sends to a first computer disposed on the network a scan code indicative of information encoded in the scanned indicia. The dedicated address memory system, in response to the user completing an activation sequence, sends to the first computer a dedicated code indicative of information corresponding to a particular remote location. The information from the dedicated address memory system corresponding to a particular remote location does not originate from the scanning of an encoded indica by the user. One of the scan code and the dedicated code is transmitted from the optical reader to the first computer. In response to the first computer receiving either the scan code or the dedicated code from the optical reader, a second computer disposed on the network is accessed. A lookup operation is performed at the second computer to match the code received from the optical reader, i.e., the scan code or the dedicated code, with a routing information for a remote location on the network. The routing information is returned from the second computer to the first computer. The remote location on the network is then accessed in accordance with the routing information returned from the second computer.