Frequent content continuity visual assistance in content browsing

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, system and computer program product for frequent content retrieval in a content browser. In an embodiment of the invention, a method for frequent content retrieval in a content browser is provided. The method includes retrieving requested content from a content server from over a computer communications network and comparing the retrieved requested content to a cached version of the requested content. The retrieved requested content thereafter can be annotated to visually emphasize a frequently accessed portion of the retrieved requested content in response to a threshold difference between the retrieved requested content and the cached version. Finally, the annotated retrieved requested content can be returned to a content browser for display therein.

1 . A method for frequent content retrieval in a content browser, the method comprising:
 retrieving requested content from a content server from over a computer communications network;   consulting a cache to determine if a cached version of the requested content persists in the cache;   in response to the consulting, comparing the retrieved requested content to a cached version of the requested content;   computing whether or not the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount; and,   on condition that the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount, identifying in the cached version of the requested content, a portion of the cached version of the requested content specified as frequently accessed, locating the portion of the cached version of the requested content in the retrieved requested content, annotating the retrieved requested content to visually emphasize the located frequently accessed portion of the retrieved requested content and, returning the annotated retrieved requested content to a content browser for display therein.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the content is a Web page and the content browser is a Web browser. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the annotation is a change in display attributes of text of the frequently accessed portion. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the frequently accessed portion is a hyperlink. 
     
     
         5 . (canceled) 
     
     
         6 . A content browsing data processing system configured for frequent content retrieval, the system comprising:
 a host computer with memory and at least one processor, the host computer communicatively coupled to at least one content server from over a computer communications network; and,   a frequent content retrieval module executing in the memory of the host computer and coupled to a content browser and a page cache, the module comprising program code enabled upon execution in the host computer to retrieve requested content from a content server from over the computer communications network, to consult a cache to determine if a cached version of the requested content persists in the cache, in response to the consulting, to compare the retrieved requested content to a cached version of the requested content in the page cache, to compute whether or not the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount, and on condition that the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount, to identify in the cached version of the requested content, a portion of the cached version of the requested content specified as frequently accessed, to locate the portion of the cached version of the requested content in the retrieved requested content, to annotate the retrieved requested content to visually emphasize the located frequently accessed portion of the retrieved requested content and to return the annotated retrieved requested content to the content browser for display therein.   
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the frequent content retrieval module and the content browser both execute in the memory of the host computer. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the content is a Web page and the content browser is a Web browser. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the annotation is a change in display attributes of text of the frequently accessed portion. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the frequently accessed portion is a hyperlink. 
     
     
         11 . A computer program product for frequent content retrieval in a content browser, the computer program product comprising:
 a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising:   computer readable program code for retrieving requested content from a content server from over a computer communications network;   computer readable program code for consulting a cache to determine if a cached version of the requested content persists in the cache;   computer readable program code, in response to the consulting, for comparing the retrieved requested content to a cached version of the requested content;   computer readable program code for computing whether or not the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount; and,   computer readable program code for, on condition that the retrieved requested content differs from the cached version by at least a threshold amount, identifying in the cached version of the requested content, a portion of the cached version of the requested content specified as frequently accessed, locating the portion of the cached version of the requested content in the retrieved requested content, annotating the retrieved requested content to visually emphasize the located frequently accessed portion of the retrieved requested content and,   returning the annotated retrieved requested content to a content browser for display therein.   
     
     
         12 . The computer program product of  claim 11 , wherein the content is a Web page and the content browser is a Web browser. 
     
     
         13 . The computer program product of  claim 11 , wherein the annotation is a change in display attributes of text of the frequently accessed portion. 
     
     
         14 . The computer program product of  claim 11 , wherein the frequently accessed portion is a hyperlink. 
     
     
         15 . The computer program product of  claim 11 , wherein the computer readable program code for annotating comprises:
 computer readable program code for detecting a threshold difference between the retrieved requested content and the cached version;   computer readable program code for identifying a frequently accessed portion of the cached version;   computer readable program code for locating the frequently accessed portion in the retrieved requested content; and,   computer readable program code for annotating the retrieved requested content to visually emphasize the frequently accessed portion.