Interactive virtual library system for expeditiously providing automatic updates of user-desired information from content providers, at least one of which is commercial, to users

• Main Authors: CHALSEN CHRISTOPHER E, DOULOS MARIA G, PRUDENTI PAULA M, GOMEZ ALIRIO I
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 13.10.2005
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: CALCULATING; COMPUTING; COUNTING; DATA PROCESSING SYSTEMS OR METHODS, SPECIALLY ADAPTED FORADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL, SUPERVISORYOR FORECASTING PURPOSES; ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE; ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING; ELECTRICITY; PHYSICS; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE,COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL, SUPERVISORY OR FORECASTINGPURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHICCOMMUNICATION

The present invention provides an interactive library system having a computer in telecommunication link with at least one user computer and computer of at least one content provider requiring payment for information access. The interactive library system provides information from the content provider to the user by the following steps: Receiving, by the library system computer, user identification and password from the user computer. Comparing, by the library system computer, the received user identification and password with authorized user identifications and corresponding passwords stored in the library system to determine whether to grant access to the interactive library system. If the comparison results in grant of access, then the interactive library system provides the following steps: Receiving, by the library system computer, input from the user computer specifying type of information desired by the user. Establishing, by the library system computer, telecommunication link with the content provider computer. Transmitting, by the library system computer, the type of information desired by the user as search request to the content provider computer. Receiving, by the library system computer, result of the search request from the content provider computer. And providing, by the library system computer, the result to the user computer.