United States Patent
`
`[191
`
`[11] Patent Number:
`
`5,710,883
`
`
`
`[45] Date of Patent: Jan. 20, 1998
`Hong et a].
`
`USOOS710883A
`
`[54] HYPERTEXT DOCUMENT TRANSPORT
`MECHANISM FOR FIREWALL-
`COMPATIBLE DISTRIBUTED WORLD-WIDE
`WEB PUBLISHING
`
`[75]
`
`Inventors: Jack Bong, Palo Alto; George Toye.
`Foster City, both of Calif.
`
`[73] Assignee: Stanford University. Stanford, Calif.
`
`[21] Appl. No.: 402,470
`
`[22] Filed:
`
`Mar. 10, 1995
`
`[51]
`Int. Cl.‘3 ............................................ G06F 13/00
`
`[52] US. Cl. ..................... 395/200.17; 395/200.09
`[58] Field of Search .................... 395/20001. 200.02.
`395/200.03, 200.05, 200.09, 200.17, 200.19,
`600
`
`[56]
`
`References Cited
`U.S. PATENT DOCUlirIENTS
`
`5,278,955
`1/1994 Forte et a].
`................... 395/2“).01
`5,530,852
`
`
` 6/1996 Meska, Jr. et a1. .................. 395/610
`5,577,202 11/1996 Padgett .........
`.. 395000.18
`5/1997 Matsuo ..................... 3950(1).
`5,634,005
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`Weber. Jay C. “Part 2: Mail Enabled Applications Using the
`ServiceMail Toolkit”, Presentation Slides from internet site
`ftp://ftp.eiLcorn/pub/eit/servicemafl/servicemppt, Aug. 4,
`1994.
`
`Weber, Jay C. and S. Deshpande. “Multimedia on the
`Internet”, Proceedings of Groupware ’93. from intemet site
`hupj/wwweitcom/creations/goup93, Aug. 1993.
`"The ServiceMail Toolkit” WWW page, from internet site
`http:I/wwwfieeit/FAQs/archive_serverslServiceMail.html.
`May 10, 1993.
`Kong, 1., G. Toye, and L. Leifer. “Using the W for a
`Team—Based Engineering Design Class", Electronic Pro
`ceedings of the Second World Wide Web Conference ’94.
`from internet site http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/I'I‘94/Pro-
`oeedings/Educ/hong/hong.htmi. Oct. 1994.
`
`Grand, Mark. “MIME Overview" from internet site ftpzll
`ftp.funet.fi/pub/unix/mail/meta.mail/rnime.ps. Jun. 1, 1993.
`Weber. Jay C. “and idea for integrating WW and MIME”.
`electronic mail posting, intemet site httpd/wwweitcom/
`www.1ists/www—ta1k. 1992/0377.html. Nov. 27, 1992.
`“World Wide Web Mailing Lists”, World Wide Web Con-
`sortium (W3C),
`internet
`site http://www/w3.orglpub/
`WWW/Mail/Listshtml.
`‘WWW—Talk and WWW—HTML Mail Archives”, internet
`site httpdlwwweit/comlwwwlistsl.
`Kumar, V., J. Glicksman. and G. Krama. “A SHAREd Web
`to Support Design Teams”, Proceedings of the Second
`Workshop on Enabling Technologies Infrastructure for Co]-
`laborative Enterprises, -, pp. 178—182. Apr. 1993.
`(List continued on next page.)
`
`Primary Examiner—Tod R. Swann
`Assistant Examiner—Conley B. King, Jr.
`Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Lumen Intellectual Property
`Services
`
`[57]
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`A method is disclosed for publishing a hypertext file set on
`a world-wide web server machine by packaging the hyper-
`text file set as an email message on a client machine,
`transporting the e-mail message over the intemet from the
`client machine to the world-wide web server machine,
`unpacking the e—mail message to recover the hypertext file
`set. and depositing the hypertext file set into a memory
`means on the world-wide web server machine. By using the
`e-mail transport mechanism, a direct internet connection
`between the client and server is not necessary. Consequently,
`the method allows files to pass through security firewalls and
`allows geographically disperse individuals to remotely
`update information at a WWW site without compromising
`server security. In addition, processing time is not wasted
`during direct connections sharing the server’s resources and
`intemet bandwidth is not wasted. Finally, because this
`method uses standard intemet protocols and generic server
`software. the WWW server is not cluttered with client-
`specific software to handle special protocols and data struc-
`tures.
`
`11 Claims, 2 Drawing Sheets
`
`Package New
`Hotel At Client
`Convert New Notes
`To HTML
`
`Delennine
`Palhnames
`
`Create MIME
`Message
`Attach E-Msil
`Header
`
`Deposit Notee InW Server
`Store Hypertext Fie Set In
`W Server Directories
`
`Weave New Notes Into
`Collaborative Notes
`
`
`
`Trmepon Notee From
`Client To www Server
`Open Giant Connection
`With SMIP Sewer
`
`Transport E-Mail Message
`To SM P Sewer
`
`Open WWW Server
`Connection With SMTP
`Server
`
`iransport E-Mali Message
`To WWW Server
`
`Unpack Notes At
`WWW Server
`Check Mall Header
`For Identification
`
`Decompose Message Into
`Hypertext Files And
`Pamnames
`
`Page 1 of 8
`
`AT&T EXHIBIT 1038
`
`

`

`5,710,883
`Page 2
`
`OTHER PUBLICATIONS
`
`Toye, G. et al. “SHARE: A Methodology and Environment
`for Collaborative Product Development”, Proceedings of the
`Third Workshop on Enabling Technologies: Infrastructure
`for Collaborative Enterprises, IEEE, pp. 33—47, Apr. 1994.
`Hong, 1., G. Toye, and L. Leifer. “Personal Electronic
`Notebook with Sharing”, Proceedings of the Fourth Work-
`shop on Enabling Technologies: Infrastructure for Collabo-
`rative Enterprises, WET ICE ’95, IEEE, pp. 88-94, Apr.
`1995.
`Vacca, J. “Mosaic: Beyond Net Surfing”, BYTE, vol. 20,
`No. 1, pp. 75-86, Jan. 1995.
`
`Vaughan—Nichols, S. “Internet Publishing Tools Prolifer-
`ate”, BYTE, vol. 20, No. 3, p. 30, Mar. 1995.
`
`Abernathy, J. “Here’s How to Do Business on the Web”, PC
`World, p. 52, Mar. 1995.
`
`Borenstein, N. “MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Exten-
`sions) Part One: Mechanisms for Specifying and Describing
`the Format of Internet Message Bodies”, RFC 1521, from
`internet site ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc 1521.ps, Sep. 1993.
`
`Cracker, David H. “Standard for the Format of ARPA
`Internet Text Messages”, RFC 822, from internet site ftpzll
`ds.internic.net/rfclrf0822.txt, Aug. 13, 1982.
`
`Page 2 of 8
`
`Page 2 of 8
`
`

`

`US. Patent
`
`Jan. 20, 1998
`
`Sheet 1 of 2
`
`5,710,883
`
`path name a
`
`a.html
`
`boundary
`
`
`
`path name b
`
`b.html
`
`boundary
`
`FIG. 2
`
`Page 3 of 8
`
`Page 3 of 8
`
`

`

`US. Patent
`
`Jan. 20, 1993
`
`Sheet 2 of 2
`
`5,710,883
`
`Transport Notes From
`Client To WWW Server
`
`
`
`
`
`Open Client Connection
`With SMTP Server
`
`
`
`
`Transport E-Mail Message
`To SMTP Server
`
`Sewer
`
`Transport E-Mail Message
`To WWW Server
`
`
`
`
`Package New
`
`
`Notes At Client
`
`Convert New Notes
`To HTML
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Determine
`Pathnames
`
`
`
`Open WWW Server
`
`
`
`Connection With SMTP
`0%:erer
`
`ge
`
`
`
`
`
`Attach E-Mail
`Header
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Deposit Notes In
`WWW Server
`
`
`Unpack Notes At
`
`WWW Server
`
`
`
`
`Check Mail Header
`For Identification
`
`
`
`Store Hypertext File Set In
`WWW Server Directories
`
`Decompose Message Into
`
`
`Weave New Notes lnto
`
`Hypertext Files And
`
`Collaborative Notes
`
`Pathnames
`
`
`
`
`FIG. 3
`
`Page 4 of 8
`
`Page 4 of 8
`
`

`

`5,710,883
`
`1
`HYPERTEXT DOCUMENT TRANSPORT
`MECHANISM FOR FIREWALL-
`COMPATIBLE DISTRIBUTED WORLD-WIDE
`WEB PUBLISHING
`
`This invention was made with Government support
`under the Department of Navy Contract N000 14-92-1-1833.
`The Government has certain rights in the invention.
`
`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`
`This invention relates to computer information processing
`and the transmission of information among computer sys-
`tems. More specifically, it relates to methods for transporting
`a set of hypertext documents from a client computer system
`to a server computer system.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`Recent advances in computer data communications are
`revolutionizing business, research, education, and entertain-
`ment. In particular, the internet, which originally connected
`computers at U.S. academic and governmental research
`institutions, has expanded into the private sector to include
`connections to computers at millions of businesses and
`homes around the world.
`Common methods for communication over the internet
`include, for example, private e—mail using simple mail
`transport protocol (SMTP) or unix—unix copy protocol
`(UUCP), remote connections to distant computers directly
`via telnet or the file transfer protocol (FTP), and browsing
`the world-wide web (WWW) using hypertext transfer pro-
`tocol (HTTP). Browsing theW is by far the easiest and
`most popular way for a novice to explore the information
`and resources available on the internet.
`
`Programs called browsers use HTTP to retrieve and
`display hypertext files from other computers on the internet.
`A hypertext file is typically a text file written in hypertext
`mark—up language (HTML), which marks up the text with
`special commands that control its formatting and link it with
`other hypertext files. One hypertext file can contain links to
`other hypertext files anywhere on the internet. These files
`can, in turn, contain links to other files, thus creating a
`‘World—wide web” of hypertext files. Moreover, in addition
`to text files, these files can contain graphics, sound, and
`interactive capabilities. Because the HTML commands are
`hidden from view when the file is displayed, the browser
`allows the user to jump between text, graphic, and sound
`files from all over the world at the click of a button and
`without needing to read or provide specific links to internet
`HTI'P addresses.
`Because theW is so vast and so easy to browse, many
`organizations,
`individuals, and businesses are naturally
`interested in making their own set of hypertext files avail-
`able for browsing by others on the world-wide web.
`Although WWW browsers make it very easy for novices to
`read hypertext files on the internet, writing their own hyper-
`text files and making them available to others on theW
`is presently too difficult for novices. Even for a person
`proficient with computer languages and systems, the task of
`converting a set of files to HTML, and installing them on an
`HTTP server is time—consurning.
`A set of files can be prepared off-line on a client machine
`and transferred to the WWW server machine, or can be
`prepared directly on the WWW server. Off-line authoring
`involves the steps of embedding HTML into the files,
`previewing them with a local browser to verify the intended
`formatting and hypertext references, connecting to an HTTP
`
`2
`server machine on the internet, moving to the appropriate
`directory, and transferring the hypertext files to the server.
`This procedure requires familiarity with Unix®, HTML, and
`FTP and is consequently beyond the skill of a novice.
`Moreover, even for a person proficient in the art, it is
`impractical to update files with this time-consuming and
`laborious procedure. Finally, since each file is transferred
`separately, this method also makes ineflicient use of internet
`bandwidth. Although on—line authoring eliminates many
`steps in connecting to the WWW server and transferring the
`files, this process is still time-consuming and error-prone for
`a novice. Moreover, it has the great disadvantage that users
`without a direct network connection to the WWW server
`machine can not remotely manage their files. In short,
`present methods of WW publishing are inefficient, difli—
`cult to install and maintain, and are limited to institutions
`and individuals with the requisite time and expertise.
`An important difficulty with present methods of ofl-line
`WWW publishing is maintaining the security of the WWW
`server machine. Since the transfer and modification of
`HTML files presently requires a direct internet connection
`between the client machine and the WWW server machine,
`the server becomes vulnerable to break-in by unauthorized
`users. Constructing a server security firewall, on the other
`hand, eliminates direct internet connections and thus pres-
`ently precludes remote oif-line WWW publication. Restrict-
`ing publication to users on the server’s local area network,
`however, severely limits the potential applications ofWW
`publishing. Indeed, since the great power of the internet
`resides precisely in its ability to quickly transfer information
`between geographically dispersed individuals, this restric-
`tion essentially defeats the whole purpose of the internet. For
`example, one of the most promising applications of WW
`publishing is for sharing collaborative work among geo-
`graphically dispersed members of a company, committee,
`organization, or research group. Using present methods,
`however, this application requires each member to remotely
`connect to the server machine; therefore, it can not presently
`be implemented using a server with a security firewall.
`Several software products have appeared that are
`designed to facilitate the procedure of WW publishing. A
`whole class of products are the HTML conversion programs.
`These programs are designed to automatically convert files
`having various specific formats into HTML files, thereby
`dramatically simplifying the laborious task of embedding
`HTML into files. Since they are automatic, however, the
`HTML files usually require additional HTML editing in
`order to correct erroneous conversions. Therefore, these
`programs do not eliminate the need to know HTML.
`Moreover, they only simplify one step of the complicated
`process of WW publishing. In short, although they do
`make the job considerably easier for the expert, they do not
`simplify it enough to make it accessible to the novice.
`Another product designed to facilitate WWW publishing
`is InterNotesTM Web Publisher, by Lotus. This product is a
`software program that transports Lotus Notes® documents
`from a client machine to a custom server machine and
`translates them into HTML documents for WW publica—
`tion. Although this program enables the novice to publish
`files on the WWW without any knowledge of HTML, FTP,
`or UN'IX®, it has several significant drawbacks. The most
`important drawback is that this method requires a direct
`connection to the server machine and does not, therefore,
`allow geographically dispersed authoring to be combined
`with server security firewalls. Requiring a direct connection
`to the server machine can also be inconvenient and inefli—
`cient. If too many people attempt to connect to the server at
`
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`5,710,883
`
`3
`once, some will be refused connection or, if they are all
`permitted to connect, the response time of the server will be
`very slow. Other important drawbacks of InterNotes are that
`the server must be provided with expensive and client—
`specifrc server software, the client must be provided with
`customized client software, and the user is restricted to
`authoring documents with Lotus Notes®. Implementing this
`publishing method is therefore ineflicient, restrictive,
`expensive, and does not permit the combination of server
`security with distributed publishing.
`
`OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES OF THE
`INVENTION
`
`In view of the above, it is a primary object of the present
`invention to provide a method for conveniently and effi-
`ciently transporting a set of structured hypertext files over
`the internet from a client to a WWW server having a security
`firewall. It is a further object of the invention to provide a
`method for allowing geographically dispersed individuals to
`easily update hypertext documents on a remote WWW
`server without compromising the server’s security. It is an
`additional object of the invention to implement such a
`method without introducing client-specific modifications to
`the existing software on W server machines. It is
`another object of the invention to allow novices to create and
`maintain a set of interrelated hypertext files on a portable
`client machine and to easily update the appropriate files on
`a WWW server machine without requiring a direct connec—
`tion to the server. Further objects and advantages of the
`invention will be readily apparent from an examination of
`the following description and drawings.
`
`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`
`The disclosed method for publishing a hypertext file set
`on a world-wide web server machine is performed by
`packaging the hypertext file set as an e—mail message on a
`client machine, transporting the e—mail message over the
`intemet from the client machine to the world—wide web
`server machine. unpacking the e—mail message to recover the
`original hypertext file set, and depositing the hypertext file
`set into a memory means on the world-wide web server
`machine. If only some of a complete hypertext file set has
`been modified, then only the subset of modified hypertext
`files are packed into the e—mail message and transported.
`The hypertext file set is packaged as an e-mail mes sage by
`embedding HTML commands into the hypertext file set,
`creating a composite e-mail message containing both the
`content of the hypertext file set and a corresponding set of
`hypertext file path names reflecting the structure of the
`hypertext file set, and adding a mail header to the composite
`e—mail message containing mail control switches identifying
`the message as a hypertext file set.
`The packaged e-mail message is then transported from a
`client machine to a WWW server machine over the intemet
`via one or more e—mail transport agents. This transportation
`comprises the steps of transmitting the message over an
`e—mail connection from a mail processing agent on the client
`to an internet e-mail transport agent, and transmitting the
`message over an e—mail connection from the intemet e-mail
`transport agent to a mail processing agent residing on the
`WWW server. Additional e—mail transport agents may be
`included as intermediaries.
`
`10
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`the WWW server
`After the e—mail message arrives,
`unpacks it by first examining the mail control switches in the
`mail header which identify it as a hypertext document set,
`and then decomposing the e—mail message into the original
`
`65
`
`4
`
`hypertext file set and a corresponding set of hypertext file
`path names. The contents of the hypertext file set are then
`deposited in the appropriate directories on the WWW serv—
`er’s memory means according to the structure determined by
`the set of hypertext file path names. Each of the hypertext
`files can be any type of file relating toW browsing, such
`as text files, graphics files, sound files, database files, access
`control files, and program files.
`In a preferred embodiment, the client machine is a per—
`table computer and the method includes editing the hyper-
`text file set on the portable computer.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`
`FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a correctional hypertext
`file set indicating the links between files.
`FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a Multi—purpose Internet
`Mail Extensions (MIME) message containing the contents
`of two hypertext files and their respective path names,
`according to the invention.
`FIG. 3 is a flowchart detailing the method for transporting
`the hypertext file set from the client to the WWW server,
`according to the invention.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`
`FIG. 1 shows a typical hypertext file set, or notebook,
`consisting of five text files, or notes, with links between
`them. In a preferred embodiment, this hypertext file set is
`created and edited by a personal electronic notebook pro-
`gram running on a client machine such as a portable Macin-
`tosh® computer. This program allows novices to easily
`create and edit the contents and structure of the notebook.
`Since the client machine is portable and easy to use, it
`provides a convenient tool for keeping track of structured
`information. Natural applications include research and
`design notes, business data and correspondence, and aca—
`demic papers and reviews. The program supports quick data
`entry and browsing between notes. On a single 640x480
`pixel screen, the user is able to see not only a note, but titles
`of adjacent notes, and the top-level category under which
`that note is classified. Shifting between categories is accom-
`plished via a mouse click or the left and right arrow keys.
`The up and down arrow keys cycle through notes within a'
`single category. Automatic time stamping is provided for a
`sense of history.
`Upon returning to the office, home, or any other place
`with a connection to the Internet (e.g., Via AppleTalk® or
`modem), both the contents and structure of the notebook can
`be transmitted to a world-wide web server machine and
`woven into a larger collaborative hypertext file set contain—
`ing many individual file sets relating to a common project.
`This allows anyone to View the entire collaborative note—
`book via any WWW—browser anywhere on the intemet. This
`system, therefore, permits geographically dispersed group
`members, who have no computer expertise, to easily share
`a full network of documents and their semantic relationships
`with each other and with the rest of the world. The
`applications, therefore, include not only personal research
`and organization, but many other types of collaborative
`work as well. If it is desirable to restrict viewing of all or
`some of the files to a selected group of people, this is
`accomplished by transmitting the appropriate access control
`information along with the hypertext file set.
`The detailed method for transmitting a notebook over the
`intemet is shown in FIG. 3. First, the client program looks
`only at notes which have been modified since the last
`
`Page 6 of 8
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`

`5
`
`6
`
`5,710,883
`
`posting. For example, in the notebook of FIG. 1, only notes
`ahtrnl and b.html have been modified. The program then
`converts each new note into a formal HTML document, and
`creates a list of path names which encodes directory depos-
`iting information for the new notes. The HTML documents
`and path names are then concatenated into a single e-mail
`message using a composite mail messaging scheme, as
`detailed in FIG. 2. In a preferred embodiment, the MIME
`(Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) scheme is used,
`and master index files for the notebook are automatically
`created and packaged into this same MIME message. An
`e—mail header is attached to the message to direct it to a
`preset mail account on the WWW server. The header also
`contains special identification tags in the subject field.
`To transport the e-mail message from the client to the
`WWW server, the client program, now acting as a mail
`processing agent, first opens an e-mail connection with an
`internet e-mail transport agent. In the preferred embodiment,
`the e—mail connection is a standard transmission control
`protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) connection and the
`internet e—mail transport agent is an SMTP (Simple Mail
`Transport Protocol) server. The message is then sent to the
`SMTP server, thereafter traveling through the internet to the
`WWW server as any other e-mail message would.
`The methods necessary for implementing such a client
`program on a conventional portable computer are well—
`known in the art. In a preferred embodiment, this client
`software is a custom HyperCard® stack with embedded
`TCP/IP code for handling file transmission.
`After traveling through the internet between one or more
`e—mail transport agents, the message arrives at an e-mail
`transport agent which opens an e—mail connection with the
`WWW server. In a preferred embodiment, the e—mail trans-
`port agent is an SMTP server and the connection is a TCP/IP
`connection. The e-mail message is then sent to a mail
`processing agent on the WWW server, which acts on e-mail
`directed to the destination mail account. This mail process-
`ing agent automatically handles incoming mail using Ser-
`viceMailTM with custom TCL (Tool Command Language)
`programming scripts which decompose the MIME message
`into its original parts and deposits the files in the appropriate
`directories. ServiceMail looks at the subject header of the
`mail message, and determines (upon acceptance) where to
`deposit the set of files. After separating and depositing these
`files, it launches a post—processing program which “weaves”
`the new index into the existing group index. Ifthe user had
`so requested, a mail mes sage would then be sent back to the
`author, notifying completion of the depositing process.
`User authentication is handled by a custom group, login
`and password scheme which does not require individual
`Unix accounts to be created on the WWW server machine.
`This information allows the server code to determine where
`
`to deposit hypertext files on the WWW server, so that
`distinct personal and group spaces are maintained.
`The methods necessary for implementing such a server
`program on a conventional WWW server machine are
`well—known in the art
`In conclusion, the disclosed method for WW publishing
`allows novices to easily create and edit hypertext files
`off-line on a client machine and transport them over the
`internet to a separate WWW server with security firewalls.
`There is no need to know HTML, Unix, FTP, or any other
`specialized languages or protocols. Even for experts, the
`method provides a quick and efficient tool for establishing
`and maintaining WWW sites off-line. More importantly,
`however, by encapsulating the hypertext file set in a MIME
`
`message and using the SMTP transport mechanism, this
`method allows updates to pass through security firewalls.
`Consequently, it allows geographically disperse individuals
`to remotely update information at a WWW site without
`compromising server security. In addition, since the e—mail
`transport mechanism does not require a direct connection
`between the client and server machines, network traffic and
`server processing resources are minimized. Moreover, the
`transmission of a single e—mail message is far more efiicient
`than separately transmitting the files individually using a
`direct connection, thus precious internet bandwidth is not
`wasted Finally, because this method uses standard internet
`protocols and generic server software, the WWW server is
`not cluttered with client-specific software to handle special
`protocols and data structures.
`Although the above description contains many specifics,
`it is intended merely as one illustration of how the disclosed
`method may be implemented. Many variations are possible.
`For example, the client machine does not need to be a
`portable computer, but could be any other computer separate
`from the WWW server, such as a home computer or network
`connected workstation. The notes need not be packaged in a
`MIME message with the specific structure described, but
`may be packaged using other formats and structures to
`achieve the same efiect. The transport mechanism need not
`use SMTP, but could use other standard e-mail transmission
`methods such as UUCP, FidoNet, AOL, and MCIMail®, to
`name a few. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should
`not be determined by the details of the above description, but
`by the following claims and their legal equivalents.
`We claim:
`1. A method for publishing a hypertext file set on a
`world-wide web server machine, the method comprising:
`packaging the hypertext file set as a composite e—mail
`message on a client machine,
`transporting the composite e—mail message over the inter-
`net from the client machine to the world-wide web
`server machine,
`unpacking the composite e—mail message to recover the
`hypertext file set, and
`depositing the hypertext file set into a memory means on
`the world-wide web server machine.
`2. The method of claim 1 wherein the hypertext file set is
`a subset of a complete hypertext file set, the subset consist—
`ing of modified hypertext files.
`3. The method of claim 1 wherein the packaging step
`comprises:
`embedding hypertext mark-up language commands into
`the hypertext file set,
`creating a composite e—mail message containing both the
`content of the hypertext file set and a corresponding set
`of hypertext file path names reflecting the structure of
`the hypertext file set, and
`adding to the composite e-mail message a mail header
`containing mail control switches identifying the e—mail
`message as a hypertext file set.
`4. The method of claim 1 wherein the transporting step
`comprises:
`transmitting the composite e—mail message over an e—mail
`connection between a mail processing agent residing on
`the client machine and an internet e—mail transport
`agent,
`‘
`transmitting the composite e-mail message over an e—mail
`connection between the internet e-mail transport agent
`and a mail processing agent residing on the world—wide
`web server machine.
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`5,710,883
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`5. The method of claim 1 wherein the transporting step
`comprises:
`transmitting the composite e-mail message over an e—mail
`connection between a mail processing agent residing on
`the client machine and a first intemet e-mail transport
`agent,
`transmitting the composite e—mail message over the inter—
`net from the first intemet e-mail transport agent to a
`second intemet e—mail transport agent
`transmitting the composite e—mail message over an e—mail
`connection between the second intemet e—mail trans-
`port agent and a mail processing agent residing on the
`world-wide web server machine.
`6. The method of claim 1 wherein the unpacking step
`comprises:
`identifying the composite e-mail message as containing a
`hypertext document set by examining mail control
`switches in a mail header, and
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`decomposing the composite e-mail message into the
`hypertext file set and a corresponding set of hypertext
`file path names.
`7. The method of claim 1 wherein the depositing step
`comprises storing the contents of the hypertext file set in the
`memory means according to a structure determined by a
`corresponding set of hypertext file path names.
`8. The method of claim 1 wherein the hypertext file set
`comprises a file type selected from the group consisting of
`text, graphics, sound, database, program, and access control.
`9. The method of claim 1 further comprising editing the
`hypertext file set on the client machine.
`10. The method of claim 1 further comprising post-
`processing the hypertext file set to weave it into a collabo—
`rative hypertext file set including a group index file.
`11. The method of claim 1 wherein the client machine is
`a portable computer.
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