System and method for providing client side personalization of content of web pages and the like

摘要

A network includes one or more client computers which can retrieve Web pages and supplemental content items, such as advertisements, from one or more server computers, for display or other processing. Each Web page can have fixed content, one or more fixed URL's identifying supplemental content items to be, for example, displayed at particular locations on the Web page, and one or more sets of conditional items, with each conditional item set comprising content item(s) or content item identifier(s), such as URL's, and personal selection criteria to be used in selecting one of the content item(s) or identifier(s) to be, for example, displayed at a respective location on the Web page. When a client computer receives a Web page from a server computer, it (that is, the client computer) will, for example, display the fixed Web page content and, obtain supplemental content items identified by the fixed URL's to be displayed along with the fixed content. In addition, the client computer will process each set of conditional items in conjunction with personal information maintained by the client computer and selection criteria for the set to identify one of the conditional content item(s) to be displayed, or one of the conditional item identifier(s) to be used in obtaining a supplemental content item to be displayed along with the Web page. Since the client computer determines the particular conditional content or content identifier based on selection criteria provided with the Web page, and personal information maintained by the client computer itself, the personal information need not be provided to or otherwise obtained by the server computer to allow for personalization of the Web page.