Appeal No. 2005-1431
Application 09/442,070
J. New ground of rejection
Pursuant to our authority under 37 CFR § 41.50(b), we are entering a new ground of
rejection of claims 40-50 under 35 U.S.C. § 112, first paragraph, for failing to provide written
description support for the terms "hypermedia environment" and "hypermedia document," which
appear in independent claims 40, 45, and 50
"Hypermedia" documents when used in an interactive format permit a user to selectively
activate links in the document in order to retrieve and display the corresponding linked objects:
hypermedia The integration of graphics, sound, video, or any combination into
a primarily associative system of information storage and retrieval. Hypermedia,
especially in an interactive format where choices are controlled by the user, is
structured around the idea of offering a working and learning environment that
parallels human thinking—that is, an environment that allows the user to make
associations between topics rather than move sequentially from one to the next, as
in an alphabetic list. Hypermedia topics are thus linked in a manner that allows
the user to jump from subject to related subject in searching for information. For
example, a hypermedia presentation on navigation might include links to such
topics as astronomy, bird migration, geography, satellites, and radar. If the
information is primarily in text form, the product is hypertext; if video, music,
animation, or other elements are included, the product is hypermedia. See also
hypertext.
Microsoft Press Computer Dictionary 202 (2d ed. 1994) (emphasis added) (Attachment G to
brief). Doyle specifically restricts the terms "hypertext document" and "hypermedia document"
to interactive environments:
A hypertext document is a document that allows a user to view a text
document displayed on a display device connected to the user's computer and to
access, retrieve and view other data objects that are linked to hypertext words or
phrases in the hypertext document. In a hypertext document, the user may "click
on," or select, certain words or phrases in the text that specify a link to other
documents, or data objects. In this way, the user is able to navigate easily among
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