System and method for preventing screen-scrapers from extracting user screen names

1. An apparatus for preventing screen scrapers from extracting user screen names, comprising:

an Internet based real-time, text-based instant messaging system

in which a plurality of logged-in users communicate with each other by displaying real-time, text-based instant messages on a communication screen from which any of the logged-in users' screen identification and the displayed messages can be read by other users; and

said real-time, text-based instant messaging system further comprising a mechanism for automatically converting a user's screen name into a graphic from which an ordinary person can recognize the user's screen name without user intervention;

wherein the graphic is displayed on the communication screen instead of a text form of said user's screen name whenever and wherever the user's screen name is displayed in order to prevent screen scrapers from extracting user screen names.

2. A method for displaying graphical screen names to prevent an automated process from scraping the displayed text information in a real-time, text-based instant messaging service, comprising the steps of:

preventing screen scrapers the ability to extract the screen name of one or more users of a real-time, text-based instant messaging application by configuring a computer processor for performing the steps of:

taking each logged-in user's text screen name; and

using said screen name to automatically, and without user intervention, generate a graphic that can only be read by a human but cannot be screen-scraped by an automated process; and

only displaying, on a display, said graphic corresponding to said user in said real-time, text-based instant messaging application instead using a text form of said user's screen name.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising the computer processor performing the step of:

enabling a user to add background wallpaper or other personal expression elements to the graphic.

4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising the computer processor performing the step of:

selecting overall graphic appearance from a drop down menu to choose a style for said graphic from a variety of predefined formats.

5. The method of claim 4 , further comprising the computer processor performing the step of:

customizing said graphic style by setting parameters which comprise any of style, font, background, and other customizable features from the drop down menu.

6. The method of claim 2 ,

wherein said graphic comprises a set of data representing a two-dimensional scene, that is composed of pixels arranged in a rectangular array with a certain height and width;

wherein each pixel may consist of one or more bits of information, representing brightness of the graphic at that point and including color information encoded as RGB triples.

7. The method of claim 2 , further comprising the computer processor performing the step of:

providing a graphics recognition system to avoid ordinarily confusing visual situations.

8. A method for preventing screen scrappers from extracting user screen names, in a real-time, text-based, Internet based instant messaging application comprising the steps of:

providing a network in which a plurality of logged-in users communicate with each other by displaying real-time, text-based instant messages on a communication screen from which any of the logged-in users' screen identification and the displayed messages can be read by other users;

providing within said real-time, text-based instant messaging system a mechanism for automatically converting a user's screen name into a graphic from which an ordinary person can recognize the user's screen name, without user intervention; and

displaying, on a display, only the graphic on the communication screen instead of a text form of said user's screen name whenever and wherever the user's screen name is displayed, thereby preventing screen scrapers from extracting user screen names.

9. An apparatus for displaying graphical screen names to prevent an automated process from scraping the displayed text information in a real-time, text-based instant messaging service, comprising:

a mechanism for taking each logged-in user's text screen name; and

a mechanism for using said screen name to automatically, and without user intervention, generate a graphic that can only be read by a human but cannot be screen-scraped by an automated process; and

a mechanism for displaying only the graphic on the communication screen instead of a text form of said user's screen name whenever and wherever the user's screen name is displayed, thereby preventing screen scrapers from extracting user screen names.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , further comprising:

a mechanism for a user to add background wallpaper or other personal expression elements to the graphic.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 , further comprising:

a drop down menu for selecting overall graphic appearance to choose a style for said graphic from a variety of predefined formats.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising:

a mechanism for customizing said graphic style by setting parameters which comprise any of style, font, background, and other customizable features from the drop down menu.

13. The apparatus of claim 9 ,

wherein said graphic comprises a set of data representing a two-dimensional scene, that is composed of pixels arranged in a rectangular array with a certain height and width;

wherein each pixel may consist of one or more bits of information, representing brightness of the graphic at that point and including color information encoded as RGB triples.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 , further comprising:

a graphics recognition system for avoiding ordinarily confusing visual situations.