HK1118917A - Personal computing environment system using mozilla - Google Patents

Description

Personal computing environment system using Mozilla

Background

Current computing environments often require users to carry laptop or notebook portable computers with them to maintain a fully functional, truly personalized computing environment as users move from place to place. Because laptop and notebook computers, although physically small, are quite large and bulky, mobile computer users are constantly looking for smaller and lighter devices that can provide and maintain their personalized computing environment.

An example of such a smaller and lighter device that has recently gained significant commercial popularity is a personal digital assistant ("PDA"). However, while PDAs are smaller and lighter than laptop or notebook computers and provide a personalized computing environment, they are currently unable to provide the full functionality of desktop, laptop or notebook portable computers.

For example, when a PDA is removed from an environment in which a computer user has a fully functional computing environment, the PDA must first load the latest image of the data for the relevant portion of the environment, e.g., address book, calendar, email, etc. Similarly, when the PDA is returned to a fully functional computing environment, data in the PDA that has changed since leaving the fully functional computing environment must be transferred and/or synched from the PDA back into the user's regular computer, and vice versa.

Desktop computers with access to the internet are ubiquitous in industrialized countries worldwide. Computer users, while traveling, are typically able to gain access to such computers and use the computers' internet access for worldwide communications. With sufficient data and appropriate configuration, such computers are in principle capable of providing a fully functional personal computing environment to mobile computer users. However, establishing a fully functional computing environment for a mobile computer user at a remote or temporary location (e.g., at an airport kiosk or overnight hospices) requires the error-free entry of a large amount of extremely detailed information to configure the local computer.

The amount of information required to configure a local computer such that it provides the full-featured, personal computing environment of a mobile computer user is disproportionately large compared to the benefits obtained. Thus, there is currently no convenient hardware and software that enables mobile computer users to move from computer to computer anywhere in the world carrying their personalized, fully functional computing environment.

Currently, smart cards (smart cards) are mainly used to facilitate financial transactions. However, because smart cards include at least a limited amount of non-volatile readable and writable memory, and may also include a programmable processor, they inherently have the capability for applications other than financial transactions. Storing data in a smart card, accessing the data, and activating the smart card's processor to execute a computer program all require the smart card to be interconnected with some type of card reader/terminal. This feature of smart cards limits the potential for expanding their use for mobile computing applications, generally because there is currently no infrastructure (infrastructure) to support the use of smart cards for applications other than financial transactions.

It would be advantageous to provide a personal computing environment using Mozilla that allows a user to store and transport his personal computing environment in a smart card and to configure the computing environment of a computer using a smart card. It would be further advantageous to provide a personal computing environment using Mozilla that automatically interfaces with a user's browser to fill in login and registration forms using the user's personal computing environment data on a smart card.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention provides a personal computing environment using Mozilla. The system allows a user to store, transfer, and configure his personal computing environment via a smart card. In addition, the present invention automatically interfaces with the user's browser to populate login and registration forms using the user's personal computing environment data on the smart card.

Embodiments of the present invention store a user's personalized, full-featured computing environment in a smart card. A user information database is provided that resides on the server and includes user records for a plurality of users. Each user record includes personal computing environment data. The amount of data in the user record is typically larger than the storage capacity of the smart card.

Embodiments allow a user to specify information needed to configure a client as the user's preferred personal computing environment. If the correct personal computing environment data is not resident in the smart card, the client queries the server for the required information and updates the smart card with the new data. If the smart card memory is full, the client will remove the old directory (index) from the smart card in the least recently used method until there is enough space to add new data.

The user's personal computing environment data is also used to interface with the user's web browser. As the user browses the network, the web page is analyzed to determine whether the web page is a login or registration form. If the form is a registration form, the system populates the form with the user's information from the user's personal computing environment data. If the form is a login form, the system retrieves the user's username and password in the event that they have not already been logged by the system, or inserts the username and password into the form in the event that the system finds the username and password for the web page in the user's personal computing environment data.

The user may also manage his personal computing environment data stored on the smart card and the user information database. Allowing a user to increase the size of his user records to store more information and create sets of personal computing environment data.

The server gives the client access to the user's records through a secure website. The user accesses his data, adds, modifies, and/or deletes information, and transfers the data to his smart card through a secure website.

Multiple servers with backup copies of the user information database are used in the event of any server failure. Based on the user's usage pattern, one of the servers is designated as the user's primary local server. The client performs load balancing among the servers as it obtains the data, and if the primary server fails or is otherwise inaccessible, the client will automatically switch to another server.

Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating the flow of execution of a client to server exchange when a user specifies the directories required by his personal computing environment in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating the flow of execution of a client-to-server exchange when a user specifies the directories required by his personal computing environment, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a scheme for managing a user's personal computing environment data between a server database and a smart card, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block schematic diagram illustrating a directory of users accessible on a client and server in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a block schematic diagram illustrating the exchange of a user's directory between a client and a server according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a block schematic diagram illustrating the exchange of data between a user's smart card, client, server, and standby server when a user directory is deleted in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a block schematic diagram illustrating the situation when a server responsible for a particular user is converted upon user relocation in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram schematic of a task oriented perspective (viewpoint) of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, illustrating client and server tasks for a server-based data management system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram schematic of a task-oriented perspective of a preferred embodiment of the present invention illustrating client and server tasks for a client-based data management system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a task-oriented perspective of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, showing a configuration module connected to Mozilla in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The present invention relates to a personal computing environment using Mozilla. The system according to the invention allows a user to store, transfer, and configure his personal computing environment via a smart card. In addition, the present invention automatically connects with the user's browser to fill in login and registration forms using the user's personal computing environment data on the smart card.

The present invention provides a mobile computer user with a system that is very compact, but allows the user to carry enough machine-readable data to easily establish his full-featured mobile personal computing environment anywhere in the world.

One of the difficulties encountered when dealing with Mozilla-based browsers is how the component (component) performs data processing (transaction) with external programs. Another difficulty is how to control events of the browser. Embodiments of the present invention address these two difficulties and combine the solutions to provide a method for third parties to develop external programs to control Mozilla-based browsers.

Embodiments of the present invention store sufficient information in a smart card to allow characterization of a mobile computer user's personalized, fully functional computing environment. The information provided by the mobile personal computing environment may vary from system to system. However, the amount of information stored in the smart card is sufficient to establish a consistent computing environment for the user. Information such as operating system preferences, favorite web sites, email addresses, credit card information, ISP information, program preferences, program environment, etc. is stored on the smart card.

Referring to fig. 1, when a user starts using a client computer, he activates the client computer program of the invention by automatic start-up (launch)101 at boot-up or by manual start-up 102. The smart card reader/terminal is connected to or resides in the user's computer, reading the user's smart card. The client computer program retrieves the catalog 103 from the smart card. The user specifies to the present invention, through the user interface of the present invention, the data 104 needed to establish at least a portion of his mobile personal computing environment.

The present invention checks the smart card to determine if the specified data is present in the smart card's local memory 105. If the specified data is in the smart card's memory, then the invention retrieves the data from the smart card for subsequent use by the invention 106. If the specified data is not in the smart card's memory, then the present invention accesses a secure server via the Internet or other method that stores additional data that more fully characterizes the mobile computer user's personalized, fully functional computing environment 108. The invention then retrieves the specified data from the server for subsequent use 109 by the invention and updates the smart card data 110. If the data is not on the server 108, it is new data 111 from the user that must be recorded and used to access the Internet.

Referring to fig. 2, having retrieved the required data from the smart card, server, or directly from the user, the client computer program uses the data to construct a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)201 and, if possible, to collect username, password, and internet site bookmark data required to immediately and directly access the internet site, which data constitutes at least some portion 202 of the mobile personal environment of the mobile computer user.

Using the data constructed in this manner, the present invention then creates and sends a URL command to the internet 203. The URL, username, password, and internet site bookmark data, if completed, allows the mobile computer user to log into the specified internet site 204 and immediately enter the specified page 205 on the internet site. If some of the information is erroneous or incomplete, interacting with the internet site accessed by the URL, the mobile computer user may enter a username, password, and internet page data as needed to access the desired internet page 207, 208, or the information may be provided 210, 211 through a Graphical User Interface (GUI) that provides drag and drop functionality.

Referring to fig. 3, to initialize or update a directory stored on a smart card, a user activates the client computer program 301, 302 of the present invention, instructing the program to access a server, via the internet or other method, that stores additional information characterizing the mobile computer user's personalized, fully functional computing environment 303. The server allows the user to change the data characterizing his personalized mobile personal environment 304, e.g. to add a new internet site to his environment. After the user specifies the changes to be made in his mobile personal environment, the server links to the specified internet site and determines an updated catalog for storage on the smart card 305.

After linking to the specified internet site and updating the computing environment information stored on the server 306, the present invention attempts to update the directory stored on the user's smart card connected to his computer 307. If the smart card memory is full 309, a record is deleted from those stored in the smart card until the smart card has sufficient free memory to store the updated directory 311, and the updated directory is written to the smart card memory 310. Otherwise, if the smart card memory is not full 309, the updated catalog is immediately stored on the smart card 310. In addition to maintaining the updated directory on the smart card, the server also maintains an updated directory 308 in its database that characterizes the mobile personal environment of the mobile computer user.

If the amount of unused storage in the server's database is sufficient to store the updated catalog 312, then the information is stored in the database 313. Otherwise, the server first provides the user with an opportunity to allocate more server storage space for his directory 314. If the user refuses to provide additional storage, the server deletes a record from the database until the server has sufficient free storage to store the updated directory 316. The server then adds the updated directory to the directory stored in the database 315. If the user accepts 314 the provision of additional storage space, the new directory is added 315 to the database of the server. A mobile computer user can initially specify and update data characterizing his mobile personal environment as needed.

When more information is stored on the server than is available on the user's smart card, the user is allowed to create multiple directory groups. The user can then select between different groups of information to download onto his smart card. For example, a user may set his smart card to his personalized mobile computer environment for his united states office, foreign office, or even at home. This allows the user to characterize each individual and different computer system he uses.

It will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that although a personalized computer environment for a mobile computer user is specifically described above, any other type of information, such as personal data, financial data, operating system, computer personality, video and/or audio data, etc., is readily substituted for its location.

Referring to fig. 4, the present invention provides an infrastructure that allows the use of smart cards for applications other than financial transactions. The smart card 404 is interconnected with a smart card reader/terminal capable of communicating over the internet, extranet, or intranet 402. Using the apparatus 401, a computer user specifies features for certain computing functions. Assuming that the card reader/terminal is connected to the user's personal computer, a directory for the specified computing function is stored in the computer's memory 403. And, the directory is stored in the smart card 404 and in a server accessible through the internet, extranet, or intranet 402, 405, 406.

Referring to fig. 5, typically, a smart card stores only a small portion of the total directory of a computer user because smart cards have only a limited amount of memory. When those directories completely fill the available smart card memory 504, the addition of another directory causes the least recently used directory to be deleted from the smart card's memory 504. However, because the server may in principle store more directories 505 than the memory card 504, directories deleted from the smart card 504 may remain stored and accessible at the server 502, 506. In this way, the smart card 504 is provided with at least a portion 503, 505 of the computing functionality that characterizes the designation by the individual computer user, thereby making these functions accessible to computer users 506 worldwide of any suitably programmed smart card reader/terminal.

Referring to fig. 6, in accessing pre-specified computer functions, a smart card 604 is placed in a suitably programmed smart card reader/terminal 601 and the directory stored in the smart card 604 is transferred to the memory 603 of the reader/terminal or host device. If the requested directory is not present in the smart card's memory 604, the device 601 accesses the server 602 through the internet, extranet, or intranet 607 to retrieve the directory 606 stored therein. Because the particular directory is retrieved from the server 602 to be the most recently used directory, the device 601 transfers the directory to the device's memory 603 and replaces the least recently used directory 605 in the smart card's memory 604 with the most recently used directory. As described above, if a new directory is added to the server database 606 when the database 606 is full, the system either deletes the least recently used directory 608 or, if possible, gives the user the option of allocating more server storage space for his records.

Another preferred embodiment of the present invention adds a backup server 609 that includes a consistent copy of the entire user database 606 served by the primary server 602. If primary server 602 fails, backup server 609 takes over. The database 610 and external interface 611 of the backup server are the same as the components of the primary server 602.

In addition, multiple servers may be used together using load balancing to handle a large number of client requests. The client may perform its own load balancing among the servers to determine the best choice by using, for example, the response time (RTT) from each server. If the primary server serving the user fails and is otherwise inaccessible, the client will automatically switch to another server.

Referring to fig. 7, in order to efficiently utilize server resources distributed at different locations throughout the world, the present invention records the locations in the world from which a user accesses his mobile personal environment. Recording such data allows the server to reasonably determine that the user has moved from one place to another, for example from the united states to japan. For example, if a user who previously accessed his mobile personal environment 704 primarily from the united states 701,702, 703 suddenly began accessing that environment 704,709 entirely from japan 706,707, 708 for an extended interval of time, e.g., one or two months, then the server 704 may reasonably determine that the user has moved from the united states to japan. If the server 704 determines that the user has relocated his residence and if there is another server 709 physically located close to the user's new residence, then the system acting on both servers 704, 709 transfers the user's mobile personal environment directory 705 from the farther server 704 to the closer server 709.

The present invention allows mobile computer users to carry all the information needed to characterize their mobile personal environment and to quickly establish their mobile personal environment anywhere in the world on a single smart card.

Referring to FIG. 8, a high level task perspective of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The user inserts his smart card 805 into a smart card reader that is connected to or resides in a client computer. The configure client system module 806 reads the smart card 805 through the read/write smart card module 803. The configure client system module 806 either automatically configures the client computer to the user's personal computing environment or queries the user through the user interface 802 for information needed by the user's smart card 805 to configure the user's personal computing environment (as described above) according to the user's preferences.

The user may also manage the directories stored on his smart card 805 and server database 811. The server interface module 801 communicates with a secure server that includes user information. Communication is achieved through a secure web site provided by the manage user information module 807 on the server. The manage user information module 807 displays a directory of users stored on the server database 811. The user requests his directory through a secure website. His directory is retrieved from the server database 811 by the lookup user information module 810. The lookup user information module 810 passes the directory information to the manage user information module 807. The directory residing on the user's smart card 805 is sent to the manage user information module 807 through the server interface 801. The smart card catalog is compared to the catalog of users from the server database 811 by the compare user information module 808, which correlates and compares any differences between the two resources. The manage user information module 807 displays information to the user via the secure web page.

The user can create (for new users), add, delete, and update his directory through the user interface module 802 that connects to the secure web page. The server database 811 directory is updated by the update user records module 809. The smart card directory is updated by the manage user information module 807 through the server interface 801. The server interface 801 sends the update information to the update smartcard module 804. The update smart card module 804 writes information to the smart card 805 through the read/write smart card module 803.

In the case of a plurality of servers, the server database 811 is stored in the other servers as a backup. The management server database module 812 updates the server database 811 with information from other servers. Any new updates to the server database 811 that are initiated locally are sent to other servers by the management server database module 812.

In addition, any transfer of user directory records from one server to a more local server (in the event that the user relocates to another location) is performed by the manage server database module 812.

Referring to fig. 9, there is shown another preferred embodiment of the present invention which performs the same basic functions as shown in fig. 8, except that the client has a server connection, which is likely to be temporary in nature, e.g., a dial-up modem connection. The operational difference between fig. 8 and fig. 9 is when the user manages his smart card and his directories on the server database. The client connects to the client interface module 908 on the server through the manage user information module 901 residing on the client. The client interface 908 collects the user's directory for the manage user information module 901. The lookup user information module 910 retrieves the user's record from the server database 911.

Once the manage user information module 901 retrieves the user's catalog, the client may disconnect from the server and the user manages his catalog offline with the client. The compare user information module 907 operates in the same manner as described above. Information obtained from the server database 911 and the smart card 905 is displayed to the user via the user interface 902. After the user has updated his directory and any changes to the user's records on the server database 911 are required, the client reconnects with the server's client interface 908. The update user record module 909 updates the server database 911 with any changes.

Yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention encrypts the entire server database 911. Each user record is individually encrypted so that if one user record is accessed and decrypted by a hacker, the other user records will not be compromised in any way. The actual encryption of the user record is performed by the client. The manage user information module 901 retrieves the encrypted records of the user from the server. If this fails, the user must create a new record for access. The server uses the smart card 905ID lookup and retrieves the user's record through the lookup user information module 910. The server does not know what the content of the record is, only that the record belongs to the user (much like a secure deposit box). The record is sent back to the client through the client interface module 908.

The manage user information module 901 decrypts the user record using the smart card 905 encryption key information stored in the smart card 905. Each smart card is unique and the encryption key is only present on the particular smart card and not on the server. Once the user has completed any changes to the directory in the record, the manage user information module 901 encrypts the user record using the encryption key on the smart card 905 and sends the record back to the server. The client interface module 908 sends the encrypted records to the update user records module 909, which replaces the user records in the server database 911 with the newly encrypted user records.

The method ensures that there is a one-to-one mapping of user records to smart cards; each user record in the server database 911 can only be decrypted by a particular smart card. It is also ensured that the server database 911 is secure and cannot be easily compromised. An intruder would have to physically have each smart card present to corrupt the entire database.

If the user loses his smart card, there is a process by which the smart card can be morphed (morph) or recreated. The user inserts a new smart card 905 into the client system. The system, through the user interface module 902, enables the user to enter his personal information in the same way as when he first created his original smart card. The new smart card 905 is then initialized and the encryption key recreated. The ID of the new smart card is sent from the user interface module 902 to the client interface module 908 via the manage user information module 901. The update user record module 909 removes the original smart card's ID from the user record on the server database 911 and replaces it with the new smart card's ID. Once this is done, the user interface module 902 then places the encryption key into the new smart card 905 via the read/write smart card module 903. The user's smart card has now been remanufactured and the original smart card has failed.

The server has the capability to perform the server functions shown in fig. 8 and 9 simultaneously. This enables the server to handle secure network access and clients with temporary server connections.

Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that although the client and server functionality is described above separately, both the client and server may reside on the same physical machine.

Mozilla interface

Embodiments of the present invention support Mozilla web engine based browsers such as Netscape 6.xx and above, Mozilla, compuerve, and others.

The embodiment increases the security protection of the network browsing. The user inserts his smart card into the connected smart card reader. The present invention follows the user through the user's web browsing session and finds forms, such as login, registration, and e-commerce forms, that need to be filled in with the user's personal information. The personal information of the user is stored in the smart card of the user.

The form is analyzed by the system to identify the type of form displayed and the information needed to fill the form.

The system uses the information on the user's smart card to perform login and form fill-in. This enables the user to switch between computers without having to worry about remembering or entering personal information. The user is also assured that his personal information always accompanies him, as long as he carries his smart card (or smart credit card, etc.).

The system changes Mozilla's original compressed (decompressed) file, "comm. The file includes a number of script files. The script file is added to the Mozilla file and some existing script files are modified. Additions and modifications allow the system to control events of Mozilla. For example, "navigator. xul" is modified such that when Mozilla is loaded, it will run the program of the system and load the component of the system (nsPlatiMozui). The files "navigator. js", "contentarea click. js", "browser. js", etc. are modified so that the system can control the event and set the data it needs.

The component is added to the Mozilla engine. The component is named "nsPlatiMozui" and it is an XPCOM (cross-platform COM) object. The component uses the XPIDL interface and provides some properties and functionality that Mozilla will use. After a component is registered to Mozilla's registry (registry) by using regxpcom. When Mozilla is loaded during run-time, Mozilla will also load a component (nsplatimozui.dll).

Referring to FIG. 10, a task level interaction between the system and Mozilla is shown. The nsPlatiMozui component 1007 is designed to communicate with a Mozilla-based browser 1005 and a configure client module 1003. Mozilla allows third parties to add some components internally to extend the features of Mozilla. However, the component works as a part of Mozilla, and thus it is difficult to perform data processing with an external program.

The nsPlatiMozui component 1007 solves this problem. The nsPlatiMozui component 1007 loads another DLL that provides a shared storage component. The configure client module 1003 also loads the DLL so the configure client module 1003 can use the shared memory space to perform data processing with the nsPlatiMozui component. The nsPlatiMozui component uses hidden windows to interact with the configure client module 1003 and Mozilla 1005.

The nsPlatiMozUi component 1007 is an XPCOM (cross platform com) component. Its dynamic link library is named "nsplatimozui. After the nsPlatiMozUi component 1007 is registered using regxpcom. exe, it is then available for use by the Mozilla browser.

The nsPlatiMozUi component 1007 also loads another dynamic link library named "platimozui.dll" component 1006. The DLL provides shared memory space that is available to the configure client module 1003, nsplatimozui.dll, and other programs. Platimozui.dll 1006 also loads a resource analysis engine ("platia nasrc.dll") to analyze the HTML source code of the pages of Mozilla browser 1005.

Once the configure client module 1003 is loaded, the configure client module 1003 will use the functionality of platimozui.dll 1006 to place its window handle (handle) into the shared memory space.

When Netscape 6.xx or higher version browser 1005 is loaded, the script file in "comm. jar" will execute to load the nsPlatiMozUi component 1007. The nsPlatiMozui component 1007 is loaded with platimozui.dll 1006.

Jar's script file will check if there is a form in the web page and what the kind of form is when the browser 1005 completes the user's navigation.

If the form is a login form or a registration form, the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 uses the functionality of platimozui.dll 1006 to check the processing of the configure client module in the shared memory space. If the configure client module 1003 is not loaded, the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 will do nothing, otherwise, the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 launches a hidden window.

The hidden window sends an indicative message to the window configuring the client module. The message differs depending on which type (format) of form the form is, for example, a login or registration form. The configure client module 1003 works when it receives the message, either checks if the configure client module 1003 has recorded account information for the website, or sends the user's information back to the nsPlatiMozui component 1007. The configure client module 1003 sets data indicating the user's information and status in the shared memory space through the hidden window. The hidden window puts data into the shared memory 1004 when it receives a message from the configure client module 1003.

If the form is a registered form, the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 populates the user's information, such as the user's first and last name, in the form it gets from the shared memory 1004. If the form is a login form, then either the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 takes them if the configure client module 1003 has not already recorded the user's username and password, or the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 inserts them into the form if the configure client module 1003 has already recorded the user's username and password (the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 finds the username and password in the shared memory 1004).

If the nsPlatiMozui component 1007 obtains the user name and password for the user, it passes the information to the configure client module 1003 via the shared memory 1004 by sending the information to the configure client module's window. The configure client module 1003 passes the user's username and password from the shared memory 1004 to the read/write smartcard module 1002. The read/write smart card module 1002 saves the information to the smart card 1001 if desired by the user.

Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that while a Mozilla-based browser is described above, other types of browsers can similarly be used to achieve the same result.

The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention, and various modifications and changes may be made by those skilled in the art. Any modification, equivalent replacement, or improvement made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims (18)

1. A method, comprising:

reading personal computing environment data of a user from a smart card in communication with a client device;

providing browser monitoring means on said client for monitoring activities of a Mozilla-based web browser;

wherein the browser monitoring means determines whether the web page accessed by the user is a form and determines the format of the form; and

analyzing fields in the form and automatically populating the fields in the form with the user's personal computing environment data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the browser monitoring device uses a dynamic link library (dll) interface to the Mozilla-based browser to communicate with the browser.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein if the form is a registration form, the automatically populating step populates fields in the form with information of the user from personal computing environment data of the user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein if the form is a login form, the automatically populating step obtains a username and password for the user of the web page if the username and password for the user are not in the user's personal computing environment data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein if the form is a login form, the automatically populating step inserts the user's username and password into fields in the form if the user's username and password for the web page are in the user's personal computing environment data.

6. An apparatus, comprising:

reading means for reading personal computing environment data of a user from a smart card in communication with a client device;

browser monitoring means on said client for monitoring activities of a Mozilla-based web browser;

wherein the browser monitoring means determines whether the web page accessed by the user is a form and determines the format of the form; and

automatic filling means for analyzing fields in the form and automatically filling in the fields in the form using the user's personal computing environment data.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the browser monitoring device uses a dynamic link library (dll) interface to the Mozilla-based browser to communicate with the browser.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein if the form is a registration form, the auto-fill means fills in fields in the form using information of the user from personal computing environment data of the user.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein if the form is a login form, the autofill device obtains a username and password for the user of the web page if the username and password are not in the user's personal computing environment data.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein if the form is a login form, the autofill device inserts the user's username and password into fields in the form if the user's username and password for the web page are in the user's personal computing environment data.

11. A method, comprising:

reading personal computing environment data of a user from a smart card in communication with a client device;

monitoring, on the client device, a web browser of a user for web pages visited by the user;

wherein the monitoring step determines whether the web page is a form and determines a format of the form; and

automatically populating fields in the form with the user's personal computing environment data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein if the form is a registration form, the automatically populating step populates fields in the form with information of the user from personal computing environment data of the user.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein if the form is a login form, the automatically populating step obtains a username and password for the user of the web page if the username and password for the user are not in the user's personal computing environment data.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein if the form is a login form, the automatically populating step inserts the user's username and password into fields in the form if the user's username and password for the web page are in the user's personal computing environment data.

15. An apparatus, comprising:

reading means for reading personal computing environment data of a user from a smart card in communication with a client device;

monitoring means for monitoring, on the client device, a web browser of a user for web pages visited by the user;

wherein the monitoring means determines whether a web page is a form and determines the format of the form; and

and the automatic filling device is used for automatically filling the fields in the form by using the personal computing environment data of the user.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein if the form is a registration form, the auto-fill means fills in fields in the form using information of the user from personal computing environment data of the user.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein if the form is a login form, the autofill device obtains a username and password for the user of the web page if the username and password are not in the user's personal computing environment data.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein if the form is a login form, the autofill device inserts the user's username and password into fields in the form if the user's username and password for the web page are in the user's personal computing environment data.