Abstract: The delivery of content is improved from a user's perspective by encouraging the cache of user devices to maintain more current data prior to requesting web pages that would invoke the download of the more current data. A cache simulation of the cache in the user devices is maintained. When objects within the cache simulator are expected to require updating, actions are taken to encourage the user device to update the cache. The actions include modifying markup language files that are downloaded to the user device to invoke the update. For instance, artificial URL's that request the updated objects, embedded scripts, user selection objects, or the like are used to invoke an update process.

Abstract: The rendering of markup language based files is accelerated by employing an apparatus to capture requests for markup language pages. The requested pages are retrieved and then examined to identify additional links that are contained therein. The markup language page is then modified by adding a trigger or tag into the page. The trigger or tag is basically a mechanism to automate a request for additional markup language information or pages. The trigger or tag, when received by the device requesting the markup language page, will invoke a request to obtain the markup language information or file represented by the tag. The tag can be a browser activated link or a JavaScript. A predictive module is used to review the additional links in the requested pages to identify a predicted next page to be downloaded or requested. This predicted next page or link can be a most likely candidate for what a user viewing the current page would request.

Abstract: Traffic transmitted over long fat networks (LFN) can be expensive and/or slow. The amount of traffic is reduced by application of the present invention which introduces a manipulator device at each end of a long fat network. The manipulator device emulates the opposing end-side equipment for the local-side equipment and then communications over the long fat network using an established tunnel. Thus, the protocol exchanges that would normally be transmitted over the long fat network in setting up, tearing down and controlling a communications session are reduced or eliminated. Yet an alternate embodiment may use a single manipulator device at a central operator premises of the LFN. The single manipulator device may replace domain names that are embedded within a markup language file with their IP addresses.

Abstract: Traffic passing between remote terminals and corporate intranets through an access server provider network can encounter security and addressing problems. Intercepting and manipulating this traffic can overcome these, as well as other problems. For such traffic that is being transported over a plurality of Network Based Tunnels (NBT), this manipulation can be performed by manipulation equipment that may reside in the access server provider's network between an Access Gateway (AGW) and a Border Gateway (BGW). The manipulation equipment may manipulate received NBT packets by parsing the original packet that is encapsulated in the NBT packet, manipulating the original packet and reconstructing the NBT packet with the manipulated data of the original packet.