Abstract: The present invention discloses a communication system in a network system having a plurality of user terminals connected to a communication network and a plurality of network resources accessed by the user terminals, the communication system having a communication part which makes the user terminals accessing the same network resource exchange and share communication information. The communication part has a communication server and a communication controlling part, provided in each user terminal, for obtaining information of the user terminals accessing the same network resource and for exchanging the communication information with the user terminals through the communication server. The communication server groups the user terminals accessing the same network resource as one group on the basis of resource locators notified of by the user terminals, and distributes information of the user terminals of the one group to the user terminals of the one group.

Abstract: A plurality of terminals are connected to a server via a communication network and share a predetermined common virtual space. The terminals each send to the server the position coordinates of the viewing point and direction of eyes of its user in the virtual space, and the visual field image viewed from that viewing point is displayed on a display. Based on the position coordinates and direction of eyes of the avatar each of the other terminals received from each of the other terminals via the server, each terminal generates an avatar image in the specified direction and at the specified position and displays it in the visual field. The server is always supplied with the latest position information of the avatar from every terminal and, when the distance between two arbitrary avatars becomes smaller than a threshold value, connects speech channels of the two terminals corresponding to these avatars.

Abstract: A data transfer system has an address bus and a data bus, each divided into two parts by a bus switch. A microprocessor and program memory are connected to the first parts of the address and data buses. A data memory, data transfer controller, and input/output devices are connected to the second parts of tile address and data buses. While the microprocessor is fetching an instruction from the program memory, the bus switches disconnect the two parts of the buses, enabling the data transfer controller to transfer data directly between the data memory and input/output devices. At other times the bus switches connect the two parts of the buses, enabling the microprocessor to access the data memory and Input/output devices.