Abstract: A method for operating a directory assistance process adapted to provide a targeted message to incoming callers totally or substantially free of one or more 411-type directory assistance calling charges. The method includes receiving a phone call from an incoming caller and receiving a voice based request for information associated with directory assistance from the caller. The method also includes determining phone number information in response to the request through one or more first databases and identifying a phone number associated with the incoming caller using a caller identification process. The method further includes querying at least one database to ascertain a match between the phone number associated with the incoming caller and at least one of a plurality of identifiers in the at least one database, determining at least one message, transmitting the determined message to the incoming caller, and transmitting the phone number information to the incoming caller.

Abstract: A method of operating a directory assistance system is provided. The method includes receiving a number of directory assistance requests for information regarding at least one of a number of businesses. The number of directory assistance requests comes from a group of callers. The method also includes tracking a frequency with which information regarding the at least one of the number of businesses is requested, defining a number of business categories, and providing a business database comprising a listing of a number of businesses associated with at least one of the number of business categories. The method further includes receiving a directory assistance request including a business category from a caller and presenting a listing of businesses to the caller. An order of presentation is based on the frequency.

Abstract: A method for operating a directory assistance process adapted to provide a targeted message to incoming callers totally or substantially free of one or more 411-type directory assistance calling charges. The method includes receiving a phone call from an incoming caller and receiving a voice based request for information associated with directory assistance from the caller. The method also includes determining phone number information in response to the request through one or more first databases and identifying a phone number associated with the incoming caller using a caller identification process. The method further includes querying at least one database to ascertain a match between the phone number associated with the incoming caller and at least one of a plurality of identifiers in the at least one database, determining at least one message, transmitting the determined message to the incoming caller, and transmitting the phone number information to the incoming caller.

Abstract: A method of operating a telephony system including receiving a call from a caller, the call being provided through at least a telecommunication network. A phone number is received, associated with the call from the caller, were the phone number is identified using a caller identification process. It is determined if the phone number is associated with a wireless telecommunications device and the caller is prompted to input a residential phone number for a landline associated with the caller if the phone number is associated with the wireless telecommunications device. The residential phone number is received and stored in association with the phone number into one or more memory locations of one or more databases.

Abstract: A method for operating a directory assistance process adapted to provide a targeted message to incoming callers totally or substantially free of one or more 411-type directory assistance calling charges. The method includes receiving a phone call from an incoming caller and receiving a voice based request for information associated with directory assistance from the caller. The method also includes determining phone number information in response to the request through one or more first databases and identifying a phone number associated with the incoming caller using a caller identification process. The method further includes querying at least one database to ascertain a match between the phone number associated with the incoming caller and at least one of a plurality of identifiers in the at least one database, determining at least one message, transmitting the determined message to the incoming caller, and transmitting the phone number information to the incoming caller.

Abstract: A method of operating a telephony system includes connecting a call from a caller to a call processing entity and receiving voice information from the caller during a time period associated with the call. The voice information is processed to provide one or more elements of waveform characteristics associated with the voice information using a first computer process and the one or more elements associated with the voice information are associated to one or more categories of human entities using a second computer process. The one or more categories of the human entities are identified to predict a gender of the caller using a third computer process and one or more advertisements associated with the identified one or more categories are determined.

Abstract: A method of operating a telephony system. The method includes receiving a call from a caller through a telecommunication network, identifying a phone number associated with the call from the caller, and processing the phone number. The method also includes determining if the phone number is associated with a wireless telecommunications device, prompting the caller to input a residential phone number for a landline associated with the caller if the phone number is associated with the wireless cellular telecommunications device, and transferring the residential phone number from the caller using a communications process. The method further includes receiving the residential phone number and storing the residential phone number in association with the phone number into one or more memory locations of one or more databases.

Abstract: A method of operating a telephony system. The method includes connecting a call from a caller to a call processing entity, receiving voice information from the caller during a time period associated with the call, and processing the voice information to provide one or more elements of waveform characteristics associated with the voice information using a first computer process. The method also includes associating the one or more elements associated with the voice information to one or more categories of human entities using a second computer process and identifying the one or more categories of the human entities to predict an actual entity of the caller using a third computer process. In an embodiment, the actual entity of the caller is a gender of the caller. The method further includes determining one or more messages associated with the identified one or more categories and providing the one or more messages to the caller.

Abstract: A method for operating a local area network having a server and a plurality of computers. The server includes an Internet gateway for directing messages to and from the Internet. Each computer in the network has a unique IP address and a unique network adapter address associated with that computer. Each computer determines the network adapter address associated with a target IP address by broadcasting an address resolution protocol (ARP) message on the local area network. The server stores information identifying IP addresses in a foreign class corresponding to computers not configured for connection to the local area network. The server responds to each ARP having a target IP address in the foreign class by returning the network adapter address of the server in the response message and assigning an IP address associated with the local area network to the IP address of the computer sending the ARP.

Abstract: A system for providing uninterrupted communication over a network link includes a multi-port switch that is connected to a first network portion and a second network portion that are communicating with one another. The multi-port switch is also connected to a separate server unit, such as a firewall computer. The switch is configured to direct communication signals flowing between the first network portion and the second network portion through the separate server unit for processing during normal operation. When the separate server unit fails, however, the switch is reconfigured so that communications bypass the separate server unit. In a preferred embodiment, a Ethernet switch having virtual local area network (VLAN) capability is used.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method related to controlling communication of a TCP packet from a user machine is disclosed. During a browser request from the user machine, the TCP packet is sent via the intranet to a forced proxy server. The TCP packet having a number of fields including a first field related to a first destination IP address. The TCP packet and its first destination IP address is received by the forced proxy server and analyzed. If the first destination IP address is not from a “sandboxed” domain, the first destination IP address is changed to a predetermined second destination IP address to effectively reroute the TCP packet to another IP address on the Internet. The rerouted IP address provides content to the user machine in which at least a majority of the content is different from that expected to be obtained by the user machine.