A web browser program presents historical information about hyperlinks
shown on web pages. Initially, the computer determines whether it is
receiving certain user input, such as placement of a cursor over a
hyperlink for a certain time. When this occurs, the computer accesses a
database to determine whether one or more users in a predefined access
group have previously selected the hyperlink for the purpose of
downloading underlying data represented by the hyperlink. Some examples of
the underlying data include web pages, graphics images, software programs,
and the like. If the hyperlink has not been previously selected, no action
needs to be taken. However, if the database shows that the hyperlink has
been previously selected, the computer consults the database to gather
characteristics of the underlying data obtained from previous selections
of the hyperlink by access group members. Such characteristics may
include, for example, the data's size, date of last download, expired or
"under construction" status of web site, errors occurring during the
download, etc. The computer presents a report containing the
characteristics gathered from the database.
