Patent US 6,789,073

A client-server multitasking process comprising: receiving a request comprising searching criteria, comprising n search queries, at least two of which comprise different query values directed to different server addresses, request grouping criteria, and display criteria specifying for which request group information is to be returned; processing n search query and server address pairs into m request groups; for the search queries in the specified request group, sending to the server designated by the server address a query derived from the corresponding search query; receiving response information from the servers; processing the response information into a plurality of return groups by associating a different query value with a different one of the return groups and merging into the return group the response information from the servers that received queries directed to the query value associated with the return group; consolidating the return groups into a consolidated response; returning the consolidated response.