Apparatus for downloading macro programs and executing a downloaded macro program responding to activation of a single key

Claim 1

An information retrieval videotex system, comprising: a host computer; terminal means including a group of terminals and communication means for connecting selectively the group of terminals to said host computer via communication paths; a group of service computers located remotely to the host computer, said host computer having sitching means for extending selectively the communication paths from the terminals via gateway paths to selected ones of the service computers; each one of said terminals having means for requesting macro programs to be downloaded from said host computer to the terminal via a selected communication path for storage therein; each one of said terminals having memory means for storing requested macro programs downloaded thereto from the host computer via said selected communication path; each one of said terminals having means responsive to the storing of downloaded macro programs received via said selected communication path from said host computer for disconnecting selectively the terminal from said selected communication path; each one of said terminals having processing means; each one of said terminals having a group of individual function input devices for activating said stored macro programs so that one of said macro programs is executed by said processing means in response to a macro activating input signal generated by the activation of a single one of said input devices without further input communication from said host computer; each one of said terminals having means responsive to the activation of one of the stored macro programs for reconnecting selectively terminal to be selectively reconnected to said host computer via a selected communication path; and each one of said terminals having means responsive to the reconnection of the terminal for sending information generated by the activated macro program to a selected service computer via the gateway path established by said host computer.