What is claimed is:
1. An information providing system comprising:
a printer;
a user terminal connected to said printer and sending print information to said printer; and
an information providing server delivering information via a communication line,
wherein said printer comprises:
means for acquiring the information delivered from said information providing server, said means for acquiring the information being connected to said information providing server via the communication line;
means for printing the acquired information according to a print instruction received from said user terminal; and
means for notifying an amount of information acquired from said information providing server and printed,
wherein said user terminal comprises:
means for sending a print instruction to said printer; and
means for setting a print format of the information, which is acquired from said information providing server, in said printer, and
wherein said information providing server comprises:
means for calculating a total of the amount of information notified by said printer.
2. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein said printer prints the information when the information is acquired from said information providing server.
3. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein said printer prints the information when the information acquired from said information providing server is updated from the information acquired last.
4. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein, when said printer prints the information received from said user terminal, said printer prints the information, which is acquired from said information providing server, in a margin of the print medium.
5. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein, when said printer prints the information received from said user terminal, said printer prints the information, which is acquired from said information providing server, in a margin of the print medium, said print margin being produced by reducing a predetermined print field of the information.
6. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein, when said printer prints the information received from said user terminal, said printer combines the information acquired from said information providing server and prints the information in a blank portion of a print field of the information.
7. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein said printer prints the information, which is acquired from said information providing server, on a reverse side of the print medium on which the information from said user terminal is to be printed.
8. The information providing system as defined by claim 1 wherein the communication line is a line connected to the Internet.
9. An information providing method comprising the steps of:
(a) storing, by an information provider, information into an information providing server;
(b) by a printer of a customer, acquiring the information stored in said information providing server, printing the information on a print medium, and notifying an amount of the printed information to said information providing server; and
(c) paying consideration to the customer by the information provider based on the notified amount of information.
10. The information providing method as defined by claim 9 wherein said information providing server and said printer are connected via the Internet.
11. An information providing method comprising the steps of:
(a) storing, by an information provider, information into an information providing server;
(b) lending printer from the information provider to a customer;
(c) by said Printer, acquiring the information stored in said information providing server, printing the information on a print medium, and notifying an amount of the printed information to said information providing server; and
(d) collecting, by the information provider, an amount of value corresponding to a rental charge of said printer from the customer based on the notified amount of information.
12. The information providing method as defined by claim 11 wherein said information providing server and said printer are connected via the Internet.
13. An information providing system comprising:
an information providing server having means for storing information to be provided to customers;
means for setting a printer at a customer so as to acquire the information stored in said information providing server, to print the information, and to notify an amount of the printed information to said information providing server;
wherein said information providing server comprising means for paying the customer by an information provider based on the notified amount of the printed information.
14. The information providing system as defined by claim 13 wherein said information providing server and said printer are connected via an Internet.
15. An information providing system comprising:
an information Providing server having means for storing, by an information provider, information to be provided to customers;
means for registering a printer lent from the information provider to a customer;
means for setting said printer so as to acquire the information stored in said information providing server, to print the acquired information, and to notify an amount of the printed information to said information providing server; and
means for collecting a rental charge of said printer from the customer based on the notified amount of information.
16. The information providing system as defined by claim 15 wherein said information providing server and said printer are connected via an Internet.
17. The information providing system as defined by claim 15, wherein said means for setting the printer includes a program which performs said setting through being accessed by said printer.
18. A computer readable program product for performing an information providing service, the program product comprising the steps of;
(a) storing information to be provided to customers in an information providing server;
(b) setting a printer at a customer so as to acquire the information stored in said information providing server, to print the information, and to notify an amount of the printed information to said information providing server;
(c) paying the customer based on the notified amount of the printed information.
19. A computer readable program product for performing an information providing service, the program product comprising the steps of;
(a) storing information to be provided to customers in an information providing server;
(b) registering a printer lent from an information provider to a customer;
(c) setting said printer so as to acquire the information stored in said information providing server, to print the acquired information, and to notify an amount of the printed information to said information providing server; and
(d) collecting an amount of value corresponding to a rental charge of said printer from the customer based on the notified amount of the printed information.
20. The program product as defined by claim 19, wherein said amount of value corresponds to a rental charge less an amount associated with the notified amount of the printer information.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method of programming an antifuse memory, comprising, for a cell to be programmed, the steps of:
assessing the memory power consumption in programming mode by determining consumed current;
comparing the memory power consumption with a threshold; and
stopping the programming of the cell when the threshold has been reached.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising applying a programming voltage, greater than a power supply voltage (Vdd) of the memory in read mode, during the programming.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising adjusting said threshold according to a power consumption of the memory plane in the absence of a programming.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining consumed current comprises counting control pulses of a charge pump circuit configured to deliver a programming voltage to the antifuse memory.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the cells to be programmed are successively selected.
6. An antifuse memory cell programming circuit, comprising:
a charge pump circuit configured to deliver, from a first power supply voltage, a second higher programming voltage;
a circuit of successive selection of the cells to be programmed; and
a circuit configured to assess consumed current based on activity of the charge pump circuit during programming phases.
7. The circuit of claim 6, wherein said circuit configured to assess comprises a synchronous counter of control pulses of the charge pump circuit.
8. A method of programming an antifuse memory cell, comprising:
applying a boosted voltage generated by a charge pump circuit to said antifuse memory cell during programming mode;
comparing the boosted voltage to a first threshold;
generating control pulses for said charge pump circuit in response to the comparison;
counting a number of said control pulses generated during a testing period of time during programming mode; and
stopping programming mode when the counted number of control pulses exceeds a second threshold.
9. An antifuse memory cell programming circuit, comprising:
a charge pump circuit configured to deliver a boosted voltage to an antifuse memory cell during programming mode;
a comparator configured to compare the boosted voltage to a first threshold;
a control pulse generator circuit configured to generate control pulses for controlling operation of said charge pump circuit;
a counter circuit configured to count a number of said control pulses generated during a testing period of time during programming mode and terminate programming mode when the counted number of control pulses exceeds a second threshold.