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An interactive exercise device for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise device including a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user, a processor for determining a plurality of exercise performance param

An interactive exercise device for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise device including a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user, a processor for determining a plurality of exercise performance parameters based on the step signals output from the step measuring device, a memory for storing the determined exercise performance parameters, a menu-driven interface display for displaying a plurality of menus, the menus for displaying at least the determined exercise performance parameters, a user input device for operation by the user to select a display of one of the menus on the interface display and to provide input data corresponding to a selected display, and an interface connection for connecting the interactive exercise device to an external computing device, the interface connection supporting an upload of the determined exercise performance parameters from the interactive exercise device to the external computing device, and supporting a download of user-specified data from the external computing device to the interactive exercise device, the user-specified data including at least one user-specified message that is displayed on the interface display when a user-selected one of the determined exercise performance parameters reaches a user-specified threshold.

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What is claimed is: 1. An interactive exercise device for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise device comprising: a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user; a processor for determining a plurality of

What is claimed is: 1. An interactive exercise device for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise device comprising: a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user; a processor for determining a plurality of exercise performance parameters based on the step signals output from the step measuring device; a memory for storing the determined exercise performance parameters; a menu-driven interface display for displaying a plurality of menus, the menus for displaying at least the determined exercise performance parameters; a user input device for operation by the user to select a display of one of the menus on the interface display and to provide input data corresponding to a selected display; an interface connection for connecting the interactive exercise device to an external computing device, the interface connection supporting an upload of the determined exercise performance parameters from the interactive exercise device to the external computing device, and supporting a download of user-specified data from the external computing device to the interactive exercise device, the user-specified data including at least one user-specified message that is displayed on the interface display when a user-selected one of the determined exercise performance parameters reaches a user-specified threshold; a main body in which the step measuring device, the processor, the memory, the menu-driven interface display, the user input device, and the interface connection are disposed; a hinged lid connected to the main body by a hinge, the hinged lid forming a clam-shell shape in conjunction with the main body and covering the interface display when closed against a first side of the main body; and a detachable face-plate removably attached to a second side of the main body, the detachable face-plate having an integrated latch for latching the hinged lid in a closed position against the first side of the main body. 2. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the user input device is comprised of a plurality of input buttons. 3. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the user input device is comprised of a voice command receiver. 4. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the detachable face-plate has at least one tab that is inserted into at least one slot on the main body to removably attach the detachable face-plate to the second side of the main body. 5. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the step measuring device includes a balanced lever which is held in tension by a spring, the balanced lever triggering a signal connection to output a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user. 6. The interactive exercise device of claim 5, wherein the interactive exercise device further includes an adjustment device for adjusting an amount of tension applied to the balanced lever by the spring. 7. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the processor executes a filter program to filter the step signals received from the step measuring device so as to disregard any step signal that is outside of a predetermined step pattern. 8. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the interface connection is a standardized serial connection. 9. The interactive exercise device of claim 8, wherein the standardized serial connection is a universal serial bus connection, and wherein, when the interactive exercise device is connected to the external computing device through the universal serial bus connection, the interactive exercise device is recognized as a mass storage device by a windowing operating system being executed by the external computing device. 10. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the interface connection is a wireless connection, and wherein, when the interactive exercise device is connected to the external computing device through the wireless connection, the interactive exercise device is recognized as a mass storage device by a windowing operating system being executed by the external computing device. 11. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, further including a radio frequency receiver for receiving heart rate information of the user from an external heart rate monitor having a radio frequency transmitter. 12. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, further including a bicycle feedback interface for receiving bicycle rotation information from an external bicycle rotation monitor. 13. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the menu-driven interface display is a liquid crystal display. 14. The interactive exercise device of claim 13, wherein the liquid crystal display has a backlight for illuminating the display. 15. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, further including a rechargeable battery and an internal charger that charges the rechargeable battery when the internal charger is connected to an external power source. 16. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the user navigates between the plurality of menus by using the user input device in correspondence with a displayed command on each menu. 17. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of menus include a set of top-level menus, each top-level menu corresponding to a top-level function performed by the interactive exercise device. 18. The interactive exercise device of claim 17, wherein at least one of the top-level menus corresponds to a previous-day menu which enables the user to display at least one of the exercise performance parameters retrieved from the memory, the at least one of the exercise performance parameters being determined on a previous day. 19. The interactive exercise device of claim 17, wherein at least one of the top-level menus corresponds to an timed-event menu which enables the user to input parameters for a timed exercise event to be performed by the interactive exercise device. 20. The interactive exercise device of claim 17, wherein at least one of the top-level menus corresponds to an options menu which enables the user to input operating options for the interactive exercise device through the user input device. 21. The interactive exercise device of claim 17, wherein at least one of the top-level menus corresponds to a settings menu which enables the user to input a plurality of setting parameters corresponding to the user, the setting parameters being used by the processor to determine at least one of the exercise performance parameters. 22. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of menus corresponds to a pedometer function which is executed in the processor to enable the interactive exercise device to operate as a pedometer. 23. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of menus corresponds to a clock function which is executed in the processor to enable the interactive exercise device to operate as a clock. 24. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of menus corresponds to an alarm function which is executed in the processor to enable the interactive exercise device to operate as an alarm. 25. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein each top-level menu has a corresponding set of sub-menus, each sub-menu corresponding to a sub-function of the top-level function. 26. The interactive exercise device of claim 2, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 27. The interactive exercise device of claim 2, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed prompt on at least one of the plurality of menus. 28. The interactive exercise device of claim 3, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 29. The interactive exercise device of claim 3, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed prompt on at least one of the plurality of menus. 30. The interactive exercise device of claim 1, wherein, at a pre-determined time each day, the current values of the determined plurality of exercise performance parameters are stored in the memory as a set of previous data values for subsequent retrieval from the memory, and each of the current values of the determined plurality of exercise performance parameters are set to a predetermined initial value. 31. An interactive exercise system for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise system comprising: an external computing device having a local processor, a local memory, a local display monitor, an interface connection port, and a local network connection port; a server having a server processor, a server memory, and a server network connection port, the server being connected to the external computing device by a network connection connected to the server network connection port and to the local network connection port of the external computing device, the server sending display pages to the external computing device for display on the local display monitor and the server receiving data from the external computing device; and an interactive exercise device comprising: a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user; a processor for determining a plurality of exercise performance parameters based on the step signals output from the step measuring device; a memory for storing the determined exercise performance parameters; a menu-driven interface display for displaying a plurality of menus, the menus for displaying at least the determined exercise performance parameters; a user input device for operation by the user to select a display of one of the menus on the interface display and to provide input data corresponding to a selected display; an interface connection connecting the interactive exercise device to the interface connection port of the external computing device through a data connection; a main body in which the step measuring device, the processor, the memory, the menu-driven interface display, the user input device, and the interface connection are disposed; a hinged lid connected to the main body by a hinge, the hinged lid forming a clam-shell shape in conjunction with the main body and covering the interface display when closed against a first side of the main body; and a detachable face-plate removably attached to a second side of the main body, the detachable face-plate having an integrated latch for latching the hinged lid in a closed position against the first side of the main body; wherein user-specified data is downloaded from the external computing device to the interactive exercise device through the data connection, the user specified data including at least one user-specified message that is displayed on the interface display of the interactive exercise device when a user-selected one of the determined exercise performance parameters reaches a user-specified threshold; and wherein exercise performance parameters are uploaded from the interactive exercise device to the external computing device through the data connection, and are then uploaded from the external computing device to the server through the network connection between the server and the external computing device. 32. The interactive exercise system of claim 31, wherein the user input device is comprised of a plurality of input buttons. 33. The interactive exercise system of claim 31, wherein the user input device is comprised of a voice command receiver. 34. The interactive exercise system of claim 31, wherein at least one of the display pages sent from the server to the external computing device represents a user setting input page, and the user-specified data is entered by the user into a plurality of input fields of the user setting input page displayed on the local display monitor. 35. The interactive exercise system of claim 34, wherein the user setting input page includes input fields corresponding to a user-specified message, a user-selected one of the exercise performance parameters corresponding to the user-specified message, and a user-specified threshold corresponding to the user-selected exercise performance parameter, and wherein the user input data from these input fields is included in the user-specified data that is downloaded from the external computing device to the interactive exercise device. 36. The interactive exercise system of claim 31, wherein at least one of the display pages sent from the server to the external computing device represents a performance parameter page, and at least one of the exercise performance parameters is represented on the performance parameter page displayed on the local display monitor. 37. The interactive exercise system of claim 31, wherein, when the exercise performance parameters are uploaded from the external computing device to the server through the network connection, the exercise performance parameters are stored in a database in relation to an identifier corresponding to the user. 38. The interactive exercise system of claim 34, wherein the exercise performance parameters include time data representing a time at which each of the exercise performance parameters was determined, and the exercise performance parameters are stored in the database in relation to the identifier corresponding to the user and in relation to the time data. 39. The interactive exercise system of claim 32, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 40. The interactive exercise system of claim 32, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed prompt on at least one of the plurality of menus. 41. The interactive exercise system of claim 33, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 42. The interactive exercise system of claim 33, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed prompt on at least one of the plurality of menus. 43. An interactive exercise system for measuring and displaying exercise performance parameters, the interactive exercise system comprising: a server having a server processor, a server memory, and a server network connection port; and an interactive exercise device comprising: a step measuring device that outputs a step signal corresponding to each step walked by a user; a processor for determining a plurality of exercise performance parameters based on the step signals output from the step measuring device; a memory for storing the determined exercise performance parameters; a menu-driven interface display for displaying a plurality of menus, the menus for displaying at least the determined exercise performance parameters; a user input device for operation by the user to select a display of one of the menus on the interface display and to provide input data corresponding to a selected display; a wireless interface connection that connects the interactive exercise device directly to the server, wherein the server sends user-specified data to the interactive exercise device and the server receives determined exercise performance parameters from the interactive exercise device; a main body in which the step measuring device, the processor, the memory, the menu-driven interface display. the user input device, and the interface connection are disposed; a hinged lid connected to the main body by a hinge, the hinged lid forming a clam-shell shape in conjunction with the main body and covering the interface display when closed against a first side of the main body; and a detachable face-plate removably attached to a second side of the main body, the detachable face-plate having an integrated latch for latching the hinged lid in a closed position against the first side of the main body; wherein the user-specified data includes at least one user-specified message that is displayed on the interface display of the interactive exercise device when a user-selected one of the determined exercise performance parameters reaches a user-specified threshold. 44. The interactive exercise system of claim 43, wherein the user input device is comprised of a plurality of input buttons. 45. The interactive exercise system of claim 43, wherein the user input device is comprised of a voice command receiver. 46. The interactive exercise system of claim 43, wherein, when the exercise performance parameters are sent to the server through the wireless interface connection, the exercise performance parameters are stored in a database in the server in relation to an identifier corresponding to the user. 47. The interactive exercise system of claim 43, wherein the exercise performance parameters include time data representing a time at which each of the exercise performance parameters was determined, and wherein the exercise performance parameters are stored in a database in the server in relation to an identifier corresponding to the user and in relation to the time data. 48. The interactive exercise system of claim 44, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 49. The interactive exercise system of claim 44, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by pressing at least one of the plurality of buttons corresponding to a displayed one of the user setting menus. 50. The interactive exercise system of claim 45, wherein the user enters data into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed prompt on a selected one of the plurality of menus. 51. The interactive exercise system of claim 45, wherein the plurality of menus includes a set of user setting menus, and wherein the user enters data representing user settings into the interactive exercise device by entering a voice command into the voice command receiver in correspondence with a displayed one of the user setting menus.