Collaborative cursors in a hosted word processor

• US 10,082,927 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2016
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Lemonik, Micah, Saviano, Olga Sergeyevna, Ravi, Janani R., Pereira Filho, Luiz Do Amaral De Franca
• Primary Examiner(s): WENG, PEI YONG
• Application Number:
  US15/008,209
• Publication Number:
  US 20160139768A1
• Time in Patent Office: 972 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/197 Version control for software G06F8/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A computer-implemented collaborative editing method includes receiving input from a user of a browser-based document editing application on a document displayed by the application; identifying a current location in the document for a cursor of a first user executing the application; receiving from a central server system data that reflects changes made to the document by one or more users other than the first user and current positions in the document of cursors for the one or more other user; updating a document model stored on a computing device that is executing the browser-based application and rendering at least a portion of the model to the browser; and rendering the current positions of the cursors for the one or more other users to the browser.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented collaborative editing method, comprising:

receiving a first change from a first user to a document displayed by a first browser-based document editing application, wherein the document is stored by a computing device;

identifying a first current location in the document for a cursor associated with the first user;

receiving a second change made to the document by a second user other than the first user, wherein the second change is made when the document is displayed by a second browser-based document editing application;

identifying a second current position in the document for a cursor associated with the second user;

determining that the first current location and the second current position correspond to a same position of the document;

determining that the received first change from the first user and the received second change by the second user include conflicting edits to the same position of the document; and

modifying the document based on a conflict resolving rule to cause;

the first browser-based document editing application to render a first portion of the modified document and the second browser-based document editing application to render a second portion of the modified document,

a first indicator of the second current position of the cursor associated with the second user to be displayed along with a first identity tag identifying the second user within the first portion, and

a second indicator of the first current location of the cursor associated with the first user to be displayed along with a second identity tag identifying the first user within the second portion.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first user maintains a first client copy of the document, and the second user maintains a second client copy of the document.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the first change is made by the first user within the first client copy, and the second change is made by the second user within the second client copy.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing, at a server, a master copy of the document to perform collaborative editing during a common session; and

synchronizing the master copy of the document with the first client copy and the second client copy.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the conflict resolving rule includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on an arrival time of the edits at the server.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the conflict resolving rules includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on a user status associated with the edits.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model and information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of cursors to the first user or the second user.

8. A system for collaborative editing, comprising:

a memory; and

a computer processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the computer processor configured to;

receive a first change from a first user to a document displayed by a first browser-based document editing application, wherein the document is stored by a computing device;

identify a first current location in the document for a cursor associated with the first user;

receive a second change made to the document by a second user other than the first user, wherein the second change is made when the document is displayed by a second browser-based document editing application;

identify a second current position in the document for a cursor associated with the second user;

determine that the first current location and the second current position correspond to a same position of the document;

determine that the received first change from the first user and the received second change by the second user include conflicting edits to the same position of the document; and

modify the document based on a conflict resolving rule to cause;

the first browser-based document editing application to render a first portion of the modified document and the second browser-based document editing application to render a second portion of the modified document,

a first indicator of the second current position of the cursor associated with the second user to be displayed along with a first identity tag identifying the second user within the first portion, and

a second indicator of the first current location of the cursor associated with the first user to be displayed along with a second identity tag identifying the first user within the second portion.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the first user maintains a first client copy of the document, and the second user maintains a second client copy of the document.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the first change is made by the first user within the first client copy, and the second change is made by the second user within the second client copy.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

store, at a server, a master copy of the document to perform collaborative editing during a common session; and

synchronizing the master copy of the document with the first client copy and the second client copy.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the conflict resolving rule includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on an arrival time of the edits at the server.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the conflict resolving rules includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on a user status associated with the edits.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

transmit information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model and information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of cursors to the first user or the second user.

15. A computer-readable non-transitory storage medium storing a plurality of processor-executable instructions, the processor-executable instructions executed by a computer processor to:

receive a first change from a first user to a document displayed by a first browser-based document editing application, wherein the document is stored by a computing device;

identify a first current location in the document for a cursor associated with the first user;

receive a second change made to the document by a second user other than the first user, wherein the second change is made when the document is displayed by a second browser-based document editing application;

identify a second current position in the document for a cursor associated with the second user;

determine that the first current location and the second current position correspond to a same position of the document;

determine that the received first change from the first user and the received second change by the second user include conflicting edits to the same position of the document; and

modify the document based on a conflict resolving rule to cause;

the first browser-based document editing application to render a first portion of the modified document and the second browser-based document editing application to render a second portion of the modified document,

a first indicator of the second current position of the cursor associated with the second user to be displayed along with a first identity tag identifying the second user within the first portion, and

a second indicator of the first current location of the cursor associated with the first user to be displayed along with a second identity tag identifying the first user within the second portion.

16. The medium of claim 15, wherein the first user maintains a first client copy of the document, and the second user maintains a second client copy of the document.

17. The medium of claim 15, wherein the first change is made by the first user within the first client copy, and the second change is made by the second user within the second client copy.

18. The medium of claim 15, wherein the processor-executable instructions further comprise instructions executed by the processor to:

store, at a server, a master copy of the document to perform collaborative editing during a common session; and

synchronizing the master copy of the document with the first client copy and the second client copy.

19. The medium of claim 15, wherein the conflict resolving rule includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on an arrival time of the edits at the server.

20. The medium of claim 15, wherein the conflict resolving rules includes a rule that adopts edits to the mater copy of the document based on a user status associated with the edits.