Database and file structure configurations for managing text strings to be provided by a graphical user interface

• US 10,417,183 B2
• Filed: 03/14/2017
• Issued: 09/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Desportes, Anthony, de Heer, Catherine Jane
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Leslie
• Application Number:
  US15/458,591
• Publication Number:
  US 20180267967A1
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/164 File meta data generation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/168 Details of user interfaces specifically adapted to file systems, e.g. browsing and visualisation, 2d or 3d GUIs query results presentation G06F16/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/252 between a Database Management System and a front-end application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/454 Multi-language systems; Localisation; Internationalisation

Abstract

A computer-implemented database system as described herein includes a memory device and one or more processors coupled with the memory device. The one or more processors are configurable to create and maintain a folder structure for a user interface (UI) environment, wherein the folder structure includes: a feature folder that defines an application feature supported by the UI environment, the application feature having a UI component associated therewith, and the UI component having a UI text string associated therewith; a component folder located in the feature folder, the component folder having computer readable files that define the UI component; and a text string file located in the component folder, wherein the text string file defines content of the UI text string.

Claims

1. A method of managing text strings for a graphical user interface, the method comprising:

defining a user interface (UI) environment comprising one or more application features of an application comprising a plurality of application features, wherein each application feature has a corresponding UI window for that application feature, wherein each UI window comprises at least one UI component, each UI component having one or more corresponding UI text strings associated therewith, wherein each application feature is associated with an application level feature folder that defines that application feature, wherein each application level feature folder is maintained in the memory and comprises a component folder for each UI component of that application feature, wherein each UI component is defined by computer readable component files that are used to generate that UI component, wherein each of the computer readable component files for a particular UI component are organized in a respective component folder, wherein the respective component folders for the particular UI components are maintained in the memory within a particular application feature folder;

for each UI component having one or more corresponding UI text strings associated therewith, maintaining at least one text string file for that UI component in the respective component folder for that UI component, wherein the at least one text string file defines the UI text string content for that UI component; and

executing the application to generate UI windows of the UI environment using the computer readable files found in the component folders, and using the text string files to indicate the UI text strings to be provided with the UI components defined by the computer readable files.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the UI components are used in multiple contexts within the UI environment, and with identical UI text strings for each of the multiple contexts.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the UI text strings comprise labels for the UI components.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating a folder structure for the UI environment, the folder structure arranged to provide associations between UI text strings, UI components, and features of the UI environment.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the folder structure is accessible to a software component to check characteristics of the UI text strings.

6. A system comprising:

memory comprising one or more storage structures configurable to store;

an application comprising a plurality of application features, wherein each application feature has a corresponding user interface (UI) window for that application feature, wherein each UI window comprises at least one UI component, each UI component having one or more corresponding UI text strings associated therewith; and

one or more processors coupled with the memory device, the one or more processors configurable to;

define a user interface (UI) environment comprising one or more of the application features, each of the application features comprising at least one UI component, wherein each application feature is associated with an application level feature folder that defines that application feature, wherein each application level feature folder is maintained in the memory and comprises a component folder for each UI component of that application feature, wherein each UI component is defined by computer readable component files that are used to generate that UI component and wherein each of the computer readable component files for a particular UI component are organized in a respective component folder, wherein the respective component folders for the particular UI components are maintained in the memory within a particular application feature folder;

for each UI component having one or more corresponding UI text strings associated therewith, maintain at least one text string file for that UI component in the respective component folder for that UI component, wherein the at least one text string file defines the UI text string content for that UI component; and

execute the application to generate UI windows of the UI environment using the computer readable files found in the component folders, and using the text string files to indicate the UI text strings to be provided with the UI components defined by the computer readable files.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein at least some of the UI components are used in multiple contexts within the UI environment, and with identical UI text strings for each of the multiple contexts.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the UI text strings comprise labels for the UI components.

9. The system of claim 6, further comprising:

a folder structure for the UI environment, the folder structure arranged in the memory device to provide associations between UI text strings, UI components, and features of the UI environment.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the folder structure is accessible to a software component to check characteristics of the UI text strings.

11. A computer-implemented database system comprising a memory and one or more processors coupled with the memory, the one or more processors configurable to create and maintain a folder structure for a user interface (UI) environment of an application comprising a plurality of application features, wherein the UI environment comprises one or more of the application feature, wherein each application feature has a corresponding user interface (UI) window for that application feature that comprises at least one UI component, each UI component having one or more corresponding UI text strings associated therewith, the folder structure comprising:

for each application feature;

an application level feature folder maintained in the memory, wherein the application level feature folder defines an application feature supported by the UI environment, the application feature comprising a UI component associated therewith, the UI component comprising a UI text string associated therewith, wherein each application level feature folder comprises;

a component folder for each UI component of that application feature, each of the component folders being located in the feature folder, wherein each component folder comprises;

computer readable files organized within that component folder to define that UI component, wherein computer readable files in each component folder are used to generate that UI component; and

a text string file located in that component folder, wherein the text string file defines content of the UI text strings for that UI component, wherein the text string file indicates which UI text strings are to be provided with that UI component defined by the computer readable files.

12. The computer-implemented database system of claim 11, wherein the one or more processors are configurable to generate UI windows of the UI environment using the computer readable files found in the component folder, and using the text string file to indicate the content of the UI text string to be provided with the UI component defined by the computer readable files.

13. The computer-implemented database system of claim 11, wherein:

the UI environment comprises a plurality of different application features; and

the folder structure comprises a respective feature folder for each of the different application features.

14. The computer-implemented database system of claim 11, wherein the UI text string comprises a label for the UI component.

15. The computer-implemented system of claim 11, wherein the folder structure is accessible to a software component to check characteristics of the UI text string.

16. The computer-implemented system of claim 11, wherein the UI text string is used across the UI environment within multiple application features.