Write control method, structured document management apparatus, structured document edit apparatus, and program product

• US 20040019879A1
• Filed: 05/21/2002
• Published: 01/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Torii, Osamu, Kimura, Tetsuro, Segawa, Junichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,152,201 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/124
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/194 Calculation of difference between files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/197 Version control for software G06F8/71
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99938 Concurrency, e.g. lock management in shared database
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access

Abstract

A write control method of exclusively controlling write requests from a plurality of user terminals to an identical structured document is disclosed. The identical structured document includes a plurality of elements each containing document content. A monitor field is set in units of the elements within the identical structured document. Upon accepting one write request from one user terminal, it is determined if the one write request is directed to the document content under monitoring by referral to the monitor field. Then, the one write request is handled to reject overwriting of the document content despite the one write request if the document content has been rewritten by another write request from another user terminal in advance.

Claims

1. A write control method of exclusively controlling write requests from a plurality of user terminals to an identical structured document, wherein the identical structured document includes a plurality of elements each containing document content, the method comprising:

setting a monitor field in units of the elements within the identical structured document;

accepting one write request from one user terminal;

determining if the one write request is directed to the document content under monitoring by referral to the monitor field; and

handling the one write request to reject overwriting of the document content despite the one write request if the document content has been rewritten by another write request from another user terminal in advance.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said monitor field is set in a unit that exceeds sub-elements, the sub-elements having dependency relations with each other within the identical structured document.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said monitor field is set by assigning attribute information indicating the monitor field.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

storing a table in which a correspondence between an identity of a document structure of the structured document and a name of the element to which said monitor field is set is recorded.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

using a time as a version number at which the document content in the monitor field was rewritten last; and

checking the version number to which said one write request is directed.

6. A structured document management apparatus comprising:

a storage configured to store a structured document which includes a plurality of elements each containing document content;

a setting device configured to set a monitor field in units of the elements within the structured document;

an accepting device configured to accept one write request to the structured document from one user terminal;

a determining device configured to determine if the one write request is directed to the document content under monitoring by referral to the monitor field; and

a handling device configured to handle the one write request to reject overwriting of the document content despite the one write request if the document content has been rewritten by another write request from another user terminal in advance.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said monitor field is set in a unit that exceeds sub-elements, the sub-elements having dependency relations with each other within the structured document.

8. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said monitor field is set by assigning attribute information indicating the monitor field.

9. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the storage stores a table in which a correspondence between an identity of a document structure of the structured document and a name of the element to which said monitor field is set is recorded.

10. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the handling device uses a time at which the document content in the monitor field was rewritten last as a version number, and checks the version number to which said one write request is directed.

11. A structured document edit apparatus, which reads out and edits a structured document from a structured document management apparatus that sets, in each of different document structures of a plurality of structured documents stored in a storage that stores a plurality of structured documents with different document structures, a monitor field used to control write requests from a plurality of users for each field specified by a component of the document structure, and controls write requests from the plurality of users for each monitor field in the structured document having the document structure set with the monitor field, and which issues a write request of the structured document to the structured document management apparatus on the basis of the edit result, comprising:

a detection device configured to detect a monitor field that has undergone an edit process and change contents by comparing structured documents before and after the edit process for each monitor field; and

a generating device configured to generate a write request to the structured document management apparatus so as to make a write access to the structured document on the basis of the change contents for each monitor field.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said detection device detects a type of edit including rewrite, delete, add, and the like for each monitor field.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein when said detection device detects the rewritten monitor field, delete of a non-rewritten component in the monitor field, which has dependency with a given rewritten component in the monitor field, is added to the change contents.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the component to be deleted is a non-editable component.

15. A computer program product embodied on a computer readable medium for exclusively controlling write requests from a plurality of user terminals to an identical structured document, wherein the identical structured document includes a plurality of elements each containing document content, comprising:

a code segment that sets a monitor field in units of the elements within the identical structured document;

a code segment that accepts one write request from one user terminal;

a code segment that determines if the one write request is directed to the document content under monitoring by referral to the monitor field; and

a code segment that handles the one write request to reject overwriting of the document content despite the one write request if the document content has been rewritten by another write request from another user terminal in advance.

16. A computer program product embodied on a computer readable medium for reading out and editing a structured document from a structured document management apparatus that sets, in each of different document structures of a plurality of structured documents stored in a storage that stores a plurality of structured documents with different document structures, a monitor field used to control write requests from a plurality of users for each field specified by a component of the document structure, and controlling write requests from the plurality of users for each monitor field in the structured document having the document structure set with the monitor field, and issuing a write request of the structured document to the structured document management apparatus on the basis of the edit result, comprising:

a code segment that detects a monitor field that has undergone an edit process and change contents by comparing structured documents before and after the edit process for each monitor field; and

a code segment that generates a write request to the structured document management apparatus so as to make a write access to the structured document on the basis of the change contents for each monitor field.