Process description language

• US 20040039732A1
• Filed: 08/20/2002
• Published: 02/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NBC Universal Media LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Huang, Jong
• Granted Patent: US 7,181,456 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A description file that includes multiple statements written in a customizable, tag-based interpreted language for processing data contained in the messages is disclosed. A data shaper translates and then executes each statement in the description file. The customizable, tag-based interpreted language, defines the operational behavior of the data shaper. The operational behavior shapes data contained in the messages to produce publishable matter suitable for online presentation.

Claims

1. A computer system for processing messages for online presentation, the system comprising:

a computer-readable means having a description file stored thereon, the description file including multiple statements written in a customizable, tag-based interpreted language for processing data contained in the messages; and

a data shaper for translating and executing the statements in the description file to produce publishing matter suitable for online presentation, the translation and execution of the statements defining the operational behavior of the data shaper, the operational behavior of the data shaper shaping the data contained in the messages to produce the publishing matter suitable for online presentation.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a database coupled to the data shaper, the operational behavior of the data shaper including storing messages or publishable material in and retrieving messages or publishable material from the database.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a disk drive coupled to the data shaper, the operational behavior of the data shaper including controlling the saving and retrieving, of messages or publishable matter to and from the disk drive, the operational behavior of the data shaper further including sending the publishable matter to a computing device external to the computer system.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising a memory device coupled to the data shaper, the operational behavior of the data shaper including controlling the saving and retrieving of messages or publishable matter to and from the memory device, the operational behavior of the data shaper further including sending the publishable matter to a computing device external to the computer system.

5. A computer system implementable method for processing messages for online presentation, the method comprising:

reading a description file that includes multiple statements written in a customizable, tag-based interpreted language for processing data contained in the messages; and

translating and then executing each statement of the multiple statements written in the customizable, tag-based interpreted language to produce publishable matter suitable for online presentation, the customizable, tag-based interpreted language defining the operational behavior of a data shaper that shapes the data contained in the messages to produce the publishable matter suitable for online presentation.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising storing messages or publishable matter on and retrieving messages or publishable matter from a database.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising saving and retrieving messages or publishable matter to and from a disk drive or a memory device.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising sending the publishable matter to a computing device external to the computer system implementing the method.

9. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a method of processing messages for online presentation, the method comprising:

reading a description file that includes multiple statements written in a customizable, tag-based interpreted language for processing data contained in the messages; and

translating and then executing each statement of the multiple statements written in the customizable, tag-based interpreted language to produce publishable matter suitable for online presentation, the customizable, tag-based interpreted language defining the operational behavior of a data shaper that shapes the data contained in the messages to produce the publishable matter suitable for online presentation.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, further comprising storing messages or publishable matter on and retrieving messages or publishable matter from a database.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, further comprising saving and retrieving messages or publishable matter to and from a disk drive or a memory device.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, further comprising sending the publishable matter to a computing device external to the computer system implementing the method.

13. A computer-readable medium having a customizable, tag-based data structure stored thereon for use by a data shaper for shaping data contained in messages to produce publishable matter for online presentation, the data structure comprising:

an initialization tag that is indicative of one or more processes for immediate execution after the data shaper has read the customizable, tag-based data structure; and

one or more message tags, each of which indicates a message handler for processing a type of message different from types of message processible by other message handlers.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the data structure further includes one or more include tags that are indicative of other customizable, tag-based data structures for use by the data shaper for shaping data contained in messages

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the message tags include an attribute for specifying a message handler to be executed immediately after the execution of another message handler.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the message tags include an attribute for specifying that a message handler processes messages of different types.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the data structure further comprises one or more process tags, each of which includes an attribute for indicating a process of a particular type to be performed in the course of shaping the data contained in the messages.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein nesting within a process tag are an input tag for indicating an input object on which the process operates, an output tag for indicating a variable for containing the result of the processing of the input object, and a parameter tag for indicating input parameters for use by the process.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein nesting within the process tag is a condition tag for indicating a set of conditions for executing the process.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the process tag includes an attribute for indicating a type of error handling when an error has occurred in connection with the execution of the process.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes sending a message to a directory path.

22. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes setting a variable and the content of the variable.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes adding one or more elements to a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes removing one or more elements from a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

25. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes saving a customizable, tag-based tree data structure to a disk drive.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating a customizable, tag-based object in a memory device.

27. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes loading a customizable, tag-based object from a disk drive.

28. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes cutting a node from a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

29. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes copying a node from a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

30. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes pasting an object to a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

31. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes copying a set of children nodes of a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

32. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes pasting a set of children nodes to a node in a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

33. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes deleting a set of children nodes from a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

34. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes getting one or more attributes from a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

35. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes changing one or more attributes of a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

36. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating a list of items from an attribute of a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

37. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating a list of items from a number of attributes of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure.

38. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes iterating each child node of a node of a customizable, tag-based tree data structure so as to allow processing to be performed with respect to each child node.

39. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes transforming messages to produce publishable matter by using style sheets.

40. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating a string variable from a text of an element of a customizable, tag-based object.

41. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating customizable, tag-based string variables from one or more elements of a customizable, tag-based object.

42. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes reading the customizable, tag-based data structure.

43. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes persisting an object to a disk drive.

44. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes querying the data shaper.

45. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes verifying the existence of a tag in a customizable, tag-based object.

46. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes getting the name of an element indicated by an input object.

47. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes issuing an event for every element under a node.

48. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes creating a database connection to a database.

49. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes executing a stored procedure in a database.

50. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes binding a customizable, tag-based file with a style file.

51. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes taking a list of items of a message, querying a database for a customizable, tag-based output file, and binding the list of items to the customizable, tag-based output file with a style file.

52. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes copying a file to a staging server.

53. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein a particular type of process includes copying a list of files to a staging servers.

54. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the data structure comprises a wait tag for defining an event for which one or more processes will be executed and an event tag for defining one or more processes for executing when the event has occurred.

55. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the message handler being changeable by data in a message.