Delta versioning for learning objects

• US 20070111185A1
• Filed: 10/24/2005
• Published: 05/17/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Krebs, Andreas
• Granted Patent: US 8,121,985 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/350
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F

Abstract

A method for versioning learning objects comprises identifying learning content, which includes a plurality of learning objects, for storage in a content repository. Each learning object comprises or contains at least one content file. The method then includes comparing first version information of a first of the content files to versioning information obtained from an object version file identifying a prior version of the particular learning object. In response to at least a portion of the first version information of the first content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object is stored in a new object version file.

Claims

1. A method for versioning learning objects comprising:

identifying learning content, comprising a plurality of learning objects, for storage in a content repository, each learning object comprising at least one content file;

comparing first version information of a first of the content files to versioning information obtained from an object version file identifying a prior version of the particular learning object; and

in response to at least a portion of the first version information of the first content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, storing a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object in a new object version file.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing second version information of a second of the content files to the object version file; and

in response to at least a portion of the second version information of the second content file not matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file;

storing the second content file in the content repository; and

storing a new path and versioning information in the corresponding portion of the new object version file.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing second version information of a second of the content files to the object version file; and

in response to at least a portion of the second version information of the second content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, storing a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object in the new object version file.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising identifying the pointer based on the object version file, the pointer comprising a relative path.

5. The method of claim 1, the first version information comprising a name of the first content file, a size of the first content file, a date of the first content file, and a hash value.

6. The method of claim 5, the object version file comprising an extensible Markup Language (XML) file with a plurality of tags, at least one of the of the tags comprising version information associated with the first content file.

7. Software for versioning learning objects comprising machine-readable instructions stored on media, the instructions operable when executed to:

identify learning content, comprising a plurality of learning objects, for storage in a content repository, each learning object comprising at least one content file;

compare first version information of a first of the content files to versioning information obtained from an object version file identifying a prior version of the particular learning object; and

in response to at least a portion of the first version information of the first content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, store a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object in a new object version file.

8. The software of claim 7, further operable to:

compare second version information of a second of the content files to the object version file; and

in response to at least a portion of the second version information of the second content file not matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file;

store the second content file in the content repository; and

store a new path and versioning information in the corresponding portion of the new object version file.

9. The software of claim 7, further operable to:

compare second version information of a second of the content files to the object version file; and

in response to at least a portion of the second version information of the second content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, store a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object in the new object version file.

10. The software of claim 9, further operable to instantiate a versioning object storing the new object version file and wherein the software operable to store the first content file comprises the software operable to store the first content file in the versioning object and wherein the software operable to store the pointer to the corresponding content file comprises the software operable to store the pointer in the versioning object.

11. The software of claim 9, further operable to identify the pointer based on the object version file, the pointer comprising a relative path.

12. The software of claim 7, the first version information comprising a name of the first content file, a size of the first content file, a date of the first content file, and a hash value.

13. The software of claim 12, the object version file comprising an extensible Markup Language (XML) file with a plurality of tags, at least one of the of the tags comprising version information associated with the first content file.

14. A system for versioning learning objects comprising:

means for identifying learning content, comprising a plurality of learning objects, for storage in a content repository, each learning object comprising at least one content file;

comparison means for comparing first version information of a first of the content files to versioning information obtained from an object version file identifying a prior version of the particular learning object;

in response to at least a portion of the first version information of the first content file not matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file;

storing means for storing the first content file in the content repository; and

means for updating the corresponding portion of the object version file with the first version information;

the comparison means comparing second version information of a second of the content files to the object version file; and

in response to at least a portion of the second version information of the second content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, the storing means storing a pointer to a learning object copy, stored in the content repository, in a new object version file.

15. A learning management system (LMS) comprising:

a master repository storing an archived copy of each of a plurality of learning objects and an object version file, each learning object comprising at least one content file;

an interface for receiving a second plurality of content files arranged in a second plurality of learning objects, at least a first subset of the plurality of content files corresponding to a second subset of the second plurality of content files, the object version file associated with the first subset; and

one or more processors operable to;

compare first version information of a first of the content files to versioning information obtained from an object version file identifying a prior version of the particular learning object; and

in response to at least a portion of the first version information of the first content file matching a corresponding portion of the versioning information stored in the object version file, store a pointer to a corresponding content file in the prior version of the learning object in a new object version file.

16. The LMS of claim 15, the interface operable to receive the second plurality of content files from a remote content developer.

17. The LMS of claim 15, the interface operable to receive the second plurality of content files from a local client.

18. The LMS of claim 15, the processors further operable to instantiate a versioning object storing the new object version file and wherein the processors operable to store the first content file comprises the processors operable to store the first content file in the versioning object and wherein the processors operable to store the pointer to the corresponding content file comprises the processors operable to store the pointer in the versioning object.

19. A method for managing versioned content files, comprising:

receiving a request for learning content from a user, the learning content associated with a plurality of learning objects, each learning object comprising at least one content file and at least a subset of the learning objects files being reusable for other learning content;

identifying a versioning object from a content repository based, at least in part, on a first learning object in the requested request;

generating a mapping table from the versioning object, the table comprising a plurality of mapping entries, each entry indicating a relative path for one of the plurality of content files;

comparing a first content file in the first learning object to the mapping table;

if a mapping entry is found for a particular requested content file, collecting the referenced file using the relative path; and

if no mapping is found for the particular requested content file, collecting the referenced file from the versioning object.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the loading, generating, comparing, and collecting steps are performed at an API and the method further comprises communicating the one or more collected content files from the API to a network-based application for presentation to the user.