Method and System For Application Interaction

• US 20070282885A1
• Filed: 05/31/2006
• Published: 12/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Schimunek, Gottfried, Baude, Brent J., Miszczyk, Jaroslaw, Sintal, Kathryn
• Application Number:
  US11/421,276
• Publication Number:
  US 20070282885A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/38 for implementing user interfaces

Abstract

A method and system for modifying a single characteristic of a set of related user interface artifacts. An XPath expression is used to select a set of nodes to be modified. A mechanism is then used to modify each of the nodes in the selected set in a single communication.

Claims

1. A method for manipulating nodes of an XML formatted document comprising:

describing nodes of said XML document in a hierarchy;

navigating said hierarchy to select at least one set of nodes for processing with an XPath expression; and

evaluating said XPath expression to manipulate said selected set of nodes, wherein said nodes are characteristics of user interface artifacts.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said selected set of nodes are related by a common property.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising modifying a single common property in said selected set of nodes in a single communication.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising independently modifying separate sets of nodes with separate threads.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said characteristics of a user interface are selected from a group consisting of:

layout, type, attribute, and relationship among individual artifacts.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said hierarchy is an XML formatted document describing layout of a user interface, types and attributes of user interface artifacts, and relationship among said artifacts.

7. A computer system comprising:

an XML formatted document having multiple nodes described in a hierarchy;

a manager adapted to navigate said hierarchy to select a set of nodes to process with an XPath expression; and

said manager adapted to evaluate said XPath expression and to manipulate said selected set of nodes, wherein said nodes are characteristics of user interface artifacts.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein said selected set of nodes are related by a common property.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein said manager supports modification of a single common property of said selected set of nodes in a single communication.

10. The system of claim 7, further comprising multiple independent threads adapted to independently modify separate sets of nodes.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein said characteristics of a user interface, and said nodes are selected from a group consisting of:

layout, type, attribute, and relationship among individual artifacts.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein said hierarchy is an XML formatted document describing layout of a user interface, types and attributes of user interface artifacts, and relationship among said artifacts.

13. An article comprising:

a computer readable medium;

means in the medium for describing nodes of an XML document in a hierarchy;

means in the medium for navigating said hierarchy and selecting at least one set of nodes for processing with an XPath expression; and

means in the medium for evaluating said XPath expression to manipulate said selected set of nodes, wherein said nodes are characteristics of user interface artifacts.

14. The article of claim 13, wherein said selected set of nodes are related by a common property.

15. The article of claim 13, further comprising means in the medium for modifying a single common property of said selected set of nodes in a single communication.

16. The article of claim 13, further comprising means in the medium for independently modifying separate sets of nodes of said document with separate threads.

17. The article of claim 13, wherein said characteristics of said user interface are selected from a group consisting of:

layout, type, attribute, and relationship among individual artifacts.

18. The article of claim 13, wherein said hierarchy is an XML formatted document describing layout of a user interface, types and attributes of user interface artifacts, and relationship among said artifacts.