Secondary lazy-accessible serialization of electronic content

• US 20080098018A1
• Filed: 10/20/2006
• Published: 04/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: King, James, Levy, Philip
• Granted Patent: US 8,631,041 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/84 Mapping; Conversion
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9027 Trees

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method comprising selecting a first node included in a data structure, the data structure representing, in a node-and-link representation, a first portion of electronic content, the data structure including a first external link being associated with the first node, the first external link referencing a first serialization, the first serialization representing a second portion of electronic content in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the data structure, augmenting the data structure using the first serialization comprising constructing a set of new nodes, the set of new nodes including all nodes constructible from the serialization, selecting a target node from among the set of new nodes, inserting the target node into the data structure, and inserting a first inter-node link into the data structure, the first inter-node link connecting the first node and the target node, the first inter-node link corresponding to the first external link.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

selecting, from a data structure representing electronic content in a node-and-link representation, a portion of the data structure representing a semantically-defined content portion of the electronic content; and

serializing the portion of the data structure into a first serialization, the first serialization representing the portion of the data structure in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure, the first serialization including information facilitating construction of the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting of the portion of the data structure includes:

recognizing content stored in a signifier node as being a part of the semantically-defined content portion;

identifying a set of nodes from the data structure, the set of nodes connected to the signifier node and including data semantically related to the content stored in the signifier node; and

identifying a set of links incident to the set of nodes.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the information facilitating construction includes information selected from a group including information describing the content portion, information from which the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure is reconstructible, information describing a format of the first serialization, information describing content of the first serialization, information serving as a header of the first serialization, an indication of a type of the first serialization, an identifier of the first serialization, and combinations thereof.

4. The method of claim 1, including adding an external link referencing the first serialization to the data structure in association with the first node.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

identifying the first node and a second node both contained in the data structure, the first node and the second node connected by an inter-node link, the second node being included in the portion of the data structure and the first node not being included in the portion of the data structure;

generating the external link, the external link including data facilitating selection of a target node from among multiple nodes constructible from the first serialization most closely corresponding to the second node; and

adding the external link to the data structure in association with the first node.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic content is an electronic document.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the electronic document is a page description language document.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first serialization is contained in a file on a computer-readable medium.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the file is stored within a compressed-directory file representing the electronic content.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating the data structure from a second serialization, the second serialization representing the electronic content substantially in a node-and-link representation, the data structure representing the electronic content in a node-and-link representation substantially replicating the node-and-link representation of the electronic content as represented in the second serialization.

11. A method comprising:

selecting a first node included in a data structure, the data structure representing, in a node-and-link representation, a first portion of electronic content, the data structure including a first external link being associated with the first node, the first external link referencing a first serialization, the first serialization representing a second portion of electronic content in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the data structure; and

augmenting the data structure using the first serialization comprising;

constructing a set of new nodes, the set of new nodes including a plurality of nodes constructible from the serialization;

selecting a target node from among the set of new nodes;

inserting the target node into the data structure; and

inserting a first inter-node link into the data structure, the first inter-node link connecting the first node and the target node, the first inter-node link corresponding to the first external link.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the serialization includes information facilitating construction of a node-and-link representation of the second portion of electronic content.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising constructing inter-node links among the set of new nodes.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising constructing an external link associated with at least one of the set of new nodes.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

accessing a second node included in the data structure, a second external link being associated with the second node, the second external link referencing the first serialization; and

inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the second node and the target node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the first external link includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the augmenting of the data structure using the first serialization includes:

constructing a second external link; and

associating the second external link with the source node.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes and a sink node is selectable from among the nodes included in the data structure, and wherein the augmenting the data structure using the first serialization includes:

inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among nodes included in the data structure and a sink node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the augmenting the data structure using the first serialization includes:

inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

21. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization resides in a subfile in a compressed-directory file, the compressed-directory file containing information describing an electronic document of which the second portion of electronic content is a part.

22. The method of claim 11, wherein the first inter-node link is a bidirectional link between the first node and the target node.

23. The method of claim 11, wherein the first inter-node link is a unidirectional link from the first node to the target node.

24. The method of claim 11, wherein the first serialization represents the second portion of the electronic content in a representation using a markup language.

25. A system comprising:

a content processing module to select, from a data structure representing electronic content in a node-and-link representation, a portion of the data structure representing a semantically-defined content portion of the electronic content; and

a serializing module to serialize the portion of the data structure into a first serialization, the first serialization representing the portion of the data structure in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure, the first serialization including information facilitating construction of the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein, to select the portion of the data structure, the content processing module is further to recognize content stored in a signifier node as being a part of the semantically-defined content portion, to identify a set of nodes from the data structure, the set of nodes connected to the signifier node and including data semantically-related to the content stored in the signifier node;

and to identify a set of links incident to the set of nodes.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the information facilitating construction includes information selected from a group including information describing the content portion, information from which the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure is reconstructible, information describing a format of the first serialization, information describing content of the first serialization, information serving as a header of the first serialization, an indication of a type of the first serialization, an identifier of the first serialization, and combinations thereof.

28. The system of claim 25, wherein the content processing module is further to identify a first node and a second node both contained in the data structure, the first node and the second node connected by an inter-node link, the second node being included in the portion of the data structure and the first node not being included in the portion of the data structure, to generate the external link, the external link including data facilitating selection of a target node from among multiple nodes constructible from the first serialization most closely corresponding to the second node, and to add the external link to the data structure in association with the first node.

29. The system of claim 25, wherein the electronic content is an electronic document.

31. The system of claim 25, wherein the first serialization is contained in a file on a computer-readable medium.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the computer-readable medium is a random-access memory (RAM).

33. The system of claim 31, wherein the file is stored within a directory representing the electronic content.

34. The system of claim 31, wherein the file is stored within a compressed-directory file representing the electronic content.

35. The system of claim 25, further including a reader module to generate the data structure from a second serialization, the second serialization representing the electronic content substantially in a node-and-link representation, the data structure representing the electronic content in a node-and-link representation substantially replicating the node-and-link representation of the electronic content as represented in the second serialization.

30. The system of claim 30, wherein the electronic document is a page description language document.

36. A system comprising:

a rendering module to select a first node included in a data structure, the data structure representing, in a node-and-link representation, a first portion of electronic content, the data structure including a first external link being associated with the first node, the first external link referencing a first serialization, the first serialization representing a second portion of electronic content in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the data structure; and

a deserialization module to construct a set of new nodes, the set of new nodes including a plurality of nodes constructible from the serialization, to select a target node from among the set of new nodes, to insert the target node into the data structure, and to insert a first inter-node link into the data structure, the first inter-node link connecting the first node and the target node, the first inter-node link corresponding to the first external link.

37. The system of claim 36, wherein the serialization includes information facilitating construction of a node-and-link representation of the second portion of electronic content.

38. The system of claim 37, wherein the deserialization module is further to construct inter-node links among the set of new nodes.

39. The system of claim 37, wherein the deserialization module is further to construct an external link associated with at least one of the set of new nodes.

40. The system of claim 36, wherein the rendering module is further to access a second node included in the data structure, a second external link being associated with the second node, the second external link referencing the first serialization, and wherein the deserialization module is further to insert a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the second node and the target node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

41. The system of claim 36, wherein the first external link includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

42. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

43. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the deserialization module is further to constructing the second external link, and to associate the second external link with the source node.

44. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes and a sink node is selectable from among the nodes included in the data structure, and wherein the deserialization module is further to insert a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

45. The method of claim 36, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among nodes included in the data structure and a sink node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the deserialization module is further to insert a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

46. The system of claim 36, wherein the electronic content is an electronic document.

47. The system of claim 48, wherein the electronic document is a page description language document.

48. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization resides in a file in a directory, the directory containing information describing an electronic document of which the second portion of electronic content is a part.

49. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization resides in a file in a compressed-directory file, the compressed-directory file containing information describing an electronic document of which the second portion of electronic content is a part.

50. The system of claim 36, wherein the first inter-node link is a bidirectional link between the first node and the target node.

51. The system of claim 36, wherein the first inter-node link is a unidirectional link from the first node to the target node.

52. The system of claim 36, wherein the first serialization represents the second portion of electronic content in a representation using a markup language.

53. A system comprising:

means for selecting, from a data structure representing electronic content in a node-and-link representation, a portion of the data structure representing a semantically-defined content portion of the electronic content; and

means for serializing the portion of the data structure into a first serialization, the first serialization representing the portion of the data structure in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure, the first serialization including information facilitating construction of the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure.

54. The system of claim 53, wherein the means for selecting the portion of the data structure includes:

means for recognizing content stored in a signifier node as being a part of the semantically-defined content portion;

means for identifying a set of nodes from the data structure, the set of nodes connected to the signifier node and including data semantically-related to the content stored in the signifier node; and

means for identifying a set of links incident to the set of nodes.

55. The system of claim 53, wherein the information facilitating construction includes information selected from a group including information describing the content portion, information from which the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure is reconstructible, information describing a format of the first serialization, information describing content of the first serialization, information serving as a header of the first serialization, an indication of a type of the first serialization, an identifier of the first serialization, and combinations thereof.

56. The method of claim 53, further comprising:

means for identifying a first node and a second node both contained in the data structure, the first node and the second node connected by an inter-node link, the second node being included in the portion of the data structure and the first node not being included in the portion of the data structure;

means for generating an external link, an external link referencing the first serialization, the external link including data facilitating selection of a target node from among multiple nodes constructible from the first serialization most closely corresponding to the second node; and

means for adding the external link to the data structure in association with the first node.

57. A system comprising:

means for selecting a first node included in a data structure, the data structure representing, in a node-and-link representation, a first portion of electronic content, the data structure including a first external link being associated with the first node, the first external link referencing a first serialization, the first serialization representing a second portion of electronic content in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the data structure; and

means for augmenting the data structure using the first serialization comprising;

means for constructing a set of new nodes, the set of new nodes including a plurality of nodes constructible from the serialization;

means for selecting a target node from among the set of new nodes;

means for inserting the target node into the data structure; and

means for inserting a first inter-node link into the data structure, the first inter-node link connecting the first node and the target node, the first inter-node link corresponding to the first external link.

58. The system of claim 57, wherein the serialization includes information facilitating construction of a node-and-link representation of the second portion of electronic content.

59. The system of claim 58, further comprising means for constructing inter-node links among the set of new nodes.

60. The system of claim 58, further comprising means for constructing an external link associated with at least one of the set of new nodes.

61. The system of claim 57, further comprising:

means for accessing a second node included in the data structure, a second external link being associated with the second node, the second external link referencing the first serialization; and

means for inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the second node and the target node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

62. The system of claim 57, wherein the first external link includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

63. The system of claim 57, wherein the first serialization includes information facilitating selection of the target node from among the set of new nodes.

64. The system of claim 57, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the means for augmenting the data structure using the first serialization includes:

means for constructing a second external link; and

means for associating the second external link with the source node.

65. The system of claim 57, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among the set of new nodes and a sink node is selectable from among the nodes included in the data structure, and wherein the means for augmenting the data structure using the first serialization includes:

means for inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

66. The system of claim 57, wherein the first serialization includes second external link information from which a second external link is constructible and by which a source node is selectable from among nodes included in the data structure and a sink node is selectable from among the set of new nodes, and wherein the means for augmenting the data structure using the first serialization includes:

means for inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the source node and the sink node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.

67. A machine-readable medium embodying instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method comprising:

selecting, from a data structure representing electronic content in a node-and-link representation, a portion of the data structure representing a semantically-defined content portion of the electronic content; and

serializing the portion of the data structure into a first serialization, the first serialization representing the portion of the data structure in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure, the first serialization including information facilitating reconstruction of the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure.

68. The machine-readable medium of claim 67, embodying further instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the method wherein the selecting of the portion of the data structure includes:

recognizing content stored in a signifier node as being a part of the semantically-defined content portion;

identifying a set of nodes from the data structure, the set of nodes connected to the signifier node and including content semantically-related to the data stored in the signifier node; and

identifying a set of links incident to the set of nodes.

69. The machine-readable medium of claim 67, wherein the information facilitating construction includes information selected from a group including information describing the content portion, information from which the node-and-link representation of the portion of the data structure is reconstructible, information describing a format of the first serialization, information describing content of the first serialization, information serving as a header of the first serialization, an indication of a type of the first serialization, an identifier of the first serialization, and combinations thereof.

70. A machine-readable medium embodying instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method comprising:

selecting a first node included in a data structure, the data structure representing, in a node-and-link representation, a first portion of electronic content, the data structure including a first external link being associated with the first node, the first external link referencing a first serialization, the first serialization representing a second portion of electronic content in a representation differing from the node-and-link representation of the data structure; and

augmenting the data structure using the first serialization comprising;

constructing a set of new nodes, the set of new nodes including a plurality of nodes constructible from the serialization;

selecting a target node from among the set of new nodes;

inserting the target node into the data structure; and

inserting a first inter-node link into the data structure, the first inter-node link connecting the first node and the target node, the first inter-node link corresponding to the first external link.

71. The machine-readable medium of claim 70, wherein the serialization includes information facilitating construction of a node-and-link representation of the second portion of electronic content.

72. The machine-readable medium of claim 71, embodying further instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the method comprising constructing inter-node links among the set of new nodes.

73. The machine-readable medium of claim 70, embodying further instructions, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the method comprising:

accessing a second node included in the data structure, a second external link being associated with the second node, the second external link referencing the first serialization; and

inserting a second inter-node link into the data structure, the second inter-node link connecting the second node and the target node, the second inter-node link corresponding to the second external link.