Method of Streaming Size-Constrained Valid XML

• US 20090024753A1
• Filed: 07/20/2007
• Published: 01/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mammen, Ashok Cherian
• Granted Patent: US 8,266,312 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/10 Streamlined, light-weight or high-speed protocols, e.g. express transfer protocol [XTP] or byte stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/26 Special purpose or proprietary protocols or architectures network applications for proprietary or special purpose networking environments H04L67/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/326 in the transport layer [OSI layer 4] H04L69/16 takes precedence

Abstract

Methods (100), systems (200), computer program products, and signal bearing mediums for streaming an eXtensible Markup Language (XML)-type document (210) over a communication network (240) are described. A sequence of commands are received and synchronously converted (112) into XML-type fragments (230) for assembling and streaming a single XML-type document for a mobile device (220) in the communication network (240). The size of the XML-type document (210) exceeds the size limit imposed by the available memory on the device but less than the size limit imposed by the transport layer of a communication network (240). A DTD of the XML-type document (210) can be broken up into logically independent elements. The XML-type fragments (230) are assembled (114) in a buffer that is constrained to be smaller in size than the size constraint of the transport layer of the communication network (240). Periodically, the assembled fragments (230) are flushed (116) from the buffer to the transport layer of the communication network (240) dependent upon the DTD of the XML-type document (210) without a limitation on the size of a message to communicate the XML-type document (210) over the transport layer without loss of information.

Claims

1. A method of streaming an eXtensible Markup Language (XML)-type document over a communication network, said method comprising:

receiving and synchronously converting a sequence of commands into a plurality of XML-type fragments for assembling and streaming a single XML-type document for a mobile device in said communication network, the size of the XML-type document exceeding the size limit imposed by the available memory on the device but less than the size limit imposed by the transport layer of a communication network a DTD of the XML-type document being able to be broken up into logically independent elements;

assembling the plurality of said XML-type fragments in a buffer that is constrained to be smaller in size than the size constraint of said transport layer of said communication network; and

periodically flushing the assembled fragments from said buffer to said transport layer of said communication network dependent upon said DTD of said XML-type document without a limitation on the size of a message to communicate said XML-type document over said transport layer without loss of information.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of XML-type fragments comprise at least one of composite commands, commands, and items.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said periodic flushing of said buffer is dependent upon a set of rules.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising, if an element of said XML-type document is opened:

appending the XML-type fragment representing the element to said buffer; and

reserving space in said buffer for a closing XML-type fragment.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising, if appending said XML-type fragment to said buffer results in a message-size violation:

removing said XML-type fragment from said buffer; and

notifying a user that the element has not been encoded.

6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising, if appending said XML-type fragment results in the contents of said buffer being ‘

valid’

;

flushing said buffer to said transport layer; and

notifying a user that the element has not been encoded.

7. The method according to claim 4, further comprising, if appending said XML-type fragment results in the contents of said buffer being ‘

invalid’

;

not flushing said buffer; and

notifying a user that the element has been encoded.

8. The method according to claim 4, further comprising, if an element of said XML-type document is closed:

appending said XML-type fragment representing the end of an element to said buffer.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising, if the addition of said XML fragment results in the contents of said buffer being ‘

invalid’

;

removing the contents of said buffer starting from the opening XML fragment for said element; and

notifying a user that the element has not been encoded.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising, if the addition of said XML fragment results in the contents of said buffer being ‘

valid’

;

flushing the contents of said buffer to said transport layer; and

notifying a user that the element has been encoded.

11. A system for streaming an eXtensible Markup Language (XML)-type document over a communication network, said system comprising:

a memory for buffering data and instructions;

a communications interface for coupling said system to said communications network; and

a processor coupled to said memory and said communications interface, said processor executing instructions for;

receiving and synchronously converting a sequence of commands into a plurality of XML-type fragments for assembling and streaming a single XML-type document in said communication network, the size of the XML-type document exceeding the size limit imposed by the available memory on the device but less than the size limit imposed by the transport layer of a communication network, a DTD of the XML-type document being able to be broken up into logically independent elements;

assembling the plurality of said XML-type fragments in said memory that is constrained to be smaller in size than the size constraint of said transport layer of said communication network; and

periodically flushing the assembled fragments from said memory to said transport layer of said communication network dependent upon said DTD of said XML-type document without a limitation on the size of a message to communicate said XML-type document over said transport layer without loss of information.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein said plurality of XML-type fragments comprise at least one of composite commands, commands, and items.

13. The system according to claim 11, wherein said periodic flushing of said buffer is dependent upon a set of rules.

14. A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having a computer program recorded therein for streaming an eXtensible Markup Language (XML)-type document over a communication network, said computer program product comprising:

computer program code means for receiving and synchronously converting a sequence of commands into a plurality of XML-type fragments for assembling and streaming a single XML-type document in said communication network, the size of the XML-type document exceeding the size limit imposed by the available memory on the device but less than the size limit imposed by the transport layer of a communication network, a DTD of the XML-type document being able to be broken up into logically independent elements;

computer program code means for assembling the plurality of said XML-type fragments in said memory that is constrained to be smaller in size than the size constraint of said transport layer of said communication network; and

computer program code means for periodically flushing the assembled fragments from said memory to said transport layer of said communication network dependent upon said DTD of said XML-type document without a limitation on the size of a message to communicate said XML-type document over said transport layer without loss of information.

15. The computer program product according to claim 14, wherein said plurality of XML-type fragments comprise at least one of composite commands, commands, and items.

16. The computer program product according to claim 14, wherein said periodic flushing of said buffer is dependent upon a set of rules.

17. A signal bearing medium tangibly embodying instructions executable by a processor of a mobile computing device, the instructions when loaded into the processor and executed thereon cause said computing device to perform:

receiving and synchronously converting a sequence of commands into a plurality of XML-type fragments for assembling and streaming a single XML-type document in said communication network, the size of the XML-type document exceeding the size limit imposed by the available memory on the device but less than the size limit imposed by the transport layer of a communication network, a DTD of the XML-type document being able to be broken up into logically independent elements;

assembling the plurality of said XML-type fragments in said memory that is constrained to be smaller in size than the size constraint of said transport layer of said communication network, said plurality of XML-type fragments comprise at least one of composite commands, commands, and items; and

periodically flushing the assembled fragments from said memory to said transport layer of said communication network dependent upon said DTD of said XML-type document without a limitation on the size of a message to communicate said XML-type document over said transport layer without loss of information, and said periodic flushing of said buffer is dependent upon a set of pre-defined rules.