Collaborative Cursors in a Hosted Word Processor

• US 20120110443A1
• Filed: 01/13/2012
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Lemonik, Micah, Belomestnykh, Olga S., Ravi, Janani R., Pereira Filho, Luiz A. F.
• Granted Patent: US 9,280,529 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/255
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/197 Version control for software G06F8/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A computer-implemented collaborative editing method includes receiving input from a user of a browser-based document editing application on a document displayed by the application; identifying a current location in the document for a cursor of a first user executing the application; receiving from a central server system data that reflects changes made to the document by one or more users other than the first user and current positions in the document of cursors for the one or more other user; updating a document model stored on a computing device that is executing the browser-based application and rendering at least a portion of the model to the browser; and rendering the current positions of the cursors for the one or more other users to the browser.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented collaborative editing method comprising:

receiving communications from a plurality of client devices that are accessing a common electronic document to perform collaborative editing during a common session, each communication including information indicating changes made to the electronic document by a respective user and including information indicating a location of a cursor in the electronic document in which the respective user is active;

updating a master copy of a document model for the electronic document based on the information in the communications indicating changes made to the electronic document; and

transmitting to each particular one of the client devices information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model based on changes to the electronic document made by one or more users of the client devices other than the particular client device, and transmitting to each particular one of the client devices information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of the cursors for the one or more users of the other client devices.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein transmitting information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model and information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of the cursors includes transmitting information sufficient to allow each of the client devices to display current cursor positions in the electronic document for each of the users.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein each particular communication further includes information identifying the respective user that made the changes to the electronic document indicated in that particular communication, the method further including transmitting information to the client devices indicative of a user name identifying the user associated with particular modifications to the master copy of the document model.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 including repeatedly performing the receiving, updating and transmitting during the common session.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 including:

resolving instances where multiple users edit a same portion of the electronic document; and

updating the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that accounts for the resolving.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 including:

resolving instances where multiple users apply conflicting formats to the electronic document; and

updating the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that amounts for the resolving.

7. A computer-implemented collaborative editing system comprising:

an interface to receive communications from a plurality of client devices that are accessing a common electronic document to perform collaborative editing during a common session, each communication including information indicating changes made to the electronic document by a respective user and including information indicating a location of a cursor in the electronic document in which the respective user is active;

a data store to store a master copy of a document model for the electronic document;

an active model manager to update the master copy of the document model for the electronic document based on the information in the communications indicating changes made to the electronic document; and

collaboration logic to provide to each particular one of the client devices information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model based on changes to the electronic document made by one or more users of the client devices other than the particular client device and information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of the cursors for the one or more users of the other client devices.

8. The computer-implemented system of claim 7 wherein the collaboration logic provides information to the client devices sufficient to allow each of the client devices to display current cursor positions in the electronic document for each of the users.

9. The computer-implemented system of claim 7 wherein each particular communication further includes information identifying the respective user that made the changes to the electronic document indicated in that particular communication, the collaboration logic further providing information to the client devices indicative of a user name identifying the a user associated with particular modifications to the master copy of the document model.

10. The computer-implemented system of claim 7 arranged to receive communications from the plurality of client devices, update the master copy of the document model, and provide the information to each particular one of the client devices repeatedly during the common session.

11. The computer-implemented system of claim 7 wherein the collaboration logic is configured to resolve instances where multiple users edit a same portion of the electronic document and the active model manager is configured to update the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that accounts for instances resolved by the collaboration logic.

12. The computer-implemented system of claim 7 wherein the collaboration logic is configured to resolve instances where multiple users apply conflicting formats to the electronic document and the active model manager is configured to update the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that accounts for instances resolved by the collaboration logic.

13. One or more tangible computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, perform operations comprising:

updating a master copy of a document model for an electronic document in response to receiving communications from a plurality of client devices that are, accessing a common electronic document to perform collaborative editing during a common session, each communication including information indicating changes made to the electronic document by a respective user and including information indicating a location of a cursor in the electronic document in which the respective user is active; and

transmitting to each particular one of the client devices information indicative of modifications made to the master copy of the document model based on changes to the electronic document made by one or more users of the client devices other than the particular client device, and transmitting to each particular one of the client devices information indicative of the locations in the electronic document of the cursors for the one or more users of the other client devices.

14. The tangible computer-readable storage media of claim 13 wherein the operations comprise transmitting information sufficient to allow each of the client devices to display current cursor positions in the electronic document for each of the users.

15. The tangible computer-readable storage media of claim 13 wherein the operations further comprise transmitting information to the client devices indicative of a user name identifying the user associated with particular modifications to the master copy of the document model.

16. The tangible computer-readable storage media of claim 13 including operations to perform the operations of updating and transmitting repeatedly during the common session.

17. The tangible computer-readable storage media of claim 13 wherein the operations further comprise:

resolving instances where multiple users edit a same portion of the electronic document; and

updating the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that accounts for the resolving.

18. The tangible computer-readable storage media of claim 13 wherein the operations further comprise:

resolving instances where multiple users apply conflicting formats to the electronic document; and

updating the master copy of the document model for the electronic document in a manner that accounts for the resolving.

19. A client device comprising:

a web-browser for executing a browser-based document editing application;

a user interface to receive input from a first user of the browser-based editing application, wherein the input is indicative of changes to be made to an electronic document displayed by the application;

a controller to intercept the input received through the interface, determine a location in the document for a cursor based on the input, and pass information to a central server system, wherein the information indicates changes made to the electronic document by the first user and indicates the location of the cursor in the electronic document in which the first user is active,

the controller further being arranged to receive from the central server system data that reflects changes made to the document by one or more users other than the first user and current positions in the electronic document of cursors for the one or more other users, to update a document model stored on the client device executing the browser-based document editing application and render at least a portion of the model to the browser, and to render the current positions of the cursors for the one or more other users to the browser.

20. The client device of claim 19 further comprising a timer, wherein the controller is arranged to detect when the first user is actively editing the electronic document, to start the timer when the first user begins editing the document, and to pass accrued data from the user'"'"'s editing activity to the central server system when the timer expires.

21. The client device of claim 20 wherein the timer is set for a period less than 500 milliseconds.

22. The client device of claim 20 wherein the controller is arranged to pass the data describing changes in the document and identifying a current location for a cursor of the first user more than once per second during periods of active editing activity by the first user.