Method and system for reconciling sections of documents
First Claim
1. In a data processing system having a memory, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
- providing first and second documents, each document having a plurality of corresponding sections, each section having a history list maintained within its respective document, the history list having at least one version identifiers, the version identifier indicating a version of the section, and each section having a reconciliation indicator which indicates whether the section has been reconciled;
receiving user input requesting that the first document be stored in the memory; and
in response to the user input, for each of the sections,determining whether that one of the sections has been reconciled using the reconciliation indicator;
when that one of the sections has not been reconciled, associating that one of the sections with the most recent one of the version identifiers in the memory; and
when that one of the sections has been reconciledand has been modified, generating a new version identifier;
adding the generated new version identifier to the history list; and
associating that one of the sections with the generated new version identifier in the history list.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Reconciliation of corresponding groupings of data for processing by application programs ("sections") which are contained within files ("documents") is performed using history lists. In particular, a section in one document which corresponds to a section in another document is reconciled. Each section has a history list which identifies versions of that section. The reconciliation is performed by using the history lists to compare versions of corresponding sections in order to determine which section has been modified. When one of the corresponding sections has been modified and the other has not been modified, the unmodified section is modified with the other section. When both sections have been modified, then the user is provided with options for reconciling the sections. In addition, when one document has a new section which is not in the other document, the new section is added to the other document.
184 Citations
19 Claims
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1. In a data processing system having a memory, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
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providing first and second documents, each document having a plurality of corresponding sections, each section having a history list maintained within its respective document, the history list having at least one version identifiers, the version identifier indicating a version of the section, and each section having a reconciliation indicator which indicates whether the section has been reconciled; receiving user input requesting that the first document be stored in the memory; and in response to the user input, for each of the sections, determining whether that one of the sections has been reconciled using the reconciliation indicator; when that one of the sections has not been reconciled, associating that one of the sections with the most recent one of the version identifiers in the memory; and when that one of the sections has been reconciled and has been modified, generating a new version identifier;
adding the generated new version identifier to the history list; andassociating that one of the sections with the generated new version identifier in the history list.
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2. In a data processing system, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
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providing a first document containing a first section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program; providing a first history list that is associated with the first section and which identifies modifications made in the first section; providing a second document containing a second section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program; providing a second history list that is associated with the second section and which identifies modifications made in the second section; and reconciling the first section and the second section using the first history list and the second history list so as to maintain the first section and the second section with the same identified modifications. - View Dependent Claims (3)
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4. In a data processing system, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
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providing a first document having a first section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program and is identified by a first section identifier; providing a second document having a second section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program and is identified by a second section identifier; determining whether the first section identifier and the second section identifier match; and when the first section identifier and the second section identifier match, reconciling the first section and the second section. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7)
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8. In a data processing system, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
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providing a first document having a first section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program, the first section being identified by a first globally unique identifier; providing a second document having a second section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program, the second section being identified by a second globally unique identifier; comparing the first globally unique identifier with the second globally unique identifier; and when the first globally unique identifier matches the second globally unique identifier, reconciling the first section and the second section.
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9. In a data processing system, a method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:
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providing a first document with a first section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program, the first section having a history list; providing a second document with a second section which constitutes a grouping of data for processing by an application program, the second section having a history list; determining that the first section and the second section match; determining which of the sections have been modified using the history lists; and notifying a user which of the sections have been modified. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A data processing system, comprising:
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a first document having first sections, each of the first sections having an associated history list, each associated history list identifying versions of the associated section in a temporal order, each of the versions being associated with a set of modifications made to a section; a second document having second sections, each of the second sections having an associated history list, each associated history list identifying versions of the associated section in a temporal order, each of the versions being associated with a set of modifications made to a section, the second section matching the first section; a reconciler for reconciling matching sections of the first document and the second document, the reconciler comprising; a correlator for determining matching sections; a comparator for determining which of the matching sections has been modified; an updator for updating matching sing sections based on which of the matching sections has been modified and for setting a reconciliation indicator.
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19. A computer-readable storage medium, upon which is stored a reconciliation application program, the reconciliation application program comprising:
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a retriever for retrieving a first document and a second document, each of the documents containing sections, each of the sections having section identifiers and history lists, each of the history lists having version entries associated with modifications to a version of that section; a correlator for determining that the section identifiers match; a comparator for determining which of the matching sections has been modified using the version entries in each of the history lists; and an updator for updating the matching sections based on which of the matching sections has been modified.
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Specification