Automated information technology standards management system

• US 6,178,430 B1
• Filed: 05/11/1998
• Issued: 01/23/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: McIntyre, Michael, Haehn, Ann O., Murtha, Mark D., Godfrey, Claude A., Kubicek, Mary F., Cohen, Edward L., Crockett, Burt, Main, Anthony A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Joseph H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kindred, Alford W.
• Application Number:
  US09/075,484
• Time in Patent Office: 988 Days
• Field of Search: 707/500-513, 707/516-526, 345/326-329, 345/302, 709/200-205, 709/102-106, 364/260, 364/254
• US Class Current: 715/273
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/258 Data format conversion from or to a database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/151 Transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

An automated information technology standards management system for managing information standards that specify the procedures by which data is stored, manipulated, and retrieved within a computer system. The automated information technology standards management system manages information technology standards contained within a standards document stored on a permanent storage device. A download program converts the standards document into a displayable standards document that may be displayed on users'"'"' computers, and a dissemination process transmits the displayable standards document to users'"'"' computers for display. The automated information technology standards management system provides management services to users, including services for proposing changes to the information technology standards, for requesting changes to the information technology standards, scheduling on-line conferences for users to discuss proposed changes and requested exceptions to the information technology standards, and for voting on proposed changes and requested exceptions to the information technology standards.

Claims

1. In an automated information technology standards management system, a method for converting a text-based standards document stored in a flat file format into a hypertext markup language standards document, the text-based standards document including sections with section headings, the text-based standards document having references to the sections within the text-based standards document and having references to external documents, the method comprising:

identifying references to external documents in the text-based standards document and replacing these references with hyperlinks to the external documents in the hypertext markup language standards document by creating a new hypertext markup language standards document and a temporary index wherein for each line of the text-based standards document, reading the line into memory and changing references to external documents in the line into hyperlinks to the external documents,

identifying line references to sections within the text-based standards document and marking the lines for further processing and changing for each line marked for further processing into a hyperlink to the corresponding section within the hypertext markup language standards document by using the temporary index to determine which line of the hypertext markup language standards document includes the heading for that section and initializing the hyperlink to reference the determined line and replacing these references in the hypertext markup language standards document with hyperlinks to the corresponding sections in the hypertext markup language standards document;

inserting hyperlinks to hypertext markup language interface documents into the hypertext markup language standards document, following section headings that allow a reader of the hypertext markup language standards document to easily request management services related to the sections by changing the section headings and indications in the temporary index into hyperlinks to the section headings within the hypertext markup language standards document and appending the temporary index to the hypertext markup language standards document.; and

appending to the hypertext markup language standards document an index of hyperlinks to the various sections within the hypertext markup language standards document.

2. A computer-readable medium containing computer-executable instructions for an automated information technology standards management system to convert a text-based standards document stored in a flat file format into a hypertext markup language standards document, the text-based standards document including sections with section headings, the text-based standards document having references to the sections within the text-based standards document and having references to external documents, by:

identifying references to external documents in the text-based standards document and replacing these references with hyperlinks to the external documents in the hypertext markup language standards document by creating a new hypertext markup language standards document and a temporary index wherein for each line of the textbased standards document, reading the line into memory and changing references to external documents in the line into hyperlinks to the external documents,

identifying line references to sections within the text-based standards document and marking the lines for further processing and changing for each line marked for further processing into a hyperlink to the corresponding section within the hypertext markup language standards document by using the temporary index to determine which line of the hypertext markup language standards document includes the heading for that section and initializing the hyperlink to reference the determined line and replacing these references in the hypertext markup language standards document with hyperlinks to the corresponding sections in the hypertext markup language standards document;

inserting hyperlinks to hypertext markup language interface documents into the hypertext markup language standards document, following section headings that allow a reader of the hypertext markup language standards document to easily request management services related to the sections by changing the section headings and indications in the temporary index into hyperlinks to the section headings within the hypertext markup language standards document and appending the temporary index to the hypertext markup language standards document.; and

appending to the hypertext markup language standards document an index of hyperlinks to the various sections within the hypertext markup language standards document.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 2, further including an auto-notification process that monitors the local standards database to detect events requiring notification of a number of users and sends email messages to the users that require notification of each detected event.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 3 wherein events requiring notification of a number of users include requests for exceptions to information technology standards.