Text edit system with enhanced undo user interface

• US 6,185,591 B1
• Filed: 07/29/1997
• Issued: 02/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Baker, Bruce Raymond, Storisteanu, Adrian
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bashore, William L.
• Application Number:
  US08/902,148
• Time in Patent Office: 1,288 Days
• Field of Search: 707/531, 707/540, 707/529, 707/530, 707/515, 717/1, 345/439
• US Class Current: 715/210
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting

Abstract

Present edit systems having undo/redo functions are typically inflexible and do not permit users of computer systems to make use of these functions to the greatest advantage. The disclosed edit system having an enhanced undo interface, permits the selective display of undo elements intermixed in the edit view of the document with actual text elements and positioned relative to the affected text The user may select any undo element and selectively restore changes to the text. A series of user interface enhancements provide the user with a flexible set of capabilities for manipulating and assessing changes to a document.

Claims

1. An improved method implemented in a programmed computer system for editing a document containing initial text stored in and displayed by said computer system, comprising the steps of:

displaying the document;

accepting user input to define a sequence of changes to the initial text of the document;

obtaining user input so as to select a subset of the sequence of changes to the text of the document;

displaying the document with said subset of the sequence of changes;

selecting and undoing changes in the subset of the sequence of changes irrespective of the sequence in which the changes to the initial text of the document were made;

implementing changes in the sequence of changes which are not selected and undone to provide an edited document; and

displaying and storing the edited document and the selected changes undone so that the stored document has text corresponding to the undone changes along with the remaining sequence of changes.

2. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the step of selecting and undoing changes in the subset of the sequence of changes results in at least one of said changes being undone.

3. The method as described in claim 1 wherein said selected ones of the sequence of changes to the document are displayed in highlighted format in comparison to the initial text of the document.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes associated with a cursor location in the document.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise all of the sequence of changes.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes having a common undo type.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the undo types are selected from the group comprising insertion changes, deletion changes and change changes.

8. A method according to claim 6, wherein the step of obtaining user input so as to selects a subset of the sequence of changes to the text of the document comprises the steps of:

obtaining user input as to a common undo type; and

selecting all of the changes in the sequence of changes having the common undo type.

10. A system according to claim 5, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes from a generation of changes.

11. A system according to claim 5, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes associated with a cursor location in the document.

12. A system according to claim 5, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes having a common undo type.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the undo types are selected from the groups comprising insertion changes, deletion changes and change changes.

14. A method according to claim 12, wherein the means for selecting a subset of the sequence of changes comprises:

means for obtaining user input as to a common undo type; and

means for selecting all of the changes in the sequence of changes having the common undo type.

16. A computer program product according to claim 7, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes from a generation of changes.

9. A programmed computer system to enable a user to edit a document containing initial text stored in and displayed by said computer system, comprising:

means for a user to enter into the computer system a plurality of changes to the initial text of the document so as to provide a sequence of changes;

means for selecting a subset of the sequence of changes;

means for displaying the document with the subset of the sequence of changes;

means for selecting and undoing changes in the subset of the sequence of changes irrespective of the sequence in which the changes to the initial text of the document were made;

means for implementing changes in the sequence of changes which are not selected and undone so as to provide an edited document; and

means for displaying and storing the edited document and the selected changes undone so that the stored document includes text corresponding to the undone changes along with the remaining plurality of changes.

15. A computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for causing the editing of a document containing initial text, the computer readable program code means in said computer program product comprising;

computer readable program code means for causing a computer to enter a plurality of changes to the initial text of the document so as to provide a sequence of changes to the document;

computer readable program code means for selecting a subset of the sequence of changes;

computer readable program code means for causing the document to be displayed on a monitor with the subset of the sequence of changes;

computer readable program code means, in response to user inputs, for selecting and undoing changes in the subset of the sequence of changes displayed on the monitor irrespective of the sequence in which the changes to the initial text of the document were made;

computer readable program code means for implementing changes in the sequence of changes which are not selected and undone so as to provide an edited document; and

computer readable program code means for displaying and storing the edited document and the selected changes undone so that the stored document has text corresponding to the undone changes along with the remaining plurality of changes.

17. A computer program product according to claim 15, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes associated with a cursor location in the document.

18. A computer program product according to claim 15, wherein the subset of the sequence of changes comprise changes having a common undo type.

19. A computer program product according to claim 18, wherein the undo types are selected from the groups comprising insertion changes, deletion changes and change changes.

20. A computer program product according to claim 18, wherein the computer readable program code means for selecting a subset of the sequence of changes comprises:

computer readable program code means for obtaining user input as to a common undo type; and

computer readable program code means for selecting all of the changes in the sequence of changes having the common undo type.