Natural language transformations for propagating hypertext label changes

• US 6,370,497 B1
• Filed: 02/16/1999
• Issued: 04/09/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Knowles, Nicholas
• Primary Examiner(s): EDOUARD, PATRICK NESTOR
• Application Number:
  US09/250,647
• Time in Patent Office: 1,148 Days
• Field of Search: 704/1, 704/8-9, 707/530, 707/531, 707/513, 707/500, 707/501, 345/352, 345/326
• US Class Current: 704/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/137 Hierarchical processing, e.g. outlines
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/253 Grammatical analysis; Style critique

Abstract

In a page for computer display structured with labels for programmed navigational program links, such as a page programmed in HTML with hypertext link tags, a small amount of simple linguistic case information on contextual use of the label on the page presented can be stored as an extra property or attribute on the link itself. This programming data is then used during rendering of the link to resolve the text of the link label in its proper context on the page, even if a change has been propagated to the name of the link'"'"'s destination.

Claims

1. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, said page containing a navigational reference to another computer-displayable page, the system comprising:

a link attribute on the navigational reference identifying lexical characteristics of text for the navigational reference in context of the text for the page to be displayed; and

a text-rendering program calculating at least one likely form of the text for the navigational reference to another computer-displayable page from the link attribute that identifies the lexical characteristics of text for the navigational reference in context of the text for the page to be displayed, while rendering the text for the page to be displayed, so as to properly display the navigational reference in proper lexical context with the text of the page to be displayed.

2. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 1, wherein the text-rendering program comprises a browser.

3. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 2, wherein the browser has graphical and text rendering properties.

4. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 1, wherein the link attribute comprises data identifying number and mood of the text for the navigational reference in the context of the text for the page to be displayed, wherein the number of the text includes singular and plural and the mood of the text includes nominative and possessive.

5. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 1, wherein the link attribute comprises data identifying number and case of the text for the navigational reference in the context of the text for the page to be displayed, wherein the number of the text includes singular and plural and the case of the text includes upper case and lower case.

6. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 1, wherein the link attribute comprises data identifying properties of a grammatical article in the text for the navigational reference in the context of the text for the page to be displayed, wherein the grammatical article in the text includes a definite article and an indefinite article.

7. A system for rendering text for a page to be displayed by computer, according to claim 5, wherein the link attribute comprises data identifying properties of a grammatical article in the text for the navigational reference in the context of the text for the page to be displayed.

8. A system for rendering labels for navigational reference links to destination objects for display on a page of data on a computer, comprising:

programming data providing lexical properties associated with the labels in the context of the page of data;

a browser program for rendering text and graphics for the page of data, the browser program including

(i) means to obtain name changes from the destination objects, and

(ii) means to transform the name changes to contextual text using the programming data providing lexical properties associated with the labels in the context of the page of data, so as to properly render the labels for navigational reference links in proper lexical context with the text.

9. A system for rendering labels for navigational reference links to destination objects, according to claim 8, wherein the programming data identifies the number and mood of the labels in the context of the page of data and the means in the browser to transform the name changes to contextual text comprises routines to determine the likely endings for the name changes for rendering at text, wherein the number of the labels includes singular and plural and wherein the mood of the labels includes nominative and possessive.

10. A system for rendering labels for navigational reference links to destination objects, according to claim 8, wherein the programming data identifies the number and case of the labels in the context of the page of data and the means in the browser to transform the name changes to contextual text comprises routines to determine likely endings for the name changes for rendering as text, wherein the number of labels includes singular and plural and wherein the case of the labels includes upper case and lower case.

11. A system for rendering labels for navigational reference links to destination objects, according to claim 8 or 10, wherein the programming data identifies properties associated with grammatical articles in the labels in the context of the page of data and the means in the browser to transform the name changes to contextual text comprises routines to determine likely grammatical articles for rendering as text, wherein the grammatical articles include definite articles and indefinite articles.

12. A system for rendering labels for navigational reference links to destination objects, according to claim 10, wherein the programming data identifies properties associated with grammatical articles in the labels in the context of the page of data and the means in the browser to transform the name changes to contextual text comprises routines to determine likely grammatical articles for rendering as text.

13. A method for rendering a grammatically transformed label from a first navigational link residing in a first page of data on a computer, comprising the steps of:

identifying textual changes in a reference label from a second navigational link residing in a second page of data on a computer, the reference label having lexical data which provides lexical information in the context of the first page of data;

transforming the reference label based on the lexical data to provide the grammatically transformed label; and

rendering the grammatically transformed label from the first navigational link residing in the first page of data.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the lexical data defines a singular label and/or a plural label.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the lexical defines a nominative label and/or a possessive label.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the lexical data defines an upper case label and a lower case label.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the lexical defines a definite article and/or an indefinite article.

18. A system for rendering a grammatically transformed label from a first navigational link residing in a first page of data on a computer, comprising:

means for identifying textual changes in a reference label from a second navigational link residing in a second page of data on a computer, the reference label having lexical data which provides lexical information in the context of the first page of data;

means for transforming the reference label based on the lexical to provide the grammatically transformed label; and

means for rendering the grammatically transformed label from the first navigational link residing in the first page of data.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the lexical data defines a singular label and/or a plural label.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the lexical data defines a nominative label and/or a possessive label.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein the lexical defines an upper case label and a lower case label.

22. The system of claim 18, wherein the lexical data defines a definite article and/or an indefinite article.

23. A computer program product for rendering a grammatically transformed label from a first navigational link residing in a first page of data on a computer, the computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code comprising:

computer-readable program code that identifies textual changes in a reference label from a second navigational link residing in a second page of data on a computer, the reference label having lexical data associated therewith which provides lexical information in the context of the first page of data;

computer-readable program code that transforms the reference label based on the lexical data that identifies a number, a mood, a case and/or an article of the reference label in the context of the first page of data to provide the grammatically transformed label; and

computer-readable program code that renders the grammatically transformed label from the first navigational link residing in the first page of data.

24. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the lexical data defines a singular label and/or a plural label.

25. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the lexical data defines a nominative label and/or a possessive label.

26. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the lexical data defines an upper case label and a lower case label.

27. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the lexical