System and method for web or file system asset management and visualization

• US 6,823,379 B1
• Filed: 05/24/2000
• Issued: 11/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Mukherjee, Rajat, Heckel, Bjoern
• Primary Examiner(s): Meky, Moustafa M.
• Application Number:
  US09/579,238
• Time in Patent Office: 1,644 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200, 709/201, 709/203, 709/212, 709/213, 709/216, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 709/224, 709/227
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/904 Browsing; Visualisation therefor for navigating the web G06F16/954; browsing optimisation for the web G06F16/957
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9566 URL specific, e.g. using aliases, detecting broken or misspelled links
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A system for visualizing Web assets and hyperlinks includes a domain class that accesses, via respective pipe classes, data classes that contain information on heterogenous assets. Each pipe class transforms information from its respective data class into XML, and the information is then parsed by the domain class and sent to a respective layout class. The layout classes generate graphics objects representative of the parsed information for presentation thereof on a visual display. In this way, both assets and links can be presented for visualizing the assets and, e.g., any broken links that might exist between assets. With this architecture, the system is platform-independent and extensible, and it supports a variety of data sources and integrates external applications and services.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for visualizing data objects on plural Web pages, comprising the acts of:

presenting a visual display of Web pages and hyperlinks associated therewith;

determining that a hyperlink is a broken hyperlink when the broken hyperlink points to a data object not represented in a database; and

indicating the broken hyperlink on the visual display, wherein the display presents graphics objects representing heterogenous data objects, the graphics objects being presented in accordance with layout classes, and a data class containing a data object to be displayed and having first semantics is transformed by an associated pipe class to render a transformed data object having second semantics different from the first semantics, the second semantics being XML.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of indicating includes highlighting the broken hyperlink.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising parsing the transformed data object using a domain class.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising sending a parsed, transformed data object to a layout class, for generating a graphics object to be presented on the display as a representative of the data object.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising establishing interfaces between the domain class and internal and external applications using respective service classes.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the method is extensible and supports a variety of heterogenous data sources, integrates external applications and services to promote the efficient and effective management of data, and is platform-independent.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising presenting graphics objects on the display representative of data objects in the database, and permitting a user to manipulate the graphics object to change the database thereby.

8. A computer system for visualizing data objects in a data repository such as at least one Web page or at least one file system, comprising:

a plurality heterogenous data classes, each data class containing information on a respective type of data object;

at least one domain class accessing the data classes, the domain class storing context information about an application domain, the domain class managing the heterogenous data objects and processing information from layout class objects to effect changes to data objects in response to user manipulation of graphics objects on a display;

plural pipe classes used by the domain class for accessing respective data classes to transform semantics associated with at least one data class, a pipe object executing at least one of;

performing SQL queries on a database, reading a directory structure of a file system, and extracting hyperlinks from a Web page; and

plural layout classes receiving data from the domain class for presenting graphics objects representative of data objects.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising plural service classes for interfacing between the domain class and respective applications to facilitate data exchange between the domain class and the applications.