Apparatus, program product and method of annotating a hypertext document with comments

• US 6,865,713 B1
• Filed: 08/07/1998
• Issued: 03/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/07/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Day, Paul Reuben, Bates, Cary Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): PAULA, CESAR B
• Application Number:
  US09/131,063
• Time in Patent Office: 2,405 Days
• Field of Search: 707/501, 707/512, 707/513
• US Class Current: 715/233
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents

Abstract

An apparatus, program product, and method support the annotation of a hypertext document with one or more comments to supply additional information to a user about that document and/or about other documents linked to that document. With the latter type of comments, such comments are displayed to a user prior to the user attempting to retrieve any hypertext document associated with such comments, so that the user can make a more informed decision prior to retrieving the hypertext document. Thus, for example, if a comment for a given hypertext document indicates that the document would not be particularly useful, the user may decide to not retrieve the document, and thus save the time otherwise associated with retrieving and viewing the document.

Claims

1. A method of displaying a hypertext document, the method comprising:

(a) displaying at least a portion of a hypertext document on a computer display;

(b) accessing a comment data structure including a plurality of comments to locate a predetermined comment among the plurality of comments that is associated with the hypertext document;

(c) displaying a display representation of the predetermined comment on the computer display; and

(d) adding a new comment to the comment data structure by building the comment from information in a comment data tag embedded in the hypertext document.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of comments includes a storage location identifier associated with a predetermined storage location.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the hypertext document is associated with a predetermined storage location, and wherein accessing the comment data structure determines that the predetermined comment is associated with the hypertext document if the storage location identifier for the predetermined comment identifies the predetermined storage location of the hypertext document.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the hypertext document includes a hypertext link definition associated with a predetermined storage location, and wherein accessing the comment data structure determines that the predetermined comment is associated with the hypertext document if the storage location identifier for the predetermined comment identifies the predetermined storage location of the hypertext link definition.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein displaying the portion of the hypertext document includes displaying a display representation of the hypertext link definition, and wherein displaying the display representation of the predetermined comment on the computer display is responsive to user input directed to the display representation of the hypertext link definition.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein displaying the display representation of the predetermined comment on the computer display is responsive to user movement of a pointer over the display representation of the hypertext link definition.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein displaying the display representation of the predetermined comment on the computer display includes displaying the display representation of the comment within a pop-up window disposed proximate the display representation of the hypertext link definition.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the predetermined storage location identified by the storage location identifier for the predetermined comment includes a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding a second new comment to the comment data structure.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein adding the second new comment to the comment data structure includes associating the second new comment with a predetermined storage location associated with the hypertext document.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein adding the second new comment to the comment data structure includes associating the second new comment with a predetermined storage location associated with a hypertext link definition in the hypertext document.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein adding the second new comment to the comment data structure is performed in response to user input, and includes receiving comment text for the second new comment from a user.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein adding the second new comment to the comment data structure includes retrieving the second new comment from a comment file, the comment file including a persistent representation of a plurality of comments.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the data structure is associated with a first user, and wherein the comment file is created by a second user.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein building the comment is performed in response to retrieval of the hypertext document.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the comment data structure is stored in a first computer local to a user, the method further comprising retrieving the hypertext document from a second computer remote from the user.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the comment data structure is persistently stored in the first computer during a first communication session such that the comment data structure is available for a subsequent retrieval of the hypertext document during a second communication session.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined comment includes an originator identifier that identifies an originator of the predetermined comment.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined comment includes a hypertext link definition associated with a predetermined storage location, the method further comprising:

(a) displaying a display representation of the hypertext link definition; and

(b) retrieving a second hypertext document associated with the predetermined storage location in response to user input directed to the display representation of the hypertext link definition.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the comment data structure includes a second predetermined comment among the plurality of comments that is associated with the hypertext document.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein displaying the display representation of the predetermined comment includes selectively displaying a display representation of one of the first and second predetermined comments in response to user input.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising concurrently displaying display representations of the first and second predetermined comments.

40. The method of claim 1, wherein adding the new comment includes associating the new comment with a second hypertext document referenced by the first hypertext document.

23. An apparatus, comprising:

(a) a memory;

(b) a comment data structure resident in the memory, the comment data structure including a plurality of comments; and

(c) a program resident in the memory, the program configured to locate a predetermined comment in the comment data structure that is associated with a hypertext document, and to concurrently display to a user at least a portion of the hypertext document and a display representation of the predetermined comment, the program further configured to add a new comment to the comment data structure by building the comment from information in a comment data tag embedded in the hypertext document.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein each of the plurality of comments includes a storage location identifier, wherein the hypertext document is associated with a predetermined storage location, and wherein the program determines that the predetermined comment is associated with the hypertext document if the storage location identifier for the predetermined comment identifies the predetermined storage location of the hypertext document.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein each of the plurality of comments includes a storage location identifier, wherein the hypertext document includes a hypertext link definition associated with a predetermined storage location, and the program determines that the predetermined comment is associated with the hypertext document if the storage location identifier for the predetermined comment identifies the predetermined storage location of the hypertext link definition.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the program is configured to display the display representation of the predetermined comment in response to user movement of a pointer over a display representation of the hypertext link definition displayed on the computer display.

27. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the program is further configured to add a second new comment to the comment data structure, with the second new comment associated with a predetermined storage location for one of the hypertext document and a hypertext link definition in the hypertext document.

28. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the program is further configured to add a second new comment to the comment data structure in response to user input, with the second new comment including comment text input by a user.

29. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the program is further configured to add a second new comment to the comment data structure by retrieving the second new comment from a comment file including a persistent representation of a second plurality of comments.

30. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the program is further configured to build the new comment in response to retrieval of the hypertext document.

31. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the comment data structure is persistently stored in the apparatus, and wherein the program is configured to retrieve the hypertext document from a source remote to the apparatus.

32. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the predetermined comment includes a hypertext link definition associated with a predetermined storage location, and wherein the program is further configured to retrieve a second hypertext document associated with the predetermined storage location in response to user input directed to a display representation of the hypertext link definition.

33. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the comment data structure includes a second predetermined comment among the plurality of comments that is associated with the hypertext document, and wherein the program is further configured to selectively display a display representation of one of the first and second predetermined comments in response to user input.

34. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the comment data structure includes a second predetermined comment among the plurality of comments that is associated with the hypertext document, and wherein the program is further configured to concurrently display display representations of the first and second predetermined comments.

41. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the program is configured to add the new comment further by associating the new comment with a second hypertext document referenced by the first hypertext document.

35. A program product, comprising:

(a) a program configured to access a comment data structure including a plurality of comments to locate a predetermined comment in the comment data structure that is associated with a hypertext document, the program further configured to concurrently display to a user at least a portion of the hypertext document and a display representation of the predetermined comment, the program further configured to add a new comment to the comment data structure by building the comment from information in a comment data tag embedded in the hypertext document; and

(b) a signal bearing media bearing the program.

36. The program product of claim 35, wherein the signal bearing media is transmission type media.

37. The program product of claim 35, wherein the signal bearing media is recordable media.

38. A method of accessing hypertext documents stored on a remote computer for display on a local computer, the method comprising:

(a) maintaining in a local computer a comment data structure, the comment data structure including a plurality of comments, each associated with a Uniform Resource Locator (URL);

(b) retrieving a first hypertext document from a remote computer and into the local computer, the first hypertext document including a hypertext link definition that identifies a URL for a second hypertext document;

(c) displaying the first hypertext document on a computer display for the local computer, including displaying a display representation of the hypertext link definition;

(d) in response to user input directed to the hypertext link definition, accessing the comment data structure to locate a predetermined comment among the plurality of comments that is associated with the URL for the second hypertext document;

(e) displaying a display representation of the predetermined comment on the computer display; and

(f) adding a new comment to the comment data structure by building the comment from information in a comment data tag embedded in the hypertext document.

39. A method of building a data structure, the data structure including a plurality of comments, each of which is associated with a predetermined storage location, the method comprising:

(a) retrieving a hypertext document; and

(b) in response to retrieval of a comment data tag embedded in the hypertext document, adding a comment to the data structure using information in the comment data tag.