Method and apparatus for dynamic localization of documents

• US 6,865,716 B1
• Filed: 05/05/2000
• Issued: 03/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Aspect Communications Corporation (Alvaria Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Aspect Communications Corporation (Alvaria Incorporated)
• Inventors: Thurston, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LUDWIG, MATTHEW J
• Application Number:
  US09/566,242
• Time in Patent Office: 1,768 Days
• Field of Search: 715/536, 715/511, 715/500.1, 715/513, 715/501.1, 704/8, 704/9, 704/5, 717/115, 345/701, 345/703
• US Class Current: 715/207
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/58 Use of machine translation, e.g. for multi-lingual retrieval, for server-side translation for client devices or for real-time translation

Abstract

A method and apparatus are described for dynamic localization of electronic documents. A user sends a request for a computer system resource from a client computer system (client) via a client application such as Web browser (browser). The request specifies a locale-neutral location identifier, such as a locale-neutral uniform resource locator (URL). The locale-neutral location identifier is sent to a server (server). Server retrieves the locale-neutral contents from the location specified by the location identifier, and delivers the locale-neutral contents to client. Client retrieves locale settings based on a selected locale. A localization function builds localized contents by applying the locale settings to the locale-neutral contents.

Claims

1. A method for dynamic document localization, comprising:

receiving a request for locale-neutral contents, the request having a locale-neutral identifier;

accessing the locale-neutral contents;

communicating the locale-neutral contents;

receiving the locale-neutral contents; and

building localized content by applying locale settings for a current locale to the locale-neutral contents,

wherein the locale settings comprise locale-specific strings in a strings table corresponding to the current locale, and the locale-neutral contents comprise array references to the locale-specific strings array, and wherein the building of the localized content comprises applying the locale-specific strings in the strings table to the array references.

2. A method as in claim 1, further comprises building localized language content by applying language settings for a current language selection to the locale-neutral contents, wherein the language settings include language-specific strings in the strings table corresponding to the current locale.

3. A method for dynamic document localization, comprising:

receiving a request for language-neutral contents, the request having a language-neutral identifier;

accessing the language-neutral contents;

communicating the language-neutral contents;

receiving the language-neutral contents; and

building localized language content by applying language settings for a current language selection to the language-neutral contents,

wherein the language settings comprise language-specific strings in a strings table corresponding to the language settings, and the language-neutral contents comprise array references to the language-specific strings, and wherein the building of the language content comprises applying the language-specific strings in the strings table to the array references.

4. A method as in claim 3, wherein the accessing of the language-neutral contents comprises retrieving of the language-neutral contents by a server using the language-neutral identifier, and the communicating of the language-neutral contents comprises providing the language-neutral contents to a client.

5. A method as in claim 3, wherein the receiving of the language-neutral contents comprises retrieving of the language-neutral contents by the client from the server to build the localized language content.

6. A method for dynamic document localization, comprising:

receiving a request for locale-neutral contents at a server from a client, the request having a locale-neutral identifier;

accessing the locale-neutral contents in response to the request from the client;

providing the locale-neutral contents to the client; and

building localized content by applying locale settings for a current locale to the locale-neutral contents,

wherein the applying of the locale settings comprises applying the locale settings using a client-side script, wherein the locale-neutral contents include language-neutral contents and the locale settings include language settings having language-specific strings in a strings table corresponding to a current language, and the language-neutral contents comprise array references to the language-specific strings, and wherein the language-specific strings in the strings table are applied to the array references to build a language-specific Web page.

7. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon data representing sets of instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to:

receive a request for locale-neutral contents, the request having a locale-neutral identifier;

access the locale-neutral contents;

communicate the locale-neutral contents; and

build localized language content by applying language settings for a current language selection to the locale-neutral contents.

wherein the language settings include language-specific strings in the strings table corresponding to the current locale.

9. The machine-readable medium as in claim 7, wherein the sets of instructions which, when executed by the machine, further cause the machine to:

receive the locale-neutral contents; and

build localized content by applying locale settings for a current locale to the locale-neutral contents,

wherein the locale settings comprise locale-specific strings in a strings table corresponding to the current locale, and the locale-neutral contents comprise array references to the locale-specific strings array, and wherein the building of the localized content comprises applying the locale-specific strings in the strings table to the array references.

8. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon data representing sets of instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to:

receive a request for language-neutral contents, the request having a locale-neutral identifier;

access the language-neutral contents;

communicate the language-neutral contents;

receive the language-neutral contents; and

build localized language content by applying language settings for a current language selection to the language-neutral contents,

wherein the language settings comprise language-specific strings in a strings table corresponding to the language settings, and the language-neutral contents comprise array references to the language-specific strings, and wherein the building of the language content comprises applying the language-specific strings in the strings table to the array references.

10. The machine-readable medium as in claim 8, wherein the accessing of the language-neutral contents comprises retrieving language-neutral contents from a server, and the communicating of the language-neutral contents comprises providing the language-neutral contents to a client.

11. The machine-readable medium as in claim 8, wherein the receiving of the language-neutral contents comprises retrieving of the language-neutral contents by the client to build the localized language content.