Web server document library

• US 6,915,299 B1
• Filed: 06/23/2000
• Issued: 07/05/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Arcuri, Michael P., Matousek, Jon Franklin, Morton, Michael Joseph, Sengupta, Sam, Dulfer, James A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson, Greta
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pannala, Sathyanarayan
• Application Number:
  US09/602,818
• Time in Patent Office: 1,838 Days
• Field of Search: 707100-107, 707/204, 709/107
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

Document libraries that facilitate content contribution to and management of a website. In general, a document library comprises a database, a special “document library” file system folder and the documents in that folder (or within subfolders of that folder). The database maintains properties of documents in the document library file system folder, and is used to dynamically update views of the document library file system folder and views of properties of the documents. Each document folder is a folder in which content of a specified type may be read and saved.

Claims

1. In a computer system, a method comprising:

receiving a document for storing in association with a selected document library of a plurality of document libraries, each document library having a corresponding set of properties that apply to the type of documents that are associated with that document library;

associating the set of properties corresponding to the selected document library with the document;

writing property value information for at least some of the properties in the set to a database that includes an entry for the document to relate the property value information to the document; and

storing the document in a folder associated with the selected document library.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the property value information for the document.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein receiving the property value information comprises receiving the information via a properties form.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the properties form is associated with the document library, and is provided to a user for setting the property value information for the document.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the properties form is created based on a query with the properties set.

6. The method of claim 2 wherein at least some of the property value information is initially set to a default value that can be changed by a user.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the default value is set based upon the document library that contains the document.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the default value is set based upon a template from which the document was created.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein at least some of the property value information is entered by a user.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein at least some of the property value information is chosen from a form field.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a link to the document on a view page based upon the entry for the document.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein displaying a link comprises providing the view page having a section bound by a query to the database, and displaying the link based upon matching of the query with the entry.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising displaying at least some of the property value information along with the link.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying at least some of the property value information on a view page based upon the entry for the document.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a link to the document on a view page based upon the folder in which the document was stored.

16. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 1.

17. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a data structure, comprising:

a first data field comprising information about a document stored in a file in a document library folder associated with a document library, the document library having a set of properties associated therewith that apply to the type of documents that are associated with the document library;

a second data field comprising property value information for at least some of the properties in the set; and

the second data field related to the first data field such that the information about the document in the first data field is locatable by matching search criteria comprising property data to at least some of the property value information in the second data field.

18. The data structure of claim 17, further comprising a third data field including information regarding an association between the document and the document library.

19. A computer system comprising:

a document library of a plurality of document libraries, the document library having a corresponding set of properties that apply to a type of documents associated with the document library;

a file system folder associated with the document library, the file system folder containing the documents for the document library;

at least one document stored in the folder and having property value information for at least some of the properties in the set of properties corresponding to the document library; and

a database having an entry relating the document to the property value information for the document.

20. The computer system of claim 19, further comprising a view page for displaying a link to the document based upon the entry in the database.

21. The computer system of claim 19, further comprising a view page for displaying at least some of the property value information based upon the entry in the database.

22. The computer system of claim 19, further comprising a properties form for setting the property value information.

23. The computer system of claim 22, wherein the properties form is created via a query with the properties set.

24. In a computing environment, a method comprising:

maintaining a plurality of document libraries, each document library associated with a folder and further associated with a database, each folder containing at least one document of a type that corresponds to the document library associated with that folder, and each database maintaining property information corresponding to the type of document in the folder and having an entry for each document in the folder that relates that document to the document'"'"'s property information;

receiving a request to search for documents having property information that matches search criteria; and

searching at least one database to locate documents having property information that matches the search criteria.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein maintaining a plurality of document libraries comprises, receiving a document and corresponding property information for that document, storing the document in a folder associated with a selected document library, and storing the corresponding property information in the database that is associated with the document library such that the property information is related to the document.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein storing the document in a folder comprises storing the document in a sub-folder of the folder.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein storing the corresponding property information in the database comprises creating an entry in the database for the document.

28. The method of claim 24 further comprising, returning a result of the search.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein returning a result of the search comprises providing a view page having a link for each document that matched the search criteria.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the view page further includes at least some of the property information for each document that matched the search criteria.

31. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 24.