System and method for facilitating editing of codes such as HTML and XML codes by scripts

• US 6,959,418 B1
• Filed: 06/27/2001
• Issued: 10/25/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: McAfee, LLC
• Original Assignee: Networks Associates Technology, Inc. (McAfee, LLC)
• Inventors: Churchyard, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Herndon, Heather R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUTTON JR, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US09/894,693
• Time in Patent Office: 1,581 Days
• Field of Search: 715/513, 707/102, 707/101
• US Class Current: 715/234
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting

Abstract

The method for reformatting a tag-based code containing at least one corresponding beginning and end tag pair generally includes locating each beginning and end tag of the tag-based code, separating distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines, maintaining a tag structure state machine for determining a tag structure corresponding to each line, and delineating each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the state-machine of the tag structure.

Claims

1. A method for reformatting a tag-based code containing at least one corresponding beginning and end tag pair, comprising;

locating each beginning and end tag of the tag-based code;

separating distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines;

maintaining a tag structure state machine for determining a tag structure corresponding to each line; and

delineating each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the tag structure state machine;

wherein said separating distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines includes;

placing each beginning tag and any data associated therewith prior to a next beginning tag, if any, on a new line;

placing each end tag on a same line as any data associated therewith located immediately before the end tag; and

initiating a new line each time an end tag is processed if the end of the file is not yet reached;

wherein line-based script tools are utilized to process the reformatted code;

wherein a particular line includes an embedded tag that is embedded within another tag, where the representation of the tag structure corresponding to the particular line includes the embedded tag and the other tag, and the embedded tag is located at a top of a LIFO tag stack above the other tag.

2. The method for reformatting a tag-based code of claim 1, wherein said maintaining the tag structure state machine includes maintaining the LIFO tag stack.

3. The method for reformatting a tag-based code of claim 2, wherein said maintaining the tag structure state machine includes inserting each beginning tag onto the LIFO tag stack upon locating the beginning tag.

4. The method for reformatting a tag-based code of claim 2, wherein said maintaining the tag structure state machine includes removing a beginning tag from the LIFO tag stack upon locating a corresponding end tag.

5. The method for reformatting a tag-based code of claim 1, wherein said delineating each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the tag structure state machine includes prefixing each line with said representation.

6. The method for reformatting a tag-based code of claim 1 wherein said tag-based code is selected from the group consisting of HTML, XML, and C.

7. A computer program product for reformatting a tag-based code containing at least one corresponding beginning and end tag pair, comprising:

computer code that locates each beginning and end tag of the tag-based code;

computer code that separates distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines;

computer code that maintains a tag structure state machine for determining a tag structure corresponding to each line;

computer code that delineates each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the tag structure state machine; and

a tangible computer readable medium that stores said computer codes;

wherein the computer code that separates distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines includes;

computer code that places each beginning tag and any data associated therewith prior to a next beginning tag, if any, on a new line;

computer code that places each end tag on a same line as any data associated therewith located immediately before the end tag; and

computer code that initiates a new line each time an end tag is processed if the end of the file is not yet reached;

wherein line-based script tools are utilized to process the reformatted code;

wherein a particular line includes an embedded tag that is embedded within another tag, where the representation of the tag structure corresponding to the particular line includes the embedded tag and the other tag, and the embedded tag is located at a top of a LIFO tag stack above the other tag.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the computer code that maintains the tag structure state machine includes computer code that maintains the LIFO tag stack.

9. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the computer code that maintains the tag structure state machine includes computer code that inserts each beginning tag onto the LIFO tag stack upon locating the beginning tag.

10. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein the computer code that maintains the tag structure state machine includes computer code that removes a beginning tag from the LIFO tag stack upon locating a corresponding end tag.

11. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the computer code that delineates each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the tag structure state machine includes computer code that prefixes each line with said representation.

12. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein said tag-based code is selected from the group consisting of HTML, XML, and C.

13. A method for processing a tag-based code containing at least one corresponding beginning and end tag pair using script tools, comprising:

reformatting the tag-based code; and

utilizing script tools to process the reformatted code,

wherein said reformatting includes;

locating each beginning and end tag of the tag-based code;

separating distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines;

maintaining a tag structure state machine for determining a tag structure corresponding to each line; and

delineating each line with a representation of a tag structure corresponding to the line based on the tag structure state machine;

wherein said separating distinct tags and data associated therewith into separate lines includes;

placing each beginning tag and any data associated therewith prior to a next beginning tag, if any, on a new line;

placing each end tag on a same line as any data associated therewith located immediately before the end tag; and

initiating a new line each time an end tag is processed if the end of the file is not yet reached;

wherein line-based script tools are utilized to process the reformatted code;

wherein a particular line includes an embedded tag that is embedded within another tag, where the representation of the tag structure corresponding to the particular line includes the embedded tag and the other tag, and the embedded tag is located at a top of a LIFO tag stack above the other tag.

14. The method for processing a tag-based code of claim 13, further comprising stripping each line of the processed and reformatted code of the delineation representing the tag structure corresponding to the line.