XML schema for binding data

• US 7,617,234 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2005
• Issued: 11/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Little, Robert A., Jones, Brian M., Davis, Tristan A., Sunderland, Mark, Taleghani, Ali, Sawicki, Marcin
• Primary Examiner(s): Truong; Cam Y T
• Application Number:
  US11/067,383
• Publication Number:
  US 20060195454A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,719 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/101
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/80 of semi-structured data, e.g. markup language structured data such as SGML, XML or HTML content-based retrieval of web data G06F16/95
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation

Abstract

An XML schema is provided allowing data to be stored in a separate location from the presentation surface of an application. By way of the schema, users of the application can establish links (or bindings) between the contents of the data and the presentation surface as part of an XML document format. Methods, systems, and computer-readable medium are described implementing the schema.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage medium having stored instructions that are executed by a computer for performing steps:

providing a schema for generating a data binding, wherein the generating the data binding is to link specified extensible markup language (XML) data maintained in an XML data store to one or more content region or more content regions in a document to present the specified XML data;

identifying a set of properties including;

a first property for associating a unique identifier with the set of properties;

a second property for associating a set of prefix mappings with the data binding used to resolve XPath expressions to find target nodes in the specified XML data;

a store property for identifying a set of XML data within the XML data store and storing the XML data linked to the one or more content region or more content regions by the data binding;

a namespaces property for associating one prefix mapping or more prefix mappings to namespaces to identify a node of the XML data linked by mapping the data binding to the one content region or more content regions;

a third property for associating a root namespace of the XML data with the data binding;

a fourth property for identifying a globally unique identifier (GUID) for the XML data store of the XML data; and

a fifth property for including information to re-link a dangling reference;

defining, using the schema, how the data binding is saved and loaded;

storing, using the schema, information in a central location to reduce duplication and file size;

storing a last known XPath for the node on the data binding if the data binding has a dandling reference due to the data binding'"'"'s XPath; and

creating a properties open tag for the content region, if the content region is data bound, saving the identifier of the XML data, an associated XPath and the prefix mappings, otherwise, creating the end of the content region.

2. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the first property associated data in a data store with the unique identifier.

3. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the second property contains supplementary information used to resolve XPath expressions to find target nodes in the XML data.

4. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the schema utilizes an XPath operator to link a data node to one or more content regions.

5. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the schema operates to persist information about one or more data bindings associated with one or more content regions.

6. A method for binding data using one or more data bindings, the method comprising:

at a computer, providing a schema for generating a data binding, wherein the generating the data binding is to link specified extensible markup language (XML) data maintained in an XML data store to one content region or more content regions in a document to present the specified XML data;

identifying a set of properties including;

a first property for associating a unique identifier with the set of properties;

a second property for associating a set of prefix mappings with the data binding used to resolve XPath expressions to find target nodes in the specified XML data;

a store property for identifying a set of XML data within the XML data store and storing the XML data linked to the one content region or more content regions by the data binding;

a namespaces property for associating one or more prefix mappings to namespaces to identify a node of the XML data linked by mapping the data binding to the one content region or more content regions;

a third property for associating a root namespace of the XML data with the data binding;

a fourth property for identifying a globally unique identifier (GU ID) for the XML data store of the XML data, wherein the set of properties are stored in a computer readable storage medium; and

a fifth property for including information to re-link a dangling reference;

defining, using the schema, how the data binding is saved and loaded;

storing, using the schema, information in a central location to reduce duplication and file size;

if the data binding has a dandling reference due to the data binding'"'"'s XPath, storinci a last known XPath for the node on the data binding; and

creating a properties open tag for the content region, if the content region is data bound, saving the identifier of the XML data, an associated XPath and the prefix mappings, otherwise, creating the end of the content region.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising using an XPath operator to link the node of XML data to one or more content regions.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising using the schema to persist information about one or more data bindings associated with one or more content regions.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising using the schema to store information using each data binding property to thereby allow a data binding to be created and edited as a single object.

10. A system for binding data using one or more data bindings, the system comprising:

a computer that includes a processor;

a computer readable storage medium embodied instructions for;

providing a schema for generating a data binding, wherein the generating the data binding is to link specified extensible markup language (XML) data maintained in an XML data store to one content region or more content regions in a document to present the specified XML data;

identifying a set of properties including;

a first property for associating a unique identifier with the set of properties;

a second property for associating a set of prefix mappings with the data binding used to resolve XPath expressions to find target nodes in the specified XML data;

a store property for identifying a set of XML data within the XML data store and storing the XML data linked to the one content region or more content regions by the data binding;

a namespaces property for associating one or more prefix mappings to namespaces to identify a node of the XML data linked by mapping the data binding to the one content region or more content regions;

a third property for associating a root namespace of the XML data with the data binding;

a fourth property for identifying a globally unique identifier (GUID) for the XML data store of the XML data; and

a fifth property for including information to re-link a dangling reference;

defining, using the schema, how the data binding is saved and loaded;

storing, using the schema, information in a central location to reduce duplication and file size;

if the data binding has a dandling reference due to its XPath, storing a last known XPath for the node on the data binding; and

creating a properties open tag for the content region, if the content region is data bound, saving the identifier of the XML data, an associated XPath and the prefix mappings, otherwise, creating the end of the content region.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the first property points to top level data containing a unique identifier when the unique identifier is not stored on a data binding.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the second property associates data in a XML data store with the unique identifier.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the third property contains supplementary information used to resolve XPath expressions to find target nodes in the XML data.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the schema operates to persist information about one or more data bindings associated with one or more content regions.