Designer-created aspect for an electronic form template

• US 7,725,834 B2
• Filed: 03/04/2005
• Issued: 05/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Jin, Jun, Teutsch, Brian C., Bell, Joshua S., Mollicone, Laurent, Roberts, Scott M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore; William L
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHANTANA ANGKOOL, DAVID
• Application Number:
  US11/072,087
• Publication Number:
  US 20060197982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,908 Days
• Field of Search: 715/764, 715/513, 715/234, 715/235
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging

Abstract

Systems and/or methods that enable addition of a designer-created aspect originating from one electronic form template into another electronic form template are described. The systems and/or methods may also, in one embodiment, enable a user to graphically package designer-created aspects of an existing electronic form template into a component capable of being added to another electronic form template. In another embodiment, these systems and/or methods may enable mapping of an existing non-structural designer-created aspect originating from one electronic form template onto a data structure of another electronic form template.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

enabling graphical selection, via a graphical interface, of aspects originating from a first electronic form template, the first electronic form template existing prior to the graphical selection;

receiving selection, via the graphical interface, of one or more of the aspects from the first electronic form template, at least one of the one or more selected aspects comprising a structural aspect linked to a non-structural aspect, the structural aspect comprising an arrangement of one or more visual elements of the first electronic form template and the non-structural aspect comprising one or more data behaviors of data associated with the structural aspect, the non-structural aspect being configured to be separable from the structural aspect such that the non-structural aspect is able to be added to a second electronic form template separately from its linked structural aspect without requiring the linked structural aspect also be added; and

adding, responsive to the selection, the one or more selected aspects to the second electronic form template via the graphical interface by graphically transferring, from a rendered view of the one or more selected aspects, the one or more selected aspects to the second electronic form template, the second electronic form template being distinct from the first electronic form template.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of receiving selection comprises receiving selection of less than all of the aspects enabled to be graphically selected.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the act of adding comprises adding only the one or more selected aspects.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of enabling comprises enabling selection of one or more non-structural aspects.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising mapping the non-structural aspect to an existing data structure of the second electronic form template if the existing data structure is similar to a structural aspect originating from the first electronic form template and associated with the non-structural aspect.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the act of enabling comprises enabling graphical selection of an aspect that determines formatting of a part of the first electronic form template;

the act of receiving comprises receiving selection of this formatting aspect; and

the act of adding comprises adding this formatting aspect to the second electronic form template effective to alter formatting of the second electronic form template.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the act of enabling comprises enabling graphical selection of an aspect comprising a data structure that governs at least part of the first electronic form template;

the act of receiving comprises receiving selection of this data structure aspect; and

the act of adding comprises adding the data structure to the second electronic form template.

8. A method comprising:

enabling graphical selection, via a graphical interface, of one or more designer-created aspects of a first electronic form template, the first electronic form template existing prior to the graphical selection;

receiving selection, via the graphical interface, of the designer-created aspect(s) of the first electronic form template; and

packaging the selected designer-created aspect(s) effective to enable packaged aspect(s) to be added, via the graphical interface, to a second electronic form template that is distinct from the first electronic form template by graphically transferring, from a rendered view of the packaged aspect(s), the packaged aspect(s) to the second electronic form template, at least one of the selected designer-created aspect(s) comprising a structural aspect linked to a non-structural aspect, the structural aspect comprising an arrangement of one or more visual elements of the first electronic form template and the non-structural aspect comprising one or more data behaviors of data associated with the structural aspect, the packaging being effective to enable the non-structural aspect to be added to the second electronic form template without requiring that the linked structural aspect also be added to the second electronic form template.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the act of enabling comprises enabling selection through a rendered view of the first electronic form template.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the act of enabling comprises enabling selection of all designer-created aspects of the first electronic form template and the act of receiving selection comprises receiving selection of all of the designer-created aspects of the first electronic form template.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the act of packaging comprises packaging and saving the selected designer-created aspect(s) using an extensible markup language.

12. A method comprising:

enabling graphical selection, via a graphical interface, of a non-structural aspect of a first electronic form template, the first electronic form template existing prior to selection, the non-structural aspect being created by a designer and comprising one or more data manipulation behaviors that can be applied to data of the first electronic form template;

receiving selection, via the graphical interface, of the non-structural aspect without requiring a linked structural aspect to also be received; and

mapping the selected non-structural aspect to an existing data structure of an existing second electronic form template effective to add, via the graphical interface, the selected non-structural aspect to the second electronic form template by graphically transferring, from a rendered view of the selected non-structural aspect, the selected non-structural aspect to the second electronic form template, the existing second electronic form template being distinct from the first electronic form template.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising determining if the data structure of the second electronic form template is one to which the selected non-structural aspect is capable of being mapped.

14. One or more computer-readable media having computer-readable instructions therein that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform acts comprising:

enabling graphical selection, via a graphical interface, of one or more designer-created aspects of a first electronic form template, the electronic form template existing prior to the graphical selection;

receiving selection, via the graphical interface, of the one or more designer-created aspects of the first electronic form template, the one or more selected designer-created aspects comprising at least one structural aspect separably linked to a non-structural aspect, the structural aspect comprising an arrangement of one or more visual elements of the first electronic form template and the non-structural aspect comprising one or more rules governing data associated with the structural aspect of the first electronic form template, the non-structural aspect being configured to be added to a second electronic form template separately from the structural aspect without requiring the structural aspect also be added, the second electronic form template being separate from the first electronic form template;

packaging the one or more selected designer-created aspects for reuse; and

adding, via the graphical interface, the one or more packaged aspects to the second electronic form template by graphically transferring, from a rendered view of the one or more packaged aspects, the one or more packaged aspects to the second electronic form template.

15. The computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein the instructions cause the computer to perform the act of adding to comprise mapping the non-structural aspect to a data structure of the second electronic form template.

16. The computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein the instructions further cause the computer to perform acts comprising determining if the data structure of the second electronic form template is similar to the structural aspect of the first electronic form template that is separably linked to the non-structural aspect.

17. The computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein the instructions further cause the computer to perform acts comprising:

receiving selection of the one or more packaged aspects,

wherein the act of adding the one or more packaged aspects is responsive to the act of receiving selection of the one or more packaged aspects.