Virtual javascript object notation

• US 8,849,743 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2011
• Issued: 09/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Ranney, Jeffrey, Dumitrean, Vladimir
• Primary Examiner(s): Uddin, Md. I
• Application Number:
  US13/315,425
• Publication Number:
  US 20120084337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,026 Days
• Field of Search: 707/600, 707/601, 707/736, 707/792, 707/795, 707/802, 707/803, 707/805, 709/201, 709/202, 709/203, 709/217
• US Class Current: 707/601
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/289 Object oriented databases

Abstract

A client receives an object definition defining an object and an array of elements from a server. Each of the elements in the received array includes data representing objects associated with a data store of the server. The client instantiates a plurality of objects based on the received array and based on the received object definition. The objects are then accessed via a web application executing on the client.

Claims

1. A method for receiving objects from a server, comprising:

receiving at a client an object definition from the server, said received object definition defining an object of a data store associated with a server;

receiving at the client separate from the received object definition an array of elements from the server wherein each of the received elements in the received array includes data representing the object associated with a data store, and wherein each of the received elements does not include object definition data;

instantiating, at the client, a plurality of objects based on the received array and based on the received object definition without again receiving the received object definition from the server, each of the plurality of objects corresponding to one of the elements in the received array wherein the objects are accessed via a web application executing on the client;

wherein instantiating one of the plurality of objects comprises;

creating a new object on the client based on the received object definition;

populating the new object with data from one or more elements in the received array;

expanding the new object by applying business logic contained in the new object to the populated data, said business logic generating additional data not present in the received array; and

populating the new object with the additional data,

wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigning a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of at least one of a plurality of properties of the object, a defined constant, and a derived value from some other procedure executed by the client.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the objects are JavaScript objects and the web application is an AJAX web application and the data is associated with a shared contacts store of an email server.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the array is received in response to a request for a plurality of objects associated with a user and wherein the request is generated by a script executing on the client, said script being part of the web application.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the executing script generates a web page display on the client and wherein the instantiated plurality of objects are embedded in said web page, said web page being part of the web application.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a second array from the server wherein a second plurality of objects are instantiated based on the received second array and based on the previously received object definition, each object of the second plurality of objects corresponding to an element in the second array.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the instantiating comprises:

creating a new object based on the received object definition, said object being comprised of a plurality of properties;

assigning a first value from the received array to a first property of the object;

assigning a second value to a second property of the object wherein the second value is a function of first property.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigns a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of first property.

8. A method for receiving contact objects from an email server, comprising:

receiving at a client a contact object definition from the email server in response to a request, said contact object definition defining a contact object of a data store associated with the email server;

receiving at a client separate from the received object definition an array from the email server wherein each received element in the array includes data representing the contact object associated with the data store wherein the array is received in response to a request for a plurality of contact objects associated with a user, wherein each of the received elements does not include object definition data;

instantiating, at the client, a plurality of the contact objects based on the received array and based on the received contact object definition without again receiving the received object definition from the server, each contact object corresponding to one of the elements in the array; and

embedding the instantiated plurality of contact objects in a web page wherein the web page is rendered to the user;

wherein instantiating one of the plurality of contact objects comprises;

creating a new contact object on the client based on the received contact object definition;

populating the new contact object with data from one or more elements in the received array;

expanding the new object by applying business logic contained in the new object to the populated data, said business logic generating additional data not present in the received array; and

populating the new object with the additional data,

wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigning a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of at least one of a plurality of properties of the object, a defined constant, and a derived value from some other procedure executed by the client.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein at least one of the contact data objects are JavaScript objects, the web application is an AJAX web application and the request is generated by a script executing on the client.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving a second array from the email server wherein a second plurality of contact objects are instantiated based on the received second array and based on the previously received contact object definition, each contact object of the second plurality of contact objects corresponding to one of the elements in the second array.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the instantiating comprises:

creating a new contact object based on the contact object definition, said contact object being comprised of a plurality of properties;

assigning a first value from the array to a first property of the contact object;

assigning a second value to a second property of the contact object wherein the second value is a function of first property.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigns a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of first property.

13. A computer readable storage medium not including communication media defining a virtual JavaScript object, comprising:

an object definition defining a JavaScript object of a data store associated with a server;

an array of data, each element in the array comprising data representing the JavaScript object associated with the data store;

a client that first receives the object definition and then separately receives the array of data; and

wherein in response to receiving computer readable storage media defining the virtual JavaScript object, the client executes instructions for instantiating a plurality of JavaScript objects based on the array and based on the JavaScript object definition of the received computer readable storage media without again receiving the JavaScript object definition, each instantiated object corresponding to one of the elements in the array;

wherein instantiating one of the plurality of JavaScript objects comprises;

creating a new JavaScript object on the client based on the received object definition;

populating the new JavaScript object with data from one or more elements in the received array;

expanding the new JavaScript object by applying business logic contained within the new JavaScript object to the populated data, said business logic generating additional data not present in the received array; and

populating the new object with the additional data,

wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigning a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of at least one of a plurality of properties of the object, a defined constant, and a derived value from some other procedure executed by the client.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein at least one of the data is associated with a shared contacts store associated with an email server, and the request and the web page are part of an AJAX web application.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the instantiated plurality of objects are embedded in the web page.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein web page is rendered to the user and the web page enables the user to search the plurality of embedded objects.

17. The medium of claim 13 wherein expanding the new object comprises assigning by the client a first value from the received array to a first property of the new object and assigns a second value to a second property of the new object, wherein the second value is a function of first property.