Web server with unique identification of linked objects

• US 6,449,640 B1
• Filed: 06/19/1998
• Issued: 09/10/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Estrada, Julio, Estrada, Miguel, Haverstock, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Le Hein
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kang, Paul H
• Application Number:
  US09/100,118
• Publication Number:
  US 20020103883A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 717/10, 717/8, 717/513, 709/218, 709/246, 709/203, 709/206, 709/207, 709/202, 709/217, 709/219
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/972 Access to data in other repository systems, e.g. legacy data or dynamic Web page generation
• 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 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/131 Fragmentation of text files, e.g. creating reusable text-blocks; Linking to fragments, e.g. using XInclude; Namespaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/151 Transformation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/186 Templates

Abstract

A system for enabling access to non-HTML objects from a web browser. The system includes a database for storing non-HTML objects. A system user requests a non-HTML object from a database using a web browser. The web browser transmits the request to a server via a HTTP server and module. The server locates and retrieves the document requested. The module translates the document to a format supported by the web browser. The HTTP server communicates the translated object to the web browser over a network. The web browser then presents the translated object to the system user. The system also provides documents with a unique identifier. Once a unique identifier is assigned to a document, the system refers to the document by the unique identifier.

Claims

1. A server system enabling access to one or more non-markup language objects with automatically assigned unique identifiers, using a markup language enabled browser, the unique identifiers alleviating errors relating to broken links, the system comprising:

a web server;

at least one database in communication with the web server that stores one or more non-markup language objects, the one or more non-markup language objects having a name;

a browser interface that enables communication between the web server and a browser, the browser interface enabling access to the one or more non-markup language objects and one or more markup language objects;

an assigning module that assigns the one or more non-markup language objects a unique identifier, the unique identifier being something other than a name of the one or more non-markup language objects; and

wherein the web server;

i) receives a URL-based request from the markup language enabled browser for the one or more non-markup language objects;

ii) determines a location of the one or more non-markup language objects;

iii) retrieves the one or more non-markup language objects based on the unique identifier;

iv) translates the one or more non-markup language objects to at least one second markup language object; and

v) transmits the at least one second markup language object to the browser.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the object may be renamed, but the unique identifier does not change.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the at least one database comprises an index of objects within the database, the index being based on the unique identifiers.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the index is automatically updated when an object is added, created or modified.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein a non-markup language object may be linked to another object by referencing the unique identifier rather than the object name.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein a non-markup language object may be linked to another object by referencing the unique identifier rather than the object name.

6. A server system enabling access to one or more non-markup language objects with automatically assigned unique identifiers using a markup language enabled browser, the unique identifiers alleviating errors relating to broken links, the system comprising:

web server means;

at least one database means associated with the web server means for storing one or more non-markup language objects, the one or more non-markup language objects having a name;

browser interface means for enabling communication between the web server means and browser means, the browser interface means enabling access to the one or more non-markup language objects and one or more markup language objects;

assigning means for assigning the one or more non-markup language objects a unique identifier, the unique identifier being something other than a name of the object; and

wherein the web server means;

i) receives a URL-based request from the markup language enabled browser for the one or more non-markup language objects;

ii) determines a location of the one or more non-markup language objects;

iii) retrieves the one or more non-markup language objects based on the unique identifier;

iv) translates the one or more non-markup language objects to at least one second markup language object; and

v) transmits the at least one second markup language object to the browser.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the object may be renamed, but the unique identifier does not change.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein the at least one database means comprises an index of objects within the at least one database, the index being based on the unique identifier.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the index is automatically updated when an object is added, created or modified.

11. A method of enabling access to one or more non-markup language objects with automatically assigned unique identifiers using a markup language enabled browser, the unique identifiers alleviating errors resulting from broken links, the method comprising the steps of:

assigning a unique identifier to one or more non-markup language objects, the unique identifier being something other than a name of the one or more non-markup language objects;

receiving a request for the one or more non-markup language objects from a browser;

determining a location for the one or more non-markup language objects requested;

retrieving the one or more non-markup language objects requested by the unique identifiers;

translating the one or more non-markup language objects to at least one second markup language object; and

transmitting the at least one second markup language object to the browser.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of renaming the one or more non-markup language objects while maintaining the unique identifier unchanged.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of automatically updating an index of one or more databases when an object is added, created or modified.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of linking one object to another object by referencing the unique identifier.

12. An electronic storage medium having processor readable code embodied therein for assigning a unique identifier to one or more non-markup language objects, the electronic storage medium comprising:

processor readable code that causes a processor to assign a unique identifier to one or more non-markup language objects, the unique identifier being something other than a name of the object;

processor readable code that causes a processor to store the one or more non-markup language objects in at least one database;

processor readable code that causes a processor to enable a user to request, using a markup language enabled browser, the one or more non-markup language objects;

processor readable code that causes a processor to determine a location for the one or more non-markup language objects requested;

processor readable code that causes a processor to receive the request, from the browser, for the one or more non-markup language objects requested;

processor readable code that causes a processor to retrieve the one or more non-markup language objects requested based on the unique identifier;

processor readable code that causes a processor to translate the one or more non-markup language objects to at least one markup language object; and

processor readable code that causes a processor to transmit the at least one markup language object to the browser.

13. The medium of claim 12, wherein the non-markup language objects may be renamed, but the unique identifier does not change.

14. The medium of claim 12, wherein the at least one database comprises an index of objects within the at least one database, the index being based on the unique identifier.

15. The medium of claim 14 wherein the index is automatically updated when an object is added, created or modified.

16. The medium of claim 12, wherein a non-markup language object may be linked to another object by referencing the unique identifier.