Machine-oriented extensible document representation and interchange notation

• US 6,904,562 B1
• Filed: 08/31/2000
• Issued: 06/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hind, John R., Li, Yongcheng, Tan, Yih-Shin
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): HILLERY, NATHAN
• Application Number:
  US09/652,056
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 715/515, 715/513, 707/101, 707/102
• US Class Current: 715/239
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A machine-oriented notation for representation and interchange of extensible documents: a method, system, and computer program product for operating upon (e.g. parsing, and storing documents in) this notation. The notation, referred to herein as “mXML” for “machine-oriented XML”, is designed to be more compact than the Extensible Markup Language (XML), while still conveying the content and semantics of the data and the structure of the document. Documents may be created directly in mXML. In general case, a document represented using mXML notation can be processed more efficiently than when using the existing human-friendly XML notation, requires less storage space, and has a lower transmission cost for data interchange. XML documents can be converted to mXML using techniques of the present invention, and vice versa. Techniques disclosed herein are also applicable to notations other than XML.

Claims

1. A computer program product embodied on one or more computer-readable media, the computer program product adapted for encoding a document in an extensible machine-oriented structured notation and comprising:

computer-readable program code means for encoding a node count representing a count of nodes in the document;

computer-readable program code means for encoding a node specification for each of the nodes, further comprising;

computer-readable program code means for encoding a node name;

computer-readable program code means for encoding a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node;

computer-readable program code means for encoding an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute pair reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value; and

computer-readable program code means for encoding a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value;

computer-readable program code means for encoding a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

computer-readable program code means for storing the encoded node count, the encoded node specifications, and the encoded data buffer as the encoded document in memory or writing the encoded document to one or more storage media.

2. A computer program product embodied on one or more computer-readable media, the computer program product adapted for processing a document encoded in an extensible machine-oriented structured notation and comprising:

computer-readable program code means for parsing the document, further comprising;

computer-readable program code means for parsing a node count representing a count of nodes in the document;

computer-readable program code means for parsing a node specification for each of the nodes, further comprising;

computer-readable program code means for parsing a node name;

computer-readable program code means for parsing a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node;

computer-readable program code means for parsing an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute list reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value; and

computer-readable program code means for parsing a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value; and

computer-readable program code means for parsing a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

computer-readable program code means for using the parsed document as input for the processing.

3. A computer program product embodied on one or more computer-readable media, the computer program product adapted for converting an input document encoded in an extensible human-friendly extensible markup language (“

XML”

) to an output document encoded in a machine-oriented extensible markup language (“

mXML”

) and comprising;

computer-readable program code means for creating a document tree representation of the input document;

computer-readable program code means for obtaining a node count representing a count of nodes in the document tree representation;

computer-readable program code means for writing the node count to an mXML buffer;

computer-readable program code means for traversing each node in the document tree representation and generating a corresponding node specification in the mXML buffer, further comprising;

computer-readable program code means for generating a node name;

computer-readable program code means for generating an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute pair reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value;

computer-readable program code means for generating a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node; and

computer-readable program code means for generating a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value;

computer-readable program code means for generating a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

computer-readable program code means for appending the data buffer to the mXML buffer to form the output document.

4. The computer program product according to claim 3, wherein the computer-readable program code means for generating each attribute pair reference further comprises computer-readable program code means for generating a starting name position, a name length, a starting value position, and a value length.

5. The computer program product according to claim 4, wherein the starting name position and starting value position are relative to a beginning of the data buffer.

6. The computer program product according to claim 4, wherein the starting name position and starting value position are relative to a beginning of the output document.

7. The computer program product according to claim 3, wherein the node value specification specifies a starting value position and a value length.

8. The computer program product according to claim 6, wherein the start value position is relive to a beginning of the data buffer.

9. The computer program product according to claim 6, wherein the starting value position is relative to a beginning of the output document.

10. The computer program product according to claim 3, wherein the computer-readable program code means for generating each attribute pair reference further comprises computer-readable program code means for generating a starting name position, an ending name position, a starting value position, and an ending value position.

11. The computer program product according to claim 3, wherein the node value specification specifies a starting value position and an ending value position.

12. A method for encoding a document in an extensible machine-oriented structured notation, comprising the steps of:

encoding a node count representing a count of nodes in the document;

encoding a node specification for each of the nodes, further comprising the steps of;

encoding a node name;

encoding a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node;

encoding an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute pair reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value; and

encoding a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value;

encoding a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

storing the encoded node count, the encoded node specifications, and the encoded data buffer as the encoded document in memory or writing the encoded document to one or more storage media.

13. A method for processing a document encoded in an extensible machine-oriented structured notation, comprising the steps of:

parsing the document, further comprising the steps of;

parsing a node count representing a count of nodes in the document;

parsing a node specification for each of the nodes, further comprising the steps of;

parsing a node name;

parsing a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node;

parsing an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute pair reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value; and

parsing a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value; and

parsing a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

using the parsed document as input for the processing.

14. A method for converting an input document encoded in an extensible human-friendly extensible markup language (“

XML”

) to an output document encoded in a machine-oriented extensible markup language (“

mXML”

), comprising the steps of;

creating a document tree representation of the input document;

obtaining a node count representing a count of nodes in the document tree representation;

writing the node count to an mXML buffer;

traversing each node in the document tree representation and generating a corresponding node specification in the mXML buffer, further comprising the steps of;

generating a node name;

generating an attribute list specifying zero or more attribute pair references for attributes of the node, each attribute pair reference comprising an attribute name and an attribute value;

generating a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node; and

generating a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value;

generating a data buffer containing attribute names and attribute values referenced from the attribute lists and node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

appending the data buffer to the mXML buffer to form the output document.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the step of generating each attribute pair reference further comprises the step of generating a starting name position, a name length, a starting value position, and a value length.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the starting name position and starting value position are relative to a beginning of the data buffer.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein the starting name position and starting value position are relative to a beginning of the output document.

18. The method according to claim 14, wherein the node value specification specifies a starting value position and a value length.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein the stating value position is relative to a beginning of the data buffer.

20. The method according to claim 17, wherein the starting value position is relative to a beginning of the output document.

21. The method according to claim 14, wherein the step of generating each attribute pair reference further comprises the step of generating a starting name position, an ending name position, a starting value position, and an ending value position.

22. The method according to claim 14, herein the node value specification specifies a starting value position and an ending value position.

23. A method for encoding a document in an extensible machine-oriented structured notation, comprising the steps of:

encoding a node count representing a count of nodes in the document;

encoding a node specification for each of the nodes, further comprising the steps of;

encoding a node name;

encoding a child list specifying index values of zero or more nodes which are children of the node; and

encoding a node value specification, which is empty if the node has no value;

encoding a data buffer containing node values referenced from the node value specifications; and

storing the encoded node count, the encoded node specifications, and the encoded data buffer as the encoded document in memory or writing the encoded document to one or more storage media.