Comparing and merging multiple documents

• US 7,949,938 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2007
• Issued: 05/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wrp IP Management, LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Windell, David Thomas, Smith, Jeffrey John, Nyeste, Patrick Gabor, Champion, David Frederick, Meserth, Timothy Andreas
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong; Stephen S
• Assistant Examiner(s): YANG, I CHAN
• Application Number:
  US11/688,796
• Publication Number:
  US 20080235579A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,526 Days
• Field of Search: 715/209, 715/212, 715/229, 715/230, 715/232, 715/255, 715/256, 715/273, 715/277, 707/203
• US Class Current: 715/229
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/194 Calculation of difference between files

Abstract

Provided are a method, system, and article of manufacture for comparing and merging multiple merge documents, wherein each merge document includes content element locations having user content or empty. A determination is made in the determined merge documents of content element locations in at least two of the merge documents having a same content and content element locations in at least two of the determined merge documents having different content. An aggregate document is generated including content element locations corresponding to the content element locations in the determined merge documents. A content graphical indicator is rendered with content element locations in the aggregate document for which at least two of the determined merge documents provide different content, and information is rendered in response to user selection for the content in the plurality of the merge documents provided for the selected content element location.

Claims

1. An article of manufacture including code capable of causing operations to be performed, the operations comprising:

receiving input identifying a plurality of merge documents to merge, wherein each merge document includes content element locations of content, wherein the merge documents have corresponding content element locations at same locations in the merge documents, wherein content in the content element locations comprises user content or indication that the content element location is empty;

determining in the identified merge documents, the corresponding content element locations in the merge documents having a same content and corresponding content element locations in at least two of the merge documents having different content;

generating an aggregate document including content element locations for the determined corresponding content element locations in the merge documents;

rendering a content graphical indicator with each content element location in the aggregate document for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element location, wherein a plurality of content graphical indicators are rendered in the aggregate document for content element locations for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element locations;

receiving user selection of one content element location in the aggregate document for which the graphical indicator is rendered; and

rendering user selectable information for the different content the plurality of the merge documents provide for the user selected content element location.

2. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the content graphical indicator comprises an unaccepted content graphical indicator, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving user selection to accept the content for which information is rendered for the selected content element location; and

rendering an accepted content graphical indicator for the selected content element location having the selected content.

3. The article of manufacture of claim 2, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving user selection to finalize changes;

including accepted content in each content element location in the aggregate document for which content associated with one instance of the rendered information was accepted in response to the user selection to finalize the changes; and

saving the aggregate document.

4. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein one merge document provides comments on the content included with one content element location, wherein rendering information on the content for the selected content element location further comprises:

rendering a comment graphical indicator with the rendered information for each merge document providing content for the selected content element location;

receiving selection of one comment graphical indicator; and

rendering the comments provided with the content in one of the merge documents in response to receiving selection of the comment graphical indicator generated for the comments in the merge document.

5. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein a plurality of the merge documents include content from at least one user and wherein the rendered information for the content in the merge documents for content element locations indicates the user that created the merge document.

6. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein the merge documents comprise at least one subordinate document to a master document, wherein each subordinate document comprises a copy of the master document, wherein at least one subordinate document includes changes to at least one content element location from the master document, and wherein the generated aggregate document comprises a copy of the master document.

7. The article of manufacture of claim 6, wherein the master document includes information identifying a version number of the master document and wherein each subordinate document includes information identifying the master document for which the subordinate document provides changes.

8. The article of manufacture of claim 7, wherein determining the documents to merge comprises:

receiving selection of one master document;

searching a directory in a file system to identify subordinate documents which are revised versions of the selected master document, wherein the merge documents comprise at least two subordinate documents.

9. The article of manufacture of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

rendering information on the identified subordinate documents to enable user selection of a user approved set of the identified subordinate documents comprising at least one of the identified subordinate documents, wherein the merge documents comprise the user approved set of subordinate documents.

10. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein rendering information for the content in the plurality of the merge documents provided for the selected content element location further comprises:

rendering a document content graphical element for the content in each merge document provided for the selected content element location, wherein content graphical elements are rendered for multiple merge documents;

receiving selection of one rendered document content graphical element for the content from one merge document;

rendering the content from the merge document corresponding to the selected document content graphical element.

21. The article of manufacture of claim 1, wherein rendering the user selectable information for the selected content element location for which the graphical indicator is rendered comprises:

rendering in the aggregate document a user selectable document content graphical element for the content in each document providing different content for the user selected content element location.

11. An article of manufacture including code capable of causing operations to be performed, the operations comprising:

receiving selection of one master document;

searching a directory in a file system to identify subordinate documents which are revised versions of the selected master document, wherein each subordinate document and the master document includes content element locations of content, wherein the documents have corresponding content element locations at same locations in the documents, wherein content in the content element locations comprises user content or indication that the content element location is empty, wherein each subordinate document comprises a copy of the master document, wherein at least one subordinate document includes changes to at least one content element location from the master document;

rendering information on the identified subordinate documents to enable user selection of a user approved set of the identified subordinate documents comprising at least one of the identified subordinate documents;

determining in the user approved set of subordinate documents, the corresponding content element locations in the subordinate documents having a same content and corresponding content element locations in at least one of the user approved set of the subordinate documents having different content than the master document;

generating an aggregate document that is a copy of the master document;

rendering a content graphical indicator with each content element location in the aggregate document for which at least one of the determined user approved set of subordinate documents provide different content than the master document for the corresponding content element location, wherein a plurality of content graphical indicators are rendered in the aggregate document for content element locations for which at least one of the determined subordinate documents provide different content than the master document for the corresponding content element locations;

receiving user selection of one content element location in the aggregate document for which the graphical indicator is rendered; and

rendering user selectable information for the different content the user approved set of subordinate documents provide for the user selected content element location.

12. A system, comprising:

a storage including a plurality of documents to merge, wherein each document includes content element locations, wherein content in the content element locations comprises user content or indication that the content element location is empty;

a processor;

a computer readable medium including code executed by the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising;

receiving input identifying a plurality of merge documents to merge, wherein each merge document includes content element locations of content, wherein the merge documents have corresponding content element locations at same locations in the merge documents, wherein content in the content element locations comprises user content or indication that the content element location is empty;

determining in the identified merge documents, the corresponding content element locations in the merge documents having a same content and corresponding content element locations in at least two of the merge documents having different content;

generating an aggregate document including content element locations for the determined corresponding content element locations in the merge documents;

rendering a content graphical indicator with each content element location in the aggregate document for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element location, wherein a plurality of content graphical indicators are rendered in the aggregate document for content element locations for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element locations;

receiving user selection of one content element location in the aggregate document for which the graphical indicator is rendered; and

rendering user selectable information for the different content the plurality of the merge documents provide for the user selected content element location.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the content graphical indicator comprises an unaccepted content graphical indicator, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving user selection to accept the content for which information is rendered for the selected content element location; and

rendering an accepted content graphical indicator for the selected content element location having the selected content.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the merge documents comprise at least one subordinate document to a master document, wherein each subordinate document comprises a copy of the master document, wherein at least one subordinate document includes changes to at least one content element location from the master document, and wherein the generated aggregate document comprises a copy of the master document.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the master document includes information identifying a version number of the master document and wherein each subordinate document includes information identifying the master document for which the subordinate document provides changes.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein determining the documents to merge comprises:

receiving selection of one master document; and

searching a directory in a file system to identify subordinate documents which are revised versions of the selected master document, wherein the merge documents comprise at least two subordinate documents.

17. A method, comprising:

receiving input identifying a plurality of merge documents to merge, wherein each merge document includes content element locations of content, wherein the merge documents have corresponding content element locations at same locations in the merge documents, wherein content in the content element locations comprises user content or indication that the content element location is empty;

determining in the identified merge documents, the corresponding content element locations in the merge documents having a same content and corresponding content element locations in at least two of the merge documents having different content;

generating an aggregate document including content element locations for the determined corresponding content element locations in the merge documents;

rendering a content graphical indicator with each content element location in the aggregate document for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element location, wherein a plurality of content graphical indicators are rendered in the aggregate document for content element locations for which at least two of the merge documents provide different content for the corresponding content element locations;

receiving user selection of one content element location in the aggregate document for which the graphical indicator is rendered; and

rendering user selectable information for the different content the plurality of the merge documents provide for the user selected content element location.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the content graphical indicator comprises an unaccepted content graphical indicator, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving user selection to accept the content for which information is rendered for the selected content element location; and

rendering an accepted content graphical indicator for the selected content element location having the selected content.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the identified merge documents comprise at least one subordinate document to a master document, wherein each subordinate document comprises a copy of the master document, wherein at least one subordinate document includes changes to at least one content element location from the master document, and wherein the generated aggregate document comprises a copy of the master document.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the master document includes information identifying a version number of the master document and wherein each subordinate document includes information identifying the master document for which the subordinate document provides changes.