Routine and interface for correcting electronic text

• US 8,321,786 B2
• Filed: 06/17/2004
• Issued: 11/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Lunati, Stephane
• Primary Examiner(s): Theriault, Steven B
• Application Number:
  US10/870,269
• Publication Number:
  US 20050283726A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,085 Days
• Field of Search: 715/533, 715/234, 715/239, 715/257, 715/256, 715/265, 715/760, 715/767
• US Class Current: 715/257
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/232 Orthographic correction, e.g. spell checking or vowelisation

Abstract

Error checking and correction techniques for web based applications use an error checking routine on a server or a client station to find errors in electronic text of an E-mail message. The disclosed error checking routine detects errors such as spelling errors in the electronic text and creates a correction file of the electronic text containing tags, markers and other information allowing errors to be displayed and corrected using the user'"'"'s graphical interface. The graphical interface allows the user to review all the errors concurrently in the correction file and to correct the errors in any order. In a preferred embodiment, correction is facilitated in response to the user moving a mouse pointer over an error of interest, which provides correction options to be displayed in-line with the original text. The user can then select a suitable correction to correct the error.

Claims

1. A method for displaying and allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user, comprising:

displaying the electronic text on a page of an application on a client station, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text;

sending, after the act of displaying, the electronic text from the client station to an error checking routine;

processing the electronic text using the error checking routine to create a correction file, wherein the correction file provides correction information for each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text;

sending the correction file to the client station; and

updating the displayed electronic text on the page of the client station using the correction file, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, wherein each of the plurality of errors is concurrently highlighted on the page, and wherein each highlighted error is selectable by the user in any order to access the correction information for each error.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the error checking routine is remote from the client station.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the error checking routine is resident on a server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the error checking routine is resident within the client station.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each highlighted error is selectable by moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the correction information selected by the user defines a corrected error, and wherein the corrected error replaces the highlighted error in the displayed electronic text of the page.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the corrected error is highlighted in the displayed electronic text with a different highlighting than the highlighted error.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the corrected error is displayed in line with adjacent electronic text.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the corrected error is displayed without a text box in the electronic text.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the corrected error is selectable by the user to access the correction information.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein each corrected error is selectable by moving a mouse pointer over the corrected error.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising an option to allow selection of a language for the error checking routine.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic text comprises an electronic mail message, and further comprising providing an option on the page for sending the message.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein creating the correction file comprises adding format codes to a base code of the electronic text.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the page displays the electronic text in HyperText Mark-up Language.

18. A method for displaying and allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user, comprising:

displaying the electronic text on a page of an application on a client station, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text;

sending, after the act of displaying, the electronic text from the client station to an error checking routine;

receiving a correction file at the client station, wherein the correction file provides correction information for each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text; and

updating the displayed electronic text on the page of the application using the correction file, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, wherein each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text are concurrently highlighted, and wherein correction information for each error allows each error to be accessed by the user in any order.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the error checking routine is remote from the client station.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the error checking routine is resident on a server.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the error checking routine is resident within the client station.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein each highlighted error is selectable by moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

25. The method of claim 18, further comprising an option to allow selection of a language for the error checking routine.

26. The method of claim 18, wherein the electronic text comprises an electronic mail message, and further comprises providing an option on the page for sending the message.

27. The method of claim 18, wherein creating the correction file comprises adding format codes to a base code of the electronic text.

28. The method of claim 18, wherein the page displays the electronic text in HyperText Mark-up Language.

29. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

replacing one of the highlighted plurality of errors with a user selectable corrected error, and

replacing a user interface code associated with the one of the highlighted plurality of errors with formatting information for the corrected error.

30. The method of claim 18, wherein the correction file includes a single editable program code variable for defining highlighting information for all of the plurality of errors.

31. A method for allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user and displayed on a page of an application, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, comprising:

processing the electronic text using an error checking routine to identify the plurality of errors; and

creating a correction file, wherein the correction file comprises;

correction information for each of the plurality of errors,

highlighting information for updating the displayed electronic text on the page by concurrently highlighting each of the plurality of errors within the displayed electronic text on a graphical user interface,

formatting information for the corrected error, the formatting information replacing user interface code associated with the highlighted error when the highlighted error is replaced by the corrected error, and

pop-up information to allow a user to display the correction information at any given highlighted error in response to user selection of that error;

wherein the correction information includes a selectable corrected error, the corrected error when selected replaces the highlighted error and all other similar highlighted errors in the displayed electronic text of the page.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein user selection comprises moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

35. The method of claim 31, wherein the correction file further comprises an option to allow selection of a language for the error checking routine.

36. The method of claim 31, wherein creating the correction file comprises adding format codes to a base code of the electronic text.

37. The method of claim 31, wherein the correction file includes a single editable program code variable for defining the highlighting information for all of the plurality of errors.

38. A computer-readable medium containing a program for performing a method for displaying and allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user, the method comprising:

displaying the electronic text on a page of an application on a client station, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text;

sending, after the displaying, the electronic text from the client station to an error checking routine;

processing the electronic text using the error checking routine to create a correction file, wherein the correction file provides correction information for each of the plurality of errors;

sending the correction file to the client station; and

updating the electronic text displayed on the page at the client station using the correction file, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, wherein each of the plurality of errors is concurrently highlighted on the page, and wherein each highlighted error is selectable by the user in any order to access the correction information for each error.

39. The computer-readable medium of claim 38, wherein each highlighted error is selectable by moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

40. The computer-readable medium of claim 39, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

41. The computer-readable medium of claim 38, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

42. The computer-readable medium of claim 38, wherein the electronic text comprises an electronic mail message, and further comprises providing an option on the page for sending the message.

43. The computer-readable medium of claim 38, wherein the page displays the electronic text in HyperText Mark-up Language.

44. A computer-readable medium containing a program for performing a method for displaying and allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user, the method comprising:

displaying the electronic text on a page of an application on a client station, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text;

sending, after the displaying, the electronic text from the client station to an error checking routine; and

receiving a correction file at the client station from the error checking routine, wherein the correction file provides correction information for each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text;

updating the displayed electronic text on the page of the application, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, wherein each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text are concurrently highlighted, and wherein correction information for each error allows each error to be accessed by the user in any order.

45. The computer-readable medium of claim 44, wherein each highlighted error is selectable by moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

46. The computer-readable medium of claim 45, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

47. The computer-readable medium of claim 44, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

48. The computer-readable medium of claim 44, wherein the electronic text comprises an electronic mail message, and further comprising providing an option on the page for sending the message.

49. The computer-readable medium of claim 44, wherein the page displays the electronic text in HyperText Mark-up Language.

50. The computer-readable medium of claim 44, the method further comprising:

replacing one of the highlighted plurality of errors with a user selectable corrected error, and

replacing a user interface code associated with the one of the highlighted plurality of errors with formatting information for the corrected error.

51. The computer readable medium of claim 44, wherein the correction file includes a single editable program code variable for defining highlighting information for all of the plurality of errors.

52. A computer-readable medium containing a program for performing a method for allowing the correction of a plurality of errors in an electronic text entered by a user and displayed on a page of an application, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, the method comprising:

processing the electronic text using an error checking routine to identify the plurality of errors; and

creating a correction file, wherein the correction file comprises;

correction information for each of the plurality of errors,

highlighting information for updating the displayed electronic text on the page by concurrently highlighting each of the plurality of errors within the displayed electronic text on a graphical user interface,

formatting information for the corrected error, the formatting information replacing user interface code associated with the highlighted error when the highlighted error is replaced by the corrected error, and

pop-up information to allow a user to display the correction information at any given highlighted error in response to user selection of that error,

wherein the correction information for each error includes a selectable corrected error, the corrected error when selected replaces the highlighted error and all other similar highlighted errors in the displayed electronic text of the page.

53. The computer-readable medium of claim 52, wherein user selection comprises moving a mouse pointer over the highlighted error.

54. The computer-readable medium of claim 53, wherein moving the mouse pointer over the highlighted error displays the correction information for the error or allows for the correction information to be displayed.

55. The computer-readable medium of claim 52, wherein the error checking routine comprises a spell checking routine.

56. The computer-readable medium of claim 52, wherein the correction file further comprises an option to allow selection of a language for the error checking routine.

57. The computer-readable medium of claim 52, wherein creating the correction file comprises adding format codes to a base code of the electronic text.

58. The computer readable medium of claim 52, wherein the correction file includes a single editable program code variable for defining the highlighting information for all of the plurality of errors.

59. A computing system comprising a client computing station and a server, the client computing station and the server configured to communicate over a network,

wherein the client computing station includes a client processing module programmed to:

displaying an electronic page of an application on a display, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, the electronic text including a plurality of errors,

sending, after the act of displaying, the electronic text to the server over the network,

receiving a correction file from the server over the network, and

updating the displayed electronic text on the page using the correction file, the page being the one on which the user composes the electronic text, wherein each of the plurality of errors in the displayed electronic text are concurrently highlighted, and wherein correction information for each error allows each error to be accessed by the user in any order;

wherein the server includes a server processing module programmed to;

receiving the electronic text from the client station over the network,

processing the electronic text using a error checking routine to create the correction file, wherein the correction file provides correction information and highlighting information for each of the plurality of errors,

sending the correction file to the client station over the network.