Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Roberto C Taboada

Eric D Bailey

Paul Alex Broman

Glenn L Frankel

Burra Gopal

Brian M Jones

Kai Zhu

Robert Andrew Little

Marcin Sawicki

Christopher Hugh Pratley

Tristan Davis

Joe Keng Yap

James Noel Helfrich

James P Rupke

Yuriy Labunets

Amy R Simpson

Shayan Kayhanian

Ashok Kuppusamy

Parul Manek

Robert G Hawking

Ganesh Pandey

Anatoliy Burukhin

Kameshwar Jayaraman

Charles Glenn Jeffries

Seshadri Mani

Darell D Macatangay

Steven Mark Silverberg

Shiguang Dong

Zhongqin Wu

Stuart Kwan

Kartik Tirunelveli Kanakasabesan

Thiti Wang-Aryattanwanich

Daniel John Carroll, Jr

Shefali Gulati

Bertille N Fernandes

Sumkin Son

Srinivas Voora

Amy Simpson

Access to data and resources in a multi-tenant computing system is managed by tagging the data and resources with attributes, as well as by tagging users with attributes. Tenant-specific access policies are configured. When an access request is received from a workload, a policy decision engine processes the attributes that are tagged to the requesting workload (e.g., user, application, etc.) as well as those tagged to the requested data or resource, given a relevant tenant-specific policy. An access decision is provided in response to the access request, and the access decision can be enforced by a tenant-specific enforcement system.

Controlling access to cloud resources in data using cloud-enabled data tagging and a dynamic access control policy engine

Various methods and systems for generating an idempotent workflow are described herein. In one example, a method includes detecting distributed code and identifying a boundary function in the distributed code. The method can also include separating the boundary function into a transition function, a non-idempotent function, and a reversion function. Additionally, the method can include transforming the non-idempotent function into an idempotent function by generating a flag corresponding to the non-idempotent function, wherein the flag indicates if the non-idempotent function has been executed. Furthermore, the method can include combining the transition function, the idempotent function, and the reversion function to form the idempotent workflow.

Generating an idempotent workflow

Users in a given organization are tagged with a data center identifier (or data location) that identifies a data center where the user's resources are located. A user request is detected, that indicates that the user wishes to access a resource that is tied to the user. The user is automatically navigated to the user's corresponding data center, where the user permissions are analyzed to selectively grant access to the requested resource.

Cross-data center interoperation and communication

A computer system may provide zero-downtime, reversible, client-driven service migration to migrate a client from a current service to a new service. The computer system may configure the client to operate in a dual-write, old-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and the new service and issues read requests only to the current service. The computer system may configure the client to operate in a dual-write, new-read mode in which the client issues write requests to both the current service and the new service and issues read requests only to the new service.

Zero-downtime, reversible, client-driven service migration

A user may easily read, browse, and jump through the messages contained within a thread. Different portions of the message may be highlighted such that they are easily identifiable. The user may easily navigate through the thread by selecting a user interface element, such as an arrow button, to move to the next or previous message within the thread. The order of the thread may also be reversed such that the user may view the thread from the first message to the last message, or view the thread from the last message to the first message. The messages within the thread may be marked, such as by using XML tags, in order to facilitate the identification of the sections of the messages within the thread.

Navigating messages within a thread

A formatting tool enables 'smart' copy and paste functions. The 'smart' copy and paste functions can be invoked in a context-sensitive manner, depending on the conditions under which the copy and paste functions are implemented. The present invention will automatically include in a selection a paragraph marker at the end of a selected paragraph, if every other textual character in the paragraph has been selected. The present invention will discard a paragraph mark that is included in pasted text if the pasted text is pasted into the middle of another paragraph, indicating that the user prefers the formatting of the pasted-into paragraph. The present invention also reduces inconsistencies in formatting styles that may exist between source and target documents automatically redefining a style in the target document to conform to a corresponding style in the source document. The present invention also automatically adjusts paragraph spacing, in response to text being pasted into a target document. In response to various scenarios, the present invention will determine the most likely paragraph spacing intended by the user and will apply the most probable paragraph spacing to the pasted paragraph. The present invention also automatically adjusts list, table, and spreadsheet formatting, in response to such document elements being pasted into a differently-formatted target document. Finally, the present invention provides a convenient recovery dialog that may be invoked to alter any automatically-implemented formatting decisions.

Automated document formatting tool

A method and computer-readable medium are provided for interacting with a portion of an electronic document. According to the method, a UI control is displayed that includes a border surrounding the portion of the electronic document and one or more UI items that allow actions to be performed on the portion of the electronic document. The UI control may be displayed continually or displayed when user input is received within the portion of the electronic document. The border of the UI control may form a bounded region that is displayed transparently over the display of the portion of the electronic document. The transparency of the bounded region may be increased gradually when user input is received in the portion of the electronic document and removed gradually when user input is subsequently received outside the portion. A selectable region may be provided within the UI control for selecting and moving the portion of the electronic document to another location within the document.

Method and computer-readable medium for interacting with a portion of an electronic document

A method and system for routing a query to one or more providers. The system may include a search interface for presenting a service list including one or more services offered by the one or more providers, permitting selection of one or more of the one or more services, and a query entry for receiving input of the query. A search processor is capable of receiving and parsing the query. A service recognizer for a particular provider is capable of receiving and analyzing one or more terms of the query to determine if the particular provider is a match for the query. A query router can route the query to the particular provider if the particular provider is determined to be a match and block the query to the particular provider if the particular provider is determined not to be a match. A results interface presents results of the query.

Method, system, and apparatus for routing a query to one or more providers

A lightweight information user interface is provided for displaying information about a focused-on (e.g., mouse-over) text item, data item or other object in an electronic document that minimizes interruption of workflow with the electronic document. Upon focus on a word or other object in an electronic document a quick look-up function may be invoked for retrieving information from a local or remote information source about the focused-on item. Retrieved information, for example, translations, dictionary definitions and research information, is displayed in close proximity to the focused-on item in a lightweight information user interface. Information may be displayed according to a variety of media types including text, audio, video, pictures, bitmap images, etc.

Lightweight reference user interface

A lightweight information user interface is provided for displaying information about a selected text item, data item or other object in an electronic document that minimizes interruption of workflow with the electronic document. Upon selection of an item in an electronic document a quick look-up function may be invoked for retrieving information from a local or remote information source about the selected item. Retrieved information, for example, dictionary definitions, translations, contacts information and research information, is displayed in close proximity to the selected item in a lightweight user interface.

A method and apparatus are provided for utilizing a document object model to manage document parts for use in an electronic document. The document object model enables a user to retrieve, insert, add, and delete document parts to and from an electronic document using a programmable interface from within a word processing application program. A document part programming interface is exposed in the object model and methods associated with the object model are called which return objects enabling the location and management of document parts in a document parts collection.

Method and apparatus for utilizing an object model to manage document parts for use in an electronic document

A method, system, and computer-readable medium are provided for creating, inserting, and reusing document parts in an electronic document. According to a system, a word processing application program receives a selection of a document part category. In response to the selection of the document part category, a gallery of document parts is displayed in a user interface. A selection of a document part from the gallery is received and inserted in the electronic document without the need for additional formatting. The gallery of document parts defines a page layout for the electronic document. Document parts may be created within the user interface by modifying pre-built document parts.

Method, system, and computer-readable medium for creating, inserting, and reusing document parts in an electronic document

A method and system are provided for communicating results to a query for data in a computer network utilizing a graphical user interface. A framework on a client computer registers the client computer with an information service provider. Then the framework receives the query for data from the user interface. The framework creates a query packet including the query for data. A remote computer in communication with the framework resident on the local computing device receives the query packet from the framework and sends a response packet to the framework. After receiving the response packet, the framework determines whether the response packet contains a result to the data query. If the response packet contains a result to the data query, the framework formats the result for presentation to a user via the user interface on the local computing device. If the response packet, does not contain a result to the data query the framework may send a status message, indicating that no results were returned for the data query, to the user interface. The data in the query packet and the response packet may be formatted in a data format such as Extensible Markup Language ('XML').

Growing community of inventors

Bothell, WA, United States of America

Roberto C Taboada