Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Terri L Sorge

Matthew Charles Gauthier

Robert R McCaughey

Carol Lining Liu

Kevin Joseph Fischer

Anna Timasheva

Russell S Johnson

Rajeev S Misra

Juha P Niemisto

Kent Rogers Lowry

Robert Wayne Coffen

Ramakrishnan NataraJan

Margaret G Hudson

May May Quan

John L Dauphiny

Automatically republishing native data from a native data file into a published file. In response to initially publishing the native data into the published file, a publish object is created that corresponds to the published data and the native data. The publish object is associated with the native data file and indicates whether the native data is to be automatically republished upon resaving of the native data file. The publish object further indicates the location of the published file, a reference to the location of the native data within the native data file, and an alert string. The publish object is identified by a unique identifier that is also stored in the published file to indicate the location of the published data. In response to resaving the native data, the publish object is examined to determine whether the native data is to be automatically republished.

Automatic republication of data

The invention is a software module configured for sending a pre-selected portion of an electronic spreadsheet document to a mail client or recipient via e-mail. The module includes a publish engine for receiving a sender's pre-selected portion of a spreadsheet document from an application program. The publish engine determines content in the pre-selected portion of the document, and in response to the content of the pre-selected portion, the publish engine changes a user interface to correspond with the content. When the publish engine receives a command through the user interface to send the pre-selected portion to a mail client via electronic mail, the publish engine codes the pre-selected portion for transmission via electronic mail. The publish engine launches an electronic mail application program, and inserts the coded pre-selected portion into an e-mail message. If the publish engine detects a user command through the user interface to apply an interactive control to the pre-selected portion, the publish engine codes an interactive control for the pre-selected portion. The publish engine inserts the coded interactive control into the e-mail message with the coded pre-selected portion so that the mail client or recipient can apply the interactive control to the pre-selected portion. Then, the publish engine sends the coded pre-selected portion and the coded interactive control to the mail client or recipient via electronic mail. The mail client or recipient can view and manipulate the pre-selected portion with electronic spreadsheet functionality similar to that available to the sender.

Sending a range

Automatically republishing native data from a native data file into an published file. In response to initially publishing the native data in to the published file, a publish object is created that corresponds to the published data and the native data. The publish object is associated with the native data file and indicates whether the native data is to be automatically republished upon resaving of the native data file. The publish object further indicates the location of the published file, a reference to the location of the native data within the native data file, and an alert string. The alert string may comprise a single alert to be displayed when the native data is republished. The publish object is identified by a unique identifier that is also stored in the published file to indicate the location of the published data. Subsequent to initially publishing the native data, the native data file may be resaved. In response to resaving of the native data, the publish object is examined to determine whether the native data is to be automatically republished. If the native data is to be automatically republished, the published file is retrieved and the native data is republished into the published file. Republishing the native data into the published file comprises translating the native data into a published file format, locating the published data within the published file by way of the unique identifier and replacing the published data with the translated native data.

A spreadsheet program directly publishes a data table or chart into an HTML document. The table or chart is published to a predefined location within the HTML document and a user is enabled to readily update the published table or chart to include changes made in the spreadsheet program by republishing the data table or chart. Furthermore, the published or republished data can be imported back into the parent spreadsheet program from the HTML document without loss of functionality or formatting that it had in the parent spreadsheet program. In addition, the data may be published in a form that can be used by ActiveX web components in order to provide spreadsheet functionality from within the browser application. A unique marker tag or identification tag within the HTML document indicates where the data table or chart has been inserted.

Publishing/republishing data tables in HTML documents while maintaining formatting and functionality for restoring back the data tables

A spreadsheet program saves data into a hypertext markup language (HTML) document that can be viewed with a browser program, but persists all of the information associated with that data necessary to maintain formatting and functionality of the data if reintroduced into the spreadsheet program. The HTML document can then be used both for displaying the data over the Internet or other network in a browser program, and also for opening the data in the spreadsheet program. The information necessary for preserving the format and functionality of the data in the spreadsheet program is incorporated into the HTML document using HTML, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and Extended Markup Language (XML). HTML is used for expressing cell data information that is displayed in the browser program, CSS are used for expressing cell-level properties of the data, and XML is used for expressing information that is not displayed in the browser program, but which is necessary for some functionality of the data when used in the spreadsheet program. If any formatting of the data are changed to enable display of the data in the browser program as displayed in the spreadsheet program, the original formatting information is retained in a supporting file that is ignored by a browser program.

Storage of application specific data in HTML

A method for enabling data generated in a parent application to be translated into another format, such as hypertext markup language (HTML), so that formatting functionality unique to the parent application is retained, and so that the data reintroduced into the parent application from an HTML document has all its original formatting and functionality restored. As the data are translated into the other format, formatting information specific to the parent application is included with the data, but in such a manner that the formatting information is ignored by applications such as web browsers that are compatible with the other format. While translating the data into the other format, any formatting commands in the data that are not fully supported in the other format are identified, and if found, are translated so as to emulate the form of the data in the parent application. Included in the translated data is a marker identifying changes in the formatting commands. When the translated data are reintroduced to the parent application, the parent application ignores the non-identical formatting indicated by the marker and instead uses the original formatting information that was included in the translated data. The method can be used to reduce the size of an HTML file that includes translated spreadsheet data by abbreviating the HTML code for empty cells, while ensuring that when translated spreadsheet data are reintroduced into a parent spreadsheet application, the original formatting and functionality of the spreadsheet data are maintained.

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Kirkland, WA, United States of America

Terri L Sorge