Contextual Revision History Filtering in Document Editors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing document editing applications face challenges in managing and displaying revision history effectively, as users often experience information overload when presented with a long list of revisions, making it difficult to determine the impact of specific revisions on the document and identifying the editors responsible.
Innovation Solution
The system allows users to select a context within a document, filtering and displaying only the relevant revision history information associated with that context, including identification of editors and timestamps, and providing a visual representation of revisions through a vertical line in the document margin.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If a complete list of revisions is displayed, then all revision information is provided, but information overload occurs and usability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the complete revision history into context-specific subsets. When a user selects a particular context (e.g., a specific section, paragraph, or element), the system divides the full revision list into relevant and irrelevant portions, displaying only the revisions that affected the selected context. This segmentation maintains information completeness for the relevant portion while eliminating information overload.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by providing different levels of revision information detail based on the user's contextual selection. Instead of uniformly displaying all revision information or none, the system tailors the information display to the local context selected by the user, showing detailed revision history for the selected portion while omitting or summarizing revisions to other portions.
2Loss of information
If a complete list of revisions is displayed, then all editor information is provided, but user ability to identify specific editors deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments editor information display based on contextual relevance. When a user selects a specific context, the patent filters and displays editor information only for revisions that affected that context, making it easier to identify which editors made changes to the selected portion without being distracted by editors who modified other parts of the document.
3Loss of information
If revision history for the entire document is displayed, then all revisions are shown, but user ability to view revisions for a specific section deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements segmentation by allowing users to select a specific section, paragraph, or element within the document, then automatically filtering the revision history display to show only revisions that affected the selected portion. This maintains access to the complete revision history database while presenting only the relevant subset for the current context.
Solution Approach 2:
The selected context acts as an intermediary between the user and the complete revision history. Instead of directly displaying all revisions or requiring the user to manually filter through them, the context selection serves as a mediator that automatically filters and presents the appropriate subset of revision information.
Data Source
AI summary
A user may want to view the revision history of a particular section or context of an electronic document. The user selects a context by selecting a section of the electronic document in a document editing application. Based on the selected context, the application filters and displays only information about revisions associated with the selected section of the electronic document. The application omits information about revisions made to other unselected sections of the electronic document from display.