Tracked Change Objects for Cloud Document Editing
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Solution Overview
Problem
In cloud-based online document systems, users face challenges in managing and approving changes to documents without directly editing the underlying content, requiring a system to maintain separate versions and track changes effectively.
Innovation Solution
An online document system that consolidates user editing operations into tracked change objects based on intent, allowing users to view and approve changes separately from the document content, and applies these changes only after approval, using a system architecture that includes a tracked changes module, permissions module, and user interface to manage and display changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If users directly apply editing operations to document content, then editing efficiency is improved, but document version control and change tracking become complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments editing operations into discrete tracked change objects that can be independently reviewed and approved. Each editing operation is captured as a separate change object containing the original content, modified content, and operation type, allowing granular control over document evolution without requiring complex version management.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces tracked change objects as an intermediary layer between editing operations and document content. Instead of directly modifying the document, edits are first recorded as change objects that serve as a buffer, enabling review and approval processes while maintaining a clean document version until changes are explicitly accepted.
2Reliability
If separate working and final versions of the document are maintained, then change tracking is improved, but system complexity and storage requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the change tracking information from the document structure itself and stores it separately as tracked change objects. This separation allows the document to maintain a single clean version while all editing history is captured in independent change objects that can be reviewed, approved, or rejected without affecting the base document.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates copies of the original content within tracked change objects to preserve the state before editing. Each change object contains the original content, the modified content, and metadata about the operation, enabling accurate reconstruction of document history without maintaining multiple full document versions.
3Productivity
If multiple editing operations are consolidated into a single tracked change object, then review efficiency is improved, but loss of individual operation details may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple editing operations into a single tracked change object when they share a common intent or are performed in close proximity. The change object contains an array of operations, allowing reviewers to approve or reject a group of related changes as a unit while still preserving the individual operation details within the consolidated object.
Data Source
AI summary
An online document system maintains a document comprising document content. Users can edit document of the online document system by in the form of operations (which represent desired changes to document content). Instead of directly applying the received operations to the document content, the online document system consolidates operations into a tracked change object based on a common intent of the operations. To render the document content (with tracked change object) the online document system applies the set of operations to the document content and generates a tracked change indication to highlight content changed by the set of operations.