Abstract: The disclosed embodiments provide a system that processes data. One example embodiment is a computer-implemented method for processing data. The computer-implemented method includes obtaining text from a document associated with a user, wherein the document was generated based on a template and, with the obtained text intact, applying a set of rules to each term in the obtained text to determine a broad category of a plurality of terms associated with the term. The computer-implemented method further includes applying an additional set of rules to refine the broad category associated with the term to a refined category of fewer terms based on a location in the document of at least one term in the broad category of the plurality of terms, extracting a term from the obtained text using template-independent code developed to process documents generated based on a plurality of templates and enabling use of the term with an application.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments provide a system that processes data. During operation, the system obtains text from a document associated with a user. Next, the system applies a set of rules to each word in the text to determine a context associated with the word. The system then extracts data associated with the context from the text. Finally, the system enables use of the data with one or more applications without requiring manual input of the data into the one or more applications.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments provide a system that processes financial data. During operation, the system provides a user interface for displaying the financial data to a user. Upon detecting a gesture provided by the user through the user interface, the system identifies a context associated with the gesture. Next, the system displays a visualization of the financial data within the user interface based on the context.

Abstract: During an information-extraction technique, a user of the electronic device may be instructed by an application executed by an electronic device (such as a software application) to point an imaging sensor, which is integrated into the electronic device, toward a location on a document. For example, the user may be instructed to point a cellular-telephone camera toward a field on an invoice. After providing the instruction, the electronic device captures multiple images of the document by communicating a signal to the imaging device to acquire the images. Each of these images has an associated exposure setting with a different point of interest proximate to the location). Then, the electronic device stores the images and the points of interest. Furthermore, the electronic device analyzes the images to extract the information proximate to the location on the document.