Abstract: A method of halftoning a sample value from an intensity range including the steps of providing threshold arrays having threshold values from distinct ranges, one of which is the same as the intensity range, selecting the one with the same range as the intensity range and using the selected threshold array to halftone the sample value. Embodiments may include the following features. The threshold arrays are a first one having a first threshold value range and a second one having a second threshold value range that has more levels than does the first threshold value range. The first threshold array is built by scaling each value in the second threshold array down to the range of the first threshold array. The scaling is done by dividing by 257 and rounding up to the next whole number. The first threshold array has a threshold value range of zero to 255 and the second threshold array has a threshold value range of zero to 65535 or zero to 4095.

Abstract: Values for a property of a layer in a composition over a period of time are established by sampling user input at a sequence of sample times to obtain a sequence of input values, corresponding the sequence of sample times with a sequence of layer times, and determining a sequence of property values for the first layer from the sequence of input values, the sequence of property values corresponding to the sequence of layer times.

Abstract: Data for a temporal sequence of composition frames is created from data of a temporal sequence of footage frames by identifying a set of the footage frames temporally corresponding to a set of the composition frames and blending data from the set of footage frames to create data for the set of composition frames.

Abstract: A computer-implemented graphical user interface method receives a select command to select a first window from a group of three or more separate and distinct windows. A dock command is received to combine the selected first window and a distinct second window from the group of windows. The first window is docked to the second window to form a single composite window having its own content and its own decoration. The composite window includes a first pane containing the first window content and a second pane containing the second window content. A collapse command is received to collapse a selected one of the first and second panes in the composite window, and an uncollapse command is received to uncollapse the previously collapsed first or second pane in the composite window. A stack command is received to stack a third window with the second pane of the composite window.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for providing an optimized page-based electronic document file and downloading the optimized file. An optimized document file is created from a non-optimized electronic document. Page contents are contiguously written in the optimized file and a page offset table is provided in the optimized file that includes page offset information used to locate individual pages and objects of the document. Shared objects, such as fonts, are included in the file after the page contents. When downloading the optimized file from a host, the page offset information is read early and is used to download a specific page requested by the user without downloading other pages in the document. In one embodiment, a viewer downloads a first portion of the requested page, while all remaining portions of the requested page are located and requested by a finder process using the page offset table. In alternative embodiments, all objects for a full page may be requested at once.

Abstract: A page printer uses alternative internal representations for the print data in each of multiple lateral strips that make up the page. Page description language input is converted to an intermediate display list format that is sorted into display commands associated with each strip. If during input the display list representation of the data fills the memory allotted to its storage, one or more of the strips is converted from display list format to raster format and compressed using a lossless compression algorithm. If storage of compressed strips subsequently exceeds available memory, raster data is further compressed using a lossy compression algorithm. Additional display list commands are rasterized by decompressing the compressed strips, processing the new commands and recompressing the data using lossless or lossy compression as required. If the display list does not overflow memory during input, the complete strips are rasterized and compressed one at a time in the order in which they will be printed.

Abstract: A bitmap comparison technique that is able quickly to compare two bitmap images while discounting differences between the images likely due to noise. The bitmap comparison technique includes the operations of: comparing the first and second bitmaps, producing a difference map identifying differing bits between the first and second bitmaps, producing outline masks based on the outlines of the first and second bitmaps, identifying certain very different bits within the difference map that are to be weighted differently from the remaining bits within the difference map based upon the outline mask, and determining a comparison score to indicate the extent to which the first and second images differ by differently weighting the very different bits and the remaining bits. The certain bits are normally weighted to a lesser extent than the remaining bits when determining the comparison score so that the influence of noise in the comparison score is diminished.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for identifying words stored in a portable electronic document. A digital computation apparatus stores a page of a document including characters in text segments that have not been identified as words. A word identifying mechanism analyzes the text segments of the page and stores the text segments as text objects in a linked list. The word identifying mechanism identifies words from the text objects in the linked list by analyzing the text objects for word breaks and by analyzing gaps between text objects using position data associated with the text segments. The identified words are stored in a word list and are sorted if necessary. A method of the present invention receives a text segment from a page of a document having multiple text segments and associated position data, including x and y coordinates for each text segment. A text object is created for each text segment, and the text objects are entered into a linked list.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for identifying words described in a page description file. A computer device stores a page description language file which includes characters that have not been identified as words by the page description language. A word identifying mechanism reads the page description language file and groups characters to form at least one word from the characters. The system preferably transfers words to a client process capable of processing words at a request of the client process. In a method for identifying words from a page description file, characters are read from the file and are stored in a word buffer until a word break is detected based upon character position data stored in the file. The contents of the word buffer are then provided to a client process as an identified word. The method can also sort the characters from the file into a display order prior to storing the characters in the word buffer.

Abstract: A graphical pattern placement technique automatically performed by a computer whereby lying in a single plane a path on an electronic document is provided and a graphical pattern is selected. Then, the graphical pattern is automatically placed along the path by a programmed computer such that the graphical pattern follows the orientation and curvature of the path.