Abstract: A secure access query system incorporating a messenger system. The system includes a communication server for receiving queries from a user and transmitting replies to the user, an application server for providing replies to queries, a network firewall for preventing unauthorized access to the application server and a messenger system, coupled to the communication server for receiving queries from the communication server, transmitting the query across the network firewall along a secure pathway established by the application server between the messenger system means and the application server, receiving replies from the application server along the secure pathway and transmitting the replies to the communication server. Queries from the user, outside of the network firewall, are thus communicated in a secure fashion to the application server, within the firewall, and replies are provided to the user from the application server through the secure pathway with the messenger system and the communication server.

Abstract: The invention provides a system and method for processing object-based audiovisual information which is capable of flexibly encoding, storing and accessing a variety of data objects. Audiovisual objects, illustratively prepared in MPEG-4 format, are stored onto physical media using file consisting of segments and access layer primary data units (PDUs), which are accessed using index information. The processes of encoding, storing and accessing audiovisual information are decoupled from monolithic storage in a strict linear order, and reordering and other editorial manipulations are possible.

Abstract: A computer-based system and method of creating and performing a soundtrack to accompany an electronic slide show presentation is disclosed. The method includes receiving input from a slide presentation author, the input specifying when the soundtrack is to begin, end, or change. The input also includes a specification of elements that control the soundtrack content. During an electronic slide show, when each slide (212) is displayed, the soundtrack specifications associated with the displayed slide (212) are retrieved. Based on the specifications, a music engine (230) is invoked with commands to control the composition and performance of a soundtrack that accompanies the currently displayed slide. The method also includes receiving specifications of motifs that are triggered to accompany predetermined events occurring during the electronic slide show.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and system for sorting a plurality of groups of records in a data processing system. The method and system comprises providing a main address space and a plurality of sort address spaces. Each of the plurality of sort address spaces includes one sort thread for receiving records within one group to be sorted. The main address space includes a plurality of load threads. Each of the load threads receives records from a corresponding sort thread. The main thread controls the plurality of sort threads and the plurality of load threads. The method and system further utilizes the main thread, the plurality of sort threads and the plurality of load threads for sorting the plurality of groups of records in parallel. The method and system in accordance with the present invention has the following advantages. First, the elapsed time for sorting is dramatically reduced. The CPU time is also reduced when utilizing the system and method in accordance with the present invention.

Abstract: For an object-based application being executed in a digital computing system a framework is provided for managing information retrieved from a structured database, such as a relational database. The processor is used to construct a single cohesive data structure, called a relational cache, that comprises all the row instances and that represents information retrieval from the structured database in a form suitable for use by one or more applications.An application may have several of these relational caches active at any one time, some of which may represent separate user editing sessions, where each session may be saved or discarded independently. The framework ensures that only one copy of a row instance is in a given cache at any given time, even if several different queries return the same information from the database. Row instances within the relational cache may be modified by the application, where the row instances are marked as modified but not saved to the database at that time.

Abstract: The present invention provides a central computer site on a computer network for detecting authorized or unauthorized duplication of software on computers connected to such a network. The computers on the network may be continually connected, like computers on a Local Area Network, or intermittently connected, like computers on the Internet. Every time a user of the distributed software attempts to execute that software, a connection to the central computer site on the network is made, and a previously-created information token is presented by the user's software to the central site. The central site evaluates that token, and possibly issues a new token to be kept by the user for the next transaction. These transactions need no human intervention, and may take place without the software user's knowledge. At the same time, the central site may provide or withhold permission for the user to execute the distributed software.

Abstract: Disclosed are a method for the control of an image display screen displaying half-tones and a display device implementing this method. The disclosed method is used to control an image display screen of the type having cells arranged in rows and columns and working either in a state known as an "OFF" state or in a state known as an "ON" state in which they are activated and produce light. The method consists in activating the cells of each row during sub-periods of different duration, with orders of distribution of the sub-periods that are different between two successive rows. This results in a reduction of the amplitude of the variations of a load constituted by the cells in the <<lit>> state of these two consecutive rows. Application inter alia to alternating plasma panels.

Abstract: Apparatus, methods and computer program products provide for searching a data structure to extract possible matches of one or more known patterns that may exist in the data structure through a single traversal of the data structure. The apparatus methods and computer program products use a direction list tree that represents the known patterns that may exist in the data structure. The apparatus, methods and computer program products detect known patterns by gathering marker information from edge nodes that define the known patterns and then, at each pattern termination node, determines which known patterns have been found. These known patterns can then be processed.

Abstract: This disclosure provides a data recording system and, in particular, an electronic digitizing clipboard and a remote computer. A stylus of the clipboard is used to write on pages, with a digitizer underneath the pages generating an electronic record of entered marks for storage and later recreation of the pages. The electronic record represents both stylus spatial coordinates, normally sampled every ten milliseconds, certain user commands such as page identification, inserted at significant locations within the aggregate data stream, or other data, for example, audio data from a built-in microphone. Data in the stream is associated with prior page identification commands, such that subsequent data may be cut or sorted based upon timing of that data relative to the page identification commands. In this manner, data may be distinguished and moved by a "splicing" mechanism, notwithstanding any spatial overlap with previous stylus data.

Abstract: A method and system of journal bundling that provides improved performance. In the preferred embodiment, a journal controller starts a timer to expire at a predetermined maximum time-to-wait. The journal controller then accumulates journal records in a bundle and transmits the bundle to the journal. The journal controller determines the number-of-journal-records accumulated in the bundle based on an adjustable preferred-bundle-size, which it calculates from an average-bundle-size over a history interval. If the timer expires, the journal controller writes the bundle to the journal even if the preferred-bundle-size has not been reached. By basing the preferred-bundle-size on an average-bundle-size over a history interval, the journal controller prevents rapid changes in the journal traffic-rate, which increases journal performance.

Abstract: A method and system for accessing and sharing metadata amongst a number of data marts through the use of object referencing. A global repository is created. Shared folders containing metadata is contained in the global repository. Any number of data marts can be linked to the global repository. Stored within the folders of the linked data marts are references pointing to certain metadata stored in the shared folders of the global repository. Multiple data marts can reference the same metadata in the global repository. Thereby, the same metadata can be accessed, used, and shared by multiple users across different data marts, provided that they have been granted the proper authority. New metadata can be promoted from a linked data mart into the global repository so that it can be shared, and updates to shared metadata can be automatically propagated to all users referencing that metadata.

Abstract: An object oriented data format mapping mechanism provides a framework for mapping data from one or more stored formats to a desired format without custom-generating the conversion code from scratch. The extensible portions of the framework allow a programmer to extend the framework to define a particular data format mapping environment. The framework maps all data to rows, with individual data being accessed by specifying an index within the row. One or more mapped rows define entries in the desired format, but instead of containing data, they contain method calls to classes that perform the desired retrieval and/or manipulation of the data.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for almost-constant-time re-clustering of corpus subsets with customizable time/precision tradeoff, is usable in a basic browsing method, such as Scatter/Gather, to successfully partition a large document collection into clusters of related documents. The user is first presented with a clustering of the entire corpus into metadocuments from which the worst metadocument is selected and replaced with its "children". Children containing no documents of interest are pruned and the remaining metadocuments are further expanded until a predetermined number of children metadocuments are obtain. The resulting metadocuments are then reclustered. The process is repeated until the user obtains the desired degree of specificity.

Abstract: A method of accessing electronic information, by loading an original document onto a data processing system, selecting a link embedded in the original document (wherein the link is associated with a linked document), and creating a new document by merging the linked document with the original document. Other new documents can similarly be created by merging additional linked documents with the earlier new documents in response to the further selection of other links embedded in the new documents. The original document and one or more linked documents can thus be displayed as a single, unitary file, as well as being printed as a single document. The linked document can be merged with the original document in a variety of manners. The invention is particularly useful in accessing hypertext pages on the World Wide Web of the Internet.

Abstract: In a distributed object system, a stable object iterator provides a list of all persistent objects within a collection of objects. A plurality of iterators are supported in another aspect of the invention. An iterator associates a label with each persistent object in a collection of stable objects. The label indicates whether the associated object was added to or deleted from the collection before or after the inception of an iterator. Multiple persistent iterators are supported by providing an indication of which iterators each persistent object is, or is not, "visible" to. Should an element of the persistent object collection be created after one or more iterators is created, that element is "invisible" to those iterators. Objects that exist when one or more iterators are created remain "visible" to those iterators, even if the object is deleted from the collection while those iterators still exist.

Abstract: This invention relates to methods and applications of forming clusters of pixels in 2-D sensing and display arrays. Using TFT switches having more than one predetermined electrical characteristics. The array formed according to these teachings being used in sensing, displaying, adjusting resolution, color selection, image processing, object recognition and filtering.

Abstract: The invention herein provides method, means and programming for invoking a stored procedure or user defined function in an interpreted language such as Java in a database management system capable of operating on a data processing system. The invention includes a database server associated with invocation means adapted to receive a request for invokation of a stored procedure or user defined function in a specified interpreted language, such as Java. The invocation means is adapted to: load an interpreter for the specified language if the server is not already loaded, and setup an interprocess communication between the interpreter and the data the database server. The invocation means is adapted to return an error message to an application calling for invocation of the stored procedure or user defined function, without otherwise impeding operation of the database server.

Abstract: When a desired field frame is specified on an area of a display in which pages connected in series are displayed in their compressed form, the data in the specified field frame is displayed in a document image display section. When the specified field frame is moved with the use of a previous-page button, a next-page button, a forward-slide button, or a backward-slide button, the data in the moved field frame is displayed in the document image display section. The information concerning the movement of the field frame is transferred to other terminals so that on the white boards of the other terminals, the same processing is performed.

Abstract: Method and means for porting an existing application (An) using a relational-database with SQL interface toward a hardware platform (HW2) with a reduced software configuration which does not include an SQL relational-database. The invention emulates an SQL database enabling hardware resources saving and providing a subset of functions for: creating SQL tables and defining fields; storing, modifying and deleting data on created tables, with a type check, retrieving such data by using SQL filters. Functions can be subdivided into levels (M1, M2, M3) in order to: convert an SQL statement, coming from an existing user application (An), into a sequence of elementary interface functions (IF1 . . . IFn), use said interface functions to read/write data files (F1 . . . Fn), process output data to be supplied to the requesting user application (An).

Abstract: In a wireless input transmission device, data is entered by input means such as pointing device, the value of the data is checked when transmitting the data, and when the data value is small and does not require the specified number of bits, the number of bits is decrease to one half or one quarter, or the difference from the previous time is transmitted, or the data is omitted if the present data is same as the previous data, and such information is given to the data quantity information bit, and data to be transmitted, data quantity information bit, and necessary data for transmission are added, and the transmission data is composed by decreasing the data quantity in one-input information depending on the data value and transmitted to the wireless receiver, where the transmission data is decoded according to the data quantity information bit and the received result is sent by wire to the main apparatus such as personal computer, word processor, other information processing apparatus, or household game machi