Abstract: An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports programming in an event-driven paradigm while the execution of the resultant programs are executed in a serial execution paradigm. Through shielding the developer from complex scripting segments, the environment provides the developer with the suggestion that that resultant execution model is event-driven.

Abstract: A server-side control object processes and generates a client-side user interface element for display on a web page. Multiple server-side control objects may be combined into a hierarchy of server-side control objects that cooperate to generate the resulting authoring language code, such as HTML, for display of a web page on a client. The operation of processing the client-side user interface element may include at least one of an event handling operation, a postback data handling operation, a data binding operation, and a state management operation. The state management operation relates to the state of a server-side control object.

Abstract: An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports the perception that the server space and client space are seamlessly joined into a single program execution space. An outgrowth of the single execution space includes effective event handing on the server through enabling created objects to migrate effectively between the server and client.

Abstract: The state of one or more server-side control objects is managed using a transportable state structure that is communicated between a web server and a client. The transportable state structure may include state information, hierarchical information, and an integrity code. The state information is related to properties of the server-side control objects. The hierarchical information is used by the server to locate an appropriate server-side control object in the hierarchy into which associated state information is to be loaded. The integrity code allows the server to determine whether the transportable state structure was corrupted during the round-trip between the server and the client. Prior to a response to the client, the state information of one or more server-side control objects is recorded into the transportable state structure for transmission to the client in the response.

Abstract: A network site often provides multiple offerings, each having their own context. The complete context for one of the offerings is stored. That complete context represents a root node in a hierarchical tree of context nodes, each node representing the context information for one or more of the offerings. Each node in the tree includes a reference to its parent node, and then a description of incremental changes to the context information as compared to the context information from the parent node. Accordingly, the context information for a particular node in the tree may be obtained by combining the complete context for the root node offering with incremental changes described in other nodes in the ancestral chain that leads from the particular offering to the root offering.

Abstract: Server-side control objects corresponding to client-side user interface elements are created in a control object hierarchy. Properties of the control objects may be data bound to properties of a server-side data source (e.g., a server-side database). Hierarchical data binding relationships are established between properties of control objects and properties of a data source. Template declarations are used to define the configuration of binding container objects that correspond to data objects in the data source. An iterating control object determines the number of data objects in the data source increase according number of binding container objects. A simple data binding types include without limitation: (1) unidirectional data binding from the data source to a control object; (2) unidirectional data binding from a control object to the data source; and (3) bidirectional data binding between a control object and the data source.

Abstract: The state of one or more server-side control objects is managed using a transportable state structure that is communicated between a web server and a client. The transportable state structure may include state information, hierarchical information, and an integrity code. The state information is related to properties of the server-side control objects. The hierarchical information is used by the server to locate an appropriate server-side control object in the hierarchy into which associated state information is to be loaded. The integrity code allows the server to determine whether the transportable state structure was corrupted during the round-trip between the server and the client. Prior to a response to the client, the state information of one or more server-side control objects is recorded into the transportable state structure for transmission to the client in the response.

Abstract: An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports programming in an event-driven paradigm while the execution of the resultant programs are executed in a serial execution paradigm. Through shielding the developer from complex scripting segments, the environment provides the developer with the suggestion that that resultant execution model is event-driven. By treating scripts as later-definable objects, the designing phase of a page may be lessened, as the appropriate codings needed to implement a page are determined at a later date. In one example, the codings may be preliminary set as server side or client side, with the environment later adding the appropriate scripting language to complete the developed page.

Abstract: An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports programming in an event-driven paradigm while the execution of the resultant programs are executed in a serial execution paradigm. Through shielding the developer from complex scripting segments, the environment provides the developer with the suggestion that that resultant execution model is event-driven. By treating scripts as later-definable objects, the designing phase of a page may be lessened, as the appropriate codings needed to implement a page are determined at a later date. In one example, the codings may be preliminary set as server side or client side, with the environment later adding the appropriate scripting language to complete the developed page.

Abstract: An application program interface (API) provides a set of functions for application developers who build Web applications on Microsoft Corporation's .NET™ platform.

Abstract: An authoring environment for producing content for an on-line system is described. This environment includes a story editor which can save files in a Multimedia Document Format (MDF) file. A MDF file is an OLE storage wherein one storage object holds text of the content in a Multimedia Publishing Markup Language. Other parts of the MDF file include storages for holding content search terms and storages for embedded objects.

Abstract: Methods and systems for providing a virtual network are disclosed. At least one layer of abstraction is created between network service applications and conventional network protocols by inserting an adaptive dispatcher between applications and network transport services on each machine in a network. The message protocol in the virtual network is extensible, allowing application programs to create new headers within any message as needed. The adaptive dispatcher contains handlers that route and dispatch messages within the virtual network based on arbitrary content within each message, including any combination of headers and/or data content. Each device on the virtual network has a virtual address to which messages are directed, allowing devices to move within the network without reconfiguring routing tables.

Abstract: The present invention generates graphical user interface (GUI) components with GUI regions on a GUI display using web technology such that the GUI components are substantially independent of the host application. The host application defines a respective size and a respective location for each GUI region on the GUI display. The host application also instantiates a corresponding web browser for each GUI region. Each corresponding browser retrieves and executes an associated web page that defines the appearance and/or the functionality of a GUI region. The web page is written in a standard high-level language such as hypertext markup language such that the appearance and functionality of the GUI regions may be easy to create and modify. Because the web page defining a GUI region can be located anywhere on the world wide web, the functionality of the GUI regions is extensible beyond the capabilities of the host terminal running the host application.

Abstract: A distributed security system is provided. The distributed security system uses a security policy that is written in a policy language that is transport and security protocol independent as well as independent of cryptographic technologies. This security policy can be expressed using the language to create different security components allowing for greater scalability and flexibility. By abstracting underlying protocols and technologies, multiple environments and platforms can be supported.

Abstract: The present invention generates graphical user interface (GUI) components with GUI regions on a GUI display using web technology such that the GUI components are substantially independent of the host application. The host application defines a respective size and a respective location for each GUI region on the GUI display. The host application also instantiates a corresponding web browser for each GUI region. Each corresponding browser retrieves and executes an associated web page that defines the appearance and/or the functionality of a GUI region. The web page is written in a standard high-level language such as hypertext markup language such that the appearance and functionality of the GUI regions may be easy to create and modify. Because the web page defining a GUI region can be located anywhere on the world wide web, the functionality of the GUI regions is extensible beyond the capabilities of the host terminal running the host application.

Abstract: An environment for developing clientside/serverside code is disclosed. The environment supports programming in an event-driven paradigm while the execution of the resultant programs are executed in a serial execution paradigm. Through shielding the developer from complex scripting segments, the environment provides the developer with the suggestion that that resultant execution model is event-driven. By treating scripts as later-definable objects, the designing phase of a page may be lessened, as the appropriate codings needed to implement a page are determined at a later date. In one example, the codings may be preliminary set as server side or client side, with the environment later adding the appropriate scripting language to complete the developed page.

Abstract: An authoring environment for producing content for an on-line system is described. This environment includes a story editor which can save files in a Multimedia Document Format (MDF) file. A MDF file is an OLE storage wherein one storage object holds text of the content in a Multimedia Publishing Markup Language. Other parts of the MDF file include storages for holding content search terms and storages for embedded objects.

Abstract: A multimedia publishing system where the format and content can be separated and uploaded to a server by a publisher. Usually, the format used by publishers remains reasonably constant over time, contrasted with the content which changes on a regular basis. As content changes on a regular basis, the publisher uploads only the new content to the server. When clients or customers access the server's content, the server downloads the format and content to the user's computer. Subsequent downloads of content transmits only the content since the format is cached on the customer's computer after the first download. If the publisher desires to change the format at a subsequent time, the next download of content by the customer downloads both the new layout format and the new content. This publication scheme minimizes the transmission of data in bandwidth limited environments.

Abstract: One of the controls on a page can call an information map at the time that the page which contains the control is being rendered. The information map interface provides access to the structure of both the title and the content within the title. The control can then display this structural information in any form it desires since it renders itself on the page at the customer computer. Navigation through the title is based on the customer's interactions with the information map control, i.e., clicking on a navigation link causes the title to navigate to that location. The information map determines which piece of the title and content structure to show, and the visual form in which it is shown. Information maps may have other applications including the efficient creation and modification of timelines and geographic maps in multimedia encyclopedias (e.g., Microsoft Encarta), as well as virtual reality programs.

Abstract: The use of style sheets in an electronic publishing system is described. A style sheet is a collection of formatting information, such as font and tabs in a textual document. The style sheets described herein are applied to individual display regions (controls) on a page. Unlike previous systems, the display regions in this system do not contain any text at the time the style sheet is applied. Rather, the text, or other media such as graphics, is poured into the display region when the title is rendered on the customer's computer.