Object property lists
US5946696A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 31, 1996 |
| Grant date | Aug 31, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 31, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99948
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A property arithmetic system is provided that can isolate modifications made to one object and apply the modifications to another object. Such isolation and application of modifications are referred to as property arithmetic. The term "arithmetic" is used as an analogy between computations performed on properties of an object and computations performed on numbers. Using this arithmetic, a user's modifications to the properties of an object can be easily isolated by subtracting the original property values from the modified property values. Once isolated, the modifications can be applied to a different object so that the user does not have to manually recreate their modifications. In the property arithmetic system, properties of an object are stored in a property list. The property list not only contains properties, but can also contain other property lists, which provides flexibility in their use. Furthermore, the property list is stored in a contiguous block of memory. Storing the properties in this manner is advantageous when copying a property list, since the copy typically can be accomplished by a single command, whereas if the property list were stored in noncontiguous areas o…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.