An engine for generating XSLT from examples

XSLT is a powerful and widely used language for transforming XML documents. However its power and complexity can be overwhelming for novice or infrequent users, many of which simply give up on using this language. On the other hand, many XSLT programs of practical use are simple enough to be automatically inferred from examples of source and target documents. An inferred XSLT program is seldom adequate for production usage but can be used as a skeleton of the final program, or at least as scaffolding in the process of coding it. It should be noted that the authors do not claim that XSLT programs, in general, can be inferred from examples. The aim of Vishnu - the XSLT generator engine described in this paper – is to produce XSLT programs for processing documents similar to the given examples and with enough readability to be easily understood by a programmer not familiar with the language. The architecture of Vishnu is composed by a graphical editor and a programming engine. In this paper we focus on the editor as a GWT web application where the programmer loads and edits document examples and pairs their content using graphical primitives. The programming engine receives the data collected by the editor and produces an XSLT program

Presentation of XML content using WYSIWYG templates

XML has gained worldwide popularity for its ability to represent very general structured content. It is a platform independent format that has been successfully used for both media and more traditional textual data. However, the presentation of XML content has been an area of research ever since its introduction. We discuss the state of the art in XML content presentation, and then describe a new method for user designed transformation using WYSIWYG templates in HTML, that will allow users to design their own XML presentation format

ScoreSVG: A New Software Framework for Capturing the Semantic Meaning and Graphical Representation of Musical Scores Using JAVA2D, XML, and SVG

ScoreSVG implements a three-tiered software architecture that generates musical scores in scalable vector graphics (SVG), something no other known music editor has done. SVG is non-proprietary XML-based format that renders graphical content into a web browser equipped with a SVG plugin. Scores in SVG can be scripted to produce interactive music theory examples, or make other graphical score changes impossible in any other format. Large music score editors such as Finale and Sibelius output to proprietary file formats, or Postscript (.ps) files that are not interchangeable or modifiable once created. Open source efforts such as LilyPond or Guido require the user to learn a new text-based music format to get a PostScript music score. ScoreSVG converts the data from a user-friendly visual front end to GuidoXML, capturing the semantic meaning of the score, and then outputs the result in SVG using an XSL stylesheet and the Saxon 8.4 XSLT processor

Optimised editing of variable data documents via partial re-evaluation

With the advent of digital printing presses and the continued development of associated technologies, variable data printing (VDP) is becoming more and more common. VDP allows for a series of data instances to be bound to a single template document in order to produce a set of result document instances, each customized depending upon the data provided. As it gradually enters the mainstream of digital publishing there is a need for appropriate and powerful editing tools suitable for use by creative professionals. This thesis investigates the problem of representing variable data documents in an editable visual form, and focuses on the technical issues involved with supporting such an editing model. Using a document processing model where the document is produced from a data set and an appropriate programmatic transform, this thesis considers an interactive editor developed to allow visual manipulation of the result documents. It shows how the speed of the reprocessing necessary in such an interactive editing scenario can be increased by selectively re-evaluating only the required parts of the transformation, including how these pieces of the transformation can be identified and subsequently re-executed. The techniques described are demonstrated using a simplified document processing model that closely resembles variable data document frameworks. A workable editor is also presented that builds on this processing model and illustrates its advantages. Finally, an analysis of the performance of the proposed framework is undertaken including a comparison to a standard processing pipeline

Optimised editing of variable data documents via partial re-evaluation

With the advent of digital printing presses and the continued development of associated technologies, variable data printing (VDP) is becoming more and more common. VDP allows for a series of data instances to be bound to a single template document in order to produce a set of result document instances, each customized depending upon the data provided. As it gradually enters the mainstream of digital publishing there is a need for appropriate and powerful editing tools suitable for use by creative professionals. This thesis investigates the problem of representing variable data documents in an editable visual form, and focuses on the technical issues involved with supporting such an editing model. Using a document processing model where the document is produced from a data set and an appropriate programmatic transform, this thesis considers an interactive editor developed to allow visual manipulation of the result documents. It shows how the speed of the reprocessing necessary in such an interactive editing scenario can be increased by selectively re-evaluating only the required parts of the transformation, including how these pieces of the transformation can be identified and subsequently re-executed. The techniques described are demonstrated using a simplified document processing model that closely resembles variable data document frameworks. A workable editor is also presented that builds on this processing model and illustrates its advantages. Finally, an analysis of the performance of the proposed framework is undertaken including a comparison to a standard processing pipeline

Document Automation Architectures: Updated Survey in Light of Large Language Models

This paper surveys the current state of the art in document automation (DA). The objective of DA is to reduce the manual effort during the generation of documents by automatically creating and integrating input from different sources and assembling documents conforming to defined templates. There have been reviews of commercial solutions of DA, particularly in the legal domain, but to date there has been no comprehensive review of the academic research on DA architectures and technologies. The current survey of DA reviews the academic literature and provides a clearer definition and characterization of DA and its features, identifies state-of-the-art DA architectures and technologies in academic research, and provides ideas that can lead to new research opportunities within the DA field in light of recent advances in generative AI and large language models.Comment: The current paper is the updated version of an earlier survey on document automation [Ahmadi Achachlouei et al. 2021]. Updates in the current paper are as follows: We shortened almost all sections to reduce the size of the main paper (without references) from 28 pages to 10 pages, added a review of selected papers on large language models, removed certain sections and most of diagrams. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:2109.1160

The usability of software for authoring and editing

This research investigates some of the reasons for the reported difficulties experienced by writers when using editing software designed for structured documents. The overall objective was to determine if there are aspects of the software interfaces which militate against optimal document construction by writers who are not computer experts, and to suggest possible remedies. Studies were undertaken to explore the nature and extent of the difficulties, and to identify which components of the software interfaces are involved. A model of a revised user interface was tested, and some possible adaptations to the interface are proposed which may help overcome the difficulties. The methodology comprised: 1. identification and description of the nature of a ‘structured document’ and what distinguishes it from other types of document used on computers; 2. isolation of the requirements of users of such documents, and the construction a set of personas which describe them; 3. evaluation of other work on the interaction between humans and computers, specifically in software for creating and editing structured documents; 4. estimation of the levels of adoption of the available software for editing structured documents and the reactions of existing users to it, with specific reference to difficulties encountered in using it; 5. examination of the software and identification of any mismatches between the expectations of users and the facilities provided by the software; 6. assessment of any physical or psychological factors in the reported difficulties experienced, and to determine what (if any) changes to the software might affect these. The conclusions are that seven of the twelve modifications tested could contribute to an improvement in usability, effectiveness, and efficiency when writing structured text (new document selection; adding new sections and new lists; identifying key information typographically; the creation of cross-references and bibliographic references; and the inclusion of parts of other documents). The remaining five were seen as more applicable to editing existing material than authoring new text (adding new elements; splitting and joining elements [before and after]; and moving block text)

The Alternative Way of Creating Infographics Using SVG Technology

The article develops new ways of creating and using interactive SVG infographics. The emphasis lies on the compatibility of SVG standard with other web standards, like XML, XSL, CSS, SMIL and ECMAScript, the advantages that it brings are particularly explored. There is a XSLT template developed which transforms XML data into SVG infographic, and the way of achieving complete control over data and data visualization is tested. This enabled the achieving of dynamic control of content and its presentation, and contributed to the results in reduced developing cost and time, better flexibility and reliability of the organizational system. The paper also studied the possibility to convey infographic message by adding interactivity, and explored technologies by means of which this can be achieved. The aspects of establishing a more efficient communication with end users, such as searchability and accessibility are also considered. SVG infographics are compared with other approaches for creating infographics in raster and vector techniques

Web and Semantic Web Query Languages

A number of techniques have been developed to facilitate powerful data retrieval on the Web and Semantic Web. Three categories of Web query languages can be distinguished, according to the format of the data they can retrieve: XML, RDF and Topic Maps. This article introduces the spectrum of languages falling into these categories and summarises their salient aspects. The languages are introduced using common sample data and query types. Key aspects of the query languages considered are stressed in a conclusion

Mukautuvat XML-pohjaiset multimediapalvelut

The emergence of mobile computing requires new kinds of technologies for building services. HTML has been traditionally used to describe documents on the Internet, but it can no longer fulfil these new demands. New mobile devices are compact and limited in respect of processing power, screen size and navigation. Content has to be separated from the layout for the services to be accessible from various computing environments and devices. Web standards are already moving towards XML technology. The flexibility of these new XML-related standards makes it possible to create new kind of platform independent services. However, some of the standards are relatively new and haven't really been tested in practice, not to mention how well they work together. An interactive multimedia service was built to demonstrate some of the new standards. This demonstration service features XML, XSL, ECMAScript and XForms standards. Evaluation of the service showed that all the used standards work smoothly together. Adaptive multimedia services can be created using these technologies. However, the downside at the moment is the lack of proper tools. Especially XSL FO and XForms are very complicated and require a lot of studying. Before powerful and easy-to-use tools are available, developing services can be quite troublesome.Langattoman viestinnän yleistyminen vaatii uudenlaisia tekniikoita palvelujen rakentamiseen. HTML:ää on perinteisesti käytetty dokumenttien kuvauskielenä internetissä, mutta se ei enää pysty tyydyttämään uudenlaisia vaatimuksia. Uudet langattomat päätelaitteet ovat pienikokoisia ja niillä on rajallisesti prosessointitehoa sekä tavallisesta työasemasta poikkeavia navigointitapoja. Sisältö ja ulkoasu täytyy pystyä erottamaan toisistaan, jotta palveluja voitaisiin käyttää erilaisissa laiteympäristöissä. WWW-standardit ovat jo nyt siirtymässä kohti XML-yhteensopivia tekniikoita, mahdollistaa uudentyyppisten laiteriippumattomien palvelujen rakentamisen. Jotkut näistä standardeista ovat kuitenkin varsin tuoreita eikä niitä ole käytännössä. Niiden yhteensopivuudestakaan ei ole vielä paljon kokemuksia. Uusien tekniikoiden arvioimiseksi rakennettiin interaktiivinen multimediapalvelu, jossa on käytetty XML, XSL, ECMAScript ja XForms standardeja. Palvelun arviointi näytti, että käytetyt tekniikat toimivat hyvin yhdessä. Näitä tekniikoita käyttämällä voidaan rakentaa mukautuvia multimediapalveluja. Huonoksi puoleksi havaittiin se, että sopivia työkaluja ei vielä ole. Erityisesti XSL FO ja XForms ovat varsin monimutkaisia ja vaativat paljon perehtymistä. Palvelujen rakentaminen voi olla melko työlästä ennen kuin tehokkaita ja helppokäyttöisiä työkaluja on saatavilla