Bitstream format

Abstract: This specification defines a lossless compressed data format that is compatible with the widely used GZIP utility. The format includes a cyclic redundancy check value for detecting data corruption. The format presently uses the DEFLATE method of compression but can be easily extended to use other compression methods. The format can be implemented readily in a manner not covered by patents.

Abstract: A network providing a server using an object-database enables an author to create and store an original document, as a source file with a first format. Software in the data base will provide multiple sets of shadow file-converter groups connected to the source file of the original document. Each shadow file-converter set enables the transformation of the original source file format into a particular other specific type of format. Any client or user of the network can access and receive a copy of the original source document which is automatically reformatted to match the requirements of the receiver's appliance. Thus, one original source document can be created and then published in any specific format to multiple numbers of and type of receiving appliances.

Abstract: This specification defines a lossless compressed data format. The data can be produced or consumed, even for an arbitrarily long sequentially presented input data stream, using only an a priori bounded amount of intermediate storage. The format presently uses the DEFLATE compression method but can be easily extended to use other compression methods. It can be implemented readily in a manner not covered by patents. This specification also defines the ADLER-32 checksum (an extension and improvement of the Fletcher checksum), used for detection of data corruption, and provides an algorithm for computing it.

Abstract: A computer (101) implemented method (300) of converting a document in an input format (304) to a document in a different output format is disclosed. The method generally comprises locating data in the input document, grouping data into one or more intermediate format blocks in an intermediate format document (402), and converting the intermediate format document to the output format (404) document using the intermediate format blocks (518). Each intermediate format block may be paragraph, a line, a word, a table, or an image. The input document may be received over a network and the output document is sent over the network. A linked table of contents and/or an index may be generated. A computer executable program may be generated and inserted into the output document for selecting one output format for displayed (534). The output document may be displayed by locating sub-page breaks in the document, subdividing the document into sub-pages using the sub-pages breaks, locating blocks within each sub-page, and sequentially displaying all or a portion of each block of the sub pages within display parameters of a display configuration. Tables may be divided to be displayed in more than one display page. The converter (532) may be incorporated in a computer program product for maintaining a repository of input documents in one or more storage formats.