Null-terminated string

Abstract: An input device (12) receives a natural language or conversational statement in the form of a character string (1). A processor (14) performs a natural language analysis (2) to convert the input natural language into a command language instruction for a computer program. A morphological analysis (3) compares words of the input character string with contents of a dictionary (10) to convert the input words into preselected words indicated by the dictionary which are output as another character string. In a semantic or syntax analysis (4; FIG. 9), one of the inputted and another character strings are analyzed to generate a corresponding chained functions structure (FIGS. 2, 3). From knowledge (FIG. 5, 7) described by the plurality of chained function structures and from rules stored in knowledge memory (11), a new character string is generated. If the new character string is in command language, the command is executed (7). If the new character string is not in command language, it is reanalyzed (8, 9) to generate yet another character string. In this manner, instructions can be input by a user in any of a multiplicity of national languages in conversational format and converted into appropriate command instructions for an executed computer program.

Abstract: Various character strings are repeatedly displayed on a graphics display. For example, strings such as "file", "edit", "view" and "help" are commonly displayed on nearly every screen. This redundancy of displayed character strings is exploited using a string cache and string caching method. A string cache stores a database of strings along with the rendered forms of the strings. The string cache stores the strings in a rendered form which for particular character strings and attributes and characteristics of the strings. The string cache is stored and accessed local to a graphics accelerator so that a single string request across a system bus activates the display of the entire string, including a display of the selected attributes and characteristics.

Abstract: These systems and methods provide text displays, such as basic input/output system (“BIOS”) text displays, that are represented by character strings in string definition files. In order to convert character strings into multiple languages, destination languages are either user selected or predetermined based on the display specifications. Next, the character strings are extracted from the string definition files in a source language into intermediate text files. Each intermediate text file represents a destination language. The source language character strings are then converted to the destination language of each intermediate text file. The converted character strings are then inserted from the intermediate text files into the string definition files from which the character strings in the source language were extracted. A file identifier of each string definition file from which the character strings were extracted is also stored in the intermediate text files. When the converted character strings are inserted into the string definition files, the file identifiers are utilized to locate the string definition files from which the character strings in the source language were extracted.

Abstract: A shorter and a longer text string may be compared. Instead of simply comparing the characters only one character at a time, more than one character can be compared at a time. In addition, a null terminated string may be detected. The shorter strings may be handled differently than longer strings.