JP2002244914A - Client, document management system, and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a client and a document management system capable of writing related document together when writing specified document in a data storage medium of the client to avoid a lack of the information related to the related document. SOLUTION: When a user specifies desired document 'A' stored in a server and writes it in the data storage medium of the client, files of the related documents 'B', 'C' whose relating in the parentage relation is specified are acquired together, the files are put in a folder of the related document together and stored in the data storage medium together with the preceding document file 'A' so that there is no lack of the information related to the related documents 'B', 'C' and the related documents 'B', 'C' can be referred to simply as required when referring to the document file 'A'.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a server-client type document management system, a client used in the system, and a computer-readable storage medium storing a program.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a document management system, a system in which a large number of documents are stored in a database and a user can associate documents stored in the database as related documents has been put to practical use. For example,
Ricoh's integrated document management system LIFISA
According to (Refisa) (registered trademark), a related document management function is added.

[0003] Briefly referring to FIG. 25, for example, when a document "A" is stored in a database of a server, as a related document of the document "A",
The user associates another document “D” stored in the database in a parent-child relationship. Document "A" in this case
Documents “D” are referred to as related documents, and document “A” is document “D”.
The document “D” is referred to as “child document” of the document “A”. In this case, in the database, the document "A"
Has link information that the document “D” is a child document as one of the document additional information, and conversely, the document “D” has link information that the document “A” is the parent document as one of the document additional information. Have been saved.

[0004] In a server-client type document management system, since the entity of document information (actual data) is stored in a server, a browsing application is installed in a client connected via a communication network. If so, the actual data of the document information can be browsed from anywhere.

[0005]

In such a document management system, a document stored in a database of a server is stored in a hard disk (HDD) of a client or an
When writing and saving to a medium (storage medium) such as D or MO, an OS (operation system)
The actual data of the designated document is stored in the medium in a file format which is the minimum unit of the file system. At this time, only the actual data of the designated document is written to the medium.

Therefore, when a document is written out to a client machine, information relating to a related document is destroyed. That is, the information about the related document is lacking, which is inconvenient. Therefore, when necessary, it is necessary for the user to manually search for related documents from the database, and to write out and save these related documents to a medium, which is troublesome.

Further, if all the documents to be written to the medium are real data, the amount of data to be processed is large, it takes time to download the data, and the process of acquiring the data (real data) improves the performance. It becomes a neck on the top. This is the same even when the server and the client are the same machine (one machine functions as the server and the client) in terms of format. In addition, when writing to a removable medium such as an FD or MO, there is a problem that if all documents are real data files, the data amount is too large and the number of documents that can be written is small. That is, if the data is written out in the actual data file, the data is on the client side, and thereafter, there is no need to obtain the actual data from the server side.
Although the response of the operation is improved, the actual data itself may not always be necessary. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize the operation response and the amount of data to be handled.

[0008] Such a situation is the same not only in the case of, for example, related documents, but also in general, for example, in the case of referring to a desired document itself stored in a database. In some cases, this is not required in the file format, but in other cases it is required in the actual data file format, and it is necessary to optimize the operation response and the amount of data to be handled.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a client, a document management system, and a storage medium that can optimize the response of an operation and the amount of data to be handled.

More specifically, according to the present invention, when a designated document is written to a data storage medium of a client, a related document can also be written at the same time, and a client which can avoid lack of information related to the related document. It is an object to provide a document management system and a storage medium.

In order to achieve the above object, there is provided a client, a document management system, and a storage medium in which the contents of related documents are easy to understand and refer to.

In order to achieve the above object, a client, a document management system, and a storage medium that can refer to an actual data file related to a related document without accessing the server side and improve the response of the operation related to the reference to the related document. I will provide a.

[0013] In order to achieve the above object, even when the number of related documents and the amount of data are large, the time required for the client to download the data to the data storage medium and the data capacity occupied by the data storage medium can be reduced. Provided are a client, a document management system, and a storage medium, which improve the operation response of acquiring a related document through a client.

Furthermore, in order to achieve the above object, there is provided a client, a document management system, and a storage medium which can optimize an operation response and an amount of data to be handled according to a user's need.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, there is provided a client, a document management system, and a storage medium capable of optimizing an operation response and an amount of data to be handled in accordance with an actual document reference situation.

Further, in order to realize the above object, a client capable of automatically optimizing the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled according to the actual reference frequency of the document,
A document management system and a storage medium are provided.

Further, the present invention uses a shortcut file having information on a method of accessing a link destination and having a data amount generally smaller than the data amount of the actual data file, and handles the response as an operation response. Provided are a client, a document management system, and a storage medium that can optimize a data amount.

Further, in order to realize the above-mentioned object, a client and a document management system can further optimize the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled by providing a plurality of pieces of link information in the shortcut file. And a storage medium.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, there is provided a client, a document management system, and a storage medium capable of optimizing the update timing of an actual data file when a plurality of link destinations are provided in a shortcut file. .

[0020]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A server for document management, comprising: means for storing the actual data file of the document; and means for storing the link information of the stored documents as related documents in which the documents specified by the user in a parent-child relationship are related documents. A document acquisition unit that is connected and has a browsing application installed, causes the server to designate a desired document, acquires the document file, and saves the document file in a data storage medium, and designation of the document Related document acquisition means for requesting the server to create a list of related documents and acquiring files of related documents included in the list, and collecting the acquired related document files into a folder together with the document files. Related document storage means for storing the data in a data storage medium.

Therefore, when the user designates a desired document stored in the server and writes the designated document on the data storage medium of the client, the user also acquires a file of the related document specified as an association in a parent-child relationship. Since the files are collected in a folder and stored in the data storage medium together with the preceding document file, there is no lack of information on the related document, and the related document can be easily referred to as necessary when referring to the document file. it can.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the first aspect, the list of the related documents acquired by the related document acquiring means includes a parent document and a child document collectively. The related document storage means collectively stores the documents in the same folder.

Accordingly, since the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related documents, the management of the related documents becomes easy.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the first aspect, the list of related documents acquired by the related document acquiring means includes a list of parent documents and a list of child documents separately. The related document storage means separates and stores the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder.

Therefore, the related document is separated into a parent document and a child document and stored in the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder. Since the distinction can be easily made, the contents can be easily grasped and referenced.

The invention described in claim 4 is the first to third aspects of the present invention.
In the client according to any one of the above, the file of the related document stored in the data storage medium is an actual data file.

Therefore, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a real data file, the client can refer to the real data file of the related document without accessing the server. The operation response of the reference operation is improved.

The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to claims 1 to 3
Wherein the related document acquisition means requests the server to create a shortcut file having link destination information to a real data file of the related document, and acquires the shortcut file. The file of the related document stored in the data storage medium is a shortcut file.

Therefore, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file, the amount of data required for downloading the information related to the related document from the server side is smaller than that in the case of the actual data file. Can be improved, and the data amount of the related document in the data storage medium can be reduced. If you need to access the actual data files of related documents, a browsing application is installed.
It can be secured by accessing the server through a shortcut file.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the fifth aspect, when the real data file of the relevant document in the server is referred to by the shortcut file, the relevant document is replaced with the real data file. There is provided a replacement processing means for storing the shortcut file in the storage medium and deleting the shortcut file.

Therefore, at first, the data amount is reduced by storing the data in a data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file. However, when the actual data file of the related document is actually referred to through the shortcut file, the data amount is reduced. By replacing the data in the storage medium with the actual data file and deleting the shortcut file, the client can refer to the actual data file of the related document without accessing the server side. The operation response is improved.

[0032] The invention of claim 7 is the first to third aspects of the present invention.
In the client according to any one of the above, the related document acquisition means has a selection means for arbitrarily selecting any of a real data file and a shortcut file for the related document to be acquired, and the file selected by the selection means A related document is obtained in a format, and the related document storage unit stores a file of the related document in the data storage medium according to the obtained file format.

Therefore, at the stage of storing the related document in the data storage medium, the document is stored as the actual data file or the shortcut file according to the file format selected by the user. Thus, the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. Operation response is improved. Conversely, by storing related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, it is possible to reduce the amount of data acquired from the server side, improve the processing speed, and reduce the amount of data used in the data storage medium.

The invention according to claim 8 is the first to third aspects of the present invention.
The client according to any one of the above, wherein the related document obtaining means is configured to select the relevant document in a file format of an actual data file or a shortcut file automatically selected by the server according to a reference frequency of the relevant document. To get.

Therefore, it is basically the same as the case of the seventh aspect of the present invention. In particular, it is determined whether the file format of the actual data file or the shortcut file is to be determined by referring to the relevant document on the server side. Since the selection is automatically made according to the number of times, it is possible to save the user from having to make the selection.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a client connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document and having a browsing application installed therein. Shortcut acquisition means for requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the desired document when designating the desired document, acquiring the shortcut file, and saving the shortcut file in a data storage medium in a file format of the shortcut file And counting means for counting the number of times the actual data file of the document in the server is referred to by the shortcut file, and when the number of times of reference counted by the counting means reaches a predetermined number, the document is stored in the real data file. Replace and shortcut Includes a replacement processing unit is stored in the data storage medium Airu destination is changed to the data storage medium.

Therefore, when a document stored in the server is designated and written to the data storage medium of the client, the document is first written out in the form of a shortcut file having a small amount of data. If the number of times of reference is greater than the number of times, it is determined that the document is frequently used, and the actual data file is stored in the data storage medium of the client. The actual data file of the document can be referenced at high speed through the shortcut file, and the operation response is improved. Since the document that is not frequently used remains the first shortcut file, the data usage of the data storage medium can be reduced.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a client connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document and having a browsing application installed therein. Shortcut acquisition means for requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the desired document when designating the desired document, acquiring the shortcut file, and saving the shortcut file in a data storage medium in a file format of the shortcut file When the actual data file of the document in the server is referred to by the shortcut file, the actual data file of the document is replaced with the data storage medium, and the data storage medium is selectively described as a link destination of the shortcut file. And a replacement processing unit is stored in the data storage medium Te.

Therefore, although basically the same as the invention of the ninth aspect, the invention of the ninth aspect has only one link destination information of the shortcut file. Since the actual data file on the client side and the actual data file on the client side exist independently, 2
There is a possibility that a difference may occur between the two actual data files. However, by providing the server side and the data storage medium as information of the link destination of the shortcut file in a selectable manner, the actual data on the client side is provided. If the file becomes old, it can be dealt with by accessing the server and updating it with a new real data file.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the client according to the tenth aspect, wherein the update date and time management means for managing the update date and time of the actual data file of the document stored in the data storage medium; A comparison unit that compares the update date and time of the actual data file of the document managed by the server with the update date and time managed by the update date and time management unit when referring to the data file; An acquisition destination selection unit for acquiring an actual data file to be referred to according to a result from the server or the data storage medium.

Therefore, in realizing the invention of claim 10, the update date and time of the actual data file is managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and the actual date and time of the update is compared by comparing the newness of the update date and time. Since it is automatically selected whether to acquire the data file, the burden on the user is reduced compared to the case where the real data file on the server side and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger, You can always refer to the latest actual data file.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a document management system in which a server and a client on which a browsing application is installed are connected via a communication network, wherein the server stores an actual data file of the document. And means for saving link information of documents stored in a parent-child relationship specified by the user as related documents, wherein the client designates a desired document to the server. A document acquisition unit for acquiring the document file and storing the document file in a data storage medium, and requesting the server to create a list of related documents in accordance with the specification of the document, and acquiring a file of the related document included in the list. Related document acquiring means, and the acquired related document files And a relevant document storage means for saving the data storage medium with Le.

Therefore, when the user designates a desired document stored in the server and writes it to the data storage medium of the client, the user also obtains a file of a related document specified as an association in a parent-child relationship. Since the files are collected in a folder and stored in the data storage medium together with the preceding document file, there is no lack of information on the related document, and the related document can be easily referred to as necessary when referring to the document file. it can.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to the twelfth aspect, the list of the related documents acquired by the related document acquiring means in the client includes a parent document and a child document collectively. The related document storage means collectively stores the same in the same folder.

Therefore, since the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related document, the management of the related document becomes easy.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to the twelfth aspect, the list of related documents acquired by the related document acquiring means in the client includes a list of parent documents and a list of child documents. And the related document storage means separates and stores the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder.

Therefore, the related document is separated into a parent document and a child document and stored in the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder. Since the distinction can be easily made, the contents can be easily grasped and referenced.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, a file of a related document stored in the data storage medium in the client is an actual data file.

Therefore, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a real data file, the client can refer to the real data file of the related document without accessing the server. The operation response of the reference operation is improved.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, the server creates and outputs a shortcut file of a related document in response to a request for creating a shortcut file. The related document acquiring means in the client requests the server to create a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the related document, and the related document acquiring means creates the related document by the shortcut creating means. A shortcut file is obtained, and a file of a related document to be stored in the data storage medium is a shortcut file.

Therefore, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file, the amount of data required for downloading the information related to the related document from the server side is smaller than in the case of the actual data file. Can be improved, and the data amount of the related document in the data storage medium can be reduced. If you need to access the actual data files of related documents, a browsing application is installed.
It can be secured by accessing the server through a shortcut file.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to the sixteenth aspect, when the client refers to a real data file of the related document in the server by using a shortcut file, the client stores the actual data of the related document. There is provided a replacement processing means for replacing the file with a file, storing the file in the data storage medium, and deleting the shortcut file.

Therefore, at first, the data amount is reduced by saving the data in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file. However, when the actual data file of the related document is actually referred to through the shortcut file, the data is saved. By replacing the data in the storage medium with the actual data file and deleting the shortcut file, the client can refer to the actual data file of the related document without accessing the server side. The operation response is improved.

According to an eighteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, the related document acquiring means in the client is configured to determine whether the related document to be acquired is a real data file and a shortcut file. A selection unit for arbitrarily selecting any one of them; obtaining a related document in a file format selected by the selection unit; and storing the relevant document file in the data storage medium according to the obtained file format. Let me save.

Therefore, at the stage of storing the related document in the data storage medium, the document is stored as the actual data file or the shortcut file according to the file format selected by the user. Thus, the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. Operation response is improved. Conversely, by storing related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, it is possible to reduce the amount of data acquired from the server side, improve the processing speed, and reduce the amount of data used in the data storage medium.

According to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, the server is configured to select one of an actual data file and a shortcut file for a related document in accordance with the reference frequency. There is provided a file format selection means for automatically selecting a file format, and the related document acquisition means in the client acquires the related document in the file format automatically selected by the file format selection means for the related document.

Therefore, it is basically the same as the invention of the eighteenth aspect. In particular, it is determined whether the file format of the actual data file or the shortcut file is to be determined by referring to the relevant document on the server side. Since the selection is automatically made according to the number of times, it is possible to save the user from having to make the selection.

The invention according to claim 20 is a document management system in which a server and a client in which a browsing application is installed are connected, wherein the server comprises:
Means for storing a real data file of the document, and shortcut creation means for creating and outputting a document shortcut file in response to a request for creating a shortcut file, wherein the client sends a desired document to the server. Shortcut acquisition requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document by specifying the shortcut file, acquiring the shortcut file created by the shortcut creation means, and saving the shortcut file in the file format of the shortcut file on the data storage medium Means, a counting means for counting the number of references to the actual data file of the document in the server by the shortcut file, and an actual data file for the document when the number of references counted by the counting means reaches a predetermined number. Put in And a replacement processing unit is stored in the data storage medium to change the link destination of the shortcut file to the data storage medium with changing.

Accordingly, when a document stored in the server is designated and written to the data storage medium of the client, the document is first written out in the form of a shortcut file with a small amount of data. If the number of times of reference is greater than the number of times, it is determined that the document is frequently used, and the actual data file is stored in the data storage medium of the client. The actual data file of the document can be referenced at high speed through the shortcut file, and the operation response is improved. Since the document that is not frequently used remains the first shortcut file, the data usage of the data storage medium can be reduced.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a document management system in which a server and a client on which a browsing application is installed are connected, wherein the server comprises:
Means for storing the actual data file of the document, and shortcut creating means for creating and outputting a shortcut file of the related document in response to a request for creating a shortcut file, wherein the client To request creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document, obtain the shortcut file created by the shortcut creation means, and save the shortcut file in the file format of the shortcut file in the data storage medium Acquiring means for, when the actual data file of the document in the server is referred to by the shortcut file, replacing the actual data file with the data storage medium for the document and linking the shortcut file And a replacement processing unit to store said data storage medium selected freely also shown to the the data storage medium.

Therefore, basically, it is the same as the case of the invention described in claim 20, but in the case of the invention described in claim 20, since there is only one link destination information of the shortcut file, the server Since the actual data file on the client side and the actual data file on the client side exist independently,
There is a possibility that a difference may occur between the two actual data files. However, by providing the two information of the server side and the data storage medium as the link destination information of the shortcut file in a selectable manner, the actual information on the client side can be obtained. If the data file becomes old, it can be dealt with by accessing the server and updating it with a new real data file.

According to a twenty-second aspect of the present invention, in the document management system according to the twenty-first aspect, the server includes server-side update date / time management means for managing the update date / time of the actual data file of the stored document, and the client includes: A client-side update date / time management unit that manages the update date / time of the actual data file of the document stored in the data storage medium; and the server-side update date / time management in the server when the actual data file of the document is referenced by a shortcut file. Comparing means for comparing the update date and time of the actual data file of the document managed by the means with the update date and time managed by the client-side update date and time management means, and referring to the result of comparison by the comparison means. Acquisition destination selection for acquiring an actual data file from the server or the data storage medium And means, the.

Therefore, in realizing the invention of claim 21, the update date and time of the actual data file is managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and the actual date and time of the update is compared by comparing the newness of the update date and time. Since it is automatically selected whether to acquire the data file, the burden on the user is reduced compared to the case where the real data file on the server side and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger, You can always refer to the latest actual data file.

According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer readable storage medium for storing means for storing a real data file of a document, and for associating documents which are specified by a user in a parent-child relationship with the stored document. Connected via a communication network to a server for document management comprising means for storing the link information as a document, and installed on a computer for a client in which a browsing application is installed, and on this computer, A document acquisition function of causing the user to designate a desired document to acquire the document file and save the acquired document file in a data storage medium, and requesting the server to create a list of related documents in accordance with the designation of the document and including the list in the list. Related document acquisition function to acquire related document files Program for executing the associated document storage function to store in the data storage medium together with the document file together writing files in the folder, the are stored.

Therefore, when the user designates a desired document stored in the server and writes the designated document to the data storage medium of the client, the user also acquires a file of the related document specified as an association in a parent-child relationship. Since the files are collected in a folder and stored in the data storage medium together with the preceding document file, there is no lack of information on the related document, and the related document can be easily referred to as necessary when referring to the document file. it can.

According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to the twenty-third aspect, the list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition function includes a parent document and a child document. And the related document storage function collectively stores them in the same folder.

Therefore, since the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related document, the management of the related document becomes easy.

According to a twenty-fifth aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to the twenty-third aspect, the list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition function includes a list of parent documents and a list of parent documents. The list of child documents is separated and included, and the related document storage function separates and stores the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder.

Therefore, the related document is separated into the parent document and the child document and stored in the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder. Since the distinction can be easily made, the contents can be easily grasped and referenced.

According to a twenty-sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to any one of the twenty-third to twenty-fifth aspects, wherein the related document storage function stores the related document in the data storage medium. Is the actual data file.

Accordingly, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a real data file, the client can refer to the real data file of the related document without accessing the server. The operation response of the reference operation is improved.

According to a twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to any one of the twenty-third to twenty-fifth aspects, the related document acquiring function is configured to provide the server with a related document A request is made to create a shortcut file having link destination information to an actual data file, and the shortcut file is acquired. A related document file to be stored in the data storage medium by the related document storage function is a shortcut file.

Accordingly, since the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file, the amount of data required for downloading the information related to the related document from the server side is smaller than in the case of the actual data file. Can be improved, and the data amount of the related document in the data storage medium can be reduced. If you need to access the actual data files of related documents, a browsing application is installed.
It can be secured by accessing the server through a shortcut file.

According to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to the twenty-seventh aspect, wherein a shortcut file refers to an actual data file of the relevant document in the server. It has a replacement processing function of replacing a document with an actual data file, storing the document in the data storage medium, and deleting the shortcut file.

Therefore, at first, the data amount is reduced by storing the data in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file. However, when the actual data file of the related document is actually referred to through the shortcut file, the data amount is reduced. By replacing the data in the storage medium with the actual data file and deleting the shortcut file, the client can refer to the actual data file of the related document without accessing the server side. The operation response is improved.

According to a twenty-ninth aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to any one of the twenty-third to twenty-fifth aspects, the related document acquisition function includes a step of: And a selection function for arbitrarily selecting one of a shortcut file and a related document in a file format selected by the selection function, and the related document storage function stores a file of the related document in accordance with the acquired file format. The data is stored in the data storage medium.

Accordingly, at the stage of storing the related document in the data storage medium, the document is stored as the actual data file or the shortcut file according to the file format selected by the user. Thus, the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. Operation response is improved. Conversely, by storing related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, it is possible to reduce the amount of data acquired from the server side, improve the processing speed, and reduce the amount of data used in the data storage medium.

According to a thirtieth aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to any one of the twenty-third to twenty-fifth aspects, the related document acquisition function is arranged so that the related document obtaining function is performed according to the reference frequency of the related document. Then, the relevant document is acquired in the file format of either the actual data file or the shortcut file automatically selected by the server.

Therefore, it is basically the same as the case of the twenty-ninth aspect of the present invention. In particular, it is determined whether the file format of the actual data file or the shortcut file is to be referred to on the server side by referring to the relevant document. Since the selection is automatically made according to the number of times, it is possible to save the user from having to make the selection.

A computer-readable storage medium according to the present invention is connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document, and
Installed on a client computer on which the browsing application is installed, requesting the computer to specify a desired document to the server and create a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document A shortcut acquisition function for acquiring the shortcut file and storing it in the data storage medium in the file format of the shortcut file; a counting function for counting the number of times the shortcut file refers to the actual data file of the document in the server; When the number of references counted by the function reaches a predetermined number, the document is replaced with an actual data file, and the link destination of the shortcut file is changed to the data storage medium and saved in the data storage medium. Replacement processing function and a program for execution is stored that.

Therefore, when a document stored in the server is designated and written to the data storage medium of the client, the document is first written out in the form of a shortcut file having a small data amount. If the number of times of reference is greater than the number of times, it is determined that the document is frequently used, and the actual data file is stored in the data storage medium of the client. The actual data file of the document can be referenced at high speed through the shortcut file, and the operation response is improved. Since the document that is not frequently used remains the first shortcut file, the data usage of the data storage medium can be reduced.

A computer-readable storage medium according to the present invention is connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document, and
Installed on a client computer on which the browsing application is installed, requesting the computer to specify a desired document to the server and create a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document A shortcut acquisition function for acquiring the shortcut file and storing the shortcut file in the data storage medium in the file format of the shortcut file; and, when the actual data file of the document in the server is referred to by the shortcut file, the actual data file is saved for the document. And a replacement processing function of replacing the data storage medium with the data storage medium as a link destination of the shortcut file in a selectable manner and storing the data storage medium in the data storage medium. It is stored.

Therefore, although basically the same as the case of the ninth aspect of the present invention, in the case of the ninth aspect of the present invention, since there is only one link destination information of the shortcut file, the server Since the actual data file on the client side and the actual data file on the client side exist independently, 2
There is a possibility that a difference may occur between the two actual data files. However, by providing the server side and the data storage medium as information of the link destination of the shortcut file in a selectable manner, the actual data on the client side is provided. If the file becomes old, it can be dealt with by accessing the server and updating it with a new real data file.

According to a thirty-third aspect of the present invention, in the computer-readable storage medium according to the thirty-second aspect, an update date / time management function for managing an update date / time of a real data file of a document stored in the data storage medium; A comparison function of comparing the update date and time of the actual data file of the document managed by the server and the update date and time managed by the update date and time management function when referring to the actual data file of the document, A program for causing the computer to execute an acquisition destination selection function for acquiring from the server or the data storage medium an actual data file to be referred to according to a comparison result by the comparison function is stored.

Therefore, in realizing the invention of claim 10, the update date and time of the actual data file is managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and the actual date and time of the update is compared with each other by comparing the newness of the update date and time. Since it is automatically selected whether to acquire the data file, the burden on the user is reduced compared to the case where the real data file on the server side and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger, You can always refer to the latest actual data file.

[0086]

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention.
A description will be given with reference to FIG. This embodiment shows an example of application to a server-client type document management system, and is most simply configured by connecting a server 1 and a client 2 as shown in the connection diagram of FIG. . The illustrated example is an example of peer-to-peer connection,
The configuration may be such that the server 1 and the client 2 are connected via a communication network such as a LAN, and the number of servers 1 and clients 2 is not particularly limited. Further, it is also possible to configure such that one machine plays the role of both the server and the client.

Next, the outline of the internal hardware configuration of the server 1 and the client 2 will be described. The server 1 may be a file server or a database server, and the client 2 may be a personal computer, a workstation, or the like.
And the client 2 have the same structure using, for example, a personal computer.
Will be described with reference to FIG.

The client 2 is a control unit 3 having a microcomputer configuration comprising a CPU, a ROM and a RAM.
The controller 3 is connected to a memory 5 via a bus line 4 and functions as an input controller 8 for a keyboard 6 and a mouse 7, as a data storage medium and a storage medium. Storage control unit 10 for the main storage medium 9, display control unit 12 for the display 11, and network control unit 13 for network connection
Are connected to each other. As the main storage medium 9, a hard disk (HDD), FD, or MO is used. A document management application (application for browsing) is installed in the control unit 3.

Note that various functions to be described later are controlled by the control unit 3.
As a storage medium in which a program to be executed by a computer is stored, not only a hard disk (HDD), FD and MO but also various optical disks such as CD-ROM and DVD,
Various types of media such as a semiconductor memory can be used. Alternatively, a program may be downloaded from any program resource area via a network such as the Internet and installed on the HDD. In this case, the storage device storing the program in the server on the transmission side also corresponds to the storage medium according to the present invention.
It should be noted that the program is executed by a predetermined OS (Operating System
m) For example, it may be one that operates on Windows, and in that case, execution of some of the various processes described later is
It may be replaced by S, or may be included as a part of a group of program files constituting predetermined application software or OS.

In the case of the server 1, although not shown, the main storage medium is configured as a database in order to configure a main part of the document management system, and information on various documents is stored as an actual data file. (Means to save the actual data of the document). Further, as described with reference to FIG. 25, a means for storing the link information on the database, assuming that the documents specified in the parent-child relationship by the user with respect to the documents stored in the database are related documents. ing.

In such a configuration, when the document management system and the document management application are activated, an example of processing control (including some operations) executed by the respective control units of the server 1 and the client 2 is shown. This will be described with reference to the schematic flowchart shown in FIG.

First, on the client 2 side, the processing is started when the user performs a copy operation on the client 2 by dragging and dropping a desired document drawn from the server 1 on Windows (step C1).
Along with this copy operation, the document data (actual data file) selected and designated by the user is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C2). The processing in step C2 is realized as a document acquisition unit or a document acquisition function.

In parallel with this copy processing, a message box, for example, "Do you want to copy related documents?" Is displayed on the display 11 (C3), and a selection operation by the user is waited. If this selection operation does not copy the related document (N in C4), the process is terminated as it is. On the other hand, if it is selected that the related document is also copied (C
4), requesting the server 1 to create a list of related documents by requesting the document data of the related documents (C5).
In response to this request, the server 1 refers to the link information of the related document stored in its own database,
A list of related documents (for both parent and child documents) is created (step S1), and the document data (actual data file) of the created related documents is transmitted to the client 2 (S2). The processing of step C5 including the processing of steps S1 and S2 is realized as a related document acquisition unit or a related document acquisition function when viewed from the client 2 side.

After requesting the document data of the related document on the client 2 side, a folder for “related document” is created in the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C6), and the document data of the related document is sent from the server 1 side. Wait for transmission (S2). Server 1
When the document data of the related document is sent from the
The data (actual data file) of the related document is copied to the folder for “related document” in the (main storage medium 9) (C
7). The processing of steps C6 and C7 is realized as a related document storage unit or a related document storage function.

Such an example of the processing control is performed by the client 2
The operation will be described with reference to FIG.

A desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

When a message box “Do you want to copy related documents?” Is displayed on the display 11, the user operates one of the Yes and No buttons.

When the user operates Yes, the client 2
The related document is also copied to the designated HDD (main storage medium 9) in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. That is, a folder having a folder name of the designated document “A” and a folder name of “related document of A” is created, and the storage mode is such that the related documents “B” and “C” of the document “A” exist in this folder. Note that there is no distinction between the parent document and the child document for the related documents “B” and “C”.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when a designated document is written to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2, the document file of the related document is also written together, so that the HDD (main storage medium 9) is written. ), There is no loss of information on related documents, and related documents can be referred to effectively. In particular, since the designated document and the related document are stored in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. 4, the existence of the related document for the designated document is clear, and the related document is easy to use. Further, since the related document is stored in the form of an actual data file similarly to the designated document, it is not necessary to access the database of the server 1 when referring to the related document, and the HDD of the client 2 itself is not required.
(Main storage medium 9), and the operation response at the time of reference is improved.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show a second embodiment of the present invention.
It will be described based on. The same portions as those described in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted (the same applies to each of the following embodiments).

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
An example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to a schematic flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the processing and operations in steps C1 to C4 on the client 2 side are the same. Here, in the present embodiment, when a selection operation to copy the related document is performed (Y in C4), the request for the document data of the child document in the related document (C11) is sent to the server 1 to request the child. Request a list of documents. In response to this request, the server 1 creates a list of child documents by referring to the link information of the related document stored in its own database (S1).
1) The document data (actual data file) of the child document of the created related document is transmitted to the client 2 (S1).
2). The processing of step C11 including the processing of steps S11 and S12 is realized as related document acquisition means or a related document acquisition function for a child document when viewed from the client 2 side.

After requesting the document data of the child document, the client 2 creates a folder for “related documents” in the HDD (main storage medium 9) and a folder for “child documents” in this folder (C12). ), And waits for the transmission of the document data of the child document from the server 1 (S12). When the document data of the related document is transmitted from the server 1, the “child document” in the “related document” folder is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9).
Data (actual data file) of the child document is copied to the folder (C13). The related document saving means or related document saving function for the child document is realized by the processing of steps C12 and C13.

Subsequently, the server 1 is requested to create a list of parent documents by requesting the document data of the parent document in the related document (C14). In response to this request, the server 1 creates a list of parent documents by referring to link information of related documents stored in its own database (S1).
3) The document data (actual data file) of the parent document of the created related document is transmitted to the client 2 (S1).
4). A related document acquisition unit or a related document acquisition function for the parent document as viewed from the client 2 is realized from the processing of step C14 including the processing of steps S13 and S14.

After requesting the document data of the parent document, the client 2 creates a “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder on the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C15), and It waits for the transmission of the document data of the parent document from the first side (S14). When the document data of the related document is transmitted from the server 1, the data (actual data file) of the parent document is stored in the “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder of the HDD (main storage medium 9). Copy (C
16). The processing of steps C15 and C16 is realized as a related document storage unit or a related document storage function for a parent document.

Such an example of processing control is described in
A description will be given with reference to FIG.

A desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

When a message box “Do you want to copy related documents?” Is displayed on the display 11, the user operates one of the Yes and No buttons.

When the user operates “Yes” and requests document data in order of the child document and the parent document, the related document is also copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) designated by the client 2 in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. You. That is, a folder having a folder name of the designated document “A” and a folder name of “related document of A” is created, and folders of “parent document” and “child document” are also separately created in this folder, and “parent document” is created. The related document “B” which is the parent document of the document “A”
This is a storage mode in which “C” exists, and a storage mode in which related documents “D” and “E”, which are child documents of the document “A”, exist in the “child document” folder.

Accordingly, the case of the present embodiment is basically the same as the case of the first embodiment.
Since related documents are sorted and stored in the “parent document” and “child document” folders, it is easy to see whether the related document is a parent document or a child document, making it easier to refer to the related document. Become.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show a third embodiment of the present invention.
It will be described based on. FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the control units of the server 1 and the client 2 when the document management system and the document management application are activated. This will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the processing and operations in steps C1 to C4 on the client 2 side are the same. Here, in the present embodiment, when a selection operation to copy the related document is performed (Y in C4), the request for the shortcut file of the child document in the related document (C21) is sent to the server 1 to request the child. Request a list of documents. On the server 1 side,
In response to this request, a list of child documents is created with reference to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S21), and a shortcut file of the created child documents is created. The shortcut file is transmitted to the client 2 (S22). The processing in steps S21 and S22 implements a shortcut creation unit in the server 1, and the processing in step C21 implements a related document acquisition unit or a related document acquisition function in a shortcut file format for a child document as viewed from the client 2. ing.

After the client 2 requests the shortcut file of the child document, the client 2 sends the request to the HDD (main storage medium 9).
Then, a folder for "related documents" and a folder for "child documents" are created in this folder (C22), and a shortcut file of the child document is transmitted from the server 1 side (S22).
Wait for. When the shortcut file of the child document is transmitted from the server 1, the shortcut file of the child document is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) in the folder for the child document in the folder for the "related document" (C2).
3). By the processing of steps C22 and C23, a related document storage unit or a related document storage function in a shortcut file format for a child document is realized.

Subsequently, the server 1 is requested to create a list of parent documents by requesting a shortcut file of the parent document in the related document (C24). On the server 1 side,
In response to this request, a list of parent documents is created by referring to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S23), and a shortcut file of the parent document of the created related documents is created. The shortcut file is transmitted to the client 2 (S24). The processing of steps S23 and S24 is realized as a shortcut creation unit in the server 1, and the processing of step C24 implements a related document acquisition unit or a related document acquisition function in a shortcut file format regarding the parent document as viewed from the client 2. ing.

After the client 2 requests the shortcut file of the parent document, the client 2 stores the shortcut file in the HDD (main storage medium 9).
Then, a folder for "parent document" is created in the folder for "related document" (C25), and the server 1 waits for transmission of a shortcut file of the parent document (S24). Server 1
When the shortcut file of the parent document is transmitted from the side, the HDD (main storage medium 9) copies the shortcut file of the parent document to the “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder (C26). Step C2
The related document storing means or the related document storing function in the shortcut file format regarding the parent document is realized by the processing of 5, C26.

[0116] Such a processing control example is described in the client 2
The operation will be described with reference to FIG.

A desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

When a message box “Do you want to copy shortcuts of related documents?” Is displayed on the display 11, operate any one of the Yes and No buttons.

When “Yes” is operated and a shortcut file is requested in the order of the child document and the parent document, the related document is also copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) designated by the client 2 in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. . That is, a folder having the specified document “A” and a folder name “related document of A” is created.
The folders of the “child documents” are also created separately, and the folder of the “parent document” has a storage form in which the shortcut files of the related documents “B” and “C” as the parent documents of the document “A” exist. In the folder of the “child document”, there is a storage format in which shortcut files of the related documents “D” and “E” as child documents of the document “A” exist.

[0120] Under the environment of the client 2 in which the document management application is installed, the shortcut files for these related documents can be referred to by accessing the actual data files in the database of the server 1 through these shortcut files. It is possible.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, related documents are stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) in the form of a shortcut file, so that information on related documents is stored in the server 1.
The data amount required for downloading from the side is smaller than that of the case of the actual data file, the operation response required for downloading can be improved, and the data amount of the related document occupied in the HDD (main storage medium 9). Can be reduced. Further, when access to the actual data file of the related document is required, since the document management application is installed in the client 2 as described above, it can be ensured by accessing the server 1 through the shortcut file.

In the present embodiment, an example of application to a mode in which a parent document and a child document are separated has been described. However, similar to the first embodiment, even when a parent-child document is not particularly separated, The shortcut file method can be similarly applied (the same applies to the following embodiments).

A fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Regarding the storage of the related document, the second embodiment described above uniformly saves the actual data file format, and the third embodiment uniformly saves the document in a shortcut file format.
The configuration is such that an actual data file format and a shortcut file format can be arbitrarily selected and designated according to a user's selection operation.

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
An example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to a schematic flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the processing and operations in steps C1 to C4 on the client 2 side are the same. Here, in the present embodiment, when a selection operation to copy the related document is performed (Y in C4), a request for a list of the parent and child documents in the related document (C31) is made to the server 1 by the parent and child document. Request a list of. In response to the request, the server 1 creates a list of parent-child documents by referring to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S3).
1) A list of parent and child documents of the created related document is transmitted to the client 2 (S32). This step S3
The related document acquiring means or the related document acquiring function as viewed from the client 2 side is realized by the processing of step C31 including the processing of S1 and S32.

After requesting the list of parent-child documents, the client 2 displays a dialog of "selection of writing method" on the display 11 (C32), and waits for a user to select a writing method (C33). In this case, the dialog of “selection of writing method” is, for example, as shown in FIG. 10. Here, whether to write in the actual data file format for each parent document and child document,
Whether to export in the shortcut file format is freely selectable. In the illustrated example, the related documents “B” and “C”
Regarding "D" and "E", related documents "B" and "D" show an example in which the actual data file format is selected, and related documents "C" and "E" show an example in which the shortcut file format is selected and set.
A selection means or a selection function is realized by the processing and operation of these steps C32 and C33.

On the client 2 side, in parallel with the operation of selecting the writing method, a folder for “related documents” is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) and a “parent document” is stored in this folder.
Of the parent document (document "B") from the server 1 (C3).
5) Wait for transmission of the document data (S33). When the actual data file (document "B") of the parent document is transmitted from the server 1, the "related document" is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9).
The actual data file (document "B") of the parent document is copied to the "parent document" folder in the
6). The processing of step C36 implements a related document storage unit or a related document storage function for the parent document.

Subsequently, the server 1 requests the parent document for a shortcut file (document "C") of the parent document (C37).
In response to the request, the server 1 creates a shortcut file (document "C") of the parent document (S34), and transmits the shortcut file (document "C") to the client 2 (S35). These steps S3
4, S35 implements a shortcut creating means. On the client 2 side, when the shortcut file (document “C”) of the parent document is transmitted from the server 1 side, the folder for “parent document” in the folder for “related document” is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9). Copy the shortcut file (document "C") of the parent document (C3
8). The processing of step C38 implements a related document storage unit or related document storage function for the parent document.

Further, a folder for “child document” is created in the folder for “related document” in the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C39), and the actual data file of the child document (document “D”) is created on the server 1 side. ") (C40), and waits for transmission of the document data (S36). When the actual data file (document "D") of the child document is transmitted from the server 1, the actual child file is stored in the "child document" folder in the "related document" folder on the HDD (main storage medium 9). The data file (document "D") is copied (C41). The processing of step C41 implements a related document storage unit or a related document storage function for a child document.

Subsequently, a request is made to the server 1 for a shortcut file (document "E") of the child document (C42).
In response to the request, the server 1 creates a shortcut file (document "E") of the child document (S37), and transmits the shortcut file (document "E") to the client 2 (S38). These steps S3
7, the processing of S38 implements a shortcut creating means. On the client 2 side, when the shortcut file (document “E”) of the child document is transmitted from the server 1 side, the folder for “child document” in the folder for “related document” is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9). The shortcut file (document "E") of the child document is copied (C4
3). The processing of step C43 implements a related document storage unit or related document storage function for a child document.

[0131] Such a processing control example is described in the client 2
The operation will be described with reference to FIG.

A desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

[0133] A message box "Do you want to copy shortcuts of related documents?" Is displayed on the display 11, and one of the Yes and No buttons is operated.

When the user selects “Yes”, a dialog of “selection of writing method” as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed on the display 11, so that the parent document and the child document are written in the actual data file format. Or
Select and set whether to export in the shortcut file format as appropriate.

When the OK button is pressed after the selection setting, the data of the related document is read from the server 1 in accordance with each selection setting, and is stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) designated by the client 2 as shown in FIG. Related documents are also copied in an orderly fashion. That is, the specified document “A”
A folder with a folder name of “related document of A” is created, and folders of “parent document” and “child document” are also separately created in this folder, and a folder of “parent document” is a parent folder of document “A”. The related document “B (actual data file)” and “C (shortcut file)” are stored in the storage form, and the related document “D (actual data file) is a child document of the document“ A ”in the“ child document ”folder. ) "" E
(Shortcut file) ".

In the environment of the client 2 in which the document management application is installed, the shortcut files in these related documents can access and refer to the actual data files in the database of the server 1 through these shortcut files. It is possible.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to arbitrarily set a file format of a document to be written as a related document as an actual data file or a shortcut file according to a user's need, and to set the user's preference. Conformed,
It is possible to optimize the operation response and the data to be handled. That is, for a related document that is considered to be frequently used, the actual data file format is designated and saved, so that the actual data file is stored in the HDD of the client 2 side.
(Main storage medium 9), and thereafter, it is not necessary to acquire the same data from the server 1, and the response to each other when referring to the relevant document is improved. Conversely, for related documents that are considered to be infrequently used, by specifying a shortcut file format and saving it, the amount of data transmitted via the communication network can be reduced, and the operation response required for the writing operation (downloading) can be improved. Client 2
The data usage of the HDD (main storage medium 9) on the side is small.

A fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Regarding storage of related documents,
In the above-described third embodiment, the actual data file format and the shortcut file format can be arbitrarily selected and designated in accordance with the user's selection operation. Recognizing that a document with a high reference frequency (related document) is a document with a high need of the user, a determination (selection) of writing in a real data file format or a shortcut file format according to the reference frequency Is automatically performed on the server 1 side.

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
An example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to a schematic flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the processing and operations in steps C1 to C4 on the client 2 side are the same. Here, in the present embodiment, when a selection operation to copy the related document is performed (Y in C4), the request for the document data of the parent document in the related document (C51) is sent to the server 1 to request the parent document. Request a list of documents. In response to this request, the server 1 creates a list of parent documents by referring to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S5).
1).

Subsequently, the number of references to the parent document is checked (S52). In the server 1, each document is managed based on a history of how many times the document has been referenced in the past. By the way, if there are a plurality of clients 2, an account is inputted at the time of logon input for each client 2, and when each document is referred to, the downloaded one (client) is known. Is also easy. If the reference count exceeds a threshold set by the user, for example, five (Y in S52), it is determined that the document is frequently used, and an actual data file is created for the parent document (S53). ). On the other hand, if the number of references has not reached five (N in S52), it is determined that the document is not frequently used, and a shortcut file is created for the parent document (S54). These processes are repeated for all of the parent document lists (S55). A file format selecting unit is realized by the processing of steps S52 to S55. Thereafter, the actual data file (for example, document “B”) and the shortcut file (for example, document “C”) of these parent documents are transmitted to the client 2 (S56).

After requesting the data of the parent document, the client 2 creates a folder for "related documents" in the HDD (main storage medium 9) and a folder for "parent documents" in this folder (C52). It waits for the transmission of the file from the server 1 (S56). When the file is transmitted from the server 1, the actual data file of the parent document (for example, the document "B") is stored in the "parent document" folder in the "related document" folder on the HDD (main storage medium 9). And a shortcut file (for example, document “C”) (C5
3). The processing of steps C52 and C53 implements related document storage means or a related document storage function for the parent document.

Further, it requests the server 1 to create a list of child documents by requesting the document data of the child documents in the related document (C54). In response to this request, the server 1 creates a list of child documents by referring to the link information of the related document stored in its own database (S5).
7).

Subsequently, the number of references to the child document is checked (S58). That is, each document is managed in the server 1 by a history of how many times the document has been referenced in the past. This reference count is a threshold set by the user, for example,
If the number exceeds five (Y in S58), it is determined that the document is frequently used, and an actual data file is created for the child document (S59). On the other hand, if the number of references has not reached five (N in S52), it is determined that the document is not frequently used, and a shortcut file is created for the child document (S60).
These processes are similarly repeated for all the child document lists (S61). These steps S58 to S61
, A file format selection means is realized. Thereafter, the actual data file (for example, document "D") and the shortcut file (for example, document "E") of these child documents are transmitted to the client 2 (S6).
2).

After requesting the child document data, the client 2 creates a "child document" folder in the "related document" folder of the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C5).
5) Wait for file transmission from server 1 (S62). When the file is sent from the server 1, the HDD
In the (main storage medium 9), the actual data file (for example, document "D") of the child document and the shortcut file (for example,
The document "E") is copied (C56). Step C
Related document storage means or a related document storage function for a child document is realized by the processing of 55 and C56.

[0146] Such a processing control example is described in the client 2
According to the operation procedure on the side, a description will be given with reference to FIG.

The desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

When a message box “Do you also want to copy shortcuts of related documents?” Is displayed on the display 11, operate any of the Yes or No buttons.

When the user selects “Yes”, a list of related documents is created, and the number of references to each document is checked. That is, it is assumed that the server 1 has a history of how many times each document has been referenced in the past, and the related documents "B" and "D" have a reference history of 5 or more each. The related document is transmitted to the client 2 in the actual data file format or the shortcut file format depending on whether the number of times of reference has reached the threshold value of 5 or not.

A related document is also copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) designated by the client 2 in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. That is, the specified document “A”
A folder with a folder name of “related document of A” is created, and folders of “parent document” and “child document” are also separately created in this folder, and a folder of “parent document” is a parent folder of document “A”. The related document “B (actual data file)” and “C (shortcut file)” are stored in the storage form, and the related document “D (actual data file) is a child document of the document“ A ”in the“ child document ”folder. ) "" E
(Shortcut file) ".

In the environment of the client 2 in which the document management application is installed, the shortcut files in these related documents can access and refer to the actual data files in the database of the server 1 through these shortcut files. It is possible.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, basically the same effects as in the fourth embodiment can be obtained. In particular, in the present embodiment, it is necessary to save the data in the actual data file format. Whether to save in the shortcut file format is automatically determined by the determination and selection on the server 1 side, so that the user's trouble of selecting can be saved.

A sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, the related document is saved in the shortcut file format uniformly at first, but when the related document is referenced using the shortcut file, it is replaced with the actual data file. Things.

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
An example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to a schematic flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the processing and operations in steps C1 to C4 on the client 2 side are the same. Here, in the present embodiment, when a selection operation to copy the related document is performed (Y in C4), a request for the shortcut file of the child document in the related document (C61) is made to the server 1 to request the child. Request a list of documents. On the server 1 side,
In response to this request, a list of child documents is created by referring to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S71), and a shortcut file of the created child documents is created. The shortcut file is transmitted to the client 2 (S72). The processing of steps S71 and S72 implements the shortcut creating means in the server 1, and the processing of step C61 implements the related document acquiring means or the related document acquiring function in the shortcut file format for the child document as viewed from the client 2. ing.

After the client 2 requests the shortcut file of the child document, the client 2 requests the HDD (main storage medium 9).
Then, a folder for "related documents" and a folder for "child documents" are created in this folder (C62), and a shortcut file of the child document is transmitted from the server 1 side (S72).
Wait for. When the shortcut file of the child document is transmitted from the server 1, the shortcut file of the child document is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) in the folder for the child document in the folder for the related document (C6).
3). By the processing of steps C62 and C63, related document storage means or a related document storage function in the form of a shortcut file for a child document is realized.

Subsequently, the server 1 is requested to create a list of parent documents by requesting a shortcut file of the parent document in the related document (C64). On the server 1 side,
In response to this request, a list of parent documents is created with reference to the link information of the related documents stored in its own database (S73), and a shortcut file of the parent document of the created related documents is created. The shortcut file is transmitted to the client 2 (S74). The processing of steps S73 and S74 implements a shortcut creation unit in the server 1, and the processing of step C64 implements a related document acquisition unit or a related document acquisition function in a shortcut file format for the parent document as viewed from the client 2. ing.

After the client 2 requests the shortcut file of the parent document, the client 2 stores the shortcut file in the HDD (main storage medium 9).
A folder for "parent document" is created in the folder for "related document" (C65), and the server 1 waits for transmission of a shortcut file of the parent document (S74). Server 1
When the shortcut file of the parent document is transmitted from the side, the shortcut file of the parent document is copied to the “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder on the HDD (main storage medium 9) (C66). Step C6
The related document storing means or the related document storing function in the shortcut file format regarding the parent document is realized by the processing of 5, C66.

After such related document saving processing, when an operation of opening a document by designating a shortcut file of related document “B” in a folder of the HDD (main storage medium 9) is performed at an arbitrary time. (C67) The server 1 requests the server 1 for the actual data file of the related document "B" (C6).
8). In response to this request, the server 1 transmits the actual data file of the related document "B" in the database to the client 2 (S75). Upon receiving this file transmission, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the related document “B” into the “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder of the HDD (main storage medium 9) ( C69). In addition, the shortcut file of the related document “B” in the “parent document” folder is deleted (C70). The replacement processing means or the replacement processing function is realized by the processing of steps C69 and C70. Further, the contents of the actual data file of the related document “B” stored in the “parent document” folder in the “related document” folder of the HDD (main storage medium 9) are displayed on the display 11 (C71). To the user.

[0160] Such a processing control example is described in the client 2
According to the operation procedure on the side, a description will be given with reference to FIG.

A desired document “A” from the database of the server 1 is copied to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

When a message box “Do you want to copy shortcuts of related documents?” Is displayed on the display 11, operate any of the Yes or No buttons.

By operating “Yes” and requesting a shortcut file in the order of a child document and a parent document, the related document is also stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) designated by the client 2 in an orderly manner as shown in FIG. Be copied.
That is, a folder having a folder name of the designated document “A” and a folder name of “related document of A” is created, and folders of “parent document” and “child document” are also separately created in this folder, and “parent document” is created. Folder is a storage format in which each of the shortcut files of the related documents “B” and “C” as the parent document of the document “A” exists, and the “child document” folder is a related document as the child document of the document “A”. The storage format is such that the shortcut files “D” and “E” exist.

In the environment of the client 2 in which the document management application is installed, the shortcut files for these related documents can be accessed and referenced by accessing the actual data files in the database of the server 1 through these shortcut files. It is possible.

Thereafter, at any time, when a document is opened by specifying, for example, “shortcut file of B”, the document is opened (the actual data file is taken in from the server 1). Correspondingly, the related document “B” as the parent document of the “parent document” folder is replaced from the shortcut file with the actual data file.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, since the related documents are initially saved in the shortcut file format uniformly, the data volume to be handled can be reduced. Thereafter, when it becomes necessary to replace the actual document with the actual data file, that is, to delay the data download when the related document is referred to by using the shortcut file, the related document is thereafter transmitted to the client 2. Can be referred directly, and the operation response at the time of reference is improved. That is, replacement with an actual data file according to the actual reference situation becomes possible.

A seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, an arbitrary designated document is first saved in a shortcut file format, but thereafter, the document is referenced a predetermined number of times (for example, three times using a shortcut file).
Times), replace with the actual data fill and H
The data is stored in the DD (main storage medium 9), and the actual data file in the HDD (main storage medium 9) can be referred to by the shortcut file.

That is, in the present embodiment, when the property of the shortcut file is displayed, FIG.
It is assumed that the situation is as shown below. First, the shortcut file has two pieces of information, “link destination” and “reference count”. At the link destination, the path to the actual data file of the document is written, and when the shortcut file is opened, the document indicated at the link destination is opened. Also, the number of times this shortcut file has been opened is written in the reference count. In the example shown in FIG. 16A, it has been referred to twice.

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
An example of processing control (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to schematic flowcharts shown in FIGS.

First, the saving process in the shortcut file format will be described with reference to FIG. The client 2 selects an arbitrary desired document from the documents stored in the database of the server 1 and executes a “create shortcut” command (C8).
1) Request the server 1 for a shortcut file of the selected document (C82). In response to this request, the server 1 creates a shortcut file of the selected document (S81), and writes a link to the actual data file stored in the database of the server 1 (S8).
2) The client 2 is transmitted (S83). In response to the transmission of the shortcut file, the client 2 copies and stores the shortcut file in the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C83). Shortcut acquisition means or a shortcut acquisition function is realized by the processing of steps C81 and C83.

Then, processing control when a document is referred to using a shortcut file at an arbitrary time will be described with reference to FIG. First, Client 2
In step (C91), when a shortcut file is selected and the "open document" command is executed (C91), the number of times that the selected shortcut file has been opened three or more times is checked (C92). If less than three times (N in C92), the server 1 requests the server 1 for the actual data file of the selected document (C94). In response to this request, the server 1 creates an actual data file of the selected document (S91) and causes the client 2 to transmit the file (S9).
2). Upon receiving the transmission of the actual data file, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the selected document to the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C95). further,
The link destination of the shortcut file is changed to the location where the actual data file of the selected document in the client 2 is saved, and saved (C96). These steps C9
The replacement processing means or the replacement processing function is realized by the processing of C5 and C96. Then, the user opens the actual data file of the selected document and displays it on the display 11 (C97) to present it to the user.

On the other hand, if the number of references is three or more, (C
Since the link destination of the shortcut file is the actual data file of the selected document in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2, the link destination of the selected document in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 is changed. The actual data file is directly opened and displayed on the display 11 (C93) to present it to the user.

The processing control example described above is applied to the client 2
A description will be given with reference to FIG.

An arbitrary document “A” is selected, and a shortcut file is created in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

Open the shortcut file created in.

If the number of times the shortcut file has been opened is less than three times, the actual data file in the server 1 is copied to the client 2 and the copied document is displayed. On the other hand, the number of times the shortcut file has been opened is 3
If not, the actual data file in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 is directly opened and displayed.

That is, in the example shown in FIG. 16A, since the number of references is less than three, the link destination of the shortcut file points to the actual data file in the server, but the number of references is three or more. Then, the document is copied from the server 1 to the client 2 on the assumption that the document is frequently referred to. The link destination information of the shortcut file is also automatically rewritten to the storage location of the actual data file copied from the server 1 to the client 2 as shown in FIG. If the selected document is referred to using this shortcut file, the link destination is the storage location of the actual data file of the client 2, so that access to the document (operation response) is faster than downloading from the server 1.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when a certain selected document is to be written to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2, the selected document is initially written in the form of a shortcut file, but thereafter, Is frequently used, the actual data file is written to the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 and the link destination of the shortcut file is also the HDD (main storage medium 9), so that the server 1 is accessed. It is possible to refer to the actual data file without this, and the subsequent operation response is improved. In addition, since a document which is not frequently used is written out in the form of a shortcut file, the data usage of the HDD (main storage medium 9) on the client 2 side is small.

An eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the case of the above-described seventh embodiment, since the link destination of the shortcut file is switched, two real data files exist on the server 1 side and the client 2 side, and there are two real data files between the two real data files. Since there is a possibility that a difference may occur, in the present embodiment, it is possible to write two items as link destination information of the shortcut file, and the server 1 and the client 2
By using them together, the two real data files can be synchronized by a user trigger.

That is, in the present embodiment, when the property of the shortcut file is displayed, the property of FIG.
It is assumed that the situation is as shown below. First, the shortcut file has two pieces of information: “link destination to server” and “link destination to client”. At each link destination, a path to the actual data file of the document is written. When a shortcut file is opened, the document indicated at the link destination is opened. Figure 1
In the example shown in FIG. 9A, the actual data file has not been copied to the client 2 yet, and only the link destination to the server has been written.

When the document management system and the document management application are activated, the server 1 and the client 2
The processing control examples (including some operations) of the present embodiment executed by the respective control units will be described with reference to schematic flowcharts shown in FIGS.

Since the saving process in the shortcut file format is the same as that shown in FIG. 17, its illustration and description are omitted. After that, an example of processing when a shortcut file is opened and there is no link destination to the client in the shortcut file will be described with reference to FIG. First, in the client 2, a desired shortcut file is selected and an "open document" command is executed (C101), and it is checked whether or not there is information on the "link destination in the client" regarding the shortcut file. (C
102). If there is no information in the "link destination in the client" (N in C102), the server 1 requests the server 1 for the actual data file of the selected document (C103). In response to this request, the server 1 creates an actual data file of the selected document (S101), and transmits it to the client 2 (S102). Upon receiving the transmission of the actual data file, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the selected document to the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C1).
04). Further, the location where the actual data file of the selected document in the client 2 is stored as the link destination of the shortcut file is also written as the link destination in the client and registered in the shortcut file (C10).
5). The replacement processing means or the replacement processing function is realized by the processing of steps C104 and C105. Then, the actual data file of the selected document is opened and displayed on the display 11 (C106), so that it is presented to the user.

On the other hand, when the shortcut file has a link destination to the client, as shown in FIG. 21, unless update of the document (actual data file) of the client is selected (N in C107), The actual data file of the selected document in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 is directly opened and displayed on the display 11 in accordance with the link destination information (C11).
0), present it to the user.

Further, even if the shortcut file has a link destination to the client, if updating of the document (actual data file) of the client is selected (Y in C107), the actual data file of the selected document is transferred to the server. A request is made to the first side (C108). In response to this request, the server 1 creates an actual data file of the selected document (S
103), and causes the client 2 to transmit (S10).
4). Upon receiving the transmission of the actual data file, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the selected document to the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C109). That is,
Overwrite. Then, the actual data file of the overwritten selected document is opened and displayed on the display 11 (C106) to present it to the user.

[0185] Such processing control example is described in the client 2
A description will be given with reference to FIG. 19 according to the operation procedure on the side.

An arbitrary document “A” is selected, and a shortcut file is created in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

The shortcut file created in is opened.

FIG. 19 shows the shortcut file.
If there is no link destination information in the client as shown in (a), a document (actual data file) in the server 1 is copied to the client 2 and the copied file data in the client is displayed. At the same time, the information of the link destination to the actual data file of the client is shown in FIG.
It is registered in the shortcut file as shown in FIG. 9B, and the process ends. Figure 19 in the shortcut file
If there is link destination information in the client as shown in (b), the following processing is executed.

[0189] A message "Do you want to update the client's document?" Is displayed on the display 11, and the user selects Yes or No.

If “Yes” is selected, the server 1
Is copied (overwritten) to the client 2 and the overwritten document is displayed.
If No is selected, the actual data file stored in the client is accessed according to the link destination information in the client to display the document.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, basically the same effects as in the case of the seventh embodiment can be obtained.
In particular, in the present embodiment, since the shortcut file has both the link destination to the server and the link destination in the client, the client 2
If the actual data file of the document in the server 1 is older than the actual data file of the document in the server 1, the server 1 is accessed by a shortcut file to acquire the actual data file, and the Server 1 by updating the actual data file in
Update time can be synchronized with the actual data file on the side.

The ninth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the omission of the present embodiment, both the server 1 and the client 2 have a function of managing the update date and time of the document information with respect to the above-described eighth embodiment. Client 2
The document on the side is automatically updated.

That is, in the present embodiment, when the properties of the shortcut file are displayed, the shortcut file shown in FIG.
It is assumed that the situation is as shown below. First, the shortcut file has update date and time information on a document stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 along with two pieces of information such as "link destination to server" and "link destination to client". I have. At each link destination, a path to the actual data file of the document is written. When a shortcut file is opened, the document indicated at the link destination is opened. FIG. 19 (a)
In the example shown in (1), the actual data file has not been copied to the client 2 yet, and only the link destination to the server is written to indicate the situation. As the information of the update date and time, the latest update date and time of the document stored in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 is displayed. On the other hand, although not specifically shown, the server 1 manages each document (actual data file) by adding and registering the update date and time for each document (actual data file) on the database (server). Side update date and time management means).

The saving process in the shortcut file format is the same as the case shown in FIG. 17, so illustration and description are omitted. Thereafter, an example of processing when a shortcut file is opened and there is no link destination to the client in the shortcut file will be described with reference to FIG. First, in the client 2, a desired shortcut file is selected and an "open document" command is executed (C101), and it is checked whether or not there is information on the "link destination in the client" regarding the shortcut file. (C
102). If there is no information in the "link destination in the client" (N in C102), the server 1 requests the server 1 for the actual data file of the selected document (C103). In response to this request, the server 1 creates an actual data file of the selected document (S101), and transmits it to the client 2 (S102). Upon receiving the transmission of the actual data file, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the selected document to the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C1).
04). Further, the location where the actual data file of the selected document in the client 2 is stored as the link destination of the shortcut file is also written as the link destination in the client and registered in the shortcut file (C11).
0). In the process of step C111, the current time at which the data was registered is written to the shortcut file as information on the update date and time of the client document. Replacement processing means or a replacement processing function is realized by the processing of steps C104 and C110. Further, the client-side update date / time management means or update date / time management function is realized by the processing of step C110. And
Open the actual data file of the selected document and display
Is displayed (C106), and presented to the user.

On the other hand, if the shortcut file has a link destination to the client, as shown in FIG. 24, information on the update date and time of the actual data file in the server 1 managed by the server 1 is acquired. Server 1 for
(C111). In response to this request, when information on the update date and time of the selected document in the server 1 is acquired from the server 1 (S105), the client 2 is compared with the update date and time of the client document and the acquired update date and time on the server side. It is checked whether the document on the side is newer or the same as the document on the server 1 side (C11
2). The processing of step C112 implements a comparison unit or a comparison function and an acquisition destination selection unit or an acquisition destination selection function.

As a result of this comparison, if the update date and time on the client 2 side is newer or the same (Y in C112), the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2 is used in accordance with the link destination information in the client. Is directly opened and displayed on the display 11 (C116) to present it to the user.

On the other hand, as a result of the comparison, if the update date and time on the server 1 side is newer (N in C112), the server 1 requests the server 1 side for the actual data file of the selected document (C113).
In response to this request, the server 1 creates an actual data file of the selected document (S106), and transmits it to the client 2 (S107). Upon receiving the transmission of the actual data file, the client 2 copies the actual data file of the selected document to the specified HDD (main storage medium 9) (C
114). That is, it is overwritten and updated. At the same time, the update date and time of the client document in the shortcut file is updated to the current date and time overwritten and updated (C115). And
The actual data file of the overwritten and updated selected document is opened and displayed on the display 11 (C11
6) Present to the user.

[0198] Such a processing control example is described in the client 2
According to the operation procedure on the side, a description will be given with reference to FIG.

An arbitrary document “A” is selected, and a shortcut file is created in the HDD (main storage medium 9) of the client 2.

The shortcut file created by is opened.

FIG. 22 shows the shortcut file.
If there is no link destination information in the client as shown in (a), a document (actual data file) in the server 1 is copied to the client 2 and the copied file data in the client is displayed. At the same time, the information of the link destination to the actual data file of the client is shown in FIG.
It is registered in the shortcut file as shown in FIG. 2 (b), and the process ends. At this time, the current date and time are registered as the update date and time of the client document. If there is link destination information in the client as shown in FIG. 22B in the shortcut file, the following processing is executed.

The update date and time of the document on the server 1 and the update date and time of the document on the client 2 are compared.

As a result of the comparison, if the update date and time on the server 1 side is newer, the document (actual data file) on the server 1 is copied to the client 2 (overwrite update),
Display the overwritten document. If the update date and time on the client 2 side is newer or the same, the actual data file stored in the client is accessed according to the link destination information in the client and the document is displayed.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, basically, the effect of the above-described eighth embodiment can be obtained.
In particular, by managing the update date and time of the document on the server 1 side and the update date and time of the document on the client 2 side, and comparing the update dates and times, the actual data file with the newer update date and time is automatically automatically updated. Is registered in the client 2, so that it does not depend on the user's judgment operation.
You can always refer to the latest document.

[0205]

According to the client according to the first aspect of the present invention, when a user specifies a desired document stored in the server and writes it to the data storage medium of the client,
A related document file whose association is specified in a parent-child relationship is also acquired, and the files are collected in a folder and saved on the data storage medium together with the previous document file, so that there is no lack of information on the related document. In referring to the document file, related documents can be easily referred to as needed.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the first aspect, since the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related document, the management of the related document becomes easy.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the first aspect, the related document is separated into a parent document and a child document and stored in the same folder in the parent document folder and the child document folder. Since it is easy to distinguish between parent and child documents when referring to related documents,
The contents are easy to grasp and refer to.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to any one of the first to third aspects, the relevant document is stored in a data storage medium in the form of an actual data file. The client can refer to the actual data file of the related document without accessing the file, and the operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to any one of the first to third aspects, the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file, so that information on the related document is stored on the server side. The amount of data required for downloading from a data file is smaller than that of a real data file, the operation response required for downloading can be improved, and the data amount of a related document in a data storage medium can be reduced. When it is necessary to access the actual data file of the related document, since the browsing application is installed, it can be secured by accessing the server through the shortcut file.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the fifth aspect, the amount of data is reduced by first storing the data in a data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file. When the actual data file of the related document is referred to, the data on the data storage medium is replaced with the actual data file and the shortcut file is deleted, so that the client side can be accessed without accessing the server side thereafter. Can refer to the actual data file of the related document, and the operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, in the client according to any one of the first to third aspects, when the related document is stored in the data storage medium, the actual data file is selected according to the file format selected by the user. Since the file is stored depending on whether the related document is used frequently or infrequently, the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. By reducing the amount of data acquired from the server side by saving related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, the processing speed can be improved and the data in the data storage medium can be improved. The usage can be reduced.

According to the eighth aspect of the invention, basically the same effects as in the case of the seventh aspect of the invention can be obtained, but in particular, any one of a file format of a real data file or a shortcut file is used. Is automatically selected on the server side in accordance with the number of times the related document is referenced, so that the user can save time and effort in selecting.

According to the client of the ninth aspect of the present invention, when a document stored in the server is designated and is to be written to the data storage medium of the client, first, a shortcut file having a small data amount is used. After that, if the number of references exceeds a predetermined number of times, it is determined that the document is frequently used, and the actual data file is saved in the data storage medium of the client. After that, the actual data file of the document can be referenced at high speed through the shortcut file without accessing the server side, and the operation response can be improved. Therefore, the amount of data used in the data storage medium can be reduced.

According to the client of the tenth aspect of the invention, basically, the effect of the invention of the ninth aspect can be obtained. In particular, the client side and the data storage as the information of the link destination of the shortcut file. Since the two media can be selected freely, if the actual data file on the client side becomes old, it can be dealt with by accessing the server side and updating to the new actual data file. .

According to the eleventh aspect, according to the first aspect,
In realizing the invention described in Item No. 0, the update date and time related to the actual data file is managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and the comparison of the update date and time is used to determine from which one the actual data file is obtained. Since the automatic selection is performed, the burden on the user is reduced and the latest data is always updated, compared to the case where the real data file on the server and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger. You can refer to the data file.

According to the document management system of the twelfth aspect, when the user designates a desired document stored in the server and writes it to the data storage medium of the client, the association is designated in a parent-child relationship. The related document file is also acquired, and the file is collected in a folder and saved in the data storage medium together with the previous document file. Therefore, there is no lack of information on the related document, and the document file can be referred to. Thus, related documents can be easily referred to as needed.

According to the thirteenth aspect, in the first aspect,
In the document management system described in item 2, since the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related documents, the management of the related documents becomes easy.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the first aspect
In the document management system described in Item 2, the related document is separated into a parent document and a child document and stored in the same folder as the parent document folder and the child document folder. Since it is easy to distinguish between a child document and a child document, the content is easy to grasp and refer to.

According to the invention of claim 15, claim 1 is
In the document management system according to any one of Items 2 to 14, since the related document is stored in the form of a real data file in the data storage medium, the client can subsequently access the relevant document without accessing the server. The data file can be referred to, and the operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

According to the sixteenth aspect, the first aspect is provided.
In the document management system according to any one of the items 2 to 14, the related document is stored in the form of a shortcut file in the data storage medium. It is possible to reduce the operation response required for downloading, to reduce the amount of data of the related document occupying in the data storage medium, and to reduce the access to the actual data file of the related document. If necessary, since the browsing application is installed, it can be secured by accessing the server through the shortcut file.

According to the seventeenth aspect, according to the sixteenth aspect,
In the described document management system, the amount of data is reduced by first storing the data in a data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file, but when the actual data file of the related document is actually referenced through the shortcut file, Since the data in the data storage medium is replaced with the actual data file and the shortcut file is deleted, the actual data file of the related document can be referred to on the client side without accessing the server side thereafter. In addition, the operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

[0222] According to the eighteenth aspect, the first aspect is provided.
In the document management system according to any one of the items 2 to 14, when the related document is stored in the data storage medium, the document is stored as the actual data file or the shortcut file according to the file format selected by the user. In addition, the response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized depending on whether the frequency of use of the related document is high or low. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. By reducing the amount of data acquired from the server side by saving related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, the processing speed can be improved and the data in the data storage medium can be improved. The usage can be reduced.

According to the nineteenth aspect of the invention, basically the same effects as in the case of the eighteenth aspect of the invention can be obtained, but in particular, any one of a file format of a real data file or a shortcut file is used. Is automatically selected on the server side in accordance with the number of times the related document is referred to, so that the user's trouble of selecting can be saved.

According to the document management system of the twentieth aspect, when a document stored in the server is specified and written to the data storage medium of the client,
Initially, the file is written out in the form of a shortcut file with a small amount of data. However, if the number of references exceeds a predetermined number, it is determined that the document is frequently used, and the actual data file is determined to be used by the client. Since the data is stored in the data storage medium, the actual data file of the document can be referenced at a high speed through the shortcut file without accessing the server side, and the operation response can be improved. Since the low-document remains as the first shortcut file, the data usage of the data storage medium can be reduced.

According to the document management system of the twenty-first aspect of the invention, basically, the effect of the invention of the twentieth aspect can be obtained. The two data storage media can be selected freely, so if the real data file on the client side becomes old, access to the server side and update it with a new real data file Can be.

According to the twenty-second aspect, the second aspect is provided.
In realizing the invention described in 1, the update date and time related to the actual data file is managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and from which of the update dates and times the actual data file is obtained is determined by comparing the update date and time. Since the automatic selection is performed, the burden on the user is reduced and the latest data is always updated, compared to the case where the real data file on the server and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger. You can refer to the data file.

According to the storage medium of the twenty-third aspect, when the user specifies a desired document stored in the server and writes it to the data storage medium of the client, the association is specified in a parent-child relationship. The related document file is also acquired, and the file is collected in a folder and stored on the data storage medium together with the previous document file. Related documents can be easily referred to as needed.

According to the invention set forth in claim 24, claim 2 is provided.
In the storage medium described in 3, the parent document and the child document are collectively stored in the same folder as the related documents, so that the management of the related documents becomes easy.

According to the twenty-fifth aspect, the second aspect is provided.
In the storage medium described in 3, the related document is separated into a parent document and a child document and stored in the parent document folder and the child document folder in the same folder. Since it is easy to distinguish between child documents, the contents are easy to grasp and refer to.

According to the invention of claim 26, claim 2
In the storage medium according to any one of Items 3 to 25, since the related document is stored in the form of a real data file in the data storage medium, the client can subsequently access the real data of the relevant document without accessing the server. The file can be referred to, and the operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 27, claim 2
In the storage medium according to any one of the items 3 to 25, the related document is stored in the data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file. It is possible to improve the operation response required for downloading, to reduce the amount of data of the related document occupying the data storage medium, and to access the actual data file of the related document. In such a case, since the browsing application is installed, it can be secured by accessing the server through the shortcut file.

According to the twenty-eighth aspect, the twenty-seventh aspect is provided.
In the storage medium described, the amount of data is reduced by first storing the data in a data storage medium in the form of a shortcut file.However, when the actual data file of the related document is actually referenced through the shortcut file, Since the data on the data storage medium is replaced with the real data file and the shortcut file is deleted, the client can refer to the real data file of the related document without accessing the server side. The operation response of the reference operation can be improved.

According to the invention set forth in claim 29, claim 2
In the storage medium according to any one of Items 3 to 25, at the stage of storing the related document in the data storage medium, according to the file format selected by the user, the document is stored as an actual data file or a shortcut file. The response of the operation and the amount of data to be handled can be optimized depending on whether the frequency of use of the related document is high or low. In other words, the related document that is frequently used is saved as a real data file, so that the real data file exists on the client side. After that, there is no need to obtain the real data file from the server side, and when the frequency is high. By reducing the amount of data acquired from the server side by saving related documents that are not frequently used in a shortcut file, the processing speed can be improved and the data in the data storage medium can be improved. The usage can be reduced.

According to the invention of claim 30, basically the same effects as in the case of the invention of claim 29 can be obtained, but in particular, any one of the file format of the real data file or the shortcut file is used. Is automatically selected on the server side in accordance with the number of times the related document is referenced, so that the user can save time and effort in selecting.

According to the storage medium of the thirty-first aspect, when a document stored in the server is designated and written to the data storage medium of the client, first, a shortcut file having a small data amount is used. However, if the number of references exceeds a predetermined number, the document is determined to be frequently used, and the actual data file is stored in the data storage medium of the client. Therefore, after that, the actual data file of the document can be referenced at high speed through the shortcut file without accessing the server side, and the operation response can be improved. Therefore, the data usage of the data storage medium can be reduced.

According to the storage medium of the invention described in claim 32, basically, the effect of the invention described in claim 31 can be obtained. Since the two storage media can be freely selected, when the real data file on the client side becomes old, it is possible to cope with the situation by accessing the server side and updating the new real data file. it can.

According to the invention of claim 33, claim 3
In realizing the invention described in 2, the update date and time related to the actual data file are managed for each of the server side and the data storage medium side, and by comparing the newness of the update date and time, it is determined from which one the actual data file is obtained. Since the automatic selection is performed, the burden on the user is reduced and the latest data is always updated, compared to the case where the real data file on the server and the real data file on the data storage medium are synchronized by a user trigger. You can refer to the data file.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a basic configuration diagram of a document management system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an internal hardware configuration of a client.

FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control between a client and a server.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 5 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an example of processing control between a client and a server according to the second embodiment of this invention;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an example of processing control between a client and a server according to the third embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 9 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an example of processing control between a client and a server according to the fourth embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a dialog for selecting a writing method.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 12 illustrates a client / client according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.
It is a schematic flowchart which shows the example of a process control between servers.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 14 illustrates a client / client according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.
It is a schematic flowchart which shows the example of a process control between servers.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a provided folder configuration.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a display example of properties of a shortcut file according to the seventh embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 17 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control up to creation of a shortcut file between a client and a server.

FIG. 18 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an example of processing control after creation of a shortcut file between a client and a server.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a display example of properties of a shortcut file according to the eighth embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 20 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control between a client and a server when there is no link destination in the client.

FIG. 21 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control between a client and a server when there is a link destination in the client.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of properties of a shortcut file according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control between a client and a server when there is no link destination in the client.

FIG. 24 is a schematic flowchart showing an example of processing control between a client and a server when there is a link destination in a client.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a related document.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 server 2 client 9 data storage medium, storage medium C2 document acquisition means, document acquisition function C5 related document acquisition means, related document acquisition function C6, C7 related document storage means, related document storage function C11 related document acquisition means, related document acquisition Function C12, C13 Related document storage unit, related document storage function C14 Related document acquisition unit, related document acquisition function C15, C16 Related document storage unit, related document storage function C21 Related document acquisition unit, related document acquisition function C22, C23 Related document Storage unit, related document storage function C24 Related document acquisition unit, related document acquisition function C25, C26 Related document storage unit, related document storage function C31 Related document acquisition unit, related document acquisition function C32, C33 selection unit, selection function C36, C38 Related document storage means, related document storage function C41, C4 3 Related Document Storage Unit, Related Document Storage Function C52, C53 Related Document Storage Unit, Related Document Storage Function C56 Related Document Storage Unit, Related Document Storage Function C61 Related Document Acquisition Unit, Related Document Acquisition Function C62, C63 Related Document Storage Unit, Related document storage function C64 Related document acquisition unit, related document acquisition function C65, C66 Related document storage unit, related document storage function C69, C70 Replacement processing unit, replacement processing function C81, C83 Shortcut acquisition unit or shortcut acquisition function C95, C96 Replacement Processing unit, replacement processing function C104, C105 Replacement processing unit, replacement processing function C104, C110 Replacement processing unit, replacement processing function C110 Update date / time management unit, update date / time management function C112 Comparison unit, comparison function, acquisition destination selection unit,
Acquisition destination selection function S21, S22 Shortcut creation means S34, S35, S37, S38 Shortcut creation means S52-S55 File format selection means S58-S61 File format selection means S71, S72 Shortcut creation means

Claims (33)

[Claims] 1. A document comprising: means for storing a real data file of a document; and means for storing link information of documents stored in a document designated by a user in a parent-child relationship as related documents. A document acquisition unit that is connected to the management server and has a browsing application installed therein, the document acquisition unit causing the server to designate a desired document, acquire the document file, and save the acquired document file in a data storage medium; A related document acquisition unit for requesting the server to create a list of related documents in accordance with the specification of the document and acquiring a file of the related document included in the list; Related document storage means for storing the document file together with the document file in the data storage medium. G. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the list of related documents acquired by the related document acquiring unit includes a parent document and a child document collectively, and the related document storing unit collectively stores the documents in the same folder. Item 7. The client according to Item 1. 3. The list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition unit includes a list of parent documents and a list of child documents separated from each other. 2. The client according to claim 1, wherein the client is separately stored in a parent document folder and a child document folder. 4. The client according to claim 1, wherein the file of the related document stored in the data storage medium is a real data file. 5. The related document acquisition means requests the server to create a shortcut file having link destination information to a real data file of a related document, and acquires the shortcut file. 4. The client according to claim 1, wherein the file of the related document stored in the medium is a shortcut file. 6. A replacement process in which when a shortcut file refers to the actual data file of the relevant document in the server, the relevant document is replaced with the actual data file, saved in the data storage medium, and the shortcut file is deleted. 6. The client according to claim 5, comprising means. 7. The related document acquiring means has a selecting means for arbitrarily selecting any of a real data file and a shortcut file for the related document to be acquired, and the related document is obtained in a file format selected by the selecting means. 4. The client according to claim 1, wherein the related document storage unit stores a file of the related document in the data storage medium in accordance with the obtained file format. 5. 8. The related document acquisition unit acquires a related document in a file format of a real data file or a shortcut file automatically selected by the server according to a reference frequency of the related document. Item 4. The client according to any one of Items 1 to 3. 9. A client connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document and having a browsing application installed therein, and designating a desired document to the server. A shortcut obtaining means for requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document, obtaining the shortcut file, and storing the shortcut file in a data storage medium in a file format of the shortcut file; Counting means for counting the number of references to the actual data file of the document in the server; and when the number of references counted by the counting means reaches a predetermined number, the document is replaced with the actual data file and the shortcut file is deleted. Link destination Replacement processing means for changing to the data storage medium and storing the data in the data storage medium. 10. A client connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document and having a browsing application installed therein, and designating a desired document to the server. A shortcut obtaining means for requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document, obtaining the shortcut file, and saving the file in a data storage medium in a file format of the shortcut file; When the actual data file of the document in the server is referred to, the actual data file of the document is replaced with the data storage medium, and the data storage medium is selectively described as a link destination of the shortcut file, and the data storage medium is selected. Clients with a replacement processing unit is stored, to. 11. An update date / time management means for managing an update date / time of a real data file of a document stored in the data storage medium, and an update date / time management unit which is managed by the server when referring to the real data file of the document by a shortcut file. Comparing means for comparing the update date and time of the real data file of the document with the update date and time managed by the update date and time management means; and the server or the server The client according to claim 10, further comprising: an acquisition destination selection unit configured to acquire from the data storage medium. 12. A document management system in which a server and a client on which a browsing application is installed are connected, the server comprising: means for storing a real data file of the document; Means for storing link information of documents specified in association with each other as related documents, wherein the client causes the server to designate a desired document, obtains the document file, and stores the document file in the data storage medium. Document acquisition means for requesting the server to create a list of related documents in accordance with the specification of the document, and acquiring a file of the related document included in the list, and the acquired related document Files stored in a folder together with the document file. A document management system and a document storage unit. 13. The list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition unit in the client includes a parent document and a child document collectively, and the related document storage unit collectively stores the same in the same folder. Claim 1 to save
2. The document management system according to item 2. 14. The list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition unit in the client includes a list of parent documents and a list of child documents separated from each other, and the related document storage unit is the same. 13. The document management system according to claim 12, wherein the folder is separately stored in a folder of a parent document and a folder of a child document. 15. The document management system according to claim 12, wherein a file of a related document stored in the data storage medium in the client is a real data file. 16. The server further comprises: a shortcut creation unit that creates and outputs a shortcut file of a related document in response to a request for creating a shortcut file; Requesting the creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the related document, and acquiring the shortcut file created by the shortcut creating means, wherein the file of the related document to be stored in the data storage medium is a shortcut 15. The document management system according to claim 12, wherein the document management system is a file. 17. The client, when referring to the real data file of the relevant document in the server by the shortcut file, replaces the relevant document with the real data file, saves the relevant document in the data storage medium, and stores the shortcut file in the data storage medium. 17. The document management system according to claim 16, further comprising replacement processing means for deleting. 18. The related document acquiring means in the client includes a selecting means for arbitrarily selecting any of a real data file and a shortcut file for the related document to be acquired, and a file format selected by the selecting means. The document management system according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein the related document storage unit acquires a related document in accordance with the acquired file format, and stores the related document file in the data storage medium. 19. The server includes a file format selection unit that automatically selects a file format of a real data file or a shortcut file according to a reference frequency of the related document, and obtains the related document in the client. 15. The document management system according to claim 12, wherein the means acquires the related document in a file format automatically selected by the file format selecting means. 20. A document management system in which a server and a client in which a browsing application is installed are connected, wherein the server receives a request for creating a shortcut file and a unit for storing a real data file of the document. Shortcut creation means for creating and outputting a shortcut file of a document, wherein the client causes the server to designate a desired document and creates a shortcut file having link destination information to an actual data file of the document. Requesting the shortcut file created by the shortcut creating means, and saving the shortcut file in the file format of the shortcut file to the data storage medium. Counting means for counting the number of references referred to, and when the number of references counted by the counting means reaches a predetermined number, the document is replaced with an actual data file and the link destination of the shortcut file is changed to the data storage medium. And a replacement processing means for storing the data in the data storage medium. 21. A document management system in which a server and a client in which a browsing application is installed are connected, wherein the server receives a request for creating a shortcut file and a unit for storing a real data file of the document. A shortcut creation unit that creates and outputs a shortcut file of a related document, wherein the client specifies a desired document to the server, and stores a shortcut file having link destination information to an actual data file of the document. Shortcut acquisition means for requesting creation, acquiring the shortcut file created by the shortcut creation means, and storing the shortcut file in the data storage medium in the file format of the shortcut file; A replacement processing means for replacing the actual data file of the document with the data storage medium for the document and selectively writing the data storage medium as a link destination of the shortcut file and saving the data storage medium in the data storage medium. Document management system equipped. 22. The server further comprises server-side update date and time management means for managing the update date and time of the real data file of the stored document; and the client comprises the update date and time of the real data file of the document stored in the data storage medium. A client-side update date and time management unit that manages the actual data file of the document managed by the server-side update date and time management unit in the server when the actual data file of the document is referenced by a shortcut file; A comparing unit for comparing the newness with the update date and time managed by the client-side update date and time management unit, and an acquisition destination for acquiring an actual data file to be referred to from the server or the data storage medium according to the comparison result of the comparison unit 22. The document management system according to claim 21, further comprising: selecting means. 23. A document comprising: means for storing a real data file of a document; and means for storing link information of documents stored in a document whose association is specified by a user in a parent-child relationship as related documents. It is connected to a management server and is installed on a client computer in which a browsing application is installed. The computer specifies a desired document to the server, acquires the document file, and obtains a data storage medium. A related document acquisition function for requesting the server to create a list of related documents in accordance with the specification of the document and acquiring a file of the related document included in the list; Files in a folder together with the document file in the data storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium storing a related document saving function to be saved and a program for executing the function. 24. The list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition function includes a parent document and a child document collectively, and the related document storage function collectively stores the same in the same folder. Item 24. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to Item 23. 25. The list of related documents acquired by the related document acquisition function includes a list of parent documents and a list of child documents separated from each other, and the related document storage function operates in the same folder. 24. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to claim 23, wherein the program is stored separately in a parent document folder and a child document folder. 26. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to claim 23, wherein a file of the related document stored in the data storage medium by the related document storage function is an actual data file. . 27. The related document acquisition function requests the server to create a shortcut file having link destination information to a real data file of a related document, and acquires the shortcut file. 26. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to claim 23, wherein a file of a related document stored in the data storage medium by a storage function is a shortcut file. 28. Replacement processing for referring to the real data file of the relevant document in the server by using a shortcut file, replacing the relevant document with the real data file, storing the relevant document in the data storage medium, and deleting the shortcut file. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program according to claim 27 having a function. 29. The related document acquisition function has a selection function of arbitrarily selecting one of an actual data file and a shortcut file for a related document to be acquired, and the related document is acquired in a file format selected by the selection function. 26. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to claim 23, wherein the related document storage function causes the related document storage function to store a file of a related document in the data storage medium in accordance with the obtained file format. 30. The related document acquisition function acquires a related document in a file format of an actual data file or a shortcut file automatically selected by the server according to a reference frequency of the related document. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to any one of Items 23 to 25. 31. A computer connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document, and installed on a client computer in which a browsing application is installed. Requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document by requesting a desired document, obtaining the shortcut file, and storing the shortcut file in a file format of the shortcut file on a data storage medium; and A counting function for counting the number of references to the actual data file of the document in the server using the shortcut file; and replacing the document with the actual data file when the number of references counted by the counting function reaches a predetermined number. And A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for executing a replacement processing function for causing a link destination of the shortcut file to be changed to the data storage medium and storing the data in the data storage medium. 32. A computer connected to a document management server having means for storing a real data file of a document, and installed on a client computer in which a browsing application is installed. Requesting creation of a shortcut file having link destination information to the actual data file of the document by requesting a desired document, obtaining the shortcut file, and storing the shortcut file in a file format of the shortcut file on a data storage medium; and When a shortcut file refers to the actual data file of the document in the server, the actual data file of the document is replaced with the data storage medium, and the data storage is performed as a link destination of the shortcut file. Computer-readable storage medium which stores a program for executing a replacement processing function selected freely also shown the body is stored in the data storage medium. 33. An update date / time management function for managing an update date / time of a real data file of a document stored in the data storage medium, and an update date / time management function managed by the server when referring to the real data file of the document by a shortcut file. A comparison function for comparing the update date and time of the real data file of the document with the update date and time managed by the update date and time management function, and the server or the server 33. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 32, wherein a program for causing the computer to execute an acquisition destination selection function to be obtained from a data storage medium is stored.