JP4808028B2 - Information processing apparatus for electronic documents, information processing method, information processing program, and computer-readable recording medium on which information processing program is recorded - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus for an electronic document, an information processing method, an information processing program, and a computer-readable recording medium storing the information processing program, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus for receiving and processing electronic document data. The present invention relates to an information processing method, an information processing program, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the information processing program is recorded.

  Electronic document distribution services such as electronic books are provided via the Internet and the like. In particular, recently, in this service, a terminal that receives and browses an electronic document is a high-performance terminal such as a personal computer, which has a low CPU (Central Processing Unit) capability, a small display screen, and a small memory capacity. A wide variety of devices are available, including terminals with limited functions such as telephones. The connection environment with the distribution server also varies from a high-speed communication environment such as an optical fiber cable or ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) to a low-speed communication environment such as a mobile phone.

  HTML (HyperText Mark-up Language), which is being standardized by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) shown in the following non-patent literature, and PDF (Portable Document Format) by ADOBE, Inc. And Open eBook, which is being standardized in the United States. In these formats, each document can be mixed with multimedia data such as image data, audio data, and video data in addition to plain text as a body. Since it is difficult to display an electronic document in which these various types of data are mixed on all terminals of different types from a personal computer to a mobile phone, the following is usually performed. In other words, when creating an electronic document, the electronic document is created for a personal computer, the electronic document is for a mobile phone, and the user downloads the electronic document from the distribution server. In addition, an electronic document corresponding to the type of terminal is selected and downloaded.

  Some browsers that display HTML documents are configured to allow the user to selectively set whether to display or play back image data (including still image data and moving image data), audio data, etc. in an electronic document There is. This setting is a batch setting for all the image data and audio data in the electronic document, and is not individually set for each individual image data or each audio data.

In addition, when a user downloads an electronic document from a distribution server, there is one that presents the data capacity of the entire electronic document to the user in order to assist the user in determining whether to download the electronic document. .
Dave Raggett <dsr@w3.org>, Arnaud Le Hors <lehors@w3.org>, Ian Jacobs <ij@w3.org> .HTML 4.0 Specification W3C Recommendation. 12.1 Introduction to links and anchors, 13.2 Including an image : the IMG element. [on line] .revised on 24-Apr-1998. W3C (MIT, INRIA, Keio). [retrieved on 2003-05-27] .Retrieved from the Internet: <URL: http: // www .w3.org / TR / 1998 / REC-html140-19980424 />.

  However, it has been troublesome to create an electronic document for each type (or model) of the display device. In addition, since there are multiple electronic documents with the same title for different types of terminals, when a user downloads an electronic document, an electronic document that is different from the type (or model) of his / her terminal is selected incorrectly. Sometimes it happened.

  In addition, some image data in an electronic document is used as an illustration or used to express an external character. Some audio data, like background music (BGM), does not affect the understanding of the contents of an electronic document even if it is not played. Some electronic documents, such as English teaching materials that are being used, lose their attractiveness if they are not reproduced. As described above, the purpose of using the image data or the sound data in the electronic document is various.

  Some users think that illustrations do not need to be displayed, and some people think that BGM does not need to be played. As described above, there has been no control that selectively displays or reproduces data based on how the data is used, or downloads data from a distribution server. Data that is not displayed or played back is downloaded even though it is unnecessary for the user. If the data storage area is small, such as a mobile phone, the storage area is wasted and saved. The amount of electronic document data that can be reduced. Also, it takes extra time to download and extra communication costs.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, an information processing program, and a computer-readable recording medium on which an information processing program is recorded that reduces a load related to processing of an electronic document.

  In order to achieve the above object, an information processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention stores a plurality of electronic documents in advance and transmits information on the electronic document requested to be transmitted from among the plurality of electronic documents. An information processing apparatus that communicates with the apparatus. Specifically, the information processing apparatus is selected by the selection unit for selecting a file desired to be received from among the plurality of files based on the attribute information of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document. A file request transmission unit that transmits a request including file designation information for designating a file to a distribution device, and an electronic document information reception unit that receives and processes a selection file of a desired electronic document as electronic document information from the distribution device.

  Therefore, in the information processing apparatus, a request including file designation information for designating a file desired to be received, which is selected in advance by the selection means, from the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document is sent to the distribution apparatus by the file request transmission means. By transmitting, the selected file of the desired electronic document transmitted from the distribution apparatus can be received and processed by the electronic document information receiving means.

  Therefore, in the information processing apparatus, when the desired electronic document is distributed from the distribution apparatus, the request is transmitted by the file request transmission unit, so that not all of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document are received. Since only the desired file can be selectively received, the load related to the reception processing by the electronic document information receiving means can be reduced.

  In addition, it is possible to reduce a load related to a line regarding communication of an electronic document between the information processing apparatus and the distribution apparatus.

  Preferably, the selection means includes support information display means for displaying information for supporting file selection in accordance with attribute information indicating attributes of a plurality of files, and for selecting a desired file from the outside based on the displayed support information. A file having attribute information corresponding to the instruction inputted in is selected from a plurality of files.

  Therefore, when selecting a file desired to be received by the selection unit, the support information display unit displays information for supporting file selection according to the attribute information of the plurality of files. An instruction corresponding to the value of attribute information for selecting a file can be input.

  Therefore, an instruction corresponding to the value of attribute information for selecting a desired file can be appropriately input.

  Preferably, the attribute information includes information indicating a purpose of use in the electronic document for each of a plurality of files constituting the electronic document. Therefore, the desired file can be selected according to the intended use of the file.

  Preferably, the attribute information includes information indicating a location used in the electronic document for each of a plurality of files constituting the electronic document. Therefore, the desired file can be selected according to the place where the file is used in the desired electronic document.

  Preferably, the electronic document information receiving means further comprises output means for outputting information based on the selected file received and processed.

  Therefore, information based on the selected file subjected to the reception process can be presented to the outside. At this time, not all the information of the desired electronic document is presented, but only the information based on the selected file is presented, so the load related to the output process can be reduced. This output process may include a display process or an audio output process.

  Preferably, the information processing apparatus further includes a storage unit for storing information, and the selected file received by the reception process is stored in the storage unit.

  Therefore, since not all of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document but only the file desired to be received can be received and stored in the storage unit, useless memory consumption can be avoided in the storage unit.

  Preferably, the support information includes information indicating a size of an area where new data can be stored in the storage unit and information indicating a size of the entire selected file.

  Therefore, when selecting a file desired to be received by the selection unit, the support information display unit provides information on the size of the area in the storage unit where new data can be stored and information on the size of the entire selected file. Since it is displayed, the user can select a desired file while comparing the information of two sizes.

  Therefore, it is possible to avoid in advance a situation in which a desired file is received but cannot be stored due to insufficient storage capacity.

  Preferably, the attribute information of the plurality of files includes a reproduction flag at the time of browsing corresponding to each file. The browsing reproduction flag is a flag that sets permission or prohibition of output processing of a corresponding file depending on whether or not an electronic document is purchased.

  When the electronic document is not purchased when receiving the selected file, the file to be transmitted from the distribution device is restricted according to the value of the playback flag during browsing.

  According to the present invention, among files constituting an electronic document, only files required by individual users can be confirmed before downloading the electronic document, so that files unnecessary for the user need not be downloaded. Become. As a result, by downloading unnecessary data, it is possible to prevent wasteful use of an area of the storage unit of the information processing apparatus and unnecessary communication. In addition, it is not necessary to prepare an electronic document for each type of information processing apparatus in the distribution apparatus or to prepare a file structure according to individual user needs.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to another aspect of the present invention, a distribution device that stores a plurality of electronic documents in advance and transmits information on the electronic document requested to be transmitted from among the plurality of electronic documents. An information processing method executed in an information processing apparatus that communicates with a computer includes: a selection step for selecting a file desired to be received from a plurality of files based on attribute information of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document; A file request sending step for sending a request including file designation information for designating the file selected in the step to the distribution device; and reception of electronic document information for receiving a selection file of a desired electronic document as electronic document information from the distribution device Steps.

  In order to achieve the above object, an information processing program according to still another aspect of the present invention is an information processing program for causing a computer to execute the above information processing method.

  In order to achieve the above object, the above information processing program is recorded on a computer readable recording medium according to still another aspect of the present invention.

  By executing the information processing method or the information processing program described above, in the information processing apparatus, when the desired electronic document is distributed from the distribution apparatus, the request is transmitted by the file request transmission step, so that the desired electronic document is Since it is possible to receive not only all of the plurality of files that are configured but only the file that is desired to be received, it is possible to reduce the load related to the reception processing in the electronic document information reception step. In addition, it is possible to reduce a load related to a line regarding communication of an electronic document between the information processing apparatus and the distribution apparatus.

  Further, the following distribution device may be provided. In other words, the distribution apparatus that communicates with the information processing apparatus and transmits information on the electronic document requested to be transmitted from the information processing apparatus from among a plurality of electronic documents prepared in advance has the following characteristics.

  That is, the electronic document is composed of a plurality of files, and the distribution apparatus includes file designation information that designates the selected file based on the attribute information of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document from the information processing apparatus. And a file request receiving means for receiving the request, and in the desired electronic document of the plurality of electronic documents based on the file designation information of the received request, the selected file is detected from the plurality of files and transmitted to the information processing apparatus Means.

  Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, in the above-described information processing apparatus, the output unit selects a file that has not been selected as a file desired to be received by the selection unit from among a plurality of files constituting the electronic document. Information based on alternative data recorded in advance in the document is output.

  Preferably, in the case where the electronic document purchase procedure has not been performed, in the file selected by the selection unit, the playback flag at the time of browsing indicates that the output process is prohibited unless the electronic document purchase procedure has been performed. The file designation information for the file in which the value to be set is set is not included in the request transmitted by the file request transmission means.

  Hereinafter, each embodiment of the present invention will be described. Here, as processing of document data, processing for displaying an image or the like and processing for outputting sound is described as an example. However, the processing is not limited to this, and processing such as printing may be performed.

(Embodiment 1)
The information processing system according to the present embodiment of FIG. 1 stores electronic document data, and is transmitted from the distribution server 100 and the distribution server 100 that transmit each file of the electronic document data requested by the user to the user side. A display device 101 that receives and displays or reproduces each file of electronic document data (displays images and characters, or reproduces and outputs sound) and a network 102 that connects the distribution server 100 and the display device 101 are provided. . Each of the distribution server 100 and the display device 101 has a computer function for processing information. Here, the display of images and characters by the display device 101 or the operation of reproducing and outputting sound is collectively referred to as display reproduction.

  The display apparatus 101 transmits data of an electronic document name to be received to the distribution server 100 and transmits data specifying a file to be downloaded among the files of the electronic document data to the distribution server 100. The electronic document data is transmitted from the distribution server 100 to the display device 101 via the network 102.

  The distribution server 100 searches the document DB 103 for a document DB (Data Base) 103 that is a storage unit that stores a plurality of electronic document data 10 to be transmitted to the display device 101 in a file format, and a file instructed from the display device 101. And an input unit 104 for reading and an instruction from the display device 101, and a transmission / reception unit 105 for transmitting the instructed file to the display device 101.

  The display device 101 includes a data selection unit 106, a transmission / reception unit 107, a document storage unit 108, a display reproduction unit 109, and a user instruction reception unit 110. Based on an instruction from the user, the data selection unit 106 selects the electronic document data 10 that the user desires to display and reproduce, and display and reproduction are desired among the files used in the electronic document data 10. Select a file. The transmission / reception unit 107 transmits information identifying the electronic document data or file selected by the data selection unit 106, for example, electronic document data name or file name data to the distribution server 100, and receives a file transmitted from the distribution server 100. To do. The document storage unit 108 stores each file of the electronic document data 10 received by the transmission / reception unit 107. The display / playback unit 109 displays and plays back the content stored in the document storage unit 108. The user instruction receiving unit 110 receives user instructions from the outside.

  The display reproduction unit 109 includes a display unit configured with a display or the like that displays an image based on the image data, and an audio output unit configured with a speaker or the like for reproducing and outputting audio data. The document storage unit 108 includes an external recording medium such as a magnetic recording medium that can be detachably connected to the display device 101. The received electronic document data 10 may be stored in an external recording medium.

  FIG. 2 shows an example in which the display device 101 is applied to a mobile phone 900. The mobile phone 900 includes a display unit 901 that displays text and images according to the electronic document data 10, an audio output unit 902 that outputs audio according to the electronic document data 10, and a key button unit 903. The audio output unit 902 is, for example, an earphone. The display reproduction unit 109 is configured by the display unit 901 and the audio output unit 902. The key button unit 903 constitutes a part of the user instruction receiving unit 110, and is operated by the user to receive an instruction from the user. By operating the key button unit 903, the user can select the electronic document data 10 to be displayed and reproduced, and can instruct page turning of the electronic document displayed and reproduced.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3A, each electronic document data 10 of the document DB 103 is composed of a plurality of data groups (hereinafter referred to as files) in a file format. It is stored in the document DB 103 in advance. Specifically, the electronic document data 10 includes a text file 11 in which text data is recorded, one or more image files 12 in which image data used (quoted / referenced) in the text data is recorded, and audio data. One or more audio files 13 and a meta information file 14 (see FIG. 8), which will be described later, are configured in advance.

  Referring to FIG. 3B, the text file 11 is generally recorded in a plurality of recording areas. In the present embodiment, each of the divided recording areas is referred to as a flow, and a partial body data file recorded in the flow is referred to as a flow file 21. Although there is no particular rule on how to divide the flow, it is usually divided into predetermined unit data such as chapters of body data or articles. The text file 11 may be a single text flow file 11 without being divided. In addition to the plurality of flow files 21, the body file 11 may include a table of contents file 22 for recording table of contents data separately from the flow file 21. This is because the table of contents data can be easily separated from the body data in response to the user's request that the table of contents file 22 need not be displayed and reproduced if only the flow file 21 that records normal body data can be displayed and reproduced. It is to keep. In the following description, the electronic document data 10 in which the body file 11 includes a plurality of flow files 21 and a table of contents file 22 will be described as an example.

  The flow file 21 includes text corresponding to the body of the flow, character modification instructions such as character color and character thickness, and image files 12 and audio files such as image data and audio data inserted during the flow. For example, information such as a file name is recorded. Although the format of the flow file 21 is not particularly determined, it is easy to understand if a tagged document represented by, for example, HTML is assumed. Hereinafter, a format in which a unique tag is added to XHTML as shown in FIG. 4 will be described as the format of the flow file 21, but the present invention is not particularly limited to this format.

  The flow file 21 in FIG. 4 will be described. In FIG. 4, the flow file 21 includes tags 301 to 304. The tag 301 designates the audio data file 13 ("s1.mp3") to be played as BGM when displaying and reproducing this flow. A tag 302 is a tag for designating an external character, and an image data file 12 for external characters ("i1.jpg") and an alternative character string ("(C)") to be displayed when display using image data is not performed. specify. FIG. 5 shows an example of an image “i1.jpg”. When the user instructs to display an external character as an image, the display / playback unit 109 displays a character image based on the content of the image file 12 ("i1.jpg") specified by this tag, as shown in FIG. 6A. , Enlarged or reduced to display the same size as the surrounding text. On the other hand, if an image is not designated for display of external characters, an alternative character string ("(C)") according to the character code is displayed instead of the image as shown in FIG. 6B. Even if the substitute character string is displayed in place of an image, a character string that has the same meaning as the preceding and following character strings is set. A tag 303 designates an image file 12 ("i2.jpg") to be inserted as an illustration. When the user instructs to display an insertion image such as an illustration, an image 910 based on the contents of the image file 12 (“i2.jpg”) is displayed as shown in FIG. 7A. On the other hand, when the user does not instruct to display the illustration image, instead of displaying the image of the designated image file 12 as shown in FIG. 7B, the insertion image like the illustration is actually there. A mark 911 is displayed to make the user aware of the presence. The tag 304 designates the audio file 13 (“s2.mp3”) to be played when the character string 305 “here” in FIG. 4 is clicked. Normal audio is recorded in the format shown in the tag 304. The table of contents file 22 is described in the same format as the flow file 21.

  As described above, the image file 12 or the audio file 13 used in each flow file 21 of the text file 11 is specified by describing a tag. As a result, a link can be established between the text file 11 and the designated image file 12 or audio file 13 prepared separately, so that the link is made at the place where the tag is described. The image according to the contents of the corresponding image file 12 can be displayed, and the music according to the contents of the corresponding audio file 13 can be reproduced and output.

  Next, the meta information file 14 in FIG. 3 will be described. The meta information file 14 includes information about the attributes of the electronic document data 10 and the attributes of the text file 11 constituting the electronic document data 10 and one or more image files 12 and audio files 13 used in the text file 11. Is stored. It is assumed that the content of the meta information file 14 is created by a supplier of the electronic data 10 when the electronic data 10 is registered in the distribution server 100 in advance. The meta information file 14 is first transmitted from the distribution server 100 to the display device 101 prior to downloading (transmission) of the electronic document data 10 to the display device 101. As shown in FIG. 8, the meta information file 14 includes bibliographic data 200 indicating a bibliography, text file information 201 in which information on the text file 11 is recorded, image file information 202 in which information on the image file 12 is recorded, It includes audio file information 203 in which information related to the audio file 13 is recorded.

  The bibliographic data 200 includes title name data 204 indicating the main title of the electronic document data 10, subtitle name data 205 indicating the subtitle, author name data 206, and a document indicating a document ID for uniquely identifying the electronic document data 10. ID data 207 is included. Data of other items such as a publisher name and a series title may be added to the bibliographic data 200 as necessary.

  The body file information 201 includes data 208 indicating the number of flows of the electronic document data 10, attribute information of the flow file 21 for each flow, that is, flow file name data 209 and 211, and the file size of the flow file 21. Data 210 and 212, table of contents file name data 213 of the table of contents file 22, and file size data 214 of the table of contents file 22 are included. The text file information 201 includes flow file name data and file size data repeatedly for the number of flows. When no table of contents information is added to the electronic document data 10, the table of contents file name data 213 and the file size data 214 are omitted.

  The image file information 202 includes data 215 indicating the number of image data (image file 12) used in the electronic document data 10, and data 216, 219 indicating the attribute of each image file 12, that is, the file name. , Data 217 and 220 indicating information on the purpose of use and location (area, flow) in the electronic document data 10 corresponding to the image data (image file 12), and data 218 indicating the file size of the image data (image file 12) 221. The image file information 202 includes data groups of corresponding image file name data 216 to corresponding image file size data 218 corresponding to the number of image files 12.

  The audio file information 203 includes data 222 indicating the number of audio data (audio file 13) used in the electronic document data 10, and attribute information for each audio file 13. The attribute information includes data 223 and 226 indicating the file name of the audio file 13, data 224 and 227 indicating information on the purpose and area of use of the audio data (audio file 13) in the electronic document data 10, and audio data (audio file 13). ) And 225 and 228 indicating the file size. This audio file information 203 includes data groups of file name data 223 to file size data 225 corresponding to the number of audio files 13.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of usage purpose and usage area information of the image file 12 indicated by the data 217 (220) in FIG. The data 217 (220) in FIG. 9 includes data 400 and 401 indicating the purpose of use, and data 402 and 403 indicating the use area.

  Data 400 indicates whether the image file 12 is designated for use for an image for external characters. That is, if the image file 12 is specified by the “alt-img” attribute of the tag 302 in FIG. 4 at any location in the text file 11, the data 400 indicates “YES”, and the text file 11 If it is not specified anywhere, no is shown. Data 401 indicates whether or not use of the image file 12 is specified for the inserted image. That is, if the image file 12 is specified by the “src” attribute of the tag 303 in FIG. 4 at any location in the text file 11, “YES” is indicated, and anywhere in the text file 11 is indicated. If not specified, "NO" is indicated.

  Data 402 indicates in which flow the image file 12 is used, and indicates the number of the flow being used regardless of the purpose of use. The flow number means the registration order of the flow information in the text file information 201 of FIG. When the image file 12 is used in a plurality of flows, a plurality of flow numbers are recorded. The data 403 is data indicating whether or not the image file 12 is used in the table of contents file 22, and indicates “YES” if it is used in the table of contents file 22, and “NO” if it is not used.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of usage purpose and usage area information of the audio file 13 recorded in the data 224 (227) of FIG. Data 500 and 501 in FIG. 10 indicate the purpose of use, and data 502 and 503 indicate the use area.

  Data 500 indicates whether the audio file 13 is used as BGM. That is, if the audio file 13 is designated as BGM by the “x-BGM” attribute of the tag 301 in FIG. If no BGM is specified anywhere, “NO” is indicated. Data 501 indicates whether or not the music file 13 is used as normal sound. That is, if the audio file 13 is specified by the “href” attribute of the tag 304 (<a> tag) in FIG. "NO" is indicated if it is not specified anywhere.

  Data 502 indicates in which flow the audio file 13 is used, and indicates the number of the flow being used regardless of the purpose of use. This flow number means the registration order of the flow information in the text file information 201 of FIG. When the audio file 13 is used in a plurality of flows, a plurality of flow numbers are recorded. The data 503 indicates whether or not the audio file 13 is used in the table of contents file 22. Regardless of the purpose of use, "YES" is used if it is used in the table of contents file 22, and "NO" is not used. Indicates.

  A processing procedure until the electronic document data 10 is displayed and reproduced according to the flowchart of FIG. First, the user of the display apparatus 101 selects the electronic document data 10 that he / she wants to read (display / reproduce). That is, steps S101 to S105 are executed. Specifically, in step S101, the data selection unit 106 transmits a list request to the distribution server 100. Therefore, in steps S102 and S103, the distribution server 100 receives the list request and responds to the document DB 103 accordingly. A list of registered (stored) electronic document data 10 is transmitted to the display device 101. In step S <b> 104, the display device 101 receives the list and displays and reproduces the list via the display and reproduction unit 109. It is assumed that this list includes an array of title name data 204 of each electronic document data 10 in the document DB 103 and is prepared and prepared in advance in the distribution server 100. In step S <b> 105, the user refers to the displayed list and selects the title name data 204 of the electronic document data 10 to be displayed and reproduced via the user instruction receiving unit 110.

  If the number of electronic document data 10 registered in the document DB 103 is large, the user inputs conditions such as a category and a keyword of the electronic document data 10 to be displayed and reproduced, and is transmitted to the distribution server 100. A list of only the electronic document data 10 satisfying the condition may be acquired.

  In step S <b> 106, the data selection unit 106 transmits a transmission request for the corresponding meta information file 14 including the title name data 204 of the selected electronic document data 10 to the distribution server 100 via the transmission / reception unit 107. .

  In step S107, when the input unit 104 of the distribution server 100 receives the request via the transmission / reception unit 105, in step S108, the document DB 103 is searched based on the title name data 204 of the request, and the title name data 204 is retrieved. Is read, that is, the meta information file 14 of the electronic document data 10 selected and designated is transmitted to the display device 101 via the transmission / reception unit 105.

  In step S <b> 109, the data selection unit 106 of the display apparatus 101 receives the transmitted meta information file 14 via the transmission / reception unit 107.

  Next, in step S110, the data selection unit 106 analyzes the content of the received meta information file 14, and displays information for assisting the user in selecting a file that needs to be downloaded, as shown in FIG. 700 to 704 are presented to the user via the display / playback unit 109, and the user is made to select the data of the portion to be displayed / played back via the user instruction receiving unit 110. Files having attributes that have not been checked (i.e., checked) (not selected) via the user instruction receiving unit 110 in the dialog boxes 700 to 704 in FIG. 12 are excluded from download (transmission) targets from the distribution server 100. .

  In step S111, the data selection unit 106 downloads the document ID data 207 recorded in the meta information file 14 to the distribution server 100 and the download target in order to download the file selected to be downloaded in step S110. A download request (distribution request) including data of all the determined file names is transmitted to the distribution server 100 through the transmission / reception unit 107.

  In steps S112 and S113, when the input unit 104 of the distribution server 100 receives the download request via the transmission / reception unit 105, one or more files requested for download are read from the document DB 103 and displayed via the transmission / reception unit 105. 101.

  In step S <b> 114, the display apparatus 101 receives the file transmitted from the distribution server 100 via the transmission / reception unit 107 and stores it in the document storage unit 108. This completes the download of one or more files that the user desires to display and reproduce. At this time, each file may be individually downloaded. However, if it is complicated, the distribution server 100 side archives a plurality of files selected to be downloaded to the display device 101 into a single file, and then transmits the file. It may be designed to do.

  Thereafter, in step S <b> 115, in the display device 101, the display / playback unit 109 displays and plays back the electronic document data 10 based on one or more files stored in the document storage unit 108. Specifically, when the user sets not to display an image used for an external character in step S110, an alternative character string (tag 302 in FIG. 4) specified by the external character tag as shown in FIG. 6B. Display). If the setting is made so that the inserted image is not displayed, the inserted image is not displayed even if the image file 12 of the inserted image is specified as in the tag 303 of FIG. 4, and the image exists as shown in FIG. 7B. A mark 911 for informing the user that the user is doing is displayed instead. Note that a display device that cannot display the mark 911 because of its processing capability, such as a small display screen or image data, may display texts (character strings) before and after the <img> tag 303 by attaching them. Good. If the user sets not to reproduce the BGM audio file 13, the audio file 13 is not reproduced even if the BGM audio file 13 at the time of the flow reproduction display is specified as indicated by the tag 301 in FIG. 4. That is, control is performed so that BGM is not output. In addition, when it is set not to play normal audio except BGM, even if an area between the <a> tag (refer to tag 304 in FIG. 4) is clicked and designated by the user, the tag 304 specifies Control is performed so as not to reproduce the sound of the sound file 13 that has been made.

  Here, the process of step S110 is supplemented. A dialog box 700 in FIG. 12 is used by the user to select a text that the user wants to display and reproduce. In other words, the user is allowed to specify via the user instruction receiving unit 110 whether the flow to be displayed / reproduced is all flow or only the flow designated by the user and whether to display / reproduce the table of contents. Is for. In the example of FIG. 12, the first and second flow files 21 and the table of contents file 22 are designated as reproduction display targets, and the other part of the body (flow file 21) is designated as a reproduction display target.

  In the case of such designation, the flow file 21 indicating contents other than these two flows and the table of contents is excluded from the download target. Further, the image file 12 and the audio file 13 that are not used in the two selected flow files 21 and table of contents file 22 are identified based on the data 402 and data 403 in FIG. 9 and the data 502 and data 503 in FIG. Then, these identified files are also excluded from the download target. Specifically, when the data 402 of an image file 12 does not indicate any of the two flow numbers selected in the dialog box 700 and “NO” is also specified in the data 403, The image file 12 is determined not to be downloaded.

  A dialog box 701 is for allowing the user to select an image desired to be displayed. It is used to allow the user to select whether the image to be displayed is the image of all the image files 12 or only the image file 12 of an image having a specific role, that is, an image having a specific attribute. In the dialog box 701 in FIG. 12, only the image file 12 having the attribute “external character image” is designated as the display target, and the image file 12 having the attribute “inserted image” is excluded from the display target. In this case, among the image files 12, all the image files 12 in which the corresponding data 400 in FIG. 9 indicates “NO” are excluded from download targets. On the contrary, when “display inserted image” is selected in the dialog box 701 and “display image for external characters” is not selected, the corresponding data 401 in FIG. 9 in the image file 12 is “NO”. Is removed from the download target.

  When the display device 101 is a model that does not support image display, the data selection unit 106 excludes all image files 12 from the download target regardless of the setting of the dialog box 701, or a dialog by the user. You may comprise so that the setting of the box 701 may not be performed.

  As a result, since the image file 12 that cannot be processed by the display device 101 can be configured not to be downloaded, even if there are two types of the display device 101 owned by the user, those that can display images and those that cannot be displayed. The electronic document data 10 stored in the document DB 103 need not be prepared for each model. Therefore, the burden on the content creator is reduced and the number of electronic document data 10 that can be stored in the document DB 103 can be increased.

  A dialog box 702 is a dialog box for selecting a sound to be reproduced. Through this dialog box 702, the user can select all the audio files 13 to be reproduced for the selected electronic document data 10 or only the audio file 13 having a specific role, that is, a specific attribute. . In the dialog box 702 of FIG. 12, only the audio file 13 having the attribute “normal audio” is designated as the reproduction target, and the audio file 13 having the attribute “BGM” is excluded from the reproduction target. In this case, among the audio files 13 used in the selected electronic document data 10, all the audio files 13 in which the corresponding data 501 in FIG. 10 indicates “NO” are excluded from the download targets. Conversely, when “Play BGM” is selected in the dialog box 702 and “Play normal audio” is not selected, the audio file 13 whose corresponding data 500 in FIG. 10 indicates “NO” is excluded from the download target. Is done.

  When the display device 101 is a model that does not support audio reproduction, the data selection unit 106 excludes all audio files 13 from the download target regardless of the setting of the dialog box 702, or a dialog box by the user. You may comprise so that it may restrict | limit so that the setting of 702 cannot be performed.

  As a result, since the audio file 13 that cannot be processed by the display device 101 can be configured not to be downloaded, even when there are two types of the display device 101 owned by the user, those that can be played back and those that cannot be played back. The electronic document data 10 stored in the document DB 103 need not be prepared for each model. Therefore, the burden on the content creator is reduced, and the number of electronic document data that can be stored in the document DB 103 can be increased.

  A dialog box 703 is an area that displays the total data size (electronic document size) value of the file selected by the user. The data selection unit 106 selects the total file size of the files that are not excluded from the download target (selected as the download target) in any of the dialog boxes 700, 701, and 702, as the selected file in FIG. Is calculated from the data 210, 212, 218, 221, 225, 228, etc.

  The dialog box 704 is the maximum data size (storable size) that can be stored in the display device 101, and specifically matches the remaining size of the data storage area of the document storage unit 108. The data selection unit 106 acquires the remaining size from the document storage unit 108 and displays it in the dialog box 704. The user compares the electronic document size of the file to be downloaded displayed in the dialog box 703 with the storable size of the dialog box 704, and based on the comparison result, the dialog box 700, 701, and 702 is used as necessary. Reselect (narrow down) the files to be displayed and played back.

  By processing in this way, files that the user does not want to display and reproduce are not downloaded, so unnecessary communication can be omitted and the data storage area of the document storage unit 108 can be used effectively.

  In this embodiment, prior to downloading the electronic document data 10, the meta information file 14 is downloaded from the distribution server 100 to the display device 101, and the data selection unit 106 displays and reproduces it to the user based on the meta information file 14. However, the selection procedure is not limited to this. For example, the selection may be made without using the meta information file 14. Specifically, the display apparatus 101 sends the storable size of the dialog box 704 in FIG. 12 and the user selection results for the dialog boxes 701 and 702 to the distribution server 100 as a download request together with the document ID of the electronic document to be displayed and reproduced. Send. When the download request is received on the distribution server 100 side, several flow files 21, image files 12, audio files 13 and table of contents file 22 of the electronic document data 10 designated by the request are selected and read from the document DB 103. Alternatively, it may be transmitted to the display device 101. In this case, it is assumed that the distribution server 100 selects the file to be transmitted so that the total value of the file sizes does not exceed the storable size indicated by the download request.

  In the present embodiment, among files constituting an electronic document, only files required by individual users can be confirmed before downloading the electronic document, so that files unnecessary for the user need not be downloaded. Become. As a result, it is possible to prevent unnecessary use of a data storage area for display reproduction and occurrence of useless communication by downloading unnecessary data. Further, it is not necessary to prepare the electronic document data 10 for each model of the display device 101 or to prepare a file structure according to individual user needs.

(Embodiment 2)
In the present embodiment, before the electronic document data 10 is properly purchased and downloaded, the electronic document data 10 can be checked without purchasing it in order to check whether the content of the electronic document data 10 is what the user wants. 10 is configured so that a part of the contents can be confirmed. In the following description, this confirmation operation before purchase is referred to as “browsing”. The present embodiment is characterized in that the electronic document data 10 stored in the distribution server need not be created separately for browsing and for regular purchase.

  The information processing system according to the second embodiment in FIG. 13 stores the electronic document data 10 and from the distribution server 1000 and the distribution server 1000 that transmit each file of the electronic document data 10 requested by the user to the user side. A display device 1001 that receives each file of the transmitted electronic document data 10 and performs display reproduction (display of images, characters, etc., music reproduction), and a network 1002 that connects the distribution server 1000 and the display device 1001 are provided. Each of the distribution server 1000 and the display device 1001 is configured by a device having a computer function for processing information.

  The display device 1001 downloads to the distribution server 1000 the name of the electronic document that the user wants to receive, whether or not he / she wishes to purchase the electronic document, information necessary for charging when purchasing, and the electronic document data 10 1 Data specifying one or more files is transmitted to the distribution server 1000. The electronic document data 10 is transmitted from the distribution server 1000 to the display device 1001 via the network 1002.

  The distribution server 1000 is a document DB (Data Base) 1003 for storing a plurality of electronic document data 10 to be transmitted to the display device 1001 in a file format, and an input for searching and reading a file instructed from the display device 1001 from the document DB 1003. Unit 1004 receives an instruction from browsing determination unit 1011 that determines whether electronic document file 10 to be transmitted is handled as browsing content or content that has been properly purchased, and display device 1001, and instructed electronic document data 10 Is transmitted to the display device 1001.

  When the browsing determination unit 1011 determines that there is a purchase intention and the information necessary for charging is complete and charging is normally completed based on the purchase intention transmitted from the display device 1001 and information necessary for charging. In addition, it is determined that the electronic document data 10 to be transmitted is the content that has been properly purchased. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is no intention to purchase or the charging process has not been completed normally, the electronic document data 10 is determined as browsing content. For the electronic document data 10 determined as browsing content by the browsing determination unit 1011, the transmission / reception unit 1005 transmits to the display device 1001 only files that are permitted to be reproduced even during browsing. A method for specifying this permission will be described later.

  The display device 1001 includes a data selection unit 1006, a transmission / reception unit 1007, a document storage unit 1008, a display reproduction unit 1009, and a user instruction reception unit 1010. The data selection unit 1006 selects the electronic document data 10 that the user desires to display and reproduce, and selects the file that the user desires to display and reproduce from among the files constituting the electronic document data 10. The transmission / reception unit 1007 transmits the data of the electronic document data name and file name selected by the data selection unit 1006 to the distribution server 1000 and receives the file transmitted from the distribution server 1000. The document storage unit 1008 stores each file of the electronic document data 10 received by the transmission / reception unit 1007. The display / playback unit 1009 displays and plays back the content stored in the document storage unit 1008. A user instruction receiving unit 1010 receives a user instruction from the outside.

  The user instruction receiving unit 1010 is used for the user to select whether or not to purchase the electronic document data 10 selected by the data selection unit 1006 and for inputting information necessary for billing. The display reproduction unit 1009 includes a display unit configured with a display for displaying an image based on the image data, and an audio output unit configured with a speaker for reproducing audio data and outputting audio. The document storage unit 1008 may be configured by an external recording medium such as a magnetic recording medium that can be connected to the display device 1001, and the received electronic document data 10 may be stored in the external recording medium.

  In the present embodiment, the electronic document data 10 is composed of the type of file shown in FIG. 3A as in the first embodiment. Of these, only the meta information file 14 has a format different from that of the first embodiment. FIG. 14 shows the format of the meta information file 14A in the second embodiment. In the meta information file 14A in FIG. 14, the same items as those in the meta information file 14 in Embodiment 1 are denoted by the same numbers. Items with the same numbers have the same meaning and format as those of the first embodiment, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted. Further, for the sake of space, the bibliographic data 200 of FIG. 14 does not include the data 204 to 207 of FIG. 4, but the bibliographic data 200 includes the title name data 204 and the subtitle name of the bibliographic data 200 as in the first embodiment. Data 205, author name data 206, and document ID data 207 are recorded.

  In the second embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, the playback flag 1101, 1102, 1103 at the time of browsing corresponding to each flow file 21, each table of contents file 22, each image file 12, and each audio file 13. 1104, 1105, 1106 and 1107 are added and assigned. The replay flag at the time of browsing indicates whether or not display reproduction of the corresponding file on the display device 1001 is permitted when the user requests downloading of the electronic document data 10 without performing the purchase processing of the electronic document data 10. The flag to specify. The browsing playback flag takes one of the values “YES”, which means that display playback is possible without purchase processing, and “NO”, which means that display playback cannot be done without purchase processing.

  Browsing playback flags 1101 and 1102 are for each flow file 21, browsing playback flag 1103 is for table of contents file 22, and browsing playback flags 1104 and 1105 are for each corresponding image file 12. The hour reproduction flags 1106 and 1107 indicate whether or not display reproduction at the time of browsing is permitted for each corresponding audio file 13.

  FIG. 15 shows a processing flow until the electronic document data 10 is displayed and reproduced. First, the user selects electronic document data 10 to be read (displayed and reproduced). The processing from step S201 to S205 corresponds to this processing. This process is the same as the process of steps S101 to S105 in FIG. In step S206, the user instruction accepting unit 1010 is used to specify whether or not there is an intention to purchase the selected electronic document data 10. As a result, if there is an instruction to purchase ("YES" in step S206), the process proceeds to step S207 to enter the purchase process. In step S <b> 207, the user inputs information necessary for charging, and transmits the input charging information and information specifying the electronic document data 10 to be purchased to the distribution server 1000. Upon receiving these pieces of information, the distribution server 1000 performs purchase processing according to the received contents, and stores that the user has purchased the electronic document data 10 (step S208). When the purchase process is completed, the process proceeds to step S209, where the electronic document data 10 is downloaded. On the other hand, if there is a user instruction to browse the selected electronic document data 10 without purchasing it in step S206 (“NO” in step S206), the process proceeds to step S209 without performing the purchase process. Download processing of the document data 10 is performed.

  In the download processing after step S209, first, the meta information file 14A among the plurality of files constituting the electronic document data 10 is downloaded to the display device 1001. Since the process of steps S209 to S212, which is the download process of the meta information file 14A, is the same as the process steps S106 to S109 of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted.

  Processing after downloading the meta information file 14A until the user selectively downloads only the desired file (steps S213 to S217) is almost the same as the processing steps S110 to S114 of the first embodiment. Only the differences are described below.

  First, in step S216, a file requested to be downloaded (transmitted) from the display device 1001 is transmitted to the display device 1001, and is transmitted depending on whether the purchase processing of the electronic document data 10 has been executed in step S207. Different files are used. If the purchase process has been performed, all the files requested to be transmitted are displayed. If the purchase process has not been performed, the value of the corresponding playback flag (1101 to 1107) corresponding to the file requested to be transmitted is “ Only files set to “YES” are transmitted to the display device 1001.

  Note that in the process of step S214 of the display device 1001, based on the value of the playback flag at the time of browsing of the file designated by the user to be downloaded at step S213, a file that is not permitted to be played back during browsing is sent to the distribution server 1000. Processing may be performed so as not to request download.

  Finally, the processing in step S218 for displaying and reproducing the electronic document data 10 is the same as the processing step S115 in the first embodiment. The file that has not been downloaded in step S217 may be processed in the same manner as in process step S115. Note that a screen as shown in FIG. 16 is displayed on the display / playback unit 1009 in order to notify the user of a message M1 that there is a file that could not be displayed / played on this page because it is during browsing. Also good. The message M1 is not limited to display, and may be presented by voice. When the user confirms the message M1 and clicks the icon C1 in the message M1 via the user instruction receiving unit 1010, the message M1 on the page is deleted from the screen, and only the page is displayed.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, the same electronic document data 10 does not have to be created for browsing and for regular purchase by using the playback flag during browsing. 10 can be reduced, and only one type of electronic document data 10 is stored in the document DB 1003, so that the document DB 1003 can be used efficiently.

(Embodiment 3)
In this embodiment mode, a computer on which the display device 101 or 1001 is mounted is shown. The computer referred to here includes not only a general-purpose computer such as a personal computer but also a dedicated terminal equipped with a CPU such as a mobile terminal and a mobile phone.

  Referring to FIG. 17, the computer on which display device 101 in FIG. 1 or display device 1001 in FIG. 13 is mounted includes the following. 17 corresponding to the user instruction receiving units 110 and 1010 in FIGS. 1 and 13, a magnetic field such as an external CD-ROM (compact disk-read only memory) 811 or FD (flexible disk) or flash memory card. 17 for the external storage driver 802 shown in FIG. 17 for accessing the information of the attached recording media, and the display reproducing units 109 and 1009 shown in FIGS. Display reproduction control unit 803, audio output unit 804 and display unit 805, central processing unit (CPU) 806 in FIG. 17 for centrally controlling and monitoring the computer, program memory 807 in FIG. A data memory 808 including a random access memory (RAM) for storing data, and an interface with the computer Comprising FIGS 1 and corresponding communication I / F to the transceiver 107 and 1007 in FIG. 13 (interface) 809 for communicably connecting the network 102 such as the Internet.

  The input unit 801 includes a tablet, a keyboard, a numeric keypad, and the like. The input unit 801 selects an electronic document to be displayed and reproduced, selects a download file using the dialog boxes 700 to 704 in FIG. It is operated to input various instructions from outside.

  The magnetic memory card 810 and the CD-ROM 811 mounted on the external storage driver 802 have a program for executing the processing procedures of FIGS. 11 and 15 under the control of the CPU 806 and an electronic program downloaded from the distribution server 100 or 1000. Document data 10 is stored. This program is not only stored in the magnetic memory card 810 or the CD-ROM 811 in advance, but also downloaded from an external device such as the distribution servers 100 and 1000 via the network 102 and recorded by the external storage driver 802. You may make it write in and preserve | save. Although this program is not shown, the computer may be provided with a fixed hard disk and recorded here. Further, the display device 101 or 1001 may be distributed to the user in a state where the program is recorded in the program memory 807 in advance.

  These programs may be read and executed directly from the magnetic memory card 810 or the CD-ROM 811 under the control of the CPU 806, or may be executed from the magnetic memory card 810 or the CD-ROM 811 with the program memory 807 and data. It may be executed after being once loaded into the memory 808. At the time of execution, the text and image in the electronic document are displayed on the display unit 805 according to the control of the display reproduction control unit 803, and the audio in the electronic document is reproduced by the audio output unit 804.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

1 is a configuration diagram of an information processing system according to a first embodiment. It is a figure which shows the general view of the mobile telephone by which the display apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment 1 is mounted. It is a figure which shows the example of the content of document DB which concerns on this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the content of document DB which concerns on this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the flow file which concerns on this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of an external character image. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of an external character image, and the example of a display of an alternative character string. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of an external character image, and the example of a display of an alternative character string. It is a figure which shows the example of a display when the illustration image is downloaded and when it is not downloaded. It is a figure which shows the example of a display when the illustration image is downloaded and when it is not downloaded. It is a figure which shows an example of the meta information file which concerns on this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure explaining the use structure of image data, and the data structure of a use area | region among the meta information files concerning this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure explaining the data structure of the use purpose / use area | region of audio | voice data among the meta information files which concern on this Embodiment 1. FIG. 4 is a processing flowchart until electronic document data according to the first embodiment is displayed or reproduced. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the dialog box for the file selection concerning this Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a block diagram of the information processing system which concerns on this Embodiment 2. It is a figure which shows an example of the meta information file concerning this Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a processing flowchart until electronic document data concerning this Embodiment 2 is displayed or reproduced | regenerated. It is a figure which shows the example of the dialog box which displays that there exists a file which cannot be displayed or reproduced | regenerated at the time of browsing based on this Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a block diagram of the computer by which the display apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment is mounted.

Claims (10)

An information processing apparatus that stores a plurality of electronic documents in advance and communicates with a distribution apparatus that transmits information of an electronic document requested to be transmitted from among the plurality of electronic documents,
Selection means for selecting a file desired to be received from among a plurality of files based on attribute information including the purpose of use of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document;
A file request transmission means for transmitting the request including file designation information for designating a file selected by the selection means to the distribution device;
Electronic document information receiving means for receiving and processing the selected file of the desired electronic document as the electronic document information from the distribution device;
Output means for outputting information of the electronic document based on the selected file received and processed by the electronic document information receiving means;
The selection means includes
Support information display means for displaying information for supporting file selection according to attribute information indicating the restrictions of the output processing by the output means and the attributes of the plurality of files;
A file having attribute information corresponding to an instruction input to select the desired file from outside based on the displayed information for support is selected from the plurality of files.
The output means, for the files that are not selected as the files desired to be received by the selection means among the plurality of files constituting the electronic document, are output in a predetermined output method for each use purpose of the files. An information processing apparatus that outputs alternative data based on the information. A storage unit for storing information;
Wherein the support information includes information indicating the size of the available space storing new data in the storage unit, information indicating the size of the entire selected file, information according to claim 1 Processing equipment. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the attribute information includes information indicating a location used in the electronic document for each of the plurality of files constituting the electronic document.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an output unit configured to output information based on the selected file received and processed by the electronic document information receiving unit. A storage unit for storing information;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the selected file received by the reception process is stored in the storage unit. The attribute information of the plurality of files includes a playback flag at the time of browsing corresponding to each file,
The browsing reproduction flag is a flag for setting whether to permit or prohibit the output processing of the corresponding file depending on whether or not the electronic document is purchased.
When receiving the selected file, the electronic document information receiving means restricts the file to be transmitted from the distribution device according to the value of the playback flag during browsing when the electronic document purchase procedure has not been performed. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: The attribute information of the plurality of files includes a playback flag at the time of browsing corresponding to each file,
The browsing reproduction flag is a flag for setting whether to permit or prohibit the output processing of the corresponding file depending on whether or not the electronic document is purchased.
If the electronic document has not been purchased,
Of the files selected by the selection means, the file designation information for a file in which a reproduction instruction flag is set to a value instructing prohibition of the output processing if the electronic document purchase procedure has not been performed. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information is not included in the request transmitted by the file request transmission unit. In an information processing apparatus that stores a plurality of electronic documents in advance, communicates with a distribution apparatus that transmits information on the electronic document requested to be transmitted from among the plurality of electronic documents, and outputs the received electronic document An information processing method to be executed,
Displaying file selection support information according to attribute information including restrictions on the output processing and the purpose of use of the plurality of files constituting the desired electronic document, and a plurality of files based on the external selection input according to the displayed support information A selection step for selecting a file desired to be received,
A file request transmission step of transmitting the request including file designation information for designating the file selected in the selection step to the distribution device;
An electronic document information receiving step for receiving and processing the selected file of the desired electronic document as information of the electronic document from the distribution device;
And an output step of outputting processing information of the electronic document based on the electronic document information received the selected file received treatment in step,
In the output step, among the plurality of files constituting the electronic document, a file that is not selected as a file desired to be received by the selection step is output in a predetermined output method for each use purpose of the file. An information processing method for outputting alternative data based on the information. An information processing program for causing a computer to execute the information processing method according to claim 8 . A computer-readable recording medium on which an information processing program for causing a computer to execute the information processing method according to claim 8 is recorded.

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