Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F40/00—Handling natural language data
  • G06F40/10—Text processing
  • G06F40/197—Version control
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F16/00—Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
  • G06F16/90—Details of database functions independent of the retrieved data types
  • G06F16/904—Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F16/00—Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
  • G06F16/90—Details of database functions independent of the retrieved data types
  • G06F16/93—Document management systems
  • G06F16/94—Hypermedia
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F40/00—Handling natural language data
  • G06F40/10—Text processing
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F40/00—Handling natural language data
  • G06F40/10—Text processing
  • G06F40/12—Use of codes for handling textual entities
  • G06F40/131—Fragmentation of text files, e.g. creating reusable text-blocks; Linking to fragments, e.g. using XInclude; Namespaces

Definitions

• the present invention relates to an electronic publishing system, and in particular to an electronic publishing system for the delivery of information which is not limited as to storage space and is not governed by predetermined pathways.
• Section 4 which in conventional electronic legal publishing systems might be found by looking for words or phrases such as "family”, “family relationships”, and “family relationships” AND “social security”, where AND is a logical operator.
• Table 1 provides an example where Section 6 of the Income Tax Assessment Act has been amended 70 times:
• a system for publishing electronic information comprising: a plurality of predefined portions of data with each predefined portion being encoded with at least one linking means, and, for each predefined portion, the each predefined portion is stored and, where such predefined portion has been modified, each such modified predefined portion is stored; and a plurality of attributes, each attribute being a point on an axis of a multidimensional space for organising the data.
• a recording medium for publishing electronic information comprising: a plurality of predefined portions of data with each predefined portion being encoded with at least one linking means, and, for each predefined portion, the each predefined portion is stored and, where such predefined portion has been modified, each such modified predefined portion is stored; and a plurality of attributes, each attribute being a point on an axis of a multidimensional space for organising the data.
• a method for publishing electronic information comprising: providing a plurality of predefined portions of data with each predefined portion being encoded with at least one linking means, and, for each predefined portion, the each predefined portion is stored and, where such predefined portion has been modified, each such modified predefined portion is stored; and providing a plurality of attributes, each attribute being a point on an axis of a multidimensional space for organising the data.
• Fig. 1 illustrates a grid of a multidimensional space according to the first embodiment
• Fig. 2 illustrates the effect of the various axes
• Fig. 3 illustrates the mapping of various axis intersection points, or nodes, that is used to organize, present, and find information (present and past) according to the first embodiment
• Fig. 4 illustrates the application of legal information to mapped nodes according to the first embodiment
• Fig. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a general purpose computer that can be used to implement the electronic publishing system according to the first embodiment
• Fig. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating the method of electronic publishing according to the first embodiment
• Figs. 7 to 17 are screen shots illustrating operation of the first embodiment as a software application executing on a general purpose computer.
• the present invention is directed towards a system of electronic publishing that can overcome the disadvantages of conventional information publishing, both in print and electronic form.
• the present invention reduces, if not eliminates, end user problems with conventional information publishing including:
• the embodiments of the invention provide an entirely new way of delivering, storing and publishing information.
• the embodiments allow publishers to add an arbitrary number of logical connections to a set of data, and even permit the publisher to display the precise evolution of that data set over time. This can be done without getting bogged down in the complexity of the logical connections and without limit as to storage space.
• legislation is often purchased in two ways: (1) The individual Numbered Acts and Regulations that give each piece of legislation as it is passed; and (2) Consolidated legislation that provides the latest consolidated version.
• legislation is stored using every version of each Act or Regulation.
• the end user can search every version of any section, schedule, or provision. For example, the required version of a section is immediately available as is the opportunity to view every preceeding and subsequent version of the same section.
• links are available to any relevant amending legislation commencing that change, as well as the one that repealed it.
• Relevant Application, Saving or Transitional Provisions can also be easily accessed. In this manner, it is possible to come to a full understanding of the legislation just by looking at the data provided through the embodiments of the invention. In contrast, using conventional techniques, it would have been impossible or very hard, expensive and time consuming to do so.
• a key aspect of the embodiments of the invention in successfully providing a multi-dimensional repository of information has been in deciding the "optimum storage unit" .
• publishers have chosen to either store new versions of the entire Act (too big) or new versions of each and every change, in a method similar to red lining (too complex).
• the first aspect of the invention was to analysis the data and choose to store every version of every section or provision level of legislation.
• Structured Generalised Markup Language (SGML) is a recognised way to mark up data.
• SGML allows logical structure to be added to a document (unlike HTML and word processors which only allow the addition of visual content).
• SGML alone is not enough to deal with text-based data that contains a highly complex logical structure.
• the embodiments of the invention allow SGML data to be encoded with a much more complex structure whilst remaining manageable.
• Extensible Markup Language XML
• SGML Extensible Markup Language
• a significant problem with using SGML, even well executed SGML, is that it is possible to quickly get bogged down in unmanageable levels of complexity.
• the embodiments of the invention have overcome these problems.
• Another key aspect of the invention is the use of database technologies in the management of the SGML encoded techniques.
• Database technology provides a large number of ready tools to deal with complex structured data.
• the embodiments combine these technologies (SGML, XML and database technologies) in an advantageous manner.
• traditional publishers have been limited by the size and speed of available storage systems. Only a limited amount can be reproduced in paper and until recently hard disk costs prohibited the storing of multiple gigabytes of data, for both publishers and clients alike.
• the embodiments of the invention have the ability to look at situations from a new and uptodate view point and therefore come up with innovative conclusions that can be radically different to processes employed in the past.
• the embodiments of the invention provide a new computer publishing system that changes the availability of electronic information from being merely "speeded up paper" to being electronic information taking advantage of new electronic media by providing users with enhanced functionality of data retrieval and manipulation.
• the information included in the electronic format is of a publishable standard, meets cost constraints and is able to be accessed under any combination of dimensions from the multi-dimensional space (Acts, cases, time, jurisdiction, subject).
• the publishing system facilitates continual updates to the data contained in the databases, without any adverse effects on the operating capabilities that make the publishing system unique. Due to the extra functionality, the publishing system is also designed in such a way that it can still be made available in as many different electronic media as possible, and all search functions are able to operate in a time-efficient manner.
• the embodiments of the invention organize, process and present information in a way that is significantly different than conventional structures, processes and presentation. They provide an information storage and publishing system, and in particular, an information storage and publishing system that stores and manages large and comprehensive amounts of information (eg, legal information).
• Publication data being preferably legal information, is encoded using Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) or Extensible Markup Language (XML) which adds codes to the publication data and provides functionality to the data.
• the publication data is processed as a plurality of predefined portions, which in the case of legislation is preferably at the section, schedule level, or provision level. A hierarchy of divisions of the legislation may be implemented.
• the system stores a copy of the predefined portion and a modified predefined portion in the first database whenever it is changed.
• a second (relational) database is preferably provided that comprises plural attributes for managing the information of the first database, with each attribute being a point on an axis of a multidimensional space for organising the data for publication.
• a single repository of information may be practised as described with reference to the second embodiment.
• the system enables the first database to be searched for one of the predefined portions of the publication data using attributes of the second database by following one or more pathways through the multidimensional space.
• the plurality of attributes are connected to by the plurality of links. Once the desired predefined portion is located, the predefined portions can be retrieved using the attributes to define a point in the multidimensional space.
• the system implements, inter alia, time-based legislation in which sections of legislation that have been amended are not discarded and replaced with the current provision only as of the publication date. Instead, each version of an amended section is retained in the first database.
• the systems according to the embodiments of the invention are particularly advantageous in that legal information is published so that a user can obtain such sections or provisions at a particular time point.
• the embodiments advantageously divide information into "suitably" small pieces (or blocks) of text , each of which is a predefined portion of data, and add to each piece of text, either expressly or implicitly, a number of attributes (characteristics or descriptors).
• the suitability as to size of text pieces is determined by an analysis of the information and its naturally occurring structure based on knowledge of how the information is used and consumed by the end user. This makes it possible to locate each piece or block of text at a particular point in a "multidimensional space” using as coordinates the attributes added to the piece or block of text.
• Multidimensional space refers to an area not having boundaries and that is capable of, or involves, more than three dimensions.
• Fig. 1 illustrates a multi-dimensional space 100 as used in embodiments of the invention.
• the multidimensional space is represented by a layered grid.
• the diagram represents axes or pathways as vertical and horizontal lines; in reality (in the case of more than two dimensions), they are at all angles and inclines.
• each node 102 (or key intersection point of the various axes or pathways) is a significant functional aspect of the embodiments of the invention. This mapping is explained further hereinafter. With such coordinates 102 known (located or mapped), it is possible to move easily between points in the multidimensional space 100.
• mapping nodes as shown in Fig. 3 is that a course 320 through the information represented in the three-dimensional space 100 can be easily plotted.
• the user begins the course 320 at node 302 and progresses vertically downward to the fourth node 304. Further, the plotted course 320 is flexible to the extent of the relationships a user chooses to follow or seek out.
• a first embodiment of the invention provides information management in the multidimensional space and allows movement along different axes or "pathways" : location of the information (its address); type of information (its genesis); jurisdiction (its class); subject (its content description); depth (extent of content); and time (the point in time at which the information is viewed).
• coding of information or data for publication is based on SGML or XML and one or more specifically developed Document Type Definitions (DTD), which preferably is specifically designed for legal information.
• DTD Document Type Definitions
• SSM Style Sheet Mechanism
• This coding can then be related back to information retained in a specifically developed database that enables the code information to be managed and updated.
• Appendix C The DTDs according to the first embodiment are set forth in detail in Appendix B.
• a DTD is used to define the structure of publication data, preferably being legislation, down to a comprehensive level. This is done by using information coded in conjunction with any one of a number of off-the-shelf, free- text retrieval software packages (eg, Folio Views or Dynatext ) to deliver the information to the end user.
• a DTD describes the markup for the SGML publication data, or "repository”, which may contain legislation, case law, journal articles and other types of material that are stored in computer files.
• the files contain publication data in text form and the markup, which is extra information about the text included with the text.
• An example of a markup is ' ⁇ BD+ > ' which indicates that "the data from this point on is bold” .
• the first embodiment adds markup to data using SGML.
• XML may be used.
• SSM may be used.
• SGML there are many ways to add markup to text.
• Each particular way of adding markup within SGML is described by using a DTD.
• the data for publication is marked up using a number of different DTDs.
• the DTDs are used to mark up the logical structure of the legislation, case law or journal articles. Significant amounts of information about the data for publication is stored in the markup.
• the preparation of such DTDs necessitates that the author has a sound knowledge of the data that will be marked up using the DTD. It is especially important that the underlying structure of the data to be marked up using the DTD be understood.
• the process of becoming acquainted with the structure of the data to be marked up is referred to hereinafter as "content analysis" .
• the section-level or schedule-level portion of legislation is used in the first embodiment. That is, the section-level portion is preferably the predefined portion of the publication data, which is the smallest piece of information to be tracked. This is unlike conventional publishing systems.
• the first embodiment stores every version of Section 6. In this manner, complexity (tracking every word) is reduced by increasing storage.
• the first embodiment does not lose any pertinent information: a) every version of each Act or Regulation is stored; b) the end user can search every version of any section or schedule at the same time; c) it is easy to know which particular section or schedule has changed, to track how that particular section or schedule has changed, and to find the relevant section of the Amending Act or Regulation that affected the section or schedule; d) if multiple changes have occurred on a particular section or schedule, every version of the section or schedule can be seen; e) issues like commencement of the latest version of a particular section or schedule and so-called "Application, Saving or Transitional Provisions" can easily be recreated; f) it is possible to come to a full understanding of the legislation just by looking at the data provided through the first embodiment.
• a further advantage of tracking every version of each section or schedule is that it is possible to store some of the information, not in the markup, but in a database, as noted hereinbefore. This simplifies the updating process.
• the first embodiment uses an electronic format for retrieval.
• a software application called 'high-end text retrieval software' is used.
• high-end, text-retrieval software applications include Folio Views and Dynatext.
• Folio Views is used.
• Folio Views has its own proprietary markup language, which is not part of the SGML family.
• a complete guide to the Folio Views markup language is provided in the text Folio Views Infobase Production Kit Utilities Manual. Version 3.1, Provo, Utah: Folio Corporation (1 June 1994). Storing the data for publication in SGML allows other retrieval software applications besides Folio Views to be used.
• a process is implemented to convert the SGML marked-up data into the format used by the retrieval software application.
• the example given for Folio Views hereinafter is but one example of the process involved.
• Movement through legal information can be as follows (the flexibility and scope is largely up to the end user):
• Fig. 4 provides an example of how legal information is navigated by an end user. The user may be seeking information on the following matters: (1) Does NSW legislation on fences presently cover hedge rows between the boundary of a private property and a public road?
• legal information has two main primary sources: statute law (including subordinate legislation), and case law. There is also secondary information such as commentary which can be added to aid interpretation.
• statute law including subordinate legislation
• case law There is also secondary information such as commentary which can be added to aid interpretation.
• Each of these sources is interconnected and relevant to the other in terms of both past and present information. This may also apply to future information in terms of bills or other forms of uncommenced legislation. It is the association of this relevance and interconnection that is advantageous to the end user.
• time time
• location location
• cases C
• journal articles J
• jurisdiction U
• the space according to the first embodiment has six dimensions. In the six-dimensional case, it is possible to move along each axis and at the points of intersection change direction, as well as find and/or follow new or additional information.
• the end user begins at legislation (L) along the Z-axis, where the Fences and Boundaries Act is located and then selects Section 1 of legislation (indicated by L allowing the Z-axis) at node 402, as of 1 January 1996.
• the user then follows a path in the legislation through nodes 404, 406 and 408 for Sections 2, 3 and 4, respectively, as of that same date (ie, the Y-axis), to find a definition of the term "fences".
• Node 408 contains Section 4 at 1 January 1996 which contains the current definition of "fences" . This would provide information in response to above query (1).
• Section 4 of the legislation as of 1 January 1995, which in this case is an earlier version of the section prior to amendment, by moving to node 410 (along the X-axis).
• This provides information about the prior law for above query (2).
• the user can then move to other information on Section 4 as of 1 January 1995 by going to nodes 412 and 414 for case and journal article information, respectively, along the Z-axis
• a case on the earlier Section 4 might be identified at node 412 and articles on interpretation of Section 4 at node 414.
• the foregoing is only one possible route through the multidimensional space of information. Other more complicated and interrelated pathways involving axes U, V and W are possible.
• the user can move to axis U (jurisdiction) and compare the definition in Section 4 of New South Wales with that in another jurisdiction (eg, Victoria).
• Fig. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating the method of electronic publishing according to the first embodiment.
• a data source 602, preferably for legal information, is provided.
• steps 604 and 606 base data and new data are input from the data source 602, respectively, and in step 608 the data is captured.
• the DTDs 610 are input to step 612.
• the DTDs 610 include Act.DTD, Acts. DTD, Reg. DTD, Regs. DTD, and Common. ELT, which are shown in detail in Appendix B.
• the DTDs 610 are applied to the captured data from step 608.
• the data is coded in SGML, including the Time Base Code.
• step 616 the data is consolidated.
• steps/items 602 to 616 comprise the (first) data conversion stage.
• a data management database 620 is provided to step 618.
• the database is based on a master table and a textblock table (see Appendix C for further detail) .
• the output of step 616 is also provided to step 618.
• the data is consolidated; the data is stored as multiple versions, if applicable, and uses the predefined portions of data (ie, textblocks).
• a filter program(s) is applied to the consolidated data to convert the data from SGML to the relevant format for the retrieval software application, including Folio Views, DynaText, Topic, HTML, and the like. Steps/item 618 to 622 comprise the (second) data management stage.
• the filtered data output by step 622 can then be provided to step 624.
• step 624 the filter consolidated data is imported to the text retrieval software.
• step 626 the data is provided to the delivery medium, which may include CD- ROM, DVD, magnetic tape, electronic online services, and other media. The output of this is the end user product 628. Steps/item 624 to 628 comprise the (third) product manufacture stage.
• the first embodiment is preferably practiced using a conventional general- purpose computer, such as the one shown in Fig. 5, wherein processes for providing and managing the information are carried out using software executing on the computer.
• the legislation database, the database and the DTD(s) may be stored after a filtering process on a CD-ROM used by the computer system, and the computer system is operated using Folio View.
• the computer system 500 includes a computer 502, a video display 516, and input devices 518.
• a number of output devices, including line printers, laser printers, plotters, and other reproduction devices, can be connected to the computer 502.
• the computer system 500 can be connected to one or more other computers using an appropriate communication channel such as a modem communications path, a computer network, or the like.
• the computer 502 consists of a central processing unit 504 (simply, processor hereinafter), an input/output interface 508, a video interface 510, a memory 506 which can include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM), and one or more storage devices generally represented by a block 512 in Fig. 5.
• the storage device(s) 512 can consist of one or more of the following: a floppy disc, a hard disc drive, a magneto-optical disc drive, CD-ROM or any other of a number of non-volatile storage devices well known to those skilled in the art.
• Each of the components 504 to 512 is typically connected to one or more of the other devices via a bus 514 that in turn can consist of data, address, and control buses.
• the video interface 510 is connected to the video display 516 and provides video signals from the computer 502 for display on the video display 516.
• User input to operate the computer 502 can be provided by one or more input devices.
• a operator can use the keyboard 518 and/or a pointing device such as the mouse to provide input to the computer 502.
• Exemplary computers on which the embodiment can be practiced include Macintosh personal computers, Sun SparcStations, and IBM-PC/ ATs and compatibles.
• the computer system 500 can be connected in a networked environment by means of an appropriate communications channel.
• a local area network could be accessed by means of an appropriate network adaptor (not shown) connected to the computer, or the Internet or an Intranet could be accessed by means of a modem connected to the I/O interface or an ISDN card connected to the computer 502 by the bus 514.
• the electronic publishing system can be implemented partially on the user's computer 500 and a remote computer (not shown) coupled over the network.
• the legislation database, the database and the DTD(s) can be implemented on the remote computer and the computer system 500 can be operated using Folio View.
• Figs. 7 to 17 are screen shots illustrating navigation or movement around the information.
• Figs. 16 and 17 are screen shots that show search capacities.
• Fig. 7 shows the opening screen 700, which the end user sees when the program is started.
• the interface is a standard windows interface featuring drop menus that provide access to all functions.
• the functions include basic searching and customised search templates such as the ones shown in Figs. 16 and 17 that allow users to exploit time-based and multidimensional searching.
• the title screen 702 is presented when the process is commenced and is the first screen.
• a customisable toolbar 704 is provided for searching functions.
• drop menus 706 are provided above the toolbar 704.
• In the lower portion of the screen 700 contains a status bar 708 showing information relevant to searching.
• the Start and Main menu buttons 710 in Fig. 7 are both navigational tools.
• the Start button takes a new user to information providing help on how to use the invention.
• the Main Menu button takes the end user to the menu shown in the second screen shot of Fig. 8.
• Fig. 8 shows a main selection menu 800.
• the user can see the currency of the total information.
• the user is also able to make broad choices as to the type of information that the person might like to see.
• All items preceded by bullet points in the menu are jump links 802 which lead the user to further menus for the items selected.
• the jump links 802 also provide a uniform or consistent form of movement. Thus, if searching the Social Security Act, selecting the first jump link "Find an Act" takes the user to the next screen which would be the "Act Name Menu” .
• Fig. 9 shows the "Act Name Menu” screen 900.
• all letter buttons are links 904 to Acts beginning with the letter selected. That is, the jump links 904 allow access to sub-menus for Acts with the corresponding selected letter. If "S" is clicked, this leads to the "Acts beginning with S” menu (see Fig. 10) where an entry linked to the most current version of the Social Security Act 1991 appears.
• a similar menu may be provided for Regulations.
• locational information 902 is provided in the upper portion of the screen 900.
• Fig. 10 illustrates acts beginning with "S", as selected in the screen 900 of Fig. 9. By selecting jump link 1002, the Social Security Act can be accessed.
• Fig. 11 shows how the beginning of the Social Security Act appears in screen 1100, and the buttons that link the user to the provisions of the Act. This is the start of the most current version of the Social Security Act preferably. From this screen, provisions of the Act can be accessed. By accessing the Table of Provisions box, the Table of Provisions menu can be accessed. Fig. 12 shows the Table of Provisions screen 1200, and illustrates how a specific provision, say Section 4, can be accessed again using links 1206. Different sections of the Act (e.g. ss 3, 4 and 6A) may be accessed as well using corresponding jump links. Again, location information 1202 is provided in the upper portion of the screen. A return button 1204 is also provided that provides access back to the beginning of the Act.
• Fig. 13 shows screen 1300 containing the Time Base Toolbar 1302, which preferably provides eight buttons for accessing time based information. This
• Toolbar 1302 is not a feature of Folio Views, but is a designed addition added to Folio Views by the first embodiment. It is made possible by the way in which the publication data is coded.
• the Section Information button 1304 takes the user to an overview of information.
• the Previous, Next and All buttons 1306 allows the user to have access to the previous, next and all versions of the relevant section.
• the Subject, Jurisdiction and Related Info buttons 1308 allow the user to view and access sections dealing with a similar subject, or similar sections in other jurisdictions, or related information such as cases and articles on or about the section.
• This Toolbar 1302 allows a user to cycle through previous and subsequent versions of sections and as shown in screens in Figs. 14 and 15 to refer to the text of sections amending the section. As well, the user can also call to the screen all versions of the section as one view (or display) using the "ALL" button.
• Fig. 14 illustrates a screen 1400 which appears when the user selects the
• Section Information button 1402 (button 1304 in Fig. 13).
• the resulting popup screen illustrates the time period or date range 1404 covered by this version of section 4. It also indicates the Year and Number jump link 1406 to text of the amending act which created this version of section 4.
• Fig. 15 illustrates a screen 1500 which appears when the user selects the previous button 1502 (not shown - it is located behind the popup screen), which corresponds to previous button 1306 of Fig. 13. This shows an earlier version of section 4 that the user can access by using the previous button 1502.
• the pop-up screen indicates that this version covers a different time span than that shown in Fig. 14.
• the screen shots in Figs. 7 to 15 display a step-through or navigation-based way of locating information. There is also the more direct approach of searching for terms using text retrieval.
• the screen shots in Figs. 16 and 17 illustrate such searching provided by the first embodiment.
• Screen 1600 shown in Fig. 16 provides a customised search template 1602 that includes a time base option allowing a user to search for versions of a section, for example.
• Screen 1700 shown in Fig. 17 illustrates a customised search template 1702 for case law which includes a time base option connecting cases to legislation at a particular date, for example.
• the ability to relate such to time and then to mix and match types of information from different sources is a feature provided by the coding technique used for the data and not the Folio Views software used to deliver the data to the end user.
• the second embodiment stores all the information in a single repository which is marked up in SGML or XML.
• the information is divided in that repository into suitable pieces or blocks of text, (as described in the first embodiment) and any relevant markup marks up a whole suitable piece or block of text by (a) choosing suitable pieces or blocks of text, and (b) demanding that relevant markup belongs to a whole suitable piece or block of text, the following becomes possible.
• a relational database consisting of records consisting of fields can be created with one and only one record per suitable piece or block of text where the actual text of each suitable piece or block of text is the content of one filed of the above record and where each item of the markup is assigned its own field in the above record.
• a version of Section 6 of the Income Tax Assessment Act (ITAA) 1936 may be stored as a record in the above relational database.
• the first field of that record contains the actual text of that version of Section 6.
• the next field identifies it as Section 6 of the ITAA, the next field gives the date this version came into being, the next field contains the section of the amending act that created this particular version, the next field contains the day this version became superseded, another field contains the subject(s) this version addresses, another field contains the case(s) that have addressed this version of section 6 and so on.
• Storing the data in this way allows multidimensional database techniques to be applied to the data.
• member of a couple has the meaning given by subsections (2), (3), (3A) [reference to new section added] and (6), "partner", in relation to a person who is a member of a couple, means the other member of the couple,
• both the person and the partner are over the age of consent applicable in the State or Territory in which they live, (v) the person and the partner are not within a prohibited relationship for the purposes of section 23B of the Marriage Act 1961
• a prohibited relationship for the purposes of section 23B of the Marriage Act 1961 is a relationship between a person and an ancestor of the person, or a descendant of the person, or a brother or sister of the person (whether of the whole blood or the part-blood)
• Part written with a capital "P” will refer to the means of dividing an ACT known as a Part (eg Part 2 or Part II) Note: this does not apply to the text of examples which have been left as they appear in the data • Note: the reference to Sections in Commonwealth ACTS and regulations in
• the database is to consist of two tables. These Tables will be known as MASTER and TEXTBLOCK. The specific purpose of each Table will be as follows:-
• MASTER will focus on fields that collect data about an ACT or REGULATION as a whole.
• TEXTBLOCK will focus on specific sub-elements of the whole of an ACT or REGULATION.
• Dates in the Database will be used primarily to identify two things:
• conditional - are based on something else happening (for example, the commencement of another ACT or REGULATION, the creation of or termination of an organisation, the happening of an event)
• the year and number are separated by a hyphen. Also four digits must be used for the year number, thus 0046 and not 46 is used for the ACT'S number in this example.
• Section 36 of the Acts Interpretation Act affects how this is done Section 36 provides
• the date or timing of expiry is indicated/expressed in a few different ways: by a specific date , see (i) below. by a period of years, see (j) below.
• a principal ACT or REGULATION can contain amendments to other ACTS or REGULATIONS. It therefore, still needs to be considered for its effect on other ACTS.
• A Amending ACTS or REGULATIONS.
• Amending ACTS or REGULATIONS will not generally exist in their own right in the consolidated information for which we are creating the data base. The changes they effect will nearly always become part of the Principal ACT or REGULATION. There are some rare exceptions to the above point however, which will need to be identified - (the way to do this most effectively will be to identify them in Australia and provide a list or table of what these ACTS and REGULATIONS are).
• Amending ACTS or REGULATIONS will nearly always contain the word's "Amending”, “Amendment”, “Repeal” or “Statute Law Revision” in their Short Title.
• Each of the two tables from the Pamphlets contains the name of the Reprinted ACT or REGULATION in alphabetical order (but see Statutory Rules example below) followed by the date of reprint, then followed by the words "Reprint No " and a number It is this last number that needs to be entered
• Each of the two tables contains the name of the Reprinted ACT or REGULATION in alphabetical order (but see Statutory Rules example below) followed by the date of reprint, then followed by the words "Reprint No " and a number For this field it is the Date preceding the Reprint Number that needs to be entered For examples see the examples at [B 07] above
• TEXTBLOCK entries will not normally be required for ACTS or REGULATIONS which are either Principal or Reprinted ACTS or REGULATIONS But note that in the case of Principal ACTS there are exceptions, namely, where the Principal ACT or REGULATION also amends or repeals other ACTS or REGULATIONS
• Textblock ID2 (see [C 04] below) on the other hand records the ID of the specific Part, Section or regulation in an Amending Act or Regulation that is changed (amended)
• the first thing required is an indication as to type
• the example is an Amending Act
• the second thing required is the relevant year In the example this is 1995
• the third thing required is the Act or Reg Number In this example this is 104
• the fourth thing required is the specific Part, Section or regulation doing the amending In this example this is SCH1 (ie Schedule 1 )
• the ID entry for this example would be as follows ACT-19950105-SEC-4
• Textblock ID1 (see [C 03] above) on the other hand records the ID of the specific Part, Section or regulation in an Amending ACT or REGULATION that causes a change (amendment) to happen
• the ID entry for this example would be as follows ACT-19950105-SEC-198
• Section (CC)l98 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting after subsection (1A) $$P ⁇
• commencement provision from an amending ACT Note how various sections of the amending ACT are allocated a date of commencement Using the Section identified in TEXTBLOCK ID1 the date of commencement can be identified and entered in this field
• Section 298 of the Principal Act is amended for the period commencing at midnight on 1 July 1997 and ending on midnight (EE)25 July 1997 by inserting after subsection (2A) : $$P " (2B) Subject to subsection (2C), if : ⁇
• the SGML files that will be supplied have already been partially processed but will be invalid according to the DTD (especially the tables). Each file should omit the document type declaration and begin directly with the root element.
• Carriage return characters must not appear in any element which has #PCDATA within its content model. If it is wished to use carriage return characters to shorten line lengths, then they must be placed in position ' s where they will be ignored by an SGML parser e.g. in places where #PCDATA is not allowed, or within start and end tags in places where separator characters are allowed. Case
• Element and attribute names are case-insensitive. They may be entered in either uppercase, lowercase or a mixture.
• Attribute values are usually case-insensitive. The only time that they are case- sensitive is when they have a declared type of CDATA, in which case the string values should be entered directly as they appear in the text. Markup minimisation
• DTD structure There are four DTDs and a common element declaration that are used to define the structure of the legislation.
• This DTD has the public identifier "-//SGMLSE//DTD 1.0 Regulations//EN" and contains the declaration for the regulations. It has two parameter entity references which include "-//SGMLSE//DTD 1.0 Act//EN" and "-//SGMLSE//DTD 1.0
• the file regs.sgm produced by the Perl script regs.pl conforms to regs.dtd and calls in all acts as parameter entities.
• This DTD has the public identifier "-//SGMLSE//DTD 1.0 Act//EN" and contains the declaration of an act.
• This DTD has the public identifier "J/SGMLSE//DTD 1.0 Regulation//EN" and contains the declaration of a regulation.
• the character entities allowed have been selected from the ISO public sets isogrkl , isogrk3, isolatl , isonum, isopub and isotech.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the REG was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the REG.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the REG was repealed.
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the REG.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the REG was amended.
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the REG.
• the title gets marked up as Level "Heading Level 1 ".
• the period between the insert- date and the repeal-date or amend-date gets marked up as follows:
• the Folio Views markup used is Groups. See the manual for explanations. We will use three kinds of groups: Inforce-yyyy, Inforce-yyyy-mm and Inforce-yyyy-mm-dd (yyyy can be any year, mm can be any month from 1 - 12 and dd can be any day from 1 - 31).
• the element If the element was valid throughout a year yyyy, the element becomes a member of the Inforce-yyyy group. If the element was valid only for some months within a year, it becomes a member of the relevant Inforce-yyyy-mm groups. If the element was only valid for some days within a month, the element becomes a member of the relevant Inforce-yyyy-mm-dd groups.
• the element belongs to the following groups: Inforce-94-07, Inforce-94-08, Inforce-94-09, Inforce-94-10, lnforce-94-11, Inforce- 94-12, Inforce-95, Inforce-96-01, Inforce-96-02, Inforce-96-03, Inforce-96-04-01, Inforce-96-04-02, I ⁇ force-96-04-03, Inforce-96-04-04, Inforce-96-04-05, Inforce-96- 04-06 and Inforce-96-04-07. Note that the element is not part of the Inforce-94 group because the element wasn 't in force throughout of 1994. Nor is the element part of the Inforce-96-04 group because the element wasn 't in force throughout April 1996.
• the enduser wants to search for all elements that are valid as of a particular date then the enduser can enter that date in a Query Template in the form DD/MM/YYYY.
• the Query Template searches the Folio Views infobase for all elements that belong to the groups Inforce-yyyy, Inforce-yyyy-mm and Inforce-yyyy-mm-dd.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the ACT was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the ACT.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the ACT.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the ACT.
• the noteref gets marked up as a popup link.
• the text of the note becomes the text within the popup link.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the PART.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the PART.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the PART.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• ORDER was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the ORDER.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• ORDER was repealed.
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the ORDER.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• DIVISION was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the DIVISION.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• DIVISION was repealed.
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the DIVISION.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the DIVISION was amended.
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the DIVISION.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the SUB-DIVISION was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the SUB-DIVISION.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the SUB-DIVISION.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• SUB-DIVISION was amended.
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the SUB-DIVISION.
• the Table of Provisions gets generated by the conversion program from the following Elements: Part, Chapter, Order, Division, Subdivision and Section. The generated Table of Provision is stored just before the first Part,
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• CHAPTER was inserted.
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the CHAPTER
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• CHAPTER was repealed.
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the CHAPTER.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• CHAPTER was amended.
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the CHAPTER.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the SECTION.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the SECTION.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the SECTION.
• the insert-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the insert-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that inserted the SCHEDULE.
• the repeal-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the repeal-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that repealed the SCHEDULE.
• the amend-date attribute should be used to insert the date YYYYMMDD that the
• the amend-leg should be used to insert the ID of the legislation that amended the SCHEDULE.
• Forms gel marked up with a Paragraph Style orms ' The markup of Front ' and 'Back ' gets inserted as hidden text (hidden text is visible on the screen but doesn 't show when the Form gets printed.
• Forms get marked up with a Paragraph Style orm '.
• the markup of Front ' and 'Back' gets inserted as hidden text (hidden text is visible on the screen but doesn 't show when the Form gets printed.
• TITLE A generic title, which may occur in several different contexts. I Covered in Acts DTD Elements, Regs DTD Elements and so on. INLINE ELEMENTS
• ITAL Used to mark any inline text which is set in a italic face other than a title or a label. It may contain text or any inline elements other than ⁇ italic>.
• the quotation mark characters must not be entered as text characters or entity references as they will be generated automatically.
• a cross reference to a sequential range of targets e.g. see Sections 3 to 7. It has two required attributes, startref and endref. Startref is the id of the first of the targets referenced and endref is the id of the last target referenced. For a description of id strings, see the description of the xref element.
• a cross reference to a single target It has a single attribute, ref, which must contain the id string of the target of the reference. Ids are not being entered on elements during keying, but will be generated automatically from the lbl attribute of elements. However, for xrefs it is necessary to work out what the id string of the target will be.
• the format of id strings is described below : j Converted as ajumplink.
• Id strings are made up of four sequential fields separated by a "-" (dash) character as follows : fieldl-field2-field3-field4 field 1 is the type of document which is being referenced. The current valid value is ACT. field2 is an abbreviated form of the year and number of the Act, e.g. 19880001 is
• PT part in an Act NOTE a note field4 is the identifier of the element being referenced, which is formed by concatenating the values of the lbl attributes of the referenced element and its ancestor elements, separated by a ".” (point) character, e.g. 1 or 1.1 or 1.1. a or
• a display equation This is a mathematical equation which is set on one or more lines by itself. See the attached description of equations for further details. It has no attributes.
• LI An item in a list. This is a single line of text within a list.
• marker which has allowed values of bullet, dash or none, with a default of none. If a marker character precedes the list item then the relevant value should be entered for the attribute. The marker character should not be entered as text. If any marker character other than a bullet or dash is found, contact SGMLSE for a change to the DTD.
• a container element for a table which has a title. It contains a required title element followed by a single table.
• 100) The numbers indicate the width of the table as a percentage of the page width. cwl LIST where LIST is a list of integers each separated by a colon. Each integer represents the relative width of a column.
• a four column table which is the full width of the page.
• the second and third columns are twice the width of the first column, and the fourth column is three times the width of the first :
• CELLRULE Empty element Specifies a vertical rule. It has a single attribute, rty, which specifies the type of rule. Valid values for rty are :
• TABLEROW Specifies a row in the table. It has a single attribute, hdr, which specifies whether or not the row is a header row in a table which will be repeated over page breaks. The only valid value is "1 " (one), which indicates that the row is a header row. An omitted value for hdr indicates that the row is not a header row. A value is only valid on the first ⁇ tablerow> in the table.
• ⁇ tablerow> indicates that the row is not a header row if the ⁇ tablerow> is the first in the table.
• chj (b
• cvj ( t
• This maths DTD is a subset of the Arbortext maths DTD, which itself is derived from the AAP maths DTD.

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• 1997
  • 1997-01-31 AU AUPO4892A patent/AUPO489297A0/en not_active Abandoned
• 1998
  • 1998-01-30 AU AU57414/98A patent/AU706144C/en not_active Expired
  • 1998-01-30 CA CA002278454A patent/CA2278454C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1998-01-30 WO PCT/AU1998/000050 patent/WO1998034179A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1998-01-30 NZ NZ336782A patent/NZ336782A/xx not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1998-01-30 EP EP08012014A patent/EP2151769A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1998-01-30 EP EP98901249A patent/EP0954808A4/en not_active Ceased
  • 1998-07-01 US US09/108,999 patent/US6233592B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
• 2006
  • 2006-11-17 US US11/600,785 patent/US8972846B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related

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