The following section is under Copyright/License June 16, 2001 reserved to Jim Pivonka Consulting and James F. Pivonka, and otherwise reserved and assigned under the GNU Public License.

Specification for a fully indexed, pseudo relational list/outline.
 

• Open the bookmarks/favorites application and find options to navigate the existing hierarchical listing/outline of bookmarks/favorites or to modify the existing listing/outline by adding to or editing it.
• Editing option:  permits GUI reorganization of the elements and keys in the listing/outline.
• Adding option:  permits GUI addition of an element or key to the listing/outline structure.

Definitions

• Entries or elements (data elements) are the finest level, lowest level, leaf, terminus of branch, of the listing/outline, and contain the reference/link to the indexed information, i.e. the bookmark or favorite.
• Elements are a type of "elemental record" which contain indexed references to the data being indexed, but do not have references to items below them in the key/element hierarchy.
• Classes, categories, or keys are nodes, branches, etc. containing sets of elements including empty sets of elements, (no elements).
• Keys are a type of "elemental record" which have other keys or elements below them in the key/element hierarchy.  They may contain both keys and elements but do not include the indexed references to the data being indexed.

An index data base contains an individual "elemental record" for each unique key and element.  The index data base contains records of a single record format, called the "elemental record".

• The "elemental record" contains the following pointer sets:
• "Parent Keys"  - pointers to the keys above in the GUI displayed hierarchy.
• "Names" -- pointers to the name and synonyms of this data element or key.
• The "elemental record" contains data fields or additional data pointer sets.
• The set of all "elemental records" can be grouped into sub sets based on the nature of the information they contain.

The elemental record set "elements" or data elements:

• The link or index to the information indexed by the list/outline is set in the "elemental record" data field for data elements.
• The "elemental record" for data elements includes in one of its data fields a structured data format link or pointer to the information indexed by the list/outline.
• Operations on this data produce the retrieval and display of the information indexed by the list/outline.
• It is the presence of such data in this field that identifies an "elemental record" as a data element, rather than a key.

The elemental record set "keys"

• Upward references (pointers, etc) are set in each unitary "elemental record" (except in the INDEX MASTER RECORD) to link it to each of the hierarchical keys in which it appears at the next level above it in the GUI representation of the indexed data to the user.
• Each "elemental record" can contain multiple such pointers, and the addition of such pointers does not create a new record.

The elemental record set "names"

• The "names" of elements and keys displayed in the GUI are contained in a set of "elemental records" and the assigned names are referenced in the "elemental record" for each element and key by pointers to these names.
• The "elemental record" for name elements includes in one of its data fields a name which has been assigned to one or more keys and elements.
• Operations on this data field produce the retrieval and display of the name information displayed in the GUI
• It is the presence of name data in this field that identifies an "elemental record" as a name element, rather than a key.

Other elemental record sets

Additional information maintained in the index data base may be either contained in data fields within "elemental records", which enlarges record size, or in additional elemental record sets accessed through pointers contained in the elemental records, which increases the number of records.  A well designed analytical engine will be able to adaptively modify the manner in which the information is maintained "on the fly" to optimize the index data base's overall performance.

An analytical engine (AE) parses the elements and keys and other "elemental records" in the index data base to produce the hierarchical representation of the listing/outline which is used by the GUI to represent the indexed data to the user.

The analytical engine parses user modifications to the GUI representation of the indexed data to produce the unitary "elemental records" for posting to the index data base. Unique "elemental records" are established by the analytical engine based on parsing of the user modifications to the index data base information as they relate to the preexisting information.

• Each element which contains a  reference to a unique item of indexed information will require a unique record.
• Each key referenced by a unique set of subsidiary elements and keys requires a unique record.
• (N.B.  An element or a logical key may have multiple names and parent keys but a key will be referenced by only one unique set of child keys and elements!  Such an element or key will appear in multiple locations, with a synonym list, in the hierarchical GUI generated by the AE.)
• The "addition" of an element or key which already occurs in the data base, but under a different "parent" key, is identified by the analytical engine as creating a synonym.  This results in the modification of the (already occurring) element's (or key's) "elemental record" to include the added "parent" key (node) location, and does not result in the addition of a new record.  (non duplicative replication)
• Information about elements and keys is not logically or physically duplicated when elements and keys are "filed" in multiple locations, since the implementation treats each element and key as a unitary record.  Each unitary or "elemental record" contains references to all of its "Parent" keys, e.g. those it has a "Child" relation to.
• Editing, or adding (i.e. "filing") an element or key by the User causes the GUI to make available the option of filing that element or key under additional existing or *new* keys.  This option may be presented through right click, drop down window opening on request, or automatic pop reminder window.

Synonyms - Since the analytical engine relies on the logical access path to the indexed information rather than the user supplied name for elements, it also provides for synonym identification and display in the GUI.  (This applies also to keys, should different key names refer to identical sets of subsidiary elements and keys.)