Formatting document objects by visual suggestions

Abstract

A solution for formatting document objects by visual suggestions is proposed. For a document including multiple editing units each of which contains multiple objects, a first editing rule is generated, the first editing rule indicating an edit performed on a first object in a document. Then, an editing suggestion is generated based on the first editing rule, the editing suggestion describing a candidate edit to be performed on a second object within a suggestion scope. The editing suggestion is then presented in a visual form to a user for selection.

1 .- 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A system comprising:
 a processor; and   memory comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, perform operations comprising:
 receiving, at a document having a current document state and comprising a first object and a second object, an edit performed on the first object; 
 generating a first editing suggestion based on the edit, the first editing suggestion indicating a candidate edit to be performed on the second object; and 
 causing display of the first editing suggestion by applying the candidate edit to the second object such that the candidate edit is highlighted for the second object in a suggested document state for the document. 
   
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 21 , wherein the first object and the second object are at least one of:
 a shape; or   a set of one or more text runs.   
     
     
         23 . The system of  claim 21 , wherein generating the first editing suggestion comprises:
 generating an editing rule associated with the first object, the editing rule indicating the edit performed on the first object; and   generating the first editing suggestion based on the editing rule.   
     
     
         24 . The system of  claim 23 , wherein the editing rule comprises at least one condition and at least one conclusion, the at least one condition defining a set of one or more objects applicable to the editing rule, the at least one conclusion describing how to edit the set of one or more objects. 
     
     
         25 . The system of  claim 24 , wherein the condition and the conclusion are presented as an attribute/value pair. 
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 25 , wherein an attribute portion of the attribute/value pair describes one of:
 a position of the first object within the document; or   a size of the first object.   
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 25 , wherein an attribute portion of the attribute/value pair describes one of:
 a font of the first object;   a shape type of the first object; or   content within the first object.   
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 21 , wherein receiving the edit comprises:
 determining an intent of the edit is ambiguous; and   generating a plurality of candidate editing suggestions for the first object, the plurality of candidate editing suggestions including the first editing suggestion and a second editing suggestion.   
     
     
         29 . The system of  claim 28 , wherein:
 the first editing suggestion targets a first attribute of the first object; and   the second editing suggestion targets a second attribute of the first object, the second attribute being different from the first attribute.   
     
     
         30 . The system of  claim 21 , wherein generating the first editing suggestion comprises:
 identifying a suggestion scope associated with the first editing suggestion, the suggestion scope encompassing a set of one or more objects in the document that share an attribute with the first object, the set of one or more objects including the second object; and   generating at least one editing suggestion for each object in the set of one or more objects.   
     
     
         31 . A method comprising:
 receiving, at a document having a current document state and comprising a first object and a second object, an edit performed on the first object;   generating an editing suggestion based on the edit, the editing suggestion indicating a candidate edit to be performed on the second object;   applying the candidate edit to the second object by highlighting the candidate edit on the second object; and   causing display of the editing suggestion such that the highlighting enables a visual comparison of differences between the current document state and a suggested document state comprising the candidate edit.   
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein generating the editing suggestion comprises generating an editing rule associated with an attribute of the first object that is modified by the edit. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 32 , wherein the editing rule comprises a plurality of conditions and a conclusion, each condition of the plurality of conditions relating to one or more attributes of the first object. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the second object is selected for the candidate edit based on determining that the second object satisfies each condition of the plurality of conditions. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the second object is selected for the candidate edit based on determining that the second object satisfies a threshold number of conditions of the plurality of conditions, the threshold number being less than all of the conditions of the plurality of conditions. 
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein generating the editing suggestion comprises:
 generating a first editing rule associated with the edit; and   generating a second editing rule associated with the edit.   
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein:
 the first editing rule is related to a first attribute of the first object, the first attribute being modified by the edit; and   the second editing rule is related to a second attribute of the first object, the second attribute being modified by the edit.   
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein:
 the first editing rule comprises a first set of conditions for identifying objects in the document that share one or more attributes with the first object; and   the second editing rule comprises a second set of conditions for identifying objects in the document that share the one or more attributes with the first object, the second set of conditions being a subset of the first set of conditions.   
     
     
         39 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein:
 the first editing rule is assigned a first weight;   the second editing rule is assigned a second weight; and   generating the editing suggestion further comprises:
 selecting the first editing rule or the second editing rule as a selected rule based on a comparison of the first weight to the second weight; and 
 using the selected rule to generate the editing suggestion. 
   
     
     
         40 . A device comprising:
 a processor; and   memory comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, perform operations comprising:
 receiving, at a document having a current document state and comprising a first object and a second object, an edit performed on the first object; 
 generating a first editing suggestion based on the edit, the first editing suggestion indicating a candidate edit to be performed on the second object; and 
 causing display of the first editing suggestion by applying the candidate edit to the second object such that the candidate edit as applied to the second object is emphasized in a suggested document state for the document.