Patent ID: 7725433

Claim:
A method of navigating data stored on a data storage device connected to a computer, the method comprising: registering first source data in an information catalog, wherein the catalog defines a plurality of functional objects for creating user-defined object types; in response to receiving input from a user navigating a plurality of data objects stored in the information catalog, selecting a first target data object in the information catalog; providing transformation lineage information about the first source data from which the first target data object was derived via a transformation performed on the first source data to derive the first target data object; providing transformation model information of the transformation performed on the first source data to derive the first target data object, the transformation model information providing a user with transformation producing function information of the first target data object including a derivation of the first target data object from the first source data; using a metadata synchronizer, detecting a change in the registered first source data as changed source data, and selectively refreshing metadata in the information catalog to reflect the detected change; registering the changed source data in the information catalog; selecting a second target data object, the second target data object being related to the changed source data by the transformation performed on the changed source data to derive the second target data object; and, providing updated transformation lineage information about the changed source data from which the second target data object was derived via the transformation performed on the changed source data to derive the second target data object.