Patent ID: 6999968

Claim:
A computing device-implemented method for virtually merging an original ordered set and a new ordered set in a computing device, wherein the original ordered set and the new ordered set have homogeneous data structures, comprising the steps of: (a) for each original item of the original ordered set, assigning an original index indicating a sort order of the original item in the original ordered set as a function of an original value of the original item in the original ordered set; (b) for each new item of the new ordered set, determining an initial index defining a sort order for the new item in the original ordered set as a function of a corresponding new value of the new item in the new ordered set relative to the original value of each original item in the original ordered set; (c) for each new item of the new ordered set, incrementing the initial index by a number of items in the new ordered set having a sort order prior to the new item in the new ordered set, thereby creating a new merged index, wherein a resulting collection of new merged indices and corresponding new values defines an exception table; and (d) for at least one original item of the original ordered set, incrementing the original index by a number of new items in one of the new ordered set and the exception table, where the new items have a sort order prior to the original item, thereby creating an original merged index, a resulting collection of original merged indices and corresponding original values defining a dynamically ordered set, the exception table and the dynamically ordered set together defining a virtual merger of the original ordered set and the new ordered set.