Patent ID: 7653876

Claim:
A method for reversing a format of a reversible electronic document comprising two formatting states, the method comprising: in a first document conversion for reversing an electronic document in a binary format into a markup language format, transforming the electronic document from the binary format into the markup language format by extracting a subset of information from the electronic document in the binary format according to predefined extraction parameters, inserting the subset of the information into portions of the electronic document in the markup language format, and inserting a reduced-information version of the electronic document in the binary format into a storage location of the electronic document in the markup language format such that the version of the electronic document in the binary format is retrievable upon reversal of the electronic document in the markup language format in a second document conversion, wherein the reduced-information version comprises data that is unconvertible to the markup language format; and in the second document conversion for reversing an electronic document in the markup language format into the binary format, transforming the electronic document from the markup language format into the binary format by extracting a first subset of information, from the electronic document in the markup language format, that is recognized in the binary format, extracting a second subset of information, from the electronic document in the markup language format, that is not recognized in the binary format, inserting the first subset of information, from the electronic document in the markup language format, into portions of the electronic document in the binary format, and placing the second subset of information from the electronic document in the markup language format into a storage location of the electronic document in the binary format such that the unrecognized information is retrievable upon reversal of the electronic document in the binary format in the first document conversion, wherein the second subset of information comprises data that is unconvertible to the binary format.