Patent Document ID: 5530794
Application ID: 08298210

Base Claim:
1. A method for properly displaying paragraphs of text that use a foreign paragraph delimiter, the foreign paragraph delimiter being different than a native paragraph delimiter of documents created on a word processing system, said method comprising the steps of: (a) producing a character position array in which each character of a document that is open on the word processing system is assigned a position, said character position array being divided into a plurality of pieces, each piece comprising a string of characters that are stored adjacent to one another in a file and which have identical format properties; (b) producing an array of data records including entries that correspond to each piece of the character position array, each entry including a file number and a file position within a file at which the string of characters comprising the piece are stored; (c) producing a file control block for each file storing text used in the document when the file is initially opened by the word processing system; (d) inserting delimiter identification data in the file control block of each file, said delimiter identification data indicating a type of paragraph delimiter used by the text stored in the file; (e) each time that a character of the document is displayed, referring to the character position array and to the array of data records to determine a specific file in which the character is stored, the delimiter identification data in the file control block for said specific file indicating the type of paragraph delimiter that is used for a paragraph containing the character; and (f) if the paragraph containing the character uses a foreign paragraph delimiter, translating the foreign paragraph delimiter to the native paragraph delimiter in a display buffer, so that the paragraph containing the character is properly displayed to the user.

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Claim 3:
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of checking for a header or a trailer to the text in a file opened by the word processing system, said header or trailer at times indicating the type of paragraph delimiter used by the text so that corresponding delimiter identification data are provided in the file control block for said file.