Network Processing of Documents, for Documents, by Documents

This paper presents a content-dependent and configurable framework for the network processing of documents. Like existing compound document frameworks, it enables an enriched document to be dynamically and nestedly composed of software components corresponding to various content, e.g., text, images, and windows. It also enables each component or document to migrate over a network under its own control utilizing mobile agent technology and uses components as carriers or forwarders because it enables them to carry or transmit other components as first class objects to other locations. Since these operations are still document components, they can be dynamically deployed and customized at local or remote computers through GUI manipulations. It therefore allows an end-user to easily and rapidly configure network processing in the same way as if he/she had edited the documents.