Method for correlating an electronic mail message with related messages

• US 20020091772A1
• Filed: 12/27/2000
• Published: 07/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gateway Incorporated (Acer, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Gateway Incorporated (Acer, Inc.)
• Inventors: Yong, Edward G.
• Granted Patent: US 6,963,904 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

A method for correlating an electronic mail message with related (e.g., reply or forwarded) electronic mail messages is disclosed. When a user initiates a reply to an electronic mail message on an electronic mail system, the system checks for reply or other (e.g., forwarded) messages which are related to the original electronic mail message and are received by the user at a later time.

Claims

1. A method for responding to an electronic mail message selected by a user, where the user accesses a mailbox adapted to store one or more electronic mail messages, each electronic mail message having a unique identifier and an identifier storage field, the method comprising the steps of:

retrieving the unique identifier of the selected electronic mail message;

searching the mailbox for at least one related electronic mail message having the unique identifier of the selected electronic mail message in the identifier storage field of said related electronic mail message; and

providing information relating to results of said searching the mailbox step.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of displaying to the user said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said displaying step is executed in response to a request from the user to respond to the selected electronic mail message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step comprises a count of said related electronic mail messages found in said searching the mailbox step.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step comprises the unique identifier of each said related electronic mail message found in said searching the mailbox step.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each electronic mail message further comprises a time field for storing a sent time, and wherein said searching the mailbox step further comprises the step of searching the time field of each said related electronic mail message for a sent time later than the sent time of the selected electronic mail message.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step comprises data relating to results of said searching the time field step.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein said searching the mailbox step further comprises the step of determining which said related electronic mail message has a latest sent time in the time field.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step comprises data relating to results of said determining step.

10. A method for generating a response to a first electronic mail message received by a user, the first electronic mail message received from a mailbox associated with the user and adapted to store one or more electronic mail messages, each electronic mail message having a unique identifier and an identifier storage field, comprising the steps of:

receiving a request from the user to respond to the first electronic mail message;

retrieving the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message;

receiving information about related electronic mail messages stored in the mailbox and determined to be sent in response to the first electronic mail message based on the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message; and

displaying said information to the user.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said related electronic mail messages are determined to be sent in response to the first electronic mail message if the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message is stored in the identifier storage field of said related electronic mail message.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said information displayed to the user comprises a count of said related electronic mail messages.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein said information displayed to the user comprises a listing of said related electronic mail messages, wherein said listing includes at least one of:

a sender, a recipient, a subject, a sent time, and a message body.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising the steps of:

generating a reply electronic mail message to said first electronic mail message, said reply electronic mail message comprising a reply identifier storage field; and

storing the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message in said reply identifier storage field of said reply electronic mail message.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein each electronic mail message further comprises a time field for storing a sent time, and wherein said receiving information step further comprises the step of determining which said related electronic mail message has a latest sent time in the time field.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of highlighting to the user said related electronic mail message having the latest sent time in the time field.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of opening for the user said related electronic mail message having the latest sent time in the time field.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 18, further comprising the step of displaying to the user said information relating to said results of said searching the mailbox step.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein each electronic mail message further comprises a time field for storing a sent time, and wherein said searching the mailbox step further comprises the steps of:

searching the time field of each said related electronic mail message for a sent time later than the sent time of the selected electronic mail message; and

determining which said related electronic mail message has a latest sent time in the time field.

18. A computer readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program, the computer program being executable by a machine to perform a method for responding to an electronic mail message selected by a user, where the user accesses a mailbox adapted to store one or more electronic mail messages, each electronic mail message having a unique identifier and an identifier storage field, the method comprising the steps of:

retrieving the unique identifier of the selected electronic mail message;

searching the mailbox for at least one related electronic mail message having the unique identifier of the selected electronic mail message in the identifier storage field of said related electronic mail message; and

providing information relating to results of said searching the mailbox step.

21. A computer readable medium having embodied thereon a computer program, the computer program being executable by a machine to perform a method for generating a response to a first electronic mail message received by a user, the first electronic mail message received from a mailbox associated with the user and adapted to store one or more electronic mail messages, each electronic mail message having a unique identifier and an identifier storage field, comprising the steps of:

receiving a request from the user to respond to the first electronic mail message;

retrieving the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message;

receiving information about related electronic mail messages stored in the mailbox and determined to be sent in response to the first electronic mail message based on the unique identifier of the first electronic mail message; and

displaying said information to the user.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein each electronic mail message further comprises a time field for storing a sent time, and wherein said receiving information step further comprises the step of determining which said related electronic mail message has a latest sent time in the time field.