System and methods for multilevel electronic mail communication programs
First Claim
1. A system for producing an electronic mail message to be distributed to email recipients on behalf of a participant within a communication program comprised of a hierarchy of participants, the system comprising:
- a system content database storing system content items of predefined types that are available for use in said message;
a user content database storing user content items of predefined types created by said communication program participants for use in said message; and
a plurality of system tools for creating said message, said message including system content items and user content items, wherein access to respective sets of said tools for creating said message is provided to respective participants of said communication program such that each participant may contribute to the creation of said message in the manners provided by its respective set of tools, and wherein relationships are defined among related tools of the respective sets of said tools such that use of a given tool on behalf of a given participant may control uses of the given tool on behalf of lower affiliated participants within the hierarchy.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electronic mail communication system enables a user to create an email message from system supplied content and user supplied content. The system may be configured in accordance with an electronic mail communication program participant hierarchy. Each system user within the communication program is affiliated with a participant, and each participant has access to a respective set of system tools used in the creation of an email message that incorporates system content and user content. Each system user further has a respective level of authority in accordance with the use of system tools based on its participant affiliation.
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Citations
71 Claims
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1. A system for producing an electronic mail message to be distributed to email recipients on behalf of a participant within a communication program comprised of a hierarchy of participants, the system comprising:
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a system content database storing system content items of predefined types that are available for use in said message;
a user content database storing user content items of predefined types created by said communication program participants for use in said message; and
a plurality of system tools for creating said message, said message including system content items and user content items, wherein access to respective sets of said tools for creating said message is provided to respective participants of said communication program such that each participant may contribute to the creation of said message in the manners provided by its respective set of tools, and wherein relationships are defined among related tools of the respective sets of said tools such that use of a given tool on behalf of a given participant may control uses of the given tool on behalf of lower affiliated participants within the hierarchy. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A system providing tools for producing electronic mail messages to be distributed to email recipients on behalf of a participant within a communication program comprising a plurality of communication program participants, the system comprising:
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a system content manager comprising tools for creating, editing and categorizing system content items to be stored on the system for use in messages, said system content manager tools being accessible by a third party content supplier that is not a participant in the communication program;
a user content manager comprising tools for creating user content items by said participants;
an email manager comprising tools for creating messages by selecting system content items and user content items to be included in a message; and
an email list manager comprising tools for creating distribution lists for said messages. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34)
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35. A system for producing an electronic mail message to be distributed to email recipients on behalf of a participant within a communication program comprising a plurality of communication program participants, the system comprising:
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at least one processor; and
computer readable storage media coupled to the at least one processor and having stored therein programming instructions for performing data processing comprising;
providing system tools for creating electronic mail messages;
creating an electronic message in accordance with input provided by a plurality of system users using said system tools; and
distributing the message on behalf of said participant, wherein respective sets of said system tools are accessible to respective participants within said communication program, and wherein said message is created on behalf of said participant in accordance with input received from multiple system users associated with respective participants using the respective sets of tools accessible to said respective participants. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65)
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66. A method in a system for providing electronic mail communication on behalf of a participant within a communication program comprising a plurality of communication program participants, the method comprising:
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providing system tools for creating electronic mail messages;
creating an electronic message in accordance with input provided by a plurality of system users using said system tools; and
distributing the message on behalf of said participant, wherein respective sets of said system tools are accessible to respective participants within said communication program, and wherein said message is created on behalf of said participant in accordance with input received from multiple system users associated with respective participants using the respective sets of tools accessible to said respective participants. - View Dependent Claims (67, 68, 69)
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70. A method for implementing an electronic mail message system, comprising:
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providing a plurality of system tools for creating an electronic message;
defining a hierarchy of participants within a communication program to be serviced by said system;
configuring said system to make respective sets of said system tools accessible to respective participants of the communication program; and
defining relationships among related tools of the respective sets of tools, said relationships specifying at least one of system tools that automatically override contrary uses of the same tool by lower level affiliated participants, and system tools that override contrary uses of the same tool by lower level affiliated participants at the option of the user of the tool. - View Dependent Claims (71)
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Specification