Instant message user management
First Claim
1. A method of managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, comprising steps of;
determining, for an IM client, whether users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired; and
omitting those users which are to be treated as expired when performing selected IM management functions.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Techniques are disclosed for improving management of user information in instant messaging systems. Expiration criteria are defined, whereby one or more users or user groups may be considered as having “expired” from consideration by instant messaging functions such as presence determination. In particular, instant messaging activity is preferably used as an expiration criterion. Absence of inbound or outbound messages for a specified amount of time (or since a particular date/time) can therefore be used as a trigger for treating a user or group of users as expired. As a result, efficiency of an instant messaging system is improved by omitting the expired users and groups from subsequent management operations. Optionally, an expired user or group may be revived upon occurrence of certain events (such as a newly-arriving instant message from, or a change in presence status of, the user or group). “On-demand” expiration and revival are preferably provided as well.
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Citations
40 Claims
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1. A method of managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, comprising steps of;
determining, for an IM client, whether users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired; and
omitting those users which are to be treated as expired when performing selected IM management functions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
- IM”
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16. A method of managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, comprising steps of;
evaluating, for an IM client, which of the users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired;
providing, for the IM client, an indication for those users which are to be treated as expired; and
charging a fee for carrying out the evaluating and providing steps.
- IM”
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17. A method of managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, comprising steps of;
determining, for an IM client, whether users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired; and
providing a different visual representation for the remembered users who are to be treated as expired, as contrasted to the remembered users who are not to be treated as expired, when displaying an IM client display to a user of the IM client. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
- IM”
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20. A system for managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, comprising;
an IM client;
means for determining, for the IM client, whether users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired; and
means for omitting those users which are to be treated as expired when performing selected IM management functions. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
- IM”
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31. A computer program product for managing user information in an instant messaging (“
- IM”
) system, the computer program product embodied on one or more computer-readable media and comprising;
computer-readable program code means for determining, for an IM client, whether users remembered by the IM client should be treated as expired; and
computer-readable program code means for omitting those users which are to be treated as expired when performing selected IM management functions. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
- IM”
Specification