Accessing different types of electronic messages through a common messaging interface

• US 20050138002A1
• Filed: 10/23/2003
• Published: 06/23/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Giacobbe, Gail Borod, Starbuck, Bryan T., Combs, Robert C., Sundararaman, Sridhar, Wells, Stephen T., Rachamadugu, Raghavendra, Winjum, Randy Knight, Vaschillo, Alexander E., Lueders, John Heinrich, Van Hoof, Hubert Louis Marie
• Granted Patent: US 7,194,516 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

The present invention extends to methods, systems, computer program products, and data structures for presenting different types of electronic messages at a common interface. Electronic message items are stored in an item database along with other types of items, such as, for example, contact items, folder items, document items, etc. Electronic message items have some common defined data fields and possibly other differently defined data fields that represent protocol and/or application specific properties. Computer systems can query the item database for message related data (e.g., from commonly defined data fields) and display links to message related data at a common messaging interface. Links to different types of electronic messages (as represented by protocol and/or application specific properties) may be displayed simultaneously at the common messaging interface.

Claims

1. In a computer system that is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, a method presenting message related data at a common messaging interface such that the presented message related data can be accessed more efficiently, the method comprising:

an act of receiving query criteria for a message related query, the query criteria being received at the common messaging interface;

an act of submitting a message related query to an item database in accordance with the query criteria;

an act of receiving a plurality of portions of message related data that satisfy the query criteria, the plurality of portions of message related data including at least a first portion of message related data and including at least a second portion of message related, the first portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from one or more property fields of the second portion of message related data, the first portion of message related data and the second portion of message related data also having one or more common property fields defined in accordance with a message schema; and

an act of displaying at least a link to each of the received portions of message related data at the common messaging interface such that different portions of message related data that have one or more differently defined property fields are displayed together.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria for a message related query that is to span across a plurality of folders.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data associated with a specified document.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data associated with a specified participant.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data associated with a specified subject.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages.

7. The method as recited in claim 6, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages, the one or more common property fields being defined in accordance with a message schema.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages comprises an act of receiving query criteria for querying for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common at least to electronic mail messages, instant messages, voice mail messages, fax messages, news group postings, and blog entries stored in the item database.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving query criteria for a message related query comprises an act of receiving query criteria as a result of a user-selection of a link that represents one or more property fields of electronic messages.

10. The mehod as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of submitting a message related query to an item database comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data that spans across a plurality of folders.

11. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of submitting a message related query to an item database comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data associated with a specified document.

12. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of submitting a message related query to an item database comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data associated with a specified participant.

13. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of submitting a message related query to an item database comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data associated with a specified subject.

14. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of submitting a message related query to an item database comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages.

15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the act of submitting a message related query for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages comprises an act of submitting a message related query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages, the one or more common property fields being defined in accordance with a message schema.

16. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the act of submitting a message related query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages comprises an act of submitting a query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common at least to electronic mail messages, instant messages, voice mail messages, fax messages, news group postings, and blog entries stored in the item database.

17. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving a plurality of portions of message related data that satisfy the query criteria comprises an act of receiving a first portion of message related data that has one or more property fields defined in accordance with a first message extension schema and receiving a second portion of message data that has one or more property fields defined in accordance with a second different message extension schema.

18. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of displaying at least a link to each of the received portions of message related data at the common messaging interface comprises an act of displaying message related data associated with different accounts corresponding to the same participant under the same heading at the common messaging interface.

19. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of displaying at least a link to each of the received portions of message related data at the common messaging interface comprises an act of displaying a portion of message related data in a plurality of different groups.

20. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of displaying at least a link to each of the received portions of message related data at the common messaging interface comprises an act of aggregating common but discrete properties of one or more portions of message content so as to present a unified view of the common but discrete properties at the common messaging interface.

21. The method as recited in claim 20, wherein the act of aggregating common but discrete properties of one or more portions of message related content so as to present a unified view of the common but discrete properties at the common messaging interface comprises an act of aggregating the To, From, CC and BCC properties of portions of electronic message related data, along with participant properties of portions of instant message related data, along with callers properties of portions of voice message related data, along with author properties of fax message related data, for display in a participants column at the common messaging interface.

22. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

an act of presenting an interface that facilitates responding to a portion of electronic message data via a mechanism other than the mechanism used to generate the portion of electronic message data.

23. The method as recited in claim 22, wherein the act of presenting an interface that facilitates responding to a portion of electronic message data via a mechanism other than the mechanism used to generate the portion of electronic message data comprises an act of presenting an interface that facilities responding to an electronic mail message using one or more of an instant message, a fax message, a voice message, and a news group posting.

24. In a computer system that is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, a method for returning message related data that is to be presented at a common messaging interface such that the presented message related data can be accessed more efficiently, the method comprising:

an act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system, the message related query including query criteria;

an act of accessing an item database, the item database storing a plurality of portions of message related data, the plurality of portions of message related data including at least a first portion of message related data and including at least a second portion of message related, the first portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from one or more property fields of the second portion of message related data, the first portion of message related data and the second portion of message related data also having one or more common property fields defined in accordance with a message schema; and

an act of identifying a plurality of portions of message related data contained in the message database that satisfy the query criteria of the message related query, at least one identified portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from at least one other identified portion of message related data;

an act of returning the plurality of portions of message related data to the querying computer system.

25. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data that spans across a plurality of folders.

26. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data associated with a specified document.

27. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data associated with a specified participant.

28. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data associated with a specified subject.

29. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of receiving a message related query from a querying computer system comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages.

30. The method as recited in claim 29, wherein the act of receiving a message related query for message related data contained in one or more property fields of electronic messages comprises an act of receiving a message related query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages, the one or more common property fields being defined in accordance with a message schema.

31. The method as recited in claim 30, wherein the act of receiving a message related query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common to a plurality of different types of electronic messages comprises an act of receiving a query for message related data contained in one or more common property fields that are common at least to electronic mail messages, instant messages, voice mail messages, fax messages, and news group postings stored in the item database.

32. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the act of identifying a plurality of portions of message related data contained in the message database that satisfy the query criteria of the message related query comprises an act of identifying a first portion of message related data that has one or more property fields defined in accordance with a first message extension schema and identifying a second portion of message data that has one or more property fields defined in accordance with a second different message extension schema.

33. A computer program product for use in a computer system that is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, the computer program product for implementing a method presenting message related data at a common messaging interface such that the presented message related data can be accessed more efficiently, the computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable media having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

receive query criteria for a message related query, the query criteria being received at the common messaging interface;

submit a message related query to an item database in accordance with the query criteria;

receive a plurality of portions of message related data that satisfy the query criteria, the plurality of portions of message related data including at least a first portion of message related data and including at least a second portion of message related, the first portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from one or more property fields of the second portion of message related data;

the first portion of message related data and the second portion of message related data also having one or more common property fields defined in accordance with a message schema; and

display at least a link to each of the received portions of message related data at the common messaging interface such that different portions of message related data that have one or more differently defined property fields are displayed together.

34. A computer program product for use in a computer system that is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, the computer program product for implementing a method for returning message related data that is to be presented at a common messaging interface such that the presented message related data can be accessed more efficiently, the computer program product comprising one or more computer-readable media having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the computer system to perform the following:

receive a message related query from a querying computer system, the message related query including query criteria;

access an item database, the item database storing a plurality of portions of message related data, the plurality of portions of message related data including at least a first portion of message related data and including at least a second portion of message related, the first portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from one or more property fields of the second portion of message related data, the first portion of message related data and the second portion of message related data also having one or more common property fields defined in accordance with a message schema; and

identify a plurality of portions of message related data contained in the message database that satisfy the query criteria of the message related query, at least one identified portion of message related data having one or more property fields that are defined differently from at least one other identified portion of message related data;

return the plurality of portions of message related data to the querying computer system.

35. In a computer system that is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, a method presenting message related data at a common messaging interface such that the presented message related data can be accessed more efficiently, the method comprising:

an act of receiving query criteria for a message related query, the query criteria being received at the common messaging interface; and

a step for simultaneously presenting message related data corresponding to a plurality of different types of electronic messages at the common messaging interface, the message related data satisfying the query criteria.