Maintaining multiple versions of message bodies in a common database

• US 20050246423A1
• Filed: 04/30/2004
• Published: 11/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Giacobbe, Gail Borod, Starbuck, Bryan T.
• Granted Patent: US 7,533,149 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/90 Internet, e.g. Internet phone, webphone, internet-based telephony
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 379/908 Multimedia

Abstract

The present invention extends to methods, systems, computer program products, and data structures for maintaining multiple versions of electronic bodies in a common database. A computer system maintains an association between an electronic message and a plurality of versions of a corresponding message body in a database that is accessible to a plurality of messaging applications. Versions of the corresponding message body can be stored in different formats that vary in fidelity. A messaging application submits a request to access an electronic message. An operating system receives the request and identifies data formats supported by the messaging application. The operating system provides the messaging application with an appropriate version of the message body from the database based on the supported data formats. The messaging application receives the version of the message body and utilizes the version of the message body to perform a message related operation.

Claims

1. In a computer system that includes a plurality of messaging applications and is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, a method for providing access to an electronic message body, the method comprising:

an act of maintaining an association between an electronic message and a plurality of versions of a corresponding message body, the electronic message and the versions of the corresponding message body being stored in a database that is accessible to the plurality of messaging applications, at least one higher fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a higher fidelity data format and at least one lower fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a lower fidelity data format;

an act of receiving a messaging application request for access to the electronic message;

an act of identifying data formats supported by the requesting messaging application; and

an act of providing the messaging application with an appropriate version of the message body from the database based on the supported data formats.

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

an act of receiving the electronic message, the electronic message including the higher fidelity version of the message body formatted in accordance with the first higher fidelity data format; and

an act of producing a lower fidelity version of the message body formatted in accordance with the lower fidelity data format.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the act of receiving the electronic message comprises an act of an initial messaging application, different from the requesting messaging application, receiving the electronic message.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of maintaining an association between an electronic message and a plurality of versions of a corresponding message body comprises linking a message item to the plurality of versions of the corresponding message body.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of maintaining an association between an electronic message and a plurality of versions of a corresponding message body comprises an act of maintaining associations to a body version formatted in accordance with a higher fidelity format, a body version formatted in accordance with a middle fidelity format, and a body version formatted in accordance with a lower fidelity format.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein an act of maintaining associations to a body version formatted in accordance with a higher fidelity format, a body version formatted in accordance with a middle fidelity format, and a body version formatted in accordance with a lower fidelity format comprises an act of maintaining an association between a body version formatted in accordance with a higher fidelity format, a body version formatted in accordance with HTML, and a body version formatted in accordance in plain text.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving a messaging application request for access to the electronic message comprises an act of a messaging application requesting to reply to the electronic message.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the act of a messaging application requesting to reply to the electronic message comprises an act of requesting to reply to a first type of electronic message with a second different type of electronic message.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the act of requesting to reply to a first type of electronic message with a second different type of electronic message comprises a first messaging application requesting to reply to the first type of electronic message with a second different type of electronic message, further comprising:

a second messaging application requesting to reply to the first type of electronic message with a third type of electronic message, the third type of electronic message being different than both the first type and second type of electronic message.

10. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein the first type of electronic message is selected from among the following types of electronic messages:

an electronic mail message, an instant message, a blog entry, a news group posting, a fax message, an SMS message, a saved instant message log, a saved recording of telephone conversation, and a saved recording of a video conference.

11. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of receiving a messaging application request for access to the electronic message comprises an act of receiving query criteria from a user interface.

12. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the act of receiving query criteria from a user interface comprises an act of receiving query criteria that specify body versions of a particular message body data format.

13. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of providing the messaging application with an appropriate version of the message body comprises an act of providing a version of the message body formatted in accordance with a message body data format preferred by the messaging application.

14. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of providing the messaging application with an appropriate version of the message body comprises an act of providing a version of the message body formatted in accordance with the highest fidelity data format that is both maintained in the database and supported by the messaging application.

15. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the higher fidelity data format is a data format selected from among RTF, TIFF-F, XML, HTML, and SMS.

16. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the lower fidelity data format is a data format selected from among HTML and plain text.

17. In a computer system that includes a plurality of messaging applications and is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, a method for one the messaging applications to access an electronic message, the method comprising:

an act of submitting a request to access an electronic message;

an act of receiving a version of a message body that corresponds to the requested electronic message, the received version of the message body being selected from among a plurality of versions of the message body maintained in a database accessible to the plurality of messaging applications, at least one higher fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a higher fidelity data format and at least one lower fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a lower fidelity data format;

an act of utilizing the received version of the message body to perform a message related operation.

18. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of submitting a request to access an electronic message comprises an act of requesting to reply to the electronic message.

19. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein the act of requesting to reply to the electronic message comprises an act of requesting to reply to a first type of electronic message with a second different type of electronic message.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the first type of electronic message is selected from among the following types of electronic messages:

an electronic mail message, an instant message, a blog entry, a news group posting, a fax message, an SMS message, a saved instant message log, a saved recording of telephone conversation, and a saved recording of a video conference.

21. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of submitting a request to access an electronic message comprises an act of submitting query criteria from a user interface.

22. The method as recited in claim 21, wherein the act of submitting query criteria from a user interface comprises an act of submitting query criteria that specify body versions of a particular message body data format.

23. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of receiving a version of a message body that corresponds to the requested electronic message comprises an act of receiving a version of the message body formatted in accordance with a message body data format preferred by the messaging application.

24. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of receiving a version of a message body that corresponds to the requested electronic message comprises an act of receiving a version of the message body formatted in accordance with the highest fidelity data format that is both maintained in the database and supported by the messaging application.

25. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of utilizing the received version of the message body to perform a message related operation comprises an act of replying to the electronic message.

26. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the act of utilizing the received version of the message body to perform a message related operation comprises an act of forwarding the electronic message.

27. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the higher fidelity data format is a data format selected from among RTF, TIFF-F, XML, HTML, and SMS.

28. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the lower fidelity data format is a data format selected from among HTML and plain text.

29. A computer program product for use in a computer system that includes a plurality of messaging applications and is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, the computer program product for implementing a method for providing access to an electronic message body, 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:

maintain an association between an electronic message and a plurality of versions of a corresponding message body, the electronic message and the versions of the corresponding message body being stored in a database that is accessible to the plurality of messaging applications, at least one higher fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a higher fidelity data format and at least one lower fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a lower fidelity data format;

receive a messaging application request for access to the electronic message;

identify data formats supported by the requesting messaging application; and

provide the messaging application with an appropriate version of the message body from the database based on the supported data formats.

30. A computer program product for use in a computer system that includes a plurality of messaging applications and is network connectable along with one or more other computer systems to a network, the computer program product for implementing a method for one the messaging applications to access an electronic message, 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:

submit a request to access an electronic message;

receive a version of a message body that corresponds to the requested electronic message, the received version of the message body being selected from among a plurality of versions of the message body maintained in a database accessible to the plurality of messaging applications, at least one higher fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a higher fidelity data format and at least one lower fidelity version of the message body being maintained in accordance with a lower fidelity data format; and

utilize the received version of the message body to perform a message related operation.

31. One or more computer-readable media having stored thereon a data structure representing a message item, the data structure comprising:

an identifier field containing an identifier value that identifies the message item within a store;

a first link field containing a first link value that links the message item identified in the identifier field to a higher fidelity version of a corresponding message body maintained in accordance with a higher fidelity data format; and

a second link field containing a second link value that links the message item identified in the identifier field to a lower fidelity version of the corresponding message body maintained in accordance with a lower fidelity data format.