Method for sharing groups of objects

• US 20050262164A1
• Filed: 05/24/2004
• Published: 11/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Guiheneuf, Bertrand, Jalon, Julien, Gutknecht, Olivier, Ryder, Scott, Maury, Sebastien
• Granted Patent: US 7,383,291 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06311 Scheduling, planning or task assignment for a person or group
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99954 Version management

Abstract

A method of sharing a group of one or more objects between a plurality of users, in which one or more of said plurality of users is able to change parameter data of at least one said object. The method comprises storing at least one version of each said object; when an object is changed, creating a new version of the object, the new version of the object comprising additional data relating to the creation of the new version; storing the new version of the object together with any version of that object before the change; providing all versions of the object to each of said plurality of users; and using the additional data provided for each version of the object to determine how to display the object. The group may be a calendar and each object may be an event in the calendar. In that case, the object parameter data may comprise a start time of the event, an end time of the event, a description of the event, a status of the event, whether the event is to be repeated and the persons attending the event. The additional data may comprise an identification of the user who made the change, a time at which the change was made, a description of the change, a user comment relating to the change and an identification of the previous version of the event from which the present version was created.

Claims

1. A method of sharing a group of one or more objects between a plurality of users, in which one or more of said plurality of users is able to change parameter data of at least one said object, the method comprising:

storing at least one version of each said object;

when an object is changed, creating a new version of the object, the new version of the object comprising additional data relating to the creation of the new version;

storing the new version of the object together with any version of that object before the change;

providing all versions of the object to each of said plurality of users; and

using the additional data provided for each version of the object to determine how to display the object.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the group is a calendar and each object is an event in the calendar.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein object parameter data comprises at least one of a start time of the event, an end time of the event and a description of the event.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the object parameter data further comprises at least one of a status of the event, whether the event is to be repeated and the persons attending the event.

5. A method according to claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the additional data comprises at least one of an identification of the user who made the change, a time at which the change was made, a description of the change, a user comment relating to the change and an identification of the previous version of the event from which the present version was created.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the group is a text document and each object is a section of the text document.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein object parameter data comprises text data.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein the additional data comprises at least one of an identification of the user who made the change, the time at which the change was made, a description of the change, a user comment relating to the change and an identification of the previous version of the event from which the present version was created.

9. A method according to claim 1, wherein the additional data comprises the time at which the change was made, the method further comprising displaying the most recently changed version of the object.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the additional data comprises an identification of the previous version of the event from which the present version was created, the method further comprising displaying the object in accordance with a sequence of changes established according to the relationships between different versions of events.

11. A method according to claim 1, the method further comprising displaying one version of the object together with additional data of another version of the object.

12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the additional data displayed includes at least one of an identification of the user who made the change, the time at which the change was made, a description of the change, a user comment relating to the change and an identification of the previous version of the object from which the present version was created.

13. A method according to claim 1, the method further comprising sharing the group of objects between the plurality of users by means of user devices in a network.

14. A method according to claim 13, the method further comprising storing all versions of objects in user devices accessed by users.

15. A method according to claim 14, the method further comprising storing all versions of objects in a network server.

16. A method according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein a first user device connected in the network compares all versions of the objects it stores in a group with all versions of the objects a second device connected in the network stores in the same group.

17. A method according to claim 16, wherein the first user device receives from the second device versions of objects not stored by the first user device.

18. A method according to claim 16, wherein the first user device transmits to the second device versions of objects not stored by the second device.

19. A method according to claim 1, wherein when a user deletes an object from the group the method comprises:

creating a new version of the object with additional data indicating that the object is deleted,

storing the new version of the object together with any version of the object before the deletion, and

displaying the object with an indication that the object has been deleted.

20. A method according to claim 1 or claim 19, wherein when a predetermined one of said plurality of users deletes an object from the group the method comprises:

deleting all versions of the object and replacing them with a token indicating that the object has been deleted and can no longer be changed.

21. A method according to claim 1, the method further comprising sharing a plurality of groups of objects.

22. A method according to claim 21, the method further comprising moving an object from a first group to a second group.

23. A method according to claim 22, the step of moving an object from a first group to a second group comprising copying all versions of the object in the first group and storing them in the second group.

24. A method according to claim 1, the method further comprising selecting an existing version of an object, copying object parameter data of the selected version and storing the copied object parameter data with new additional data as a new version of the object.

25. A method according to claim 1, further comprising notifying one or more of said users when an object is changed.

26. A method according to claim 1, wherein the group is a collection of images and each object is an image.

27. A computer program for causing a computer to perform the method of claim 1.

28. A recording medium having recorded thereon a computer program for causing a computer to carry out the method of claim 1.

29. A network comprising at least a first user device and a second user device, wherein said user devices are arranged to carry out a method according to claim 1.

30. A network comprising at least a first user device and a second user device, wherein said user devices are programmed with a computer program according to claim 28.

31. A network according to claim 29 or claim 30, further comprising a server.

32. A user device arranged for use in a network according to claim 29 or claim 30, or to carry out the method of claim 1, or programmed with a computer program according to claim 27.