Method for providing quick responses in instant messaging conversations

• US 20070198646A1
• Filed: 02/21/2006
• Published: 08/23/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Twitter Inc (X Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Chen, Yen-Fu, Handy-Bosma, John, Selvage, Mei, Walker, Keith
• Granted Patent: US 7,661,067 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/207
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1831 Tracking arrangements for later retrieval, e.g. recording contents, participants activities or behavior, network status
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]

Abstract

A computer implemented method, data processing system, and computer program product for allowing a user to quickly and directly responds to a turn in an instant messaging conversation. One or more instant messaging chat conversations are displayed to a user. User input is received selecting a turn in the one of more instant messaging chat conversations. Responsive to receiving the user input selecting a turn, a user input region is provided to the user, wherein the user input region is used to receive an instant message from the user. Upon the user entering an instant message into the user input region, the message is sent to a set of participants in the instant messaging chat conversation.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for enabling a user to generate a quick response to an instant messaging chat conversation, the computer implemented method comprising:

displaying a set of instant messaging chat conversations to a user;

receiving user input selecting a turn in the set of instant messaging chat conversations to form a selected turn;

responsive to receiving the user input selecting a turn, providing a user input region to the user, wherein the user input region is used to receive an instant message from the user; and

responsive to the user entering an instant message into the user input region, sending the instant message to a set of participants in the instant messaging chat conversation.

2. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein a scrolling chat window is used to display the one or more instant messaging chat conversations to the user.

3. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein content of each instant messaging chat conversation is stored in an extensible markup language document, wherein the extensible markup language document includes identifiers linking the particular turn with a chat speaker.

4. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein providing the user input region to the user comprises providing an option to send the instant message as a private message, wherein the instant message is sent only to a chat speaker linked to the selected turn.

5. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the user selects a turn to respond to by clicking on the turn or a hotspot or similar device linked to the turn.

6. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the user input region is placed over the selected turn.

7. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the instant message is sent to the one or more participants by one of selecting a send button or hitting an enter key.

8. The computer implemented method of claim 1, wherein the instant message is a canned response.

9. A data processing system for enabling a user to generate a quick response to an instant messaging chat conversation, the data processing system comprising:

a bus;

a storage device connected to the bus, wherein the storage device contains computer usable code;

at least one managed device connected to the bus;

a communications unit connected to the bus; and

a processing unit connected to the bus, wherein the processing unit executes the computer usable code to display a set of instant messaging chat conversations to a user, receive user input selecting a turn in the set of instant messaging chat conversations to form a selected turn, provide a user input region to the user in response to receiving the user input selecting a turn, wherein the user input region is used to receive an instant message from the user, and send the instant message to a set of participants in the instant messaging chat conversation in response to the user entering an instant message into the user input region.

10. The data processing system of claim 9, wherein content of each instant messaging chat conversation is stored in an extensible markup language document, wherein the extensible markup language document includes identifiers linking the particular turn with a chat speaker.

11. The data processing system of claim 9, wherein the user selects a turn to respond to by clicking on the turn or a hotspot or similar device linked to the turn.

12. The data processing system of claim 9, wherein the user input region is placed over the selected turn.

13. The data processing system of claim 9, wherein the instant message is sent to the one or more participants by one of selecting a send button or hitting an enter key.

14. The data processing system of claim 9, wherein the instant message is a canned response.

15. A computer program product for enabling a user to generate a quick response to an instant messaging chat conversation, the computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer usable program code tangibly embodied thereon, the computer usable program code comprising;

computer usable program code for displaying a set of instant messaging chat conversations to a user;

computer usable program code for receiving user input selecting a turn in the set of instant messaging chat conversations to form a selected turn;

computer usable program code for providing a user input region to the user in response to receiving the user input selecting a turn, wherein the user input region is used to receive an instant message from the user; and

computer usable program code for sending the instant message to a set of participants in the instant messaging chat conversation in response to the user entering an instant message into the user input region.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein content of each instant messaging chat conversation is stored in an extensible markup language document, wherein the extensible markup language document includes identifiers linking the particular turn with a chat speaker.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the computer usable program code for providing the user input region to the user comprises providing an option to send the instant message as a private message, wherein the message is sent only to a chat speaker linked to the selected turn.

18. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the user selects a turn to respond to by clicking on the turn or a hotspot or similar device linked to the turn.

19. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the user input region is placed over the selected turn.

20. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the instant message is sent to the one or more participants by one of selecting a send button or hitting an enter key.