PENDING AND EXCLUSIVE ELECTRONIC MAIL INBOX

• US 20090089381A1
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Published: 04/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Anderson, Christine, Kikin-Gil, Erez, Chan, Wendy, Stovicek, Thomas Jan, Yang, Sara Liu, Shahine, Omar, Schnoebelen, Tyler, Hirsh, Sandra, Bell, Nancy Jane
• Application Number:
  US11/864,706
• Publication Number:
  US 20090089381A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

Distinguishing electronic mail (e-mail) messages for a user. An e-mail inbox is provided to include one or more e-mail messages therein. A first section of the inbox is specified. The first section includes a set of the one or more messages, and the set of the one or more messages is indicative of an unknown status. An second section of the inbox is provided, and the second section includes the remaining set of the one or more messages. The remaining set of the messages is indicative of a known status.

Claims

1. A method for distinguishing messages for a user, said method comprising:

providing an inbox including one or more messages from one or more senders therein;

specifying a first section of the inbox, said first section including a set of the one or more messages from the one or more senders, said set of the one or more messages whose senders have an unknown status; and

specifying an second section of the inbox, said second section including the remaining set of the one or more messages from the one or more senders, said remaining set of the messages being indicative of a known status.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the unknown status indicates the set of the one or more messages from the one or more senders including at least one of the following properties:

a message source not included in a contact list of the user, a message source not included in a safe list defined by the user, senders with frequent message communications but without a proper status, good reputation senders, mixed reputation senders, potentially dangerous senders, and changes to distinguishing message settings.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving an instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages from the one or more senders in the first section of the inbox, and further comprising providing at least one or more operations in response to the received instruction:

identifying the one or more messages with the modified unknown status to the second section, relocating all messages from a sender with the modified unknown status to the first section, and relocating future messages from the sender to the second section.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein receiving comprises one or more of the following:

wherein receiving the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to the known status, and further comprising moving the one or more messages with the known status from the first section of the inbox to the second section of the inbox,

wherein receiving comprises receiving the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to an unsafe status, and further comprising moving the one or more messages with the unsafe status from the first section of the inbox to a junk e-mail storage, or

wherein receiving comprises receiving the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to a deleted status, and further comprising performing at least one or more of the following operations in response to the received instruction;

removing the one or more messages with the deleted status from the first section of the inbox, deleting all messages from a sender with deleted status, and deleting the one or more messages with the deleted status at this time.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a filter for specifying the first section and the second section, said filter defining at least a low state, a standard state, and an exclusive state, wherein the low state, the standard state, and the exclusive state defining one or more messages from senders based on a function of the unknown status and the known status.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising applying the received filter to a junk folder, wherein the applied filter filters the one or more messages to the junk folder, the first section of the inbox, and the second section of the inbox as a function of the unknown status and the known status.

7. A tangible computer-readable medium having a data structure stored thereon for partitioning messages in an inbox, said data structure storing data for one or more messages, said data structure comprising:

a first data field storing inbox status data for each of the one or more messages in the inbox;

a second data field storing data representing a first set of the one or more messages from senders in the inbox,

wherein each of the one or more messages in the second data field specifying an unknown status in the first data field; and

a third data field storing data representing a second set of the one or more messages in the inbox,

wherein each of the one or more messages of the third data field specifying a known status in the first data field.

8. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 7, wherein the unknown status of the first data field indicates the first set of the one or more messages including at least one of the following properties:

a message source not included in a contact list of the user, a message source not included in a safe list defined by the user, senders with frequent message communications but without a proper status, good reputation senders, mixed reputation senders, potentially dangerous senders, and changes to distinguishing message settings.

9. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 7, wherein the known status of the first data field includes at least one of the following status:

a safe status and a contact status.

10. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 7, wherein the first data field is receptive to modification from the user.

11. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 9, wherein the modification comprises one or more of the following:

modifying the unknown status in the first data field of the messages in the second data field to the known status in the first data field, and wherein the messages corresponding to the modified unknown status are moved to the second set in the third data field,

modifying the unknown status in the first data field of the messages in the second data field to a safe status in the first data field, and wherein the messages corresponding to the safe status are moved to the second set in the third data field, or

modifying the unknown status in the first data field of the messages in the second data field to a deleted status in the first data field, and wherein the messages corresponding to the deleted status in the first data field are moved from the second data field.

12. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 7, further comprising a fourth data field storing a filter for specifying the first section and the second section, said filter defining at least a low state, a standard state, and an exclusive state, wherein the low state, the standard state, and the exclusive state defining one or more messages from senders based on a function of the unknown status and the known status.

13. The tangible computer-readable media of claim 12, wherein the filter of the fourth field is applied to a junk folder, wherein the applied filter filters the one or more messages to the junk folder, the first section of the inbox, and the second section of the inbox as a function of the unknown status and the known status.

14. A system for providing messages to a user in an e-mail inbox, said system comprising:

a memory area for storing one or more messages from senders in the inbox;

an interface for providing the stored messages to a user;

a processor having configured to execute computer-executable instructions for;

specifying a first section of the inbox on the interface, said first section including a set of the one or more messages, said set of the one or more messages being indicative of an unknown status; and

specifying an second section of the inbox on the interface, said second section including the remaining set of the one or more messages, said remaining set of the messages being indicative of a known status.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the known status includes at least one of the following status:

a safe status and a contact status.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the unknown status indicates the set of the one or more messages from the senders including at least one of the following properties:

a message source not included in a contact list of the user, a message source not included in a safe list defined by the user, senders with frequent message communications but without a proper status, good reputation senders, mixed reputation senders, potentially dangerous senders, and changes to distinguishing message settings.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the interface is further configured to receive an instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox on the interface.

18. The system of claim 17:

wherein the interface receives the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to the known status, and wherein the processor is configured to move at least to the following;

the one or more messages with the known status from the first section of the inbox to the second section of the inbox and all future messages from the sender associated with the one or more messages,

wherein the interface receives the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to a unsafe status, and wherein the processor is configured to move at least to the following;

the one or more messages with the unsafe status from the first section of the inbox to a junk e-mail storage, and all future messages from the sender associated with the one or more messages;

or

wherein the interface receives the instruction from the user for modifying the unknown status of the one or more messages in the first section of the inbox to a deleted status, and wherein the processor is configured to remove the one or more messages with the deleted status from the first section of the inbox.

19. The system of claim 14, further comprising a filter for specifying the first section and the second section, said filter defining at least a low state, a standard state, and an exclusive state, wherein the low state, the standard state, and the exclusive state defining one or more messages from senders based on a function of the unknown status and the known status.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the processor is configured to apply the filter to a junk folder, wherein the applied filter filters the one or more messages to the junk folder, the first section of the inbox, and the second section of the inbox as a function of the unknown status and the known status.