MANAGING PERMISSIONS IN A COLLABORATIVE WORKSPACE

• US 20090307604A1
• Filed: 06/10/2008
• Published: 12/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Han, Alixandra M., Anders, Ulrike A., Giles, Jason D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,464,161 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/751
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2147 Locking files
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

An approach for managing permissions in a collaborative workspace involves providing a permissions user interface presentation without loosing a context associated with a collaborative workspace user interface presentation. The permissions user interface presentation visually organizes a set of workspace members into tow or more permission level categories. The permissions user interface presentation also allows a user to efficiently add new workspace members from a local system or an alternative system.

Claims

1. A method for managing permissions in a collaborative workspace, the method being performed on electronic data processing equipment, the method comprising:

providing a workspace user interface presentation to a user through which the user may interact with a collaborative workspace;

receiving an instruction from the user to manage permissions associated with the collaborative workspace; and

providing, in response to the instruction, a permissions user interface presentation to the user without losing a context associated with the collaborative workspace user interface presentation, the permissions user interface presentation identifying a set of workspace members who are permitted to use the collaborative workspace, the permissions user interface presentation visually organizing the set of workspace members into groups corresponding to two or more permission level categories, said two or more permission level categories associated with different respective levels of access to the collaborative workspace.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said two or more permission level categories comprise:

an owner permission level category that identifies any owner or owners associated with the collaborative workspace;

an editor permission level category that identifies any editor or editors who are permitted to make changes to items of the collaborative workspace; and

a viewer permission level category that identifies any viewer or viewers who are permitted to view the items of the collaborative workspace, but not makes changes to the items of the collaborative workspace.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising, at a request of the user, changing a permission level of at least one workspace member from an original permission level category to a target permission level category.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said changing comprises performing a drag-and-drop operation to graphically move said at least one workspace member from the original permission level category to the target permission level category.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein said changing comprises activating additional information regarding said at least one workspace member and changing a permission level of said at least one workspace member by acting on the additional information.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising a process for adding a new user, the process comprising:

receiving an instruction from the user to add a new member to the set of workspace members;

presenting a collection of local system persons who are associated with the user in a context of a local system;

receiving a selection from the user of one or more new members from among the collection of local system persons; and

in response to the selection, adding said one or more new members to the set of workspace members, wherein the process for adding a new user takes place without losing a context associated with the workspace user interface presentation.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising a process for adding a new user, the process comprising:

receiving an instruction from the user to add a new member to the set of workspace members in a case in which the new member is not currently associated with the user within a context of a local system;

receiving a selection from the user of an alternative system;

presenting a collection of alternative system persons who are associated with the user in a context of the alternative system; and

receiving a selection from the user of one or more new members from among the collection of alternative system persons.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

in response to the user'"'"'s selection of said one or more new members from among the collection of alternative system persons, adding said one or more new members to a collection of local system persons;

receiving a selection from the user of said one or more new members from among the collection of local system persons; and

in response to the selection of said one or more new members from among the collection of local system persons, adding said one or more new members to the set of workspace members, wherein the process for adding a new user takes place without losing a context associated with the collaborative workspace user interface presentation.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the alternative system is an electronic communication system.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the alternative system is a social networking system.

11. A workspace-providing system, comprising:

a workspace management module configured to present a workspace user interface presentation to a user through which the user may interact with a collaborative workspace within a context of a local system;

a permissions management module configured to manage permissions associated with workspace members; and

an interface module configured to couple the permissions management module to at least one alternative system, allowing the permissions management module to interact with said at least one alternative system,

wherein the permissions management module comprises logic configured to provide a permissions user interface presentation to the user without losing a context associated with the workspace user interface presentation,

wherein the permissions management module further comprises logic configured to import, via the interface module, one or more persons associated with said at least one alternative system into a collection of persons associated with the user in a context of the local system.

12. The workspace-providing system of claim 11, wherein the permissions user interface presentation identifies a set of workspace members who are permitted to use the collaborative workspace, wherein the permissions user interface presentation further visually organizes the set of workspace members into groups corresponding to two or more permission level categories, wherein said two or more permission level categories are associated with different respective levels of access to the collaborative workspace.

13. A computer-readable medium for storing computer-readable instructions, the computer-readable instructions providing a permissions management module when executed by one or more processing devices, the computer-readable instructions comprising:

logic configured to provide a permissions user interface presentation to a user without losing a context associated with a workspace user interface presentation through which a user interacts with a collaborative workspace, the permissions user interface presentation serving as a tool for managing permissions assigned to workspace members, the permissions user interface presentation comprising;

a first part that presents information regarding an owner permission level category, the information regarding the owner-permission category identifying any owner or owners associated with the collaborative workspace;

a second part that presents information regarding an editor permission level category, the information regarding the editor permission level category identifying any editor or editors who are permitted to make changes to items of the collaborative workspace; and

a third part that presents information regarding a viewer permission level category, the information regarding the viewer permission level category identifying any viewer or viewers who are permitted to view the items of the collaborative workspace, but not makes changes to the items of the collaborative workspace.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the second part presents a columnar list of editors and the third part presents a columnar list of viewers.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the permissions management module further comprises logic for, at a request of the user, changing a permission level of at least one workspace member from an original permission level category to a target permission level category.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein said changing performed by the permissions management module comprises performing a drag-and-drop operation to graphically move said at least one workspace member from the original permission level category to the target permission level category.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein said changing performed by the permissions management module comprises activating additional information regarding said at least one workspace member and changing a permission level of said at least one workspace member by acting on the additional information.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the permissions user interface presentation provided by the permissions management module includes a command to add a new member to the collaborative workspace from a collection of local system persons who are associated with the user in a context of a local system.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the permissions user interface presentation provided by the permissions management module includes a command to add a new member to the collaborative workspace from a collection of alternative system persons who are associated with the user in a context of an alternative system.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the permissions management module comprises logic configured to receive a selection by the user of the alternative system.