Current Updates

• US 20120254765A1
• Filed: 06/14/2012
• Published: 10/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Apfel, Darren A., Friedman, Jon, Maguire, Justin Michael, Schoenholz, Matthew James, Ho, Rosanna H., Rowe, Keith L., Vargas, Sandra I., Bernard, Peter A., Von Bencke, Matthew Justin
• Granted Patent: US 9,602,611 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70

Abstract

This document describes tools capable of differentiating a superset of entities from which a user may receive current updates effective to provide current updates for only some of the entities of the superset. In one embodiment, for example, the tools enable a user of a mobile device to select a set of entities from which the user will automatically receive updates that are current, easily accessible, and visible at-a-glance. The tools may forgo providing current updates for entities that are not selected by the user, though the tools may provide these updates when explicitly requested by the user or at particular times or events.

Claims

1. A computing device comprising:

a processing system;

one or more computer-readable media storing instructions, that when executed via the processing system, implement a user interface configured to;

display, on a display device, visual indicators to represent multiple entities associated with a particular user account in the user interface;

expose a selected set area in the user interface to represent a communication group configured to include selected entities of the multiple entities designated for interactions as a group via the particular user account; and

enable modification of entities included in the communication group by drag-and-drop selection of visual indicators for the entities to place the visual indicators into the selected set area that represents the communication group.

2. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein the selected set area is represented as an at least partially enclosed portion of the user interface to receive the visual indicators for the entities to add to the communication group.

3. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein the multiple entities associated with the particular user account include one or more contacts associated with the particular user account.

4. The computing device as recited in claim 1, further comprising communicating with the selected entities of the communication group as a group.

5. The computing device as recited in claim 4, wherein the communicating comprises sending a group communication to the selected entities of the communication group.

6. The computing device as recited in claim 4, wherein the communicating comprises automatically obtaining updates corresponding to one or more of the selected entities of the communication group.

7. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein the multiple entities associated with the particular user account include an existing group of contacts.

8. The computing device as recited in claim 1, wherein the multiple entities associated with the particular user account include a website.

9. The computing device as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

detecting availability of current updates for one or more of the selected entities of the communication group; and

presenting selectable indicators to indicate the availability of the detected updates in conjunction with icons that represent corresponding selected entities via the user interface, the selectable indicators being selectable to cause the computing device to show substance for corresponding current updates.

10. The computing device as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to placement of visual indicators for one or more selected entities into the selected set area;

including the one or more selected entities in the communication group; and

outputting a visual indication configured to indicate inclusion of the one or more selected entities in the communication group.

11. One or more computer-readable media other than a signal per se having computer-readable instructions thereon that, when executed by a computing device, implement a communication module configured to:

display, on a display device associated with the computing device, visual indicators to represent multiple contacts associated with a particular user account in a user interface for the communication module;

expose group representations in the user interface to represent one or more communication groups each configured to include selected contacts of the multiple contacts designated for interactions as a group via the particular user account; and

enable interaction through the group representations to modify selected contacts in the one or more communication groups including at least selection of contacts for inclusion in each of the communication groups and creation of a new communication group.

12. One or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 11, wherein the communication module is further configured to:

obtain a user selection of one or more selected contacts to add to a particular one of said communication groups; and

responsive to the user selection, output a visual indication to represent inclusion of the selected contacts in the particular communication group.

13. One or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 12, wherein:

the user selection comprises dragging and dropping of the visual indicators for the selected contacts onto one of said group representations corresponding to the particular communication group; and

the communication module is further configured to represent movement of the visual indicators for the selected contacts into said group representation corresponding to the particular communication group.

14. One or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 12, wherein:

the communication module is further configured to display the group representations as a list associated with the visual indicators representing the multiple contacts; and

the user selection further comprises selecting the particular communication group from the list to cause addition of one or more selected contacts to the particular communication group.

15. One or more computer-readable storage devices as recited in claim 11, wherein the communication module is further configured to display the group representations as multiple graphical representations each corresponding to one of said communication groups and at least partially enclosing a portion of the user interface.

16. A method implemented by a computing device comprising:

displaying a list of multiple contacts associated with a user account in a selection area of a user interface;

expose one or more representations in the user interface to represent communication groups each configured to include selected contacts of the multiple contacts designated for interactions within respective groups via the particular user account;

obtaining a selection of one or more selected contacts from the list to include in a particular one of the communication groups; and

responsive to the user selection, modify the particular communication group to include the one or more selected contacts that are selected from the list.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein:

one of said representations is configured to enable creation of a new communication group; and

modification of the particular communication group comprises creating the new communication group to include the selected contacts.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein modification of the particular communication group comprises adding the one or more selected contacts to an existing set of contacts in the particular communication group.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein selection of the one or more selected contacts from the list comprises dragging of the selected contacts from the list and dropping of the selected contacts into one of the representations that represents the particular communication group.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising upon addition of the one or more selected contacts to the particular communication group, output a visual indication in connection with one of the representations that represents the particular communication group to indicate inclusion of the one or more selected contacts in the particular communication group.