Relationship management system that limits access of contact information to particular folders

• US 6,820,083 B1
• Filed: 04/19/2000
• Issued: 11/16/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RELX Inc. (RELX PLC)
• Original Assignee: Interface Software, Inc. (RELX PLC)
• Inventors: Nagy, Robert M., Morgan, Daniel H., Enright, Karen L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Kim
• Assistant Examiner(s): HAMILTON, MONPLAISIR G
• Application Number:
  US09/553,163
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707/9, 707/102
• US Class Current: 707/783
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24575 using context
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/103 Workflow collaboration or project management
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A relationship management system uses a database to store contact information related to a number of contacts and uses a number of folders, each of which reference one or more of the contacts within the database, to display contact information. Each of the contact information records stored within the database has an associated contact information type and a visibility attribute that defines the folders through which the associated contact information record is viewable. If the visibility attribute is set to a global value, the contact information record may be viewed by all folders. If the visibility attribute is set to a private value, the contact information record may be viewed only by specified folders. When a display routine of the relationship management system displays folders on a display device, a contact information display field is used to display each of the contact information records of a particular type that are defined as being either globally viewable or as being privately viewable through the folder being displayed.

Claims

1. A relationship management system adapted to be used with a processor, a database and a display device, comprising:

a computer readable medium;

a database routine stored on the computer readable medium and adapted to store, within the database, one or more contact information records for each of a plurality of contacts, wherein the one or more contact information records are capable of being referenced by one or more folders and wherein each of the contact information records has a contact information record type, the database routine further adapted to store a visibility attribute for each of the contact information records to define the folders through which the associated contact information record is viewable, and wherein the database routine is further adapted to allow a user having appropriate access rights to a particular one of the folders to specify the visibility attribute for at least one of the contact information records viewable through the particular one of the folders, and wherein the user and the contact having the contact information records are different entities; and

a display routine stored on the computer readable medium and adapted to be executed on the processor to display, on the display device, a contact information field within one of the folders, the contact information field displaying each of the contact information records of a particular contact information type that is defined as being viewable through the one of the folders by the visibility attribute of that contact information record.

2. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the one or more contact information records include post office address information.

3. The relationship management system of claim 2, wherein the database routine is adapted to store the one or more contact information records in a contact post office address information table within the database.

4. The relationship management system of claim 2, wherein the display routine is adapted to display, within the one of the folders, a contact post office address information field.

5. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the one or more contact information records include electronic address information.

6. The relationship management system of claim 5, wherein the one or more contact information records include email address information.

7. The relationship management system of claim 5, wherein the one or more contact information records include web site address information.

8. The relationship management system of claim 5, wherein the database routine is adapted to store the one or more contact information records in a contact electronic address information table.

9. The relationship management system of claim 5, wherein the display routine is adapted to display, within the one of the folders, a contact electronic address information field.

10. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the one or more contact information records include telephone number information.

11. The relationship management system of claim 10, wherein the database routine is adapted to store the one or more contact information records in a contact telephone number information table.

12. The relationship management system of claim 10, wherein the display routine is adapted to display, within the one of the folders, a contact telephone number information field.

13. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular contact information record defines the particular contact information record to be viewable through all of the folders.

14. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular contact information record defines the particular contact information record to be viewable through less than all of the folders.

15. The relationship management system of claim 14, wherein the database routine is adapted to store a reason attribute for the particular contact information record defining the reason why the particular contact information record is viewable through less than all of the folders.

16. The relationship management system of claim 15, wherein the display routine is further adapted to display, in the contact information field, an icon representing the value of the reason attribute of the particular contact information record.

17. The relationship management system of claim 16, wherein the icon is a ‘

T’

icon.

18. The relationship management system of claim 16, wherein the icon is a question-mark icon.

19. The relationship management system of claim 16, wherein the icon is a lock icon.

20. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular contact information record defines the particular contact information record to be viewable through one and only one of the folders.

21. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the display routine is further adapted to display, in the contact information field, an icon representing a type of the visibility attribute of one of the contact information records.

22. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the database routine is adapted to query a user to determine if a particular contact information record is to be viewable through all of the folders, or through less than all of the folders.

23. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the computer readable medium is an optical storage medium.

24. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the computer readable medium is a magnetic storage medium.

25. The relationship management system of claim 1, wherein the computer readable medium is a random access memory.

26. A relationship management system, comprising:

a processor;

a display device coupled to the processor;

a database that stores a plurality of contact information records for each of a multiplicity of contacts, wherein each of the plurality of contact information records has a contact information record type and wherein the plurality of contact information records are capable of being referenced by a number of folders, the database further storing a visibility attribute in each of the plurality contact information records indicating the ones of the folders through which the associated contact information record is viewable, and wherein the database is adapted to allow a user to specify the visibility attribute for at least one of the plurality of contact information records for a particular one of the multiplicity of contacts, wherein the user and the particular one of the multiplicity of contacts are different entities; and

a display routine adapted to be executed on the processor to display, on the display device, a contact information display field within one of the folders, the contact information display field displaying each of the plurality of contact information records of a particular contact information record type that is defined as being viewable through the one of the folders by the visibility attribute of that contact information record.

27. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the plurality of contact information records include post office address information.

28. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the plurality of contact information records include electronic address information.

29. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the plurality of contact information records include telephone number information.

30. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records defines the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through all of the folders.

31. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records defines the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through less than all of the folders.

32. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records defines the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through one and only one of the folders.

33. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the display routine is further adapted to display, in the contact information display field, an icon representing a type of the visibility attribute of a particular one of the plurality of contact information records.

34. The relationship management system of claim 26, wherein the database routine is adapted to query a user to determine if a particular one of the plurality of contact information record is to be viewable through all of the folders, or through less than all of the folders.

35. A method of storing and displaying contact information viewable by one or more folders, the method comprising the steps of:

storing a plurality of contact information records for each of a multiplicity of contacts in a database, wherein each of the plurality of contact information records has a contact information record type;

storing a visibility attribute for each of the plurality of contact information records wherein each visibility attribute defines the one or more of the folders through which an associated contact information record is viewable;

associating a user with at least one of the contact information records for a particular one of the contacts, and allowing the user to specify the visibility attribute for each of the contact information records with which the user is associated, wherein the user and the particular one of the contacts are different entities; and

displaying a contact information field within one of the folders, wherein the contact information field displays each of the contact information records of a particular contact information record type defined to be viewable through the one of the folders by the visibility attributes.

36. The method of claim 35, including the step of storing post office address information within the plurality of contact information records.

37. The method of claim 35, including the step of storing electronic address information within the plurality of contact information records.

38. The method of claim 35, including the step of storing telephone number information within the plurality of contact information records.

39. The method of claim 35, including the step of using the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records to define the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through all of the folders.

40. The method of claim 35, including the step of using the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records to define the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through less than all of the folders.

41. The method of claim 40, including the step of storing a reason attribute for the particular one of a plurality of contact information records defining the reason why the particular one of a plurality of contact information records is viewable through less than all of the folders.

42. The method of claim 41, further including the step of displaying, in the contact information field, an icon representing the value of the reason attribute of the particular one of a plurality of contact information records.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the step of displaying an icon further includes the step of displaying a ‘

T’

icon.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein the step of displaying an icon further includes the step of displaying a question-mark icon.

45. The method of claim 42, wherein the step of displaying an icon further includes the step of displaying a lock icon.

46. The method of claim 35, including the step of using the visibility attribute for a particular one of a plurality of contact information records to define the particular one of a plurality of contact information records to be viewable through one and only one of the folders.

47. The method of claim 35, further comprising the step of displaying, in the contact information field, an icon representing the type of the visibility attribute of a particular one of the one or more contact information records.

48. The method of claim 35, further comprising the step of querying a user to determine if a particular one of the one or more contact information records is to be viewable through all of the folders, or through less than all of the folders.