Method for efficiently distributing and remotely managing meeting presentations

• US 7,526,525 B2
• Filed: 07/22/2004
• Issued: 04/28/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Rozich, Ryan, Hagale, Anthony Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar; Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim; Edward J
• Application Number:
  US10/897,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20060020665A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 709/208, 709/227, 709/204, 709/206, 709/207
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4046 with distributed floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

A mechanism is provided for efficiently distributing and remotely managing meeting presentations. Participants download presentation documents to local storage ahead of time. The presentation then runs in an environment that allows the meeting host to send events to the participants to remotely manage the meeting. In one preferred embodiment, the participants are allowed to control the meeting events locally and a status is transmitted back to the host. The host may then view the status of each of the participants to help control progress through the meeting.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for managing an online meeting presentation, the computer implemented method comprising:

distributing an online meeting presentation document to a plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants prior to a start of the online meeting presentation, wherein the online meeting presentation document includes one of a word processing document, a diagramming document, a computer aided design document, a spreadsheet, and a presentation graphics document, wherein the online presentation document is distributed to the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants from a meeting host-participant to a first recipient-participant and from the first recipient-participant to other recipient-participants from recipient-participant to recipient-participant, and wherein the online meeting presentation document is stored by the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants in a local persistent storage;

responsive to the meeting host-participant performing a first operation on the online meeting presentation, sending a presentation event message to each recipient-participant of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants, wherein the presentation event message is available for use by each recipient-participant of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants to update progress of the online meeting presentation for each of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants, and wherein the presentation event message is sent to the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants by being sent from the meeting host-participant to the first recipient-participant and from the first recipient-participant to the other recipient-participants from recipient-participant to recipient-participant;

responsive to one recipient-participant of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants presenting a current status to the meeting host-participant, the meeting host-participant sending an individual presentation event message to the one recipient-participant of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants, wherein the individual presentation event message is used to update the current status of the online meeting presentation for the one recipient-participant of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants;

presenting the current status of the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants in a view window of the meeting host-participant to control the flow of the online meeting presentation, wherein the meeting host-participant navigates and controls the online meeting presentation, wherein controlling the online meeting presentation by the meeting host-participant comprises at least one of performing an undo operation to return to a previous presentation event of the online meeting presentation, performing a redo operation to go to a next presentation event of the online meeting presentation, returning to the previous presentation event of the online meeting presentation through a view menu, controlling the online meeting presentation from left to right, navigating to a first slide of the online meeting presentation, navigating to a previous slide of the online meeting presentation, pausing the online meeting presentation, navigating to a next slide of the online meeting presentation, and navigating to a last slide in the online meeting presentation;

responsive to receipt by the meeting host-participant of a recipient-participant status message from any recipient-participant within the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants, presenting the status message for the any recipient-participant to the meeting host-participant, wherein the status message from the any recipient-participant indicates whether the any recipient-participant has paused the online meeting presentation or is playing the online meeting presentation, wherein each recipient-participant within the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants have local control of the online meeting presentation, and wherein the local control permits each recipient-participant to perform a recipient-participant action, wherein the recipient-participant action comprises at least one of navigating to a previous point in the online meeting presentation, navigating to a first slide in the online meeting presentation, navigating to a previous slide in the online meeting presentation, navigating to the next slide in the online meeting presentation, pausing the online meeting presentation, and navigating to the last slide in the online meeting presentation;

receiving by the meeting host-participant a text message from a recipient-participant within the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants, wherein the text message includes a reference to a last online meeting presentation event received by the recipient-participant; and

sending a notification of an end of the online meeting presentation to the plurality of remotely connected recipient-participants.