Chat room communication network implementation enabling senders to restrict the display of messages to the chat room chronological displays of only designated recipients

• US 7,577,711 B2
• Filed: 02/07/2006
• Issued: 08/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap, Inc.
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: McArdle, James M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang; Jungwon
• Application Number:
  US11/348,901
• Publication Number:
  US 20070185993A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,288 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/207, 709/204, 709/225, 715/500.1, 715/758, 345/753
• US Class Current: 709/207
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A participant in an instant messaging chat room may send restricted messages to only a set of selected participants in the chat room. Enabling a user at a display station to select a set of only users to receive a restricted message, and send the restricted message to this selected group of users, and displaying the restricted message only in the chronological displays in the stations of the set of recipient users, i.e. not displaying the restricted message in the displays of the other users in the chat room.

Claims

1. In a chat room communication message network including a plurality of display stations operated by a plurality of users to selectively send messages within a chronological sequence of messages to a central server and to receive, at each station, a display of said chronological sequence of messages, a method enabling any user at a display station to restrict the display of a message within said sequence sent by said enabled user comprising:

enabling a user at a display station to select a set of only users to receive a restricted message;

enabling said enabled user to send said restricted message within said chronological sequence of messages;

displaying said restricted message only in the chronological sequence of messages displays in the stations of said set of recipient users including an indicator indicating message is restricted and the sender of the message; and

displaying said sequence of messages including said indicator on the display of said enabled sending user;

wherein a supplemental chat room message network is provided between the senders and user recipients of restricted messages with the restricted messages chronologically interleaved with the unrestrictive messages in the chronological sequence of messages on the displays of said senders and user recipients.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said set of only users to receive includes only a single user.

3. The method of claim 1 further including the steps of:

enabling a plurality of users an a corresponding plurality of display stations to send said restricted messages within said chronological sequence of messages; and

said indicators showing than the message is restricted further indicate the sender of said restricted message.

4. The method of claim 1 further including the steps of:

providing a network security firewall; and

requiring a plurality of said restricted messages to be transmitted through said security firewall.

5. A computer useable memory having scored therein a computer readable application program for enabling any user at a display station to restrict the display of a message sent by said user within a chronological sequence of messages sent by a plurality of users in a chat room communication message network including a plurality of display stations operated by said plurality of users to selectively send messages, within said chronological sequence of messages, and to receive, at each station, a display of said chronological sequence of messages, wherein the computer readable application program when executed on a computer causes the computer to:

enable a user an a display station to select a set of only users to receive a restricted message;

enable said enabled user to send said restricted message within said chronological sequence of messages;

display said restricted message only in the chronological sequence of messages displays in the stations of said set of recipient users including an indicator indicating message is restricted and the sender of the message; and

display said sequence of messages including said indicator on the display of said enabled sending user;

wherein a supplemental chat room message network is provided between the senders and user recipients of restricted messages with the restricted messages chronologically interleaved with the unrestrictive messages in the chronological sequence of messages on the displays of said senders and user recipients.

6. The computer usable medium of claim 5 wherein said set of only users to receive includes only a single user.

7. The computer usable medium of claim 5 wherein said computer program when executed further causes the computer to:

enable a plurality of users at a corresponding plurality of display stations to send said restricted messages within said chronological sequence of messages; and

further indicate the sender of said restricted message in association with each of said indicators showing that the message is restricted.

8. In a chat room communication message network including a plurality of display stations operated by a plurality of users to selectively send messages within a chronological sequence of messages to a central server and to receive, at each station, a display of said chronological sequence of messages, a system enabling any user at a display station to restrict the display of a message within said sequence sent by said enabled user comprising:

a processor;

a computer memory holding computer program instructions which when executed by the processor perform the method comprising;

enabling a user at a display station to select a set of only users to receive a restricted message;

enabling said enabled user to send said restricted message within said chronological sequence of messages;

displaying said restricted message only in the chronological sequence of messages displays in the stations of said set of recipient users including an indicator indicating message is restricted and the sender of the message; and

displaying said sequence of messages including said indicator on the display of said enabled sending user;

wherein a supplemental chat room message network is provided between the senders and user recipients of restricted messages with the restricted messages chronologically interleaved with the unrestrictive messages in the chronological sequence of messages on the displays of said senders and user recipients.

9. The chat room communication network system of claim 8 wherein said set of only users to receive includes only a single user.

10. The chat room communication network system of claim 8 wherein the method performed further includes the steps of:

enabling a plurality of users at a corresponding plurality of display stations to send said restricted messages within said chronological sequence of messages; and

said indicators showing that the message is restricted further indicate the sender of said restricted message.

11. The chat room communication network system of claim 8 wherein the method performed further includes the steps of:

providing a network security firewall; and

requiring a plurality of said restricted messages to be transmitted through said security firewall.