Email messages

• US 8,028,032 B2
• Filed: 09/04/2008
• Issued: 09/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Laird-McConnell, Tom
• Primary Examiner(s): Backer; Firmin
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALGIBHAH, HAMZA N
• Application Number:
  US12/203,926
• Publication Number:
  US 20100057864A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,118 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

The described implementations relate to email messages. One technique detects a link to a web-site in an email message. The technique causes content from the web-site to be visualized on a common display area with the email message for a recipient of the email message.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

an email application configured to;

access an email thread, the email thread comprising;

a first email sent by a first user, the first email comprising a reference to a first web-site that is bound to the first email;

a second email, the second email comprising a response to the first email by a second user, the second email further comprising a reference to a second web-site that is bound to the second email; and

display the email thread, including the first email and the second email, wherein at least the first email is displayed on a first portion of a graphical window; and

,

a browser module associated with the email application and configured to;

automatically retrieve content from the first web-site based on the reference to the first web-site in the first email;

automatically retrieve content from the second web-site based on the reference to the second web-site in the second email; and

concurrently display, with the email thread, the content retrieved from the first web-site and the content retrieved from the second web-site on a second portion of the graphical window, and

at least one computing device configured to execute one or more of the email application and the browser module;

wherein the browser module is configured to display the content retrieved from the first web-site and the content retrieved from the second web-site in positions on the second portion of the graphical window that are at least partially defined by an order in which the references to the first web-site and the second web-site are bound to the email thread.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the browser module is embedded in the email application.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the browser module is configured to assess a security risk associated with the content retrieved from the first web-site and to only automatically display the content retrieved from the first web-site when the security risk is below a threshold.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the browser module is configured to assess a security risk associated with the first web-site and to query a user for permission to display the content retrieved from the first web-site when the security risk is above a threshold.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the email application and the browser module reside on a server computer that is communicably coupled to the computing device.

17. The system according to claim 1, wherein the first web-site comprises a collaborative web-site that is dynamically updated by the first user and the second user.

18. The system according to claim 1, wherein the content retrieved from the first web-site and the content retrieved from the second web-site are displayed without an affirmative action by recipients of the email thread.

19. The system according to claim 1, wherein the email application and the browser module are collocated on the computing device.

6. A method, comprising:

displaying an email thread on a graphical window, wherein the email thread includes a first email that is bound to first web-content of a first web-site via a first reference to the first web-site included in the first email, and a second email that is bound to second web-content of a second web-site via a second reference to the second web-site included in the second email;

automatically retrieving the first web-content from the first web-site using the first reference;

automatically retrieving the second web-content from the second web-site using the second reference; and

enabling a recipient of the email thread to have the first web-content and the second web-content concurrently displayed with the email thread on the graphical window,

wherein the first web-content of the first web-site and the second web-content of the second web-site are displayed concurrently in positions on the graphical window that are at least partially defined by an order in which the first reference and the second reference are included in the email thread.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first web-site comprises a collaborative web-site by which a sender of the first email and a sender of the second email collaborate by updating the first web-content.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

embedding a link comprising the first reference to the first web-site in the email thread such that the recipient of the email thread can cause the first web-content of the first web-site to be displayed on the graphical window with the email thread.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the enabling comprises automatically displaying the first web-content of the first web-site with the email thread on the graphical window.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the enabling comprises assessing a security risk of the first web-site and presenting the security risk in a dialog box from which the recipient can select to have the first web-content of the first web-site displayed in the graphical window or select not to have the first web-content of the first web-site displayed in the graphical window.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the enabling comprises identifying links comprising the first reference and the second reference.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the displaying comprises adjusting the first email message so that the first web-content of the first web-site is displayed in context with the email thread in the graphical window.

13. A computer-readable storage device having instructions stored thereon that when executed by a computing device cause the computing device to perform acts, comprising:

detecting a first link to a first web-site included in a first email message of an email thread;

detecting a second link to a second web-site included in a second email message of the email thread; and

,

causing content from the first web-site and content from the second web-site to be;

automatically retrieved using the first link and the second link; and

concurrently visualized on a common display area while displaying the email thread to a recipient of the email thread,

wherein the content from the first web-site and the content from the second web-site are displayed in positions of the common display area that are at least partially defined by an order in which the first link and the second link are included in the email thread.

14. The computer-readable storage device of claim 13, wherein the causing comprises defining pixels of the common display area and communicating the defined pixels for display on a computer associated with the recipient.

15. The computer-readable storage device of claim 13, wherein the causing comprises defining pixels of the common display area and displaying the defined pixels.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 13, wherein the causing comprises causing the first web-content from the first web-site to be displayed in context with related portions of the first email message.