Method and apparatus for managing calendar information from a shared database and managing calendar information from multiple users

• US 8,055,992 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2009
• Issued: 11/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Palmsource Incorporated (Access Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Access Company Limited
• Inventors: Raff, Chris
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Maikhanh
• Application Number:
  US12/408,733
• Publication Number:
  US 20090187814A1
• Time in Patent Office: 960 Days
• Field of Search: 715200-205, 715/207, 715/209, 715/226, 715/227, 715/229, 715/231, 715/234, 715/254, 715/255, 715/273, 715/737, 715/738, 715/739, 715/750, 715/751, 715/760, 709/203, 709/227
• US Class Current: 715/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and system for synchronizing and using calendar information from a shared database is disclosed. Calendar information can be stored in a shared database, e.g., on a server system and accessed and synchronized with one or more portable computer systems. The calendar information is stored using particular category types which facilitate separate manipulation, access and removal of the calendar information when placed onto a portable computer system (e.g., palmtop). In one embodiment, calendar information is stored on a shared database and is assigned a unique category type. Multiple portable computer systems can then access the shared calendar information which can be displayed on each computer system along with the system'"'"'s own calendar information. The unique category type is different from the default type of each system'"'"'s own calendar information and the user is not able to change category types on the portable computer system. Shared calendar information can be viewed and edited and then easily removed using the unique category type.

Claims

1. A method of processing information comprising:

storing a first set and a second set of calendar information, respectively, under a first and a second category name said first set and said second set of calendar information stored in a database on a server, said database comprising a plurality of sets of calendar information received from multiple computer systems, said first set of calendar information corresponding to a first portable computer system and said second set of calendar information corresponding to a second portable computer system, wherein said categories discriminate between disparate sets of calendar information;

displaying said first set of calendar information in conjunction with said second set of calendar information, such that events in the first set and the second set of calendar information are combined in a single listing of events over a duration;

synchronizing said first set of calendar information in said database but not said second set of calendar information with calendar information of said first category name stored on said first portable computer system via delta records wherein modifications to said first set of calendar information in said database are reflected in said first portable computer system and modifications to said first portable computer system in said database are reflected in said first set of calendar information, wherein said delta records represent changes in said database; and

synchronizing said second set of calendar information in said database but not said first set of calendar information with calendar information of said second category name stored on said second portable computer system wherein modifications in said database are reflected in said second portable computer system and modifications in said second portable computer system are reflected in said database.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising synchronizing a third set of calendar information in said database but not said first set and said second set of calendar information with calendar information of a third category name stored on a third portable computer system wherein modifications in said database are reflected in said third portable computer system and modifications in said third portable computer system are reflected in said database.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said third portable computer system is a handheld computer system.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising modifying a portion of said first set of calendar information.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said first portable computer system is a handheld computer system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said second portable computer system is a handheld computer system.