People-centric view of email

• US 8,065,369 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2005
• Issued: 11/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Farnham, Shelly D., Cheng, Lili, Turski, Andrzej
• Primary Examiner(s): Follansbee; John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mejia; Anthony
• Application Number:
  US11/048,210
• Publication Number:
  US 20060173961A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,485 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 715/700
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

The subject invention provides a unique system and method that facilitates contact- or people-based organization of messages. A list of contacts can be generated based on the people or groups who have communicated with the user (mailbox owner) via email or otherwise. To view desired messages, a user can select one or more contacts that participated in the desired messages as either a recipient or sender. Following the selection, messages between the selected contacts and the user can be displayed in a window. Any items or information shared in the messages can be viewed in a separate window. A link can be maintained between any shared item and its message of origin. The user can also view messages that include third parties. The contact list is dynamic and due to limited display space, contacts communicating the most frequently with the user can be listed on a top level.

Claims

1. A contact-based message organization and display system comprising:

memory;

one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory and disposed within one or more devices;

a receiving component, stored in the memory and executed on the one or more processors, that receives a plurality of communications;

a people-based classification component that organizes the plurality of communications according to a plurality of contacts who sent the plurality of communications; and

a multi-view display component configured to present desired communications of the plurality of communications based at least in part on ones of the plurality of contacts associated with the desired communications, the multi-view display component including a separate view configured to display attachments shared between the user and the ones of the contacts in the desired communications, wherein the attachments shared were sent with or included in the desired communications, wherein at least one of the attachments displayed in the separate view is selectable to cause an associated desired communication that the at least one of the attachments was sent with or included in to be displayed by the multi-view display component, and further wherein the multi-view display component is further configured to extract the attachments from the desired communications for display in the separate view.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of communications comprise messages, email, instant messages, and calendar entries.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the multi-view display component is further configured to display a dynamic contact list that is automatically populated with the plurality contacts.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the dynamic contact list is ordered alphabetically.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the dynamic contact list is a two-dimensional list that comprises one or more levels, the one or more levels comprising at least a top level.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the top level comprises contacts having a relatively high amount of communication activity with the user.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the dynamic contact list comprises a zoom control to facilitate viewing of at least one of the following:

lower levels of contacts and contacts hidden from view.

8. The system of claim 5, further comprising an analysis component that determines whether a particular contact'"'"'s communication activity satisfies a level threshold to place the contact at a respective level of the one or more levels.

9. A contact-based message organization system comprising:

memory;

one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory and disposed within one or more devices;

instructions stored in the memory and executed on the one or more processors to display a user interface, the user interface including;

a contact list that includes;

a plurality of contacts that are connected to a user via a plurality of communications;

a number of levels, the levels comprising at least a top level; and

a search control configured to match a search term to the plurality of contacts by progressively looking through decreasing levels of the number of levels,

wherein the top level comprises ones of the plurality of contacts having a relatively high amount of communication activity with the user;

a message display area that is configured to show ones of the plurality of communications exchanged between at least a selected contact and the user; and

a shared hyperlinks area configured to display hyperlinks included in the ones of the plurality of communications, and wherein the hyperlinks are extracted from the communications,

wherein at least one of the displayed hyperlinks is selectable to cause an associated communication of the plurality of communications that the at least one of the displayed hyperlinks was sent with or included in to be displayed in the message display area.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the shared hyperlinks area comprises a browse control to facilitate navigating through the shared hyperlinks based in part on the shared hyperlinks'"'"' metadata.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the message display area is configured to identify the user and the at least one selected contact proximally to the plurality of communications.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the message display area comprises a conversational view.

13. One or more computer-readable storage devices comprising computer executable instructions that, upon execution by one or more processors, cause a computer device to perform operations that facilitate organizing and displaying messages in a contact-based manner, the operations comprising:

reception of a plurality of communications;

classification of the plurality of communications according to one or more contacts who sent the plurality of communications;

selection of ones of the plurality of communications for display based at least in part on at least one of the one or more contacts associated with the ones of the plurality of communications; and

display, in a separate view, calendar entries shared between a user and the one of the one or more contacts in the ones of the plurality of communications, wherein the calendar entries shared were sent with or included in the ones of the plurality of communications, and further where the calendar entries are extracted from the communications being selected for display and displayed in the separate view , and wherein the calendar entries are selectable within the separate view to cause an associated communication of the ones of the plurality of communications that the calendar entries were sent with or included in to be displayed in a message display area.

14. The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise automatic population of a contact list of the one or more contacts in alphabetical order.

15. The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise display of the one or more contacts on a contact list according to a determined level of communication activity with the user.

16. The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise display of the plurality of communications associated with at least one selected contact of the one or more contacts.

17. The one or more computer-readable devices of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise selection of communications for display to a user based at least in part on at least two contacts associated with the plurality of communications.

18. A contact-based message organization and display system comprising:

memory;

one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory and disposed within one or more devices;

a receiving component, stored in the memory and executed on the one or more processors, that receives a plurality of communications;

a people-based classification component that organizes the plurality of communications according to one or more contacts who sent the plurality of communications, the people-based classification component recognizes a plurality of email addresses originating from the one or more contacts and organizes the plurality of email addresses as associated with the one or more contacts;

a multi-view display component that presents ones of the plurality of communications in an organized manner that is based at least in part on the one or more contacts, the multi-view display component displays, in a separate view, web pages shared between a user and the one or more contacts in the ones of the plurality of communications, such that conversations associated with the ones of the plurality of communications appear in a separate view from the web pages shared, and

wherein the web pages are selectable in the separate view to cause an associated communication of the ones of the plurality of communications that the web pages were sent with or included in to be displayed by the multi-view display component, and wherein the web pages shared were sent with or included in the ones of the plurality of communications.