System and method for providing notices to users of a computer program in a flexible way

• US 8,117,623 B1
• Filed: 11/18/2005
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: Malasky, Ethan, Lynch, Kevin, Calaprice, David, Magee, Alexander, Goss, Stephanie
• Primary Examiner(s): Anya, Charles E
• Application Number:
  US11/282,266
• Time in Patent Office: 2,279 Days
• Field of Search: 345/538, 715/727, 715/728, 719/313, 719/318, 719/329
• US Class Current: 719/318
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/543 User-generated data transfer, e.g. clipboards, dynamic data exchange [DDE], object linking and embedding [OLE]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15

Abstract

A system and method provides messages received from a program to a user in an area used for displaying messages from multiple programs. The message may be received with an indication that the user is to be notified upon receipt of the message, however the user can disable or enable such notifications.

Claims

1. A method of displaying a message, comprising:

receiving from a first program the message and a first indication regarding whether a user should be notified that the message is available;

receiving from the user a second indication regarding whether at least one form of notification is acceptable;

displaying the message in an area in which a message from a second program can be displayed;

responsive to the first indication and the second indication, providing a notification to the user that the message is available;

receiving a third indication that each of a plurality of elements correspond to the first program and providing first information identifying the plurality of elements and associating such elements with the first program;

wherein the message is received from at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to the first program in a manner allowing the identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements that sent the message providing second information corresponding to said identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements;

receiving command input, from the at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to the first program, including third information different from the message intended for distribution to at least one of the plurality of elements of the first program; and

providing the third information different from the message received to at least a subset of the plurality of the elements corresponding to the first program, said subset of the plurality comprising at least one of the plurality of elements different from the at least one of the plurality of elements from which the information was received.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying the message step is responsive to a criterion received from the first program.

3. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising:

receiving fourth information useful for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program; and

verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program responsive to the fourth information information useful for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program received.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first indication and the second indication contains an audio component and a visual component.

5. The method of claim 1 additionally comprising:

receiving a command to change the message to a changed message;

ceasing the display of the message; and

displaying the changed message in the area.

6. A system for displaying a message, comprising:

a processor; and

at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage device comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to generate;

a program command receiver having a first input for receiving from a first program the message and a first indication regarding whether a user should be notified that the message is available, the program command receiver providing at a first output the message and the first indication;

a user command manager having a second input for receiving from the user a second indication regarding whether at least one form of notification is acceptable, the user command manager providing the second indication at a second output;

a message display manager having a third input coupled to the first output for receiving the message, the message display manager providing via a third output the message in a manner causing said message to be displayed in an area of a display screen in which a message from a second program can be displayed;

an alert manager having a fourth first input coupled to the first output for receiving the first indication and a fifth input coupled to the second output for receiving the second indication, the alert manager providing, responsive to the first indication received at the fourth input and the second indication received at the fifth input, via a fourth output a notification to the user that the message is available;

an application registration manager having a sixth input for receiving a third indication that each of a plurality of elements correspond to the first program, the application registration manager providing at a fifth output first information identifying the plurality of elements and associating such elements with the first program;

wherein the message is received from at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to the first program by the program command receiver in a manner allowing the identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements that sent the message, and the program command receiver is additionally for providing at the first output second information corresponding to said identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements;

wherein the program command receiver additionally receives at a seventh input from the first program, third information different from the message intended for distribution to at least one of the plurality of elements of the first program, and the program command receiver is additionally for providing at the first output said third information different from the message; and

a notice data distributor having an eighth input coupled to the first output for receiving at least the third information different from the message and the second information corresponding to said identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements, and a ninth input coupled to the sixth output for receiving the first information identifying the plurality of elements and associating such elements with the first program, the notice data distributor providing at a sixth output the third information different from the message received at the eighth input to at least a subset of the plurality of the elements corresponding to the first program, said subset of the plurality comprising at least one of the plurality of elements different from the at least one of the plurality of elements from which the third information was received.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein:

the program command receiver additionally receives from the first program at the first input and provides at the first output a criterion;

the message display manager additionally receives at the third input, the criterion; and

the message display manager provides the message at the third output responsive to the criterion received at the third.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein:

the application registration manager is additionally for receiving at a tenth input fourth information useful for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program;

the application registration manager is additionally for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program responsive to the fourth information received at the tenth input; and

the first information identifying the plurality of elements and associating such elements with the first program is provided at the sixth output by the application registration manager responsive to said verifying.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein at least one of the first indication and the second indication contains an audio component and a visual component.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein:

the seventh input is additionally for receiving a command to change the message to a changed message, and the program command receiver is additionally for providing at the first output at least a portion of the command received at the seventh input;

the third input is additionally for receiving the at least the portion of the command; and

the message display manager is additionally for ceasing the display of the message and displaying the changed message in the area, responsive to the command received.

11. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer useable storage device having computer readable program code embodied therein for displaying a message, the computer program product comprising computer readable program code devices configured to cause a computer system to:

receive from a first program the message and a first indication regarding whether a user should be notified that the message is available;

receive from the user a second indication regarding whether at least one form of notification is acceptable;

display the message in an area in which a message from a second program can be displayed;

responsive to the first indication and the second indication, providing a notification to the user that the message is available;

receive a third indication that each of a plurality of elements correspond to the first program and provide first information identifying the plurality of elements and associate such elements with the first program;

wherein the message is received from at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to the first program in a manner allowing the identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements that sent the message, the method further comprising providing second information corresponding to said identification of said at least one of the plurality of elements;

receive command input, from the at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to the first program, including third information different from the message intended for distribution to at least one of the plurality of elements of the first program; and

provide the third information different from the message received to at least a subset of the plurality of the elements corresponding to the first program, said subset of the plurality comprising at least one of the plurality of elements different from the at least one of the plurality of elements from which the information was received.

12. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer system to display the message are responsive to a criterion received from the first program.

13. The computer program product of claim 11, additionally comprising computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer system to:

receive fourth information useful for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program; and

verify that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program responsive to the third indication received and the fourth information useful for verifying that each of the plurality of elements correspond to the first program received.

14. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein at least one of the first indication and the second indication contains an audio component and a visual component.

15. The computer program product of claim 11 additionally comprising computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer system to:

receive a command to change the message to a changed message;

cease the display of the message; and

display the changed message in the area.