Annotation of digital items in a shared list

• US 8,151,358 B1
• Filed: 10/18/2005
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AOL Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Herold, June R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Arani, Taghi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jeudy, Josnel
• Application Number:
  US11/252,012
• Time in Patent Office: 2,359 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 709/205, 709/206, 709/212, 709228-229, 455/466, 455/41, 726/26, 726/31, 726/32, 726 27- 30, 713/189, 713/193, 380/51, 380/287, 707/9, 715740-743, 715851-854
• US Class Current: 726/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/60 Protecting data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Techniques are described for user-controlled annotation and sharing of one or more digital items. Examples of digital items that may be shared with other users include digital representations of graphic images, photographs, audio segments, songs, video segments, movies, and text (such as lists of favorites (e.g., a list of favorite books, a list of favorite movies, and a list of favorite places to visit)). A user may make a digital item available to other users of a computer network, such as an instant messaging system, a chat environment, or a subscription-based computer network. User-entered annotations, such as textual comments, may be associated with a digital item, and a user can select which other users can view and/or change all, or some, of the annotations.

Claims

1. A method, performed at least in part by a computer, for sharing digital items with communication identities, the method comprising:

receiving, from a user interface of a first communication identity, a selection of a first group of multiple communication identities, wherein the first group of multiple communication identities comprises a subset of a group of linked communication identities, wherein the first communication identity is able to send instant messages to and receive instant messages from each of the linked communication identities;

receiving, from the user interface of the first communication identity, instructions to grant each of the multiple communication identities in the first group access to a digital item via the Internet;

enabling the multiple communication identities in the first group to access the digital item via the Internet based on inclusion of the multiple communication identities in the first group within the instructions to grant access to the digital item via the Internet;

enabling one or more of the multiple communication identities in the first group to annotate the digital item via the Internet;

in response to receiving an indication that the first communication identity has selected the digital item from a list of digital items displayed in a first window in a graphical user interface, displaying the group of linked communication identities in a second window in the graphical user interface;

in response to receiving an indication that the first communication identity has selected a communication identity from the second window, displaying a list of permissions associated with the selected communication identity in a third window in the graphical user interface, wherein the third window provides functionality for allowing the first communication identity to specify permissions governing the selected communication identity'"'"'s access to the selected digital item, wherein the selected communication identity is one of the multiple communication identities, and wherein the list of permissions includes an option to deny the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item; and

in response to receiving instructions to deny access to view annotations associated with the digital item, denying the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item, while still enabling the selected communication identity to access the digital item.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the enabling one or more of the multiple communication identities in the first group to annotate the digital item via the Internet further comprises:

enabling the one or more of the multiple communication identities in the first group to specify a text comment to be associated with the digital item.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the first communication identity is designated as a list owner, and

the digital item comprises an item included in a list of digital items.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein:

the list of digital items is a list of multiple digital items, and

the list of multiple digital items is shared with at least one communication identity.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

enabling a second communication identity to authorize communication identities within a second group of multiple communication identities to access the digital item via the Internet; and

enabling the multiple communication identities in the second group to access the digital item.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein:

a participant list includes participant identifiers selected by a user operating under the first communication identity,

the participant list reflects on-line presence of users operating under communication identities of participant identifiers listed thereon,

the participant list includes an indication of the second communication identity, and

wherein enabling the second communication identity to authorize communication identities within the second group of multiple communication identities to access the digital item via the Internet further comprises;

receiving, from the first communication identity, a user indication of the second communication identity that is selected form the participant identifiers listed on the participant list.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein:

the participant list includes categories of participant identifiers such that each participant identifier is associated with one or more categories, and

the method further comprising receiving an access indication that the second communication identity is to be permitted access to the digital item through an indication of a category of participant identifiers to whom access to the digital item is to be permitted, which category includes the second communication identity.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the participant list includes a particular category that is able to be associated with participant identifiers and able to be associated with at least one digital item such that all communication identities identified by the participant identifiers associated with the particular category are permitted to access the at least one digital item associated with the particular category.

9. The method of claim 5 comprising enabling transmission, to the second communication identity, of an indication of permitted access to the digital item.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein a digital item comprises at least one of a graphical image, a digitized photograph, an audio segment, a digital video segment, or text.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the digital item comprises a list of multiple digital items.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein:

enabling the multiple communication identities in the first group to access the digital item includes accessing the instructions to grant the multiple communication identities in the first group access to the digital item via the Internet and identifying the multiple communication identities in the first group as communication identities included in the instructions to grant access.

13. The method of claim 5, further comprising receiving, via the user interface at the first communication identity, instructions to control whether the second communication identity is able to set a permission to authorize the multiple communication identities in the second group to access the digital item via the Internet.

14. The method of claim 5, wherein the first communication identity controls, with the user interface, whether the second communication identity can authorize the multiple communication identities other than the communication identities of the multiple communication identities in the second group to access or display the digital item via the Internet, and

wherein the second communication identity has an ability to authorize the multiple communication identities in the second group to access or display the digital item via the Internet based only upon a permission set by the first communication identity.

15. A method, performed at least in part by a computer, for sharing digital items with communication identities, the method comprising:

receiving, via a graphical user interface of a first communication identity, a selection of a first group of multiple communication identities, wherein the first group of multiple communication identities comprises a subset of a group of linked communication identities, wherein the first communication identity is able to send instant messages to and receive instant messages from each of the linked communication identities, and wherein the graphical user interface is configured to allow the first communication identity to control permissions associated with a digital item, wherein the control permissions allow the first communication identity to set a control level of the digital item as to control whether the multiple communication identities in the first group have an ability to share the digital item with communication identities other than the first group;

receiving, via the graphical user interface of the first communication identity, instructions to grant each of the multiple communication identities of the first group access to the digital item via the Internet;

receiving, via the graphical user interface of the first communication identity, delegation instructions to allow a second communication identity to authorize a second group of communication identities other than the multiple communication identities in the first group to access the digital item via the Internet;

enabling the multiple communication identities in the first group to access the digital item via the Internet based on inclusion of the multiple communication identities in the first group within the instructions to grant access to the digital item via the Internet;

enabling one or more of the multiple communication identities in the first group to annotate the digital item via the Internet;

in response to receiving an indication that the first communication identity has selected the digital item from a list of digital items displayed in a first window in the graphical user interface, displaying the group of linked communication identities in a second window in the graphical user interface;

in response to receiving an indication that the first communication identity has selected a communication identity from the second window, displaying a list of permissions associated with the selected communication identity in a third window in the graphical user interface, wherein the third window provides functionality for allowing the first communication identity to specify permissions governing the selected communication identity'"'"'s access to the selected digital item, wherein the selected communication identity is one of the multiple communication identities, and wherein the list of permissions includes an option to deny the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item; and

in response to receiving instructions to deny access to view annotations associated with the digital item, denying the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item, while still enabling the selected communication identity to access the digital item.

16. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving, from a user interface of a first communication identity, a selection of a first group of multiple communication identities, wherein the first group of multiple communication identities comprises a subset of a group of linked communication identities, wherein the first communication identity is able to send instant messages to and receive instant messages from each of the linked communication identities;

receiving, from the user interface of the first communication identity, instructions to grant each of the multiple communication identities in the first group access to a digital item via the Internet;

enabling the multiple communication identities in the first group to access the digital item via the Internet based on inclusion of the multiple communication identities in the first group within the instructions to grant access to the digital item via the Internet;

enabling one or more of the multiple communication identities in the first group to annotate the digital item via the Internet, wherein annotating the digital item comprises specifying a text comment to be associated with the digital item;

receiving, from the user interface of the first communication identity, instructions to authorize a second communication identity to authorize communication identities within a second group of multiple communication identities to access the digital item via the Internet; and

enabling the multiple communication facilities in the second group to access the digital item;

in response to receiving an indication that the first communication identity has selected the digital item from a list of digital items displayed in a first window in the graphical user interface, displaying the group of linked communication identities in a second window in the graphical user interface

in response to receiving an indication that the communication identity has selected a communication identity from the second window, displaying a list of permissions associated with the selected communication identity in a third window in the graphical user interface, wherein the third window provides functionality for allowing the first communication identity to specify permissions governing the selected communication identity'"'"'s access to the selected digital item, wherein the selected communication identity is one of the multiple communication identities, and wherein the list of permissions includes an option to deny the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item; and

in response to receiving instructions to deny access to view annotations associated with the digital item, denying the selected communication identity access to view annotations associated with the digital item, while still enabling the selected communication identity to access the digital item.