Inbox with focused messages according to categories

• US 8,239,874 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Anderson, Christine, Shahine, Omar, Kikin-Gil, Erez, Yang, Sara Liu, Schnoebelen, Tyler, Bell, Nancy Jane, Chan, Wendy, Stovicek, Thomas Jan, Hirsh, Sandra
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho, Andy
• Assistant Examiner(s): DAO, TUAN C.
• Application Number:
  US11/864,703
• Publication Number:
  US 20090089798A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,775 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 719/314
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/353 into predefined classes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes

Abstract

Focusing electronic mail messages in a list of messages. Category information is received for classifying particular e-mail messages or senders of the messages in the list of e-mail messages according to a category. The method also includes setting a status data associated with each of the particular messages. The status data indicates the category classified by the user. A first instruction is received from the user for focusing the particular messages according to the category. The particular messages having the status data therewith in the list are focused collectively without altering a preexisting order of the messages in the list.

Claims

1. A method executed by a computing device for focusing messages in an inbox by highlighting, said method comprising:

displaying, by the computing device, messages in a preexisting order free of highlighting;

receiving, by the computing device, category information defining one or more categories to be associated with the displayed messages or senders of the displayed messages;

setting, by the computing device, a status data associated with each of the displayed messages, said status data indicating to which of the defined categories in the received category information each of the displayed messages corresponds;

receiving, by the computing device, a first instruction from a user for visually focusing on the displayed messages having an identical, specified status data associated therewith;

visually focusing, by the computing device, on the displayed messages having the identical, specified status data associated therewith collectively by highlighting said displayed messages without altering the preexisting order of the displayed messages and without altering the visual display of the displayed messages not having identical, specified status data associated therewith;

providing, by the computing device, a toolbar having at least one option for performing an operation on the visually focused displayed messages, said operation changing the status data of the visually focused displayed messages; and

persisting, by the computing device, a changed state of the status data of the visually focused displayed messages.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the category information comprises receiving the category information from one of the following sources:

a user-defined category and a predefined category, and wherein the category information includes at least one or more of the following categories;

unknown, safe, contact, good reputation, and mixed reputation.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising pre-selecting each of the visually focused displayed messages according to the status data associated therewith collectively such that the visually focused displayed messages are additionally marked among the displayed messages.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one option includes grouping the visually focused displayed messages in a cluster.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the toolbar comprises providing the toolbar having at least one additional option for sorting the grouped messages in the cluster.

6. A method executed by a computing device for focusing one or more entries in a list by highlighting, said method comprising:

receiving, by the computing device, category information defining one or more categories for one or more particular entries in the list or senders of the one or more particular entries;

setting, by the computing device, a status data associated with each of the particular entries, said status data indicating the defined category in the received category information corresponding thereto;

displaying, by the computing device, the one or more particular entries in the list free of highlighting;

receiving, by the computing device, a first instruction from a user for visually focusing the displayed particular entries according to the status data;

graphically focusing, by the computing device, the displayed particular entries according to the status data associated therewith collectively by highlighting said displayed particular entries, while maintaining a preexisting graphical order of the displayed particular entries and maintaining the visual display of the entries in the list that are not the displayed particular entries;

providing, by the computing device, a toolbar having at least one option for performing an operation on the graphically focused displayed particular entries, said operation changing the status data of the graphically focused displayed particular entries; and

persisting, by the computing device, a changed state of the status data of each of the graphically focused displayed particular entries.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein receiving the category information comprises receiving the category information from one of the following sources:

a user-defined category and a predefined category, and wherein the category information includes one or more of the following categories;

unknown, safe, contact, good reputation, and mixed reputation.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising pre-selecting each of the graphically focused displayed particular entries according to the status data associated therewith collectively such that the graphically focused displayed particular entries are additionally marked among the one or more entries in the list.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one option includes grouping the graphically focused displayed particular entries in a cluster in the list.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein providing the toolbar comprises providing the toolbar having at least one additional option for sorting the grouped entries in the cluster in the list.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the particular entries comprise at least one of the following:

electronic mail (e-mail) messages, offline instant messages, private messages, facsimile messages, and voice mail messages.

12. One or more computer-readable storage media having a data structure stored thereon, said data structure having data fields for storing data for a graphical user interface (GUI), said data structure comprising:

one or more data fields providing data for rendering one or more entries in a list for display to a user, with the one or more entries free of highlighting, said one or more entries being arranged according to a preexisting order;

a first data field for storing data identifying a category for each of the one or more entries or senders of the one or more entries in the one or more data fields;

a second data field for storing data for activating or deactivating a search of particular entries in the rendered one or more entries in the list in response to an instruction from the user for selecting the particular entries according to a particular category in the rendered one or more entries in the first data field, wherein the second data field stores data activating the search of the particular entries according to the particular category;

a third data field storing data for graphically focusing each of the particular entries having the particular category in the first data field therewith collectively by highlighting said particular entries, such that the graphically focused particular entries are visually prominent from the rendered one or more entries in the one or more data fields, while maintaining the preexisting order of the entries in the list and maintaining the display of the rendered one or more entries in the list other than the particular entries; and

a fourth data field storing data for a toolbar having at least one option for performing one or more operations on the graphically focused particular entries in the third data field, said one or more operations changing a state of the data in the first data field, said fourth data field selectively persisting the changed state of the data in the first data field in response to the data in the third data field as a function of the performed operations.

13. The computer-readable storage media of claim 12, wherein the category in the first data field includes at least one or more of the following categories:

unknown, safe, good reputation, mixed reputation, contact, and a customized category established by the user.

14. The computer-readable storage media of claim of 12, wherein the third data field stores data for pre-selecting each of the particular entries having the particular category in the first data field therewith collectively such that the graphically focused particular entries are marked among the rendered one or more entries in the one or more data fields.

15. The computer-readable storage media of claim 12, wherein the at least one option includes grouping the graphically focused particular entries in a cluster in the third data field.

16. The computer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein the fourth data field provides data for performing one or more operations to the graphically focused particular entries according to the third data field, said one or more operations including at least one or more of the following:

additionally marking each of the graphically focused particular entries, storing data for one or more rules to define a category, and shuffling the grouped entries in the cluster in the third data field.

17. The computer-readable storage media of claim 12, wherein the one or more entries in the one or more data fields comprise at least one of the following:

electronic mail (e-mail) messages, offline instant messages, private messages, facsimile messages, and voice mail messages.