Email addresses relevance determination and uses

• US 8,307,038 B2
• Filed: 06/09/2006
• Issued: 11/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Gillum, Eliot C., Kafka, Steven D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Donaghue, Larry
• Assistant Examiner(s): KHAN, AFTAB N
• Application Number:
  US11/423,423
• Publication Number:
  US 20070288575A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,342 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/207, 709/208
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases

Abstract

A computer implemented method for assisting email users. The method determines the relevance of email addresses to users and utilizes the relevance information to assist users in addressing emails. The method may include gathering email addresses from one or more sources including inbound user emails associated with an email user, and determining a relevance of the email address to the user based on a heuristic. Once relevance is determined, the method includes applying relevant email addresses to a user'"'"'s store of relevant addresses.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for assisting email users, comprising:

providing an address store associated with a user;

gathering email addresses from at least one archive and constantly scanning new inbound emails addressed to the user on receipt and new outbound emails from the user for email address information;

determining a relevance to the user of one or more email addresses in an email message addressed to the user based on a heuristic, the heuristic weighting the relevance relative to a repeated appearance of the one or more email addresses, wherein determining the relevance based on the heuristic further comprises;

determining if the email message addressed to the user includes more than one email address;

computing a ratio of known email addresses to unknown email addresses in the email message based on the determining;

assigning a relevance weight to the unknown email addresses in the email message based on the ratio; and

marking the email addresses in the email message that are unknown as relevant if the relevance weight exceeds a pre-determined value;

storing relevance information for an email address in the user address store and storing non-relevant email addresses for the user; and

altering an email messaging user interface presented to the user based on stored relevant and non-relevant information for an email address.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of gathering comprises retrieving emails from one or more of:

a user'"'"'s mailbox, a blog identified by the user, a website identified by the user and/or a user email folder.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of gathering includes parsing email addresses from inbound emails addressed to the user on receipt.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the heuristic comprises marking any email address as relevant and applying a subtraction algorithm.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the subtraction algorithm is at least one of:

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined amount of time and/or

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined number of emails.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the heuristic comprises assigning a relevance weight to a received email address and marking it relevant if the weight exceeds a pre-determined value.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of assigning comprises at least one of assigning a weight based on:

a number of email addresses found in a users address book also found in a message;

a number of emails found in a users address book also found in message relative to number of unknown email addresses in the message;

a frequency of appearance of an email address in a number of emails addressed to the user;

a persistence of time in which the email address appears;

a location of an appearance of an email address in a message;

a source of an appearance of an email message; and

/or

a frequency of appearance of email address within a message.

8. A computer implemented method for assisting email users of an email system, comprising;

providing an address store and email store for a user;

gathering email addresses from a plurality of data sources including stored email;

monitoring email correspondence for a user including constantly scanning new inbound emails to the user on receipt and outbound emails from the user;

extracting one or more email addresses from each email message associated with the user in the plurality of data sources, and the inbound and outbound messages;

determining a relevance to the user of one or more addresses extracted from the data sources or email messages, the relevance being determined based on a heuristic evaluating an appearance of the one or more email addresses relative to other email addresses, wherein determining the relevance based on the heuristic further comprises;

computing a percentage of known email addresses to the total number of known email addresses and unknown email addresses in each of the inbound messages and outbound messages addressed to the user;

assigning a relevance weight to the unknown email addresses in each of the inbound emails and outbound emails based on the percentage; and

marking the email addresses in each of the inbound emails and outbound emails that are unknown as relevant if the relevance weight exceeds a pre-determined value; and

based on said determining step, upon input of an address by a user into an email composition user interface, altering the interface to display a visual indicator to indicate potential email address problems to the user.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of displaying includes displaying a first visual indicator for a known-bad email address and a second visual indicator for an address which may be problematic.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of monitoring includes monitoring inbound messages on delivery and outbound messages on transmission.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of determining includes marking any email address as relevant and applying a subtraction algorithm.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the subtraction algorithm is at least one of:

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined amount of time; and

/or

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined number of emails.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of determining comprises assigning a relevance weight to a received email and marking the mail as relevant if the weight exceeds a pre-determined value.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of assigning comprises at least one of assigning a weight based on:

a number of email addresses found in a users address book also found in a message;

a number of emails in found in a users address book also found in message relative to number of unknown email addresses in the message;

a frequency of appearance of an email address in a number of emails addressed to the user;

a persistence of time in which the email address appears;

a location of an appearance of an email address in a message;

a source of an appearance of an email message; and

/or

a frequency of appearance of email address within a message.

15. A computer implemented method for assisting email users of an email system, comprising:

providing an address store associated with a user and providing a user interface allowing the user to interact with the email system to send outbound email and receive inbound email;

gathering email addresses from one or more sources including constantly scanning inbound user emails on receipt and outbound user emails associated with an email user;

determining a relevance of the email address to the user based on a heuristic to provide a relevant email address, the relevance being determined based a heuristic evaluating an appearance of the one or more email addresses relative to other email addresses and a heuristic evaluating a frequency of appearance of the one or more email addresses in the address store or the inbound or outbound user emails, wherein determining the relevance based on the heuristic further comprises;

determining if each of the inbound emails and outbound emails addressed to the user includes more than one email address;

computing at least one of a percentage of known email addresses to the total number of known email addresses and unknown email addresses or a ratio of known email addresses to unknown email addresses in each of the inbound emails and outbound emails addressed to the user;

assigning a relevance weight to the unknown email addresses in each of the inbound emails and outbound emails based on at least one of the ratio or the percentage; and

marking the email addresses that are unknown as relevant if the relevance weight exceeds a pre-determined value;

marking addresses determined to be relevant to a user in the address store and storing non-relevant email addresses for the user; and

upon the user addressing a new email, checking at least one address field in said user interface of said email and determining whether an email address entered in said field is correct against a relevant email addresses, and altering the user interface to display a visual indicator to indicate potential email address problems to the user.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of determining includes at least one of:

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined amount of time; and

/or

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined number of emails; and

/or

assigning a relevance weight to a received email and marking the mail as relevant if the weight exceeds a pre-determined value where the value is assigned based on;

a number of email addresses found in a users address book also found in a message;

a number of emails in found in a users address book also found in message relative to number of unknown email addresses in the message;

a frequency of appearance of an email address in a number of emails addressed to the user;

a persistence of time in which the email address appears;

a location of an appearance of an email address in a message

a source of an appearance of an email message; and

/or

a frequency of appearance of email address within a message;

marking the email address as not relevant if a new email containing said address is not received in a pre-determined number of emails.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of checking includes spell checking the email address entered against a user address book and a relevant email address.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein for an entered email address failing a spell check, providing a visual indicator noting a problem with the entered address.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of providing a visual indicator includes providing a first indicator for an error in the entered address relative to a relevant address and a second indicator for an error relative to an address in a user address book.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of providing a visual indicator includes providing a plurality of suggested corrections to the user-supplied address.