Visually indicating a calendar event among different time zones

• US 8,607,250 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2007
• Issued: 12/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Oral, Tolga, Schirmer, Andrew L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Anya, Charles E
• Application Number:
  US11/855,446
• Publication Number:
  US 20090077570A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,279 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7.13, 715/963, 719/318
• US Class Current: 719/318
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2477 Temporal data queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1093 Calendar-based scheduling for persons or groups
• 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

A calendared event may be visually indicated. A proposed time for the calendared event can be identified and each of a plurality of event participants can be associated with the calendared event. For each of the participants, a local time of the participant that corresponds to the proposed time for the calendared event can be identified and displayed.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for visually indicating a calendared event, comprising:

identifying a proposed time for the calendared event;

associating each of a plurality of event participants with the calendared event;

displaying a plurality of time tables, respectively for the participants;

visually spacing each of the time tables from one another;

for each of the participants, along either a shared horizontal or vertical axis, displaying a common local start time in juxtaposition to one another;

for each of the participants, identifying a local time block that corresponds to the proposed time for the calendared event; and

displaying, within spaces between the time tables, visual indicators linking the identified local time blocks.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

for a first of the participants, displaying a second indicator that indicates at least a first period in which the first participant is unavailable; and

for a second of the participants, displaying a third indicator that indicates a second period in which the second participant is unavailable.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a user input to move one of the visual indicators linking the identified local time blocks; and

responsive to the user input, changing the proposed time.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a user input to change a size of one of the visual indicators linking the identified local time blocks; and

responsive to the user input, changing a duration of the calendared event.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying first indicators, within the time tables, that visually identify the identified local time blocks.

6. A computer-implemented method for visually indicating a calendared event, comprising:

displaying a plurality of time tables, respectively, for a plurality of event participants associated with the calendared event;

displaying, associated with a time table for a first of the event participants, a first time difference indicator;

displaying, associated with a time table for a second of the event participants, a second time difference indicator;

displaying, associated with the first time difference indicator and the second time difference indicator, an association indicator; and

for each of the event participants, identifying a local time block, of the event participant, that corresponds to a proposed time block for the calendared event, wherein

the first time difference indicator indicates a time difference between the local time block of the first event participant and an event time reference,

the second time difference indicator indicates a time difference between the local time block of the second event participant and the event time reference,

the association indicator visually associates the first time difference indicator to the second time difference indicator, and

the event time reference is a time of the calendared event in a time zone of a predetermined entity, wherein

a size of the association indicator is variable, and

varying the size of the association indicator changes a duration of the calendared event.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein

the predetermined entity is an event coordinator.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein

the predetermined entity is a user to which the plurality of time tables is being displayed.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein

the association indicator is movable with respect to the plurality of time tables.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein

movement of the association indicator changes the proposed time block for the calendared event.

11. The method of claim 6, further comprising

displaying, associated with one of the event participants, an availability indicator.

12. A computer program product comprising a computer-usable storage medium having stored therein computer-usable program code for visually indicating a calendared event, the computer-usable program code, which when executed by a computer hardware system, causes the computer hardware system to perform:

displaying a plurality of time tables, respectively, for a plurality of event participants associated with the calendared event;

displaying, associated with a time table for a first of the event participants, a first time difference indicator;

displaying, associated with a time table for a second of the event participants, a second time difference indicator;

displaying, associated with the first time difference indicator and the second time difference indicator, an association indicator; and

for each of the event participants, identifying a local time block, of the event participant, that corresponds to a proposed time block for the calendared event, wherein

the first time difference indicator indicates a time difference between the local time block of the first event participant and an event time reference,

the second time difference indicator indicates a time difference between the local time block of the second event participant and the event time reference,

the association indicator visually associates the first time difference indicator to the second time difference indicator, and

the event time reference is a time of the calendared event in a time zone of a predetermined entity, wherein

a size of the association indicator is variable, and

varying the size of the association indicator changes a duration of the calendared event.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein

the predetermined entity is an event coordinator.

14. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein

the predetermined entity is a user to which the plurality of time tables is being displayed.

15. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein

the association indicator is movable with respect to the plurality of time tables.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein

movement of the association indicator changes the proposed time block for the calendared event.

17. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the computer-usable program code further causes the computer hardware system to perform

displaying, associated with one of the event participants, an availability indicator.