Aggregated, interactive communication timeline

• US 9,515,891 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2013
• Issued: 12/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Ickman, Steven W., Cheng, Lili
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Hai V
• Application Number:
  US13/773,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20130167034A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,383 Days
• Field of Search: 455/566, 715/733
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/08 Sorting, i.e. grouping record carriers in numerical or other ordered sequence according to the classification of at least some of the information they carry by merging two or more sets of carriers in ordered sequence G06F7/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/04 Protocols for data compression, e.g. ROHC
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/7243 with interactive means for internal management of messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72445 for supporting Internet browser applications

Abstract

Described is a technology by which an interactive timeline user interface shows communication data aggregated from various sources (e.g., a telephone service, a website, an application and/or the like) in time order. To reduce the number of items in the timeline, certain items may be combined into a compressed item, e.g., items from the same source and/or of the same type may be rolled up into a rolled up item. The user may also interact to reply to a data item. For example, an editor may be provided upon interaction with a data item in the timeline, and the type of reply that is sent may automatically match the type of data item, (e.g., a text message reply to a text message).

Claims

1. In a computing environment, a method comprising:

receiving communication data from one or more communication sources, the communication data comprising;

a first piece of communication data comprising a first data item and one or more second data items; and

a second piece of communication data comprising a third data item associated therewith;

aggregating the first and one or more second data items associated with the first piece of communication data;

compressing the one or more second data items associated with the first piece of communication data into a compressed item; and

presenting simultaneously, in time order, in an integrated timeline on a timeline interface;

the first data item of the first piece of communication data and the compressed item as a first timeline item; and

the third data item of the second piece of communication data as a second timeline item.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first piece of communication data comprises one or more of the following:

content and metadata associated with other content.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the content comprises one or more of the following:

a post, notification, update, microblog, photograph, and thumbnail.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first, second, and third data items comprise data item content, the data item content comprising one or more of the following:

text identifying an author of the data item content, text identifying a date associated with the data item content, and an icon representing a source sender of the data item content.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving user interaction to expand the compressed item, wherein expanding the compressed item displays each of the one or more second data items of the compressed item on the timeline interface.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

receiving user interaction to collapse the expanded compressed item.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

organizing the first and second pieces of communication data and the associated compressed item output to the timeline interface by time.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

synchronizing the communication data received from the one or more communications sources to update the communication data and associated data items.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing a communication mechanism for replying, from within the timeline interface, to one or more of the following;

the first piece of communication data, the second piece of communication data, and an associated data item.

4. The method of claim wherein compressing the one or more second data items associated with the first piece of communication data further comprises:

rolling up the one or more second data items associated with the first piece of communication data into the compressed item;

associating a text description indicating a count of the one or more second data items rolled up with the compressed item; and

displaying data item content of the first data item as the compressed item, wherein the first data item is most recent in time.

11. In a computing environment, a system comprising:

a memory storing a plurality of pieces of communication data from a plurality of different sources;

a timeline component; and

one or more processors programmed to;

receive, from the memory, the plurality of pieces of communication data, a first piece of communication data of the plurality of pieces of communication data being associated with a first data item and one or more second data items;

aggregate, using the timeline component, the first data item and the one or more second data items;

compress, using the timeline component, the one or more second data items into compressed communication data; and

present simultaneously, in time order, in an integrated timeline on an interactive timeline interface;

the first data item and the compressed communication data as a first timeline item; and

a second piece of communication data of the plurality of pieces of communication data as a second timeline item, the second piece of communication data associated with a third data item,

wherein interaction with the compressed item provides access to the plurality of pieces of communication data associated with the one or more second data items.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the plurality of different sources include users of social media.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the first piece of communication data comprises one or more of the following:

a topic, subject, person, event, group, business, and organization.

14. The system of claim 11 further comprising:

an editor, presented within the timeline interface, configured to provide access to a user for generating a reply to one or more of the following;

the first timeline item and the second piece of communication data of the plurality of pieces of communication data.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the interactive timeline interface displays a representation of a source of a piece of the communication data of the plurality of pieces of communication data using one or more of the following:

a textual description of the source, an icon associated with the source, and a photograph associated with the source.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of pieces of communication data comprises verbal communication data comprising one or more of the following:

received text messages;

telephone calls;

social networking content posts, notifications, and status updates;

microblog content; and

email messages.

16. In a computing environment, a method comprising:

filtering communication data from a plurality of sources based on user preference data, the filtered communication data comprising a first piece of filtered communication data having a first data item and one or more second data items associated therewith, a second piece of filtered communication data having a third data item associated therewith;

aggregating the first and one or more second data items associated with the first piece of filtered communication data;

compressing the one or more second data items associated with the first piece of filtered communication data into one or more compressed items; and

presenting simultaneously, in time order, in an integrated timeline on a user interface;

the first data item of the first piece of filtered communication data and the associated one or more compressed items as a first timeline item; and

the third data item of the second piece of filtered communication data as a second timeline item.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein presenting in an integrated timeline on a timeline interface further comprises:

presenting to the user interface only filtered communication data corresponding to a certain type of the communication data.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein presenting in an integrated timeline on a timeline interface further comprises:

presenting to the user interface only communication data corresponding to a certain source of the communication data.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein compressing the one or more second data items associated with the first piece of filtered communication data further comprises:

rolling up selected data items from the one or more data items associated with the first piece of filtered communication data into the one or more compressed items; and

associating a text description indicating a count of the selected data items rolled up with each of the one or more compressed items.