Consensus scheduling for business calendar

• US 10,163,076 B2
• Filed: 09/01/2015
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Singh, Jaskaran, Mendes, Roberto Ribeiro da Fonseca, Madejczyk, Szymon, Pablo, Anna Aleksandrovna, McKenna, Carolyn Amy
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan, Wing F
• Assistant Examiner(s): Maniwang, Joseph R
• Application Number:
  US14/842,097
• Publication Number:
  US 20170061388A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,211 Days
• Field of Search: 709206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1095 Meeting or appointment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]

Abstract

Using a set of alternative events with both modern and legacy systems. A method includes identifying a master message including a set of alternative events formatted for a modern system. The master message includes default information for all events in the set of alternative events as well as exception information representing exceptions to the default information for individual events in the set of alternative of events. A plurality of instance messages is identified. Each of the instance messages includes default information from the master message and exception information for a given event in the set of alternative events. The master message and the instance messages are sent to other systems without regard to whether the other systems are modern or legacy systems so as to allow modern systems to select event alternatives using the master message and to allow legacy systems to select event alternatives using the instance messages.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable hardware storage devices having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that are executable by the one or more processors to cause the computer system to perform a method for facilitating communication management by generating a communications set that has been specially formatted so that at least one communication in the set is readable by a receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is a legacy type system or a modern type system and by controlling a distribution of that set to at least the receiving computing system, the method comprising;

identifying a master message including a set of alternative events formatted to be readable by modern type systems, wherein the master message comprises default information for all events in the set of alternative events as well as exception information representing exceptions to the default information for individual events in the set of alternative events;

identifying a plurality of instance messages, wherein each of the instance messages comprises at least some default information from the master message and exception information for a given event in the set of alternative events; and

sending the communications set, which includes the master message and the instance messages, to other systems without regard to whether the other systems are modern type systems or legacy type systems, wherein the communications set is prepared in such a manner that (1) receiving modern type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the master message and (2) receiving legacy type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the instance messages,

whereby the communications set is deliverable to and readable by the receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is the legacy type system or the modern type system.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the master message is usable by modern type systems to allow users at modern type clients to select an alternative event.

3. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the instance messages are meeting invites that allow legacy clients to select an alternative event by accepting one of the instance messages and declining any remaining instance messages.

4. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the method further includes:

receiving, from modern type clients, votes for one or more of the events in the plurality of events;

receiving, from legacy type clients, one or more acceptances and one or more declines for one or more of the events in the plurality of events; and

using the votes, the one or more acceptances, and the one or more declines to create an identification of a consensus of one or more of the alternative events.

5. The computer system of claim 4, wherein execution of the computer-executable instructions further causes the computer system to send an event request for the identified consensus to both modern type clients and legacy type clients.

6. The computer system of claim 4, wherein execution of the computer-executable instructions further causes the computer system to send out a cancellation for all of the events in the set of events except one or more selected consensus events selected by an organizer to the legacy type clients.

7. The computer system of claim 4, wherein execution of the computer-executable instructions further causes the computer system to send out a cancellation for all of the events in the set of events and send out one or more consensus event invites selected by an organizer to the legacy type clients.

8. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the exception information is included in the master message by using pointers to the instance messages.

9. The computer system of claim 1, wherein execution of the computer-executable instructions further causes the computer system to create the instance messages by using the master message and propagating information from the master message to the instance messages.

10. A system for facilitating communication management by generating a communications set that has been specially formatted so that at least one communication in the set is readable by a receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is a legacy type system or a modern type system and by controlling a distribution of that set to at least the receiving computing system, the system comprising:

a calendaring server, wherein the calendaring server is configured to;

identify a master message including a set of alternative events formatted to be readable by modern type systems, wherein the master message comprises default information for all events in the set of alternative events as well as exception information representing exceptions to the default information for individual events in the set of alternative events;

identify a plurality of instance messages, wherein each of the instance messages comprises at least some default information from the master message and exception information for a given event in the set of alternative events; and

send the communications set, which includes the master message and the instance messages, to other systems without regard to whether the other systems are modern type systems or legacy type systems, wherein the communications set is prepared in such a manner that (1) receiving modern type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the master message and (2) receiving legacy type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the instance messages,

whereby the communications set is deliverable to and readable by the receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is the legacy type system or the modern type system.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the calendaring server is further configured to:

receive, from modern type clients, votes for one or more of the events in the plurality of events;

receive, from legacy type clients, one or more acceptances and one or more declines for one or more of the events in the plurality of events;

use the votes, the one or more acceptances, and the one or more declines to create an identification of a consensus of one or more of the alternative events; and

send a consensus meeting to the modern type clients and the legacy type clients.

12. A method performed by a computer system to facilitate communication management by generating a communications set that has been specially formatted so that at least one communication in the set is readable by a receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is a legacy type system or a modern type system and by controlling a distribution of that set to at least the receiving computing system, the method comprising:

identifying a master message including a set of alternative events formatted to be readable by modern type systems, wherein the master message comprises default information for all events in the set of alternative events as well as exception information representing exceptions to the default information for individual events in the set of alternative events;

identifying a plurality of instance messages, wherein each of the instance messages comprises at least some default information from the master message and exception information for a given event in the set of alternative events; and

sending the communications set, which includes the master message and the instance messages, to other systems without regard to whether the other systems are modern type systems or legacy type systems, wherein the communications set is prepared in such a manner that (1) receiving modern type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the master message and (2) receiving legacy type systems are able to selectively choose event alternatives using the instance messages,

whereby the communications set is deliverable to and readable by the receiving computing system irrespective of whether the receiving computing system is the legacy type system or the modern type system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the master message is usable by modern type systems to allow users at modern type clients to select an alternative event.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the instance messages are meeting invites that allow legacy clients to select an alternative event by accepting one of the instance messages and declining the rest of the instance messages.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving, from modern type clients, votes for one or more of the events in the plurality of events;

receiving, from legacy type clients, one or more acceptances and one or more declines for one or more of the events in the plurality of events; and

using the votes, the one or more acceptances, and the one or more declines to create an identification of a consensus of one or more of the alternative events.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising sending an event request for the identified consensus to both modern type clients and legacy type clients.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising sending out a cancellation for all of the events in the set of events except one or more selected consensus events selected by an organizer to the legacy type clients.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising sending out a cancellation for all of the events in the set of events and sending out one or more consensus event invites selected by an organizer to the legacy type clients.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the exception information is included in the master message by using pointers to the instance messages.

20. The method of claim 12, further comprising creating the instance messages by using the master message and propagating information from the master message to the instance messages.