Method and apparatus for maintaining a unified view of multiple mailboxes

• US 20020059391A1
• Filed: 01/10/2002
• Published: 05/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Palmsource Incorporated (Access Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Palmsource Incorporated (Access Company Limited)
• Inventors: Lincke, Scott D., Toto, Gregory M., Golden, Michael E.
• Granted Patent: US 6,993,561 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]

Abstract

A method of presenting a unified view of two mailboxes, each mailbox associated with a client is described. The unified view allows the user to see all actions she/he performed on a message in one mailbox performed in all other unified mailboxes. One of the clients has both a high cost, e.g. wireless, communication channel and a low cost, e.g. synchronization, communication channel. When a message is received by a client from its respective mailbox without an identifier, an identifier is generated and a copy of the message is sent to the other mailboxes with the identifier. When the user performs actions on a message with a client, the identifier for the message and the action can be conveyed to the other clients in a message to the other mailboxes. The unified view can be selectably updated either over the high cost communication channel or the low cost communication channel. The presence of two communication channels enables the cost of performing the unification to be contained. The user can select options to control the unification process and the use of the high cost communication channel, e.g. summarize messages over 250 words and/or remove attachments.

Claims

1. A method of presenting a unified view of a first message sent to a first mailbox on a second client using a low cost communication channel and a high cost communication channel, the first mailbox coupled by a first communication channel to a first client, the first client having a second communication channel with a second mailbox and a low cost communication channel with the second client, the second client capable of being coupled in communication with the second mailbox using the high cost communication channel, the method comprising:

receiving the first message at the first client;

generating a distinguishing identifier for the first message;

sending at least a portion of the first message and the distinguishing identifier to the second mailbox using the second communication channel;

responsive to an action on the first message on the first client, creating a second message including the distinguishing identifier and a description of the action;

sending the second message to the second mailbox using the second communication channel;

selectably updating the unified view of the first message on the second client using either the high cost communication channel or the low cost communication channel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selectably updating the unified view further comprises:

using the low cost communication channel when the second client is coupled in communication with the first client;

updating the unified view of the first message on the second client using the at least a portion of the first message and the action;

removing the at least a portion of the first message and the second message from the second mailbox after updating the unified view.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the selectably updating the unified view further comprises:

using the high cost communication channel when the second client is coupled in communication with the second mailbox;

receiving the at least a portion of the first message on the second client from the second mailbox;

receiving the second message on the second client using the second message; and

updating the unified view of the first message on the second client using the second message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the high cost communication channel comprises a wireless communication channel.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the low cost communication channel comprises a synchronization communication channel.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the action comprises at least one of reading the first message, replying to the first message, forwarding the first message, classifying the first message, and deleting the first message.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first message includes an attachment, and wherein the at least a portion of the first message comprises a predetermined amount of the first message without the attachment.

8. An apparatus for presenting a unified view of a first message sent to a first mailbox on a second client using a low cost communication channel and a high cost communication channel, the first mailbox coupled by a first communication channel to a first client, the first client having a second communication channel with a second mailbox and a low cost communication channel with a second client, the second client capable of being coupled in communication with the second mailbox using the high cost communication channel, the method comprising:

means for receiving the message at the first client;

means for generating a distinguishing identifier for the first message;

means for sending at least a portion of the first message and the distinguishing identifier to the second mailbox using the second communication channel;

means for creating a second message including the distinguishing identifier and a description of the action responsive to an action on the first message on the first client;

means for sending the second message to the second mailbox using the second communication channel;

means for selectably updating the unified view of the first message on the second client using either the high cost communication channel or the low cost communication channel.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the means for generating a distinguishing identifier for the first message comprises:

means for generating a string with an address corresponding to the first mailbox;

means for generating an increasing number; and

means for adding a header to the first message, the header including the increasing number and the string.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the means for generating a distinguishing identifier for the first message comprises means for computing a secure hash of a portion of the first message.

11. A computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave comprising:

a computer program for a unifier, the computer program including

a first set of instructions for accessing a first message;

a second set of instructions for attaching a distinguishing identifier to the first message;

a third set of instructions for sending at least a portion of the first message and the distinguishing identifier to a second mailbox;

a fourth set of instructions for creating a second message including the distinguishing identifier and a description of the action responsive to an action on the first message;

a fifth set of instructions for sending the second message to the second mailbox;

a sixth set of instructions for selectably updating the unified view of the message on a second client using either a high cost communication channel or a low cost communication channel.

12. The computer data signal of claim 11, wherein the computer program further includes a seventh set of instructions for accepting signals to control use of the high cost communication channel and the low cost communication channel.

13. The computer data signal of claim 12, wherein the seventh set of instructions further comprises an eighth set of instructions for defining a filter, the filter for selecting whether the first message should be updated using the high cost communication channel.

14. The computer data signal of claim 12, wherein the seventh set of instructions further comprises an eighth set of instructions for translating an attachment included in the first message from a first format into a second format.

15. The computer data signal of claim 11, wherein the third set of instructions further comprises a seventh set of instructions for automatically summarizing messages larger than a predetermined size.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the interface comprises a messaging application programming interface compliant interface.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the unifier can selectively update a unified view of a message on a second client using either a high cost communication channel or a low cost communication channel.

16. A computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium having a computer readable program code embodied therein including an interface to a mail agent on a client and a unifier, the interface permitting the unifier to access a message on the client and update the view of the message in the mail agent on the client.