Email messaging program with built-in video and/or audio media recording and/or playback capabilities

• US 20030172116A1
• Filed: 03/10/2002
• Published: 09/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cedatech Holdings, LLC
• Original Assignee: Talkway, Inc.
• Inventors: Martin, Rudy D., Simoni, Richard T. Jr., Curry, Michael J., Pan, Douglas Z.
• Granted Patent: US 7,937,443 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 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]

Abstract

An email messaging program with built in video and/or audio media recording and/or playback capabilities is disclosed. A system includes first and second clients, each having an email messaging program installed thereon. The user of the first client composes a message and records media. In a streaming media embodiment, the first client'"'"'s messaging program uploads the media to a streaming media server, and sends the message to the user of the second client. In a file attachment embodiment, the messaging program attaches the recorded media to the message, and sends the message to the user of the second client. The second client'"'"'s messaging program retrieves the message. In the streaming media embodiment, when the user of the second client views the message, the messaging program downloads the media from the streaming media server, and plays back the media. In the file attachment embodiment, the messaging program plays back the media.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a network;

a first client having a first email messaging program installed thereon on which

a composing user composes a message and records media, the first email messaging program sending the message to a receiving user over the network; and

,

a second client having a second email messaging program installed thereon on which the receiving user receives the message over the network, the second email messaging program playing back the media upon the user viewing the message.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a streaming media server, the first email messaging program uploading the media to the streaming media server upon the message being sent to the receiving user over the network, and the second email messaging program downloading the media from the streaming media server over the network upon the receiving user viewing the message.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first email messaging program attaches the media as an attachment to the message upon the message being sent to the receiving user over the network, and the second email messaging program receives the media as the attachment to the message over the network.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the network comprises at least one of:

the Internet, an intranet, an extranet, a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a wired network, a wireless network, and a telephony network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein each of at least one of the first client and the second client comprises:

a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a cellular phone, a wireless phone, a set-top box, and a personal digital assistant (PDA) device.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the message comprises at least text.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the media comprises at least one of:

audio, video, streaming audio, and streaming video.

8. A system comprising:

a networking mechanism communicatively coupling the system to a network; and

,

an email messaging program having at least a composing capability for a user to compose a message and record media associated with the message to send to another user over the network via the networking mechanism.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising an operating system on which the email messaging program runs.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the composing capability uploads the media to a streaming media server communicatively coupled to the network over the network via the networking mechanism upon the message being sent to the other user over the network via the networking mechanism.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the composing capability attaches the media as an attachment to the message upon the message being sent to the other user over the network.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the email messaging program further has a playback capability for the user to view messages received from other users over the network via the networking mechanism and play back received media associated with the messages received.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the playback capability downloads the media associated with one of the messages received from the streaming media server over the network via the networking mechanism upon the user viewing the one of the messages received.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the playback capability receives the media associated with one of the messages as an attachment to the one of the messages received over the network.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein the networking mechanism comprises at least one of:

an analog modem, an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) adapter, a network adapter card, a network adapter chipset, a cable modem, a Digital Subscriber Loop (DSL) modem, a digital modem, and a wireless modem.

16. The system of claim 8, wherein the message comprises at least text.

17. The system of claim 8, wherein the media comprises at least one of:

audio, video, streaming audio, and streaming video.

18. A method comprising:

saving a message entered by a user by an email messaging program;

recording media associated with the message by the email messaging program;

uploading the media to a streaming media server over a network by the email messaging program; and

,

sending the message over the network by the email messaging program.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

receiving a second message over the network by the email messaging program;

in response to a user requesting the email messaging program to display the second message,

displaying the second message by the email messaging program;

downloading second media associated with the message from the streaming media server over the network by the email messaging program; and

,

playing back the second media by the email messaging program.

20. A method comprising:

saving a message entered by a user by an email messaging program;

recording media associated with the message by the email messaging program;

attaching the media to the message by the email messaging program; and

,

sending the message over a network by the email messaging program.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

receiving a second message having attached thereto second media over the network by the email messaging program;

in response to the user requesting the email messaging program to display the second message,

displaying the second message by the email messaging program; and

,

playing back the second media by the email messaging program.

22. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon for an email messaging program comprising:

means for composing a first message by a first user and for recording first media associated with the first message to send to a second user over a network; and

,

means for viewing a second message received from the second user over the network by the first user, and for playing back second media associated with the second message.

23. The medium of claim 22, wherein the means for composing and for recording uploads the first media to a streaming media server communicatively coupled to the network over the network upon the first message being sent to the second user over the network, and the means for viewing and for playing back downloads the second media from the streaming media server over the network upon the first user viewing the second message.

24. The medium of claim 22, wherein the means for composing and for recording attaches the first media as an attachment to the first message upon the first message being sent to the second user over the network, and the means for viewing and for playing back receives the second media as an attachment to the second message over the network.