Conversation grouping of electronic mail records

• US 7,716,593 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2004
• Issued: 05/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Avery, William A., Durazo, Jose H., Wiedemann, Bruce D., Harris, Jensen M., Van Tilburg, Martijn E., Satterfield, Jesse Clay
• Primary Examiner(s): Bashore; William L
• Assistant Examiner(s): LONG, ANDREA NATAE
• Application Number:
  US10/851,442
• Publication Number:
  US 20050004990A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,181 Days
• Field of Search: 715/752, 709/206, 709/207
• US Class Current: 715/752
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

Improved conversation grouping methods and systems are provided for electronic mail records. Electronic mail messages that are unread or flagged for follow-up are automatically displayed under an associated conversation grouping heading. If a conversation grouping contains only a single unread or flagged electronic mail message, the single electronic mail message is automatically displayed under the conversation grouping heading for review by a user. For a conversation grouping having no unread or flagged electronic mail messages, the latest electronic mail message in the grouping is automatically displayed under the conversation grouping heading.

Claims

1. A method for displaying electronic mail messages in a conversation grouping, comprising:

receiving a plurality of electronic mail messages having a common subject;

associating each of the plurality of electronic mail messages having common subject with at least one conversation grouping;

when at least one of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping has not been read or has been flagged for follow up, designating the at least one of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping that has not been read or that has been flagged for follow up for display in a conversation grouping record under a conversation grouping heading;

in the conversation grouping record displayed in a user interface, automatically displaying the conversation grouping heading on a first line in the conversation grouping record, displaying all the designated electronic mail messages that have not been read or that have been flagged for follow up in successive lines in the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading;

determining whether at least one other of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping has been read or has not been flagged for follow up; and

when at least one other of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping has been read and has not been flagged for follow up, displaying an indicator comprising a button, adjacent to the conversation grouping record for expanding and collapsing additional messages which have already been read and have not been flagged for follow up which are associated with the conversation grouping record but are not displayed.

2. The method of claim 1, whereby if all of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been read and none of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been flagged for follow up, designating a latest one of the plurality of electronic mail messages for display in the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising in the conversation grouping record displayed in the user interface, displaying the conversation grouping heading on a first line in the conversation grouping record, and displaying the designated latest one of the plurality of electronic mail messages in a second line in the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading.

4. The method of claim 3, whereby if more than one electronic mail message is displayed in the conversation grouping record, displaying each of the plurality of electronic mail messages in successive lines beneath the conversation grouping heading.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising displaying each of the more than one electronic mail messages that comprise a common conversation thread in an indented orientation relative to a preceding displayed electronic mail message belonging to the common conversation thread.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising displaying a minimum portion of each of the more than one electronic mail messages in the conversation grouping record.

7. The method of claim 6, whereby displaying a minimum portion of each of the plurality of electronic mail messages in the conversation grouping record includes displaying at least 10 characters of each of the more than one electronic mail messages displayed in the conversation grouping record.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising expanding the conversation grouping record and displaying all of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the conversation grouping beneath the conversation grouping heading whether or not any of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been read or flagged for follow up.

9. The method of claim 3, whereby if more than one unread or flagged for follow up electronic mail message is displayed in the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading, and one of the more than one unread or flagged for follow up electronic mail messages is read or unflagged for follow up, removing the read or unflagged for follow up electronic mail message from display in the conversation grouping record upon a subsequent display of the conversation grouping record.

10. The method of claim 3, further comprising displaying at least one icons adjacent to the conversation grouping heading for representing at least one property associated with each of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the conversation grouping record.

11. The method of claim 1, prior to displaying the conversation grouping heading, preparing a conversation grouping heading for identifying the common subject of the plurality of electronic mail messages.

12. The method of claim 1, whereby displaying the conversation grouping heading on a first line in the conversation grouping record includes displaying the conversation grouping heading only once per a given conversation grouping.

13. A system for providing an electronic mail user interface comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

an e-mail client comprising;

at least one conversation grouping, the at least one conversation grouping record comprising;

a conversation grouping heading on a first line in the conversation grouping record, the conversation grouping heading for identifying a common subject of at least one electronic mail message;

a least one successive text fields disposed beneath the conversation grouping heading for automatically displaying each of the electronic mail messages that have not been read or that have been flagged for follow up, whereby when more than one successive text field is disposed beneath the conversation grouping heading for automatically displaying more than one electronic mail message of a common conversation thread that has not been read or that has been flagged for follow up, then each of the more than one successive text fields of the common conversation thread is displayed in an indented orientation relative to a preceding text field belonging to the common conversation thread,

at least one text field disposed beneath the conversation grouping heading for automatically displaying a latest one of the plurality of electronic mail messages when all of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been read and non of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been flagged for follow up, and

a user interface control, comprising a button, displayed adjacent to the conversation grouping record for indicating whether additional messages which have already been read and have not been flagged for follow up are associated with the conversation grouping record but are not displayed;

whereby the conversation grouping record is expandable for displaying all of the plurality of electronic mail messages beneath the conversation grouping heading whether or not any of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been read or flagged for follow up; and

at least one icon displayed adjacent to the conversation grouping heading for representing at least one property associated with the plurality of electronic mail messages contained in the conversation grouping record.

14. A computer-readable storage medium on which is stored computer-executable instructions which when executed by a computer perform a method for displaying electronic mail messages in a conversation grouping, comprising;

receiving a plurality of electronic mail messages belonging to a common electronic mail conversation thread;

displaying a conversation grouping heading on a first line of a conversation grouping record for identifying the common electronic mail conversation thread of the plurality of electronic mail messages;

when any of the plurality of the electronic mail messages have not been read or have been flagged for follow up, displaying all of the plurality of electronic mail messages that have not been read or that have been flagged for follow up on a second line of the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading;

determining whether at least one other of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping has been read or has not been flagged for follow up;

when at least one other of the plurality of electronic mail messages associated with the at least one conversation grouping has been read and has not been flagged for follow up, displaying an indicator, comprising a button, adjacent to the conversation grouping record for expanding and collapsing additional messages which have already been read or have not been flagged for follow up which are associated with the conversation grouping record but are not displayed; and

when all of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been read and none of the plurality of electronic mail messages have been flagged for follow up, displaying a latest one the plurality of electronic mail messages on the second line of the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, whereby if more than one electronic mail message is displayed in the conversation grouping record, displaying each of the plurality of electronic mail messages in successive lines beneath the conversation grouping heading.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising instructions for displaying each of the more than one electronic mail messages that comprise a common conversation thread in an indented orientation relative to a preceding displayed electronic mail message belonging to the common conversation thread.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions for displaying a minimum portion of each of the more than one electronic mail messages in the conversation grouping record.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, whereby if more than one unread or flagged for follow up electronic mail message is displayed in the conversation grouping record beneath the conversation grouping heading, and one of the more than one unread or flagged for follow up electronic mail messages is read or unflagged for follow up, removing the read or unflagged for follow up electronic mail message from display in the conversation grouping record upon a subsequent display of the conversation grouping record.