Patent ID: 6457045
Filing Date: 2002-09-24
Classification: G06Q,G07F,H04L

Abstract:
A network system for making choices among a group of participants, comprising:a server having an associated database and adapted to be used in the network, means in the server for generating and sending an electronic message to the participants, means in the server for generating an electronic medium stored in the database and associated with the electronic message to at least one of the participants in response to a first open action of the electronic message by the at least one participant, the electronic medium containing choices to be selected and all then-current updates received at the server from any other participants; an interface in the electronic medium for communicating input from the participants to the electronic medium in the server, the input being associated with the choices; a plurality of dynamic content regions in the electronic medium, each of the dynamic content regions having dynamic content associated therewith in the database; and logic in communication with the database to asynchronously dynamically update the electronic medium in the database in response to said input and to dynamically retrieve the dynamic content of the electronic medium stored in the database including all then-current updates in response to said input, each of the dynamic content regions being updated with the dynamic content and the dynamic content including one of the selected choices and the input from the participants.