Abstract:
A method and apparatus for sharing electronic documents and sharing annotations to the same is disclosed. In some aspects, the present teachings include easy to use and flexible user interface elements to assist users in accessing shared files and folders as well as indications to alert the users to updates in the condition of a shared item. The user interface also permits simple but effective sharing of comments relating to content and allows for intuitive social networking features in the context of electronic content sharing. In other aspects, an indicator of how many new unread comments are associated with a shared electronic file exist is placed visually on or beside the actual icon of the share electronic file associated with the comments.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application is related to and claims priority under 35 USC 120 to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/829,521 entitled “Method and Apparatus for Annotated Electronic File Sharing”, filed on May 31, 2013, which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present disclosure generally relates to the sharing of electronic files. More specifically, relating to the sharing of electronic documents or collections of documents accompanied. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Numerous examples of file sharing applications exist today. Typically, an originator of a file to be shared places the electronic file into a storage location accessible to the file sharing application or service. The originator of the shared file then specifies one or more persons with whom he or she wishes to share the file, after which the service delivers a notification message to one or more recipients with which the files are to be shared. Most commonly, the notifications arrive in the form of electronic mail messages (email) or a similar written notification. The recipient, usually also a subscriber to the file sharing service, indicates his or her acceptance of the offer to share the files and proceeds to download or access a copy of the files that were shared. 
         [0004]    In addition, file sharing services may provide notifications to the subscribers sharing a given file whenever the given file has been amended or edited or changed. Also, some file sharing services permit subscribers to make annotations accompanying the shared files, which other subscribers sharing the file can read and can comment on in turn. 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary interface of a typical file sharing service  10  according to the prior art. The interface shows one or more folders including at least one folder  100  that is shared with other collaborators or subscribers to the service. A person controlling the sharing attributes of folder  100  may do so using a simple set of tools  110  that are predefined by the file sharing service provider. Deopbox® and Box.net® and other services offer the ability for a group of users to access and interact with a shared file or folder. Such systems and services lack a rich feature base and do not accommodate useful user experience functionality or social networking features. 
         [0006]    Other prior art methods and systems for sharing electronic content require the sending and receiving of messages relating to the status of the changed thing. Some operating systems (e.g., the Apple iOS) include user interfaces that have icons associated with applications such as the electronic mail (email) application. The icons associated with the applications can change their appearance to indicate new messages or unread messages waiting in an email inbox or text message application for example. However, these icons and techniques are indicative of updates (unread comments) generally to the application overall (e.g., Mail application showing number of unread emails) and not indicative of shared comments associated with a specific shared electronic file that can be updated or interactively annotated. 
         [0007]    To the extent that prior systems were capable of sharing commentary among shared users of a file, this has disadvantages. The conventional way of commenting to a shared file requires modification of the file itself by embedding the comments into the file (such as with Google Drive Chat and Microsoft Word “Track Changes”) thus complicating and altering the shared file. In the Google Drive example, a group of members can share a document and leave comments for each other in the document. A chat box is presented in the shared document and the members can see and add comments to the document. This in-document commentary detracts from the document and limits the commentary and limits the type of file the comments can be associated with. Furthermore, in the Google example, the notifications regarding shared comments appear in the notification bar of a mobile device (e.g., a bar at the top of the phone screen similar to how a notification of a new email or text message may appear), which is not ideal for associating shared comments dynamically with specific files or folder objects. 
         [0008]    Therefore, current file sharing applications and services lack a clear and useful user experience or user interface for exchanging comments relating to particular files, folders and data objects. Current systems also lack the ability to integrate the file sharing service with desired social networking experiences in real time and do not provide an adequate real time collaboration capability. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0009]    The present disclosure provides methods and systems for sharing electronic content. In some aspects, the present teachings include easy to use and flexible user interface elements to assist users in accessing shared files and folders as well as indications to alert the users to updates in the condition of a shared item. The user interface also permits simple but effective sharing of content and allows for intuitive social networking features in the context of electronic content sharing. 
         [0010]    One embodiment is directed to a system for sharing an electronic file comprising a visual display unit including a visual display area for displaying a user interface; a portion of said visual display area including a display of an icon of a shared electronic file; wherein said portion of said visual display area further displays a visual indicator of a sharing status of said electronic file or folder; and wherein said indicator of said sharing status visually indicates a quantity of unread comments specifically associated with said shared electronic file. 
         [0011]    Another embodiment is directed to a method for sharing electronic content and comments made specifically relating to shared electronic files comprising displaying on a portion of a visual display unit an icon representing an electronic file being shared by a plurality of users; displaying on said display unit an indicator of a sharing status of said electronic file; and displaying on said display unit an indicator of a quantity of unread comments specifically associated with said electronic file. 
         [0012]    Yet another embodiment is directed to a method for notification regarding comments associated with a shared electronic file, comprising establishing a data structure at a server, the data structure indicative of at least one shared electronic file shared among a plurality of client users and data relating to comments specifically associated with said shared electronic file; receiving a comment from a first client, said comment containing comment content information and comment time stamp information specifically associated with said shared electronic file; receiving from a second client a counter update request requesting a number of unread comments specifically associated with said shared electronic file; sending to said second client a signal indicative of a number of said unread comments specifically associated with said shared electronic file; receiving from said second client a request for at least said content information specifically associated with said shared electronic file; sending to said second client said comment content information specifically associated with said shared electronic file; and updating said data structure regarding said comments specifically associated with said shared electronic file to indicate that said comment content information was sent to said second client. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the present concepts, reference is made to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments and in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0014]      FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional file sharing interface according to the prior art; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary file sharing user interface according to an embodiment to the present invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary architecture for file sharing according to the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary shared folder having an annotated comment associated there with; 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary shared folder in a user interface according to the present invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  illustrates two different types of files shared and annotated according to embodiments of the present invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 7  illustrates an exemplary user interface for sharing a electronic file and annotating the same according to an embodiment the present invention; 
           [0021]      FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary user interface of the present file sharing system where an owner of a file has shared content with other users and provided the users with annotated comments related to the same; 
           [0022]      FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary arrangement for user device environments in connection over a network; 
           [0023]      FIG. 10  illustrates a simplified client-server architecture for implementing the invention; 
           [0024]      FIG. 11  illustrates client-side user application modules; 
           [0025]      FIG. 12  illustrates server-side application server modules; and 
           [0026]      FIG. 13  illustrates exemplary data structures. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0027]    In various aspects the present invention provides a more useful and useable electronic file sharing method and system. The present aspects include new and useful user experience features implements in computer readable instructions or program code that may be executed on processors or other computer hardware having access to said stored instructions. Those skilled in the art would appreciate that various implementations of the present concepts may be achieved depending on a specific desired implementation or end product. In various examples, the present method and system is carried out on one or more computers, mobile communication devices, servers, database or memory storage units and associated peripherals and network connectivity devices. 
         [0028]    A particular aspect of a well-featured user experience includes a user interface by which a human user can interact with the system. Computer input/output (I/O) including user interface instrumentalities such as keyboards mouse pointers display units and other audiovisual interface accessories are used in various embodiments of the present method and system. 
         [0029]      FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary user interface  20  in an electronic file sharing system. The user interface  20  includes a portion of a visual display unit  200  that depicts on the image pixels of the display various icons and use interface features. Specifically, and by way of example as shown, a row of user interface features  210  may be presented in a portion of the display  200 . In addition, one or more icons representing applications, files or folders may also be displayed on the display  200 . In this example, which can be generalized by those skilled in the art, a document  220  is shown through its icon as well as a folder  240  containing documents or other electronic media or content, which in this example is shared with other users. An icon  230  representing a collection of electronic documents having readable annotated notes associated there with is also shown displayed on the systems display  200 . 
         [0030]    As mentioned earlier, various architectures may be employed to implement the current method and system.  FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary arrangement or architecture for carrying out the present invention. Other implementations and arrangements would become apparent to those skilled in the art and are comprehended by the following disclosure. In the present example, a network  320  interconnects various components that may send or receive data over the network. A computer  340  such as a personal computer or a laptop or a desktop computing machine is coupled through a communication interface to the network  320 . In addition, a mobile device  330  such as a smart phone, tablet, personal digital assistant may communicate through wired or wireless means with the network  320 . Additionally, a server  350  and a storage medium or database  310  including electronic files presented in an inbox  312  may be stored and coupled to the network and therefore to the other components connected to the network. It should be understood that each of the computing systems  340 ,  330 , and  350  may also themselves include various processing circuits and memory and digital data storage devices therein. The arrangement depicted in exemplary system  30  is meant to convey the notion of data and files being exchanged or shared as well as annotations relating to those files being stored and shared among a plurality of users or machines. 
         [0031]      FIG. 4  is presented as an exemplary display of a shared electronic document or collection of documents. The figure may be a portion of a representation in a user interface as described earlier. This portion of a viewable user interface  40  may include a visual representation of a folder, suitcase or other repository of electronic content  400  (represented by an icon). The folder  400  may be represented such an icon and may be associated with a name  410  given to the folder or the collection of electronic documents being shared. An indication  420  shows in this exemplary embodiment how the system displays to a user that there is a message or annotation  420  associated with the contents of folder  400 . 
         [0032]    In some embodiments, the indication  420  shows the number of unread messages available to the user relating to the icon of folder or file  400 , which is generally a repository of electronic content represented by an icon. In an aspect, the number of unread messages waiting for a user to access them (by reading if they are readable or listening if they are audible, etc.) is dynamically updated. The number of new messages relating to the repository  400  can be updated in real time. In another aspect, once the user accesses his or her messages relating to a repository  400 , the message counter  402  indicator can be reset to zero (“0”) or can be erased/deleted while there are no unread messages to attend to. The indicator  402  can re-appear or the count indicated in it can resume at one (“1”) once a first unread message is posted for the user&#39;s attention, and continues to count upwards as further messages are posted to the user relating to the file or folder  400 . 
         [0033]      FIG. 5  illustrates another portion  50  of a user interface such as a portion of a user interface display screen as described earlier. The portion  50  may include a plurality of files within a folder  500  as mentioned previously. The collection of files in folder  500  may be collectively referred to by a name associated with the folder and such name  510  being displayed proximal to an icon of the folder  500 . A visual indication  520  such as the one shown in this example indicates that the folder  500  is shared with other users. 
         [0034]    In some embodiments, the user can interact with the system through the user interface as described and appreciated by those of skill in the art. In an aspect, the user can review the messages associated with a data repository such as a file or a folder by activating the message indicator symbol corresponding to the same. For example, the user can click on the new message indicator to bring up the unread messages associated with a repository (by using a computer mouse or by tapping or double-tapping with a stylus or finger tip, etc.). Doing so may reset the number of unread messages for that object to zero (“0”). In an example, as shown, the message indicator is at a corner of its corresponding object&#39;s icon (e.g., at an upper right corner). 
         [0035]    As mentioned, once the user brings up the message box associated with a shared data object, the user can then also add a new comment about the object so that other users who share this object can see this new comment on their systems. If the object is shared with more than one other user, the comment sharing indicators on each of the more than one other users&#39; interfaces will be updated to reflect that a new comment has been shared. The mechanism for updating the comment counter indication can be achieved using a counter update request to an application server, which responds to the client with an updated count of the number(s) of unread waiting messages for each content repository (file, folder, object) shared with the respective user. Various data structures supporting exemplary ways of storing and depicting the information to track new and read messages are described in more details further on below. 
         [0036]      FIG. 6  illustrates another exemplary portion  60  of a display in a user interface according to an embodiment of the present system. The display portion  60  shows a document  600  having a name  602  which may optionally indicate the type of document (for example .doc) also, as mentioned before, a symbol or visual indicator  604  may alert a user that the document having icon  600  is shared with other users. Beside this document icon  600  lies another icon  610  of another electronic file such as a sound or music file. This file having icon  610  may also indicate its name  612  and file type below the icon  610  of the file. The music file  610  has two comments associated therewith, which are indicated by a visible symbol  614  containing the number of comments that shared users have associated with file  610 . As will be discussed below, users sharing a file or a collection of files in a folder may review comments or annotations associated with the files that have been shared with them. 
         [0037]      FIG. 7  illustrates a portion of a user interface screen  70  including a region  700  of the display indicating the details of the sharing of a folder among some user interface. Specifically, the user interface portion  70  shows an icon  720  of a folder in this example named “sales.” The user interface invites the owner of the file or the folder  720  to share this and presents a message  722  indicating that this folder  720  could be shared. Other user interface features are arranged at  710  in the user interface portion  70  and may be selected or clicked or otherwise interacted with by the user. 
         [0038]    In this example, the owner of the folder  720  may enter one or more electronic mail addresses or select the same from an address book and enter these into a email entry portion  730  of the user interface. In addition to entering the email addresses of friends or colleagues with which the owner intends folder  720 , the owner may write a message to the recipients indicated in box  730 . The message may be typed into a text entry box  740  for example alerting the recipient to the existence of or the significance of the content being shared with them. Other visual cues such as profile names or photos  742  may be presented in the portion of the user interface  70 . Buttons or other selectable user interface elements may allow the user to indicate when done  750  or to cancel the operation at  760 . 
         [0039]      FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary portion of a user interface  80  on a portion of a display screen  800  showing details of a shared folder or other electronic content. An icon  810  of a shared folder, in this example, named “sales” is displayed. As mentioned earlier, one or more user interface elements that may be selected by the user are shown for example in a row of user interface icons  802 . The status of the shared folder  810  is displayed at  812  indicating that is has been shared with one or more recipients. Beneath that, the portion of the user interface  80  displays the name  820  of the owner of the shared folder or files and indicates this at  822 . One or more recipient names  824  are also shown as well as an icon  826  allowing the owner of the shared content to delete or remove a recipient  824  from the list of shared users. An email entry box  830  is presented to allow the owner to share the folder  810  with yet other friends or associates. In addition, profile photos  842  and/or names of various other users sharing the content are displayed in the user interface portion  80 . Comments or annotations by one or more of the shared users may be shown in respective textboxes  840 . Again, the user may indicate at  850  that he or she is done or may cancel at  860  from this step of the process. 
         [0040]      FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary architecture  90  on which one or more present embodiments may be built. A plurality of users (e.g., USER 1  911  and USER 2  921 ) may be members of an enterprise. The users  911 ,  921  may be friends, collaborators or others who are interested in sharing files, folders or electronic objects and corresponding and annotating their interactions as described above. Each user has computing and personal communication devices in a user environment. USER 1  911  has a device environment  910  includes a mobile (for example a smartphone)  916 , a tablet computing device  914  and a personal computer PC  912 . USER 2  921  owns a device environment  920  that also includes some of the same or similar devices  926 ,  924  and  922 , but each user may use a different universe of such devices. Other devices than those recited above may also be implemented of course, such as computing machines, processors, wearable devices, personal assistants, communicators and so on, but the present example is for illustrative purposes. 
         [0041]    The users, through their device environments  910 ,  920  are connected to other computing and/or processing and/or storage apparatus infrastructure. For example, the user environments and their devise are connected over a network like the Internet  930 . In turn, the network provides access to a server  940 . The server may include or be connected (directly or indirectly) to storage  950  such as a database or memory apparatus. 
         [0042]    Here, each user device includes a user experience feature and subsystem. The user experience subsystem can provide an interactive and dynamic user interface element (e.g.,  962 ,  972 ) like that described above. These user interface elements, which can include a visible and interactive icon indicate the status of an electronic thing (file, folder, object). The electronic thing is here a shared thing that the users can review, modify and add annotations to. The user interface elements are dynamically updated to alert and indicate the status of the associated electronic thing they represent. For example, a shared electronic file causes an associated icon or indicator badge to be updated whenever any of the shared users makes changes or updates or annotations or comments thereto. The other users of the shared thing will be advised of this change or update without the need for a message to be sent to them relating to the change or update or annotation. 
         [0043]    In an aspect, the present shared comments are associated with a particular file, folder or other shared data object (collectively “files”). In another aspect, the indications of a new shared message or comment are associated visually with the shared file by placement of the icon for the shared comment(s) on or beside the actual icon for the shared file. This can better indicate to the user which files have had new comments shared, unlike placing such notifications in a notification bar and unlike placing such notifications on the icon for an application program (or app), but rather by placing such notifications on or at or by the actual individual file/folder/object (“shared electronic file”) to which the comment belongs. In yet another aspect, the electronic file is not altered by the addition of the commentary to the file, but rather, the comments are separate from the file itself and are out-of-file instead of being in-file so as to allow any kind of electronic object to be tagged with comments instead of needing to modify a limited type of files with comments therein. 
         [0044]    The exemplary arrangement or architecture above can be used for carrying out the present invention. Users may connect to their work environment by an app that they download to their device. When entering the app, they discover their organization work environment. The work environment is independent and designed differently per user/employee. The IT manger of the enterprise organization or the user himself can modify the environment. 
         [0045]    In some aspects, the work environment might not be located on any of the devices, but can be virtualized. In  FIG. 9  both users  911 ,  921  have or operate local or mobile devices as described in their device environments, and the devices may be based on an operating system, e.g., Andriod®, Apple iOS®, Windows® or others. The devices may run program instructions providing a “player” application (presenting the display screen or portion thereof that the users see on their devices) which is in fact a mirror that shows a virtual device environment that is located on server  940 . Therefore, an operating system (e.g., a mobile operating system) can be installed on the server  940 , simulated thereon, or executed in part thereon. The player that shows the environment on the devices is communicating by the UX over IP protocol from the server. A proprietary IP protocol may be also implemented to achieve the exchange of data to enable the present method. 
         [0046]    The examples given herein are not intended by way of limitation of course. Many other equivalent and similar implementations may be implemented by those skilled in the art to include the present features. 
         [0047]    In some embodiments, a new-shared file or folder or new comment can be stored on storage means  950  and is provided from storage  950  to server  940  and passes through the network  930 . The users  911 ,  921  see the changes or annotations/comments inside their user interface elements  962 ,  972 . The user interfaces are dynamic, interactive, and also are associated with an electronic object or record such as a file or folder that sharing users can make changes to, e.g., without needing to send an actual message to the other sharing users advising them to obtain or review the changes. Annotations are likewise dynamically reflected in the state of the user interface element and the users can each interact with the user interface object associated with the electronic object or record concerned. 
         [0048]    In an aspect, the files or groups of files or folders or other electronic documents or machine readable data (collectively referenced herein as files or folders for simplicity) are dynamically updated. A user may view a file in a viewer on the user&#39;s device (e.g., computer or smartphone) and if the file is shared, the system automatically updates the shared and/or comment indications on the other members of the sharing group&#39;s displays to show the edit. A new comment by a user will be pushed to other users in the sharing group to alert them to the annotation or comment. An annotation or comment may be displayed in a dialog box on a user&#39;s device display unit. The annotation or comment can be in the form of a text message, e.g., containing alpha numeric letters, numbers, foreign characters, ASCII symbols, graphics or other communicative marks. 
         [0049]    According to some embodiments, the user can point to, hover over, indicate or press a touch-sensitive portion of their device display units to access information about the details of the edit or changes in the sharing status of the file or folder. The sharing status and/or comment status corresponding to a file or folder may be stored in computer-readable instructions in a database or file management server or locally on each of the devices associated with the shared item. This allows for synchronizing the status information or the version information relating to a shared file or folder. 
         [0050]    In some aspects, a user&#39;s local device (e.g., computer or communication device or smartphone) can include an “Inbox” associated with shared files or folders. The Inbox is updated and is responsive to input from the user interacting therewith through a user interface. An output responsive to the user&#39;s input gives the user an output (usually visual but not limited to visual output) indicative of a status of the shared item. 
         [0051]    In other aspects, the user can touch the icon for (clicking or double clicking) or another user interface input element causing the item touched (e.g., a file or a folder) to be displayed to the user on his or her visual display unit. The visual display unit may be a monitor, LCD display, LED display or other display, sometimes including a touch-sensitive layer to accept tactile input. 
         [0052]    According to an aspect, the icon for a shared item will return to its original form once a user reads any previously-posted comments or annotations to the shared item. Meaning, the icon includes an indicator that shows the presence of, and optionally the number of unread comments to the shared item. Then, when the user reads or deletes or accepts the shared comments, the icon is indicated to not have unread or new annotations or messages associated therewith. 
         [0053]      FIG. 10  illustrates a simplified client-server architecture  1000  for implementing the invention. The user side or client side is represented by a user application  1010 , which can be hardware, software and/or firmware implemented in a client device such as a mobile computing device, smartphone, or similar apparatus. The server side can be represented in an application server  1020 , which may further include or be coupled to a database  1030 , which in turn may employ a database server in some instances. Information for execution of the steps of the present method can be programmed into or stored on non-transitory or other computer or machine readable media in the client and server sides of the system. 
         [0054]    As stated elsewhere, the present system and method can be implemented by using some client-side and some server-side technologies in addition to an assortment of communication means, storage units and other ancillary features. 
         [0055]      FIG. 11  illustrates an exemplary configuration of client-side user application modules  1100  of the system. This example is only for the purpose of illustration and those skilled in the art will appreciate other ways of implementing the details of such a system to suit a given need. It was discussed already that in an aspect, each shared electronic file is made available to a plurality of users that share the electronic file. The “electronic file” notion herein is considered to include any of a conventional computer file such as an application file, a media file such as audio, image/video, multimedia file, or a folder containing one or more such files and objects that can be stored, processed and shared on user devices. The controller UAM12 is in communication with the main modules of the user application system  1100 . 
         [0056]    The user application modules  1100  include a controller UAM12, e.g., a processor that can process machine readable instructions and execute the same, as well as process and manage data needed by the system. A Request application program interface (API) UAM4 sends requests  1110  to the server and includes request shared file messages module UAM5 and request shared file counter module UAM6. 
         [0057]    A Listener API UAM1 receives incoming responses from the server and includes a shared file messages listener UAM2 and a shared file counter listener UAM3 to register the received message content information and unread message counts. 
         [0058]    An application server update API UAM16 delivers updates  1130  to the application server. This module includes last seen shared file message module UAM17 and new shared file message module UAM18. 
         [0059]    An event handler UAM 13 handles events relating to the user interface of the client device. This can take many forms, but in some embodiments the touch screen portion of a display unit supports handling of touch events in UAM14 and handling key stroke events in UAM15. Events  1140  are received by this module. 
         [0060]    A user interface (UI) API UAM7 is also included to generate views in module UAM8, which can output display messages UAM9, display counter UAM10 and display shared file icon UAM11. 
         [0061]      FIG. 12  illustrates server-side application server modules  1200  according to an exemplary and non-limiting embodiment of the present system. The server modules can generally service a plurality of client user requests and responses, and generally support a database with appropriate data structures and records to keep track of the various users, which files they have shared, and the status and time stamp and update information for each shared file for each such client user. The server modules  1200  include in this example a controller ASM12 that can process and manipulate data and instructions, including machine readable and/or computer-executable program instructions. The controller ASM12 is in signal communication with the various modules of the application server system. 
         [0062]    A database interface ASM13 provides connectivity to a data store or database, optionally employing some database management or database server system. There is a database API ASM14 facilitating database calls  1230  and responses. 
         [0063]    A user application update API ASM9 includes a shared file message module ASM10 and a shared file counter module ASM11, which send updates  1240  of shared message content information and message count regarding unread messages particularly relating to one or more shared electronic files. Again, an electronic file herein can include any type of electronic computer file, folder of files, media objects and so on that can be shared among a plurality of users. 
         [0064]    A request reply API ASM6 includes a shared file messages reply module ASM7 and a shared file counter reply module ASM8 that generate and send replies  1220  to the client modules described earlier. 
         [0065]    A listener API ASM1 receives incoming data  1210  from one or more clients. The listener API ASM1 includes a shared file messages request listener module ASM2, a shared file counter request listener module ASM3, a shared file new message listener module ASM4 and a last read shared file message listener module ASM5. 
         [0066]    In an aspect, the database connected to the application server is used to manage data structures facilitating tracking of the status of shared electronic files. For example, the database can contain tables of client users using the system. The database can also contain tables of which electronic files or objects are being shared among which users. Additionally, the database can be used to hold tables tracking the last updates regarding the messages associated with each particular one of the shared files. In an aspect, the updates include time stamp information that indicate when a user last checked the shared messages pertaining to a particular shared electronic file. 
         [0067]      FIG. 13  illustrates exemplary tables of information that are housed in a database to facilitate tracking shared file status and message information as well as time stamp and unread message count information. 
         [0068]      FIG. 13(   a ) represents a file messages table  1300  according to an example. The table contains a File ID that uniquely identifies shared electronic files having messages or updates associated therewith. The Timestamp is set by the application server upon updating this field in the database. The From indicates a unique key of a user the message is from. The Message indicates the message content information of a shared message relating to a particular electronic file. 
         [0069]      FIG. 13(   b ) represents a messages user views table  1310 . The table includes entries for a User ID indicating a user who has viewed messages of a shared file, a File ID indicating the shared electronic file, and a Last_view_TS that indicates the time stamp of the last time the viewer viewed the comments associated with the file. 
         [0070]      FIG. 13(   c ) represents a user table containing the icon data and credentials of each user of the shared electronic file. The table includes a User ID of a user of the shared file, a User Icon, which is the icon representing the user, and the name of the user. 
         [0071]    As would be understood by those skilled in the art, the above examples and discussion illustrate a new and useful method and system for sharing electronic content. The nature of the electronic content is general and may include electronic files, documents, multimedia content or other collections of files and information. It can be seen that the shared electronic files (application files, data objects, media files, folders of objects) can be annotated neatly with a type and quantity of shared comment indications, which include in some aspects the number of unread comments made to a shared electronic file waiting for the user to see. The user can then select, click on, or otherwise open the shared comments relating specifically to the shared electronic file in question. 
         [0072]    Here, the user can see for each shared electronic file with specificity what and how many comments have been posted to this thing. So unlike email or message applications that indicate a generalized number of unread messages to the user, the user can see for each shared file whether and how many comments are associated with this particular file. 
         [0073]    Also, to the extent that conventional file sharing systems permit shared commentary, these would include shared commentary within the body of the shared file itself thereby contaminating or infecting or otherwise modifying the shared file. In the present scenario, the file is not so affected, but the comments and indication of the comments and status and number of comments are associated with the shared electronic file and handled as described above. 
         [0074]    As can be seen and understood, the present method and system permits flexible, useful and easily accessible sharing of electronic content as well as annotation of the same by way of comments made and shared among users in real time. The presence of comments or annotations associated with the shared content is clearly and substantially immediately apparent to those sharing the content because of the visible icons and indicators showing the status of a shared file or folder or content. Specifically, the sharing status is indicated to all shared users of a file and in addition the number of pending comments associated with such content is easily and immediately recognizable by the persons sharing the content. Moreover, the persons involved in a group sharing or collaborating on such shared electronic content may easily add their own comments or annotations associated with the content to be promulgated to the other users. 
         [0075]    The present invention should not be considered limited to the particular embodiments described above, but rather should be understood to cover all aspects of the invention as fairly set out in the attached claims. Various modifications, equivalent processes, as well as numerous structures to which the present invention may be applicable, will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention is directed upon review of the present disclosure. The claims are intended to cover such modifications and equivalents.