Abstract:
A method and apparatus in a computer for processing messages. A message is received. The message is stored. The message is parsed according to a policy. The message is selectively displayed in a graphical user interface based on the policy, wherein messages failing to meet the policy are undisplayed in the graphical user interface.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present invention is related to applications entitled METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISPLAYING CONTROLS IN A GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE, Ser. No. 09/300,32, filed Apr. 27, 1999, A METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SENDING MESSAGES IN A DATA PROCESSING SYSTEM, Ser. No. 09/300,320, filed Apr. 27, 1999, A METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SENDING MESSAGES IN A DATA PROCESSING SYSTEM, Ser. No. 09/300,321, filed Apr. 27, 1999, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR AUTO-EXPANDING AND MANIPULATING DATA FIELDS IN A DATA PROCESSING SYSTEM, Ser. No. 09/300,416, filed Apr. 27, 1999, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INTEGRATING ADDRESS BOOKS WITH MOST RECENTLY USED ADDRESS ASSISTANCE, Ser. No. 09/300,317, filed Apr. 27, 1999, and METHOD AND APPARATUS TO ANNOUNCE RECEIPT OF AN ELECTRONIC MESSAGE, Ser. No. 09/300,319, filed Apr. 27, 1999, all of which are filed even date hereof, assigned to the same assignee, and incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present invention relates to an improved data processing system and in particular to a method and apparatus for managing electronic messages in a data processing system. Still more particularly, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for a filtering electronic messages in a data processing system. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     The Internet, also referred to as an “internetwork”, is a set of computer networks, possibly dissimilar, joined together by means of gateways that handle data transfer and the conversion of messages from the sending network to the protocols used by the receiving network (with packets if necessary). When capitalized, the term “Internet” refers to the collection of networks and gateways that use the TCP/IP suite of protocols. 
     The Internet has become a cultural fixture as a source of information, entertainment, and communications. Many businesses are creating Internet sites as an integral part of their marketing efforts, informing consumers of the products or services offered by the business or providing other information seeking to engender brand loyalty. Many federal, state, and local government agencies are also employing Internet sites for informational purposes, particularly agencies which must interact with virtually all segments of society such as the Internal Revenue Service and secretaries of state. Providing informational guides and/or searchable databases of online public records may reduce operating costs. Further, the Internet is becoming increasingly popular as a medium for commercial transactions. 
     In addition to being a source of information, the Internet also provides a communications medium. The Internet has become the most popular computer network used by consumers and businesses to send and receive electronic mail, also referred to as “e-mail”. The Internet allows users to readily send and receive e-mail to and from computers around the world. Each user typically has a unique Internet e-mail address (e.g., steve@ibm.com). A user with an e-mail account and a computer capable of connecting to the Internet can easily send and receive e-mail over the network. 
     E-mail allows a person to quickly and easily send textual messages and other information, such as, for example, pictures, sound recordings, and formatted documents electronically to other e-mail users anywhere in the world. An e-mail user will typically create a message using an e-mail program running on a computer connected to a computer network through a modem. The message will include an e-mail “address” for the intended recipient. When the user has finished entering the message, the user may “send” the message to the intended recipient. The e-mail program then electronically transmits the message over the computer network. The recipient, using an e-mail program running on the recipient&#39;s computer, can then “receive” the message. 
     The situation involving network based information, especially the large amounts of e-mail sent between various users may present users with “information overload”. Often times a user will check the user&#39;s mailbox and find a multitude of new e-mail that is arrived since the last time the user checked for e-mail. This situation can result in an important message being ignored or unseen until a later time because the important message has been buried among less important messages. Current e-mail systems provide the use of sound effects or recorded statements. These types of notification, however, fail to provide any detail as to the source of the information or the information contained within the e-mail. 
     Thus, it would be advantageous to have an improved method and apparatus for filtering electronic messages, such as e-mail messages. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a method and apparatus in a computer for processing messages. A message is received. The message is stored. The message is parsed according to a policy. The message is selectively displayed in a graphical user interface based on the policy, wherein messages failing to meet the policy are undisplayed in the graphical user interface. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The novel features believed characteristic of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 depicts a pictorial representation of a distributed data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented; 
     FIG. 2 is a block diagram depicting a data processing system that may be implemented as a server, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented; 
     FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a custom messaging system in which a filter of the present invention may be used depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a block diagram of components used in filtering messages depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIGS. 6A-6C are diagrams illustrating displays for modifying filter parameters or properties and the resulting display of messages depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
     FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a process for handling input to a message processing unit depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     With reference now to the figures, FIG. 1 depicts a pictorial representation of a distributed data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented. Distributed data processing system  100  is a network of computers in which the present invention may be implemented. Distributed data processing system  100  contains a network  102 , which is the medium used to provide communications links between various devices and computers connected together within distributed data processing system  100 . Network  102  may include permanent connections, such as wire or fiber optic cables, or temporary connections made through telephone connections. 
     In the depicted example, a server  104  is connected to network  102  along with storage unit  106 . In addition, clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  also are connected to a network  102 . These clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  may be, for example, personal computers or network computers. For purposes of this application, a network computer is any computer, coupled to a network, which receives a program or other application from another computer coupled to the network. In the depicted example, server  104  provides data, such as boot files, operating system images, and applications to clients  108 - 112 . Clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  are clients to server  104 . In the depicted examples, server  104  may contain an electronic mail system from which clients  108 ,  110 , and  112  send and receive e-mail messages. 
     Distributed data processing system  100  may include additional servers, clients, and other devices not shown. For example, messages may be sent and received between server  104  and other servers (not shown) to distribute and receive messages from other clients (not shown). 
     In the depicted example, distributed data processing system  100  is the Internet with network  102  representing a worldwide collection of networks and gateways that use the TCP/IP suite of protocols to communicate with one another. At the heart of the Internet is a backbone of high-speed data communication lines between major nodes or host computers, consisting of thousands of commercial, government, educational and other computer systems that route data and messages. Of course, distributed data processing system  100  also may be implemented as a number of different types of networks, such as for example, an intranet, a local area network (LAN), or a wide area network (WAN). FIG. 1 is intended as an example, and not as an architectural limitation for the present invention. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, a block diagram depicts a data processing system that may be implemented as a server, such as server  104  in FIG. 1, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In the depicted examples, data processing system  200  is used as a electronic mail message server providing service to a number of clients. Data processing system  200  may be a symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) system including a plurality of processors  202  and  204  connected to system bus  206 . Alternatively, a single processor system may be employed. Also connected to system bus  206  is memory controller/cache  208 , which provides an interface to local memory  209 . I/O bus bridge  210  is connected to system bus  206  and provides an interface to I/O bus  212 . Memory controller/cache  208  and I/O bus bridge  210  may be integrated as depicted. 
     Peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus bridge  214  connected to I/O bus  212  provides an interface to PCI local bus  216 . A number of modems may be connected to PCI bus  216 . Typical PCI bus implementations will support four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors. Communications links to network computers  108 - 112  in FIG. 1 may be provided through modem  218  and network adapter  220  connected to PCI local bus  216  through add-in boards. 
     Additional PCI bus bridges  222  and  224  provide interfaces for additional PCI buses  226  and  228 , from which additional modems or network adapters may be supported. In this manner, server  200  allows connections to multiple network computers. A memory-mapped graphics adapter  230  and hard disk  232  may also be connected to I/O bus  212  as depicted, either directly or indirectly. 
     Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware depicted in FIG. 2 may vary. For example, other peripheral devices, such as optical disk drives and the like, also may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted. The depicted example is not meant to imply architectural limitations with respect to the present invention. 
     The data processing system depicted in FIG. 2 may be, for example, an IBM RISC/System 6000 system, a product of International Business Machines Corporation in Armonk, N.Y., running the Advanced Interactive Executive (AIX) operating system. 
     With reference now to FIG. 3, a block diagram illustrates a data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented. Data processing system  300  is an example of a client computer. Data processing system  300  employs a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) local bus architecture. Although the depicted example employs a PCI bus, other bus architectures such as Micro Channel and ISA may be used. Processor  302  and main memory  304  are connected to PCI local bus  306  through PCI bridge  308 . PCI bridge  308  also may include an integrated memory controller and cache memory for processor  302 . Additional connections to PCI local bus  306  may be made through direct component interconnection or through add-in boards. In the depicted example, local area network (LAN) adapter  310 , SCSI host bus adapter  312 , and expansion bus interface  314  are connected to PCI local bus  306  by direct component connection. In contrast, audio adapter  316 , graphics adapter  318 , and audio/video adapter  319  are connected to PCI local bus  306  by add-in boards inserted into expansion slots. Expansion bus interface  314  provides a connection for a keyboard and mouse adapter  320 , modem  322 , and additional memory  324 . SCSI host bus adapter  312  provides a connection for hard disk drive  326 , tape drive  328 , and CD-ROM drive  330 . Typical PCI local bus implementations will support three or four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors. 
     An operating system runs on processor  302  and is used to coordinate and provide control of various components within data processing system  300  in FIG.  3 . The operating system may be a commercially available operating system such as OS/2, which is available from International Business Machines Corporation. “OS/2” is a trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. An object oriented programming system such as Java may run in conjunction with the operating system and provides calls to the operating system from Java programs or applications executing on data processing system  300 . “Java” is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Instructions for the operating system, the object-oriented operating system, and applications or programs are located on storage devices, such as hard disk drive  326 , and may be loaded into main memory  304  for execution by processor  302 . 
     Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware in FIG. 3 may vary depending on the implementation. Other internal hardware or peripheral devices, such as flash ROM (or equivalent nonvolatile memory) or optical disk drives and the like, may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted in FIG.  3 . Also, the processes of the present invention may be applied to a multiprocessor data processing system. 
     For example, data processing system  300 , if optionally configured as a network computer, may not include SCSI host bus adapter  312 , hard disk drive  326 , tape drive  328 , and CD-ROM  330 , as noted by dotted line  332  in FIG. 3 denoting optional inclusion. In that case, the computer, to be properly called a client computer, must include some type of network communication interface, such as LAN adapter  310 , modem  322 , or the like. As another example, data processing system  300  may be a stand-alone system configured to be bootable without relying on some type of network communication interface, whether or not data processing system  300  comprises some type of network communication interface. As a further example, data processing system  300  may be a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) device which is configured with ROM and/or flash ROM in order to provide non-volatile memory for storing operating system files and/or user-generated data. 
     The depicted example in FIG.  3  and above-described examples are not meant to imply architectural limitations. 
     The present invention provides a method, apparatus, and instructions for an improved message processing system, such as an email message system. Filter of the present invention provides graphical user interface that is easy to use. Further, the filter of the present invention filters both incoming messages as well as messages already received. When changes to filter parameters or criteria are made, the changes are applied to message already received, which may result in a different list of message being presented to the user. Further, the filter of the present invention may use meta-data such as group names in setting the rules of criteria for filtering messages. The criteria or rule that are used in the filter are also referred to as a policy. 
     With reference now to FIG. 4, a block diagram of a custom messaging system in which a filter of the present invention may be used is depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this example, a graphical user interface (GUI)  400  is used in combination with a message processing unit  402  to send an electronic message, such as message  414 . In this example, message  414  is sent through mail system  404  to mail system  406  for receipt by message processing unit  408 , which selectively provides a display of the message in a message list within GUI  410 . In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a filter is used to process messages for presentation within GUI  410  based on the content of the message. The message, depending on the filter results, is announced or presented by message processing unit  408  to the user through GUI  410  or some other mechanism such as text-to-speech synthesis. Filter settings may be stored within file  412  for use when message processing unit  408  receives a message. If filter settings are changed, these changes are applied to all messages already received as well to new messages received by message processing unit  408 . 
     In this example, GUI  400 , message processing unit  402 , and mail system  404  may be located at one client while GUI  410 , message processing unit  408 , and mail system  406  are located at another client in a distributed data processing system. In these examples, mail system  404  and mail system  406  are legacy mail systems while GUI  400 , message processing unit  402 , GUI  410 , and message processing unit  408  implement processes of the present invention. These clients may be implemented using a data processing system, such as data processing system  300  in FIG.  3 . Message processing unit  402  and message processing unit  408  process messages created and received by the user through presently available or legacy mail system processes found in mail system  404  and mail system  406 . The legacy mail systems may be implemented using currently available mail systems, such as Lotus Notes or CC Mail, which are available from Lotus Development Corporation. Address lists associated with these mail systems may be accessed by the processes of the present invention in message processing unit  402  or  408  using known interfaces supported by the mail system. For example, Vendor Independent Messaging (VIM) is an example of a known interface support by many mail systems that may be used to access address books as well as initiate various functions, including, for example the sending of mail messages and attaching files to mail messages. 
     The actual storage and transmission of e-mail, including customized content, is implemented using conventional e-mail data formats and protocols. The separation of these functions is shown for purposes of clearly illustrating the present invention. Of course, depending on the implementation, the processes of the present invention may be implemented directly within a mail system. 
     With reference now to FIG. 5, a block diagram of components used in filtering messages is depicted in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this example, mail server  500  receives messages. Message processing unit  502  periodically retrieves messages from the mail server  500  for storage within data storage  504 . The messages are processed by processes  506  to identify which messages should be displayed within GUI  508 . Normally, all of the messages received by message processing unit  502  would be displayed on GUI  508  by processes  506 . In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the messages stored within data storage  504  are filtered using filter  510  to identify messages that will be displayed on GUI  508  in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. As a result, not all messages received by message processing unit  502  will be displayed on GUI  508 . In some cases, no messages received by message processing unit  502  will be displayed on GUI  508  depending on the results of filtering the messages using filter  510 . 
     Further, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, changes to criteria or other filtering properties of filter  510  will result in processes  506  re-filtering the messages stored within data storage  504  to re-identify messages stored in data storage  504  for display on GUI  508 . When filtering properties are changed within filter  510 , different messages may be displayed or presented to the user than those originally displayed on GUI  508 . Moreover, the messages may be presented to a user other than visually. For example, processes  506  could also initiate an audio presentation of the message in response to identifying the messages to be presented to the user after filtering using filter  510 . 
     With reference now to FIGS. 6A-6C, diagrams illustrating displays for modifying filter parameters or properties and the resulting display of messages are depicted in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     In FIG. 6A, display  600  includes a GUI  602 , which displays various filter criteria and parameters that may be changed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the user may select to include all messages by selecting selection  604 . Selection of selection  606  allows the user to selectively include various messages. For example, filtering various data from portion of a message may be set by selecting box  608  and entering text within field  612 . Selection of key words within the message may be used to filter messages by selecting box  610  and entering the keyword in field  614 . In this example, selection  604  has been made to include all messages. 
     Selections  604  and  606  and boxes  608  and  610  are the rules applied in filtering, while fields  612  and  614  provide for parameters. Selections  604  and  606  are rules, while boxes  608  and  610  are attributes of messages, on which to filter. Fields  612  and  614  are values for the attributes on which to filter. In these examples, if the user is satisfied with the filter settings or properties, “okay” button  616  may be used to exit GUI  602  and store the filter settings and properties. If the user desires to see the effect of the changes without saving them, the user may select “apply” button  618 . If the user does not want to save the changes, the user may select “cancel” button  620 , which results in the changes being deleted and the previous settings being restored. In this example, the user has selected selection  604 , which includes all messages received by the system. As a result, in this example, GUI  622  is a message list that contains entries  624 - 634 . All of these documents are ones displayed based on the settings in the filter. Additional messages are present but not shown, as can be seen by the state of scroll bar  636 . 
     In FIG. 6B, the user has selected selection  606 , and has selected to set filtering properties to filter text strings from both the “from” field and from anywhere in the message through selection of boxes  608  and  610 . In this example, messages  638 - 646  are illustrated in response to the filter settings made in GUI  602 . Another feature of the present invention is that additional emphasis is provided for various words or strings that meet filter settings or properties. In these examples, the emphasis is provided by bolding the string or text. The words “Tom Jianming”, “Allen”, and “Phil” were set in field  610 . The word “book” was set in field  614 . Entry  638  displays “Tom”. In entry  640 , the word “book” is in bold. In entry  642 , the name “Jianming” is in bold. The word “Phil” is in bold in entry  644 , while in entry  646 , the word “Alan” is in bold. 
     When the filter is set to include only messages from certain people or certain keywords, the filter applies immediately to the full set of messages in storage. Only those messages meeting the filter criteria are displayed in GUI  622 . As new messages are added to the storage, these messages are filtered to determine whether to add them to the display of messages in GUI  622 . 
     In FIG. 6C, the group “ahci austin” is entered as a group in field  610 , while the keyword “netmate” is entered in field  614 . The resulting displays in GUI  622  are entries  648 - 658 . All of the names are highlighted because they are all part of the group “ahci austin.” The word netmate in entry  648  is highlighted because it matches the keyword “netmate” entered in field  614 . As can be seen, the filter settings may use meta-values, such as group names from an address book. With this kind of setting or criteria, the filter will then cause the inclusion of all values within the meta-value. Specifically, the present invention allows the use of names to compare against values in the “from” field of a mail message. The present invention allows the use of groups or distribution lists to identify multiple individual names without having to enter those names into the filter itself. By entering a group name or distribution list name into the filter setting, a user may specify that the filter will apply to all names that are in the corresponding group, as stored in an address book or other data structure. 
     With reference now to FIG. 7, a flowchart of a process for handling input to a message processing unit is depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The process begins by awaiting user input (step  700 ). Responsive to the input being the arrival of a new message (step  702 ), the new message is stored in a storage device (step  704 ). Thereafter, determination is made as to whether the message matches the filter (step  706 ). If the message does not match the filter, the process returns to step  700  to await additional input. Otherwise, the message is displayed in the GUI (step  708 ) with the process then returning to step  700  to await additional input. 
     Responsive to input being a user changing filter settings (step  710 ), the process compares filter values for name fields with group names in an address book (step  712 ). A determination is made as to whether the filter value matches the group name (step  714 ). If the filter value matches the group name, the members of the group are included as values in the filter settings (step  716 ). When a group name is present, the processes of the present invention may retrieve all of the names from the address book or other data structure to use as values in the filter settings. As a result, all of the names associated with a group name or distribution list will be used as criteria to determine which messages are to be presented to the user. Thereafter, a variable N is set equal to the number of messages located in the storage device (step  718 ). 
     With reference again to step  714 , if the filter value does not match the group name, the process proceeds directly to step  718 . Thereafter, an index is set equal to one (step  720 ). A determination is then made as to whether the index is less than or equal to N (step  722 ). If the index is less than or equal to N, a determination is then made as to whether the message identified by the index value matches the filter (step  724 ). If the message does match the filter, then the message is displayed in the GUI (step  726 ) with the process then incrementing the index by one (step  728 ) and then returning to step  722  to determine whether the index is less than or equal to N. 
     With reference again to step  724 , if the message referenced by the index value does not match the filter, the process proceeds to step  728  directly. Turning back to step  722 , if the index is not less than or equal to N, the process then returns to step  700  to await further input. 
     If the received input is other input (step  730 ), that input is processed (step  732 ) with the process then returning to step  700 . This other input may include, for example, opening, sending, and deleting messages. When messages are deleted, these messages are removed from the data store. In response to user input ending the system (step  734 ), the process will terminate. 
     It is important to note that while the present invention has been described in the context of a fully functioning data processing system, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the processes of the present invention are capable of being distributed in the form of a computer readable medium of instructions and a variety of forms and that the present invention applies equally regardless of the particular type of signal bearing media actually used to carry out the distribution. Examples of computer readable media include recordable-type media such a floppy disc, a hard disk drive, a RAM, and CD-ROMs and transmission-type media such as digital and analog communications links. 
     The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Although, the depicted examples are directed mainly for the processing of e-mail messages, the processes of the present invention may be applied to other kinds of messages, such as, for example, without limitation, electronic phone messages and bulletins. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention, the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.