Abstract:
An electronic information system which enables email based transactions comprises an information database storing information regarding a plurality of individuals in a group and selections available to individuals in the group. A first email message with a mail to hyperlink having a plurality of fields including actionable parameter is generated and sent. A reply email message is received in response to selection of the mail to hyperlink. The received email message includes the plurality of fields and the actionable parameter that indicates that a specific selection has been made. A processor performs the action indicated by the actionable parameter in response to the received email message, including updating the information database to indicate the specific selection that has been made.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/896,533 filed Oct. 1, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,516,062, issued Aug. 20, 2013, and is related to co-pending application to Killoran et al., entitled “Generation and Retrieval of Report Information,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/896,644, filed Oct. 1, 2010, which are herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The subject matter disclosed herein relates to the storage, communication, and display of task-related data. 
     BACKGROUND 
     An organization, such as a military unit, commercial enterprise, or other type of organization, may be required to periodically perform one or more tasks in order to achieve goals and/or comply with requirements associated with their particular domain. As one example, a commercial enterprise or military unit may be required to comply with environmental regulations. Conformance to the environmental regulations may require the periodic performance of tasks such as inspecting hazardous waste accumulation areas, complete hazardous material inventories, updating or maintaining environmental records, and/or other tasks. 
     Current information management systems allow organizations to define tasks, assign tasks to workers, and monitor completion of the tasks that have been assigned to workers. However, these information management systems are difficult to use, unnecessarily complex, and frequently include many features that are not of interest to the user. Further, these information management systems typically include their own log in and/or authentication mechanisms, thereby adding an additional layer of complexity and inconvenience to their use. Therefore, new information management technologies are required that provide a more streamlined and straightforward user experience than what is provided in the current technologies. 
     SUMMARY 
     An information management system may store information related to tasks to be performed by workers in an organization, and may transmit information to the workers regarding tasks they are expected to perform. Further, the information management system may receive information from the workers regarding the progress of the performance of tasks, such as whether a particular task has been completed or is still in progress. The information management system may also receive requests to generate reports regarding task progress across the organization, and communicate the generated reports to workers. Communication between the workers and the information management system may be performed using email messages. The information management system may not require a login or authentication procedure that is specific to the information management system, and workers may interact with the information management system without logging in to the information management system. 
     The information management system may be included in an architecture that also includes one or more client modules such as an email client module and/or a report display module that are used by a worker in the organization. The information management system may generate an email message for transmission to the worker. The email message may include one or more mail to hyperlinks that describe a new email message that may be generated when the hyperlink is selected. The worker may select one of the hyperlinks, thereby generating a new email message. The new email message may include a subject field that includes an action type parameter. The action type parameter may describe an action to be performed by the information management system. The new email message may then be sent to the information management system. The information management system may then perform the action indicated by the action type parameter. The action may be, for example, updating a database to indicate that a task has been completed or is incomplete, reassigning a task from one worker to another, or generating and transmitting a report to a worker. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description, given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  shows an example architecture that may be used for the communication, storage, and display of information related to task management; 
         FIGS. 2A-2B  show a method for the communication of an alert message to a worker and for updating the task information database  116  based on a response to the alert message 
         FIG. 3  shows an example email display window that may be used to display an email message; 
         FIG. 4  shows an example message composition window that may be used to display, edit, and/or transmit an email message; 
         FIGS. 5A-5B  show a method for updating a task information database with information related to new workers, new tasks, and/or new assignments of tasks to workers; 
         FIG. 6  shows an example email display window that may be used to display an email message; 
         FIGS. 7A-7B  show a first method for the generation and transmission of a report that describe the status of task completion; 
         FIG. 8  shows an example email display window that may be used to display an email message; 
         FIG. 9  shows a first example page of a report that may be generated by an information management system; 
         FIG. 10  shows a second example page of a report that may be generated by an information management system; 
         FIG. 11  shows a second method for the generation and transmission of a report that describe the status of task completion; and 
         FIG. 12  shows an example system that may be used to implement the architecture of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  shows an example architecture  110  that may be used for the communication, storage, and display of information related to task management. The example architecture  110  includes an information management system  100  and a worker email client module  118 . As will be described in further detail below, the information management system  100  may store information related to tasks to be performed by workers in an organization, and may transmit information to the workers regarding tasks they are expected to perform. Further, the information management system  100  may receive information from the workers regarding the progress of the performance of tasks (e.g., whether a particular task has been completed or is still in progress). The information management system  100  may also generate reports regarding task progress across the organization, and communicate the reports to workers. 
     The information management system  100  may include a report module  102 , an update module  104 , an alert module  106 , a system email client module  108 , a report display module  112 , a database module  114 , and a task information database  116 . The task information database  116  may store information related to one or more tasks, one or more organizations, and one or more workers, and/or other task-related information. The database module  114  may perform functionality such as adding data to, modifying data in, querying data from, and/or retrieving data from the task information database  116 . 
     The alert module  106  may perform functionality such as determining when an alert message related to a task should be sent to a worker. An alert message may indicate, for example, that the worker is required to complete a task and/or what the worker is required to perform in order to complete the task. 
     The system email client module  108  may perform functionality such as the transmission and reception of email messages. The system email client module  108  may be configured to use one or more email accounts that are associated with the information management system  100 , and to receive messages associated with the one or more email accounts. As an example, when the alert module  106  makes a determination that an alert message should be sent to a worker, the alert module  106  may communicate the contents of the email message to the system email client module  108 , and the system email client module  108  may transmit a corresponding email message. Further, when a new email message is received at an email account used by the system email client module  108 , the system email client module  108  may communicate the email messages to the update module  104  and/or the report module  102 . 
     The update module  104  may perform functionality related to updating the task information database  116  based on emails from workers that are received by the system email client module  108 . For example, the update module  104  may periodically check the system email client module  108  to determine if a new email message has been received. If the update module  104  determines that an email message indicates that a task has been completed, the update module  104  (in conjunction with the database module  114 ) may update the task information database  116  accordingly. 
     The report module  102  may perform functionality related to providing reports to workers in the organization. For example, the report module  102  may periodically check the system email client module  108  to determine if a new email message has been received. If the report module  102  determines that a new email message has been received that indicates a request for a report from a worker, the report module  102  may generate the corresponding report, and may communicate the report to the system email client module  108 . The system email client module  108  may then transmit a corresponding email message that includes the report to the worker that requested the report. The report display module  112  may then display the report via a display device (not depicted). 
     The worker email client module  118  may perform functionality related to the communication and display of email messages. The worker email client module  118  may be configured to use an email account that is associated with a worker in the organization, and to receive messages associated with the email account. 
     The system email client module  108  and/or the worker email client module  118  may communicate email messages using technologies such as Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), Post Office Protocol (POP) technology, Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP), Remote Procedure Call (RPC) technology, HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and/or other appropriate technologies. The system email client module  108  and/or the worker email client module  118  may be or include an email client such as Microsoft Outlook, Thunderbird, a web browser, or any other client application for the communication of email messages. The system email client module  108  and/or worker email client module  118  may communicate email messages via one or more email servers (not depicted). 
     The task information database  116  may be spread across one or any number of computer-readable storage media (not depicted). The task information database  116  may be or include, for example, a relational database, a hierarchical database, an object-oriented database, a flat file, a spreadsheet, or a structured file. The database module  114  may interface with a database management system (not depicted) in order to add data to, modify data in, or obtain data from the task information database  116 . Alternatively or additionally, the database module  114  may perform database drive and/or database client functionality to interact with the database management system. The database management system may be based on a technology such as Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Access, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle Relational Database Management System (RDBMS), or any other appropriate technology. 
     The task information database  116  may include data that describes tasks in terms of “recurrences.” A “recurrence” is an instance of a performance of a task. As an example, an organization may be required update its hazardous material inventories once per month. In this example, the “task” is updating hazardous material inventories, and the task is associated with a “recurrence” for each month. The task information database  116  may therefore include information that indicates that the task is associated with a recurrence each month. Further, for each task, the task information database  116  may include information such as one of or any combination of the following: an identifier of the task; a name of the task; a description of the task; an area related to the task; a date on which the task is due; an end date for the task; one or more alert dates that indicate when alert messages related to the task should be sent; files that are related to the task; an identifier of a worker to whom the task should be escalated if the task is not timely completed; recurrence information; and/or other information. Recurrence information for a task may include, for example, how often a task recurs, in which week a task recurs, on what day a task recurs, and/or other information. 
     For each recurrence of a task, the task information database  116  may include information such as one of or any combination of the following: an identifier of the recurrence; an identifier of the associated task; a date on which the task/recurrence must be performed; one or more dates on which alerts related to the recurrence should be sent; information that indicates whether alerts related to the recurrence have been sent; an identifier of the worker assigned to perform the task/recurrence; information that indicates when and/or if information an escalation email was sent; information related to performance of the task/recurrence; and/or other information. Information related to performance of the task/recurrence may include, for example, information that indicates that the task has been completed or is still in progress, a time at which the worker indicated that the recurrence was completed or is still in progress, an identifier of the worker who completed the recurrence, and/or comments from the worker related to progress of the performance of the recurrence. A spell-checker module (not depicted) in the information management system  100  may periodically perform spelling and grammar corrections on the comments that are included in the task information database  116 . 
     For each worker, the task information database  116  may include information such as one of or any combination of the following: an identifier; a first name; a last name; a position title or job description; an email address; one or more phone numbers; one or more fax numbers; an identifier of the organization with which the worker is associated; and/or other information. The information may also include privileges and/or security information, such as whether the worker is authorized as an administrator and/or what level of privileges are possessed by the worker. The task information database  116  may also include information that describes one or more email signatures associated with the worker. 
     For each organization in the task information database  116 , information may be stored such as: an identifier of the organization; a name of the organization; a description of the organization; and/or other information. The task information database  116  may also include information that describes facilities that are associated with an organization. For each facility in the task information database  116 , the task information database  116  may include information such as the name of the facility and the address of the facility. The task information database  116  may also include information that indicates which facility a worker is associated with. 
     Each or any combination of the modules  102 ,  104 ,  106 ,  108 ,  112 ,  114 ,  118  may be implemented as software modules, specific-purpose processor elements, or as combinations thereof. Suitable software modules include, by way of example, an executable program, a function, a method call, a procedure, a routine or sub-routine, one or more processor-executable instructions, an object, or a data structure. 
     Further characteristics of the modules  102 ,  104 ,  106 ,  108 ,  112 ,  114 ,  118  are described below with references to  FIGS. 2A-12 . 
       FIGS. 2A-2B  show a method for the communication of an alert message to a worker and for updating the task information database  116  based on a response to the alert message. As will be described in further detail below, the alert message may indicate that a task recurrence is expected to be performed by the worker.  FIGS. 2A-2B  show the database module  114 , the update module  104 , the alert module  106 , the system email client module  108 , and the worker email client module  118 . 
     The method of  FIGS. 2A-2B  may begin with the alert module  106  determining that an alert related to a task recurrence should be sent (step  232 ). This determination may be performed based on data obtained via the database module  114  from the task information database  116 . As one example, the alert module  106  may receive information from the task information database  116  that indicates that, for a particular task recurrence, an alert email is past due and has not been sent. 
     The alert module  106  and/or the system email client module  108  may then generate an email message to be transmitted to the worker assigned to perform the recurrence of the task (step  234 ). The email message may describe the task recurrence to be performed. The email message may also include one or more attachments that provide information regarding the task recurrence to be performed. The email message may be indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 . Further, the email message may include one or more hyperlinks that, when clicked by the worker, will create a new email message that the worker may use to respond to the email message generated by the alert module  106  and/or system email client module  108 . 
     The system email client module  108  may then transmit the generated email message (step  236 ). The email message may be received by the worker email client module  118 , and displayed by the worker email client module  118  (step  238 ). 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 3 ,  FIG. 3  shows an example email display window  320  that may be used by the worker email client module  118  to display the email message (step  238 ). The email display window  320  of  FIG. 3  includes a Reply button  322 , a control area  324 , and a message body area  326 . The control area  324  may display control and/or header information associated with the email message, such as the email addresses of the sender and recipient of the message. As an example, the control area  324  shows that the sender of the message has the email address “task.mgmt@company.com.” This is an example email address that may be associated with an account used by the information management system  100  for the communication of email messages. Further to this example, the control area  324  shows that the email address of the worker assigned to perform the task recurrence is “john.smith@company.com.” The control area  324  may also display information such as a subject of the email message and the time the email message was sent. The control area  324  may also display information that indicates whether any attachments are associated with the email message. The Reply button  322  may respond to user input to generate a new display element (not depicted) to respond to the email message. 
     The message body area  326  may display the body of the email message. As shown in  FIG. 3 , the message body area  326  display an example email message that describes a task recurrence to be performed by an example worker named John Smith. 
     The message body area  326  may also include one or more Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs) or hyperlinks, such as the “Completed Task” link, the “Incomplete Task” link, the “Comments” link, and/or the “Redirect Task” link. These links may be defined according to the mail to URI scheme or other appropriate format, and each may describe a new email message that may be generated by the worker email client module  118  when that link is selected. A mail to URI scheme may include one or any combination of the following fields: a “mail to:” and/or “to” field that indicate one or more email addresses of recipients of the new message; a “Copy To” or “CC” field that indicates one or more email addresses of recipients to whom a copy of the new message should be sent; a “Blind Copy To” or “BCC” field that indicates one or more email addresses of recipients to whom a blind copy of the new message should be sent; a field that indicates the subject of the new message; and a field that indicates the body of the new message. A mail to hyperlink may be defined according to the format described in Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) RFC2368. 
     Each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an action type parameter that indicates a type of an action to be performed by the information management system  100 . Types of actions that the information management system  100  may perform include updating the task information database  116  to indicate that a task has been completed or is incomplete, updating the task information database  116  with a comment related to a task, reassigning a task from the currently-assigned worker to a new worker, and/or other actions. Further, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an identifier of the task recurrence that is described in the message body area  326 . Further, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the new email message should be addressed to an email account used by the information management system  100 . 
     The “Completed Task” hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that, if received by the information management system  100 , will indicate to the information management system  100  that a task recurrence has successfully been completed, and that the task information database  116  should be updated accordingly. As an example, the task recurrence described in the message body area  326  may have an identifier of “ID001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to reflect completion of a task may be “COMPLETED$.” Further to this example, the Completed Task hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Task ID001 COMPLETED$.” 
     The “Incomplete Task” hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that, if received by the information management system  100 , will indicate to the information management system  100  that a task recurrence is incomplete. As an example, the task recurrence described in the message body area  326  may have an identifier of “ID001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to reflect that the task is incomplete may be “INCOMPLETE$.” Further to this example, the Incomplete Task hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Task ID001 INCOMPLETE$.” 
     The “Comments” hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that, if received by the information management system  100 , will indicate to the information management system  100  that the worker is providing a comment on a task recurrence. As an example, the task recurrence described in the message body area  326  may have an identifier of “ID001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to include the comments may be “INPROGRESS$.” Further to this example, the Incomplete Task hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Task ID001 INPROGRESS$.” As will be described in further detail below, by using a “Comments” email message, a worker may provide comments to the information management system  100 . Comments may include information such as whether the worker needs additional support to complete a task recurrence, whether the worker is concerned about their progress with respect to a task recurrence, and/or any other information provided by the worker. 
     The “Redirect Task” link may include information that describes an email message that, if received by the information management system  100 , will indicate to the information management system  100  that the worker is requesting that the task or task recurrence mentioned in the message body area  326  be reassigned to a different worker. As an example, the task recurrence described in the message body area  326  may have an identifier of “ID001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to reassign a task may be “REDIRECT$.” Further to this example, the Redirect Task hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Task ID001 REDIRECT$.” The Redirect Task hyperlink may also specify that the body of the new message begins with the text “New Assigned User Email Address:” As will be described in further detail below, a worker may add the email address of a worker to the body of the email message generated based on the Redirect Task hyperlink, and thereby reassign a particular task or task recurrence to a different worker. 
     The worker email client module  118  may receive a user input that indicates that one of the hyperlinks displayed in the message body area  326  is selected. The user input may be, for example, a mouse click, keyboard input, or any other type of input that indicates that a hyperlink is selected. Referring again to  FIG. 2A , the worker email client module  118  may, in response to this user input, generate a response message as specified by the selected hyperlink (step  240 ). Generation of the response message may include displaying the generated response message in one or more user interface elements. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2A ,  FIG. 3 , and  FIG. 4 ,  FIG. 4  shows an example message composition window  420  that may be displayed in response to a selection hyperlink from the message body area  326  of  FIG. 3  (step  240 ). The message composition window  420  of  FIG. 4  may include a Send button  422 , a To area  421 , a CC area  423 , a BCC area  425 , a Subject area  427 , and a message body area  426 . The Send button  422  in the message composition window  420  of  FIG. 4  may be responsive to input from a user such as a mouse click, keyboard input, or any other type of input. The different areas  421 ,  423 ,  425 ,  426 ,  427  in the message composition window  420  display different portions of an email message. For example, the To area  421  includes text that indicates email addresses to which the email message is addressed, while the message body area  426  displays the contents of the body of the email message. Each or any of these different areas  421 ,  423 ,  425 ,  426 ,  427  may be editable based on user input. Changes to the contents of these areas  421 ,  423 ,  425 ,  427 ,  426  may be change the corresponding portion of the email message. 
       FIG. 4  shows an example wherein the Completed Task hyperlink from the message body area  326  of  FIG. 3  is selected. The To area  421  indicates that the message is addressed to task.mgmt@company.com. The Subject area  427  indicates that the subject of the message is “Response Task ID001 COMPLETED$.” The CC area  423 , BCC area  425 , and message body area  426  are blank. In an instance where a different hyperlink from the message body area  326  of  FIG. 3  (e.g., the Incomplete Task hyperlink, Comments hyperlink, or Redirect Task hyperlink) is selected, the display areas  421 ,  423 ,  425 ,  427 ,  426  in the message composition window  420  may include contents specified by the selected different hyperlink. 
     A user may add text to the body of the email message by adding text to or changing the text in the message body area  426 . As will be described in further detail below, the information management system  100  may interpret the text in the message body of an email message in different ways, based on information indicated in the subject of the email message and/or the purpose of the email message. For example, the body of the email message may be interpreted by the information management system  100  as a comment related to the completion of a task recurrence, or the information management system  100  may expect the body of the email message to include an email address of the new user to whom a task or task recurrence is being reassigned. 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 2B  and  FIG. 4 , the worker email client module  118  may, in response to a selection of the Send button  422 , transmit the email message based on the contents of the  421 ,  423 ,  425 ,  426 ,  427  in the message composition window  420  (step  242 ). 
     The system email client module  108  and the update module  104  may then receive the email message (step  244 ). This may include, for example, the update module  104  periodically querying the system email client module  108  for information related to new messages received by the system email client module  108  for one or more of the email accounts used by the information management system  100 . Referring again to the example described above with reference to  FIG. 4 , the email message may be addressed to task.mgmt@company.com. Further to this example, the update module  104  may periodically obtain new messages from the system email client module  108  that have been received for the task.mgmt@company.com email account. 
     The update module  104  (in conjunction with the database module  114 ) may then verify the contents of the received message and update the task information database  116  accordingly (step  246 ). This may include, for example, the update module  104  parsing the contents of the received email message to determine if the message is formatted appropriately. For example, the update module  104  may be configured to expect that a received email message may include certain contents in its subject field, related to the type and/or purpose of the message. The update module  104  may determine whether the subject field of the message contains expected text such as “COMPLETED$,” “INCOMPLETE$,” “INPROGRESS$,” or “REDIRECT$.” The update module  104  may also determine whether the email address indicated as the sender of the message corresponds to the worker assigned to the corresponding task, and/or whether a task identifier of task recurrence identifier included in the subject of the message is valid. 
     Alternatively or additionally, if the received message is a message for redirecting a task or task recurrence to a new worker, the update module  104  may verify that reassignment of the task or task recurrence is permitted. This may include, for example, determining whether information about the new worker is included in the task information database  116 , whether the new worker is associated with the organization with which the task or task recurrence is associated, and/or whether the worker attempting to reassign the task or task recurrence is an administrator and/or has appropriate privileges to reassign the task. 
     If the update module  104  successfully verifies the contents of the response message, the update module  104  may communicate with the database module  114  to update the task information database  116  accordingly. For example, if the received message indicates that a task recurrence has been completed or is incomplete, the task information database  116  will be updated to reflect the complete/incomplete status of the task recurrence. If the task recurrence is complete, this may also include the task information database  116  being updated to indicate that the worker who transmitted the response message completed the task. Further, the task information database  116  may be updated to indicate that the task was completed as of the time that the response email was received. Additionally, the update module  104  may add the text in the body of the email message to the task information database  116  as a comment on the task recurrence. Alternatively, if the received message is a comments message (i.e., the subject of the email includes “INPROGRESS$”), the update module  104  will add the text in the body of the email message to the task information database as a comment on the task recurrence. Alternatively, if the received message is a reassignment message, the update module  104  will update the task information database  116  to reflect that the task or task recurrence has been reassigned to the new worker. 
     As described above, the update module  104  may add a comment related to a task recurrence to the task information database  116  that is based on the contents of the received email message body. When doing so, the update module  104  may determine whether the email message body contains an email signature for the worker that transmitted the email message. This may be performed by, for example, comparing the text in the email message body to an email signature for associated with the worker that is stored in the task information database  116 . If the message body contains an email signature, the update module  104  may remove the signature from the message body before adding the message body as a comment into the task information database  116 . 
     The update module  104  and/or the system email client module  108  may then generate a result message that indicates the results of the message verification and database update (step  248 ). This may include the update module  104  generating the contents of the result message, and communicating the contents to the system email client module  108 . If the update module  104  determined that the response message could not be verified, the update module  104  may generate contents for an email message that indicate the reason why the response message could not be verified. For example, the contents may indicate that the task recurrence identifier in the response message was invalid, or that the response message was invalid for any of the other reasons described above. Alternatively, if the update module  104  and the database module  114  successfully updated the task information database  116  based on the response message, the update module  104  may generate contents for an email message that indicate that the update was successful. The generated result message may be addressed to indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 . 
     The system email client module  108  may then transmit the generated result email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  250 ). 
       FIGS. 5A-5B  show a method for updating the task information database with information related to new workers, new tasks, and/or new assignments of tasks to workers.  FIGS. 5A-5B  shows the database module  114 , the update module  104 , the system email client module  108 , and the worker email client module  118 . 
     The method of  FIGS. 5A-5B  may begin with the update module  104  and/or the system email client module  108  generating an administrative email message for transmission to the worker email client module  118  (step  530 ). The administrative email message may indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 . The administrative email message may include one or more mail to hyperlinks that the worker email client module  118  may use to create a new email message. The hyperlinks may, for example, specify email messages for performing one or more administrative tasks in the information management system  100  such as adding a new user to the task information database  116 , adding a new task to the task information database  116 , and/or reassigning tasks in the task information database  116  to different users. 
     The system email client module  108  may then transmit the generated administrative email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  532 ). After receiving the administrative email message, the worker email client module  118  may display the received administrative email message (step  534 ). 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 5A  and  FIG. 6 ,  FIG. 6  shows an example email display window  620  that may be used by the worker email client module  118  to display the received administrative message (step  534 ). The email display window  620  of  FIG. 6  includes a Reply button  622 , a control area  624 , and a message body area  626 . The control area  624  may display control and/or header information associated with the administrative email message, such as the email addresses of the sender and recipient of the message. The Reply button  622  may respond to user input to generate a new display element (not depicted) to respond to the administrative email message. 
     The message body area  626  in the email display window  620  may display the body of the administrative email message. As an example, the message body area  626  may include one or more URIs or hyperlinks, such as the “Add New User” link, the “Add New Task” link, and/or the “Reassign Task(s)” link. These links may be defined according to the mail to URI scheme or other appropriate format, and each may describe a new email message that may be generated by the worker email client module  118  when that link is selected. Each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an indicator of the purpose of the hyperlink. For example, the “Add New User” hyperlink may include the action type parameter “NEWUSER$” to indicate that the message relates to the addition of a new worker to the task information database  116 . Further, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an identifier of the client with which the subject matter of the new email is associated. Additionally, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the new email message should be addressed to an email account used by the information management system  100 . 
     The Add New User hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that may be used to add information for a new user to the task information database  116 . As an example, the worker email client module  118  may be used by a worker that is associated with an organization that has an identifier of “ORG001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to add a new user may be “NEWUSER$.” Further to this example, the Add New User hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Client ID001 NEWUSER$.” The Add New User hyperlink may also describe that the body of the new email message should include the following text: 
     “First Name: 
     Last Name: 
     Position: 
     Email: 
     Phone 1: 
     Phone 2: 
     Fax:” 
     The Add New Task hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that may be used to add a new task to the task information database  116 . As an example, the worker email client module  118  may be used by a worker that is associated with an organization that has an identifier of “ORG001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to add a new task may be “TASK$.” Further to this example, the Add New Task hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Client ID001 TASK$.” The Add New User hyperlink may also describe that the body of the new email message should include the following text: 
     “Task Name: 
     Task Due Date: 
     Alert Date One: 
     Alert Date Two: 
     Alert Date Three: 
     Assigned User Email Address:” 
     The Reassign Task(s) hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that may be used to reassign one or more tasks from one worker to another worker. As an example, the worker email client module  118  may be used by a worker that is associated with an organization that has an identifier of “ORG001,” and an action type parameter that indicates that the task information database  116  should be updated to reassign tasks may be “ASSIGN$.” Further to this example, the Reassign Task(s) hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Client ID001 ASSIGN$.” The Reassign Task(s) hyperlink may also describe that the body of the new email message should include the following text: 
     “Task Name: 
     Older User Email: 
     New User Email:” 
     The worker email client module  118  may receive a user input that indicates that one of the hyperlinks displayed in the message body area  626  of the email display window  620  is selected. The user input may be, for example, a mouse click, keyboard input, or any other type of input that indicates that a hyperlink is selected. Referring again to  FIG. 5A , the worker email client module  118  may, in response to this user input, generate an administrative update message as specified by the selected hyperlink (step  536 ). The worker email client module  118  may display the generated administrative update message via a display device (not depicted) in a message composition window (not depicted) with similar characteristics to the message composition window  420  of  FIG. 4 . A user may modify the generated administrative update message using the message composition window  420 . This may include adding text to the body of the administrative update message and/or changing the text of the body of the administrative update message. For example, to specify a new user to be added to the task information database  116 , the user may add additional text to the body of the administrative update message related to the new user, such as a first name, last name, position, email address, one or more phone numbers, and/or a fax number. As an example, the user may modify the body of the administrative update message to add a new user named “James Smith,” such that body of the administrative update message includes the following text: 
     “First Name: James 
     Last Name: Smith 
     Position: Worker 
     Email: james.smith@company.com 
     Phone 1: 100-100-1000 
     Phone 2: 100-100-1001 
     Fax: 100-100-1002.” 
     To specify a new task that should be added to the task information database  116 , the user may add additional text to the body of the administrative update message such as a task name, task due date, alert dates, and/or an email address of the assigned worker. To specify the reassignment of a task, the user may add additional text to the body of the administrative update message, such as a task name, the email address of the currently assigned user, and the email address of the user to whom the task should be reassigned. 
     The worker email client module  118  may then transmit the administrative update message to the system email client module  108  (step  538 ). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5B , the system email client module  108  and the update module  104  may then receive the administrative update email message (step  540 ). This may include, for example, the update module  104  periodically querying the system email client module  108  for information related to new messages received by the system email client module  108  for one or more of the email accounts used by the information management system  100 . 
     The update module  104  (in conjunction with the database module  114 ) may then verify the contents of the received administrative update message and update the task information database  116  accordingly (step  542 ). This may include, for example, the update module  104  parsing the contents of the received administrative update email message to determine if the message is formatted appropriately. For example, the update module  104  may be configured to expect that a received email message may include certain contents in its subject field, related to the type and/or purpose of the message. For example, the update module  104  may determine whether the subject field of the message contains expected text such as “NEWUSER$,” “TASK$,” or “ASSIGN$.” The update module  104  may also determine whether the message body contains expected text related to the type and/or purpose of the message. If the subject of the message contains “NEWUSER$,” the update module  104  may parse the body of the message to determine whether it includes information related to a new user such as a first name, last name, position, email address, one or more phone numbers, and/or a fax number. If the subject of the message contains the text “TASK$,” the update module  104  may parse the body of the message to determine whether it includes information related to a new task such as the task name, a task due date, alert dates, and/or an email address of a worker assigned to the task. If the subject of the message contains “ASSIGN$,” the update module  104  may parse the body of the message to determine whether it includes information related to a reassignment of a task, such as a task name, the email address of the currently assigned user, and the email address of the user to whom the task should be reassigned. 
     The update module  104  may also determine whether the worker who transmitted the administrative update message is associated with the client identified in the subject of the message. Further, the update module  104  may determine whether the worker who transmitted the administrative update message is an administrative user and/or has the privileges required to perform the requested update. Alternatively or additionally, if the received administrative update message is a message for redirecting one or more tasks to a new worker, the update module  104  may verify that reassignment of the task is permitted. This may include, for example, determining whether information about the new worker is included in the task information database  116 , and/or whether the new worker is associated with the organization with which the tasks are associated. 
     If the update module  104  successfully verifies the contents of the administrative update message, the update module  104  may communicate with the database module  114  to update the task information database  116  as specified in the administrative update message. In an instance where the administrative update message related to the reassignment of a task (i.e., if the subject of the message contains “ASSIGN$,”), a special identifier for task name may be used to reassign all of the tasks currently associated with a user to a new user. As an example, if the message includes the text “ALL” as an indicator of the task name, the update module  104  will update the task information database  116  to reflect that all of the tasks associated with the currently-assigned worker are being reassigned to the new worker. 
     The update module  104  and/or the system email client module  108  may then generate a result message that indicates the results of the message verification and database update (step  544 ). This may include the update module  104  generating the contents of the result message, and communicating the contents to the system email client module  108 . If the update module  104  determined that the administrative update message could not be verified, the update module  104  may generate contents for an email message that indicate the reason why the administrative update message could not be verified. Alternatively, if the update module  104  and the database module  114  successfully updated the task information database  116  based on the administrative update message, the update module  104  may generate contents for an email message that indicate that the update was successful. The generated result message may be addressed to indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 . 
     The system email client module  108  may then transmit the generated result email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  546 ). 
       FIGS. 7A-7B  show a first method for the generation and transmission of a report that describe the status of task completion.  FIGS. 7A-7B  shows the database module  114 , the report module  102 , the system email client module  108 , the report display module  112 , and the worker email client module  118 . 
     The method of  FIGS. 7A-7B  may begin with the report module  102  and/or the system email client module  108  generating report link email message for transmission to the worker email client module  118  (step  730 ). The report link email message may indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 . The report link email message may include one or more mail to hyperlinks that the worker email client module  118  may use to create a new email message. The contents of the hyperlinks may be generated by the report module  102  to include information that is specific to the worker to which the email message is addressed. For example, a hyperlink may specify a request for a report related to tasks that are associated with the organization with which the worker is associated. 
     The system email client module  108  may then transmit the generated report link email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  730 ). After receiving the report link email message, the worker email client module  118  may display the received report link email message (step  732 ). 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 7A  and  FIG. 8 ,  FIG. 8  shows an example email display window  820  that may be used by the worker email client module  118  to display the received report link message (step  734 ). The email display window  820  of  FIG. 8  includes a Reply button  822 , a control area  824 , and a message body area  826 . The control area  824  may display control and/or header information associated with the report link email message, such as the email addresses of the sender and recipient of the message. The Reply button  822  may respond to user input to generate a new display element (not depicted) to respond to the report link email message. 
     The message body area  826  in the email display window  820  may display the body of the report link email message. As an example, the message body area  826  may include one or more URIs or hyperlinks, such as the “Report One” link, the “Report Two” link, and/or the “Report Three” link. These links may be defined according to the mail to URI scheme or other appropriate format, and each may describe a new email message that may be generated by the worker email client module  118  when that link is selected. Each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an indicator of the purpose of the hyperlink. For example, the “Report One” hyperlink may include the action type parameter “REPORT$” to indicate that the message indicates a request for the information management system  100  to generate and transmit a report. Further, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the subject field in the new email message includes an identifier of the client with which the subject matter of the new email is associated. Additionally, each of the hyperlinks may specify that the new email message should be addressed to an email account used by the information management system  100 . 
     The Report One hyperlink may include information that describes an email message that may be used to request a report. As an example, the worker email client module  118  may be used by a worker that is associated with an organization that has an identifier of “ORG001.” Further to this example, the Report One hyperlink may describe a new email message with a subject that includes the text “Response Client ID001 REPORT$.” The Report One hyperlink may also specify that the new email message should include text in the body of the message that describes the report being requested. As an example, the Report One hyperlink may indicate that the body of the message includes the text “TaskSummaryReport.” The body of the message may indicate what type of report is being requested, and/or may indicate parameters (e.g., a time range, a particular task or group of tasks, a particular worker or group of workers) on which the requested report should be focused. 
     The Report Two and Report Three hyperlinks may specify email messages that are similar to the message specified by the Report One hyperlink, though they may specify different parameters for the bodies of their respective messages. As an example, the Report Two hyperlink may specify a report for tasks that have been performed for a first time period (such as the past month), while the Report Three hyperlink may specify a report for tasks that have been performed for a second time period (such as the past six months). 
     The worker email client module  118  may receive a user input that indicates that one of the hyperlinks displayed in the message body area  826  of the email display window  820  is selected. The user input may be, for example, a mouse click, keyboard input, or any other type of input that indicates that a hyperlink is selected. Referring again to  FIG. 7A , the worker email client module  118  may, in response to this user input, generate a report request email message as specified by the selected hyperlink (step  736 ). The worker email client module  118  may display the generated report request message via a display device (not depicted) in a message composition window (not depicted) with similar characteristics to the message composition window  420  of  FIG. 4 . A user may modify the generated report request message using the message composition window. This may include adding text to the body of the report request message and/or changing the text of the body of the report request message. 
     The worker email client module  118  may then transmit the report request message to the system email client module  108  (step  738 ). 
     Referring now to  FIG. 7B , the system email client module  108  and the report module  102  may then receive the report request message (step  740 ). This may include, for example, the report module  102  periodically querying the system email client module  108  for information related to new messages received by the system email client module  108  for one or more of the email accounts used by the information management system  100 . 
     The report module  102  (in conjunction with the database module  114 ) may then verify the contents of the received report request message and, if the received report request is acceptable, generate the requested report (step  742 ). Verifying the report request may include the report module  102  determining whether the worker who transmitted the report request message is associated with the client identified in the subject of the message. Further, the report module  102  may determine whether the worker who transmitted the report request message is an administrative user and/or has the privileges required to receive the requested report. 
     Verifying the report request message may also include the report module  102  determining whether the message is formatted correctly. For example, the report module  102  may be configured to determine whether the subject field of the message contains text such as “REPORT$,” and/or whether the body of the email includes appropriate parameters for defining the scope of a report. 
     If the report module  102  successfully verifies the contents of the report request message, the report module  102  may obtain data from the task information database  116  (via the database module  114 ) and generate a report as specified in the report request message. The report may be one or more electronic files. The one or more electronic files may be defined according to formats such as but not limited to Portable Document Format (PDF), Tagged Image File Format (TIFF), and/or any other appropriate format. 
     The report module  102  and/or the system email client module  108  may then generate a report email message for transmission to the worker email client module  118  (step  744 ). This may include the report module  102  communicating the contents of the report message to the system email client module  108 . The generated report message may be addressed to indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 , and the generated report message may include the one or more report documents as attachments. The system email client module  108  may then transmit the report email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  746 ). The report display module  112  may then display the report (step  748 ) on a display device (not depicted). 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 7B  and  FIG. 9 ,  FIG. 9  shows a first example page  920  of a report that may be displayed by the report display module  112  (step  748 ). The first example page  920  shows report data that relates to tasks assigned to workers in an organization with ID “ORG001” for a given month. ORG001, according to this example, has two facilities, named “Facility One” and “Facility Two.” The first example page  920  includes a report area  922 , which includes a bar graph  924 . The bar graph  924  includes a Facility Two complete area  930 , which indicates the total number of task recurrences that have been completed at Facility Two in the month. The bar graph  924  also includes a Facility One complete area  926  and a Facility One incomplete area  928 , which indicate the total number of task recurrences that have been completed and which still remain incomplete, respectively, at Facility One. 
     Referring now to both  FIG. 7B  and  FIG. 10 ,  FIG. 10  shows a second example page  1020  of a report that may be displayed by the report display module  112  (step  748 ). The second example page  1020  continues with the example from the first example page  920  of  FIG. 9 , and shows data related to the completion of tasks at Facility One. The second example page  1020  includes a pie chart  1028  that indicates the percentage of completed versus incomplete task recurrences for the month. The second example page  1020  also includes a first worker-specific task area  1022 , which indicates the status of tasks that are assigned to a first user (John Smith) and are expected to be completed within the month. The second example page  1020  also includes a second worker-specific task area  1024 , which indicates the status of tasks that are assigned to a second user (Jane smith) and are expected to be completed within the month. As an alternative to the organization of tasks shown in the worker-specific task areas  1022 ,  1024 , tasks may be organized in the worker-specific task areas  1022 ,  1024  according to recurrence intervals. For example, information related to non-recurring tasks may be included above tasks which recur on a weekly basis, which may be included above tasks which recur on a monthly basis, and so on. 
     The example pages  920 ,  1020  described above with reference to  FIG. 9  and  FIG. 10  are provided by way of example. Alternatively or additionally, the reports generated by the report module  102  may include any combination of information described above as stored in the task information database  116 . 
       FIG. 11  shows a second method for the generation and transmission of a report that describe the status of task completion.  FIG. 11  shows the database module  114 , the report module  102 , the system email client module  108 , the report display module  112 , and the worker email client module  118 . 
     The method of  FIG. 11  may begin with the worker email client module  118  transmitting a report request email message to the system email client module  108  (step  1130 ). The system email client module  108  and the report module  102  may then receive the report request message (step  1132 ). This may include, for example, the report module  102  periodically querying the system email client module  108  for information related to new messages received by the system email client module  108  for one or more of the email accounts used by the information management system  100 . 
     The report module  102  (in conjunction with the database module  114 ) may then verify the contents of the received report request message and, if the received report request is acceptable, generate a report (step  1134 ). Verifying the report request may include the report module  102  determining whether the address from which the report request email was sent is a valid email address, as stored in the task information database  116 . The report module  102  may also determine, based on the email address, whether the worker associated with the email address is an administrative user and/or has the privileges required to receive a report. 
     If the report module  102  successfully verifies the contents of the report request message, the report module  102  may obtain data from the task information database  116  (via the database module  114 ) and generate a report. Based on the email address from which the request message was sent, the report module  102  may determine which organization the worker is associated with, and may generate a default report that is configured for the worker&#39;s organization. The default report may include information for all of or some subset of the facilities associated with the organization, and/or the default report may be focused on some subset of workers associated with the organization, and/or the default report may be focused on a configured time period such as the current month, last six months, or other time period. Alternatively or additionally, the report module  102  may be configured to generate a different default for different workers within an organization. The report module  102  may, for example, determine which worker requested the report based on the email address from which the report request was sent, and generate a default report that is configured as a default report for that specific worker. The generated report may be one or more electronic files, and may possess any characteristic or combination of characteristics of the reports described above as generated by the report module  102  with respect to  FIGS. 7A-7B ,  FIG. 8 ,  FIG. 9 , and/or  FIG. 10 . 
     The report module  102  and/or the system email client module  108  may then generate a report email message for transmission to the worker email client module  118  (step  1136 ). This may include the report module  102  communicating the contents of the report message to the system email client module  108 . The generated report message may be addressed to indicate that it is being sent by one of the email accounts used by the system email client module  108 , and the generated report message may include the one or more report documents as attachments. The system email client module  108  may then transmit the report email message to the worker email client module  118  (step  1138 ). The report display module  112  may then display the report (step  1140 ) on a display device (not depicted). The report display module  112  may display the report in fashion identical or similar to the display of the report described above with reference to  FIG. 9  and  FIG. 10 . 
       FIG. 12  shows an example system  1200  that may be used to implement the architecture  120  of  FIG. 1 . The example system  120  includes an administrative server  1250 , a database server  1260 , a client device  1270 , and one or more networks  1280 . 
     The administrative server  1250  may include a processor  1252 , memory device  1254 , communication interface  1256 , input device interface  1255 , display device interface  1257 , and storage device  1259 . The database server  1260  may include a processor  1262 , memory device  1264 , communication interface  1266 , input device interface  1265 , display device interface  1267 , and storage device  1269 . The client device  1270  may include a processor  1272 , memory device  1274 , communication interface  1276 , input device interface  1275 , display device interface  1277 , and storage device  1279 . 
     The administrative server  1250  may be configured to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as performed by the report module  102 , update module  104 , alert module  106 , system email client module  108 , and/or database module  124 . The storage device  1269  in the database server  1260  may store the task information database  116  or a portion thereof. The database server  1260  may be configured to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-10  related to the storage of data in the task information database  116 . The client device  1270  may be configured to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as performed by the worker email client module  128  and/or the report display module  122 . The client device  1270  may be, for example, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular phone, or any other appropriate device. 
     Each or any of the memory devices  1254 ,  1264 ,  1274  may be or include a device such as a Dynamic Random Access Memory (D-RAM), Static RAM (S-RAM), or other RAM or a flash memory. Each or any of the storage devices  1259 ,  1269 ,  1279  may be or include a hard disk, a magneto-optical medium, an optical medium such as a CD-ROM, a digital versatile disk (DVDs), or Blu-Ray disc (BD), or other type of device for electronic data storage. 
     Each or any of the communication interfaces  1256 ,  1266 ,  1276  may be, for example, a communications port, a wired transceiver, or a wireless transceiver. Each or any of the network interfaces  1256 ,  1266 ,  1276  may be capable of communicating using technologies such as Ethernet, fiber optics, microwave, xDSL (Digital Subscriber Line), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology, wireless cellular technology, and/or any other appropriate technology. The communication interfaces  156 ,  166 ,  1276  may be used by the administrative server  1250 , database server  160 , and/or client device  1270  to communicate via the one or more networks  1280 . The communication interfaces  156 ,  166 ,  1276  may be used by the administrative server  1250 , database server  160 , and/or client device  1270  to communicate any message or combination of messages described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as communicated by the system email client module  108 , worker email client module  118 , and/or database module  114 . The one or more networks  1280  may include one or more private networks and/or one or more public networks such as the Internet. The one or more networks  1280  may be based on wired and/or wireless networking technologies. 
     Each or any of the input device interfaces  1255 ,  1265 ,  1275  may an interface configured to receive input from an input device such as a keyboard, a mouse, a trackball, a scanner, a touch screen, a touch pad, a stylus pad, and/or other device. Each or any of the input device interfaces  1255 ,  1265 ,  1275  may operate using a technology such as Universal Serial Bus (USB), PS/2, Bluetooth, infrared, and/or other appropriate technology. 
     Each or any of the display device interfaces  1257 ,  1267 ,  1277  may be an interface configured to communicate data to a display device. Each or any of the display device interfaces  1257 ,  1267 ,  1277  may operate using technology such as Video Graphics Array (VGA), Super VGA (S-VGA), Digital Visual Interface (DVI), High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), or other appropriate technology. 
     The memory  1254  of the administrative computer  1250  may store instructions which, when executed by the processor  1252 , cause the processor  1252  to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as performed by the report module  102 , update module  104 , alert module  106 , system email client module  108 , and/or database module  124 . The memory  1264  of the database server  1260  may store instructions which, when executed by the processor  1262 , cause the processor  1262  to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as related to the storage of data in the task information database  116 . These features may include, for example, executing instructions related to a database management system, storing and/or modifying data in the task information database  116 , and/or obtaining data from the task information database  116 . The memory  1274  of the client device  1270  may store instructions which, when executed by the processor  1272 , cause the processor  1272  to perform any feature or combination of features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as performed by the worker email client module  128  and/or the report display module  122 . 
     The client device  1270  may include or be connected to a display device (not depicted) via the display device interface  1277 . The display device may be, for example, a monitor or television display, a plasma display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), and/or a display based on a technology such as front or rear projection, light emitting diodes (LEDs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), or Digital Light Processing (DLP). The display device may be configured to display, based on data received from the input device interface  1275 , any graphical elements described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-11  as displayed by the worker email client module  128  and/or the report display module  122 . 
     As described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-12 , the information management system  100  may be configured to use one or more email accounts that are associated with the information management system  100  for the transmission and reception of email communications. In various configurations, different email addresses may be used by the information management system  100  for different purposes. For example, the update module  104  may be configured to use a first email address for the transmission/reception of messages, while the report module  104  may be configured to use a second email address for the transmission/reception of messages. Alternatively, the report module  102  and/or update module  104  may be configured to use a first email address to transmit/receive email messages for performance of the methods of  FIGS. 2A-2B ,  FIGS. 5A-5B , and  FIGS. 7A-7B , while the report module  102  may be configured to use a second email address to transmit/receive email messages for performance of the method of  FIG. 11 . Alternatively or additionally, the report module  102 , update module  104 , and/or alert module  106  may be configured to use different email addresses for communicating email messages to different organizations. 
     While examples are provided above with respect to  FIGS. 1-12  which includes the use of email communications, the functionality of the information management system  100  and/or the worker email client module  126  may also be implemented using different types of communications technology. For example, the features described above with reference to  FIGS. 1-12  may also be implemented, mutatis mutandis, using technologies that include any one or any combination of: email; instant messaging; enterprise messaging; Short Message Service (SMS); Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS); and/or any other appropriate technology for the electronic communication of data. 
     When referred to herein, the term “computer-readable storage medium” broadly refers to and is not limited to a register, a cache memory, a ROM, a semiconductor memory device (such as a D-RAM, S-RAM, or other RAM), a magnetic medium such as a flash memory, a hard disk, a magneto-optical medium, an optical medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVDs, or BD, or other type of device for electronic data storage. 
     Although features and elements are described above in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. For example, each feature or element as described above with reference to 1-12 may be used alone without the other features and elements or in various combinations with or without other features and elements. Sub-elements of the methods and features described above with reference to  FIG. 1-12  may be performed in any arbitrary order (including concurrently), in any combination or sub-combination.