Patent ID: 8312095

Claim:
A method for selectively synchronizing and tracking networked or internet real-time interactive communication message items, the method comprising: presenting via a programmable device a real-time interactive communication system message entry interface to a first user that displays in real-time a plurality of chat or instant message text messages of a conversation with a second user comprising outgoing messages from the first user and incoming messages from a second user in reply to the outgoing text messages by displaying each new message immediately after a most recent previous outgoing or incoming message in one chat or instant message window, wherein each of the messages comprise a plurality of discrete message text items; in response to the first user entering a character combination text string into a portion of one of the outgoing messages from the first user by inserting a unique character combination text string into the outgoing message portion or bracketing the outgoing message portion with unique initial and unique ending character combinations of the character combination text string, the programmable device creating a question tracking thread for the outgoing message portion, the question tracking thread comprising the character combination text string, a query message timestamp, question text, second user identification data, an answered status initialized to unanswered, and a reply message answer field, and sending the outgoing message portion comprising the character combination text string to the second user through a communication medium; the programmable device updating the created question tracking thread by entering answer text into the reply message answer field and setting the answered status to answered in response to receiving a reply text message comprising an a text dialog box entry of the answer text that is sent back to the first user by the second user and that is explicitly linked by the second user to the outgoing message portion comprising the character combination text string sent to the second user, or that is automatically linked by a programmable device used by the second user to display the conversation text messages to the outgoing message portion comprising the character combination text string sent to the second user; and in response to the updating of the created question tracking thread answered status to answered, the programmable device visually distinguishing a display of the answer text entered into the reply message answer in association with the outgoing message comprising the character combination text string to the first user from a display of a remainder of the plurality of chat or instant message text messages within the one chat or instant message display window.