Patent ID: 8046418

Claim:
An electronic messaging system comprising: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with executable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to perform operations comprising: receiving first and second electronic messages that are addressed to a particular user and that are from a first sender and a second sender, respectively, the first sender being different than the second sender; accessing stored response pattern data for the particular user, the stored response pattern data having been generated based on past responses sent by the particular user to electronic messages previously received from the first and second senders; determining to alert the particular user to the first electronic message to which the particular user has not yet responded based on the stored response pattern data for the particular user suggesting that the particular user has viewed electronic messages previously received from the first sender as being important, the stored response pattern data indicating that the particular user has responded to electronic messages previously received from the first sender at a first rate; determining not to alert the particular user to the second electronic message to which the particular user has not yet responded based on the stored response pattern data for the particular user suggesting that the particular user has viewed electronic messages previously received from the second sender as being unimportant, the stored response pattern data indicating that the articular user has responded to electronic messages previously received from the second sender at a second rate that is lower than the first rate; including the first electronic message in a first list displayed by the electronic messaging system based on the determination to alert the particular user to the first electronic message to which the particular user has not yet responded, the first list only including electronic messages determined to be important to the particular user; including the second electronic message in a second list displayed by the electronic messaging system, but not the first list displayed by the electronic messaging system based on the determination not to alert the particular user to the second electronic message to which the particular user has not yet responded, the second list being separate from the first list; and when the particular user begins using the electronic messaging system, causing display of the first list and the second list, and enabling the particular user to delete, from the first list, the first electronic message and adjusting at least one criterion used in determining which electronic messages to include in the first list based on the particular user deleting the first electronic message from the first list.