PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-11169690-B2
Application Number: US-202016799587-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Portable electronic device for instant messaging

Abstract:
A portable electronic device for instant messaging is disclosed. One aspect of the invention involves a graphical user interface (GUI) on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. The GUI has a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person. The set of messages are displayed in a chronological order. In response to detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, the display of messages are scrolled in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. The detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A portable electronic device, comprising:
 a touch screen display; 
 one or more processors; and 
 memory storing one or more programs configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for:
 displaying, on the touch screen display, a message compose region that includes:
 a text box for displaying characters of a message entered by a user; and 
 a virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys for entering characters in the text box; 
 
 while displaying the message compose region, detecting, on the touch screen display, a touch input that begins at a first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to a second location that is on the virtual keyboard; and 
 in response to detecting movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard, moving a displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein the insertion marker is displayed in the text box prior to detection of the touch input that begins at the first location on the text box. 
     
     
       3. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein moving the displayed insertion marker includes expanding a size of the insertion marker. 
     
     
       4. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein the detected touch input maintains contact with the touch screen display during the movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
     
     
       5. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein the first location on the text box corresponds to a location within the text box. 
     
     
       6. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , the one or more programs further including instructions for:
 after moving the displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location that is on the virtual keyboard: 
 in response to detecting movement of the touch input from the second location that is on the virtual keyboard to a third location that is on the virtual keyboard, moving the displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves to the third location that is on the virtual keyboard. 
 
     
     
       7. The portable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the detected movement of the touch input has a horizontal component, and 
 the displayed insertion marker moves in accordance with the horizontal component. 
 
     
     
       8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs configured to be executed by one or more processors of a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, the one or more programs including instructions for:
 displaying, on the touch screen display, a message compose region that includes:
 a text box for displaying characters of a message entered by a user; and 
 a virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys for entering characters in the text box; 
 
 while displaying the message compose region, detecting, on the touch screen display, a touch input that begins at a first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to a second location that is on the virtual keyboard; and 
 in response to detecting movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard, moving a displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
 
     
     
       9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , wherein the insertion marker is displayed in the text box prior to detection of the touch input that begins at the first location on the text box. 
     
     
       10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , wherein moving the displayed insertion marker includes expanding a size of the insertion marker. 
     
     
       11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , wherein the detected touch input maintains contact with the touch screen display during the movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
     
     
       12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , wherein the first location on the text box corresponds to a location within the text box. 
     
     
       13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , the one or more programs further including instructions for:
 after movingthe displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location that is on the virtual keyboard:
 in response to detecting movement of the touch input from the second location that is on the virtual keyboard to a third location that is on the virtual keyboard, moving the displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves to the third location that is on the virtual keyboard. 
 
 
     
     
       14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of  claim 8 , wherein:
 the detected movement of the touch input has a horizontal component, and 
 the displayed insertion marker moves in accordance with the horizontal component. 
 
     
     
       15. A method, comprising:
 at a portable electronic device with a touch screen display:
 displaying, on the touch screen display, a message compose region that includes:
 a text box for displaying characters of a message entered by a user; and 
 a virtual keyboard having a plurality of keys for entering characters in the text box; 
 
 while displaying the message compose region, detecting, on the touch screen display, a touch input that begins at a first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to a second location that is on the virtual keyboard; and 
 in response to detecting movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard, moving a displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 15 , wherein the insertion marker is displayed in the text box prior to detection of the touch input that begins at the first location on the text box. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 15 , wherein moving the displayed insertion marker includes expanding a size of the insertion marker. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 15 , wherein the detected touch input maintains contact with the touch screen display during the movement of the detected touch input that begins at the first location on the text box and moves along the touch screen display to the second location on the virtual keyboard. 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 15 , wherein the first location on the text box corresponds to a location within the text box. 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 after movingthe displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves along the touch screen display to the second location that is on the virtual keyboard:
 in response to detecting movement of the touch input from the second location that is on the virtual keyboard to a third location that is on the virtual keyboard, moving the displayed insertion marker in the text box as the detected touch input moves to the third location that is on the virtual keyboard. 
 
 
     
     
       21. The method of  claim 15 , wherein:
 the detected movement of the touch input has a horizontal component, and 
 the displayed insertion marker moves in accordance with the horizontal component.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/464,248, titled “Portable Electronic Device for Instant Messaging,” filed Mar. 20, 2017, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/963,044, titled “Portable Electronic Device for instant Messaging ” filed Dec. 8, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/848,208, titled “Portable Electronic Device for Instant Messaging,” filed Aug. 30, 2007, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Nos. 60/937,993, “Portable Multifunction Device,” filed Jun. 29, 2007; 60/946,969, “Portable Electronic Device for Instant Messaging,” filed Jun. 28, 2007, 60/879,469, “Portable Multifunction Device,” filed Jan. 8, 2007; 60/883,819, “Portable Electronic Device for instant Messaging,” filed Jan. 7, 2007; 60/879,253, “Portable Multifunction Device,” filed Jan. 7, 2007; and 60/824,769, “Portable Multifunction Device,” filed Sep. 6, 2006. All of these applications are incorporated by referenced herein in their entirety. 
     This application is related to the following applications: (1) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/188,182, “Touch Pad For Handheld Device,” filed Jul. 1, 2002; (2) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/722,948, “Touch Pad For Handheld Device,” filed Nov. 25, 2003; (3) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/643,256, “Movable Touch Pad With Added Functionality,” filed Aug. 18, 2003; (4) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/654,108, “Ambidextrous Mouse,” filed Sep. 2, 2003; (5) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/840,862, “Multipoint Touchscreen,” filed May 6, 2004; (6) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/903,964, “Gestures For Touch Sensitive Input Devices,” filed Jul. 30, 2004; (7) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/038,590, “Mode-Based Graphical User Interfaces For Touch Sensitive Input Devices” filed Jan. 18, 2005; (8) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/057,050, “Display Actuator,” filed Feb. 11, 2005; (9) U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/658,777, “Multi-Functional Hand-Held Device,” filed Mar. 4, 2005; and (10) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/367,749, “Multi-Functional Hand-Held Device,” filed Mar. 3, 2006. All of these applications are incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The disclosed embodiments relate generally to portable electronic devices, and more particularly, to portable devices for performing instant messaging. 
     BACKGROUND 
     As portable electronic devices become more compact, and the number of functions performed by a given device increase, it has become a significant challenge to design a user interface that allows users to easily interact with a multifunction device. This challenge is particular significant for handheld portable devices, which have much smaller screens than desktop or laptop computers. This situation is unfortunate because the user interface is the gateway through which users receive not only content but also responses to user actions or behaviors, including user attempts to access a device&#39;s features, tools, and functions. 
     Some portable communication devices (e.g., mobile telephones, sometimes called mobile phones, cell phones, cellular telephones, and the like) have resorted to adding more pushbuttons, increasing the density of pushbuttons, overloading the functions of the pushbuttons, or using complex menu systems to allow a user to access, store and manipulate data. These conventional user interfaces often result in complicated key sequences and menu hierarchies that must be memorized by the user. 
     Many conventional user interfaces, such as those that include physical pushbuttons, are also inflexible. This is unfortunate because it may prevent a user interface from being configured and/or adapted by either an application running on the portable device or by users. When coupled with the time consuming requirement to memorize multiple key sequences and menu hierarchies, and the difficulty in activating a desired pushbutton, such inflexibility is frustrating to most users. 
     Portable device-based Instant Messaging (IM) services are becoming increasingly popular. But most IM services on portable electronic devices have a rudimentary user interface. It is cumbersome to create instant messages on such devices. A user often needs to press a telephone keypad repeatedly to choose a character. It is also difficult to find and view previous instant messages. For example, it is inconvenient or even impossible for the user to view a series of previous messages with a particular user while composing a new message for that user. 
     Accordingly, there is a need for portable multifunction devices with more transparent and intuitive user interfaces for instant messaging that are easy to use, configure, and/or adapt. 
     SUMMARY 
     The above deficiencies and other problems associated with user interfaces for portable devices are reduced or eliminated by the disclosed portable multifunction device. In some embodiments, the device has a touch-sensitive display (also known as a touch screen or a touch screen display) with a graphical user interface (GUI), one or more processors, memory and one or more modules, programs or sets of instructions stored in the memory for performing multiple functions. In some embodiments, the user interacts with the GUI primarily through finger contacts and gestures on the touch screen display. Instructions for performing instant messaging operations may be included in a computer program product configured for execution by one or more processors. 
     One aspect of the invention involves a computer-implemented method in which a portable electronic device with a touch screen display: displays a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order; detects a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, wherein the detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display; and responds to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the display of messages in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a computer-implemented method in which a portable electronic device with a touch screen display: displays a list of conversations, each conversation including a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and a respective other person; detects a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display; and responds to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the list of conversations in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture, wherein the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device. The device includes a touch screen display, one or more processors, memory, and one or more programs. The one or more program are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include: instructions for displaying a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order; instructions for detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, wherein the detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display; and instructions for responding to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the display of messages in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device. The device includes a touch screen display, one or more processors, memory, and one or more programs. The one or more program are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include: instructions for displaying a list of conversations, each conversation including a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and a respective other person; instructions for detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display; and instructions for responding to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the list of conversations in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture, wherein the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a computer-program product that includes a computer readable storage medium and a computer program mechanism embedded therein. The computer program mechanism includes instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, cause the device to: display a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order; detect a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, wherein the detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display; and respond to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the display of messages in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a computer-program product that includes a computer readable storage medium and a computer program mechanism embedded therein. The computer program mechanism includes instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, cause the device to: display a list of conversations, each including a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and a respective other person; detect a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display; and respond to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the list of conversations in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture, wherein the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a graphical user interface (GUI) on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. The GUI has a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person. The set of messages are displayed in a chronological order. In response to detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, wherein the detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display, the display of messages are scrolled in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a graphical user interface (GUI) on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. The GUI has a list of conversations, each conversation including a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and a respective other person. In response to detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of a user contact with the touch screen display, the list of conversations is scrolled in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. The scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, comprising: means for displaying a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order; means for detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of user contact with the touch screen display, wherein the detecting of the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display; and means for responding to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the display of messages in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, comprising: means for displaying a list of conversations, each conversation including a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and a respective other person; means for detecting a scrolling gesture comprising a substantially vertical movement of user contact with the touch screen display; and means for responding to the scrolling gesture by scrolling the list of conversations in accordance with a direction of the scrolling gesture, wherein the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of a horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a computer-implemented method in which a portable electronic device with a touch screen display displays a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order. The messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device. The device includes a touch screen display, one or more processors, memory, and one or more programs. The one or more program are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors. The one or more programs include instructions for displaying a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order. The messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a computer-program product that includes a computer readable storage medium and a computer program mechanism embedded therein. The computer program mechanism includes instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, cause the device to display a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order. The messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a graphical user interface (GUI) on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. The GUI has a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order. The messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. 
     Another aspect of the invention involves a portable electronic device with a touch screen display, comprising means for displaying a set of messages exchanged between a user of the device and another person in a chronological order. The messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. 
     Thus, the invention provides a transparent and intuitive user interface for creating, viewing, and finding instant message conversations on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       For a better understanding of the aforementioned embodiments of the invention as well as additional embodiments thereof, reference should be made to the Description of Embodiments below, in conjunction with the following drawings in which like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the figures. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a portable electronic device with a touch-sensitive display in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a portable electronic device having a touch screen in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary user interface for unlocking a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary user interface for a menu of applications on a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary user interface for listing instant message conversations on a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIGS. 6A through 6K  illustrate an exemplary user interface for inputting text for an instant message in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 7  illustrates an exemplary user interface for deleting an instant message conversation in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIGS. 8A &amp; 8B  illustrate an exemplary user interface for a contact list in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary user interface for entering a phone number for instant messaging in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of instant message conversations on a portable electronic device&#39;s touch screen in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 11  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a user selected instant message conversation upon detecting a predefined user contact with the portable electronic device&#39;s touch screen in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 12  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a user-entered character and word suggestions, if any, in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 13  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying respective keyboards upon detecting a user contact with a keyboard selection icon in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 14  is a flowchart illustrating a process for interpreting the meaning of a particular user contact with the shift key in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 15  is a flowchart illustrating a process for sending an instant message to a respective recipient in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 16  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of instant message conversations for editing in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 17  is a flowchart illustrating a process for editing a user selected instant message conversation in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 18  is a flowchart illustrating a process for removing a user selected instant message conversation or exiting a conversation edit mode in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 19  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of contacts from which a user chooses to send an instant message in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 20  is a flowchart illustrating a process for launching a new conversation using a new phone number in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 21  illustrates an exemplary user interface for alerting a user to a new instant message in accordance with some embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, circuits, and networks have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the embodiments. 
     Embodiments of a portable electronic device, user interfaces for such devices, and associated processes for using such devices are described. In some embodiments, the device is a portable communications device such as a mobile telephone that also contains other functions, such as PDA and/or music player functions. 
     The user interface may include a physical click wheel in addition to a touch screen or a virtual click wheel displayed on the touch screen. A click wheel is a user-interface device that may provide navigation commands based on an angular displacement of the wheel or a point of contact with the wheel by a user of the device. A click wheel may also be used to provide a user command corresponding to selection of one or more items, for example, when the user of the device presses down on at least a portion of the wheel or the center of the wheel. Alternatively, breaking contact with a click wheel image on a touch screen surface may indicate a user command corresponding to selection. For simplicity, in the discussion that follows, a portable electronic device that includes a touch screen is used as an exemplary embodiment. It should be understood, however, that some of the user interfaces and associated processes may be applied to other devices, such as personal computers and laptop computers, which may include one or more other physical user-interface devices, such as a physical click wheel, a physical keyboard, a mouse and/or a joystick. 
     In addition to instant messaging, the device may support a variety of other applications, such as a telephone application, a video conferencing application, an e-mail application, a blogging application, a digital camera application, a digital video camera application, a web browsing application, a digital music player application, and/or a digital video player application. 
     The various applications that may be executed on the device may use at least one common physical user-interface device, such as the touch screen. One or more functions of the touch screen as well as corresponding information displayed on the device may be adjusted and/or varied from one application to the next and/or within a respective application. In this way, a common physical architecture (such as the touch screen) of the device may support the variety of applications with user interfaces that are intuitive and transparent. 
     The user interfaces may include one or more soft keyboard embodiments. The soft keyboard embodiments may include standard (QWERTY) and/or non-standard configurations of symbols on the displayed icons of the keyboard, such as those described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/459,606, “Keyboards For Portable Electronic Devices,” filed Jul. 24, 2006, and Ser. No. 11/459,615, “Touch Screen Keyboards For Portable Electronic Devices,” filed Jul. 24, 2006, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. The keyboard embodiments may include a reduced number of icons (or soft keys) relative to the number of keys in existing physical keyboards, such as that for a typewriter. This may make it easier for users to select one or more icons in the keyboard, and thus, one or more corresponding symbols. The keyboard embodiments may be adaptive. For example, displayed icons may be modified in accordance with user actions, such as selecting one or more icons and/or one or more corresponding symbols. One or more applications on the portable electronic device may utilize common and/or different keyboard embodiments. Thus, the keyboard embodiment used may be tailored to at least some of the applications. In some embodiments, one or more keyboard embodiments may be tailored to a respective user. For example, based on a word usage history (lexicography, slang, individual usage) of the respective user. Some of the keyboard embodiments may be adjusted to reduce a probability of a user error when selecting one or more icons, and thus one or more symbols, when using the soft keyboard embodiments. 
     Attention is now directed towards embodiments of the device.  FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a portable electronic device  100  with a touch-sensitive display  112  in accordance with some embodiments. The touch-sensitive display  112  is sometimes called a “touch screen” for convenience. The device  100  may include a memory  102  (which may include one or more computer readable storage mediums), a memory controller  122 , one or more processing units (CPU&#39;s)  120 , a peripherals interface  118 , RF circuitry  108 , audio circuitry  110 , a speaker  111 , a microphone  113 , an input/output (I/O) subsystem  106 , other input or control devices  116 , and an external port  124 . The device  100  may include one or more optical sensors  164 . These components may communicate over one or more communication buses or signal lines  103 . 
     It should be appreciated that the device  100  is only one example of a portable electronic device  100 , and that the device  100  may have more or fewer components than shown, may combine two or more components, or a may have a different configuration or arrangement of the components. The various components shown in  FIG. 1  may be implemented in hardware, software or a combination of hardware and software, including one or more signal processing and/or application specific integrated circuits. 
     Memory  102  may include high-speed random access memory and may also include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid-state memory devices. Access to memory  102  by other components of the device  100 , such as the CPU  120  and the peripherals interface  118 , may be controlled by the memory controller  122 . 
     The peripherals interface  118  couples the input and output peripherals of the device to the CPU  120  and memory  102 . The one or more processors  120  run or execute various software programs and/or sets of instructions stored in memory  102  to perform various functions for the device  100  and to process data. 
     In some embodiments, the peripherals interface  118 , the CPU  120 , and the memory controller  122  may be implemented on a single chip, such as a chip  104 . In some other embodiments, they may be implemented on separate chips. 
     The RF (radio frequency) circuitry  108  receives and sends RF signals, also called electromagnetic signals. The RE circuitry  108  converts electrical signals to/from electromagnetic signals and communicates with communications networks and other communications devices via the electromagnetic signals. The RF circuitry  108  may include well-known circuitry for performing these functions, including but not limited to an antenna system, an RF transceiver, one or more amplifiers, a tuner, one or more oscillators, a digital signal processor, a CODEC chipset, a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, memory, and so forth. The RE circuitry  108  may communicate with networks, such as the Internet, also referred to as the World Wide Web (WWW), an intranet and/or a wireless network, such as a cellular telephone network, a wireless local area network (LAN) and/or a metropolitan area network (MAN), and other devices by wireless communication. The wireless communication may use any of a plurality of communications standards, protocols and technologies, including but not limited to Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA), wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Bluetooth, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) (e.g., IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g and/or IEEE 802.11n), voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Wi-MAX, a protocol for email (e.g., Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) and/or Post Office Protocol (POP)), instant messaging (e.g., eXtensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP), Session Initiation Protocol for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions (SIMPLE), and/or Instant Messaging and Presence Service (IMPS)), and/or Short Message Service (SMS), or any other suitable communication protocol, including communication protocols not yet developed as of the Filing date of this document. 
     The audio circuitry  110 , the speaker  11 , and the microphone  113  provide an audio interface between a user and the device  100 . The audio circuitry  110  receives audio data from the peripherals interface  118 , converts the audio data to an electrical signal, and transmits the electrical signal to the speaker  111 . The speaker  111  converts the electrical signal to human-audible sound waves. The audio circuitry  110  also receives electrical signals converted by the microphone  113  from sound waves. The audio circuitry  110  converts the electrical signal to audio data and transmits the audio data to the peripherals interface  118  for processing. Audio data may be retrieved from and/or transmitted to memory  102  and/or the RF circuitry  108  by the peripherals interface  118 . In some embodiments, the audio circuitry  110  also includes a headset jack (not shown). The headset jack provides an interface between the audio circuitry  110  and removable audio input/output peripherals, such as output-only headphones or a headset with both output (e.g., a headphone for one or both ears) and input (e.g., a microphone). 
     The I/O subsystem  106  couples input/output peripherals on the device  100 , such as the touch screen  112  and other input/control devices  116 , to the peripherals interface  118 . The I/O subsystem  106  may include a display controller  156  and one or more input controllers  160  for other input or control devices. The one or more input controllers  160  receive/send electrical signals from/to other input or control devices  116 . The other input/control devices  116  may include physical buttons (e.g., push buttons, rocker buttons, etc.), dials, slider switches, joysticks, click wheels, and so forth. In some alternate embodiments, input controller(s)  160  may be coupled to any (or none) of the following: a keyboard, infrared port, USB port, and a pointer device such as a mouse. The one or more buttons (e.g.,  208 ,  FIG. 2 ) may include an up/down button for volume control of the speaker  111  and/or the microphone  113 . The one or more buttons may include a push button (e.g.,  206 ,  FIG. 2 ). A quick press of the push button may disengage a lock of the touch screen  112  or begin a process that uses gestures on the touch screen to unlock the device, as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/322,549 (Unlocking a Device by Performing Gestures on an Unlock Image, filed Dec. 23, 2005), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. A longer press of the push button (e.g.,  206 ) may turn power to the device  100  on or off. The user may be able to customize a functionality of one or more of the buttons. The touch screen  112  is used to implement virtual or soft buttons and one or more soft keyboards. 
     The touch-sensitive touch screen  112  provides an input interface and an output interface between the device and a user. The display controller  156  receives and/or sends electrical signals from/to the touch screen  112 . The touch screen  112  displays visual output to the user. The visual output may include graphics, text, icons, video, and any combination thereof (collectively termed “graphics”). In some embodiments, some or all of the visual output may correspond to user-interface objects, further details of which are described below. 
     A touch screen  112  has a touch-sensitive surface, sensor, or set of sensors that accepts input from the user based on haptic and/or tactile contact. The touch screen  112  and the display controller  156  (along with any associated modules and/or sets of instructions in memory  102 ) detect contact (and any movement or breaking of the contact) on the touch screen  112  and converts the detected contact into interaction with user-interface objects (e.g., one or more soft keys, icons, web pages or images) that are displayed on the touch screen. In an exemplary embodiment, a point of contact between a touch screen  112  and the user corresponds to a finger of the user. 
     The touch screen  112  may use LCD (liquid crystal display) technology, or LPD (light emitting polymer display) technology, although other display technologies may be used in other embodiments. The touch screen  112  and the display controller  156  may detect contact and any movement or breaking thereof using any of a plurality of touch sensing technologies now known or later developed, including but not limited to capacitive, resistive, infrared, and surface acoustic wave technologies, as well as other proximity sensor arrays or other elements for determining one or more points of contact with a touch screen  112 . A touch-sensitive display in some embodiments of the touch screen  112  may be analogous to the multi-touch sensitive tablets described in the following U.S. Pat. No. 6,323,846 (Westerman et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,557 (Westerman et al.), and/or U.S. Pat. No. 6,677,932 (Westerman), and/or U.S. Patent Publication 2002/0015024A1, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. However, a touch screen  112  displays visual output from the portable device  100 , whereas touch sensitive tablets do not provide visual output. The touch screen  112  may have a resolution in excess of 100 dpi. In an exemplary embodiment, the touch screen in the display system has a resolution of approximately 168 dpi. The user may make contact with the touch screen  112  using any suitable object or appendage, such as a stylus, a finger, and so forth. In some embodiments, the user interface is designed to work primarily with finger-based contacts and gestures, which are much less precise than stylus-based input due to the larger area of contact of a finger on the touch screen. In some embodiments, the device translates the rough finger-based input into a precise pointer/cursor position or command for performing the actions desired by the user. 
     A touch-sensitive display in some embodiments of the touch screen  112  may be as described in the following applications: (I) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/381,313, “Multipoint Touch Surface Controller,” filed on May 2, 2006; (2) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/840,862, “Multipoint Touchscreen,” filed on May 6, 2004; (3) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/903,964, “Gestures For Touch Sensitive Input Devices,” filed on Jul. 30, 2004; (4) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/048,264, “Gestures For Touch Sensitive Input Devices,” filed on Jan. 31, 2005; (5) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/038,590, “Mode-Based Graphical User Interfaces For Touch Sensitive Input Devices,” filed on Jan. 18, 2005; (6) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/228,758, “Virtual Input Device Placement On A Touch Screen User Interface,” filed on Sep. 16, 2005; (7) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/228,700, “Operation Of A Computer With A Touch Screen Interface,” filed on Sep. 16, 2005; (8) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/228,737, “Activating Virtual Keys Of A Touch-Screen Virtual Keyboard,” filed on Sep. 16, 2005; and (9) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/367,749, “Multi-Functional Hand-Held Device,” filed on Mar. 3, 2006. All of these applications are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety. 
     In some embodiments, in addition to the touch screen, the device  100  may include a touchpad (not shown) for activating or deactivating particular functions. In some embodiments, the touchpad is a touch-sensitive area of the device that, unlike the touch screen, does not display visual output. The touchpad may be a touch-sensitive surface that is separate from the touch screen  112  or an extension of the touch-sensitive surface formed by the touch screen. 
     In some embodiments, the device  100  may include a physical or virtual click wheel as an input control device  116 . A user may navigate among and interact with one or more graphical objects (henceforth referred to as icons) displayed in the touch screen  112  by rotating the click wheel or by moving a point of contact with the click wheel (e.g., where the amount of movement of the point of contact is measured by its angular displacement with respect to a center point of the click wheel). The click wheel may also be used to select one or more of the displayed icons. For example, the user may press down on at least a portion of the click wheel or an associated button. User commands and navigation commands provided by the user via the click wheel may be processed by an input controller  160  as well as one or more of the modules and/or sets of instructions in memory  102 . For a virtual click wheel, the click wheel and click wheel controller may be part of the touch screen  112  and the display controller  156 , respectively. For a virtual click wheel, the click wheel may be either an opaque or semitransparent object that appears and disappears on the touch screen display in response to user interaction with the device. In some embodiments, a virtual click wheel is displayed on the touch screen of a portable multifunction device and operated by user contact with the touch screen. 
     The device  100  also includes a power system  162  for powering the various components. The power system  162  may include a power management system, one or more power sources (e.g., battery, alternating current (AC)), a recharging system, a power failure detection circuit, a power converter or inverter, a power status indicator (e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED)) and any other components associated with the generation, management and distribution of power in portable electronic devices. 
     The device  100  may also include one or more optical sensors  164 .  FIG. 1  shows an optical sensor coupled to an optical sensor controller  158  in I/O subsystem  106 . The optical sensor  164  may include charge-coupled device (CCD) or complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) phototransistors. The optical sensor  164  receives light from the environment, projected through one or more lens, and converts the light to data representing an image. In conjunction with an imaging module  143 , the optical sensor  164  may capture still images or video. In some embodiments, an optical sensor is located on the back of the device  100 , opposite the touch screen display  112  on the front of the device, so that the touch screen display may be used as a viewfinder for either still and/or video image acquisition. In some embodiments, an optical sensor is located on the front of the device so that the user&#39;s image may be obtained for videoconferencing while the user views the other video conference participants on the touch screen display. In some embodiments, the position of the optical sensor  164  can be changed by the user (e.g., by rotating the lens and the sensor in the device housing) so that a single optical sensor  164  may be used along with the touch screen display for both video conferencing and still and/or video image acquisition. 
     The device  100  may also include one or more proximity sensors  166 .  FIG. 1  shows a proximity sensor  166  coupled to the peripherals interface  118 . Alternately, the proximity sensor  166  may be coupled to an input controller  160  in the I/O subsystem  106 . The proximity sensor  166  may perform as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/241,839, “Proximity Detector In Handheld Device, filed Sep. 30, 2005, and Ser. No. 11/240,788, “Proximity Detector In Handheld Device,” filed Sep. 30, 2005, which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. In some embodiments, the proximity sensor turns off and disables the touch screen  112  when the multifunction device is placed near the user&#39;s ear (e.g., when the user is making a phone call). In some embodiments, the proximity sensor keeps the screen off when the device is in the user&#39;s pocket, purse, or other dark area to prevent unnecessary battery drainage when the device is a locked state. 
     The device  100  may also include one or more accelerometers  168 .  FIG. 1  shows an accelerometer  168  coupled to the peripherals interface  118 . Alternately, the accelerometer  168  may be coupled to an input controller  160  in the I/O subsystem  106 . The accelerometer  168  may perform as described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 20050190059, “Acceleration-based Theft Detection System for Portable Electronic Devices.” and U.S. Patent Publication No. 20060017692, “Methods And Apparatuses For Operating A Portable Device Based On An Accelerometer,” both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. In some embodiments, information is displayed on the touch screen display in a portrait view or a landscape view based on an analysis of data received from the one or more accelerometers. 
     In some embodiments, the software components stored in memory  102  may include an operating system  126 , a communication module (or set of instructions)  128 , a contact/motion module (or set of instructions)  130 , a graphics module (or set of instructions)  132 , a text input module (or set of instructions)  134 , a Global Positioning System (GPS) module (or set of instructions)  135 , and applications (or set of instructions)  136 . 
     The operating system  126  (e.g., Darwin, RTXC, LINUX, UNIX, OS X, WINDOWS, or an embedded operating system such as VxWorks) includes various software components and/or drivers for controlling and managing general system tasks (e.g., memory management, storage device control, power management, etc.) and facilitates communication between various hardware and software components. 
     The communication module  128  facilitates communication with other devices over one or more external ports  124  and also includes various software components for handling data received by the RF circuitry  108  and/or the external port  124 . The external port  124  (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB), FIREWIRE, etc.) is adapted for coupling directly to other devices or indirectly over a network (e.g., the Internet, wireless LAN, etc.). In some embodiments, the external port is a multi-pin (e.g., 30-pin) connector that is the same as, or similar to and/or compatible with the 30-pin connector used on iPod (trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.) devices. 
     The contact/motion module  130  may detect contact with the touch screen  112  (in conjunction with the display controller  156 ) and other touch sensitive devices (e.g., a touchpad or physical click wheel). The contact/motion module  130  includes various software components for performing various operations related to detection of contact, such as determining if contact has occurred, determining if there is movement of the contact and tracking the movement across the touch screen  112 , and determining if the contact has been broken (i.e., if the contact has ceased). Determining movement of the point of contact may include determining speed (magnitude), velocity (magnitude and direction), and/or an acceleration (a change in magnitude and/or direction) of the point of contact. These operations may be applied to single contacts (e.g., one finger contacts) or to multiple simultaneous contacts (e.g., “multitouch”/multiple finger contacts). In some embodiments, the contact/motion module  130  and the display controller  156  also detects contact on a touchpad. In some embodiments, the contact/motion module  130  and the controller  160  detects contact on a click wheel  116 . 
     The graphics module  132  includes various known software components for rendering and displaying graphics on the touch screen  112 , including components for changing the intensity of graphics that are displayed. As used herein, the term “graphics” includes any object that can be displayed to a user, including without limitation text, web pages, icons (such as user-interface objects including soft keys), digital images, videos, animations and the like. 
     The text input module  134 , which may be a component of graphics module  132 , provides soft keyboards for entering text in various applications (e.g., contacts  137 , e-mail  140 ,  1 M  141 , blogging  142 , browser  147 , and any other application that needs text input). 
     The GPS module  135  determines the location of the device and provides this information for use in various applications (e.g., to telephone  138  for use in location-based dialing, to camera  143  and/or blogger  142  as picture/video metadata, and to applications that provide location-based services such as weather widgets, local yellow page widgets, and map/navigation widgets). 
     The applications  136  may include the following modules (or sets of instructions), or a subset or superset thereof:
         a contacts module  137  (sometimes called an address book or contact list);   a telephone module  138 ;   a video conferencing module  139 ;   an e-mail client module  140 ;   an instant messaging (IM) module  141 ;   a blogging module  142 ;   a camera module  143  for still and/or video images;   an image management module  144 ;   a video player module  145 ;   a music player module  146 ;   a browser module  147 ;   a calendar module  148 ;   widget modules  149 , which may include weather widget  149 - 1 , stocks widget  149 - 2 , calculator widget  149 - 3 , alarm clock widget  149 - 4 , dictionary widget  149 - 5 , and other widgets obtained by the user, as well as user-created widgets  149 - 6 ;   widget creator module  150  for making user-created widgets  149 - 6 ; and/or   search module  151 .       

     Examples of other applications  136  that may be stored in memory  102  include memo pad and other word processing applications, JAVA-enabled applications, encryption, digital rights management, voice recognition, and voice replication. 
     In conjunction with RF circuitry  108 , touch screen  112 , display controller  156 , contact module  130 , graphics module  132 , and text input module  134 , the instant messaging module  141  may be used to enter a sequence of characters corresponding to an instant message, to modify previously entered characters, to transmit a respective instant message (for example, using a Short Message Service (SMS) or Multimedia Message Service (MMS) protocol for telephony-based instant messages or using XMPP, SIMPLE, or IMPS for Internet-based instant messages), to receive instant messages and to view an IM conversation including messages exchanged between a user of the portable device  100  and a respective other person. In some embodiments, transmitted and/or received instant messages may include graphics, photos, audio files, video files and/or other attachments as are supported in a MMS and/or an Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS). As used herein, “instant messaging” refers to both telephony-based messages (e.g., messages sent using SMS or MMS) and Internet-based messages (e.g., message sent using XMPP, SIMPLE, or IMPS). Embodiments of user interfaces and associated processes using instant messaging module  141  are described further below. 
     Note that the above identified modules and applications (including the instant messaging module  141 ) correspond to a set of instructions for performing one or more functions described above. These modules (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise re-arranged in various embodiments. In some embodiments, memory  102  may store a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, memory  102  may store additional modules and data structures not described above. 
     In some embodiments, the device  100  is a device where operation of a predefined set of functions on the device is performed exclusively through a touch screen  112  and/or a touchpad. By using a touch screen and/or a touchpad as the primary input/control device for operation of the device  100 , the number of physical input/control devices (such as pushbuttons, dials, and the like) on the device  100  may be reduced. 
     The predefined set of functions that may be performed exclusively through a touch screen and/or a touchpad include navigation between user interfaces. In some embodiments, the touchpad, when touched by the user, navigates the device  100  to a main, home, or root menu from any user interface that may be displayed on the device  100 . In such embodiments, the touchpad may be referred to as a “menu button.” In some other embodiments, the menu button may be a physical push button or other physical input/control device instead of a touchpad. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates a portable electronic device  100  having a touch screen  112  in accordance with some embodiments. The touch screen may display one or more graphics. In this embodiment, as well as others described below, a user may select one or more of the graphics by making contact or touching the graphics, for example, with one or more fingers  202  (not drawn to scale in the figure) or a stylus (not shown in the figure). In some embodiments, selection of one or more graphics occurs when the user breaks contact with the one or more graphics. In some embodiments, the contact may include a gesture, such as one or more taps, one or more swipes (from left to right, right to left, upward and/or downward and/or a rolling of a finger (from right to left, left to right, upward and/or downward) that has made contact with the device  100 . In some embodiments, inadvertent contact with a graphic may not select the graphic. For example, a swipe gesture that sweeps over an application icon may not select the corresponding application when the gesture corresponding to selection is a tap. In other words, the portable electronic device  100  interprets the meaning of a gesture and acts accordingly after considering which application or module is in use at the moment. 
     The device  100  may also include one or more physical buttons, such as “home” or menu button  204 . As described previously, the menu button  204  may be used to navigate to any application  136  in a set of applications that may be executed on the device  100 . Alternatively, in some embodiments, the menu button is implemented as a soft key in a GUI in touch screen  112 . 
     In one embodiment, the device  100  includes a touch screen  112 , a menu button  204 , a push button  206  for powering the device on/off and locking the device, and volume adjustment button(s)  208 . The push button  206  may be used to turn the power on/off on the device by depressing the button and holding the button in the depressed state for a predefined time interval; to lock the device by depressing the button and releasing the button before the predefined time interval has elapsed; and/or to unlock the device or initiate an unlock process. In an alternative embodiment, the device  100  also may accept verbal input for activation or deactivation of some functions through the microphone  113 . 
     Attention is now directed towards embodiments of user interfaces (“UI”) and associated processes that may be implemented on a portable electronic device  100 . 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary user interface for unlocking a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, user interface  300  includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
         Unlock image  302  that is moved with a finger gesture to unlock the device;   Arrow  304  that provides a visual cue to the unlock gesture;   Channel  306  that provides additional cues to the unlock gesture;   Time  308 ;   Day  310 ;   Date  312 ; and   Wallpaper image  314 .       

     In some embodiments, the device detects contact with the touch-sensitive display (e.g., a user&#39;s finger making contact on or near the unlock image  302 ) while the device is in a user-interface lock state. The device moves the unlock image  302  in accordance with the contact. The device transitions to a user-interface unlock state if the detected contact corresponds to a predefined gesture, such as moving the unlock image across channel  306 . Conversely, the device maintains the user-interface lock state if the detected contact does not correspond to the predefined gesture. As noted above, processes that use gestures on the touch screen to unlock the device are described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/322,549, “Unlocking a Device by Performing Gestures on an Unlock Image,” filed Dec. 23, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary user interface for a menu of applications on a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, user interface  400  includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
         Signal strength indicator  402  for wireless communication;   Time  404 ;   Battery status indicator  406 ;   Tray  408  with icons for frequently used applications, such as:
           Phone  138 ;   E-mail client  140 , which may include an indicator  410  of the number of unread e-mails;   Browser  147 ; and   Music player  146 ; and   
           Icons for other applications, such as:
           IM  141 ;   Image management  144 ;   Camera  143 ;   Video player  145 ;   Weather  149 - 1 ;   Stocks  149 - 2 ;   Blog  142 ;   Calendar  148 ;   Calculator  149 - 3 ;   Alarm clock  149 - 4 ;   Dictionary  149 - 5 ; and   User-created widget  149 - 6 .   
               

     In some embodiments, UI  400  displays all of the available applications  136  on one screen so that there is no need to scroll through a list of applications (e.g., via a scroll bar). In some embodiments, as the number of applications increase, the icons corresponding to the applications may decrease in size so that all applications may be displayed on a single screen without scrolling. In some embodiments, having all applications on one screen and a menu button enables a user to access any desired application with at most two inputs, such as activating the menu button  204  and then activating the desired application (e.g., by a tap or other finger gesture on the icon corresponding to the application). 
     In some embodiments, UI  400  provides integrated access to both widget-based applications and non-widget-based applications. In some embodiments, all of the widgets, whether user-created or not, are displayed in UI  400 . In other embodiments, activating the icon for user-created widget  149 - 6  may lead to another UI (not shown) that contains the user-created widgets or icons corresponding to the user-created widgets. 
     In some embodiments, a user may rearrange the icons in UI  400 , e.g., using processes described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/459,602, “Portable Electronic Device With Interface Reconfiguration Mode,” filed Jul. 24, 2006, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. For example, a user may move application icons in and out of tray  408  using finger gestures. 
     In some embodiments, UI  400  includes a gauge (not shown) that displays an updated account usage metric for an account associated with usage of the device (e.g., a cellular phone account), as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/322,552, “Account Information Display For Portable Communication Device,” filed Dec. 23, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary user interface for listing instant message conversations on a portable electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. An instant message conversation includes a set of messages exchanged between a user of the portable electronic device and one or more other persons. In some embodiments, user interface  500  includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
         402, 404, and 406, as described above;   “Instant Messages” or other similar label  502 ;   Names  504  of the persons a user has instant message conversations with (e.g., Jane Doe  504 - 1 ) or the phone number if the corresponding person&#39;s name is not available (e.g.,  408 - 123 - 4567   504 - 3 );   Text  506  of the last message or a portion thereof in the conversation (note that the last message could be the last one either sent or received by the user);   Date  508  and/or time of the last message in the conversation;   Selection icon  510  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transition to a UI for the corresponding conversation (e.g.,  FIG. 6A  for Jane Doe  504 - 1 );   Edit icon  512  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transition to a UI for deleting conversations (e.g.,  FIG. 7 );   Create message icon  514  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transition to the users contact list (e.g.,  FIG. 8A ); and   Vertical bar  516  that helps a user understand what portion of the list of instant message conversations is being displayed.       

       FIG. 10  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of instant message conversations on a portable electronic device&#39;s touch screen in accordance with some embodiments. Upon detecting a finger gesture ( 1002 ) (e.g., a finger tap  412  on the IM icon  141 ,  FIG. 4 ), the IM module  141  identifies a set of IM conversations ( 1004 ) and displays them on the touch screen ( 1006 ). To be able to edit an existing conversation or launch a new conversation, the portable device may display an edit icon  512  and a create message icon  514 , respectively, on the touch screen ( 1008 ). The portable device monitors user contact with the touch screen and acts accordingly ( 1010 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , the list of conversations may be displayed in a chronological order. The conversation with “Jane Doe” is at the top because it is the only conversation that includes at least one message generated today  508 - 1 , which is assumed to be Jan. 29, 2006 in this example. In some embodiments, the conversations are ordered by the timestamp of the most recent message in each conversation. In some embodiments, a conversation including at least one message that has not been checked by the user is highlighted in the touch screen. For example, the third conversation in the list is displayed using boldfaced characters to suggest that the user has not checked the recent message sent by the person at the phone number 408-123-4567. 
     In some embodiments, the name  504  associated with an instant message conversation is determined by finding an entry in the user&#39;s contact list  137  that contains the phone number used by the instant message conversation. If no such entry is found, then just the phone number is displayed (e.g.,  504 - 3 ). In some embodiments, if the other person sends messages from two or more different phone numbers, the messages may appear in the same conversation including the person&#39;s name if all the phone numbers used are found in the same entry (i.e., the entry for the other person) in the user&#39;s contact list  137 . In some embodiments, the conversation includes messages sent from phone numbers and/or email addresses associated with the other person. In some embodiments, the messages sent by the other person include a first message sent from a first address associated with the other person and a second message sent from a second address associated with the other person that is different from the first address. In some embodiments, the first address is a telephone number and the second address is an email address. In some embodiments, the first and second addresses are two distinct telephone numbers. In some embodiments, the first and second addresses are two distinct email addresses. 
     In some other embodiments, if the other person sends messages from two or more different phone numbers, the messages may appear in different conversations corresponding to different numbers. The phone numbers or other identifiers are displayed next to the person&#39;s name to distinguish these conversations from each other. 
     In some embodiments, the name field of an instant message conversation includes names or other identifiers of multiple parties that participate in the conversation as message recipients and/or senders. If there is no room for displaying all the names, a selected subset of names is displayed with a symbol like “ . . . ” at the end, indicating that there are more parties in the conversation. By default, a message by the user of the portable electronic device is sent to all the parties of the conversation. For simplicity, the subsequent embodiments of IM conversations described here involve only two parties, the user and another person. But one skilled in the art will appreciate that the methodologies described in the present invention are also applicable to an IM conversation involving more than two parties. 
     Automatically binning the instant messages into “conversations” (instant messages exchanged between the user of the device and a respective person or phone number) makes it easier for the user to carry on and keep track of instant message exchanges with multiple parties. As will be described below, the user is not only able to see the last message sent by the other party, the user can also visit old messages exchanged between the user and the other party. 
     In some embodiments, vertical bar  516  is displayed temporarily after an object is detected on or near the touch screen display (e.g., a finger touch is detected anywhere on the list of instant message conversations). In some embodiments, the vertical bar  516  has a vertical position on top of the displayed portion of the list that corresponds to the vertical position in the list of the displayed portion of the list. In some embodiments, the vertical bar  516  has a vertical length that corresponds to the portion of the list being displayed. In some embodiments, if the entire list of IM conversations can be displayed simultaneously on the touch screen  112 , the vertical bar  516  is not displayed. In some embodiments, if the entire list of IM conversations can be displayed simultaneously on the touch screen  112 , the vertical bar  516  is displayed with a length that corresponds to the length of the list display area (e.g., as shown in  FIG. 5 ). 
     As noted above, the portable device monitors ( 1010 ) user contact with the conversation list. When the user swipes his finger or a stylus on the touch screen in a substantially vertical direction ( 1012 ), this user contact may be interpreted as a scrolling gesture. In some embodiments, the scrolling gesture is independent of the horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. In some embodiments, the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of the horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display (e.g., one or more side regions of the touch screen display may be reserved for other functions, such as functions corresponding to icons, soft keys or application navigation functions, and not available for the scroll gesture). The portable electronic device, accordingly, scrolls the conversation list and displays a different portion of the conversation list ( 1020 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , the conversation list moves in a direction consistent with the scrolling gesture  516 . If the scrolling gesture is downward (or upward), the conversation list also moves downward (or upward). Scrolling the conversation list downward will typically scroll the list to earlier entries in the list, until the first entry is reached (e.g., Jane Doc  504 - 1 ). But if the user does not have too many IM conversations, the portable electronic device may display the entire conversation list and the scrolling gesture has no effect. 
     If the user taps on the edit icon  512  using his finger or stylus ( 1018 ), the portable electronic device replaces the conversation list UI with a new UI that allows the user to edit the conversations. A more detailed description of the conversation editing feature is provided below in connection with  FIGS. 7 and 16 . 
     Similarly, if the user taps on the message creation icon  514  ( 1019 ), the portable electronic device replaces the conversation list UI with a new UI that allows the user to create a new instant message and therefore a new conversation. A more detailed description of this feature is provided below in connection with  FIGS. 8A-8B, 9 and 19 . 
     If the user taps on a particular conversation in the list ( 1014 ), the portable electronic device would interpret the tap as a gesture indicating that the user intends to check the messages associated with the user selected conversation. Accordingly, the portable electronic device replaces the conversation list UI shown in  FIG. 5  with a conversation UI shown in  FIG. 6A . 
       FIGS. 6A through 6K  illustrate an exemplary user interface for inputting text for an instant message in accordance with some embodiments. 
     In some embodiments, user interface  600 A ( FIG. 6A ) includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 , and  406 , as described above;   Name  504  corresponding to the phone number used in the instant message conversation (or the phone number itself if the name is not available);   Instant messages icon  602  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transition to a UI listing instant message conversations (e.g., UI  500 );   Instant messages  604  from the other party, typically listed in order along one side of UI  600 A;   Instant messages  606  to the other party, typically listed in order along the opposite side of UI  600 A to show the back and forth interplay of messages in the conversation;   Timestamps  608  for at least some of the instant messages;   Text entry box  612 ;   Send icon  614  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates sending of the message in text box  612  to the other party (e.g., Jane Doc  504 - 1 );   Letter keyboard  616  for entering text in box  612 ;   Alternate keyboard selector icon  618  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates the display of a different keyboard (e.g.,  624 ,  FIG. 6C );   Send icon  620  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates sending of the message in text box  612  to the other party (e.g., Jane Doe  504 - 1 );   Shift key  628  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) capitalizes the next letter chosen on letter keyboard  616 ; and   Vertical bar  630  that helps a user understand what portion of the list of instant messages in an  1 M conversation is being displayed.       

       FIG. 11  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a user selected instant message conversation upon detecting a predefined user contact with the portable electronic device&#39;s touch screen in accordance with some embodiments. In this example, the conversation with Jane Doc is displayed in response to a finger gesture  518  on the conversation with Jane Doe ( FIG. 5 ). 
     Upon detecting the user selection of the conversation with Jane Doe ( 1102 ), IM module  141  identifies a set of instant messages  604  &amp;  606  associated with the conversation ( 1104 ) and displays the instant messages in a message display region of the touch screen in a chronological order ( 1106 ). Because a user visiting an existing conversation may want to compose a new instant message to the other person, the portable electronic device also displays a message compose region on the touch screen ( 1108 ). In some embodiments, the message compose region includes a text box  612  displaying characters entered by the user, a send message icon  614 , a letter keyboard  616 , and a keyboard selector icon  618 . The portable electronic device monitors the user contact with the touch screen and responds accordingly ( 1110 ). 
     In some embodiments, the portable electronic device receives an instant message while the user of the device is using another application, e.g., browsing a web page using the browser  147  or listening to music using the music player  146 . In this case, the device may replace the user interface of an on-going application with a new user interface on the touch screen  112  or superimpose a new user interface on top of the user interface for the on-going application.  FIG. 21  illustrates an exemplary user interface for alerting a user to a new instant message in accordance with some embodiments. This user interface may or may not suspend or terminate the on-going application. For example, the user may still listen to the music when this new user interface appears on the touch screen  112 . This may be true even if the user subsequently chooses to activate the IM module  141  and respond to the new message. 
     In some embodiments, the new user interface (e.g., UI  2100 ,  FIG. 21 ) includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
         the name  2102  of the person sending the instant message (e.g., Jane Doc), which may be determined by matching the phone number for the incoming instant message with a phone number in the user&#39;s contacts  137 ;   the newly received instant message or a portion thereof 2104 (e.g., “Do U want  2  . . . ”);   a first action icon  2106 , e.g., “Ignore”; and   a second action icon  2108 , e.g., “View.”
 
A user selection of the “Ignore” icon  2106  brings back the user interface of the on-going application and the user can resume the operation that was interrupted by the incoming message. A user selection of the “View” icon  2108  may bypass the user interface  500  and bring the user directly to the user interface  600 A that includes the new instant message. The user can then perform any message-related operations, as described below.
       

     In some embodiments, the portable electronic device may receive an instant message while it is in the lock mode. In this case, the device may include a visual alert indicating the arrival of the new message in the user interface  300  and/or generate an audio alert through the device&#39;s speaker  111 . If the user of the device unlocks the device&#39;s touch screen  112  in response to the visual and/or audio alert, the user may see user interface  600 A (not user interface  400 ) on the touch screen. 
     As shown in  FIG. 6A , the instant messages  604  from Jane Doe may be displayed on the left side of the message display region with the most recent message (e.g.,  604 - 2 ) towards the bottom. The messages sent by the user to Jane Doc are on the opposite side of the display region. The messages&#39; relative vertical locations correspond to the order in which these messages are exchanged between the user of the device and Jane Doe. Selected timestamps  608  further indicate when these messages are exchanged. In some embodiments, a timestamp is displayed near the message it is associated with. If the message display region does not have enough room to display the timestamp of every message currently in the message display region, the device may choose to display timestamps for a subset of the messages, e.g., a timestamp  608 - 1  corresponding to the message  604 - 1  at the top of the message region and a timestamp  608 - 2  corresponding to the message  606 - 2  at the bottom of the message region. In some embodiments, the device may display more timestamps for messages in the middle if, e.g., the time gap between the two messages is above a predefined threshold. From the instant messages, the user can easily capture the topic of the conversation. If necessary, the user can browse the other old messages not currently on display by applying a scrolling gesture  610  on the message display region ( 1112 ). In response, the portable electronic device scrolls the set of message conversations ( 1124 ). In some embodiments, the scrolling gesture is independent of the horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display. In some embodiments, the scrolling gesture is substantially independent of the horizontal position of the user contact with the touch screen display, as described above. 
     In some embodiments, the device highlights certain portions of incoming and outgoing messages using, e.g., underlines, distinct font sizes or styles, and/or colors. Typically, the highlighted portions are deemed to have special connotations such as phone numbers, URLs, stock tickers, or contacts&#39; names. These highlighted message portions may be user-selectable. For example, a user finger gesture on the highlighted portion “apple.com” of the message  604 - 2  causes the activation of the browser  147 , which then brings up the home page of the website www.apple.com. Similarly, a user finger gesture on a telephone number activates the phone  138  and initiates a call to the telephone number. 
     In some embodiments, a vertically downward scrolling gesture scrolls the conversation downward, thereby showing older messages in the conversation. In some embodiments, a vertically upward scrolling gesture scrolls the conversation upward, thereby showing newer, more recent messages in the conversation. In some embodiments, as noted above, the last message in the conversation (e.g.,  606 - 2 ) is displayed in the list of instant message conversations  500  (e.g.,  506 - 1 ). 
     In some embodiments, vertical bar  630  is displayed temporarily after an object is detected on or near the touch screen display (e.g., a finger touch is detected anywhere on the list of instant messages). In some embodiments, the vertical bar  630  has a vertical position on top of the displayed portion of the list that corresponds to the vertical position in the list of the displayed portion of the list. In some embodiments, the vertical bar  630  has a vertical length that corresponds to the portion of the list being displayed. For example, in  FIG. 6A , the vertical position of the vertical bar  630  indicates that the bottom of the list of messages is being displayed (which correspond to the most recent messages) and the vertical length of the vertical bar  630  indicates that roughly half of the messages in the conversation are being displayed. 
     In response to the user&#39;s finger gestures on different letter keys in the keyboard ( 1114 ), a new instant message is composed in the text box  612 . A more detailed description of this composition process is provided below in connection with  FIG. 12 . In some embodiments, the keyboard  616  in  FIG. 6A  has only 26 English characters due to the touch screen&#39;s limited size. To enter characters such as digits, punctuation and other special symbols, the user needs to tap on the keyboard selector icon  618  ( 1120 ) and/or the shift key icon  628  ( 1116 ) to bring in additional keyboards or switch the existing keyboard to a different display mode (e.g., from upper/lower case to lower/upper case). More detailed descriptions of these processes are provided below in connection with  FIGS. 13 and 14 , respectively. After completing the new message, the user taps on the send message icon  614  or  620  to transmit the message to the other participant of the conversation ( 1118 ). A more detailed description of the sending process is provided below in connection with  FIG. 15 . 
       FIG. 12  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a user-entered character and word suggestions, if any, in accordance with some embodiments. Upon detecting a user selection of a letter key ( 1202 ), the portable electronic device displays the user-selected letter in the text box  612  ( 1204 ). To expedite the process of composing the new message, the portable electronic device may determine if it can offer any word suggestions based on the user input ( 1206 ). To do so, the portable electronic device may apply linguistics-based algorithms (e.g., as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/549,624, titled “Method, System, and Graphical User Interface for Text Entry with Partial Word Display” filed Oct. 13, 2006, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety) to the user input and display one or more related words from its database ( 1208 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 6B , user interface  600 B ( FIG. 6B ) includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  602 ,  604 ,  606 ,  608 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 , and  620  as described above; and   word suggestion area  622  that provides a list of possible words to complete the word fragment being typed by the user in text box  612 .       

     In this example, based on the user-entered string “vacat”, the portable electronic device displays three possible words, “vacant”, “vacate”, and “vacation”, in the area  622 . The user can choose any of them by finger tapping on a respective word icon. Alternatively, the user can ignore all the computer-suggested words by tapping on the one exactly matching his input. In some embodiments, the portable electronic device also saves the user input as a new word in its database. Subsequently, when the user enters the same string or a subset thereof, the portable electronic device may display this new word as one of the word suggestions. In some embodiments, the word suggestion area does not appear in UI  600 B until after a predefined time delay (e.g., 2-3 seconds) in text being entered by the user. In some embodiments, the word suggestion area is not used or can be turned off by the user. 
     If there is no suggestion by the portable electronic device or if the option is turned off, the portable electronic device resumes monitoring the user contact with the touch screen and acts accordingly ( 1210 ). 
     Additional description of providing word suggestions can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/620,642, “Method, System, and Graphical User Interface for Providing Word Recommendations,” filed Jan. 5, 2007, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     As noted above, the keyboard  616  may not include all the characters the user would like to enter. There are different approaches to bringing in additional characters. For example, as shown in  FIG. 6B , the user can tap on the keyboard selector icon  618  to replace the current letter keyboard  616  with a new keyboard that includes a different set of characters such as digits and/or punctuation. 
       FIG. 13  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying respective keyboards upon detecting a user contact with a keyboard selection icon in accordance with some embodiments. In response to a user selection of the keyboard selector  618  ( 1302 ), the portable electronic device checks what type of keyboard is requested ( 1304 ). Depending on the type of the requested keyboard, the portable electronic device displays a letter keyboard ( 1308 ) or non-letter keyboard ( 1306 ). In some embodiments, the meaning of the user contact with the keyboard selector icon  618  depends on the keyboard&#39;s current display mode. Following the display of the requested keyboard, the portable electronic device then resumes monitoring the user contact with the touch screen ( 1310 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 6C , after a user finger gesture on the keyboard selector icon  618  in  FIG. 6B , a new user interface  600 C is rendered on the touch screen with the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  602 ,  604 ,  606 ,  608 ,  612 ,  614 ,  620 , and  622  as described above;   Alternate keyboard  624 , which may be made up primarily of digits and punctuation, with frequently used punctuation keys (e.g., period key  631 , comma key  633 , question mark key  635 , and exclamation point key  637 ) made larger than the other keys;   Letter keyboard selector icon  626  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates the display of a letter keyboard (e.g.,  616 ,  FIG. 6A ); and   Shift key  628  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates display of yet another keyboard (e.g.,  639 ,  FIG. 6D ).       

     Note that the non-letter keyboard selector  618  in  FIG. 6B  is now replaced with the letter keyboard selector  626  in  FIG. 6C . In some embodiments, the period key  631  and the comma key  633  are located near the keyboard selector icon  626  to reduce the distance that a user&#39;s finger needs to travel to enter the oft-used period and comma. 
     But the alternate keyboard  624  may not be all-inclusive. For example, it may not have any arithmetic operators such as “+”, “−”, “*”, or “/”. A finger gesture on the keyboard selector  626  brings back the letter keyboard  616 , not any new keyboards. In some embodiments, the user may tap on another multi-function key, e.g., the shift key  628 , to bring in additional keyboards. 
     In some embodiments, like the keyboard selector icons ( 618 ,  626 ), the shift key  628  has different meanings in different contexts.  FIG. 14  is a flowchart illustrating a process for interpreting the meaning of a particular user contact with the shift key  628  in accordance with some embodiments. The portable electronic device detects user selection of the shift key ( 1402 ). The portable electronic device checks what keyboard is currently displayed on the touch screen ( 1404 ). If the current one is a letter keyboard, a finger gesture on the shift key triggers the portable electronic device to switch its display mode of the subsequent user-entered letters from uppercase to lowercase or vice versa ( 1406 ). 
     Referring back to  FIG. 6B , in some embodiments, the portable electronic device, by default, only displays the first letter “h” of the first word “how” in uppercase. If the user wants to enter another uppercase letter in the same sentence, he can tap on the shift key  628 . As a result, the shift key  628  is displayed in a visually different manner (e.g., with a different color or shading) after the finger gesture. In some embodiments, the shift key  628  returns to the lowercase mode after the user enters the next letter in uppercase. If the user wants to enter a sequence of uppercase letters, he can maintain the finger contact with the shift key  628  for a predefined extended period of time (e.g., 1-3 seconds) until the shift key  628  has a new appearance. In some other embodiments, the shift key  628  stays in the uppercase mode for all subsequent user-entered letters until another finger gesture is detected on the shift key  628 . 
     Returning now to  FIG. 14 , the user contact with the shift key  628  has a different meaning if the current keyboard is a non-letter keyboard (e.g., the alternate keyboard  624  in  FIG. 6C ). Because none of the characters in the keyboard  624  have two different display modes, the portable electronic device replaces the keyboard  624  with another non-letter keyboard  639  ( 1408 ) and then waits for the next user contact with the touch screen ( 1410 ). 
       FIG. 6D  is a screenshot of the corresponding user interface  600 D, which includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  602 ,  604 ,  606 ,  608 ,  612 ,  614 ,  620 ,  622 ,  626 ,  628  as described above; and   Another alternate keyboard  639 , which may be made up primarily of symbols and punctuation, with frequently used punctuation keys (e.g., period key  631 , comma key  633 , question mark key  635 , and exclamation point key  637 ) made larger than the other keys.       

     Like the keyboard  624 , none of the characters in the keyboard  639  have two different display modes. In some embodiments, the user can tap again on the shift key  628  to bring in more alternate keyboards with more special characters or symbols. In some embodiments, the user can tap again on the shift key  628  to return to the alternate keyboard  624 . At any time, the user can also switch back to the letter keyboard by tapping on the keyboard selection icon  626 . 
     Additional description of selecting soft keyboards can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/553,431, “Method, System, and Graphical User Interface for Selecting a Soft Keyboard,” filed Oct. 26, 2006, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     After completing a new message, the user sends the message by activating (e.g., with a finger gesture) the send message icon  614  or  620 .  FIG. 6E  depicts such a user interface  600 E that includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  602 ,  604 ,  606 ,  608 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 , and  620 , as described above; and   New instant message  606 - 3  sent to the other party.       

     In some embodiments, this user finger gesture triggers an animation of the new message moving from the text box  612  to the side of the message display region showing messages sent by the user of the device. For example, when the user activates a send key (e.g., either  614  or  620 ), the text in text box  612  “pops” or otherwise comes out of the box and becomes part of the string of user messages  606  to the other party. The black arrows in  FIG. 6E  illustrate an animated formation of a quote bubble  606 - 3 . In some embodiments, the size of the quote bubble scales with the size of the message. In some embodiments, a sound is also made when the message is sent, such as a droplet sound, to notify the user. 
       FIG. 15  is a flowchart illustrating a process for sending an instant message to a respective recipient in accordance with some embodiments. In response to a user selection of the send message icon ( 1502 ), the portable electronic device checks if there is any user input in the text box ( 1504 ). If not, it may simply ignore the user&#39;s finger gesture on the send icon or display an error message on the touch screen ( 1508 ). In some embodiments, the visual appearance of the send icon  614  is changed (e.g., dimmed) if there is no user input in the text box. 
     If there is any user input in the text box ( 1504 , yes), the portable electronic device may optionally conduct a spell check of the user input ( 1506 ). If there are any spelling errors ( 1506 , yes), an error message and/or word suggestions are displayed on the touch screen for the user to choose ( 1512 ). If there are no spelling errors, the portable electronic device sends the message and may also animate the movement of the new message from the text box into the message display region ( 1514 ). The portable electronic device then monitors the user contact with the touch screen ( 1516 ). 
     In some embodiments, keys in keyboards  616  ( FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6E-6K ),  624  ( FIG. 6C ), and/or  639  ( FIG. 6D ) briefly change shape, shade and/or color when touched/activated by a user to help the user learn to activate the desired keys. In some embodiments, a user selection of any key on the touch screen by a finger gesture is accompanied by a sound for the same purpose. In some other embodiments, different sounds are associated with different types of keystrokes to indicate what keys have been “pressed” by the user. In some embodiments, an outline or shaded area corresponding to the user&#39;s finger contact is shown on the keyboard to help train the user. 
     In some embodiments, a user can delete an instant message from a conversation by finger tapping on the corresponding quote bubble in the message display region. The portable electronic device, in response, grays out the bubble and pops up a small window on the touch screen. The small window may include a “Yes” icon and a “No” icon. If the user re-affirms his decision of deleting the message by finger tapping on the “Yes” icon, the portable electronic device removes the bubble from the message display region. But if the user chooses the “No” icon, the quote bubble resumes its normal appearance. 
     In some embodiments, user interface  600 F ( FIG. 6F ) includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 ,  620 , and  628 , as described above;   Recipient input field  632  that when activated (e.g., by a finger tap on the field) receives and displays the phone number of the recipient of the instant message (or the recipient&#39;s name if the recipient is already in the user&#39;s contact list);   Add recipient icon  634  that when activated (e.g., by a finger tap on the icon) initiates the display of a scrollable list of contacts (e.g.,  638 ,  FIG. 6G ); and   Cancel icon  636  that when activated (e.g., by a finger tap on the icon) cancels the new instant message.       

     In some embodiments, user interface  600 G ( FIG. 6G ) includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 ,  620 ,  628 ,  632 ,  634 , and  636 , as described above;   Scrollable list  638  of contacts that match the input in recipient input field  632 ; and   Vertical bar  640  that helps a user understand how many items in the contact list that match the input in recipient input field  632  are being displayed.       

     In some embodiments, list  638  contains contacts that match the input in recipient input field  632 . For example, if the letter “v” is input, then contacts with either a first name or last name beginning with “v” are shown. If the letters “va” are input in field  632 , then the list of contacts is narrowed to contacts with either a first name or last name beginning with “va”, and so on until one of the displayed contacts is selected (e.g., by a tap on a contact in the list  638 ). 
     In some embodiments, a user can scroll through the list  638  by applying a vertical swipe gesture  642  to the area displaying the list  638 . In some embodiments, a vertically downward gesture scrolls the list downward and a vertically upward gesture scrolls the list upward, 
     In some embodiments, vertical bar  640  is displayed temporarily after an object is detected on or near the touch screen display (e.g., a finger touch is detected anywhere on the list  638 ). In some embodiments, the vertical bar  640  has a vertical position on top of the displayed portion of the list that corresponds to the vertical position in the list of the displayed portion of the list. In some embodiments, the vertical bar  640  has a vertical length that corresponds to the portion of the list being displayed. 
     In some embodiments, user interfaces  600 H ( FIG. 6H ) and  600 I ( FIG. 6I ) include the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 ,  620 ,  628 ,  632 ,  634 , and  636 , as described above;   Suggested word  644  adjacent to the word being input;   Suggested word  646  in the space bar in keyboard  616 ; and/or   Insertion marker  656  (e.g., a cursor, insertion bar, insertion point, or pointer).       

     In some embodiments, activating suggested word  644  (e.g., by a finger tap on the suggested word) replaces the word being typed with the suggested word  644 . In some embodiments, activating suggested word  646  (e.g., by a finger tap on the space bar) replaces the word being typed with the suggested word  646 . In some embodiments, a user can set whether suggested words  644  and/or  646  are shown (e.g., by setting a user preference). 
     In some embodiments, a letter is enlarged briefly after it is selected (e.g., “N” is enlarged briefly after typing “din” in  FIG. 6H ) to provide feedback to the user. 
     In some embodiments, user interfaces  600 J ( FIG. 6J ) and  600 K ( FIG. 6K ) include the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  612 ,  614 ,  616 ,  618 ,  620 ,  628 ,  632 ,  634 ,  636 , and  656  as described above; and   Expanded portion  650  of graphics that helps a user adjust the position of an expanded insertion marker  657  (sometimes called an “insertion point magnifier”);   Expanded insertion marker  657 ; and   Vertical bar  658  that indicates what portion of an instant message including multiple lines of text is being displayed.       

     In some embodiments, a finger contact  648 - 1  on or near the insertion marker  656  initiates the display of insertion point magnifier  650  and expanded insertion marker  657 - 1 . In some embodiments, as the finger contact is moved on the touch screen (e.g., to position  648 - 2 ), there is corresponding motion of the expanded insertion marker (e.g., to  657 - 2 ) and the insertion point magnifier  650 . Thus, the insertion point magnifier  650  provides an efficient way to position a cursor or other insertion marker using finger input on the touch screen. In some embodiments, the magnifier  650  remains visible and can be repositioned as long as continuous contact is maintained with the touch screen (e.g., from  648 - 1  to  648 - 2  to even  648 -3). 
     In some embodiments, a portable electronic device displays graphics and an insertion marker (e.g., marker  656 ,  FIG. 6I ) at a first location in the graphics on a touch screen display (e.g.,  FIG. 6I ). In some embodiments, the insertion marker  656  is a cursor, insertion bar, insertion point, or pointer. In some embodiments, the graphics comprise text (e.g., text in box  612 ,  FIG. 6I ). 
     A finger contact is detected with the touch screen display (e.g., contact  648 - 1 ,  FIG. 6I ). In some embodiments, the location of the finger contact is proximate to the location of the insertion marker. In some embodiments, the location of the finger contact is anywhere within a text entry area (e.g., box  612 ,  FIG. 6I ). 
     In response to the detected finger contact, the insertion marker is expanded from a first size (e.g., marker  656 ,  FIG. 6I ) to a second size (e.g., marker  657 - 1 ,  FIG. 6J ) on the touch screen display, and a portion (e.g., portion  650 - 1 ,  FIG. 6J ) of the graphics on the touch screen display is expanded from an original size to an expanded size. 
     In some embodiments, the portion of the graphics that is expanded includes the insertion marker and adjacent graphics. In some embodiments, after the insertion point and the portion of the graphics are expanded, graphics are displayed that include the insertion marker and adjacent graphics at the original size and at the expanded size. 
     Movement of the finger contact is detected on the touch screen display (e.g., from  648 - 1  to  648 - 2 ,  FIG. 6J ). 
     The expanded insertion marker is moved in accordance with the detected movement of the finger contact from the first location (e.g.,  657 - 1 ,  FIG. 6J ) to a second location in the graphics (e.g.,  657 - 2 ,  FIG. 6J ). 
     In some embodiments, the portion of the graphics that is expanded changes as the insertion marker moves from the first location to the second location (e.g., from  650 - 1  to  650 - 2 ,  FIG. 6J ). In some embodiments, the portion of the graphics that is expanded is displayed in a predefined shape. In some embodiments the portion (e.g.  650 ,  FIG. 6J ) of the graphics that is expanded is displayed in a circle. In some embodiments, the expanded insertion marker  657  is within the circle. 
     In some embodiments, the detected movement of the finger contact has a horizontal component on the touch screen display and a vertical component on the touch screen display. In some embodiments, moving the expanded insertion marker  657  in accordance with the detected movement of the finger contact includes moving the expanded insertion marker and the expanded portion of the graphics in accordance with the horizontal component of motion of the finger contact if the finger contact moves outside a text entry arca without breaking contact. For example, in  FIG. 6I , if the finger contact moves from  648 - 2  (inside the text entry area  612 ) to  648 - 3  (in the keyboard area), the expanded insertion point  657  and the expanded portion  650  of the graphics may move horizontally along the lower portion of the text entry arca in accordance with the horizontal component of the movement from  648 - 2  to  648 - 3  (not shown). 
     In some embodiments, moving the expanded insertion marker in accordance with the detected movement of the finger contact includes moving the expanded insertion marker in a first area of the touch screen that includes characters entered using a soft keyboard (e.g., text box  612 ,  FIG. 6J ), wherein the soft keyboard is located in a second area of the touch screen that is separate from the first area (e.g., keyboard  616 ,  FIG. 6J ). 
     In some embodiments, the expanded insertion marker is contracted from the second size to the first size if finger contact with the touch screen display is broken (e.g., insertion marker  656 ,  FIG. 6K ). In some embodiments, the contracting includes an animation of the expanded insertion marker  657  shrinking into the insertion marker  656  at the second location. 
     In some embodiments, the expanded portion  650  of the graphics is contracted if finger contact with the touch screen display is no-longer detected for a predetermined time. 
     A graphical user interface on a portable electronic device with a touch screen display comprises an insertion marker and graphics. In response to detecting a finger contact  648  with the touch screen display, the insertion marker is expanded from a first size  656  to a second size  657 , and a portion  650  of the graphics is expanded. In response to detecting movement of the finger contact on the touch screen display, the expanded insertion marker is moved in accordance with the detected movement of the finger contact from a first location  657 - 1  in the graphics to a second location  657 - 2  in the graphics. 
     As noted above in connection with  FIG. 6E , a user finger selection of the send key  614  triggers an animation of the message moving from the text box  612  to the message display region. In some embodiments, prior to sending the message, the size of the text box expands as text is entered (e.g., from one line of text in  FIG. 6H  to two lines of text in  FIG. 6I ). In some embodiments, the text box  612  does not have enough room for displaying the entire message if it has too many lines of text (as indicated by the short vertical bar  658 ). When a quote bubble containing the multi-line message comes out of the text box  612 , it may gradually grow its size until a predefined condition is met (e.g., the bubble has enough room to contain the entire message and/or the size of the bubble reaches a threshold that is statically or dynamically determined by the device based on the number of existing messages in the conversation). For example, if the text box shows 3 lines of a 10 line instant message, then the quote bubble may grow from a 3 line quote bubble to a 10 line quote bubble during the animation that moves the message from the text box  612  to the message display region. 
     Additional description of insertion marker positioning can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/553,436, “Method, System, And Graphical User Interface For Positioning An Insertion Marker In A Touch Screen Display,” filed Oct. 26, 2006, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     Besides deleting individual messages from a conversation, an entire conversation may be deleted via edit icon  512  in  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 7  illustrates an exemplary user interface for deleting an instant message conversation in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, user interface  700  includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  504 ,  506 ,  508 ,  510 , as described above;   Delete icons  702 ;   Remove icon  704 ; and   Done icon  706 .       

       FIG. 16  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of instant message conversations for editing in accordance with some embodiments. Upon detecting a user selection of the edit icon  512  ( 1602 ), the portable electronic device associates a delete icon  702  with each conversation ( 1604 ) (e.g., a delete icon  702  appears next to each conversation). Additionally, the portable electronic device may replace the edit icon  512  with a done icon  706  ( 1606 ) and monitor user contact with the touch screen ( 1608 ). 
     If the user swipes his finger or stylus on the touch screen in a substantially vertical direction ( 1610 ), the portable electronic device scrolls the conversation list ( 1616 ). If a user activates a delete icon (e.g., with a finger gesture), the portable electronic device continues the deletion process for the corresponding conversation. A more detailed description of an exemplary conversation removal process is provided below in connection with  FIGS. 17 and 18 . But if the user touches the done icon, the portable electronic device removes all the delete icons  702  from the touch screen and brings back the conversation list UI as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
       FIG. 17  is a flowchart illustrating a process for editing a user selected instant message conversation in accordance with some embodiments. Upon detecting a user selection of the delete icon associated with a conversation ( 1702 ), the portable electronic device changes the delete icon&#39;s appearance (e.g., rotating the selected delete icon  702 - 4 ,  FIG. 7 , by 90 degrees) ( 1704 ). The portable electronic device associates a confirmation icon (e.g., remove icon  704 ) with the selected conversation ( 1706 ). In some embodiments, during the editing process, at most one confirmation icon at a time is displayed on the touch screen. Depending on the next user contact with the touch screen ( 1708 ), the portable electronic device may perform different operations to the conversation list. For example, the device may scroll the list up/down in response to a scrolling gesture by the user ( 1710 ,  1718 ). The device may bring back the conversation list UI in response to a finger gesture on the done icon ( 1714 ). 
       FIG. 18  is a flowchart illustrating a process for removing a user selected instant message conversation or exiting a conversation edit mode in accordance with some embodiments. If the user selects the confirmation icon ( 1712 ,  1802 ), the portable electronic device removes the conversation from the touch screen ( 1804 ). If the removed conversation is not the last one in the list, the portable electronic device may shift other conversations upward to fill the space left by the removed conversation ( 1806 ). A finger gesture on the modified delete icon  702 - 4  or, in some embodiments, anywhere on the touch screen besides the confirmation icon  704  ( 1716 ,  1803 ) indicates that the user decides not to delete the conversation. Accordingly, the portable electronic device changes the delete icon back to its original appearance ( 1805 ) and removes the confirmation icon from the touch screen ( 1807 ). 
     Following the operation  1806  or  1807 , the portable electronic device resumes monitoring the user contact with the touch screen ( 1808 ). For example, the user may activate the done icon  706  ( 1814 ) by tapping on it with a finger when the user has finished deleting IM conversations and the device returns to UI  500 . The user may delete another conversation by activating its associated delete icon ( 1812 ). If there is a long list of conversations that fill more than the screen area, the user may scroll through the list using vertically upward and/or vertically downward gestures  708  on the touch screen ( 1810 ,  1816 ). 
     This conversation removal process, which requires multiple gestures by the user on different parts of the touch screen (e.g., delete icon  702 - 4  and confirmation icon  704  are on opposite sides of the touch screen) can reduce the chance that a user accidentally deletes a conversation or other similar item. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 5 , a user may start a new conversation with another person by activating the message creation icon  514  (e.g., with a finger tap or other gesture).  FIG. 19  is a flowchart illustrating a process for displaying a list of contacts from which a user chooses to send an instant message in accordance with some embodiments. After detecting the user selection of the message creation icon ( 1902 ), the portable electronic device identifies a set of contacts from the user&#39;s address book or the equivalent because it does not know to whom this new conversation is directed ( 1904 ). Next, the portable electronic device displays the identified contacts on the touch screen ( 1908 ). In some embodiments, the portable electronic device displays multiple icons on the touch screen in addition to the contact list ( 1909 ), such as the group contacts icon, the first name and last name icons, the alphabet list icons, the cancel icon, and the other number icon. A more detailed description of these icons is provided below in connection with  FIGS. 8A and 8B . After rendering the contact list and the additional icons, the portable electronic device then monitors the user contact with the touch screen ( 1910 ). 
       FIGS. 8A &amp; 8B  illustrate an exemplary user interface for a contact list in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, user interfaces  800 A and  800 B include the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 , as described above;   Groups icon  802  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates display of groups of contacts;   First name icon  804  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates an alphabetical display of the user&#39;s contacts by their first names ( FIG. 8B );   Last name icon  806  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates an alphabetical display of the user&#39;s contacts by their last names ( FIG. 8A );   Alphabet list icons  808  that the user can touch to quickly arrive at a particular first letter in the displayed contact list;   Cancel icon  810  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transfer back to the previous UI (e.g., UI  500 ); and   Other number icon  812  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transfer to a UI for entering a phone number for instant messaging, such as a phone number that is not in the user&#39;s contact list (e.g., UI  900 ,  FIG. 9 ).       

     As described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/322,547, “Scrolling List With Floating Adjacent Index Symbols,” filed Dec. 23, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, the user may scroll through the contact list using vertically upward and/or vertically downward gestures  814  on the touch screen. 
     If the next user contact is such a scrolling gesture  814  ( 1912 ) or a finger gesture on one of the first name icon  804 , the second name icon  806  and the alphabet list icons  808  ( 1914 ), the portable electronic device modifies the contacts currently on display ( 1920 ). Although the contact list may be shared by multiple applications on the same portable device (e.g., email, phone, and instant messaging), a user selection of a name in the contact list in this context will be used for IM service because the contact list was requested from within the IM application. Here the contact list is being shown in connection with user activation of the message creation icon  514  in the IM application  141 . 
     If the portable electronic device detects a finger gesture on one person&#39;s name or other identifier in the contact list ( 1916 ), the portable electronic device displays a message compose region for a message to the selected contact ( 1108 ,  FIG. 11 ) and displays a conversation UI as shown in  FIG. 6A . In some embodiments, if there is an existing conversation between the user and the selected person, the portable electronic device merges the new conversation into the existing one by displaying messages associated with the existing conversation. 
     If the portable electronic device detects a user gesture on the cancel icon  810  ( 1918 ), the portable electronic device aborts the process of creating the new conversation and brings back the conversation list shown in  FIG. 5  ( 1006 ,  FIG. 10 ). 
     If the portable electronic device detects a finger gesture on the other number icon  812  ( 1919 ), typically a new conversation with a person not in the contact list is initiated. Accordingly, the portable electronic device may render a new user interface for the user to enter the person&#39;s contact information that is going to be used by the new conversation. 
       FIG. 20  is a flowchart illustrating a process for launching a new conversation using a new phone number in accordance with some embodiments. Upon detecting user selection of the other number icon ( 2002 ), the portable electronic device provides a contact information display region ( 2004 ) and a contact information compose region ( 2006 ) on the touch screen. The contact information may be a phone number or an email address for IM service. The contact information display region includes a text box  906  for displaying the user-entered contact information. The contact information compose region includes a keyboard  624  for the user to enter such contact information. If the user activates the cancel icon ( 2012 ), the portable electronic device aborts the process of creating a new conversation and returns to the conversation list UI shown in  FIG. 5 . If the user input is a letter or number ( 2010 ), the portable electronic device displays it in the text box ( 2014 ). 
       FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary user interface for entering a phone number for instant messaging in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, user interface  900  includes the following elements, or a subset or superset thereof:
           402 ,  404 ,  406 ,  602 , and  624 , as described above;   Cancel icon  902  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates transfer back to the previous UI (e.g., UI  800 A or UI  800 B);   Save icon  904  that when activated (e.g., by a finger gesture on the icon) initiates saving the entered phone number in the instant messages conversation list (e.g., UI  500 ) and displaying a UI to compose an instant message to be sent to the entered phone number (e.g., UI  600 A); and   Number entry box  906  for entering the phone number using keyboard  624 .       

     Note that the keyboard displayed may depend on the application context. For example, the UI displays a soft keyboard with numbers (e.g.,  624 ) when numeric input is needed or expected. The UI displays a soft keyboard with letters (e.g.,  616 ) when letter input is needed or expected. 
     The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20200224
Publication Date: 20211109
Grant Date: 20211109
Priority Date: 20060906
Inventors: 
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04L51/216", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72403", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06Q10/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/2747", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/70", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72466", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04842", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/22", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04847", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72436", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/04", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0482", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/70", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/27475", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/043", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06Q10/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/27475", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0482", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72436", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0488", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04817", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0488", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/2747", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72466", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72403", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/22", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/12", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/04", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/017", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/12", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0487", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04817", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/12", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0488", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72466", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0487", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/017", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04842", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04847", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/04", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/043", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0482", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72436", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06Q10/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04L51/16", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72403", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/70", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/2747", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M2250/22", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/27475", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 39092723