Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Shelly D Farnham

Lili Cheng

Andrzej Turski

William L Portnoy

Jordan L K Schwartz

David P Vronay

Scott Joseph Counts

Sean U Kelly

Richard F Rashid

Cezary Antoni Marcjan

Joel K Grossman

Randall Knight Winjum

Brian D Wentz

Oliver C Lee

Quji Guo

Christopher J Araman

William B Fulton

Pedram Keyani

Bruce Phillips

Keith Steury

Jens Riegelsberger

Scott Lee Tiernan

A unique system and method that facilitates group-based mobile communication around external feed content is provided. The system and method involve adding external feed content to content generated within a group. Both types of content can be viewed on the mobile devices of the group. Updates to the feed content can be obtained and communicated to the group. When multiple feeds are subscribed to by a group, one or more group members can display such feed content in a selective manner. For example, splinter groups can be formed off of the original group for members who wish to receive a subset of feeds (feed content) to assist them in focusing on a topic of interest. Group members can also employ display filters to restrict feed content displayed on their mobile devices. Users can also search for available feeds and form new groups around such content or join an existing group.

Implicit group formation around feed content for mobile devices

A computer system models human memory by deriving associations between objects, events, and the context of the computer user or users. These associations can be dynamically generated, changing depending on the behavior of the user and context. Examples of areas in which this system can be used include time management (e.g., a calendar that presents time-based groupings of objects), people management (e.g., use analysis of user communications to rank importance of people to the user, groupings, and associations between people/groups and other objects such as documents, email), and general computer management (e.g., use analysis of user behavior to identify important objects and objects that are related to a current focus and context of the computer user).

Computer system architecture for automatic context associations

The subject invention provides a unique system and method that facilitates contact- or people-based organization of messages. A list of contacts can be generated based on the people or groups who have communicated with the user (mailbox owner) via email or otherwise. To view desired messages, a user can select one or more contacts that participated in the desired messages as either a recipient or sender. Following the selection, messages between the selected contacts and the user can be displayed in a window. Any items or information shared in the messages can be viewed in a separate window. A link can be maintained between any shared item and its message of origin. The user can also view messages that include third parties. The contact list is dynamic and due to limited display space, contacts communicating the most frequently with the user can be listed on a top level.

People-centric view of email

A method, computer readable medium, user component, and system for sharing media object in a network environment are disclosed. A network manager may determine a similarity metric between users of the environment, between media objects, and/or between a user and media objects. Based upon the similarity metric, the network manager may share media objects with another user if the similarity metric exceeds a predetermined value or is more similar than other retrieved media objects. A user component may also provide a network map manager to display a network map, and may provide a tailored view manager to display a web log associated with at least one of the user icons displayed in the network map.

Sharing media objects in a network

Social information, including computer communication information, is modeled according to a network approach, and users are provided with representations of patterns within their social spaces and graphical interface tools for navigating through the spaces. This can enhance the user's ability to seek out social information and manage their online social relationships. The social mapping includes automatically collecting computer communication information relating to multiple contacts who are in computer communication with each other, one of the multiple contacts being a selected user. The computer communication information is filtered according to one or more preselected criteria to maintain the number of contacts associated with the selected user at or below a selected threshold. The computer communication information is analyzed to determine extents of similarity between the multiple contacts. A visualization of a social map based upon the extents of similarity between the multiple contacts is rendering on a computer display screen so that a user can access and navigate information represented in the social map visualization.

Social mapping of contacts from computer communication information

A method and system for accumulating data to match and matching a user, based upon a play style and/or personal attribute, in an online gaming environment is described. One aspect of the invention provides a matchmaking system that matches players based upon a play style of the players. The system matches players who are looking for games with players who prefer similar play styles. Similarly the system can match players based upon a personal attribute of the player. The system can be built into existing general skill level and technical capabilities based matchmaking systems to provide more user desired matchmaking parameters, allowing a user to choose based upon play style, personal attribute, general skill level, and/or technical capabilities.

Method for online game matchmaking using play style information

Architecture that facilitates generation of an event report that is an aggregation of public and private data related to a specific task. Information about the event is automatically compiled, including the recipients, URLs, shares, attachments, and documents, as well as location maps and social relationships. The report can be a one-page document that summarizes topics of a meeting or event, the attendees, how the attendees relate, their motivations, and what the attendees may be looking for from the meeting. The report can be formatted to structure event information in a certain way such as according to a company organizational chart, such that an attendee that is higher up on the org chart will be presented on the report higher than someone who is lower on the org chart. Moreover, attendees can be grouped according to functions, or social groupings or project groups, for example.

Instant meeting preparation architecture

A method identifies components associated with a first end point in an environment, such as a social environment. The method further identifies components associated with a second end point in the environment. A determination is made regarding whether any of the identified components are associated with both the first end point and the second end point. The method then displays relationships between the first end point, the second end point, and any components associated with both the first end point and the second end point.

Identification of relationships in an environment

Systems and methods for establishing a shared dynamic content experience are disclosed. A method for sharing a dynamic content experience according to the invention includes an inviter computer communicating, via a first communication path between an invitee computer and a network based communication server, an invitation to establish a shared dynamic content experience between the inviter computer and the invitee computer. If the invitation is accepted, a content sharing communication path is established between the inviter computer and the invitee computer. Information relating to a current dynamic content experience at the inviter computer is communicated, via the content sharing communication path, to the invitee computer. Information relating to a current dynamic content experience at the invitee computer is communicated, via the content sharing communication path, to the inviter computer.

Systems and methods for sharing dynamic content among a plurality of online co-users

Disclosed is a unique system and method that facilitate group communication using SMS text messaging and a plurality of SMS based commands. More specifically, the system and method make use of mobile communication devices such as mobile or cellular phones, smart phones, and/or PDAs which are equipped with SMS capabilities. Communication within a group of users can be accomplished in part by creating a text message and sending it to at least one communication server by way of at least one common access number. The communication server can analyze the message to determine the recipient group and broadcast the message to the members of the group in real-time or near real-time. Groups can be user-defined and managed dynamically by users using either a website interface or a mobile communication device interface at any time or anywhere. The communication server can be a suitably equipped mobile communication device or a separate server can be employed.

Command based group SMS with mobile message receiver and server

Systems and methodologies are provided for data visualization, retrieval and management of a logically ordered list by a selective multi level expansion of pivot point data. Such pivot points can represent hierarchy expansion designators to a subsequent level, which can include user created groups/clusters of data. The present invention facilitates data management by advantageously combining; the logical order of data with relevance criteria that can indicate importance of the data to a user. The logical order of the data can be a user friendly order that is easily recognizable and independent of the relevance criteria.

Selective multi level expansion of data base via pivot point data

Social information, including computer communication information, is modeled according to a network approach, and users are provided with representations of patterns within their social spaces and graphical interface tools for navigating through the spaces. This can enhance the user's ability to seek out social information and manage their online social relationships. The social mapping includes automatically collecting computer communication information relating to multiple contacts who are in computer communication with each other, one of the multiple contacts being a selected user. The computer communication information is filtered according to one or more preselected criteria to maintain the number of contacts associated with the selected user at or below a selected threshold. The computer communication information is analyzed to determine extents of similarity between the multiple contacts. A visualization of a social map based upon the extents of similarity between the multiple contacts is rendered on a computer display screen so that a user can access and navigate information represented in the social map visualization.

Growing community of inventors

Seattle, WA, United States of America

Shelly D Farnham