Method and system for prioritization of email items by selectively associating priority attribute with at least one and fewer than all of the recipients

US5694616A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• International Business Machines Corporation · US

Inventors

• William J. Johnson · Flower Mound, US
• Owen Wayne Weber · Coppell, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 30, 1994
• Grant date: Dec 2, 1997
• Expiry date: Dec 30, 2014

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G06Q10/107
• WIPO field: IT methods for management
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

A method and system are provided for prioritization of the display order of received mail items. In one embodiment, the invention associates a priority sorting attribute with a first email item, sorts an inbasket list of email items by any priority sorting attribute associated with any email item in the inbasket list, said inbasket list including a listing for the first email item, and displays at least a portion of the sorted inbasket list in the sorted order. The priority sorting attribute may be associated with the first email item by either the sender or the receiver of the first email item. A priority sorting attribute may be associated by the sender with some but not all of the intended recipients of the first email item and the priority sorting attribute will then be associated with the first email item only as it is sent to those recipients with whom the priority sorting attribute has been associated.