CN1829161B - System and method for remotely configuring desktop computer mailboxes - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention refers to system and method for postbox manager of long-distance configured table type computer. It contains long-distance table type computer controller set mobile node in wireless network, table type computer postbox manager set at home node. Need reconfiguration, long-distance table type computer controller generates a reconfiguration messages, said reconfiguration messages addressed and transmitting to home node. Establishing network connections and reconfiguration messages is transmitted. Web server concerned with base station utilizes a feasible gateway to route messages to home side server concerned with node, and communicated with network through mobile node. Before home node establishing communication, messages is stored on server, then messages downloading to home node and reconfigured on table type computer manager.

Description

System and method for remotely configuring desktop computer mailboxes

technical field

The present invention relates generally to the field of mobile network data communications, and more particularly to a system and method for allowing a user of a handheld mobile device to remotely configure desktop computer mailbox settings.

Background technique

Information can now be exchanged in ways that were not possible, or at least not practical, just not so long ago. Furthermore, these new forms of communication are becoming accessible to most of the world, not just a relatively small number of scientists and engineers.

One popular form of modern communication is electronic mail. Electronic mail, or email for short, begins with the transmission of short text messages back and forth between different users connected to a mainframe computer. Due to the gradual development of computer systems, large computers were replaced by small computers connected together to form a network. Thus, each user has a real computer instead of a display terminal. Although most of these special-purpose computers are smaller than mainframes, the total computing power actually increases with the evolution from centralized to distributed computing systems. A network allows its different member computers to share computing resources and memory and, of course, to exchange electronic mail. "User-friendly" e-mail applications (programs) have been developed to allow them to use with little training. Email is rapidly becoming a popular form of communication.

Figure 1 is an example of a personal computer (PC) 100, such as the kind that can be used to send and receive electronic mail messages. PC 100 includes computer 105 and monitor 110. In this example, the computer 105 is the housing for all of the internal workings of the PC 100 (not shown) and provides a number of connection ports (also not shown) for hooking up different peripheral devices . An important peripheral device is the monitor 110, which includes a display 115 that provides a visual user interface. The monitor 110 also houses the electronic components necessary to produce a viewable image on the display 115 of the information provided by the computer 105 . This information is provided via a cable 120, which connects the two aforementioned components. For example, a user can view on the display 115 email messages that have been received, as well as email messages that are being edited to be sent.

Another user interface to the PC 100 is the keyboard 125, which is actually a collection of toggle switches that are modeled on a typewriter keyboard. Keys 130 of keyboard 125 are used to type text, such as email, or to enter information into computer 105 . For this purpose, the keyboard 125 is connected to the computer 105 by a cable 135 . As described below, in a communication network, PC 100 can be used as a home node in connection with receiving electronic mail, as a remote reconfigured desktop computer manager according to one embodiment of the present invention. First, however, the general process of sending and receiving electronic mail will be explained to provide a background for the present invention.

As mentioned above, there was a time when e-mail was restricted to government agencies or corporate environments. Distributed computing enables widespread computer access, but connections to other machines outside the computer system are generally limited. This situation is changing with the advent of widely distributed Internet access. The Internet is a global communication network of many computer networks that communicate with each other using a common communication protocol. The Internet was originally developed as a military technology and as a means for universities and research institutions to share information and computing resources. Eventually, however, ordinary people were allowed to use the Internet. An Internet Service Provider (ISP) ultimately installs servers connected to the Internet through which ordinary consumers can access resources available on the Internet. The development of the World Wide Web has made it easy for users to access more of these resources, especially with newly developed web browsing programs. Email users are no longer limited to sending messages within their own computer systems. Better e-mail applications made it easier for slightly trained users to compose and send e-mail, and e-mail became ubiquitous.

Email (or other communication services for that matter) users are often referred to as subscribers because they subscribe to a network that provides the Internet access they need. Herein, the terms user and subscriber are used interchangeably. When a user wishes to send e-mail to another user, the process is usually very easy as long as the address of the intended recipient is known. Using any of a number of widely available email applications, the user typically selects the "new mail" option simply by "clicking" on a suitable graphical user interface (GUI). The user is then prompted with a template including fields for entering the desired recipient address, a short subject and the message itself. Of course, an address is necessary, but it can be filled in with reference to an address book. An address book is a list of names and e-mail addresses and possibly other information such as telephone and fax numbers. The address book may also include additional information, such as the capabilities of the user's email device, or a preferred or mandatory format for incoming email (which may or may not be visible to the address book owner). This latter message is valid because while emails can be simple text files, they can also include still and even animated images. Of course, the aforementioned emails need not be sent to users who lack the devices to display them.

If the recipient's address is not known, but if the recipient also uses the same network to send e-mail, the sender can discover the recipient's address through directories accessible to him on the same network. In many cases, companies and other organizations may publicly or selectively list their employees or members on websites. The email address listed on the web page could itself be a GUI, selecting it to launch a new email template that already includes the recipient's name in the appropriate field.

Emails can, and usually are, sent to more than one recipient. Email templates can hold almost any number of addresses, and can often sort them by whether they are recipients or CCs. (As in the case of pen and ink, the "cc" of a message is essentially the same as the original text, but the distinction is made to include some implicit intent by the sender to include a particular recipient). In many cases, the sender can choose whether an individual recipient will be able to see the list of all recipients, although designating someone as a "blind" CC usually means that his name will not be published to others .

Regardless of how it is initiated, a complete email message is sent by triggering an appropriate GUI, the message including one or more destination addresses, a body text, and usually an optional subject. Assuming network access is available, this will cause the email to be delivered immediately. Users often have other options, including storing the e-mail to edit and send later, or indicating that the e-mail will be sent at a specific time or when a specified event occurs. If network access is not available, an access attempt may be automatically initiated, or the user may be informed that email cannot be sent at that time.

Once an e-mail is sent by a user, it is received by the relevant server, and the mail is then delivered in the direction of the server used by the recipient as indicated by the address basis. On the recipient's server, the message is usually stored until it is downloaded to the actual user device where it can be read, or until some other specified event occurs. How quickly the mail is downloaded often depends on the type of Internet connection available to the recipient.

For those recipients connected by means of a dial-up connection, the communication with the server occurs over a regular telephone line, and e-mail cannot be downloaded until connected. Users are increasingly using a form of high-speed connection that can be continuously online. In this configuration, e-mail typically performs downloads automatically on a periodic basis. Once it is downloaded, a readable email appears on the user's device.

Another new form of communication using wireless telephony has also become popular. Simply put, a radiotelephone is a portable radio device (transceiver) equipped with a standard telephone keypad, which can be used to place and receive calls via an appropriate radiotelephone network. The network typically includes a network of fixedly positioned antennas for communicating with the radiotelephones. These antennas are located throughout the network coverage so that the wireless telephone is always within a short distance (within coverage) of one or more antennas. This arrangement allows communication over the air interface at relatively low power, which not only reduces the battery capacity required for radios, but also allows channel frequencies to be used for multiple network transmissions as long as they are not too dense. The area delimited by the communication range of an antenna is called a cell, which gives rise to the common name "cellular telephone" or simply "cell phone".

Cellular telephones have become available for receiving voice and data communications. However, for a number of reasons, email transmissions did not move immediately to cellular networks. One reason is that, to some extent, cellular telephones were already in common use among the general public long before the use of e-mail became popular outside the closed government office environment. More importantly, however, cellular networks are not readily suitable for sending e-mail messages to mobile users. Sending (mail) via a network that is more suitable for audio communication is somewhat difficult, another factor is that some mobile phones commonly used by users have LED or LCD displays that can display up to one group of phone numbers at a time.

However, mobile users of cell phones desire to be able to receive e-mail while away from home or office. One solution comes in the form of handheld mobile devices that can more easily accommodate voice and e-mail forms of communication via a dedicated network. FIG. 2 is an example of a handheld mobile device 200 that can be used for email and audio communications. The handheld mobile device 200 includes a display 205, such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), which is capable of displaying not only lines of text, but also graphic images. Keypad 210 includes alphanumeric keys 215 and call control keys 220 for entering text messages and starting and ending wireless calls, respectively. The scroll key 225 is a thumb-scroll wheel for manipulating images on the display 205 . The function keys 230 perform various operations depending on the state the handheld device 200 is currently in. Each prompted word or icon adjacent to a function key 230 on the display 205 is used to indicate the current function of those keys. Operations performed by actuating any one of the function keys 230 are typically displayed on the display 205 . Speaker 240 and microphone 235 are used for audio communication.

The handheld mobile device 200 may also have other functions. Following the example of similar applications developed for PCs, some personal organizer programs have been incorporated into small electronic devices that can be used to manage and display appointment calendars, address books and similar functions. Such devices, commonly referred to as personal digital assistants (PDAs), may use a display screen and keypad on a handheld mobile device, such as mobile device 200 . But, despite having all these functions, handheld device 200 cannot completely replace PC 100. In order to remain mobile, its display and keyboard must be limited in size, and therefore, not necessarily convenient to use.

But being able to use two of these two devices in combination has a huge advantage. For example, the PC 100 is installed in a fixed location, such as a user's home or office, to send and receive e-mail, and possibly to store the user's organizer data, such as appointment calendars and address books. The user carries the handheld device 200 when he is not in a fixed location and can use the same functionality. Emails addressed to the user are selectively forwarded to the handheld device 200 so that the email can be read immediately. The same organizer data as saved on the PC 100 is also saved on the handheld device 200, and the two devices are connected from time to time to synchronize the data. Because of the way these two devices work together, it is also convenient to connect them from time to time via a communication network. When this happens, PC 100 can be considered a network home node, and handheld device 200 can be considered a network mobile node.

As will be explained in more detail below, the PC 100 includes not only applications for receiving e-mails, but also applications for managing e-mails. Manage emails, including storing them in an organized manner and selectively forwarding them to handheld mobile device 200 (or other addresses). Before the user leaves the fixed location where the PC 100 is installed, the user can set certain parameters for performing these functions. However, there are times when the user may wish to change the desktop computer settings before returning to the PC 100 itself. One solution is disclosed in US Patent No. 6,219,694 issued April 17, 2001 to Lazaridis et al. Lazaridis teaches a system and method for pushing information, such as email messages, from a host system to a mobile node upon the occurrence of a trigger event. This function can be assigned from the host, or from the mobile communication device. A "preference table" can be established so that the host system only pushes emails from certain senders to the mobile device. This preference list can also be triggered, revoked or changed from the host system itself or by commands sent from the mobile device.

International (PCT) Patent Application WO 97/33421, published September 12, 1997, discloses a similar operating system in more detail. This application, filed by Bell Communications, discloses a network for direct communication of various messages, such as e-mail, fax and voice mail, and a method for allowing users to update instructions to perform these functions. Transfer instructions are stored in user-identified "files" and can be modified in a number of ways. In one aspect, the user calls the central server using a touch tone telephone and changes these functions by entering key commands as voicemail greetings. The user can in fact download said chart from the PDA, edit it, and upload it to the server, where it is saved.

However, there is a need to reconfigure the home node manager from a mobile handset in a more comprehensive and efficient manner. The present invention provides exactly one such solution.

Contents of the invention

The present invention seeks to provide a way of using a mobile node, such as a handheld device operable in a cellular communication network, for remotely reconfiguring the desktop computer settings of a home node. In one aspect, the present invention is a system comprising: a reconfiguration message generator for generating reconfiguration messages indicating those changes that a user of a mobile node wishes to make to the configuration of a home node desktop computer; The computer manager and selectively coupled to the home node reconfiguration message processor of the communication network for changing the configuration of the desktop computer in accordance with the reconfiguration message received from the mobile node. In one embodiment, the reconfiguration message generator resides in the mobile node, and reconfiguration messages are transmitted at the user's request. Here the mobile node includes a transaction manager database that can be synchronized with the home node transaction manager database over the communication network, and the reconfiguration message can also be transmitted along with the transaction manager synchronization data.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method of remotely configuring a desktop computer manager at a home node of a communication network includes the steps of: enabling the desktop computer manager for remote reconfiguration; the mobile node; generate a reconfiguration message; send the reconfiguration message to the home node via the communication network; receive and process the reconfiguration message in the home node; and send a reconfiguration confirmation message to the mobile node, confirming that the requested change has been completed . The method may also include the steps of: requesting the home node to generate and send a configuration status summary; receiving the configuration status summary in the mobile node; and displaying the configuration status summary on a display of the mobile node, so that the user using the mobile node can Know the current configuration of Desktop Manager before requesting any changes. The configuration state summary can also be automatically included in the reconfiguration acknowledgment message so that it can be stored on the mobile node for future reference. Reconfiguration messages can be generated by the mobile node itself, or by a server in communication with the Internet after sending an interactive web page to the mobile device and receiving back a transmission including an indication of the changes the user wishes to perform.

In yet another embodiment, the present invention is a handheld mobile device operable to communicate with one or more home nodes via a communication network, including a reconfiguration message generator for generating a reconfiguration message to The instructions provided in the configuration message request the home node to reconfigure the desktop manager settings. The mobile handset may also include a configuration status summary request generator for determining the current configuration of the home node desktop manager prior to generating the reconfiguration message. In another embodiment, the handheld mobile device may also include a browser for interacting with the web site to determine the desktop manager configuration status and generate a reconfiguration message.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 shows a personal computer (PC), such as may act as a home node and include a desktop manager that may be remotely reconfigured, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a handheld device such as a desktop computer manager that can act as a mobile node and can be used to remotely reconfigure a home node, such as the PC shown in FIG. 1 , according to one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 3a is an example of the PC display shown in Figure 1, showing an exemplary email screen display that may appear on that device. Figure 3b is an example of the handheld device display shown in Figure 2, showing an exemplary email screen display that may appear on that device.

Figure 4 is a simplified block diagram illustrating communication network selection components suitable for use in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustrating selected internal components of the handheld device of FIG. 2 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for remotely configuring a home node desktop computer manager according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for remotely configuring a home node desktop computer manager according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed ways

The present invention relates to a method of remotely reconfiguring a mailbox manager for a desktop computer. This system and method is of particular advantage in an environment where a particular user uses the home node as the origin location to send and receive e-mail messages, and to fill out and review appointment calendars as part of a desktop computer organizer application surface. A home node is typically a personal computer (PC), and may actually be located at a user's home, work, school, or other location. A mobile node is used by a user when on the move or away from the location of the home node. A mobile node is convenient because of its portability, but, for this reason, typically its user interface, such as a display and keyboard, is much smaller than that of a PC. The mobile device of FIG. 1 may, for example, have a keyboard that is less than one-tenth the size of PC keyboard 125 (shown in FIG. 1 ).

The handheld mobile device 200 of FIG. 2 is also preferably capable of performing some email and organizer functions, but using a smaller size application program more suited to it. For example, the display screen 205 of the mobile device 200 may present many lines of text, but is by no means suitable for displaying large amounts of information or animated graphic images. However, it is still very useful for users who wish to plan events, or read and reply to short e-mail messages, especially when away from the home node PC location.

Figure 3a is an example of the PC 100 display screen 115 shown in Figure 1, showing an exemplary email screen display that may appear on that device. Figure 3b is an example of the display screen 205 of the handheld mobile device 200 shown in Figure 2, showing an exemplary email screen display that may appear on that device. From FIGS. 3 a and 3 b it is evident that more information can be presented on the large PC display 115 than on the smaller display 205 . While its mobility is important, the handheld device 200 is not very convenient when encountering a large amount of e-mails as on the PC 100.

When on the PC 100, the email application on the PC allows the user to compose and send email messages. Accordingly, an email application program on the recipient's computer allows the user to receive and read email messages. Of course, almost all of the above programs are capable of sending and receiving. However, the sending and receiving applications do not need to operate identically as long as they use a protocol that each can understand.

An indication is usually provided to the user in some fashion when email is received. The user may then decide to browse the list of emails provided on the display screen, commonly referred to as the inbox. A typical inbox, such as inbox 117 shown in Figure 3a, lists individual received messages by time and date of receipt, (alleged) sender identification and subject. The inbox display will usually indicate which of the listed messages have already been opened for reading. Other information may also be displayed, such as a priority flag or an indication of whether a reply to the message has been sent.

Opening a message typically involves selecting, pointing at, or highlighting the message, and indicating in some way that the user wishes to read the message, such as by clicking a mouse button or pressing the enter key. Then, provide a separate window on or next to the inbox in which to display the complete e-mail message. When the inbox list or the read messages are too long, it may be necessary for the user to scroll or turn to consecutive windows for convenient display. Note that email applications can automatically open messages when they are received, although this is certainly inconvenient given the amount of email most modern users receive.

In fact, the volume of emails received can be so large that it is difficult to keep track of them. These emails can show up in one inbox, but it doesn't take long for the inbox to get very long. And not all emails are of equal importance or interest. As such, it may be difficult to find an e-mail that a user wants to save and come back to later. Some inboxes allow users to sort email lists, for example by sender. However, related emails may not be from the same people, so this is not always the best solution. One approach that has evolved is to divide the inbox into folders. The main folder can contain all incoming mail, read and unread. Subfolders can be provided by the application, or created by the user who may want to separate work-related email from those related to church or school events, or from those from family members. An exemplary folder list 118 is shown in Figure 3a. The user can then move emails from one folder to another by using click and drag or some similar action. Moving an e-mail does not involve its actual location, but the list in which it will be displayed. Users can select a folder to view the listed e-mails that have been moved there. In a hierarchical fashion, subfolders can be further divided into sub-subfolders and so on.

Sometimes emails can be automatically moved from one folder to another without having to be specified by the user one by one. As an example, emails that have been opened for reading can be sent to a "read mail" folder, or they can be sent after they have been kept in the inbox for a selected number of days. As another example, emails may be sorted by download, with high priority or urgent emails being placed in one folder and low priority emails being placed in another folder. Emails can also be automatically placed in specific folders based on sender or subject. The criteria for automatically sorting e-mails into different folders can be default criteria set in the application, or can be specified by the user.

Automatic placement of e-mails in different folders according to certain criteria is referred to herein as a feature of desktop computer e-mail managers. The Email Manager can be viewed as a single program module, or can be distributed among a number of different modules that cooperate to perform the functions of the Email Manager. Here, for convenience, email managers will be considered as separate entities in each node. The functionality of the email manager will now be described. Note, however, that this description is exemplary and the precise functionality of the application may vary from application to application.

As mentioned above, a user may receive an extremely large number of e-mails. Additionally, e-mail is now bound to contain a lot of content and can represent an important piece of communication. Certain e-mails are commercial and may constitute a unique record of the transaction. Others are entertainment, but keeping them is still the receiver's expectation. On the other hand, some email messages are unwanted for some reason. Perhaps they contain nothing more than an unsolicited offer that the recipient is not interested in. Some can even include harmful computer programs called viruses, sent maliciously. Others are nothing more than routine and of little value. Email managers help categorize and arrange email to allow users to more easily save (and later find) those that are more needed and discard those that are not.

When email is received, it is checked by the email manager to see which of the selected criteria it matches. These criteria can be preset, but are more valuable when tuned to the user's needs and tastes. After checking, the e-mail manager will arrange the e-mail according to the instructions related to this standard. Emails can be categorized as described above. The e-mail may also be deleted if it purports to be from a named user from whom the user does not wish to receive e-mail. Optionally, only emails from acceptable users are delivered to the email inbox. If for some reason the delivery does not occur, the e-mail manager can generate a message back to the sender informing them that the delivery failed. Sometimes messages can also be specified to be displayed to the user.

When the e-mail manager determines whether an e-mail is fully delivered, this function may be referred to as filtering. Filters typically allow or deny delivery based on the identity of the sender, the server from which the e-mail originated, the subject, or other characteristics of the e-mail. Filters do not detect viruses themselves, but can attempt to thwart their reception by dropping messages from unknown sources. Note that actions of the desktop email manager can be performed conditional on receipt of mail, or in some cases can be performed in the future, such as delivering read emails after a selected period of time has expired to the archive folder. ,.

In the context of the present invention, the desktop email manager can also be used to determine which emails addressed to the user should also be forwarded to the mobile node. Of course, emails can also be forwarded to other addresses, or to more than one address. As noted above, the size limitations of the mobile handset 200 may make it inconvenient to handle the large volumes of emails that can be handled on home node devices such as the PC 100. A desktop email manager, for example, may be configured to send only work-related emails, or those related to a single project, or those from a sender or senders, to the mobile node. Of course, at present, these parameters can be established when the user is at the home node location and has access to the desktop computer manager of the PC 100 (or other home node device). However, factors affecting the choice of forwarding parameters (and other email manager settings) can be changed before the mobile user returns to the home node. For this reason, the present invention provides remote reconfiguration.

Before describing the steps for long range reconfiguration, the entire network used for communication between the home node and the mobile node will be reviewed. Figure 4 is a simplified block diagram illustrating selected components of a communications network 400 suitable for use in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. Note that Figure 4 is an exemplary network and other configurations may be used as long as they are compatible with the systems and methods described herein. In FIG. 4, PC 100 forms a home node and mobile handset 200 forms a mobile node. Note that in the context of the present invention, the terms home node and mobile node describe the respective functions of these devices and do not require the use of specific devices. In some networks, the two exemplified devices may even switch functions, although there is no apparent advantage in doing so.

In the embodiment of FIG. 4 , PC 100 communicates with Internet 450 via server 410. Of course, this connection is used for e-mail and for any other Internet-related communication, such as surfing the web. Because it is mobile, handheld device 200 communicates with wireless network antennas using wireless channels. As previously mentioned, there are typically many such antennas distributed over a wide area such that the handheld device 200 is always within communication range. In FIG. 4 , device 200 is in communication with radio frequency access network (RAN) 460 via air interface channel 470 using proximate antenna 462 and base station controller 472 . If mobile handset 200 is relocated, communication therewith may be switched to one of antennas 464 or 466, respectively, which operate in conjunction with base station controller 474 or 476, respectively. Although only three antennas are shown in Figure 4, there may be and usually are many more.

Via the RAN 460, the mobile handset 200 is capable of communicating with and over the Internet 450. Gateway 440 provides the interconnection between the two networks and is responsible for implementing any necessary changes in the format or packaging of the transmitted data. The handheld device 200 can use this Internet connection to send reconfiguration communications to the home node PC 100. As will be explained in more detail below, the reconfiguration messages are generated only in the handheld device 200 itself or in conjunction with the server 485, including the website provided to facilitate this.

In one embodiment, the mobile communication device 200 includes a transaction manager function for managing data stored in the internal memory device. FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustrating selected internal components of a handheld device 200 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The device 200 is a wireless mobile device and is provided with a transmitter circuit 510 and a receiver circuit 520 which can use an antenna 515 for transmitting and receiving, respectively. The various internal components of device 200 work under the direction of controller 505 . Note that while one controller is shown in FIG. 5, there may be multiple separate controllers for performing operations related to the present invention. Transaction manager 530 as described above organizes certain application-related information stored in storage device 525 . Stored manager information may be entered by a user at mobile handset 200 or may be received there via receiving circuitry 520 . (Other input means may also be used, such as a temporary cable connection to the PC 100 (not shown))))))))))).

Manager 530 combines with storage device 525 to form a manager database. There is preferably also a corresponding transaction manager database (not shown) on PC 100 which also keeps track of transaction manager related information for users. The two databases can be synchronized so that information that is added, deleted or changed on one node can be updated on the other node. Of course, more than one mobile node and home node could be used for this purpose, but only two are illustrated in Figure 4 for simplicity. A synchronization message generator 545 may be used for synchronization messages for the purpose of synchronizing the two databases. (Again, a corresponding message generator is not shown in PC 100).

When a synchronization message is generated, it may be communicated via air interface 470 and RAN 460 to enterprise server 480, which includes synchronization server 485 (shown in FIG. 4 ). In the illustrated embodiment, the synchronization server 485 includes a number of functions related to synchronization operations performed by the PC 100 via the server 410. (Again, communication paths and server functions and locations may vary from embodiment to embodiment).

Instead of communicating with server 410 via the Internet 450, the handheld device may send reconfiguration messages generated by reconfiguration message generator 550 (shown in FIG. 5 ), along with synchronization messages sent by enterprise server 480 . This has the advantage in coordinating the two functions, which can be performed periodically or automatically under user direction. Of course, the functions of one can be performed without the other, if desired.

Returning to Figure 5, also included in the handheld device 200 is a configuration status request generator 535 for generating configuration status request messages, as will be explained in more detail below. Finally, a unique identifier 565 is also housed in the device 200 and can be included in any of the messages sent to verify its origin.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for remotely configuring a home node desktop computer manager according to one embodiment of the present invention. This method is considered from the user's perspective. At the outset, it is assumed that a user is equipped with a home node, such as the PC of FIG. 1 , and a mobile node, such as the handheld communication device of FIG. 2 . Of course, these are not the only such devices that can be used in accordance with the method of the present invention. It is further assumed that when the mobile device is at a remote location, the two devices can communicate with each other via a communication network, although they could also communicate with each other at close range, for example via a USB cable.

In most cases, the user will configure the desktop manager (step 605) residing on the home node, especially when working on that device, as this is probably the easiest way. As noted above, the user may also accept any default settings that have been provided if they are appropriate. However, users often want to set up the configuration just before leaving the home node location, because at that time the settings can be made based on the then-current environment. In some cases, no remote access or reconfiguration is required, at least not until the user returns. However, for various reasons, the need for remote reconfiguration does often arise. The user may just walk away without remembering to properly configure the desktop computer manager. Or the environment may have changed, eg a particular item has become a higher priority or a lower priority. Users may simply have changed their minds.

Regardless of the exact reason for reconfiguration, in most cases the user will request a desktop computer manager configuration status check (step 610) by using the mobile node. The request is sent via the communication network and received by the home node. The home node responds by returning a configuration status summary, which is received in the mobile node (step 615) and presented to the user (step 620). The status check confirms to the user the current status of the Desktop Manager settings. In one embodiment, the status check (step 610) is optional because the user in many cases already knows the current configuration well or does not care about the current configuration. In another embodiment, a state check (step 610) is required so that the user does not inadvertently change the configuration to an undesired state. In yet another embodiment, a status check (step 610) is only required when some type of change is being made to an existing configuration.

Assuming at this point that the user wishes to proceed with reconfiguration, the user launches a reconfiguration application resident on the mobile node (step 625). The purpose of this application is to allow the user to generate a message for transmission back to the home node. The user then indicates the changes to be made to the existing configuration file (step 630). For efficiency, it is preferable that the reconfiguration messages to be generated include only changes to the desktop computer manager, rather than a complete reconfiguration (step not shown). At this point, the user can review the changes that have been indicated, and preferably be able to make any necessary changes to the reconfiguration message before sending it. When the reconfiguration message is satisfactory to the user, it is transmitted to the home node via the communication network (step 635).

In a preferred embodiment, when the home node actually responds to the reconfiguration message to reconfigure the home node desktop manager, it sends an acknowledgment message, and when the mobile node receives the acknowledgment message (step 640), it notifies the user to reconfigure Configuration is complete.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method 700 for remotely configuring a home node desktop computer manager according to one embodiment of the present invention. The approach of Figure 7 is considered from the perspective of the home node, but it is noted that it is not necessarily fully interrelated with the approaches of the other embodiments presented here. However, at the outset, it is also assumed that the user is equipped with a home node, such as the PC of FIG. 1 , and a mobile node, such as the handheld communication device of FIG. 2 . At step 705, the home node desktop manager is configured using the home node device itself. Next, mobile reconfiguration is initiated (step 710). This security feature strives to ensure that reconfigurations cannot be performed intentionally or accidentally without the user's permission. This is of course unnecessary. When designing a desktop computer, it can be set by default whether to take security precautions against mobile reconfiguration. In the embodiment of FIG. 7, assuming a secured desktop computer, the user establishes a password that will be required for remote reconfiguration (step 715). In one embodiment, without submitting the established password, no further reconfiguration of the desktop manager (using any node) is allowed at all. Other security means may also be used, such as specifying that a reconfiguration message is only to be performed if it is received from an identifiable device or devices (step not shown). And of course, security devices can be designed to allow certain changes while restricting others.

The process is then dormant until a reconfiguration message is received (step 720) and the password (or other security means) accompanying the message is checked (step 725). If the security check indicates that the message is correct, the reconfiguration requested in the message may be compared to the current configuration to determine that the requested change can or should actually be performed (step 730). Note that this step may be useful for several reasons. A user may have inadvertently requested changes that are logically inconsistent with the current unchanged settings, and performing the requested reconfiguration will lead to unpredictable results. For example, it may happen that some changes cannot be performed by request from the mobile device, and the reconfiguration message contains changes that can and cannot be performed. In another situation, the reconfiguration request may not "fit" the current configuration in some way. The requested change may attempt to change those settings that already exist, and the settings may or may not match the mobile user's intent.

After comparing the reconfiguration message with the current configuration (step 730), the home device may send an acknowledgment message to the mobile device indicating the result of the comparison (step 735). This is of course more important in the event that changes cannot be made, or at least some reason has arisen to request reconfirmation (step not shown), but the message sent may also indicate that the comparison of step 730 found no problems. The requested reconfiguration is then performed (740), and a confirmation message is then transmitted to the mobile device (step 745). The confirmation message of step 745 may include a summary of the configuration at that time and the current configuration, which may be stored on the mobile node for later reference.

Two embodiments of the messaging portion of the invention will now be described. In a first embodiment, the mobile unit includes a personal digital assistant (PDA) and can be used for organizer functions, such as maintaining a calendar, address book, to-do list, etc., which can be associated with the home node Information management modules are kept in sync. For example the time of an event, a new appointment, or a contact phone number can be updated by the user on only one node. The mobile node can then run a process sometimes referred to as PIM synchronization, in which the home node and the mobile node can compare information, record some differences, and perform updates so that both databases have the most current information. (The rules for updating can themselves be tuned in such a way that "recent entry" is not the only criterion for deciding which of the databases to update). PIM synchronization can be performed automatically at the user's request or periodically, provided of course that the mobile node is within range of an appropriate base station antenna.

In this environment, the user operating the mobile node can simply indicate some changes that need to be made to the desktop manager of the home node, during which the combined reconfiguration message can be sent to the home node along with another PIM synchronization message. Of course, the reconfiguration message may simply be new information that needs to be communicated. Reconfiguration messages may be mandatory, or may be updated in a similar manner to the rest of the PIM synchronization information. In other words, the mobile node can retain the reconfiguration choice as data, which is then compared with that stored in the home node, and the latest (or preferred) information is updated in both nodes.

In another environment, the reconfiguration message may be sent via the Internet. Here, the user establishes a connection through which a World Wide Web site is accessed and requests the download of a web page from a site built for this purpose (though perhaps not only for this purpose). The downloaded web page can be adjusted to fit the display of the mobile device, and the downloaded web page becomes an interactive means for the user to update the desktop manager selection. Once it is completed, the updated webpage will provide a link to send a reconfiguration message. In some cases, web pages can always be kept as current as the current selection of home nodes so that users can view them when the web is accessed.

The methods described above represent exemplary embodiments, and other methods may also be formed in accordance with the present invention. Note also that the order of steps in any of these methods is not mandatory unless explicitly stated or logically required to do so.

The foregoing description is of preferred examples for carrying out the invention, although the scope of the invention should of course not be limited by these descriptions. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims.

Claims (24)

1. system that is used for communication network (400), described communication network has at least one mobile node (200) and local node (100), the local node has the desktop computer email manager of configuration, described system is used for from mobile node configuration local node desktop computer email manager, and described system comprises:

Configuration status request generator (535), be used for producing the configuration status summary request that is transferred to local node (100) via communication network, and receive the configuration status summary subsequently, thereby determine the current configuration of the local node desktop computer email manager relevant, wherein select the transmission of configuration status summary request by the user with the local node;

One selectively with communication network coupling reconfigure message generator (550), be used for producing and reconfigure message, and no matter whether generated configuration status summary request message; With

A local node that is coupled to local node desktop computer email manager and is coupled to communication network (400) selectively reconfigures message handling device, be used for receiving and reconfigure message, whether described local node to be configured to represent to reconfigure the change of discerning in the message consistent in logic if reconfiguring message handling device, and described local node reconfigures message handling device and is configured to receiving from mobile node (200) when reconfiguring message according to reconfiguring the message alteration email configuration.

2. according to the system of claim 1, it is characterized in that: the local node produces the acknowledge message that reconfigures that sends to mobile node (200).

3. according to the system of claim 2, it is characterized in that the local node reconfigures the change of asking in the message handling device comparison configuration messages to determine whether to carry out the change of requested configuration.

4. according to the system of claim 3, it is characterized in that local node wherein produces a message that is used to be transferred to mobile node (200), message represents to carry out the change of asking in reconfiguring message.

5. according to the system of claim 3, it is characterized in that the acknowledge message that reconfigures wherein comprises current configuration status summary.

6. according to the system of claim 1, it is characterized in that communication network wherein (400) is a cellular communications networks.

7. according to the system of claim 1, it is characterized in that wherein local node desktop computer email manager is cryptoguard, and local node wherein reconfigures message handling device and is used for determining to reconfigure message and whether comprises password.

8. according to the system of claim 1, it is characterized in that the message generator (550) that reconfigures wherein resides in the mobile node (200).

9. system according to Claim 8, it is characterized in that, mobile node wherein (200) comprises manager (530) database, and it can be on communication network and local node manager database synchronization, and wherein reconfigure message along with the manager synchrodata transmits together.

10. according to the system of claim 1, it is characterized in that it comprises the server that reconfigures that is coupled to this communication network (400), and wherein reconfigure message generator and reside in and reconfigure in the server.

11. the system according to claim 10 is characterized in that, mobile node wherein (200) is a browser, and the wherein said server that reconfigures comprises that at least one is used to send to the webpage of mobile node.

12. a method that is used for reconfiguring via communication network (400) local node desktop computer email manager is characterized in that it may further comprise the steps:

A mobile node (200) that is used in communication network (400) communication is provided, described mobile node (200) comprises memory device (525), is used for storing when current configuration status summary exists being included in from local node (100) and the current configuration status summary of the affirmation message after reconfiguring;

Only when the local node has received configuration status summary request message, to mobile node transmission configuration status message, unless wherein need otherwise select the transmission of configuration status summary request by the user;

Mobile node produces one and reconfigures message (630);

Mobile node sends via communication network (400) and reconfigures message to local node (635);

Show at the local node table and to reconfigure the change discerned in the message whether in logic consistent (730); And

Carry out selectively and reconfigure reconfigure (740) of asking in the message.

13. the method according to claim 12 is characterized in that, mobile node receives an expression and has carried out the requested affirmation message (640) that reconfigures, and wherein said acknowledge message comprises current configuration status summary.

14., wherein,, then send described configuration status summary request message by mobile node if mobile node has configuration status summary request message according to the method for claim 12.

15. method according to claim 14, it is characterized in that, it also comprises, receive (615) local node desktop-based e-mail manager configuration status summary, if wherein send configuration status summary request message, then before receiving the configuration status summary, do not carry out producing the operation that reconfigures message by mobile node.

16. the method according to claim 12 is characterized in that, the message that reconfigures wherein produces in mobile node (200).

17. method according to claim 16, it is characterized in that, mobile node wherein (200) is manager (a 530) database and synchronization message generator (545), thereby manager (530) database is synchronous by communication network (400) and local node (100) manager database, and wherein reconfigures message along with the manager synchrodata transmits together.

18. the method according to claim 12 is characterized in that, mobile node wherein (200) is a browser, and described method further may further comprise the steps:

Via communication network (400) webpage of website address request from the server (485);

Receive this webpage;

At least a portion that shows this webpage;

Interact with the shown part of this webpage, with the change of indication to local node (100) desktop computer email manager; With

Indicated change is sent to server (485).

19. the method according to claim 18 is characterized in that, the message that reconfigures wherein produces in server (485).

20. a hand-held moving device (200) that is used for cordless communication network (400) is characterized in that described hand-held moving device (200) comprising:

Configuration status request generator (535), be used for producing the configuration status summary request that is transferred to the local node (100) of communicating by letter via communication network with communication network (400), and receive the configuration status summary subsequently, thereby determine the current configuration of the local node desktop computer email manager relevant, unless needs otherwise select the transmission of configuration status summary request by the user wherein with the local node;

Synchronization message generator (545) is coupled to communication network selectively, is used to produce the synchronization message that is transferred to the local node;

One be coupled to communication network selectively reconfigure message generator (550), be used to produce the message that reconfigures that a confession is transferred to local node (100), the described message that reconfigures sends with synchronization message, thus coordinate synchronization and reconfigure function;

Storage device (525) is used for that storage is included in from local node (100) and the current configuration summary of the affirmation message after reconfiguring when having current configuration summary.

21. hand-held moving device (200) according to claim 20, it is characterized in that, it comprises a manager (530) database, and it can be gone up and local node manager database synchronization at communication network (400), and wherein reconfigures the message quilt along with the manager synchrodata transmits together.

22. the hand-held moving device (200) according to claim 20 is characterized in that it comprises a browser.

23. the hand-held moving device (200) according to claim 20 is characterized in that, the message that reconfigures wherein has the password of selecting in advance.

24. the hand-held moving device (200) according to claim 20 is characterized in that, the message that reconfigures wherein comprises the identifier sign of discerning hand-held moving device (200) uniquely.

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