JP2010282415A - Schedule information link mail management method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain schedule correction content by mail or a scheduler when displaying original mail from which the schedule is generated with respect to a technology for linking a mailer system with a scheduler system. <P>SOLUTION: A received mail message is stored in a message DB 104, and schedule information is extracted and stored to be string-associated with the mail message in the schedule DB 103. When the stored schedule information is corrected, difference information between the schedule information and schedule information shown by the mail message stored to be string-associated with the schedule information is stored in a message update information DB 105 as message update information. When the mail message is read from the message DB 104 and displayed, the corresponding message update information is read, and correction information based on the message update information as well as the mail message is transmitted to a Web browser part 116 and displayed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for linking a mailer system and a scheduler system on a Web system or the like.

  A technique of using a system such as a Web mailer or a Web scheduler of a server computer from a Web browser of a client computer connected via the Internet or an intranet is widely used.

  At this time, an interlocking technique capable of registering a mail transmitted / received by a web mailer (hereinafter simply referred to as “mailer”) as it is in a web scheduler (hereinafter referred to as a unit “scheduler”) is also widely used.

  In this linked technology, the schedule on the scheduler and the mail on the mailer that generated the schedule are linked, and the schedule screen and the related mail screen can be moved back and forth.

  Here, when the schedule settings (date, location, etc.) are changed on the scheduler, the date is incorrect due to the "old" information in the body of the related mail even though the schedule date has been changed. Troubles such as being acted on frequently occur.

Specific examples are shown below.
1) Mr. A receives the mail M “Meeting in Tokyo from 9:00” from the organizer B in the mailer and registers it in the scheduler.
2) Mr. A receives a message “Change the meeting from 13:00 to Osaka” and changes the scheduler on the scheduler, but forgets that.
3) When Mr. A browses the received mail M on the mailer to confirm details later, he sees the wrong information “Meeting in Tokyo from 9:00” and acts.

  In particular, in a system that can display a list of emails related to a schedule, there are many opportunities to browse “mails associated with a schedule” in order to confirm the details of the schedule, so such an error is likely to occur.

Further, in the case of a system that “others (such as the organizer) can change Mr. A's schedule data”, it is considered that the case described above is more likely to occur.
Therefore, there is a need for a mechanism that allows the user to know that the schedule has been changed when viewing the mail text.

  As a conventional technique for solving such a problem, a technique is known in which when a correction request mail is received, a target mail is specified and mail data in which the corresponding part is corrected is newly created.

  The following prior art documents are disclosed as conventional techniques related to the technique disclosed in the present application.

JP 2005-128767 A JP 2008-12314 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-150558

  However, the above-described prior art has a limitation that the correction request mail must be in a specific format. This prior art also has a problem that it does not function when the schedule is changed by means other than correction mail.

  In view of this, an object of one aspect of the present invention is to make it possible to grasp the correction contents when displaying the original mail that generated the schedule based on the correction request mail in the normal format and the schedule correction by the scheduler.

  In order to solve the above problem, in one example of the aspect, the received mail message is stored in a message database, schedule information is extracted from the mail message, and the schedule information is linked to the mail message stored in the message database. It is realized as a mail management method for storing the schedule information and the mail message in conjunction with each other and storing them in the schedule database, and has the following configuration.

  First, when the schedule information stored in the schedule database is corrected, the difference information between the schedule information indicated by the mail message associated with the schedule information and stored in the message database and the corrected schedule information is displayed. It is stored in the message update information database as message update information.

  When a mail message is read from the message database and displayed, message update information corresponding to the mail message is read from the message update information database, and correction information based on the message update information is displayed together with the mail message. Is displayed.

According to the disclosed technology, it is possible to expect a reduction in schedule troubles by seeing old date information written in an email.
Even if the schedule information is corrected by any method such as via the scheduler or correction request mail, the latest schedule information can always be displayed when browsing the mail message associated therewith.

1 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of a mail / schedule linkage system. FIG. It is an operation | movement flowchart which shows the display operation | movement of the mail text in embodiment. It is an operation | movement flowchart which shows the display operation | movement of the mail list in embodiment. It is an operation | movement flowchart which shows the schedule control process by reception of the correction request mail in embodiment. It is a figure which shows the data structural example of the database used by embodiment. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing which shows the display operation | movement of the mail list in embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the whole operation | movement of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the hardware system which can implement | achieve embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail.
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a mail / schedule linkage system.
For example, the system of the embodiment is realized on the server computer 100 accessed from the client computer 115 via the network 117 which is the Internet or an in-house network (such as an intranet including a local area network or a dedicated line network).

In the server computer 100, the mail control unit 101 realizes a Web mailer function. The schedule control unit 102 realizes a Web scheduler function.
A schedule database (hereinafter referred to as “schedule DB”) 103 stores schedule data (hereinafter simply referred to as “schedule”) used by the schedule control unit 102.

A message database (hereinafter referred to as “message DB”) 104 stores mail data (hereinafter simply referred to as “mail”) transmitted and received by the mail control unit 101.
A message update information database (hereinafter referred to as “message update information DB 105”) 105 stores correction request mail transmitted / received by the mail control unit 101 or update information of schedule messages corrected by schedule correction by the schedule control unit 102.

  The WWW server unit 113 notifies the mail control unit 101 or the schedule control unit 102 of a web access request from the web browser unit 117 in the client computer 115. In addition, the WWW server unit 113 returns a Web access response from the mail control unit 101 or the schedule control unit 102 to the Web browser unit 116 of the client computer 115.

The mail transfer agent unit 114 is a mail transfer server that communicates mail transmitted / received via the network 117 with the mail control unit 101.
The mail control unit 101 includes a mail display / edit control unit 106, a latest schedule display control unit 107, a mail transmission / reception control unit 108, a correction request mail analysis unit 109, and a latest schedule update unit 110.

  The mail display / edit control unit 106 controls display and editing of mail stored in the message DB 104 based on a request received from the Web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 via the WWW server unit 113. Here, mail editing refers to creation of new / reply / forwarded mail, deletion of mail, management of mail storage folders, and the like.

  The latest schedule display control unit 107 reads the corresponding message update information from the message update information DB 105 when the mail display / edit control unit 106 displays the mail stored in the message DB 104. Then, the latest schedule display control unit 107 causes the update information to be displayed in an overlapped manner on the mail that is displayed in the text or list by the control unit 106.

  The mail transmission / reception control unit 108 receives the received mail transferred from the mail transfer agent unit 114, accumulates it in the message DB 104, and delivers it to the correction request mail analysis unit 109. In addition, the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 transfers the transmission mail created by the mail display / editing control unit 106 to the mail transfer agent unit 114 for transmission and stores it in the message DB 104. Further, the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 delivers the transmitted mail to the correction request mail analysis unit 109. Note that the mail transmission / reception control operation by the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 and the mail creation / control operation by the mail display / editing control unit 106 are the same as in the case of a general Web mailer system, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted. To do.

  The correction request mail analysis unit 109 acquires the mail delivered from the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 and compares the content of the mail with the schedule in the schedule DB 103 and the mail in the message DB 104. Thereby, the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 analyzes whether or not the acquired mail is a schedule correction request mail.

  When the acquired mail is a correction request mail, the latest schedule update unit 110 corrects the corresponding schedule in the schedule DB 103 to the latest contents. Further, the latest schedule update unit 110 registers the correction content in the message update information DB 105.

The schedule control unit 102 includes a schedule display / edit control unit 111 and a latest schedule update unit 112.
The schedule display / edit control unit 111 controls display and editing of the schedule stored in the schedule DB 103 based on a request received from the Web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 via the WWW server unit 113. Here, the schedule editing means creation, correction, deletion, etc. of a new schedule.

The latest schedule update unit 112 registers the correction content in the message update information DB 105 when the schedule is corrected in the schedule display / edit control unit 111.
The operation of the embodiment of the mail / schedule linkage system having the above configuration will be described in detail below.

  FIG. 2 is an operation flowchart showing the mail text display operation. In this process, the mail display / edit control unit 106 and latest schedule display control unit 107 in the mail control unit 101 in the server computer 100 of FIG. 1 and the Web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 operate in cooperation. Is realized.

  First, a web mailer is operated in the web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 in FIG. 1, and a display request for the text of a certain mail message is issued by a display request from the web mailer (step S201 in FIG. 2). .

  Next, the text display request is received by the WWW server unit 113 in the server computer 100 from the network 117 in FIG. 1 and transferred to the mail control unit 101. As a result, the mail display / edit control unit 106 in the mail control unit 101 accesses the message DB 104 to acquire message text information and transmits it to the Web browser unit 116 via the WWW server unit 113. . As a result, the web browser unit 116 acquires and displays the text information of the message (step S202 in FIG. 2). FIG. 5B is a diagram illustrating a data configuration example of the message DB 104. Each row shows a record corresponding to one mail message. In each record, a value for identifying each mail message is stored in the “message ID” item. The “user ID” item stores a value for identifying the user who has received the mail. In the “reception date” item, the value of the reception date of the mail is stored. In the “From” item, the mail address set in the From field of the mail, that is, the mail address of the sender of the mail is stored. In the “To” item, the mail address set in the To field of the mail, that is, the mail address of the recipient of the mail is stored. The “Cc” item stores a mail address set in the Cc field of the mail, that is, a mail address of a destination to which the mail is copied and transferred. In the “subject” item, a character string set in the subject field of the mail, that is, a character string of the subject of the mail is stored. The “text” item stores a character string set in the text of the mail. A user operating a web mailer on the web browser unit 116 in FIG. 1 can specify each mail by a message ID and a user ID. The mail display / edit control unit 106 accesses the message DB 104 and extracts a record corresponding to the message ID and user ID specified from the Web browser unit 116. Then, the mail display / edit control unit 106 reads the character string in the “text” item of the record and transmits it to the Web browser unit 116 as the text information of the message.

  Next, the latest schedule display control unit 107 in the mail control unit 101 searches the message update information DB 105 to determine whether or not the update information data of the mail text corresponding to the message acquired in step S202 exists. (Step S203 in FIG. 2). FIG. 5C is a diagram illustrating a data configuration example of the message update information DB 105. Each row shows a record corresponding to one correction content. In each record, the “message ID” item stores a value for identifying the mail message to be corrected. By this item and the “message ID” item of the message DB 104 having the data configuration example shown in FIG. 5B, the mail message and the correction content are linked. A plurality of correction contents can exist for each of the text and the subject. In FIG. 5C, in the “update target area” item, a character string (“text” or “text” for identifying whether the target of the mail message to be corrected is the text or the subject (see FIG. 5B). “One or both of“ Subject ”” is stored. In the “schedule update item name” item, a character string (“date / time” item or “place” item) on the schedule DB 103 having a data configuration example (FIG. 5A) to be described later is included in the correction content. "Date" or "Location") is stored. In the “character string before update” item, a character string in which a character string part before update to be corrected in a mail message is designated by a regular expression is stored. The “updated character string” item stores an updated character string to be corrected in the mail message. In the “update date and time” item, the value of the date and time when correction is performed is stored. In the message update information DB 105, the latest schedule display control unit 107 stores the same value as the message ID searched in step S203 in the “message ID” item, and stores the character string “text” in the “update target area” item. Search for records

  If the update information data of the mail text does not exist and the determination in step S203 is NO, the process of the operation flowchart in FIG. 2 ends. As a result, the text of the normal mail message is displayed on the web browser unit 116.

  If the update information data of the mail text exists and the determination in step S203 is YES, the latest schedule display control unit 107 executes the operation of step S204 in FIG. In other words, the latest schedule display control unit 107 uses the WWW server unit 113 via the Web browser unit 116 for the combination of the character strings of the “character string before update” item and the “character string after update” item of each searched record. Send to.

  The Web browser unit 116 sequentially executes the following display processing for each set of update information data in the body of the email acquired from the WWW server unit 113 (loop processing from step S205 to step S208 in FIG. 2).

  First, the Web browser unit 116 acquires a combination of character strings of the “character string before update” item and the “character string after update” item. Then, the web browser unit 116 searches for the replacement target character in the mail body displayed in step S202 by using the regular expression character string specified in the “character string before update” item (step in FIG. 2). S206).

  Next, the web browser unit 116 draws a strike-through line and a post-replacement character string, which is a character string of the “updated character string” item, over the searched replacement target character (step S207 in FIG. 2). ). The display form of the correction content may be a pop-up display or a completely replaced display in addition to such a superimposed display.

  The above drawing process is repeatedly executed for each combination to be corrected by the repeated control in steps S205 and S208 in FIG. 2, so that the date and time in the mail text is displayed in the form shown as 704 in FIG. 7, for example. Display with corrected location. As a result, the user can easily determine the item corrected in the original mail that generated the schedule.

With the completion of the repetition processing from step S205 to S208 in FIG.
Next, FIG. 3 is an operation flowchart showing the mail list display operation. In this process, the mail display / edit control unit 106 and latest schedule display control unit 107 in the mail control unit 101 in the server computer 100 of FIG. 1 and the Web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 operate in cooperation. Is realized.

  First, a web mailer is operated in the web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115 in FIG. 1, and a display request for a list of mail messages is issued by a display request from the web mailer (step S301 in FIG. 3).

  Next, the list display request is received by the WWW server unit 113 in the server computer 100 from the network 117 in FIG. 1 and transferred to the mail control unit 101. As a result, the mail display / edit control unit 106 in the mail control unit 101 obtains message list information by accessing the message DB 104 and transmits it to the Web browser unit 116 via the WWW server unit 113. . As a result, the Web browser unit 116 acquires and displays the message list information (step S302 in FIG. 3). More specifically, the web browser unit 116 designates the range of reception date and time of the mail message group to be displayed in a list. As a result, the mail display / edit control unit 106 accesses the message DB 104 and extracts a record group in which the value of the “reception date / time” item corresponds to the range of the reception date / time specified from the Web browser unit 116. Then, the mail display / edit control unit 106 reads the contents of each “subject” item, each “From” item (sender item), and each “reception date / time” item of those record groups, and displays them in a message list. Information is transmitted to the web browser unit 116.

  Next, the latest schedule display control unit 107 in the mail control unit 101 searches the message update information DB 105 for whether or not the update information data of the subject of the mail corresponding to the message group acquired in step S302 exists. (Step S303 in FIG. 3). More specifically, in the message update information DB 105, the latest schedule display control unit 107 stores the same value as any of the message IDs of each record searched in step S303 in the “message ID” item, "Is searched for a record group in which the character string" subject "is stored in the item.

  If the update information data of the mail subject does not exist and the determination in step S303 is NO, the process of the operation flowchart in FIG. 3 ends. As a result, a list of normal mail messages is displayed on the Web browser unit 116.

  If the update information data of the mail subject exists and the determination in step S303 is YES, the latest schedule display control unit 107 executes the operation of step S304 in FIG. That is, the latest schedule display control unit 107 displays the combination of the character strings of the “message ID” item, the “pre-update character string” item, and the “post-update character string” item of each searched record, and the WWW server unit 113. Via the Web browser unit 116.

The Web browser unit 116 sequentially executes the following display process for each set of update information data of the subject of the email acquired from the WWW server unit 113.
As the iterative processing from step S305 to S310, the web browser unit 116 selects a group of groups having the same value of “message ID”, and displays the line corresponding to the selected group on the message list displayed in step S302. The following processing is executed for the subject character string.

  The web browser unit 116 selects each group of message update information as a repetitive process from steps S306 to S309 from the group of groups having the same “message ID” value, and executes the following series of processes.

  First, the Web browser unit 116 acquires a combination of character strings of the “character string before update” item and the “character string after update” item. Then, the web browser unit 116 searches for the replacement target character in the subject character string read in step S305 by using the regular expression character string specified in the “character string before update” item (step S307 in FIG. 3). .

  Next, the web browser unit 116 draws a strike-through line and a post-replacement character string that is a character string of the “updated character string” item on the searched replacement target character (step S308 in FIG. 3). ). The display form of the correction content may be a pop-up display or a completely replaced display in addition to such a superimposed display.

  The above drawing process is repeatedly executed for each correction target combination of the subject of one message by the repeated control of steps S306 and S309 in FIG. 3, and the subject of each message is further repeated by the repeated control of steps S305 and S310. Repeated every time. As a result, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, a display in which the date and time and place of each subject in the message list are corrected is performed. As a result, the user can easily determine the corrected item even in the list of original mails that generated the schedule.

When the iterative process from step S305 to step S310 in FIG. 3 ends, the message list drawing process ends.
Next, a schedule correction method that triggers the correction display will be described below.

  First, as a first correction method of the schedule, a method of directly correcting the date and place on the scheduler can be considered. In this case, in response to a request from the web browser unit 116 in the client computer 115, the schedule display / editing control unit 111 in the schedule control unit 102 in the server computer 100 starts the scheduler. The schedule display / edit control unit 111 accesses the schedule DB 103, acquires schedule information, and transmits the schedule information to the web browser unit 116. Then, the user corrects the date and location of a specific schedule on the scheduler displayed on the Web browser unit 116. As a result, the schedule display / edit control unit 111 corrects the registered contents of the schedule DB 103. At the same time, the latest schedule update unit 112 registers, in the message update information DB 105, message update information based on the date and location where the correction is instructed from the Web browser unit 116.

  FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating a data configuration example of the schedule DB 103. Each row shows a record corresponding to one schedule. In each record, the “schedule ID” item stores a value for identifying each schedule. The “message ID” item stores a message ID of a mail message associated with each schedule. As a result, the schedule record on the schedule DB 103 and the mail message record on the message DB 104 that generated the schedule record are linked, and the schedule screen and the related mail screen can be moved back and forth. The “user ID” item stores a value for identifying the user who created the schedule. In the “schedule name” item, a character string of a schedule name is stored. In the “schedule name word” item, a character string of words constituting the schedule name obtained by morphological analysis or the like of the character string of the “schedule name” item is stored. In the “date and time” item, a value indicating the date and time of the schedule is stored. In the “location” item, a character string indicating the location of the schedule is stored. The schedule display / edit control unit 111 in FIG. 1 controls display / editing of a schedule in accordance with a request from the Web browser unit 116 while accessing these items. Here, when the date and place are instructed to be corrected from the Web browser unit 116, the contents of the “date and time” item and “location” item of the corresponding record on the schedule DB 103 are corrected.

  At the same time, the latest schedule update unit 112 in FIG. 1 registers a new message update information record in the message update information DB 105 having the data configuration example in FIG. Specifically, the “message ID” item of the record to be registered stores the same message ID as the “message ID” item of the target record on the schedule DB 103. In addition, in the “update target area” of the record to be registered, both “subject” and “text” character strings are stored. In addition, in the “schedule update item” item of the record to be registered, a character string of the schedule item that has been corrected among “date and time” or “location” is stored. A “character string before update” of the record to be registered stores a character string of a regular expression that indicates the character string before the update of the modified schedule. The “updated character string” of the record to be registered stores the updated character string of the modified schedule. In the “update date / time” item, the value of the schedule correction date / time is stored.

  In this way, when the message update information is registered in the message update information DB 105 in response to the schedule correction on the scheduler, when the mail message corresponding to the schedule is displayed, the above-described FIG. Appropriate correction display can be performed by controlling the operation flowchart.

Next, as a second correction method of the schedule, a method by receiving a correction request mail can be considered.
Conventionally, in order to change a schedule upon receipt of an email, it has been necessary to send an email in a specific format. In the method described below, header information and body information extracted from a normal mail are analyzed and determined as a “correction request mail”. As a result, the sender's schedule can be changed by sending a “mail indicating that the schedule has been changed” as usual without being aware of anything.

As a general form of the correction request mail, the following two forms are conceivable.
Correction request email form 1 : When the event notification email is quoted and sent The method is a method for quoting or forwarding the event notification email that you sent and adding a new schedule on it. It is.

At this time, it can be determined whether it is a correction request mail as follows.
1) “Information extracted from the text” and “Registered schedule information (including associated mail message information)” match.
2) New date information exists.
3) Both are future plans.

Correction request email form 2 : When a similar email is sent again without quoting the event notification email, the event notification email can be sent using a method such as "Edit the event notification email in your outgoing mailbox". This is a method for sending e-mails with similar contents.

In many cases, the From, To, Cc, and Bcc fields are the same, and the degree of similarity is high in both the subject and the text.
Therefore, among “information extracted from the text” and “registered schedule information (including linked mail message information)”, From, To, Cc, and Bcc are the same, and both the subject and text are highly similar. In this case, it can be determined as a correction request mail.

  FIG. 4 is an operation flowchart showing a schedule control process based on the reception of the correction request mail based on the above-described determination criteria. This processing is realized by the mail transmission / reception control unit 108, the correction request mail analysis unit 109, and the latest schedule update unit 110 in the mail control unit 101 in the server computer 100 of FIG.

First, the mail transmission / reception control unit 108 receives a mail and registers the received mail data in the message DB 104 (step S401 in FIG. 4).
Next, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 searches for a date character string in the text of the received mail (step S402 in FIG. 4).

Next, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 determines whether or not the date character string has been searched (step S403 in FIG. 4).
If the date character string cannot be searched and the determination in step S403 is NO, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 ends the schedule correction process as it is.

  If the date character string can be searched and the determination in step S403 is YES, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 extracts the schedule information by extracting the date character string, location, participant, detailed information, etc. from the mail text. (Step S404 in FIG. 4). Hereinafter, this information is referred to as schedule information (C).

  Next, the correction request mail analysis unit 109, based on the schedule information (C), on the schedule DB 103 and the message DB 104, the old schedule (hereinafter referred to as schedule (E)) and related mail information (From, To, etc.). Is determined) (step S405 in FIG. 4). Specifically, in this search, items such as “schedule name word”, “date / time”, and “location” on the schedule DB 103 are searched. Further, items “From”, “To”, “Subject”, and “Body” on the message DB 104 are searched.

Next, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 determines whether there is data having the same From, To, Cc, date character string, location, and the like (step S406 in FIG. 4).
When the determination in step S406 is YES, the following process is executed. This corresponds to the correction request mail form 1 described above, and is a case where the information of the event notification mail is included in the text as it is, such as a reply mail. In this case, the latest schedule update unit 110 in FIG. 1 corresponds to the schedule information (D) other than the schedule information (C) among the information included in the text of the received mail and corresponds to the schedule DB 103. Update the record schedule data. Further, the latest schedule update unit 110 registers the difference information between the new schedule (D) and the old schedule (E) as a new record in the message update information DB 105. Furthermore, the latest schedule update unit 110 adds the message ID of the newly received mail to the “message ID” item (see FIG. 5A) of the target record in the schedule DB 103 (step S407 in FIG. 4). ). When there are a plurality of schedule data, for example, the schedule data with the largest amount of information is prioritized as the new schedule (D).

  On the other hand, if the determination in step S406 is NO, the correction request mail analysis unit 109 further determines whether or not there is data in which From, To, and Cc match and the similarity between the subject and the body is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. (Step S408 in FIG. 4).

  If the determination in step S408 is yes, the following processing is executed. This is a case corresponding to the correction request mail form 2 described above and using the fact that the contents of the mail are similar in the case of the re-edited mail. Here, as a comparison method of the similarity between the subject and the body, for example, words registered in “planned word” in each record of the schedule DB 103 obtained by morphological analysis are compared, and the similarity is compared. High schedule data is extracted. The similarity is calculated, for example, as the ratio of matching words. In this case, the latest schedule update unit 110 in FIG. 1 updates the content of the corresponding record in the schedule DB 103 with the schedule information (C) included in the text of the received mail. Further, the latest schedule update unit 110 registers the difference information between the new schedule (C) and the old schedule (E) as a new record in the message update information DB 105. Furthermore, the latest schedule update unit 110 adds the message ID of the newly received mail to the “message ID” item (see FIG. 5A) of the target record in the schedule DB 103 (step S409 in FIG. 4). ).

  If the determination in step S408 is NO, the latest schedule update unit 110 registers schedule information (C) included in the text of the received mail as a record of a new schedule in the schedule DB 103. Further, the latest schedule update unit 110 adds the message ID of the newly received mail to the “message ID” item (see FIG. 5A) of the target record in the schedule DB 103 (step S410 in FIG. 4).

After the process of step S407, S409, or S410 in FIG. 4, the schedule control process by receiving the correction request mail is terminated.
In this way, the correction request mail is automatically determined and the message update information is registered in the message update information DB 105, so that when the mail message corresponding to the schedule is displayed, the above-described FIG. 2 or FIG. Appropriate correction display can be performed by controlling the operation flowchart.

FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory diagram for describing a series of control operations of the present embodiment.
First, the received mail is displayed on the Web mailer in a form as indicated by 701. Here, automatically or when the user clicks the date character string on the displayed mail, the mail is linked and automatically registered in a form such that the schedule is shown as 702 (step S410 in FIG. 4). ).

  If it is determined that the received mail is a corrected mail, the corresponding schedule is automatically corrected as indicated by 703 (steps S407 and S409 in FIG. 4). The above correction contents are registered in the message update information DB 105 as described above (steps S407 and S409 in FIG. 4). Further, the schedule may be changed by the user from the scheduler as described above.

  When a mail is displayed on the Web mailer, an appropriate correction display as shown by reference numeral 704 is made by controlling the operation flowchart of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 described above in accordance with the correction contents of the schedule associated with the mail. Done. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, a “jump to correction mail” button may be automatically displayed, whereby a correction request mail can also be displayed.

  In the embodiment described above, the correction of the schedule is executed via the scheduler or via the correction request mail. Good.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a computer that can realize the system of the server computer 100 of FIG.
The computer shown in FIG. 8 includes a CPU 801, a memory 802, an input device 803, an output device 804, an external storage device 805, a portable recording medium driving device 806 into which a portable recording medium 809 is inserted, and a network connection device 807. These have a configuration in which they are connected to each other by a bus 808. The configuration shown in the figure is an example of a computer that can implement the above system, and such a computer is not limited to this configuration.

  The CPU 801 controls the entire computer. The memory 802 is a memory such as a RAM that temporarily stores a program or data stored in the external storage device 805 (or the portable recording medium 809) when executing a program, updating data, or the like. The CUP 801 performs overall control by reading the program into the memory 802 and executing it.

  The input device 803 includes, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, etc. and their interface control devices. The input device 803 detects an input operation by a user using a keyboard, a mouse, or the like, and notifies the CPU 801 of the detection result.

  The output device 804 includes a display device, a printing device, etc. and their interface control devices. The output device 804 outputs data sent under the control of the CPU 801 to a display device or a printing device.

The external storage device 805 is, for example, a hard disk storage device. Mainly used for storing various data and programs.
The portable recording medium driving device 806 accommodates a portable recording medium 809 such as an optical disc, SDRAM, and compact flash, and has an auxiliary role for the external storage device 805.

The network connection device 807 is a device for connecting, for example, a LAN (local area network) or WAN (wide area network) communication line.
The above-described system for realizing each part of the server computer 100 in FIG. 1 is realized by the CPU 801 executing a program (including a script) equipped with necessary functions. The program may be recorded and distributed in, for example, the external storage device 805 or the portable recording medium 809, or may be acquired from the network by the network connection device 807.

100 server computer 101 mail control unit 102 schedule control unit 103 schedule DB (schedule database)
104 Message DB (message database)
105 Message update information DB (message update information database)
106 mail display / edit control unit 107 latest schedule display control unit 108 mail transmission / reception control unit 109 correction request mail analysis unit 110, 112 latest schedule update unit 111 schedule display / edit control unit 113 WWW server unit 114 mail transfer agent unit 115 client computer 116 Web browser unit 117 network

Claims (8)

The received mail message is stored in the message database, the schedule information is extracted from the mail message, the schedule information is associated with the mail message stored in the message database, and is stored in the schedule database. In the email management method that displays email messages in conjunction,
When the schedule information stored in the schedule database is corrected, difference information between the schedule information indicated by the mail message associated with the schedule information and stored in the message database and the corrected schedule information is displayed. Store it in the message update information database as message update information,
When reading and displaying the mail message from the message database, message update information corresponding to the mail message is read from the message update information database, and correction information based on the message update information is displayed together with the mail message.
A schedule information linked mail management method characterized by the above. The display of the mail message is a display of one designated mail message.
The schedule information linked mail management method according to claim 1, wherein: The display of the mail message is a list display of a plurality of mail messages.
The schedule information linked mail management method according to claim 1, wherein: The content of the received mail message, the content of the schedule information stored in the schedule database, and the content of the mail message stored in the message database in association with the schedule information when the mail message is received To determine whether the received mail message is a correction request mail,
When it is determined that the received mail message is a correction request mail, the schedule information stored in the schedule database is corrected based on the content of the received mail message, and the schedule information Storing the difference information between the schedule information indicated by the mail message stored in the message database linked to the message information and the corrected schedule information in the message update information database as message update information,
4. The schedule information linked mail management method according to claim 1, wherein the schedule information linked mail management method is used. The determination as to whether or not the received mail message is a correction request mail is related to the contents of the received mail message, the contents of schedule information stored in the schedule database, and the schedule information. A process of determining whether or not there is a portion that matches the content of the mail message stored in the message database;
The schedule information linked mail management method according to claim 4, wherein: The determination as to whether or not the received mail message is a correction request mail is related to the contents of the received mail message, the contents of schedule information stored in the schedule database, and the schedule information. A process of determining whether there is a portion similar to the content of the mail message stored in the message database;
6. The schedule information linked mail management method according to claim 4 or 5, The received mail message is stored in the message database, the schedule information is extracted from the mail message, the schedule information is associated with the mail message stored in the message database, and is stored in the schedule database. On the computer that displays the mail message in conjunction,
When the schedule information stored in the schedule database is corrected, difference information between the schedule information indicated by the mail message associated with the schedule information and stored in the message database and the corrected schedule information is displayed. Store it in the message update information database as message update information,
When reading and displaying the mail message from the message database, message update information corresponding to the mail message is read from the message update information database, and correction information based on the message update information is displayed together with the mail message.
Program for executing processing. The content of the received mail message, the content of the schedule information stored in the schedule database, and the content of the mail message stored in the message database in association with the schedule information when the mail message is received To determine whether the received mail message is a correction request mail,
When it is determined that the received mail message is a correction request mail, the schedule information stored in the schedule database is corrected based on the content of the received mail message, and the schedule information Storing the difference information between the schedule information indicated by the mail message stored in the message database linked to the message information and the corrected schedule information in the message update information database as message update information,
The program according to claim 7 for executing processing.