JP7526863B1 - Shared email system, transmission method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To improve user convenience. [Solution] A first request receiving unit (201A) of a shared mail system (2) receives a request for partial data indicating a shared mail portion, which is a portion of a shared mail on a shared mail screen of the groupware, from a groupware system (1) that provides groupware to a user. A partial data acquisition unit (202) acquires the partial data when the first request receiving unit (201A) receives a request. A partial data transmission unit (203) transmits the partial data to the groupware system (1). [Selected Figure] Figure 4

Description

This disclosure relates to a shared email system, a sending method, and a program.

Conventionally, groupware systems that provide groupware to users and shared mail systems that manage shared mail are known. Groupware systems and shared mail systems have in common that they both support the work of users. For this reason, it is believed that user convenience will improve if the groupware system and the shared mail system work together. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a shared mail system that allows multiple users to share mail.

JP 2016-212477 A

However, with conventional technology, the user must log in separately to the groupware and the shared mail system to display the groupware shared mail screen and the shared mail screen for the shared mail separately, which is time-consuming for the user. With the system of Patent Document 1, the user cannot check the shared mail unless he or she logs in to the shared mail system, so it is not possible to reduce the user's time and effort. For this reason, conventional technology has not been able to sufficiently improve user convenience.

One of the objectives of this disclosure is to improve user convenience.

The shared mail system according to the present disclosure includes a first request receiving unit that receives a request for partial data indicating a shared mail portion, which is a portion of a shared mail on a shared mail screen of the groupware, from a groupware system that provides groupware to a user, a partial data acquisition unit that acquires the partial data when the first request receiving unit accepts the request, and a partial data transmission unit that transmits the partial data to the groupware system.

This disclosure can improve user convenience.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of a groupware system and a shared mail system. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a portal screen of a groupware. FIG. 13 illustrates an example of a shared mail screen. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of functions realized in each of a groupware system and a shared mail system. FIG. 4 illustrates an example of an application database. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of display data of a shared mail screen. FIG. 13 illustrates an example of a shared mail database. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of processing executed in each of a groupware system and a shared mail system. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a function realized in a modified example. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a link to a shared email displayed in a shared email section. FIG. 13 illustrates an example of an application setting screen. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a shared mail screen displayed on a user terminal when a user logs in to a shared mail service. FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a customer management screen. FIG. 13 illustrates an example of a case management screen. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a relationship between a template application and other applications.

[1. Hardware configuration of groupware system and shared mail system]
An example of an embodiment of a groupware system, a shared mail system, a display control method, a transmission method, and a program according to the present disclosure will be described. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a groupware system and a shared mail system. For example, each of a groupware system 1 and a shared mail system 2 is connected to a network N such as the Internet or a LAN. In the example of Fig. 1, a user terminal 30 is also connected to the network N.

The groupware system 1 is a system that provides groupware to users. Groupware is a general term for programs (software) that support the user's work. Groupware may not mean a program, but something else such as a service or tool that supports the user's work. Groupware may be either cloud-based or on-premise. Groupware may support not only the work of organizations such as companies or government agencies, but also the work of individuals.

For example, the groupware system 1 includes a groupware server 10. The groupware server 10 is a server computer. For example, the groupware server 10 includes a control unit 11, a memory unit 12, and a communication unit 13. The control unit 11 includes at least one processor. The memory unit 12 includes at least one of a volatile memory such as a RAM and a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory. The communication unit 13 includes at least one of a communication interface for wired communication and a communication interface for wireless communication.

The computers included in the groupware system 1 are not limited to the example in FIG. 1. The groupware system 1 only needs to include at least one computer. For example, the groupware system 1 may include a groupware server 10 and a server computer other than the groupware server 10. The groupware system 1 may only include a computer other than the groupware server 10.

The shared mail system 2 is a system that manages shared mail. For example, the shared mail system 2 provides a shared mail service to a user. The shared mail service is a service that sends and receives mail based on an email address shared by multiple users. The shared mail service can also be said to be a service that manages shared mail shared by multiple users. A shared mail can also be said to be mail to which an email address shared by multiple users is the destination, CC, BCC, or sender. The shared mail service can be either a cloud-based or on-premise type.

For example, the shared mail system 2 includes a shared mail server 20. The shared mail server 20 is a server computer. For example, the shared mail server 20 includes a control unit 21, a memory unit 22, and a communication unit 23. The hardware configurations of the control unit 21, the memory unit 22, and the communication unit 23 may be similar to those of the control unit 11, the memory unit 12, and the communication unit 13, respectively.

The computers included in the shared mail system 2 are not limited to the example in FIG. 1. The shared mail system 2 only needs to include at least one computer. For example, the shared mail system 2 may include the shared mail server 20 and a server computer other than the shared mail server 20. The shared mail system 2 may only include a computer other than the shared mail server 20.

The user terminal 30 is a computer operated by a user. For example, the user terminal 30 is a personal computer, a tablet, or a smartphone. For example, the user terminal 30 includes a control unit 31, a memory unit 32, a communication unit 33, an operation unit 34, and a display unit 35. The hardware configurations of the control unit 31, the memory unit 32, and the communication unit 33 may be similar to those of the control unit 11, the memory unit 12, and the communication unit 13, respectively. The operation unit 34 is an input device such as a mouse, a touch panel, or a keyboard. The display unit 35 is a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display.

The program stored in at least one of the memory units 12, 22, and 32 may be supplied to at least one of the groupware server 10, the shared mail server 20, and the user terminal 30 via the network N. Furthermore, the hardware configuration of at least one of the groupware server 10, the shared mail server 20, and the user terminal 30 is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 1.

For example, at least one of the groupware server 10, the shared mail server 20, and the user terminal 30 may include at least one of a reading unit (e.g., a memory card slot) that reads an information storage medium and an input/output unit (e.g., a USB terminal) that connects to the information storage medium. In this case, a program stored in the information storage medium may be supplied to at least one of the groupware server 10, the shared mail server 20, and the user terminal 30 via at least one of the reading unit and the input/output unit.

[2. Overview of Groupware System and Shared Mail System]
In this embodiment, a case is taken as an example in which a groupware provider that provides a groupware to a user and a shared mail service provider that provides a shared mail service to a user are the same. For example, the same organization provides not only the groupware but also the shared mail service to a user. The groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2 are independent from each other as systems, but are managed by the same organization.

The groupware provider and the shared mail service provider may be different from each other. For example, the groupware provider may be a first organization, and the shared mail service provider may be a second organization different from the first organization. In this case, the groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2 are independent from each other as systems, and are managed by different organizations. However, the groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2 are assumed to be linked to each other.

In this embodiment, we take as an example a case where the organization where the user works has signed up for groupware, and the user has already registered to use the groupware. Furthermore, we take as an example a case where the shared mail service is an optional service for the groupware. For example, when an administrator at the organization where the user works subscribes to the shared mail service as an option for the groupware, the user becomes able to use the shared mail service. In this embodiment, we assume that this series of procedures has already been completed.

The shared mail service may be a service independent of the groupware, rather than a service that is an option for the groupware. In this case, the organization where the user works contracts for the shared mail service separately from the groupware contract. When the organization where the user works contracts for the shared mail service, the user can log in directly to the shared mail service and use the shared mail service. The contract for the shared mail service may be made before the contract for the groupware. The contract for the groupware and the contract for the shared mail service may be made at the same time.

In this embodiment, the shared mail service is an optional service for the groupware, so when a user uses the shared mail service, the user first logs into the groupware. For example, when the user selects the URL of the groupware in a browser installed on the user terminal 30, the user terminal 30 accesses the groupware server 10. When the user successfully logs into the groupware, the user terminal 30 displays a portal screen that corresponds to the entrance to the groupware on the display unit 35.

Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of a groupware portal screen. In the example of Figure 2, the name of the groupware is "AAA Groupware." Of the portal screen URL "https://xxxcompany.aaagroupware.com/portal," the groupware domain is "xxxcompany.aaagroupware.com." The user's organization is xxx Corporation. The groupware domain includes the subdomain "xxxcompany," which indicates the name of the user's organization.

In this embodiment, individual organizations are distinguished by subdomains. For example, if another organization is "yyy Co., Ltd.", users of that other organization access the domain "yyycompany.aaagroupware.com" to use the groupware. However, all of the organization's URLs share the same "aaagroupware.com" portion, which indicates the name of the groupware, so users can understand from that portion that the screen they are viewing is within the groupware's domain.

For example, the portal screen SC1 includes a header portion P10 that corresponds to the header of the portal screen SC1, and a content portion P11 that corresponds to the actual content of the portal screen SC1. The groupware server 10 can display various screens including the portal screen SC1 on the user terminal 30. The header portion P10 is generally common to the majority of screens in the groupware. The content portion P11 differs, in principle, depending on the screen displayed on the user terminal 30.

For example, the background color of the header portion P10 is the theme color of the groupware. The header portion P10 includes a groupware image I100 showing the name or logo of the groupware. The groupware image I100 may be used as a background image for the header portion P10. The header portion P10 allows the user to intuitively understand that they are logged in to the groupware. Note that the header portion P10 also displays other images, such as an icon of the logged-in user and an input form for searching for content.

For example, the content portion P11 of the portal screen SC1 displays the actual content of the portal screen SC1. In the example of FIG. 2, the content portion P11 displays announcements for the entire organization, individual notifications for users, a list showing spaces where users can communicate with other users, and a list L110 showing apps available to the user.

An app is one of the tools that supports the user's work. In this embodiment, an example is given of an app that functions as a database. An app may have functions as a communication tool such as chat or threads in addition to being a database. An app generally means a program, but in this embodiment, it includes not only programs but also databases.

In the example of FIG. 2, three apps are displayed in list L110: a customer management app, a project management app, and a shared email app. Note that the apps available to the user may be any apps and are not limited to the example of FIG. 2. For example, a schedule management app, an expense reimbursement app, a report creation app, or other apps may exist in the groupware. Users may also create their own apps.

The customer management app is an app that allows users to manage their customers. Various customer data is stored in records in the customer management app. For example, records in the customer management app store the customer's name, the name of the person in charge, phone number, fax number, email address, shared emails where the email address is the destination or sender, and other information. When a user creates a new record in the customer management app, new customer data is stored in the new record. Users can edit the customer data stored in records in the customer management app.

The case management app is an app that allows users to manage cases. A case is an individual task performed by a user. A case can also be called a task. Various case data is stored in records of the case management app. For example, customer information for the case, progress of the case, product names related to the case, email threads related to the case, and other information are registered in a record of the case management app. When a user creates a new record in the case management app, new case data is stored in the new record. The user can edit the case data stored in the record of the case management app.

The shared mail application is an application that allows a user to use a shared mail service on groupware. In this embodiment, a user can use the shared mail service in the same way as using other applications such as a customer management application and a case management application. Any data related to the shared mail may be stored in the record of the shared mail application. For example, the record of the shared mail application may store data registered in an address book of an email software, or may store data of the shared mail itself. For example, when a user selects the shared mail application from the list L110, the user terminal 30 displays a shared mail screen, which is the screen of the shared mail application, on the display unit 35.

Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of a shared mail screen. For example, the shared mail screen SC2 includes a header portion P20 corresponding to the header of the shared mail screen SC2, a content portion P21 corresponding to the groupware content, and a shared mail portion P22 corresponding to the content of the shared mail service. The header portion P20 is similar to the header portion P10. For example, the header portion P20 includes a groupware image I200, which is the same image as the groupware image I100.

For example, the content of the shared mail application is displayed in the content portion P21 of the shared mail screen SC2. In the example of FIG. 3, the content portion P21 displays the name of the shared mail application, an image I210 for changing the display of the shared mail application, an image I211 for narrowing down the data registered in the shared mail application, and a screen I212 displaying a graph. Of the shared mail screen SC2, the header portion P20 and the content portion P21 are generated by the groupware server 10.

For example, the shared mail portion P22 displays the contents of the shared mail service. In the example of FIG. 3, the shared mail portion P22 displays an image I220 for receiving a shared mail, an image I221 for creating a new shared mail, an image I222 for searching for a shared mail, an image I223 for outputting a file of a shared mail, an image I224 for deleting a shared mail, an image I225 for setting up shared mail in bulk, and a list L226 of shared mails. The shared mail portion P22 of the shared mail screen SC2 is generated by the shared mail server 20.

In this embodiment, when a user selects a shared mail application from the list L110 on the portal screen SC1, the groupware server 10 requests the shared mail server 20 to generate partial data indicating the shared mail part P22. In this embodiment, since the case where the user uses a browser is taken as an example, the partial data is HTML data (an HTML format file). Details of the partial data will be described later.

For example, when the shared mail server 20 receives a request from the groupware server 10, it identifies the user's shared mail and generates partial data. The shared mail server 20 transmits the partial data to the groupware server 10. The groupware server 10 receives the partial data from the shared mail server 20. The groupware server 10 displays on the user terminal 30 a shared mail screen SC2 that includes the header portion P20 and content portion P21 that it generated, and the shared mail portion P22 indicated by the partial data.

In this embodiment, the groupware server 10 uses an inline frame (iframe), which is one of the HTML elements, to embed the shared mail part P22 indicated by the partial data received from the shared mail server 20 into the shared mail screen SC2. This allows the user to check the shared mail while logged in to the groupware, without having to log in to the shared mail service. The groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2 will be described in detail below.

[3. Functions realized by the groupware system and the shared mail system]
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of functions realized by each of the groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2. Fig. 4 also shows functions realized by the user terminal 30.

[3-1. Functions realized by groupware systems]
For example, in the groupware system 1, the groupware server 10 includes a data storage unit 100, a request unit 101, a partial data acquisition unit 102, and a display control unit 103. The data storage unit 100 is realized by the storage unit 12. The request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the display control unit 103 are realized by the control unit 11.

[Data storage unit]
The data storage unit 100 stores data necessary for a user to use the groupware. For example, the data storage unit 100 stores an application database DB1 in which various data of applications are stored.

Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of the app database DB1. For example, the app database DB1 stores an organization ID that the groupware server 10 uses to identify the user's organization, an app ID that the groupware server 10 uses to identify the app, a user ID that the groupware server 10 uses to identify the user, and app setting data that indicates the app settings. Any data may be stored in the app database DB1, and the data stored in the app database DB1 is not limited to the example in Figure 5. For example, the app database DB1 may store record data that indicates the record of an app.

For example, the app setting data indicates the name of the app, the name of the field, access rights, and other settings. The app setting data only needs to indicate settings corresponding to the app and may include any information. When an administrator of an organization performs an operation to add an app, the groupware server 10 creates a new record in the app database DB1. The groupware server 10 stores in the new record the app ID of the app added by the administrator, the user ID of the user who can use the app, and app setting data indicating the settings specified by the administrator.

The administrator can add any app provided by the groupware to his/her own organization. The administrator may create apps himself/herself. Data indicating apps created by the administrator may be stored in the app database DB1. Apps may not be added by the administrator's operation, but may be prepared from the beginning. Apps may be default functions of the groupware, rather than being optional functions of the groupware.

In this embodiment, the shared mail app will be mainly described. For example, the application setting data of the shared mail app indicates an email address shared by the shared mail app. For example, the email address is a representative address in the organization where the user works. In the shared mail app, multiple email addresses may be shared. The groupware server 10 needs to inform the shared mail server 20 of which email address partial data should be generated. The application database DB1 stores email address identification data that allows the shared mail server 20 to identify the email address.

The email address identification data may be the email address itself, but in this embodiment, it is an organization ID. For example, the groupware server 10 sends the organization ID to the shared mail server 20 as the email address identification data. The shared mail server 20 manages in advance which organization is using which email address, and can identify the email address for which partial data is to be generated based on the organization ID received from the groupware server 10.

The email address identification data may be data other than the organization ID and the email address. For example, the email address identification data may be information equivalent to an app ID, a user ID in groupware, a user ID in a shared email service, or some other account. The user ID in the groupware and the user ID in the shared email service may be different from each other or the same as each other.

In addition, the data stored in the data storage unit 100 is not limited to the application database DB1. The data storage unit 100 may store any data. For example, the data storage unit 100 may store a user database in which various data of users in the groupware is stored. The user database stores an organization ID, a user ID, and a password. For example, the data storage unit 100 may store HTML data or parts of the HTML data of the portal screen SC1, the shared mail screen SC2, and other screens, image data of individual images displayed on these screens, and partial data acquired by the partial data acquisition unit 102.

[Request section]
The request unit 101 requests partial data indicating the shared mail part P22, which is a part of the shared mail on the groupware shared mail screen SC2, from the shared mail system 2 that manages the shared mail. When the user uses a browser, the screen of the shared mail displayed in the groupware domain corresponds to the groupware shared mail screen SC2. When a program dedicated to groupware (for example, a so-called smartphone app) is used, the screen of the shared mail displayed on the program corresponds to the groupware shared mail screen SC2.

The shared email portion P22 is a portion (area) of the shared email screen SC2 where the shared email is displayed. The shared email portion P22 may be any portion that displays some information about the shared email. For example, the shared email portion P22 may display the body of the shared email, or may display only the subject of the shared email and not the body of the shared email. The shared email portion P22 may display the subject of the shared email, a list of the shared email, a link to the shared email, the address of the shared email, the CC of the shared email, the BCC of the shared email, the sender of the shared email, or other information.

In this embodiment, the partial data is taken as an example to be HTML data. The partial data may be in any format and is not limited to HTML data. For example, the partial data may be data in a markup language other than HTML (e.g., XML, SGML, or XHTML), data indicating the shared email itself (e.g., data in EML format), image data such as JPEG or GIF, text data indicating the contents of the shared email, a link (relative path or absolute path) to the data of the shared email part P22, or other formats.

For example, the request unit 101 requests partial data by sending data indicating that it is a request for partial data to the shared mail system 2. For example, the data is data in a format defined by the API of the shared mail system 2. The request unit 101 requests partial data by sending email address identification data (in this embodiment, an organization ID) to the shared mail system 2. The shared mail system 2 can identify for which email address partial data of the shared mail should be generated based on the email address identification data received from the groupware system 1.

[Partial data acquisition section]
The partial data acquisition unit 102 acquires partial data from the shared mail system 2. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 102 acquires partial data transmitted by a partial data transmission unit 203 (described later) from the shared mail system 2. Here, acquisition means reception. The partial data acquisition unit 102 records the partial data acquired from the shared mail system 2 in the data storage unit 100.

[Display control unit]
The display control unit 103 displays various groupware screens on the user terminal 30. A groupware screen is a screen that is displayed based on data generated by the groupware server 10. When a user uses a browser as in this embodiment, a screen (web page or website) that belongs to the groupware domain is a groupware screen. When a user uses a program dedicated to groupware (for example, a so-called smartphone app), a screen on the program is a groupware screen. The display control unit 103 transmits display data of the screen to be displayed to the user terminal 30, thereby displaying the screen on the user terminal 30.

The display data may be in any format as long as it is data necessary for displaying the screen. When a browser is used as in this embodiment, the display data is in HTML format. The display data may be data in a markup language other than HTML (e.g., XML, SGML, or XHTML), or data in other formats. When a user uses a program dedicated to groupware (e.g., a so-called smartphone app), the display data may be data necessary for the program to display a screen (e.g., image data such as JPEG or GIF).

For example, the display control unit 103 includes a first display control unit 103A. Among the functions of the display control unit 103, the first display control unit 103A is a function for displaying the shared mail screen SC2. Based on the partial data, the first display control unit 103A causes the user terminal 30 to display the shared mail screen SC2 including a groupware portion that is a part of the groupware and a shared mail portion P22. The first display control unit 103A causes the user terminal 30 to display the shared mail screen SC2 by transmitting display data for the shared mail screen SC2 to the user terminal 30.

The groupware portion is the portion (area) of the shared mail screen SC2 where information on the groupware side is displayed. In the example of FIG. 3, the header portion P10 and the content portion P11 correspond to the groupware portion. Therefore, the parts that explain the header portion P10 and the content portion P11 can be read as the groupware portion. Note that the groupware portion may be any portion that displays some information on the groupware side, and is not limited to the header portion P10 and the content portion P11. For example, the groupware portion may be a portion that corresponds to the footer or menu of the groupware.

Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of display data for the shared mail screen SC2. In the example of Figure 6, only a portion of the display data for the shared mail screen SC2 is shown. For example, the first display control unit 103A generates display data including an HTML tag T1 indicating the groupware portion and an HTML tag T2 indicating the shared mail portion P22. The HTML tag T1 indicating the groupware portion may be similar to an HTML tag used in known groupware. For this reason, a description of the HTML tag T1 in the display data will be omitted. The first display control unit 103A generates the HTML tag T1 in a similar manner to known groupware.

In this embodiment, the HTML tag T2 indicating the shared mail portion P22 is an inline frame. In the example of FIG. 6, the HTML tag T2 includes an inline frame tag such as "<iframe src="mail.html" width="800" height="500"></iframe>". "mail.html" is a relative path indicating the location of the partial data. In the example of FIG. 6, the partial data is in the same hierarchical level as the display data, so the file name of the partial data, "mail.html", is specified as the relative path. The partial data may be specified by an absolute path instead of a relative path. When the partial data is specified by an absolute path, the absolute path may be the domain of the groupware, the shared mail service, or another domain.

For example, the shared mail portion P22 is fitted into a portion of the shared mail screen SC2 where an inline frame tag is specified in the display data. In the example of FIG. 6, the width and height of the shared mail portion P22 are specified, but the width and height of the shared mail portion P22 do not have to be specified. The HTML tag T2 may include tags other than the inline frame tag. For example, the HTML tag T2 may include a tag indicating some kind of script.

For example, the first display control unit 103A generates an HTML tag T2 based on the file name of the partial data acquired by the partial data acquisition unit 102. The first display control unit 103A may change the file name of the partial data specified by the shared mail system 2, and generate an HTML tag T2 based on the changed file name. If the administrator of the mail sharing app specifies the size of the shared mail part P22, the first display control unit 103A may generate an HTML tag T2 based on the specified size. The first display control unit 103A generates display data including the HTML tag T1 and the HTML tag T2, and transmits the display data to the user terminal 30.

The first display control unit 103A may display the shared mail screen SC2 including the shared mail part P22 on the user terminal 30 without using an inline frame. For example, the first display control unit 103A may embed an HTML tag indicated by the partial data in the display data as the body part of the display data (the part from "<body>" to "</body>"), instead of an inline frame tag as in FIG. 6. For example, the first display control unit 103A may embed a link to the partial data in the display data, instead of an inline frame tag as in FIG. 6.

[3-2. Functions realized by the shared email system]
For example, in the shared mail system 2, the shared mail server 20 includes a data storage unit 200, a request reception unit 201, a partial data acquisition unit 202, and a partial data transmission unit 203. The data storage unit 200 is realized by the storage unit 22. The request reception unit 201, the partial data acquisition unit 202, and the partial data transmission unit 203 are realized by the control unit 21.

[Data storage unit]
The data storage unit 200 stores data necessary for users to use the shared mail service. For example, the data storage unit 200 stores a shared mail database DB2 in which various data on shared mail is stored.

Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of the shared mail database DB2. For example, the shared mail database DB2 stores an organization ID, email addresses shared within the organization, shared mail identification information that allows the shared mail server 20 to identify the shared mail, and shared mail data indicating the shared mail. Any data may be stored in the shared mail database DB2, and the data stored in the shared mail database DB2 is not limited to the example in Figure 7. For example, data indicating the folder into which the shared mail is sorted may be stored in the shared mail database DB2.

For example, the shared mail server 20 issues shared mail identification information for a certain shared mail so that it does not overlap with shared mail identification information for other shared mail. The shared mail identification information may be in any format, for example, numbers, letters, other symbols, or a combination of these. The shared mail identification information may be information used in known shared mail services. Each time a shared mail is received at an email address of a certain organization, the shared mail server 20 issues shared mail identification information for that shared mail. The shared mail server 20 associates the organization ID, the email address, the shared mail identification information, and the shared mail data of the shared mail with each other and stores them in the shared mail database DB2. Note that the shared mail identification information may be a message ID included in the header of the shared mail, rather than being issued by the shared mail server 20.

For example, the shared email data indicates at least one of the following: the date and time of receipt of the shared email, the sender of the shared email, the destination of the shared email, the CC of the shared email, the BCC of the shared email, the subject of the shared email, the body of the shared email, the attachments of the shared email, the email thread of the shared email, comments written on the shared email, and flags assigned to the shared email. The shared email data may be data employed in known shared email services. The shared email data indicates the actual content in the shared email portion P22 of the shared email screen SC2.

The data stored in the data storage unit 200 is not limited to the shared mail database DB2. The data storage unit 200 may store any data. For example, when a user directly logs in to the shared mail service, the data storage unit 200 may store a user database in which various data of the user in the shared mail service is stored. The user database stores an organization ID, a user ID, and a password. For example, the data storage unit 200 may store HTML data or a part of the HTML data of the screens displayed when a user directly logs in to the shared mail service, and image data of the individual images displayed on these screens.

[Request Reception Unit]
The request receiving unit 201 receives various requests from at least one of the groupware system 1 and the user terminal 30. In this embodiment, it is assumed that a user does not directly log in to the shared mail service. For this reason, the request receiving unit 201 does not receive requests from the user terminal 30, but receives requests from the groupware system 1. The requests received by the request receiving unit 201 are data in a format defined by the API of the shared mail system 2.

For example, the request receiving unit 201 includes a first request receiving unit 201A. The first request receiving unit 201A is a function for acquiring partial data among the functions of the request receiving unit 201. The first request receiving unit 201A receives a request for partial data indicating the shared mail part P22, which is a part of the shared mail on the shared mail screen of the groupware, from the groupware system 1 that provides the groupware to the user. In this embodiment, the first request receiving unit 201A receives a request for partial data by receiving email address identification data (in this embodiment, an organization ID) from the groupware system 1.

[Partial data acquisition section]
The partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires partial data when the first request receiving unit 201A receives a request. The partial data may be stored in advance in the data storage unit 200, but in this embodiment, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data based on the request received by the request receiving unit 201. That is, in this embodiment, the partial data is not prepared in advance before the request receiving unit 201 receives a request, but is dynamically generated on the spot after the request receiving unit 201 receives a request.

In this embodiment, the partial data is HTML data of the shared mail part P22. In the example of FIG. 6, the partial data is data with the file name "mail.html". For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 identifies the shared mail to be included in the shared mail part P22 based on the request accepted by the first request acceptance unit 201A and the shared mail database DB2. The partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires the shared mail from the shared mail database DB2 based on the email address identification data included in the request accepted by the first request acceptance unit 201A.

In this embodiment, since the organization ID corresponds to email address identification data, the partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires all or part of the shared email data associated with the organization ID from the shared email database DB2. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 identifies shared emails from the shared email database DB2 in which the email address associated with the organization ID is the sender, destination, CC, or BCC.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates data for a list L226 that lists the subjects of the shared emails. The list L226 includes links to the individual shared emails. For example, the links include shared email identification information. The partial data acquisition unit 202 reads out the image data of buttons B220 to B225 stored in the data storage unit 200, and generates HTML data that includes buttons B220 to B225 and the list L226 as partial data.

The partial data acquisition unit 202 may generate partial data in a format similar to the HTML data of a screen in a publicly known shared email service. In this case, the method of generating partial data may be similar to the method of generating HTML data of a screen in a publicly known shared email service. Data necessary for the partial data acquisition unit 202 to acquire partial data is assumed to be stored in advance in the data storage unit 200.

[Partial data transmission section]
The partial data transmission unit 203 transmits the partial data to the groupware system 1. For example, the partial data transmission unit 203 transmits the partial data acquired by the partial data acquisition unit 202 to the groupware system 1. The partial data transmission unit 203 may transmit other data, such as the file name of the partial data, to the groupware system 1.

[3-3. Functions realized by user terminal]
For example, the user terminal 30 includes a data storage unit 300, a display control unit 301, and an operation reception unit 302. The data storage unit 300 is realized by the storage unit 32. The display control unit 301 and the operation reception unit 302 are realized by the control unit 31.

[Data storage unit]
The data storage unit 300 stores data necessary for a user to use at least one of the groupware and the shared mail service. For example, the data storage unit 300 stores a browser. For example, the data storage unit 300 stores a program dedicated to the groupware. The data storage unit 300 may also store a program dedicated to the shared mail service.

[Display control unit]
The display control unit 301 displays each screen of the groupware on the display unit 35. In this embodiment, an example is given in which the display control unit 301 displays each screen on a browser, but the display control unit 301 may display each screen on a program dedicated to the groupware. When a user directly logs in to the shared mail service, the display control unit 301 may display each screen on a program dedicated to the shared mail service.

[Operation reception section]
The operation acceptance unit 302 accepts operations on each screen that the display control unit 301 has caused to be displayed on the display unit 35. The operation acceptance unit 302 transmits operation data indicating an operation performed by the user to the groupware server 10. When the user directly logs in to the shared mail service, the operation acceptance unit 302 accepts operations on the screen of the shared mail service.

[4. Processing Executed in the Groupware System and the Shared Mail System]
Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of processing executed in each of the groupware system 1 and the shared mail system 2. Fig. 8 also shows processing executed in the user terminal 30. The control units 11, 21, and 31 execute programs stored in the storage units 12, 22, and 32, respectively, to execute the processing in Fig. 8. Fig. 8 mainly shows processing for displaying the shared mail screen SC2.

As shown in FIG. 8, when a user selects the groupware URL from the browser of the user terminal 30, the user terminal 30 executes a login process between the groupware server 10 and the groupware server 10 to allow the user to log in to the groupware (S1). If the login is successful, a process for displaying the portal screen SC1 is executed between the groupware server 10 and the user terminal 30 (S2). In S2, the groupware server 10 transmits display data for the portal screen SC1 to the user terminal 30. The user terminal 30 receives the display data for the portal screen SC1 and displays the portal screen SC1 on the display unit 35.

When the user selects a shared mail application from the list L110, the user terminal 30 requests display data for the shared mail screen SC2 from the groupware server 10 (S3). The groupware server 10 accepts a request for display data for the shared mail screen SC2 from the user terminal 30 (S4). The groupware server 10 acquires email address identification data based on the application database DB1 (S5). The groupware server 10 requests partial data from the shared mail server 20 based on the email address identification data identified in S5 (S6).

The shared mail server 20 receives a request for partial data from the groupware server 10 (S7). The shared mail server 20 acquires the partial data based on the email address identification data included in the request received in S7 and the shared mail database DB2 (S8). In S8, the shared mail server 20 acquires the shared mail in the shared mail database DB2 based on the email address identification data identified in S8. The shared mail server 20 arranges the subjects of the acquired shared mail in list L226 in order of the date and time of receipt. The shared mail server 20 places buttons B221 to B225 in predetermined positions based on the image data stored in the storage unit 22. The shared mail server 20 generates partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 including buttons B221 to B225 and list L226.

The shared mail server 20 transmits the partial data acquired in S8 to the groupware server 10 (S9). The groupware server 10 acquires the partial data from the shared mail server 20 (S10). The groupware server 10 generates a groupware portion (e.g., a header portion P20 and a content portion P21) based on the user database and the image data stored in the storage unit 12 (S11). The process of S11 may be executed before the process of S10.

The groupware server 10 generates display data for the shared mail screen SC2 including the header portion P20 and content portion P21 generated in S11, and the shared mail portion P22 indicated by the partial data acquired in S10 (S12). In S12, the groupware server 10 generates display data including an HTML tag T1 indicating the header portion P20 and content portion P21 generated in S11, and an HTML tag T2 in which the partial data acquired in S10 is specified in an inline frame.

The groupware server 10 transmits display data for the shared mail screen SC2 to the user terminal 30 (S13). The user terminal 30 acquires the display data for the shared mail screen SC2 from the groupware server 10 (S14). The user terminal 30 displays the shared mail screen SC2 on the display unit 35 based on the display data acquired in S14 (S15), and this process ends.

5. Summary of the embodiment
The groupware system 1 of this embodiment requests partial data from the shared mail system 2. The groupware system 1 acquires the partial data from the shared mail system 2. The groupware system 1 displays a shared mail screen SC2 on the user terminal 30 based on the partial data. The groupware system 1 can improve user convenience since the user can check the shared mail on the groupware screen while remaining logged in to the groupware. For example, the user can use the shared mail service as if they were using only the groupware, rather than using both the groupware and the shared mail service. The groupware system 1 can essentially integrate the shared mail service into the groupware.

The shared mail system 2 of this embodiment accepts a request for partial data from the groupware system 1. When the shared mail system 2 accepts the request, it obtains the partial data. The shared mail system 2 transmits the partial data to the groupware system 1. The shared mail system 2 can provide the groupware system 1 with the partial data necessary for the groupware system 1 to display on the user terminal 30 a shared mail screen SC2 that improves user convenience. As a result, the user can check the shared mail on the groupware screen while remaining logged in to the groupware, so the shared mail system 2 can improve user convenience.

[6. Modifications]
The present disclosure is not limited to the examples of the embodiments, and may be modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of functions realized in the modified example. For example, the groupware server 10 includes a request receiving unit 104, an addition unit 105, a designation receiving unit 106, an acquisition request unit 107, an acquisition result data acquisition unit 108, and a registration unit 109. Each of the request receiving unit 104, the addition unit 105, the designation receiving unit 106, the acquisition request unit 107, the acquisition result data acquisition unit 108, and the registration unit 109 is realized by the control unit 11. For example, the shared mail server 20 includes a display control unit 204, an acquisition execution unit 205, an acquisition result data transmission unit 206, and a mail thread data transmission unit 207. Each of the display control unit 204, the acquisition execution unit 205, the acquisition result data transmission unit 206, and the mail thread data transmission unit 207 is realized by the control unit 21.

[6-1. Modified examples of groupware systems]
First, a modified example of the groupware system 1 will be described.

[Modification 1-1]
For example, when a user selects an arbitrary shared email from the list L226 on the shared email screen SC2, the groupware server 10 may display details of the selected shared email in the shared email section P22 on the shared email screen SC2. In another example, when a user selects a link to a specific shared email attached to a groupware thread or the like, the groupware server 10 may display details of the selected shared email in the shared email section P22 on the shared email screen SC2.

For example, the groupware server 10 identifies which shared email the user selected based on the link of the shared email in the list L226. If the domain of the shared email service is included in the link, the screen of the shared email service will be displayed on the user terminal 30 instead of the groupware shared email screen SC2, so in variant 1-1, the link of the shared email includes the groupware domain and the shared email identification information.

Figure 10 shows an example of a link to a shared email displayed in the shared email portion P22. In the example of Figure 10, the link to the shared email displayed in the shared email portion P22 includes the groupware domain "xxxcompany.aaagroupware.com" and the shared email identification information "m00001". The link includes specific symbols such as # and =. This allows the groupware server 10 to identify which part of the link is the shared email identification information.

The partial data acquisition unit 102 of variant 1-1 acquires partial data including links as shown in FIG. 10 from the shared mail system 2. In the example of FIG. 3, the partial data acquisition unit 102 acquires partial data including links of each of the multiple shared mails in list L226. The domain parts of each link are the same, but the shared mail identification information of each link is different from one another. The method of generating partial data by the shared mail system 2 will be described later in variant 2-1.

The groupware server 10 of variant 1-1 includes a request receiving unit 104. The request receiving unit 104 receives various requests from the user terminal 30. For example, when a link to a shared email is selected on the user terminal 30, the request receiving unit 104 receives a request to display the shared email screen SC2 from the user terminal 30. The display request is data that enables the groupware server 10 to identify that a request to display the shared email screen SC2 has been made. For example, the display request is a request such as an http request. Since the link to the shared email includes the groupware domain, the groupware server 10, not the shared email server 20, receives the display request.

The processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A in variant 1-1 is executed each time a display request is received. For example, when the request receiving unit 104 receives a display request from the user terminal 30, the request unit 101 sends the shared mail identification information included in the display request to the shared mail system 2. The shared mail system 2 executes the processing of variant 2-1 described below, generates partial data indicating details of the shared mail indicated by the shared mail identification information, and sends it to the groupware system 1.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 102 acquires partial data from the shared mail system 2 indicating details of the shared mail indicated by the shared mail identification information included in the link selected by the user. The first display control unit 103A generates display data for the shared mail screen SC2 using an inline frame, as in the embodiment. The shared mail portion P22 of the shared mail screen SC2 indicates details of the shared mail indicated by the shared mail identification information included in the link selected by the user, as shown in FIG. 10.

In the example of FIG. 10, the partial data includes a button B227 for the groupware server 10 to register information about the shared email in a customer management app, a button B228 for the groupware server 10 to register information about the shared email in a case management app, and a display area A229 showing detailed information about the shared email. The data corresponding to the display area A229 may be data in a format adopted by known shared email services. In variant example 1-1, each time the user selects a link from the shared email screen SC2 or another screen (for example, the screen of a thread to which a link to the shared email is attached), the processing of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A is repeated.

In variant 1-1, the link of the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22 includes the groupware domain and the shared email identification information. When the link is selected on the user terminal 30, the groupware system 1 accepts a request to display the shared email screen SC2 from the user terminal 30. The processing of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A is executed each time a display request is accepted. When the user selects the link of the shared email, the groupware system 1 can cause the user terminal 30 to display the shared email in the groupware domain. If the user terminal 30 accesses another domain while accessing the groupware domain, the user may be confused, but the groupware system 1 can prevent such confusion.

[Modification 1-2]
In the embodiment, an example is given of a case where a user uses a shared mail service as an option for groupware. The shared mail service may be added as a plug-in in the groupware. The mail sharing application described in the embodiment is a type of plug-in in the sense that it can be added by the user afterwards. The plug-in in variant example 1-2 includes not only a mail sharing application but also a plug-in without a database function. The plug-in may be a plug-in as an additional function in an application, or may be a plug-in as an additional function unrelated to the application.

A plug-in is a groupware function (program) that can be added later by the user. The plug-in may be in any format, for example a ZIP file in which multiple files such as a program are compressed. The data storage unit 100 stores plug-ins for various additional functions. For example, in addition to a shared email plug-in, various plug-ins such as a plug-in for creating an in-house portal page or a communication tool plug-in may be stored in the data storage unit 100. The user can select any plug-in. The plug-in may be free or paid.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-2 includes an adding unit 105. The adding unit 105 adds a plugin for shared mail in the groupware when a user using the groupware performs a specified operation to add a plugin. The user here may be a person with management authority in the organization, or may be a person without particular management authority. For example, the display control unit 103 causes a list of plugins that the user can add to be displayed on the user terminal 30. The user selects from the list a plugin to add to the groupware used by the user or the organization.

For example, when a user selects a shared mail plug-in, the adding unit 105 associates the plug-in stored in the data storage unit 100 with the organization ID of the user's organization or the user ID of the user, and deploys the plug-in to the data storage unit 100 or another storage area. The shared mail plug-in may be deployed to the user terminal 30. The processes of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A in variant 1-2 are each executed based on the shared mail plug-in. In variant 1-2, it is assumed that the shared mail plug-in contains code for the series of processes described in the embodiment. In variant 1-2, the series of processes described in the embodiment are executed based on the code of the shared mail plug-in.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-2 adds a shared mail plugin when a user performs a specified plugin addition operation. The processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A is executed based on the plugin. The groupware system 1 can realize a shared mail service as an option in the groupware using the plugin. For example, the groupware system 1 provides the shared mail plugin only to users who have confirmed the shared mail in the groupware, thereby reducing waste of resources in the groupware. For example, the groupware system 1 can reuse the mechanisms of other plugins, such as a plugin for creating an in-house portal page, thereby reducing the amount of development work required in the groupware.

[Modification 1-3]
For example, a user may be allowed to specify an HTML tag as a setting for the shared mail application. The HTML tag is reflected on the screen of the shared mail application, including the shared mail screen SC2. For example, the shared mail screen SC2 includes an HTML tag specified by the user. In variant example 1-3, when a user specifies a specific HTML tag, the shared mail portion P22 is displayed in the shared mail application. The specific HTML tag is a character string that indicates the display of the shared mail. The specific HTML tag is predetermined by the groupware provider. When the user performs an operation for setting the shared mail application from the portal screen SC1, the shared mail screen SC2, or another screen, an application setting screen SC3 is displayed on the user terminal 30.

Figure 11 is a diagram showing an example of an application setting screen. For example, the application setting screen SC3 displays an input form or the like that allows the user to specify the contents of the content portion P21 of the shared mail screen SC2. The user inputs a specific HTML tag into the input form F30 that accepts input of HTML tags. In the example of Figure 11, when the user inputs an HTML tag that includes a character string such as "frame_mailOption" into the input form F30, the shared mail portion P22 is displayed on the application setting screen SC3. The user can specify any HTML tag in the input form F30.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-3 includes a designation acceptance unit 106. The designation acceptance unit 106 accepts designation of an HTML tag indicating a shared email by a user who uses the groupware. In the example of FIG. 11, the designation acceptance unit 106 accepts designation of an HTML tag for input form F30 of application setting screen SC3. The designation acceptance unit 106 may also accept designation of an HTML tag from a screen other than application setting screen SC3. When the designation acceptance unit 106 accepts designation of an HTML tag, it stores it in the data storage unit 100 as application setting data for the shared email application.

The processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A in variant example 1-3 is executed on the condition that an HTML tag is specified. For example, when the groupware server 10 receives a request to display the shared mail screen SC2 from a user terminal 30 of a certain user, it refers to the settings of the shared mail application stored in the data storage unit 100. The groupware server 10 determines whether a specific HTML tag is specified in the settings of the shared mail application.

When the groupware server 10 does not determine that a specific HTML tag is specified in the settings of the shared mail application, it does not execute at least one of the processes of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A. In this case, the display control unit 103 causes the user terminal 30 to display a shared mail screen SC2 that does not include the shared mail part P22, or a shared mail screen SC2 that includes the shared mail part P22 but does not display anything. On the other hand, when the groupware server 10 determines that a specific HTML tag is specified in the settings of the shared mail application, it executes the processes of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A described in the embodiment.

It is also possible to allow a user to use the shared email service as a groupware option in apps other than the shared email app. For example, when a user specifies a specific HTML tag from the app setting screen SC3 of a customer management app, a case management app, or another app, the shared email portion P22 may be displayed on the screen of these apps. In this case, the processing of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A is as described in the embodiment. In another example, a user may be allowed to specify a specific HTML tag for a screen other than the app. In this case, the shared email portion P22 is displayed on a screen other than the app.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-3 accepts the user's specification of an HTML tag indicating a shared email. The processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A is executed on the condition that an HTML tag has been specified. By specifying an HTML tag for an arbitrary app or an arbitrary page, the groupware system 1 can display the shared email part P22 on the screen of the arbitrary app or on a screen other than the app.

[Modification 1-4]
For example, a user may directly log in to the shared mail service. When a user logs in to the shared mail service, the shared mail system 2 causes a shared mail screen as the domain of the shared mail service to be displayed on the user terminal 30. This shared mail screen is displayed by a process described in modified example 2-2 below. This shared mail screen may be a screen adopted in a known shared mail service.

Figure 12 is a diagram showing an example of a shared mail screen displayed on the user terminal 30 when a user logs in to the shared mail service. As shown in Figure 12, the shared mail screen SC4 in the shared mail service includes a header portion P40 that is specific to the shared mail service, and a shared mail portion P41 that has the same or similar content as the shared mail portion P22. The header portion P40 is different from the header portion P20 of the shared mail screen SC2 in the groupware.

For example, the background color of the header portion P40 is the theme color of the shared mail service. The header portion P40 includes a shared mail image I400 that shows the name or logo of the shared mail service. The shared mail image I400 may be used as a background image for the header portion P40. The header portion P40 allows the user to intuitively understand that he or she is logged in to the shared mail service. For example, the shared mail image I400 allows the user to intuitively understand that he or she is accessing the shared mail system 2.

The first display control unit 103A of the modified example 1-4 causes the user terminal 30 to display a shared mail screen SC2 including a groupware portion that allows a user who uses the groupware to identify the groupware, and a shared mail portion P22 that does not allow the user to identify the shared mail system 2. The shared mail system 2 generates partial data for this shared mail portion P22. The processing on the shared mail system 2 side will be explained in modified example 2-3 below.

The fact that the groupware is identifiable by the user means that the user can identify the groupware by the appearance (outer appearance) of the groupware part. In variant example 1-4, the user can visually identify the groupware by the groupware image I200, so the groupware part that includes the groupware image I200 corresponds to the groupware part that allows the user to identify the groupware. Other groupware parts that may correspond to the groupware part that allows the user to identify the groupware include, for example, a groupware part that includes an illustration of the groupware generated by CSS, a groupware part that has a background color of the groupware theme color, or a groupware part that includes text indicating the groupware.

When the user is unable to identify the shared mail system 2, it means that the user is unable to identify the shared mail system 2 from the appearance (outer appearance) of the shared mail part P22. In variant example 1-4, the user can visually identify the shared mail system 2 by the shared mail image I400, so the shared mail part P22 that does not include the shared mail image I400 corresponds to the shared mail part P22 in which the user is unable to identify the shared mail system 2. In addition, for example, the shared mail part P22 that does not include an illustration of the shared mail system 2 generated by CSS, the shared mail part P22 with a background color that is not the theme color of the shared mail system 2, or the shared mail part P22 that does not include text indicating the shared mail system 2 may correspond to the shared mail part P22 in which the user is able to identify the shared mail system 2.

For example, the partial data shows the shared mail part P22 with the same layout as the shared mail part P41, but does not include the header part P40 of the shared mail screen SC4 in the shared mail service. If the shared mail screen SC4 has a footer part, the partial data shows the shared mail part P22 with the same layout as the shared mail part P41, but does not include the footer part. The first display control unit 103A displays the shared mail screen SC2 on the user terminal 30 based on such partial data.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-4 displays on the user terminal 30 a shared mail screen SC2 that includes a groupware portion that allows the user to identify the groupware, and a shared mail portion P22 that does not allow the user to identify the shared mail system 2. The groupware image I200 allows the user to intuitively understand that the shared mail screen SC2 is a groupware screen. As the shared mail image I400 is not displayed on the shared mail screen SC2, it is possible to prevent the user from misunderstanding that they are logged in to a shared mail service.

[Modification 1-5]
For example, when a user selects a customer management app from the list L110, a customer management screen SC5 showing the customer management app is displayed on the user terminal 30. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the customer management screen SC5. For example, the customer management screen SC5 displays customer information stored in a record of the customer management app. From the customer management screen SC5, the user can store new information in the record or change the information stored in the record. Shared emails related to the displayed customer may be displayed on such a customer management screen SC5.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-5 includes an acquisition request unit 107, an acquisition result data acquisition unit 108, and a second display control unit 103B. The acquisition request unit 107 requests the shared email system 2 to acquire a shared email based on an email address registered in a customer management app that manages customer information of users who use the groupware. Acquisition here is a concept that includes various processes such as search, lookup, and narrowing down. For example, when a user selects a record in the customer management app, the acquisition request unit 107 acquires the email address stored in that record. Note that the user may manually specify the email address to be acquired.

For example, the acquisition request unit 107 sends data in a specified format including the email address to be acquired to the shared email system 2. The shared email system 2 acquires all or part of the shared email for that email address from the shared email database DB2. The shared email for that email address is a shared email for which the email address is the destination, CC, BCC, or sender. The shared email system 2 sends the shared email data of the acquired shared email to the groupware system 1.

The acquisition result data acquisition unit 108 acquires acquisition result data indicating the acquisition result of the shared email from the shared email system 2. The acquisition result data may be in any format as long as it includes some information related to the shared email. For example, the acquisition result data may be the same as the shared email data, or may include only some information such as the subject and link. The acquisition result data acquisition unit 108 may store the acquisition result data in a record of the customer management app, or may not store the acquisition result data in a record in particular.

Based on the customer management app, the second display control unit 103B causes the user terminal 30 to display a customer management screen SC5 including customer information and the acquisition results indicated by the acquisition result data. In the example of FIG. 13, the second display control unit 103B generates display data for the customer management screen SC5 so that the customer information (e.g., customer name, email address, etc.) stored in the app database DB1 is placed in a first position, and the acquisition results indicated by the acquisition result data are placed in a second position different from the first position (e.g., below the customer information).

The second display control unit 103B transmits display data for the customer management screen SC5 to the user terminal 30. When the user terminal 30 receives the display data, it displays the customer management screen SC5 on the display unit 35. In the example of FIG. 13, the subject of the shared email related to the email address stored in the displayed record is displayed in chronological order on the customer management screen SC5. When the user selects the subject of the shared email displayed on the customer management screen SC5, a shared email screen SC2 showing details of the shared email is displayed on the user terminal 30, similar to variant example 1-1.

The groupware system 1 of variant example 1-5 requests the shared mail system 2 to retrieve the shared mail based on the email address registered in the customer management app. The groupware system 1 retrieves the retrieved result data from the shared mail system 2. Based on the customer management app, the groupware system 1 displays on the user terminal 30 a customer management screen SC5 including customer information and the retrieved result indicated by the retrieved result data. This allows the user to access the information about the shared mail in the customer management app in the groupware.

[Modification 1-6]
For example, a user may be able to register information such as an email address of a shared email to a customer management application from the shared email screen SC2. The groupware system 1 includes a registration unit 109. The registration unit 109 registers various data in the groupware to the data storage unit 100. For example, the registration unit 109 registers data related to an application to the application.

For example, the registration unit 109 includes a first registration unit 109A. When a predetermined registration operation is performed on the shared email screen SC2, the first registration unit 109A registers new customer information in a customer management app that manages customer information of users who use the groupware, based on the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The registration operation may be any operation performed from the shared email screen SC2. For example, if a button such as "Register customer information" is displayed on the shared email screen SC2, the selection of the button may correspond to the registration operation.

For example, as in variant example 1-1, when the details of a shared email are displayed on the shared email screen SC2, and the user performs a registration operation by selecting button B227, the first registration unit 109A obtains the email addresses of the To, CC, BCC, or Sender of the displayed shared email. In addition to the email address, the first registration unit 109A may obtain at least one of the display name of the email address and the signature in the body of the shared email. This information may be included in the partial data, or the first registration unit 109A may request this information from the shared email system 2. The first registration unit 109A registers this information in a new record or an existing record in the customer management app.

When a specific registration operation is performed on the shared email screen SC2, the groupware system 1 of variant example 1-6 registers new customer information in the customer management app based on the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The groupware system 1 can register customer information in the customer management app with simple operations, thereby improving user convenience.

[Modification 1-7]
For example, when a shared email for an email address registered in the customer management app is displayed on the shared email screen SC2, a customer management screen SC5 may be displayed from the shared email screen SC2. The groupware system 1 of variant 1-7 includes a third display control unit 103C. When a predetermined display operation is performed on the shared email screen SC2, the third display control unit 103C causes the user terminal 30 to display a customer management screen SC5 of the customer management app that manages customer information of a user who uses the groupware, based on the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The display operation may be any operation performed from the shared email screen SC2. For example, when a button such as "Check customer information" is displayed on the shared email screen SC2, the selection of the button may correspond to the display operation.

For example, as in variant example 1-1, when details of a shared email are displayed on the shared email screen SC2, the user performs a display operation by selecting a button such as "Check customer information" not shown in FIG. 10. The third display control unit 103C acquires the destination, CC, BCC, or sender email address of the shared email being displayed. In addition to the email address, the third display control unit 103C may also acquire at least one of the display name of the email address and the signature in the body of the shared email. This information may be included in the partial data, or the third display control unit 103C may request this information from the shared email system 2. The third display control unit 103C acquires a record of the customer management app using this information as a key. The third display control unit 103C causes the user terminal 30 to display the customer management screen SC5 showing the acquired information.

When a specific display operation is performed on the shared email screen SC2, the groupware system 1 of variant 1-7 displays the customer management screen SC5 on the user terminal based on the shared email displayed in the shared email portion P22. The groupware system 1 allows the user to check customer information on the customer management screen SC5 with simple operations, thereby improving user convenience.

[Modification 1-8]
For example, the case management application may register an email thread for a shared email related to each case. In the modified example 1-8, one email thread is registered for one case, but multiple email threads may be registered for one case. The groupware system 1 includes a second registration unit 109B and a fourth display control unit 103D.

The second registration unit 109B registers the email thread of the shared email in a case management app that manages cases of users who use groupware. The second registration unit 109B registers the email thread in the case management app by registering email thread identification information that allows the groupware server 10 to identify the email thread in a record of the case management app. The email thread identification information may be a reference included in the header of the shared email (a list of message IDs of related shared emails), or may be issued independently by the shared email server 20. The email thread to be registered is specified by the user. The second registration unit 109B registers information such as the email thread ID and the shared email identification information in the case management app.

For example, the second registration unit 109B registers the email thread of a shared email selected from the shared email portion P22 of the shared email screen SC2 in the case management app. When a list L226 of multiple shared emails is displayed in the shared email portion P22 as in FIG. 3, the second registration unit 109B registers at least one email thread selected by the user from the list L226 in the case management app. The user also specifies the case for which the email thread is to be registered. When details of one shared email are displayed in the shared email portion P22 as in variant example 1-1, the second registration unit 109B registers the displayed email thread in the case management app when the user performs a specified operation on the shared email screen SC2 (for example, when the user selects button B228 in FIG. 10).

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a case management screen. The fourth display control unit 103D causes the user terminal 30 to display a case management screen SC6 including a mail thread based on the case management application. It is assumed that data necessary for displaying the case management screen SC6 is pre-stored in the data storage unit 100. The fourth display control unit 103D generates display data for the case management screen SC6 based on the data. The fourth display control unit 103D may request information on the latest mail thread from the shared mail system 2 every time the user requests to display the case management screen SC6. Based on the request, the shared mail system 2 refers to the shared mail database DB2 and transmits information on the latest mail thread to the groupware system 1.

For example, when a user selects a record in the case management app, the fourth display control unit 103D acquires the contents of the record. The fourth display control unit 103D generates display data for the case management screen SC6 based on the contents of the record. If an email thread is registered in the record, the fourth display control unit 103D generates display data for the case management screen SC6 showing the subject of the email thread, as shown in FIG. 14. The fourth display control unit 103D displays the case management screen SC6 on the user terminal 30 by transmitting the display data for the case management screen SC6 to the user terminal 30. The display data for the case management screen SC6 includes links to the individual shared emails belonging to the email thread.

The processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A in variant 1-8 is executed when an email thread is selected on the case management screen SC6. For example, when a user selects a link to a shared email belonging to an email thread on the case management screen SC6, the user terminal 30 sends a display request for the shared email screen SC2 to the groupware server 10 based on the link of the selected shared email. The groupware server 10 receives the display request for the shared email screen SC2 from the user terminal 30. The subsequent processing of the request unit 101, partial data acquisition unit 102, and first display control unit 103A is the same as in variant 1-1.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-8 registers an email thread for a shared email in a case management app. Based on the case management app, the groupware system 1 displays a case management screen SC6 including the email thread on the user terminal 30. The processing of the request unit 101, the partial data acquisition unit 102, and the first display control unit 103A is executed when an email thread is selected on the case management screen SC6. The email thread is displayed on the case management screen SC6, making it easier for the user to manage cases. When the user selects an email thread, a shared email screen SC2 showing the shared emails belonging to the email thread is displayed on the user terminal 30, improving user convenience. The user can check the groupware shared email screen SC2 from the groupware case management screen SC6 without transitioning to another domain.

The groupware system 1 also registers the email thread of the shared email selected from the shared email portion P22 of the shared email screen SC2 in the case management app. The user can check the shared email on the shared email screen SC2 and register the email thread of the shared email directly in the case management app, improving user convenience.

[Modification 1-9]
For example, in variant example 1-8, second registration unit 109B may register the email thread of the shared email specified on the matter management screen SC6 in the matter management app. The matter management screen SC6 in variant example 1-9 displays an input form for the user to specify the email thread that the user wishes to register in the matter management app. When the user specifies a link to the shared email in the input form, second registration unit 109B registers the email thread to which the shared email belongs in the matter management app. Second registration unit 109B may request information for identifying the email thread from shared email system 2 based on shared email identification information of the shared email.

The groupware system 1 of variant example 1-9 registers the email thread of the shared email specified on the case management screen SC6 in the case management app. The user can specify the email thread while checking the case on the case management screen SC6, and register the email thread directly in the case management app, improving user convenience.

[Modification 1-10]
For example, as in the modification 1-6, when information such as an email address of a shared email is registered in the customer management app, the user may be allowed to specify the correspondence between each of the pieces of information included in the shared email and each of the fields of the customer management app. The correspondence specified by the user is registered in the app database DB1 as app setting data of the customer management app. The groupware system 1 in the modification 1-10 includes a third registration unit 109C.

The third registration unit 109C registers information contained in the shared email in an app based on an association between an app field and an item contained in the shared email, which is set for each app in the groupware. In variant example 1-10, a customer management app is described as an example of the app, but the app may be an app other than a customer management app. For example, the third registration unit 109C may register information contained in the shared email in an app based on a pre-specified association for a case management app, a shared email app, or another app.

For example, for each item included in the header of the shared email, the user specifies which field the information for that item corresponds to. If the customer management app has fields such as email address, company name, customer name, and person in charge name, the user specifies which of these fields the item included in the header of the shared email corresponds to. The correspondence specified by the user is indicated in advance in the app setting data. The third registration unit 109C registers the information for the item included in the header of the shared email that corresponds to the record in the customer management app as the value of the field corresponding to that item.

The groupware system 1 of variant example 1-10 registers information contained in the shared email in the app based on the association between the app's fields and the items contained in the shared email, which is set for each app in the groupware. The groupware system 1 can register the items contained in the shared email in the most appropriate field.

[Modification 1-11]
For example, a user may create an email to be sent from a shared email app by using a template app in which a template for a shared email is registered. The template app may be provided as a default app from the beginning, or may be added later by the user. The template app may be created by the user.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between a template app and other apps. In the example of FIG. 15, a shared email app, a customer management app, and a case management app are shown as the other apps. For example, the data storage unit 100 stores data indicating a record of a template app. The record of the template app stores data of a template created by a user.

In variant example 1-11, list L110 on portal screen SC1 in FIG. 2 displays template apps as apps available to the user. For example, when a user selects a template app from list L110, the user terminal 30 displays a template screen SC7 on the display unit 35, as shown in FIG. 15. Note that in FIG. 15, the template screen SC7 and customer management screen SC5 are simplified.

For example, the user inputs a template name into input form F70. The user inputs a subject into input form F71. The user inputs the body into input form F72. The user can register any data as a template into the template app. The data that the user can register as a template is not limited to the template name, subject, and body. For example, the user can register attachments, destination, CC, BCC, font and other formats, tags such as importance, email formats such as HTML, or other data into the template app.

The customer management screen SC5 of variant 1-11 displays an input form F50 for the user to select a template, and a button B51 for the user to create an email. If multiple templates are registered in the template app, the user selects one of the multiple templates from the input form F50. When the user selects button B51, the groupware server 10 creates an email based on the customer management app, template app, and shared email app.

In the example of Figure 15, the field code (field name) is specified as the variable "%Customer%" in the body of the template. For example, this variable indicates the field code of the customer name in the customer management app. Based on the template data registered in the template app and the customer name registered in the customer management app, the groupware server 10 creates an email in which the customer name "ZZZ Co., Ltd." displayed on the customer management screen SC5 is inserted into the variable "%Customer%" in the body of the template.

The user can specify any field code in the customer management app as a variable. The field code that the user can specify as a variable is not limited to the customer name. For example, the user may specify the name of the person in charge, email address, phone number, address, or other field code as a variable. The user may specify field codes as variables not only for the body of the template, but also for other parts of the template, such as the subject line. Field codes may be common to multiple apps. For example, the variable "%Customer%" in FIG. 15 may indicate the field code for the customer name in the case management app.

The user may also create an email by selecting a template from the case management screen SC6, rather than the customer management screen SC5. In this case as well, if a variable is specified in the template, the groupware server 10 creates an email in which the case information displayed on the case management screen SC6 is inserted into the variable portion of the body of the template, based on the template data registered in the template app and the case information registered in the case management app (for example, the case name, customer name, or person in charge in FIG. 14, etc.).

A user may also be able to select a template to create an email in an app other than the customer management app or the case management app. When a user creates an email from a template, the destination, CC, and BCC of the email may be specified by the user or may be defined in the template. FIG. 15 also shows the flow in which information about the shared email (e.g., name, email address, subject, body, or attachment) is registered from the shared email app to the customer management app or case management app. This flow is as described above.

In addition, if the user does not specify a variable, the groupware server 10 may create the email based on the template app without referring to the customer management app or the case management app. The groupware server 10 may create the email based at least on the template app and the shared email app. If the user specifies a variable in the template, the groupware server 10 may obtain data corresponding to the variable from the customer management app, case management app, or other app to create the email.

For example, when a user instructs the groupware server 10 to send an email from a shared email application, the groupware server 10 requests the shared email system 2 to send an email created based on a template. When the shared email server 20 accepts the request, it sends the email created based on the template. The method of sending the email itself may be any of a variety of known methods. The shared email server 20 sends the email created based on the template to each of the destination, CC, and BCC fields.

The groupware system 1 of variant 1-11 creates emails based on a template app. This allows users to easily use email templates from the groupware, so the groupware system 1 can improve user convenience.

[6-2. Modifications of the shared email system]
Next, a modified example of the shared mail system 2 will be described.

[Modification 2-1]
For example, as in variant example 1-1, the link of the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22 may include the groupware domain and the shared email identification information. The partial data acquisition unit 202 in variant example 2-1 generates the link of the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The data indicating the groupware domain part of the link is assumed to be stored in the data storage unit 200.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 identifies the groupware domain portion based on the data stored in the data storage unit 200. In the example of FIG. 10, the partial data acquisition unit 202 identifies the "xxxcompany.aaagroupware.com" portion as the groupware domain. The partial data acquisition unit 202 refers to the shared email database DB2 and acquires the shared email identification information of the shared email displayed in the shared email portion.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates a link by placing a specific symbol (e.g., #, ?, =, etc.) after the groupware domain, followed by the shared email identification information. The partial data acquisition unit 202 generates as many links as the number of shared emails displayed in the shared email portion (in the example of FIG. 3, the five displayed in list L226). The partial data acquisition unit 202 generates HTML data of the shared email portion P22 including the link as partial data. The processing of the first request receiving unit 201A and the partial data sending unit 203 is the same as in the embodiment.

The processes of the first request receiving unit 201A, partial data acquisition unit 202, and partial data transmission unit 203 in variant 2-1 are executed each time a link is selected on the user terminal 30 and the groupware system 1 receives a request to display the shared mail screen SC2 from the user terminal 30. For example, the first request receiving unit 201A receives a request from the request unit 101 described in variant 1-1. The partial data acquisition unit 202 executes the process described above and generates HTML data of the shared mail part P22 including the link as partial data. The partial data transmission unit 203 transmits the partial data to the groupware system 1.

In the shared mail system 2 of variant 2-1, the link of the shared mail displayed in the shared mail part P22 includes the groupware domain and the shared mail identification information. The processing of the first request receiving unit 201A, the partial data acquisition unit 202, and the partial data transmission unit 203 is executed each time a link is selected on the user terminal 30 and the groupware system 1 receives a request to display the shared mail screen SC2 from the user terminal 30. When a user selects the link of the shared mail, the shared mail system 2 can cause the user terminal 30 to display the shared mail in the groupware domain. If the user terminal 30 accesses another domain while accessing the groupware domain, the user may become confused, but the shared mail system 2 can prevent such confusion.

[Modification 2-2]
For example, the processing of each of the first request receiving unit 201A, partial data acquisition unit 202, and partial data transmission unit 203 described in the embodiment is executed when the user logs in to the groupware. On the other hand, when the user logs in directly to the shared mail service as in variant example 1-4, a shared mail screen SC4 having the same or similar content as the shared mail part P22 is displayed on the user terminal 30. The shared mail screen SC4 is as described in variant example 1-4. The shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-2 includes a display control unit 204.

When a user logs in to the shared mail system 2, the display control unit 204 causes the user terminal 30 to display a shared mail screen SC4 showing the shared mail based on a link that does not include the groupware domain but includes the domain of the shared mail system 2 and the shared mail identification information. The display control unit 204 generates display data for the shared mail screen SC4 and transmits it to the user terminal 30. When the user terminal 30 receives the display data for the shared mail screen SC4, it causes the display unit 35 to display the shared mail screen SC4. This series of processes may be processes employed in known shared mail services.

The partial data acquisition unit 202 in variant example 2-2 generates partial data for the shared mail part P22, which has a layout different from that of the shared mail part P41 of the shared mail screen SC4 that is displayed when the user directly logs in to the shared mail service. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data for the shared mail part P22 that does not include the shared mail image I400. As another example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 may generate partial data for the shared mail part P22 in which the theme color of the shared mail service is not the background color.

When a user logs in to the shared mail system 2 in variant 2-2, the shared mail system 2 displays a shared mail screen SC4 showing the shared mail on the user terminal 30 based on a link that does not include the groupware domain but includes the domain of the shared mail system 2 and the shared mail identification information. The shared mail system 2 can provide the shared mail screen SC4 to a user who logs in directly to the shared mail service. For example, the shared mail system 2 can also make the layout of the shared mail part P22 different from the layout of the shared mail part P41. This allows the shared mail system 2 to display the shared mail part P22 on the user terminal 30 in a display format specific to the groupware, or display the shared mail part P41 on the user terminal 30 in a display format specific to the shared mail service.

[Modification 2-3]
For example, as in Modification 1-4, the shared mail screen SC4 includes a shared mail image I400 that allows the user to identify the shared mail system 2. As explained somewhat in Modification 2-2, the shared mail system 2 may include a display control unit 204 that causes the user terminal 30 to display a shared mail screen SC4 that allows the user to identify the shared mail system 2 when the user logs in to the shared mail system 2. The user being able to identify the shared mail system 2 has the opposite meaning to "the user is not able to identify the shared mail system 2" explained in Modification 1-4, so the explanation of Modification 1-4 can be reinterpreted to have the opposite meaning.

The partial data acquisition unit 202 in variant 2-3 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 in which the user cannot identify the shared mail system 2. In variant 2-3, as in variant 1-4, an example is given in which the shared mail part P22 that does not include the shared mail image I400 corresponds to the shared mail part P22 in which the user cannot identify the shared mail system 2. The partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that does not include the shared mail image I400. Since the shared mail part P22 does not include the shared mail image I400, it has a different appearance from the shared mail part P41. The partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data of the shared mail part P22 like the other examples described in variant 1-4 (such as the shared mail part P22 that does not include an illustration of the shared mail system 2 generated by CSS).

If the shared mail image I400 is displayed in the shared mail portion P22 of the shared mail screen SC2, the user may mistakenly believe that he or she is logged in to a shared mail service. In this regard, the shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-3 can display on the user terminal 30 a shared mail screen SC2 that includes a shared mail portion P22 that does not mistakenly lead the user, who is logged in to the groupware, to the user so that the user does not mistakenly believe that he or she is logged in to a shared mail service.

[Modification 2-4]
For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data indicating a shared mail portion in which a portion of the shared mail screen SC4 displayed when the user logs in to the shared mail system 2, by which the user can identify the shared mail system 2, has been replaced so as to enable the user to identify the groupware. In the modification 2-4, the partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires partial data indicating a shared mail portion P22 in which the shared mail image I400 has been replaced with a groupware image I200 by which the user can identify the groupware. The data storage unit 200 of the modification 2-4 stores image data of the groupware image I200. The partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data indicating the shared mail portion P22 including the groupware image I200 based on the image data.

The partial data acquisition unit 202 can place the groupware image I200 at any position in the shared mail part P22. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 can place the groupware image I200 at a position less than a predetermined distance from the top end of the shared mail part P22, or can place the groupware image I200 in the list L226. Instead of including the groupware image I200 in the partial data, the partial data acquisition unit 202 can generate the partial data so that the background color of the shared mail part P22 is the theme color of the groupware. Information indicating the background color of the shared mail part P22 is indicated in the partial data. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 can perform replacement as in another example of "user can identify groupware" described in modification example 1-4.

The shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-4 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 replaced as described above. The shared mail system 2 can display on the user terminal 30, for a user who has logged in to the groupware, a shared mail screen SC2 including the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to intuitively understand that the user is logged in to the groupware.

[Modification 2-5]
For example, in variant 1-5, when a user selects a record of the customer management application, the shared mail system 2 may acquire a shared mail to be displayed on the customer management screen SC5. The meaning of "acquisition" here is as explained in variant 1-5. In variant 2-5, the processing on the shared mail system 2 side in variant 1-5 will be explained. The shared mail system 2 in variant 2-5 includes a second request receiving unit 201B, an acquisition execution unit 205, and an acquisition result data transmission unit 206.

The second request receiving unit 201B receives a request from the groupware system 1 to obtain a shared email based on an email address registered in a customer management app that manages customer information of users who use the groupware. The second request receiving unit 201B receives a request from the acquisition request unit 107 described in variant example 1-5. As described in variant example 1-5, the request from the acquisition request unit 107 includes an email address stored in a record of the customer management app selected by the user.

The acquisition execution unit 205 acquires a shared email when the second request acceptance unit 201B accepts a request. For example, the acquisition execution unit 205 acquires a shared email to be displayed on the customer management screen SC5 from the shared email database DB2 based on the email address included in the request accepted by the second request acceptance unit 201B. The acquisition execution unit 205 acquires a shared email for which the email address is the destination, CC, BCC, or sender.

The acquisition result data transmission unit 206 transmits the acquisition result executed by the acquisition execution unit 205 to the groupware system 1. The acquisition result is data in a prescribed format. The data includes information about the shared email acquired by the acquisition execution unit 205. For example, the data includes the subject of the acquired shared email, at least a part of the body of the shared email, the name of the attachment to the shared email, or other information. The acquisition result data transmission unit 206 refers to the shared email database DB2, acquires this information, and transmits it as acquisition result data.

The shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-5 receives a request from the groupware system 1 to obtain a shared mail based on an email address registered in the customer management app. When the shared mail system 2 receives the request, it obtains the shared mail. The shared mail system 2 transmits the result of the acquisition executed by the acquisition execution unit 205 to the groupware system 1. This allows the user to access the shared mail information in the customer management app in the groupware.

[Modification 2-6]
For example, in the modified example 1-6, the shared mail system 2 may generate partial data of the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to register information of the shared mail in the customer management app. The partial data acquisition unit 202 in the modified example 2-6 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to instruct the customer management app that manages the user's customer information to register new customer information based on the shared mail displayed in the shared mail part P22. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that includes a registration image that allows the user to instruct the registration.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data indicating the shared email part P22 including the button B227 in FIG. 10. The link of the button B227 is assumed to be the groupware domain. Therefore, when the user selects the button B227, the user terminal 30 requests the groupware server 10 to register information about the shared email in the customer management app. Note that the registration image is not limited to the button B227, and may be other images such as an icon. Furthermore, the partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data indicating the shared email part P22 that the user can instruct to register by using an illustration that can be displayed in CSS, text including a link, or other user interface parts other than the registration image.

The shared email system 2 of variant example 2-6 acquires partial data indicating the shared email part P22 that allows the user to instruct the customer management app to register new customer information based on the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The shared email system 2 allows the user to register customer information in the customer management app with a simple operation, thereby improving user convenience.

[Modification 2-7]
For example, in the modified example 1-7, the shared mail system 2 may generate partial data of the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to display the customer management screen SC5 from the shared mail screen SC2. The partial data acquisition unit 202 in the modified example 2-7 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that is a display of the customer management screen SC5 of the customer management app that manages the user's customer information and that allows the user to instruct the display based on the shared mail displayed in the shared mail part P22. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that includes a display image for the user to instruct the display.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 including the button described in variant example 1-7. The link of the button is assumed to be the groupware domain. Therefore, when the user selects the button, the user terminal 30 transmits a display request for a customer management screen to the groupware server 10. Note that the display image is not limited to a button, and may be other images such as an icon. Furthermore, the partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that the user can instruct to display by using, other than the display image, an illustration that can be displayed using CSS, text including a link, or other user interface parts.

The shared email system 2 of variant example 2-7 is a display of the customer management screen SC5 of a customer management app that manages customer information for users who use groupware, and acquires partial data indicating the shared email part P22 that the user can instruct to display based on the shared email displayed in the shared email part P22. The shared email system 2 allows the user to check customer information on the customer management screen SC5 with simple operations, thereby improving user convenience.

[Modification 2-8]
For example, in Variation 1-8, when the user selects a record of the case management application, the shared mail system 2 may obtain a mail thread to be displayed on the case management screen SC6. Variation 2-8 describes the processing on the shared mail system 2 side in Variation 1-8. The shared mail system 2 in Variation 2-8 includes a third request receiving unit 201C and a mail thread data sending unit 207.

The third request receiving unit 201C receives a request for email thread data indicating an email thread of a shared email registered in a case management app that manages the user's cases from the groupware system 1. When the user selects a record in the case management app, the groupware server 10 sends an email thread retrieval request to the shared email system 2. The third request receiving unit 201C receives the retrieval request. For example, the retrieval request includes the email thread ID registered in the record selected by the user.

When the third request receiving unit 201C receives a request, the mail thread data sending unit 207 sends mail thread data to the groupware system 1. For example, the mail thread data sending unit 207 acquires a mail thread to be displayed on the customer management screen SC5 from the shared mail database DB2 based on the mail thread ID included in the display request received from the groupware system 1. The mail thread data sending unit 207 refers to the shared mail database DB2 and acquires the subject of the shared mail belonging to the acquired mail thread, at least a part of the body of the shared mail, the name of the attachment to the shared mail, or other information. The mail thread data sending unit 207 generates mail thread data indicating this information and sends it to the groupware system 1.

The shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-8 receives a request from the groupware system 1 for mail thread data indicating the mail thread of the shared mail registered in the case management application. When the shared mail system 2 receives the request, it transmits the mail thread data to the groupware system 1. The mail thread is displayed on the case management screen SC6, making it easier for the user to manage cases. When the user selects an email thread, the shared mail screen SC2 indicating the shared mail belonging to the mail thread is displayed on the user terminal 30, improving user convenience. The user can check the groupware shared mail screen SC2 from the groupware case management screen SC6 without transitioning to another domain.

[Modification 2-9]
For example, in the modified example 1-8, the shared mail system 2 may generate partial data of the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to register a mail thread in the case management application from the shared mail screen SC2. The partial data acquisition unit 202 in the modified example 2-9 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that allows the user to select a mail thread from the shared mail part P22 of the shared mail screen. For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 acquires partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 that includes a mail thread selection image that allows the user to select the mail thread.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 including the button B228. The link of the button B228 is assumed to be the groupware domain. Therefore, when the user selects the button B228, the user terminal 30 requests the groupware server 10 to register the mail thread in the case management application. Note that the mail thread selection image is not limited to the button B228, and may be other images such as an icon. Furthermore, the partial data acquisition unit 202 may acquire partial data indicating the shared mail part P22 from which the user can select the above mail thread by using an illustration that can be displayed in CSS, text including a link, or other user interface parts other than the mail thread selection image.

The shared email system 2 of variant example 2-9 acquires partial data indicating the shared email portion P22 from which the user can select an email thread from the shared email portion P22 of the shared email screen SC2. The user can check the shared email on the shared email screen SC2 and register the email thread of the shared email directly in the case management app, improving user convenience.

[Modification 2-10]
For example, the shared mail system 2 may be capable of linking with multiple groupware systems 1. In variant example 2-10, each of the multiple groupware systems 1 displays the shared mail portion P22 on the shared mail screen SC2 of the groupware that it manages. The request that each of the multiple groupware systems 1 sends to the shared mail system 2 may be the same as in the embodiment. The shared mail system 2 accepts a request similar to that in the embodiment from each of the multiple groupware systems 1.

The partial data acquisition unit 202 of variant example 2-10 acquires partial data corresponding to the groupware system 1 that sent the request for partial data from among multiple groupware systems 1. Partial data corresponding to the groupware system 1 is partial data including a link corresponding to the groupware system 1, or partial data showing the shared email part P22 with a layout corresponding to the groupware system 1. The partial data transmission unit 203 transmits the partial data corresponding to the groupware system 1 to the groupware system 1 that sent the request for partial data.

For example, the partial data acquisition unit 202 generates partial data indicating a link including the domain of a groupware system 1 that has sent a request for partial data among the multiple groupware systems 1 and the email identification information. The domain of each of the multiple groupware systems 1 is assumed to be stored in advance in the data storage unit 200. The partial data acquisition unit 202 may generate partial data in which the theme color of the groupware system 1 that has sent a request for partial data among the multiple groupware systems 1 is the background color. The theme color of each of the multiple groupware systems 1 is assumed to be stored in advance in the data storage unit 200.

The shared mail system 2 of variant example 2-10 can link with multiple groupware systems 1. The shared mail system 2 obtains partial data from among the multiple groupware systems 1 that corresponds to the groupware system 1 that sent the request. By linking with multiple groupware systems 1, the shared mail system 2 can improve user convenience.

[6-3. Other Modifications]
For example, the above modifications may be combined.

For example, some of the functions described as being realized by the groupware server 10 may be realized by the user terminal 30. In this case, functions similar to those of the groupware server 10 may be realized by being executed by a browser script or by a program installed on the user terminal 30. The functions described as being realized by the groupware server 10 may be shared among multiple computers.

For example, some of the functions described as being realized by the shared mail server 20 may be realized by the user terminal 30. In this case, functions similar to those of the shared mail server 20 may be realized by being executed by a browser script or a program installed on the user terminal 30. The functions described as being realized by the shared mail server 20 may be shared among multiple computers.

1 Groupware system, 2 Shared mail system, 10 Groupware server, 11, 21, 31 Control unit, 12, 22, 32 Storage unit, 13, 23, 33 Communication unit, 20 Shared mail server, 30 User terminal, 34 Operation unit, 35 Display unit, N Network, DB1 Application database, 100 Data storage unit, 101 Request unit, 102 Partial data acquisition unit, 103 Display control unit, 104 Request reception unit, 105 Addition unit, 106 Designation reception unit, 107 Acquisition request unit, 108 Acquisition result data acquisition unit, 109 Registration unit, 200 Data storage unit, 201 Request reception unit, 202 Partial data acquisition unit, 203 Partial data transmission unit, 204 Display control unit, 205 Acquisition execution unit, 206 Acquisition result data transmission unit, 207 Mail thread data transmission unit, 300 Data storage unit, 301 Display control unit, 302 operation reception unit, DB1 application database, DB2 shared email database, F30 input form, P10, P20, P40 header portion, P11, P21 content portion, P22, P41 shared email portion, SC1 portal screen, SC2 shared email screen, SC3 application setting screen, SC4 shared email screen, SC5 customer management screen, SC6 case management screen, B220, B221 button, I100, I200 groupware image, I400 shared email image, L110, L226 list.

Claims (12)

a first request receiving unit that receives, from a groupware system that provides groupware to a user, a request for partial data indicating a shared mail portion that is a portion of a shared mail on a shared mail screen of the groupware, the request including email address identification data for identifying an email address from which the partial data is to be obtained ;
a partial data acquisition unit that, when the first request acceptance unit accepts the request , acquires the shared mail from a shared mail database in which the shared mail is stored based on the email address identification data included in the request, and acquires partial data indicating a link of the shared mail displayed in the shared mail portion, the link including a domain of the groupware and shared mail identification information of the shared mail;
a partial data transmission unit that transmits the partial data to the groupware system;
A shared email system including: the shared mail system further includes a display control unit which, when the user accesses the domain of the shared mail system and directly logs in to the shared mail system , causes a shared mail screen showing the shared mail to be displayed on the user terminal based on a link including the domain of the shared mail system and the shared mail identification information, without including the domain of the groupware;
2. The shared mail system of claim 1 . the shared mail system further includes a display control unit that, when the user accesses a domain of the shared mail system and directly logs into the shared mail system , causes a user terminal to display a shared mail screen including a shared mail image or a theme color that allows the user to identify the shared mail system;
the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data indicating the shared email portion not including the shared email image or the theme color ;
3. The mail system according to claim 1 or 2 . the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data indicating the portion of the shared email in which the image of the shared email or the theme color is replaced with a groupware image or theme color that allows the user to identify the groupware.
4. The shared mail system of claim 3 . The shared mail system comprises:
a second request receiving unit that receives, from the groupware system, a request for acquiring the shared email, the request including an email address registered in a customer management application that manages customer information of the user;
an acquisition execution unit that acquires the shared email when the second request acceptance unit accepts the request;
an acquisition result transmission unit that transmits the acquisition result acquired by the acquisition execution unit to the groupware system;
3. The shared mail system of claim 1, further comprising: the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data indicating the shared mail portion including a user interface part that allows the user to instruct a customer management application that manages customer information of the user to register new customer information based on the shared mail displayed in the shared mail portion.
3. A shared mail system according to claim 1 or 2 . the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data indicating a portion of the shared mail that is a display of a customer management application screen of a customer management application that manages customer information of the user and that allows the user to instruct the display based on the shared mail displayed in the shared mail portion.
3. A shared mail system according to claim 1 or 2 . The shared mail system comprises:
a third request receiving unit that receives, from the groupware system, a request for email thread data indicating an email thread of the shared email to be registered in a case management application that manages a case of the user;
a mail thread data sending unit that sends the mail thread data to the groupware system when the third request receiving unit receives the request;
3. The shared mail system of claim 1, further comprising: the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data indicating the shared mail portion from which the user can select the mail thread from the shared mail portion of the shared mail screen;
9. The shared mail system of claim 8 . The shared mail system is capable of linking with a plurality of the groupware systems;
the partial data acquisition unit acquires the partial data corresponding to the groupware system that has transmitted the request from among the plurality of groupware systems.
3. A shared mail system according to claim 1 or 2 . The computer
receiving, from a groupware system that provides groupware to a user, a request for partial data indicating a shared mail portion that is a portion of the shared mail on a shared mail screen of the groupware , the request including email address identification data for identifying an email address from which the partial data is to be obtained ;
When the request is received, the shared mail is retrieved from a shared mail database in which the shared mail is stored, based on the email address identification data included in the request, and partial data indicating a link to the shared mail displayed in the shared mail portion, the link including the domain of the groupware and shared mail identification information of the shared mail is retrieved.
transmitting the partial data to the groupware system;
Transmission method. a first request receiving unit that receives, from a groupware system that provides groupware to a user, a request for partial data indicating a shared mail portion that is a portion of a shared mail on a shared mail screen of the groupware, the request including email address identification data for identifying an email address from which the partial data is to be obtained;
a partial data acquisition unit that, when the first request acceptance unit accepts the request , acquires the shared mail from a shared mail database in which the shared mail is stored based on the email address identification data included in the request, and acquires partial data indicating a link of the shared mail displayed in the shared mail portion, the link including a domain of the groupware and shared mail identification information of the shared mail;
a partial data transmission unit that transmits the partial data to the groupware system;
A program that makes a computer function as a

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