JPH0278346A - Mail service system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain the remote service through a network by arranging a user interface section to a mail service system and allowing the user to visit the mail server directly for its operation. CONSTITUTION:The direct interactive service is implemented by allowing the user 26 to receive the mail processing executed by a mail processing section 53 through a user interface section 55. When a mail is received through a network 21 from a word station 23 or the like, a speaker (not shown) prepared as an input output device 63 sounds to inform the reception of the mail. A menu of the mail in the receiving state is displayed on a display device 28 in this state.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION "Field of Industrial Application" The present invention relates to a mail service system using a network such as Ethernet, and particularly to a mail service system that facilitates the use of mail by users.

"Prior Art" A device called a mail server is usually connected to a distributed local network.

Here, the mail server is a server that manages personal mail folders, writes sent mail to a destination folder, and extracts mail that has been requested to be received from a predetermined folder and sends it.

Mail servers, like many other servers connected to distributed local area networks, provide shared services to personal, interactive workstations and other devices. The user interface section of the server shown in Table 1 below consisted of only a remote server monitor section, and there was no interface function for providing the services of the service processing function section. Further, the workstation has a network interface consisting only of a client network interface, and does not have an interface function unit for providing the services of the service processing function unit.

Table 1 By the way, with some exceptions such as print servers that will be explained later, servers can be remotely controlled by devices such as workstations as long as they are located somewhere on the local area network. , the desired service can be provided. In this sense, the user does not need to know where the server is installed. In this specification, as explained above, the place where the service is provided is particularly important to the user, ah FJ! The existence of devices that do not need to be controlled will be referred to as "logical existence."

On the other hand, if we look at normal office equipment such as copy machines and facsimile machines installed in offices,
Users must go to the location where these are installed and perform work such as copying. That is, in order to receive services, users must clearly recognize the locations of these devices and must operate them directly. In this specification, the presence of a device whose location where a service is performed needs to be recognized will be referred to as "physical presence."

Incidentally, recently, office equipment such as copying machines and facsimile machines are gradually being incorporated into networks. When installed on a network, these office devices can perform predetermined tasks even by remote control. It is also possible for the user to go to the location where these office devices are located and operate them. In other words, office equipment installed on the network has both a logical and physical existence. As a result of this,
It is difficult to configure an information processing service system using only the conventional server concept.

``Problems to be Solved by the Invention'' Now, with the advancement of networking, even if office equipment that was previously used for direct interaction and shared use becomes a network server, it will only be equipped with remote monitoring means at that moment. It's not a good thing.

In addition, logical servers, which in the past have not been considered for direct use, are required to become an explicit presence as part of the office corporation, that is, as office equipment that harmonizes with the office. ing.

On the other hand, some conventional servers connected to a network can communicate directly with users, and in this sense, they have the meaning of a physical presence. In other words, 800, a product of Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
In 01NS, a server called a server monitor or server monitoring server can be placed on the network.

This server monitor can monitor the operating status of a specified server.

In this way, the user or users were able to monitor the usage status of the server by directly interacting with the server monitor. However, this direct interaction with users is not for obtaining services, which is the original purpose of the server. For this reason, the user is not a general user, but
This was usually an administrator called a network administrator.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a mail service system that enables not only remote services through a network but also direct interactive services.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mail service system that can easily identify important parts of received mail.

"Means for Solving the Problem" The invention of claim 1 utilizes a mail processing unit 11 that performs a mail processing service and a mail processing service performed by this mail processing unit 11 as shown in principle in FIG. 1A. The mail service system is equipped with a user interface section 12 for providing interactive services to users, and a network interface section 13 for providing mail processing services performed by the mail processing section 11 to other devices on the network. let

That is, in the invention as claimed in claim 1, the user interface section 12 is arranged in the mail service system so that the user can directly go to the mail server and operate it, thereby also enabling direct interaction service.

Further, in the invention of claim 2, as shown in the figure, there is a keyword storage means 15 for storing keywords, a keyword matching means 16 for matching the received email text with the keyword, and a keyword matching means 16 for matching the keyword with the keyword matching means 16. The mail service system is equipped with a display means 17 for displaying a phrase part so as to be distinguishable from other parts.

That is, in the invention of claim 2, a received email is searched by a keyword, and parts such as important phrases that match the keyword are displayed in capital letters or marked to distinguish them from other parts, Important points can be easily identified.

"Example" The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to Examples.

FIG. 2 shows the main parts of a network using the mail service system of this embodiment.

In this figure, a mail service system 22 of this embodiment, a workstation 23, etc. are arranged on a network 21. The mail service system 22 has a floppy disk driver 25 disposed on the front of the main body of the device, and the user 26 can also store data regarding received mail by setting the floppy disk that he or she brought with him here. You can also read the mail you bring with you from this floppy disk and send it.

On the top of the device body, there is a display 28 and an operation panel 2.
9, and an image reading section 31 is arranged therein. The display 28 displays the contents of the received e-mail,
It is designed to display various data for operation. The operation panel 29 is a part for performing various operations,
It may be composed of a keyboard or a touch panel. When the mail paper 32 is placed on the platen glass, the image reading unit 31 can read the mail information by appropriately closing the platen glass 33 and pressing a reading start button (not shown) on the operation panel 29. It looks like this. A recording section is arranged inside the main body of the apparatus, and the reading result of the mail paper 32 can be recorded as an image. Recorded paper 34
are discharged onto a discharge tray 35 provided on the side of the main body of the apparatus.

FIG. 3 shows an outline of the circuit configuration of such a mail service system. This mail service system includes a CPU (central processing unit) 41, which is typically connected to the following units through a bus 42 such as a data bus.

(i) RAM 43: Random access memory for storing programs for various controls of this mail service system and for temporarily storing data for various operations.

(ii>Display control unit 44: A circuit that controls the display of the display 28, and includes a display RAM.

(ji) Operation panel 29: This is a panel for performing various operations such as sending and receiving e-mails, as well as taking copies of e-mails, and is configured with a plurality of key switches and light emitting diodes.

(1) Hard disk 45: Stores programs to be stored in the RAM 43. There is also a storage area for saving received emails.

(v) Image reading section 31: Equipped with a one-dimensional image sensor, it scans a plane to read images.

(vi) Recording unit 46: In this embodiment, the recording unit 46 is configured by a laser printer, which scans a photoreceptor (not shown) with laser light to form an electrostatic latent image, which is then developed with toner. By transferring and fixing the image onto paper, the received image and the image on the e-mail paper to be sent are recorded.

FIG. 4 shows the functional configuration of this mail service system.

This mail service system includes a central control unit 51 for adjusting schedules of each part.

The central control device 51 includes a RAM 52 as a temporary storage area for various data, and also controls a mail processing section 53, a network interface section 54, and a user interface section 55.

Here, the mail processing unit 53 has a function of sending and receiving mail. Sending an e-mail means moving the e-mail to the mail server or mail service system where the mailbox of the destination user exists. Receiving mail means storing the mail sent from the other party in a predetermined mailbox.

The mail processing section 53 includes a statistics section 56, a keyword section 57,
One or more of the classification section 58 and the accounting section 59 can be connected. Of these, the statistics section 56 performs history maintenance and statistical processing regarding email processing. This result is output through the user interface unit 55 or transmitted to the network 21 by the network interface unit 54.
stored in other devices above. The history retention function in the statistics section 56 records the history of when and who sent emails, the title and sender's name of emails in a certain mailbox on the email service system, and information about emails sent from the email service system. This function retains data such as the title, sender, and sending time of previous e-mails sent by a person. The statistics unit 56 can perform statistical processing on these stored histories based on them. It is also possible to search these histories by desired department, section, or group, and check the number of e-mails sent and received and the communication partners. - For example, checking the titles and senders' names of the past 20 emails addressed to the user 26 himself, or checking the titles, recipients, and sending times of the past 10 emails sent by the user 26 himself. It can also be displayed on the display 28 or recorded by the recording section 46.

The keyword section 57 is a section for emphasizing keywords in the email or adding keywords.

That is, the keyword section 57 includes (i) frequently appearing words, (
ii) Among the keyword candidate words registered in advance, words included in the title or content of the target email are determined as keywords, and these keywords are searched and extracted from the email. Then, for those keywords that appear in the email, the position is emphasized by underlining or marking, or the keywords are placed in the blank space at the beginning or end of the email text, or in the blank space on the right side of the email text. Extracted and provided for the convenience of users.

The keyword section 57 is connected to a keyword database 60, and stores a list of keywords.

The classification unit 58 classifies and rearranges the miscellaneous mails received in the mailbox. At this time, the format use section 65 is used to rearrange the mail according to the standard format of the mail form. Additionally, the title of the email text can be changed to make it easier for users to use. For example, if an e-mail is written in the form of a communication letter such as ``About the regular meeting on 12/8'', the title may be uniformly changed or a part of it may be changed to ``Notice letter: Regarding the regular meeting on 12/8'' depending on the format. Make additional changes.

The billing unit 59 performs billing calculations according to the processing of the mail processing unit 53. For example, it charges for sending emails and calculates the fee. In this case, it is possible to charge a higher fee for transmitting from Tokyo to Kagoshima, which is a longer distance, than for transmitting from Tokyo to Kyoto. In this way, billing is calculated according to the location of the sender or recipient, or according to the amount of mail sent. The billing unit 59 also
It is also possible to charge a fee for using the statistics section 56 and the classification section 58.

The network interface section 54 can be connected to a client network interface section 61 . The client network interface section 61 is a section that sends and receives information specified by the user via the user interface section 55.

The user interface section 55 may include a service utilization section 62 and an input/output device 63 in order to interactively provide the service provided by the mail processing 1153 to the user.

Here, the service usage section 62 includes a format database 64.
It is preferable that a format utilization section 65 is provided for utilizing the standard format of mail stored in the . The format database 64 stores standard formats such as correspondence formats and computer registration formats, and forms with appropriate standard formats are provided in response to user requests.

The user writes comments in the blank spaces on the provided form and sends it by e-mail to the desired destination.

By using a fixed format in this way, the sender can quickly enter the necessary information manually, and the recipient can also read the necessary information accurately.

The service usage section 62 may include an editing section 66 that can edit documents, image information, and the like.

A document memory 67 can be connected to the user interface unit 55 . This document memory 67 is capable of transferring data to the editing section 66. Various types of input/output equipment 63 are prepared depending on the method of interaction with the user.

Examples of such devices include printers, liquid crystal CRTs, etc.
, keyboard, mouse, operation panel, floppy disk, IC card driver, or image scanner.

The user ink face section 55 has a document creation function by using an input/output device 63 and an editing section 66. Furthermore, by using the network interface unit 54, information can be exchanged with other devices such as a file server (not shown) on the network 21 shown in FIG.

In this sense, the user interface section 55 has substantially the same functions as the workstation 23.

However, depending on the device configuration of the workstation 23, the functions that can be executed may be limited compared to other advanced workstations, even with regard to mail processing. In such cases, by enriching the user interface section 55 of the mail service system, the user can enjoy mail processing functions that could not be achieved on his or her own desk by visiting the mail service system. You will be able to do this. Herein lies one major significance of the mail service system having a "physical presence".

A case in which a direct dialogue service is performed in the mail service system configured as described above will be described below.

The direct interaction service is performed by the user 26 receiving mail processing performed by the mail processing section 53 through the user interface section 55. Since the mail service system 22 can be used by anyone in principle, it may be necessary to verify the identity of the user 26 at that time to see if he or she is authorized to receive mail. The identity of the user 26 can be verified by inputting a personal identification number from the operation panel 29, by comparing a fingerprint or voice print, or by checking a fundus pattern. When verifying fingerprints, etc., it is necessary to provide a dedicated input device as the input/output device 63 shown in FIG.

Now, from the workstation 23 etc. to the network 21
When an e-mail is received through the device, a speaker (not shown) provided as the input/output device 63 sounds, and the reception of the e-mail is announced. With this message, a menu of mails that are being received is displayed on the display 28.

(Mail Display) As shown in Fig. 5, the menu window 71 includes "Mail Display", "Keyword Emphasis", "Format Classification", etc.
The following selection items are displayed. When the user 26 selects "display mail" by operating a mouse (not shown) or keyboard, a window 72 showing the contents of the mailbox appears on the display 28 as shown in FIG. It will be displayed. In the example shown in Figure 4, the first email is ``〈Meeting〉Monthly Report,'' and the second email is ``Notice: There will be a power outage on 7/18.'' The third and subsequent emails are also as shown. Their titles are displayed as follows. These mails are displayed in the order in which they arrive, and will continue to be displayed as a list in the window 72 unless deletion is specifically instructed. The same mail can be retrieved from the mailbox any number of times as long as it is displayed in the window 72.

Some of these windows 72 have an asterisk * in front of the number indicating the title.

This asterisk * indicates that the email with that title has recently arrived and has not been read yet. If you read the email at least once, the asterisk * will be automatically removed. An example of a case where it is necessary to read the same e-mail multiple times is to read e-mails that have arrived at the user's address when regularly passing through the e-mail service system 22, to get an overview of the e-mail, and then when the user returns to his or her desk. Various cases can be assumed, such as a case where the information is read out again on one's own workstation 23 and examined in detail.

The user 26 can also forward mail from the mail service system 22 to a necessary location or reply to the received mail. This mail service system 2
If the fax machine 2 has an image information sending function as a facsimile, it becomes possible to send this as image information to a remote location via a telephone network when forwarding mail. Furthermore, the received mail can be printed out by the recording unit 46 by utilizing the print function of the mail service system 22. The received e-mail can be stored in the floppy disk that the user brought with him and taken home as described above, or it can be sent to the network 21 using the client network interface section 61 and stored in a file server (not shown). can.

The various processes described above for received mail can be performed by interactively operating the operation panel 29 (FIG. 5) while looking at the display 28. In the example shown in FIG. 5, it is selected to "display" the third e-mail, "I would like to order a book for you to know about", and its contents are displayed below the list of titles in the window 72. ing.

For example, if the user 26 determines that this e-mail is unnecessary, he or she can delete this e-mail from the mailbox by instructing the "discard" section.

(Strong keyword) Now, when reading a received email, it is easier to read if you set keywords and make the keywords prominent on the display. If such highlighted display is desired, the "keyword emphasis" location in the menu window 71 shown in FIG. 5 is selected using the mouse or the operation panel 29. When the user 26 selects the "keyword emphasis" item in this manner, the keyword is highlighted.

The manner in which keyword emphasis is performed will be explained with reference to FIG.

The CPU 41 shown in FIG.
It monitors whether the "keyword emphasis" section is selected (step in Figure 6). "Keyword emphasis"
When is selected (Y), the question ``Do you want to change the type of characters displayed for the keyword?'' is displayed on the display 28. When changing the character type (step ■; Y), a message "Do you want to make the font larger?" is further displayed on the display 28. User 26
Select if you want to make the font larger Step ■;Y
), the received mail is searched for the same characters or symbols as the keywords existing in the keyword database 60 (FIG. 4). If the same character or symbol as the keyword exists, it is changed to a character type one step larger (step 2). For example, 9 points, 12
When displaying or printing using three types of characters, font and 14 points, keywords that should be displayed or printed in 9 points will be displayed or printed in 12 points.

On the other hand, if you did not choose to make the font larger in step ■ (N), the received email is searched for the same characters or symbols as the keyword existing in the keyword database 60, and the corresponding part is Display or print by changing to another character type of the same size (step ■). For example, if the Mincho typeface is normally used, the keyword part is changed to the Bontsuku typeface so that it can be clearly distinguished from other parts.

Furthermore, if the user does not wish to change the character type in step (2) (N), the keyword will be added to the email text. At this time, the question "Is the addition position first?" is displayed on the display 28. User 26
If it is desired to be displayed "at the beginning", that is, at the beginning of the mail text (step 2; Y), the received mail is searched for the same characters or symbols as the keyword existing in the keyword database 60. Then, these search results are added to the first blank part of the email text (step ■). On the other hand, if you do not like the display in the first position in step (2) (N), search the received mail for the same characters or symbols as the above keyword,
As a result of these searches, words, symbols, or character strings that match the keywords are added to the blank space at the end of the email text (step 2).

By the way, in order to emphasize keywords like this,
It is necessary to set keywords in advance.

FIG. 7 shows this flow.

First, the CPU 41 registers a list of keywords in the keyword database 60 in advance (Step 7 in Figure 7).
). Then, when receiving an email, settings are made to display the keyword (step ■). Here, as explained in FIG. 6, there are various ways of displaying keywords.

FIG. 8 shows a part of the display and operation panel when specifying the keyword display mode. On the display 28, “keyword emphasis” is specified in the window 71, and a newly set window 74 is displayed.
, it is specified that the keyword be added without changing the character type, and in another newly set window 75, it is specified that the keyword is added to the ``last'' part (but not to the ``first'' part). has been done.

(Format Classification/Subject Classification) The user 26 can also view the contents after classifying the received mail. At this time, the "format classification" location shown in FIG. 5 is designated by operating the mouse or the operation panel 29. When "format classification" is specified, the classification unit 58 changes and rearranges the order of the mail according to the fixed format mail form. User 26 opens window 71
When the title category is specified using the mouse or the operation panel 29, the title is changed according to the fixed format. That is, the CPU 41 compares the received e-mail with the fixed forms stored in the form database 64, and if the received e-mail matches one of these fixed forms, the "format name" assigned to that fixed form is used. Take out. Then add this “format name” to the original subject of the email with the symbol “<
>” and add it. For example, if the original title of the email is “
Suppose that the request is ``Request for Book Purchase'' and is filled in using a standard format named ``Request.'' In this case, the title is changed to ``<Request> Request for Book Purchaser.'' The person 26 can accurately know the purpose of the email.

(Format Selection) When the user 26 creates a mail message using a standard format, he or she specifies the item "Format Selection" in the window 71 on the display.

FIG. 9 shows a state in which such a selection has been made. When the "format selection" location is specified by operating the mouse or the operation panel 29, a window 77 is set next to the window 71, and a list of standard formats is displayed here. The user 26 then selects a desired standard format, for example, a format of "book purchase". Then, the corresponding standard format is read out from the format database 64.

If there are a large number of standard formats, the standard formats are further divided into categories according to their purpose and displayed in the window 77, and when one of them is selected, the lower standard formats are displayed on the display 28. It's okay. In addition,
Frequently used fixed formats are displayed in the window 77, and less frequently used formats are displayed in the window 77.
By selecting the item ``Other'', the information may be displayed in another window, or may be displayed in an overwritten manner in the same window 77.

The fixed format specified and read by such an operation is displayed on the display 28, and necessary items are entered manually from the operation panel 29, etc., to create a mail message.

FIG. 10 shows an overview of the work of transmitting a mail message in a fixed format.

When the user selects a desired fixed format in the window 77 as described above, the format usage section 65 reads out the fixed format from the format database 64.
). This read standard format is displayed on the display 28, and the editing section 66 fills in the blank spaces of the standard format according to the operations of the user 26 (step 2). The created mail text is temporarily stored in the document memory 67, and sent from the mail processing section 53 to the destination (step 2).

Although the case where a mail message is created electronically on the display 28 has been described above, other methods are also possible. In the latter case, the user 26 records the read standard format in the recording unit 46 and discharges it as mail paper onto the discharge tray 35 shown in FIG. 2. Then, hand-write or type-print the necessary information on this standard email form,
It is placed on the image reading section 31 (FIG. 2) to read the image information, and after checking the read content on the display 28, it is sent as an e-mail.

(Method of sending mail) There are various ways to send mail from the mail service system of this embodiment. Here, sending an email includes forwarding the email to another location and replying to a received email.

Typical formats for sending emails are as follows.

(i) Sending emails created on the email service system.

Sending an email created using a standard format was explained above. Print out the standard form as an email form, fill in the necessary information, and send it to the email service system 22j.
We have also explained the case where manual input is required, but in this case, the email text that is manually input is filled in using a fixed format, so the recognition rate of the format and the characters entered is high, and the code information representing the format is It can be easily converted to character code. Since the conversion result can be displayed as an image on the display 28, it is also possible to correct characters, etc. in erroneously recognized locations. Of course, it is also possible to send the image information read by the image reading section 31 onto the network 21 as is. Even when image information is sent directly onto the network 21, it is also possible to add additional information such as comments to the original image information using the editing section 66 and the operation panel 29 before sending it. .

(Send email using a floppy disk that you brought with you.

The user 26 can bring a floppy disk and store it in the floppy disk driver 25 (FIG. 2) or in the document memory 67 of the mail service/system 22. The stored mail text can be sent as is, but it is also possible to display it on the display 28, modify it using the editing section 66 while interacting with the operation panel 29, and then send it.

(iii) Transmission of documents stored on the file server.

By using the client network interface section 61, the user 26 can input files stored in a file server (not shown) to the mail service system 22 through the network 21. The input file is displayed as an icon (pictogram) on the display 28. The user 26 selects a desired icon using a mouse or the like, specifies a desired file, processes the data interactively in the same manner as the above-described manual processing of data on a floppy disk, and sends an e-mail.

(1) When sending/receiving an additional e-mail containing the billing calculation result, the billing calculation result corresponding to the usage process can be displayed on the display 28 at the request of the user 26 before or after the sending and receiving. It is also possible to add such a calculation result to the first or last part of an e-mail message and send it.

Finally, remote services using this mail service system 22 will be explained.

Remote services are provided through network 21.

As shown in FIG. 2, the user 26
A service request for sending or receiving can be made to the mail service system 22 by remote control from a workstation 23 or the like located above. This service request is received by the network interface section 54 of the mail service system 22. The network interface section 54 sends this received data to the mail processing section 53, where the mail processing service is performed. This is similar to the functionality that conventional mail servers had.

The user 26 can know the processing status of the mail processing unit 53 from the workstation 23 using the emulator function, that is, using the function as a remote server monitor.

This is also similar to the relationship between a conventional mail server and a workstation.

The central control device 51 shown in FIG. 4 is provided to coordinate schedules among the user interface section 55, mail processing section 53, and network interface section 54. The mail processing section 53 is normally managed on a schedule that is superior to that of the network interface section 54 and the user interface section 55.

"Effects of the Invention" As explained above, according to the invention as claimed in claim 1, a conventional logical mail service system becomes a physical entity, and dialogue with users or operators through a user interface such as a display or a keyboard becomes possible. This makes it easier to obtain detailed services.

In other words, a mail service system that has both physical and logical existence contributes to the creation of a comfortable space in a work place such as an office. In addition, if you place a mail service system in a downtown area or in front of a multi-purpose building, such as a public phone booth or postbox, you will not have to go to your workstation at work, and you will be able to easily send e-mails using these mail service systems. You will be able to send and receive.

Furthermore, the mail service system can send and receive mail throughout the country by connecting to public telephone lines and the like. Therefore, if a mail service system is installed in transportation such as express buses connecting long distances and passenger cars on the high-speed railway network, it will be possible to use this system easily like the telephones that are conventionally installed in these vehicles. You can get a variety of services such as:

Furthermore, according to the invention as claimed in claim 2, keywords such as important words and phrases in the received email can be displayed separately from other keywords, so that the content of the email can be understood quickly and reliably. , able to process large amounts of information effortlessly in an era of information overload.

[Brief Description of the Drawings] Figures 1A and 1B are block diagrams showing the principle of the present invention, and Figures 2 to 1O are for explaining an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the main parts of the circuit configuration of the mail service system, and Figure 4 shows the functional configuration of the mail service system. Block diagram, Figure 5 is a top view of the display and operation panel with a menu window displayed;
Figure 6 is a flowchart showing how keyword emphasis is performed;
Figure 7 is a flowchart showing the setting work for keyword emphasis;
The figure is a plan view showing the display and operation panel when specifying keyword emphasis, Figure 9 is a plan view showing the display and operation panel when selecting the format,
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an overview of the work of transmitting a mail message in a fixed format. 11...Mail processing unit, 12...User interface unit, 13...
...Network interface section, 15...
・Keyword storage means, 16...keyword, collation means, 17...display means, 21...network, 22...mail service system, 25
...Floppy disk driver, 28...
...Display, 29...Operation panel, 3
1... Image reading unit, 41... CPU
, 43.52...RAM. 51...Central control unit, 53...Mail processing section, 54...Network interface section, 55
...User interface section, 57...
-Keyword section, 60...Keyword database. Applicant: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. Agent

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A mail processing unit that performs a mail processing service, a user interface unit that interactively provides a user with the mail processing service that the mail processing unit performs, and a mail processing unit that performs mail processing by the mail processing unit. 1. A mail service system comprising: a network interface unit for providing processing services to other devices on a network. 2. A keyword storage means for storing keywords, a keyword matching means for matching the received email text with the keyword, and a display means for displaying the part of the phrase that matches the keyword by the keyword matching means so that it can be distinguished from other parts. A mail service system comprising: