JPH0520937B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Summary] In an electronic mace system using a computer system, the arrival date and time specified in received mail is compared with the current date and time, and the presence or absence of received mail is determined based on the result, thereby making it possible to send a specified date and time. realized the function.

[Industrial application field]

The present invention is a computer network (distributed processing)
The present invention relates to an e-mail system built on the system, and particularly relates to an e-mail control method by specifying sending/receiving date and time.

In a computer network system, especially a distributed processing system in which the network nodes are composed of mainframes and workstations, the operating hours of each node may differ.
For example, in an international network system, there is a time difference between the locations of each node, resulting in a lag in the start and end times of operation of each destination node as seen from the originating node.

In such a case, it is desirable to send the e-mail in accordance with the operating hours of the destination node.

Also, some senders send emails to all destination nodes all at once at a fixed time in the future.
You may want to announce the content.

Therefore, it is necessary to control sending (receiving) of e-mail by specifying the date and time.

[Conventional technology]

An overview of a conventional e-mail system will be explained with reference to FIG.

In the figure, A, B, and C are the nodes that make up the network, and each is, for example, a mainframe (host) MF and a workstation WS.
The system is connected by a LAN line.

Each of the nodes A, B, and C is connected by a communication line, and sends and receives e-mails to and from each other.

The mainframe MF of each node is equipped with a mail box (not shown) for managing outgoing and received e-mails, and a sending register for managing outgoing and receiving e-mails for each workstation WS of its own node. and a dispatch list.

The corresponding workstation WS is included in the dispatch list.
The ID of each e-mail originating from the date and time of the sender,
Call history such as destination ID is registered.

The corresponding workstation WS is included in the dispatch list.
The reception history such as the ID, date and time of reception, and sender ID of each email addressed to is registered. Each workstation WS can know the arrival of e-mail addressed to itself by referring to its own reception list.

The dates and times recorded in these dispatch and reception lists are as follows:
This is the physical date and time when the email was actually sent or received.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

In conventional e-mail systems, the sending node has to carry out outgoing processing in accordance with the operating hours of each destination node, causing problems such as the operator's work time being spread out and extending into the night or early morning.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention makes it possible to specify the sending date and time, and the receiving date and time on the sending list and receiving list that manage mail resources on the mainframe, and holds received mail until the specified receiving date and time on the receiving list is reached, so that it appears that the mail is not received. By managing the status as , the mail is essentially delivered to the destination at the specified date and time.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the principle of the present invention.

In the diagram, 10 and 20 are mainframes (hosts)
, 30 is a communication line connecting the mainframe,
11, 21 are LAN lines, 12, 13, 22, 2
3 are workstations on the LAN line under the mainframe, 14 and 24 are mail boxes on the mainframe, 15 and 25 are dispatch registers that manage email outgoing history, and 16 and 26 manage email reception history. This is a reception list.

As shown in FIG. 1, the present invention is implemented in an e-mail system through distributed processing in a network that connects mainframes and connects workstations under the mainframes via LAN lines.

Outgoing mail is managed using a mailing list on the mainframe, and received mail is managed using a receiving list on the mainframe. The information in the entries to be managed includes the sending date and time and the receiving date and time. The present invention registers the reception date and time, which is a management item, as a specified date and time, but realizes the date and time specified transmission (or reception) function by hiding the existence of received mail with a specified reception date and time after the current date and time.

[Effect]

According to the principle of the present invention shown in FIG.
Specify the sending/receiving date and time. When the sending/receiving date and time is specified, this specified sending date and time is registered in the sending list and is also instructed to the mail destination as the specified receiving date and time.

In the case of a system where there is a time difference between network nodes, the email sender will change the specified sending date and time expressed in local (national) standard time to Greenwich Mean Time and then instruct the email recipient as the specified receiving date and time. However, when the mail destination receives the mail, it converts the specified reception date and time expressed in Greenwich Mean Time to local standard time and registers it in the reception list.

When a request to refer to the reception list is made, the specified reception date and time of each received email registered in the reception list is compared with the current date and time (local standard time), and only the received emails whose specified reception date and time are smaller than the current date and time are considered valid. Output the record.

That is, as long as the designated reception date and time is in the future than the current date and time, it is ignored as a record in the reception list and treated as if it had not been received yet.

〔Example〕

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating network processing according to one embodiment of the present invention.

In the diagram, 10 and 20 are mainframes (hosts)
MF, 30 is a communication line connecting the mainframe, 11, 21 are LAN lines, 12, 13, 22,
23 is a workstation on the LAN line under each mainframe, 14 and 24 are mail boxes on the mainframe, 15 and 25 are a mailing list that manages the history of sending emails, and 16 and 26 are managing the history of receiving emails. Receipt list, 17, 27
1 is a transmission processing section, and 18 and 28 are reception processing sections.

Here, the time difference from Greenwich Mean Time for mainframes 10 and 20 is +0900 and +0800, respectively.
shall be.

From workstation 12, date and time of transmission: 6/86
When 12:00:00 of the 20th of the month is specified and the mail sending process is executed, the sending processing unit 17 of the mainframe 10 records the specified sending date and time in the sending list 15 that manages the sending history of the workstation 12. When you register an entry in and send an email to the destination mainframe 20, add the time difference of your system from Greenwich Mean Time +0900, and set it to 860620120000+
Instructs to set 0900 as the reception date and time.

The reception processing unit 28 of the mainframe 20 calculates the time difference from Greenwich Mean Time in its own system +
From the reception date and time specified as 0800, the local system calculates the reception date and time 860620110000, and writes 860620110000 as the reception date and time in the reception list 26 that manages the received mail of the destination workstation 22.
Register the entry that has been set.

When the mainframe 20 searches the reception list 16 based on an inquiry from the workstation 22, it compares the current date and time with the arrival date and time on the reception list 16, and searches for future reception dates and times that have not yet passed. Processing is performed so that the mail is not shown to the workstation 22. In the above example, the current date and time is 860620110000
When the value is greater than , the received mail is made available for retrieval by the workstation 22.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the sender of the e-mail can send the e-mail by specifying the reception date and time of the destination in advance.
The degree of freedom in the working time for actually performing the outgoing processing increases, and the burden on the user can be reduced.

This is particularly useful when sending an e-mail to a large number of recipients with different time zones and wanting the contents to take effect after a desired date and time, as it allows for easy and reliable delivery.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the principle of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a conventional e-mail system. In Figure 1, 10, 20... Main frame
MF, 11, 21...LAN line, 12, 13,
22, 23...Workstation WS, 14,
24...Mail box, 15,25...Transmission list,
16, 26...reception list, 30...communication line.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In an e-mail system built on a computer network system, each computer has means for specifying a reception date and time for an addressee when sending an e-mail, and an electronic mail system in which the reception date and time are specified. When an e-mail is received, the specified reception date and time is registered and managed in the reception list 16, 26, and when referring to the reception list, the specified reception date and time is compared with the current date and time, and if the specified reception date and time is greater than the current date and time, A date and time specified transmission control method for e-mail, comprising: a means for treating the e-mail as apparently unreceived and preventing it from being output;