JPH1028135A - Discussion group generation support system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically select a person who seemes interested from among the users of a computer network at the time of establishing an SIG(specific therma interested group), and to individually communicate it by using a one- to-one communicating means. SOLUTION: A discussion group setting means 2 sets a content to be discussed by a user, a candidate selecting means 3 collects another user who transmits information matching the content as a participant candidate, and an establishment communication distributing means 4 distributes a document for calling participation in the discussion to the collected user. An establishment communication responding means 5 presents the calling of participation in the discussion distributed to the participant candidate, and allows the participation candidate to respond whether or not to participate in the discussion. A discussion participant selecting means 6 selects the participant in the discussion according to the response of participation or inparticipation from the participant candidate, and a message managing mechanism setting means 7 sets a message managing mechanism for distributing, string, and retrieving the message of the discussion by the participant, and communicates an access means to the message managing mechanism to the participant.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a discussion support system on a computer network, and more particularly to a group of an unspecified number of network participants who are interested in a particular topic (Special Interest Group: hereinafter abbreviated as SIG). To encourage participation in discussions on the topic and provide a discussion group creation support system that provides an environment for continuing discussions.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, this type of discussion group creation support system creates a closed group in which network users interested in a particular topic are closed, and broadcasts messages within the group using electronic mail or the like. Used to exchange.

In a conventional discussion group creation support system, an electronic message issued by a SIG member is
It is common to use a "mailing list" or "electronic bulletin board" that allows all members to read in common.

A mailing list is a system in which, when an electronic message is sent to a specific shared mail address, the message is redistributed to each SIG member on a computer where the mail address exists. JP-A-62-28
By using a known technique described in “Broadcast mail document management method in electronic mail system” described in Japanese Patent No. 4537, an arbitrary network user can copy his / her own message to SIG.
You can broadcast to members.

[0005] An electronic bulletin board is a system in which an electronic message is stored in a storage device of a specific computer, and an arbitrary message is read out at any time by a user searching the computer for a message. JP-A-7-2004
By using a known technique in "electronic bulletin board generation device and electronic bulletin board system" described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 27, it is possible to generate a bulletin board that allows any network user to collect and publish messages on topics desired by the user. it can.

[0006] The mailing list and the electronic bulletin board itself are already widely and generally used network services, and therefore will not be described in further detail.

[0007] Now, assuming that a network user has created a mailing list or bulletin board on a particular topic, in order to actually establish SIG, members interested in the topic are recruited and access to the mailing list or bulletin board is performed. I have to tell you how. However, a method for efficiently recruiting SIG members is not particularly mentioned in the above-mentioned known technology.

[0008] Therefore, the initiator of the SIG must separately post an establishment notice including the topic of the SIG on a public bulletin board that can be read by anyone on the network and solicit members.

As a well-known technique for supporting this, there is an "optimum bulletin board automatic selection service method" described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H5-2270203.

Referring to FIG. 9, first, an electronic mail center 602 which manages a plurality of electronic bulletin boards 601 receives a posted mail transmitted from a user terminal 603 at a mail receiving unit 604, and a mail content analyzing unit 605. And stores it in the mail content analysis result storage unit 606. Next, the optimal bulletin board selecting unit 607 selects an optimal bulletin board using the dictionary 608 based on the mail analysis result.
Finally, the bulletin board registration unit 609 registers the e-mail on the optimal bulletin board based on the selection result.

[0011] In addition, the initiator of the SIG must collect the members who have offered to participate in the public offering and identify the final members.

As a well-known technique for supporting this, "majo" which is general as a mailing list management system is used.
In “rdomo”, a member who proposes to join is assigned a specific subject (majordomomo) in the mailing list address.
In the case of sending a message having "subscribe"), the system automatically collects members by adding the sender to the member list. maj
The details of ordomo are described in "Unix Magazine", December 1995, published by ASCII.

Similarly, in the "e-mail system" described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-128546, for example, an e-mail including a procedure for responding to participation / non-participation in SIG is broadcast to a plurality of users. Then, when the input of the answer is completed, the system temporarily stores the answer. Then, when the last mail recipient answers, all the stored answer data are collectively returned to the sender as a reply mail.

[0014]

The first problem of the prior art described above is that when recruiting members to participate in a discussion, the topic of the discussion and the organizer are indiscriminately using electronic news and the like. The point is that it must be made public. This is particularly problematic in the case of opening a SIG and in situations where the partner does not want to know anyone as much as possible, such as when a company seeks a partner to jointly develop its own product.

[0015] The "optimal bulletin board automatic selection service method" described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-227203 discloses an unspecified number of users who read the bulletin board even if the system can narrow down the bulletin board for posting the establishment notice. In addition, the first problem is not solved in that the establishment notice is still read indiscriminately.

The second problem is that there is a gap between the newly joining members and the old members regarding the contents of the discussion. The main reason is that the period for recruiting SIG members is not clearly distinguished from the time when discussions are actually started at SIG. This point is also particularly problematic in discussions that must be performed while confirming agreements between members, such as in joint development of products.

[0017] In the case of a system such as the majoromo that can be subscribed to SIG at any time only by sending an e-mail, a new member cannot follow the discussion before joining, or an old member explains the past discussion. It takes time and effort. Conversely, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-128
In the "e-mail system" disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 546, the discussion cannot be started until all the e-mails distributed and distributed are returned, so that the operation of the SIG may be unnecessarily delayed.

The third problem is that the discussion at the SIG involves not only exchanging messages but also storing exchanged messages or searching for accumulated messages later (to check the progress of past discussions). Despite the various message usage forms, it is difficult to adjust their usage environment comprehensively.

For example, in order to permit only members of the SIG to search and browse stored messages, a list of SIG members held by a system that exchanges messages and a system that manages a database of messages are held. The list of accessible users must match. In the conventional system, although these lists can be diverted to each other, they need to be set for each individual system, which imposes a heavy burden on the administrator.

Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide an SI
At the time of opening G, those who are likely to be interested in the contents of SIG are automatically selected from users of the computer network,
An object of the present invention is to provide a discussion group creation support system that can be individually notified using one-to-one communication means.

[0021] A second object of the present invention is to collect only the users who intend to participate after the SIG is announced, autonomously determine whether the SIG has been established, and have an actual discussion until the SIG is established. Is to provide a discussion group creation support system that can delay the discussion.

A third object of the present invention is to simultaneously create an access environment for exchanging, storing and retrieving messages after the SIG participant is determined, and notify only the participant of the access method. It is to provide a discussion group creation support system that can do it.

[0023]

In the discussion group creation support system of the present invention, a discussion group setting means for setting contents to be discussed by a user, and information that matches the contents is transmitted. Candidate collecting means for collecting the users as candidates for discussion, and opening notification distributing means for distributing a document inviting the collected users to participate in the discussion.

The opening notice distributing means has an opening notice condition evaluator for evaluating a condition for distributing a call for participation in discussion, and when the condition is satisfied, distributes a document for calling for participation to other users. It is characterized by doing.

Further, the establishment notice distributing means evaluates a condition for distributing a call for participation in the discussion, and when the condition is not satisfied, determines whether to stop the call or continue to collect candidates for participation in the discussion. It is characterized by making a user making a call determine.

Further, the discussion group creation support system of the present invention provides an opening notification reaction means for presenting to a user a call for participation in a discussion distributed from another user and responding whether or not to participate in the discussion. A discussion participant selection means for selecting a participant in the discussion based on a response of participation or non-participation from the user, and a message management mechanism for distributing, storing, and retrieving discussion messages by the participant in the discussion. Message management mechanism setting means for setting and notifying a participant in the discussion of access means to the message management mechanism.

[0027] The discussion participant selection means has an opening condition evaluator for evaluating a condition for starting a discussion, and when the condition is satisfied, sets the message management mechanism and notifies the access means. It is characterized by.

Further, the discussion participant selection means evaluates a condition for starting the discussion, and when the condition is not satisfied, determines whether to stop the discussion or to wait for a response from the participant of the discussion. The feature is to make the user who hosts the discussion judge.

[0029]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The discussion group creation support system according to the present embodiment includes a network 1 and a discussion group setting unit 2.
Candidate selection means 3, establishment notification distribution means 4, establishment notification reaction means 5, discussion participant selection means 6, message management mechanism setting means 7, SIG initiator 8, input device 9, output Device 10, user 11, input device 12
And an output device 13.

The network 1 connects computers of a plurality of users 11 to each other, and sends e-mail, electronic news, WW
User 11 such as W (World Wide Web)
Mediates the data it sends.

The data transmitted by the user 11 generally includes the name of the user who transmitted the data. For example, in the case of electronic mail or electronic news, the name of the sending user is described in the head line of the transmitted / received text called the “header”. Using this, it is possible to specify who wrote the data transmitted by the user 11 in the network 1.

In addition, the user 11 generally speaks about a topic of interest in spontaneous activities on the network 1. Therefore, words and URLs (Universal Resou) related to one's interest are included in the contents of electronic news and WWW pages to be transmitted.
(r. Locator).

The SIG initiator 8 uses the input device 9 such as a mouse or a keyboard to input at least the name of the SIG,
Topics we would like to discuss at the SIG, SIG documentation,
The SIG opening notification condition and the opening condition are input to the discussion group setting means 2. The input result is checked at any time using the output device 10.

The topic format is represented by, for example, a plurality of keywords or a plurality of attribute name-attribute value pairs.
The explanatory document is data such as characters, images, and voices that explain the contents to be discussed. The SIG opening conditions specify, for example, the minimum number of people required to configure the SIG, the deadline for starting the discussion, and the like. Similarly, the opening notification condition specifies, for example, the minimum number of people who call for participation in SIG, the deadline for calling for participation, and the like.

For example, asaku who is the SIG initiator 8
Assume that ra wants to create a discussion group on the development of an electronic conference system using software named "LNR4". asakura is
The following settings are made in the discussion group setting means 2. Name “LNR4-AP” Topic “LNR4, electronic conference, development” Open notice condition “No. of notified persons = 20” Opening condition “Minimum number of persons = 10, Discussion start deadline = 2 weeks after the open notice” Description “LNR4 We are looking for individuals and companies to participate in the development of the electronic conference system used. "

The candidate selection means 3 collects data transmitted by the user 11 such as an electronic news article or a WWW page from the network 1 and compares the contents with the topic data given by the discussion group setting means 2. Is evaluated.

For example, the following articles flow in the electronic news, and can be obtained automatically if the organization to which the SIG initiator 8 belongs subscribes to the news. Line 1 From: tabuchi @ obp. cl. ne
c. co. jp line 2 Newsgroup: fj. sources line 3 Subject: LNR4 Unofficia
l Patch (1) Line 4 ... Line 5 It is Tabuchi. Line 6 Since a small number of bugs were found in LNR4, the fixes will be distributed as unofficial patches in Line 7. Line 8 Development environment: EWS4800, OS 10.1, X1
1R6

Here, line 1 is the user name of the sender of this article, line 2 is the name of the group that posted this article, line 3 is the subject of the article, and lines 5 to 8 are the body of the article.

Here, for example, the degree of matching is calculated as follows: (the number of characters of the topic appearing in the header line / the total number of characters in the header line) × 0.6 + (the number of characters of the topic appearing in the body / the total number of characters of the body) × 0 .4, in the example of the article, "LNR4" is once in 88 characters of the header line (lines 1 to 3) and the text (line 5).
8) Since “LNR4” and “development” appear once in 73 characters, the matching degree with “LNR4-AP” is 0.06.
Can be calculated. In addition, the WWW page published by the user is similarly evaluated.

The evaluation of the degree of matching is described in JP-A-3-13-1
This can be realized by a known technique such as a "similar document search device" described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 72966 or a "keyword importance automatic evaluation device" described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-131331.

The user 11 which is the source of the data having a degree of matching equal to or higher than a certain value transmits data related to the topic set by the SIG initiator 8, and is considered to be interested in the topic. be able to. Therefore, the candidate selection means 3 selects this user as a candidate for a participant in the SIG regarding the topic.

The establishment notification distribution means 4 obtains a set of the name of the SIG and the candidate to participate in the SIG from the candidate selection means 3 and stores the set. Discussion group setting means 2
From the above, a description document of the SIG corresponding to the name of the SIG is obtained. Then, the description documents of the SIG are duplicated by the number of candidate participants of the SIG, and distributed to the corresponding users 11 via the network 1.

The user 11 reads the explanation document of the SIG into the event notification response means 5 and causes the output device 213 to display the document. And an input device 12 such as a mouse or a keyboard.
Is used to input a response as to whether or not to participate in the SIG.
The reply is paired with the name of the SIG and the name of the user 11 who has responded,
Returned to founder 8.

The discussion participant selection means 6 includes the user 11
Reads the response returned from, and selects only the names of users who have replied "Join". The selected user names are stored in pairs with the names of participating SIGs.

The message management mechanism setting means 7 sets, for each SIG, a management method such as distribution, accumulation, and display of a message transmitted when a SIG participant participates in the discussion.

For example, for an existing system of broadcast distribution of a message using a mailing list (majordomo, etc.), the address of the mailing list is set to the S address.
The list of participants to the mailing list is set in the name of the IG and the user name list, respectively.

For an existing system that uses a WWW browser (such as Netscape) to browse messages accumulated during discussions on a mailing list or the like, a page for browsing messages is created. In the page, the name of the message group to be browsed and the command for searching for the identifier of the stored message group are set.

In the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment described above, various modifications can be considered. For example, in the opening notice distribution means 4, instead of copying and transmitting the SIG description document by the number of users 11 who have become candidates for the SIG participant, the description document is stored on a computer, and its URL expression is converted into a URL expression. This is a variant of delivering to the candidate.

[0050] The candidate uses the URL on the WWW browser.
By specifying an expression, the SIG description document can be read. Since the URL expression can be described with a file size much smaller than that of the explanatory document, this modification reduces the amount of data to be copied and transmitted to the user, and the network 1
Transmission load can be reduced.

As another modification, when the candidate selecting means 3 collects data such as electronic news and WWW pages transmitted by the user, the candidate selecting means 3 waits until the data reaches the computer used by the SIG initiator 8. Instead of collecting, it is conceivable to transmit existing data collection software moving within the network 1 from the SIG initiator 8.

With this modification, SIG participation candidates can be widely acquired from the transmission data of the user 11 held by a computer other than the computer used by the SIG initiator 8, and the acquisition work is transmitted. It can be efficiently performed in parallel by the number of the data collection software.

In this modification, the data collection software moves while holding the SIG name set by the discussion group setting means 2 and the topic data, and sends it to one of the computers connected to the network 1. When it arrives, it collects data sent by the user, such as electronic news and WWW pages held by the computer.

Next, as in the first embodiment, the S
The matching degree between the topic data of the IG initiator 8 and the transmission contents of the user 11 is evaluated. Then, a set of the name of the user 11 that is the transmission source of the transmission data that has obtained a matching degree equal to or higher than a certain value and the name of the SIG is transmitted via the network 1 to the SI.
The G promoter 8 is sent to the candidate selection means 3. The data collection software that has been sent moves to another computer connected to the network 1 and performs the same processing.

Each means of the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment described above will be described in further detail.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a specific configuration example of the opening notice distribution means 4 in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment. The establishment notification distribution means 4 includes a participation candidate storage unit 101, an establishment notification condition evaluation unit 102, an establishment notification document construction unit 103, and an explanation document acquisition unit 104.

The participant candidate storage unit 101 stores the names of the participant candidates for the SIG selected by the candidate selection means 3 in the S
It is stored sequentially with the IG name.

The opening notification condition evaluation unit 102 stores a set of the SIG name and the SIG opening notification condition input by the discussion group setting means 2 and periodically checks whether the opening notification condition is satisfied. To check.

For example, when a certain SIG opening notification condition is given by the minimum number of participants, the opening notification condition evaluation unit 102 periodically refers to the participation candidate storage unit 101 to perform the SIG participation. Count the number of candidates. Also, for example, when a certain SIG opening notification condition is given at a specific date and time, the opening notification condition evaluation unit 102 periodically compares the current time measured inside the computer with the opening notification condition.

The explanation document obtaining unit 104 obtains the name of the SIG satisfying the establishment notification condition from the establishment notification condition evaluation unit 102, and searches the discussion group setting means 2 for the explanation document of the SIG corresponding to the SIG name. And get.

Based on the explanation document, SIG name and candidate candidate name obtained as described above, the opening notification document forming unit 1
03 constitutes an opening notice document to be sent to each person.

For example, when sending by e-mail, Line 1 From: (SIG initiator name) Line 2 To: (Participant candidate name) Line 3 Subject: (SIG name) Line 4... Line 5 (Explanatory document) And sends it to the network 1. Here, the destination (line 2) is one of the names of the participation candidates.
The subject (line 3) corresponds to the name of the SIG, and the body of the mail (line 5) corresponds to the explanatory document.

For example, the SIG “LNR4-AP”
In the user tabuchi @ obp. cl. ne
c. co. jp is sent to From: asakura @ iij. ad. jp To: tabuchi @ obp. cl. nec. co.
jp Subject: LNR4-AP ... It recruits individuals and companies to participate in the development of an electronic conference system using LNR4.

For example, when the establishment notification document is presented as a WWW page, the name of the SIG, its description document, and a CGI (Common Gateway Int) for processing a reaction of participation or non-participation from the user.
line) <HTML> Line 2 <FORM action = (CGI script name) method = post> Line 3 <input type = hidden nam
e = SIG name> (SIG name) <br> Line 4 <input type = text name =
User name><br> line 5 <p> (explanatory document) </ p> line 6 <input type = radio name
= Response value = Participation> Participation Line 7 <input type = radio name
= Reaction value = no participation> no participation line 8 <input type = submit val
ue = transmission> line 9 </ FORM> line 10 </ HTML> An electronic mail in which only the URL expression is written in the text is transmitted to the network 1 to the participation candidate. Here, line 2 is the description of the CGI script, and line 3
Is the name of the SIG, line 4 is a field for inputting the name of the candidate, line 5 is the explanatory document, and lines 6 to 7
Is a button for inputting a reaction of participation or non-participation, and line 8 describes a start button of the CGI script.

The document format and the CGI format in the WWW are described in the Internet draft "RFC1866; H
hyper Text Markup Language
−2.0 ”.

FIG. 3 is a screen layout diagram showing one specific display example of the opening notice responding means 5 in the discussion group creation support system of the invention according to the first embodiment.

The opening notice responding means 5 reads the opening notice transmitted from the SIG initiator 8 and displays it on the output device 13 of the user. The opening notification screen 201 includes at least a SIG initiator name 202, a user name 203, a SIG name 204, a SIG description document 205, and a button group 2 for expressing participation or non-participation.
06 is displayed.

The user 11 looks at the opening notification screen 201 and determines whether or not to participate in the notified SIG by using the input device 12 such as a mouse or a keyboard.
06 to indicate. The instruction content is transmitted to the SIG initiator 8 via the network 1 together with at least the SIG name 204 and the user name 203.

For example, when transmitted using an electronic mail, line 1 From: (user name) line 2 To: (SIG initiator name) line 3 Subject: (SIG name) line 4... Line 5 participation / It can be described in the form of non-participation. Here, the sender (line 1) corresponds to the user name, the subject (line 3) corresponds to the SIG name, and the text (line 5) corresponds to the character string of participation or non-participation.

For example, when transmitted using the WGI CGI, the user name, the name of the SIG, and the character string of participation or non-participation are respectively the WWW owned by the SIG initiator 8.
As an argument of the server CGI script, "(CGI script name)? User name = (user name) & SIG name = (S
IG name) & Reaction = (participation / non-participation) ". For example, in the SIG “LNR4-AP”, the user tabuchi @ obp. cl. ne
c. co. When jp participates, the argument is “user name = t
abuchi @ obp. cl. nec. co. jp & S
IG name = LNR4-AP & reaction = participation ".

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a specific configuration example of the discussion participant selection means 6 in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment. The discussion participant selection means 6 includes a reaction analysis unit 301, an opening condition evaluation unit 302, a user intention determination unit 303, and a user name storage unit 304.

The reaction analysis unit 301 reads from the network 1 the reaction data corresponding to the SIG opening notification, and
The name of the IG, the name of the user, and the character string of participation or non-participation are separated and obtained.

For example, when the response data is sent by e-mail, the user name is obtained from the sender line of the mail header, the SIG name is obtained from the subject line, and the participation or non-participation character string is obtained from the text. When transmitted using the WGI CGI, the argument of the CGI script is “(CGI script name)? User name = (user name) & SIG name =
(SIG name) & Response = (participation / non-participation) ", so that the character string of the argument is separated and acquired based on delimiters such as"? "," = ", And"&".

When the response from the user is “participation”, the user intention determination unit 303 acquires a pair of the user name and the SIG name from the response analysis unit 301, and stores the candidate candidate storage unit 3
04.

The opening condition evaluation unit 302 acquires the opening condition of the SIG from the discussion group setting means 2 and
The SIG participant is compared with the participation status and the like to evaluate whether it is enough to open the SIG. For example, when the opening condition of “50 or more SIG participants” is set, the opening condition evaluation unit 302 refers to the participation candidate storage unit 304 every time a new “participation” response is returned, and Count the number of people.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a specific configuration example of the message management mechanism setting means 7 in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment. The message management mechanism setting unit 7 includes an address correspondence creating unit 401 and a message database creating unit 402.
And a message search interface creation unit 403.

The address correspondence creating unit 401 obtains from the discussion participant selection means 6 a set of a SIG name and a list of user names participating in the SIG. Then, the SIG name is set in the message distribution server 404 in association with the destination of the discussion message, and the user name list is associated with the distribution destination of the message sent to the destination. For example, the L
In the case of NR4-AP development discussion, a
The affiliation of sakura is ii. ad. jp, "L
NR4-AP @ iij. ad. jp "is created.

The message distribution server 404 converts the message sent to the destination of the discussion message into the SI
Broadcast and distribute to G participants. This includes, for example, majo
Existing mailing list servers such as rdomo can be used. In majorodomo, the destination of the discussion message is “subscribe LNR4-
AP (participant address)... ", The address of each participant is registered as an object for simultaneous distribution of messages. The SIG participant shares the participant's opinion by the message broadcasted in this way and has a discussion.

The message database creation unit 402
A database for storing messages is created so that SIG participants can refer to the discussion messages at any time. That is, a set of the name of the SIG and the list of the user names participating in the SIG is obtained from the discussion participant selection means 6 and the S
Message database 4 named by IG name
05, and authorizes the SIG user to write and read the message database 405.

As commands for generating the message database 405 and granting authority, those generally defined for each database system are used. For example, when a discussion message is stored in a general relational database, an SQL (Structured Query Lad) is used.
line 1 CREATE TABLE LNR4-AP using the language
(Message storage item) ... Line 2 CHANGE ACL USER tabuch
i @ obp. cl. nec. co. jp + rw L
NR4-AP row 3 CHANGE ACL USER (participant 2) +
rw LNR4-AP ・ ・ ・ line 16 CHANGE ACL USER (participant 1
5) Execute the + rw LNR4-AP command statement against the database. Here, row 1 indicates the securing of a data storage area named “LNR4-AP”, and rows 2 to 16 indicate the granting of the read / write authority of the participants 1 to 15 to the data storage area.

Message search interface creation unit 40
Reference numeral 3 generates a search interface so that SIG participants can view past discussion messages stored in the message database 405. For example, in an existing system for browsing stored messages using a WWW browser 407 such as Netscape, a WWW page for browsing messages, a name of a mailing list displayed on the page, and a server for the mailing list. It is necessary to set a command for retrieving the stored message group in the WWW server 406.

Therefore, the message management mechanism setting means 7
Obtains the name of the SIG from the discussion participant selection means 6,
The URL of the message browsing page is "http: // (server.directory) / (SIG name) .html"
As the document corresponding to the URL, line 1 <HTML> line 2 <FORM action = (server.directory) / (search CGI script name)? SIG name =
(SIG name) method = post> Line 3 Please enter search conditions Line 4 <input type = text> Line 5 <input type = submit val
ue = search> line 6 </ FORM> line 7 </ HTML> Further, the SIG participant is notified of the URL of the message browsing page via the network 1. Here, row 2 describes a search CGI script, row 4 describes a search condition input field, and row 5 describes a start button of the search CGI script.

The SIG participant displays this page on the WW
While displaying on the W browser 407, a search condition is input as, for example, “transmission date / time> December 1995”. This example shows a condition that “the message transmission date and time is after December 1995”.

Using this input as an argument, the WWW server 40
6 starts the search CGI script, and displays “SIG
The SIG message database 405 given in the "name" argument is searched. Search result is again WWW browser 4
07 and can be viewed by participants.

Next, referring to FIG. 1 and FIG.
The overall operation of the discussion group creation support system according to the embodiment will be described.

First, the SIG initiator 8 uses the input device 9 to set the name of the SIG he wants to start, a description of a topic, an explanatory document, and the like in the discussion group setting means 2 (step S001). When the setting is completed, candidate selection means 3
Obtains transmission data of the user 11 such as electronic news and WWW pages in the network 1 (step S002), and determines whether the degree of matching between the transmission data and the description of the topic exceeds a threshold value. Is determined (step S
003), for those exceeding, the user 11 who transmitted the transmission data is added to the SIG participant candidates (step S005).

If the conditions for transmitting the establishment notification are not satisfied because the SIG participant candidates cannot be sufficiently collected (step S006), the establishment notification distribution means 4 sets the SIG
An option for causing the output device 10 of the initiator 8 to determine whether to stop the establishment is output, and the determination is input using the input device 9 (step S004).

If the operation is to be stopped, all the operations are terminated. If the operation is not to be stopped, the collection of the candidates for participation starting from step S002 is repeated.

If the conditions for transmitting the notification of establishment are satisfied because the candidate candidates of the SIG have been sufficiently collected (step S 006), the notification of opening notification distribution means 4 creates the notification of opening and transmits the notification to the SIG. Network 1 for candidate participants
(Step S007).

[0109] The user 11
The notification of the establishment of a certain SIG is received and read into the establishment notification responding means 5 (step S008). Then, by reading the explanation document of the SIG, it is determined whether to participate or not to participate (step S009), and using the input device 12, a reply of "participation" is returned when participating, (step S010). A reply of "non-participation" is made (step S011). The reply is transmitted to the SIG initiator 8 via the network 1.

[0091] The SIG initiator 8 is the discussion participant selection means 6.
Receives the response to the SIG of the user 11 at
Only the user 11 that has transmitted the response of "participation" is added to the SIG participants (step S012). And SI
If the conditions for establishing the SIG are not satisfied due to insufficient gathering of G participants (step S014), the discussion participant selecting means 6 causes the output device 10 of the SIG initiator 8 to determine whether to stop the establishment operation. Are displayed, and a determination is input using the input device 9 (step S
013).

If the operation is to be stopped, all the operations are terminated. If the operation is not to be stopped, the collection of the users who have transmitted the "participation" response starting from step S012 is repeated.

Since the SIG participants have gathered enough, the SI
When the conditions for establishing G are satisfied (step S01)
4) The message management mechanism setting means 7 sets a management mechanism such as a message sending destination and a search interface of the message broadcasting system (S015).
The message destination and the access method of the search interface are notified via the network 1 (step S016).

Next, a discussion group creation support system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a discussion group creation support system according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The configuration of the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment shown in FIG.
The difference is that an opening notification modifying means 501 is added to the first embodiment. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to other means and the like, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

When the candidate selection means 3 evaluates the degree of coincidence between the data transmitted by the user 11 and the SIG topic set by the SIG initiator 8 in the discussion group setting means 2, In accordance with the degree of matching, the SI set by the SIG initiator 8 by the discussion group setting means 2
The explanation document of G is modified and sent to the establishment notice distribution means 4.

That is, if the matching degree is high, the user 11 who transmitted the data sets the SIG to open.
Is considered to be of high interest, it is only necessary to add a greeting that simply introduces the explanatory document. Conversely, if the matching degree is low, the user 11 who transmitted the data
Is considered to have a low interest in the SIG to be opened, so that the explanation document is modified so as to be strongly interested.

The opening notice modifying means 501 is constituted by at least the following three functional parts.

The modifier sentence selecting unit 502 evaluates the degree of matching for each candidate derived by the candidate selecting means 3 and selects a modifier to be used from the modifier storage unit 503 according to the value range.

The decoration sentence storage unit 503 stores the sentence data of the decoration sentence and its template.

The qualified sentence completion unit 504 substitutes the participation candidate name and the transmission data name into the qualified sentence template to complete the sentence as a character string.

Next, the overall operation of the discussion group creation support system according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 7 and FIG.

The operations of steps S001 to S006 (step S101) and steps S009 to S0
The operation up to 16 (step S109) is the same as the operation of the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment described with reference to FIGS.

When the opening notification condition is satisfied in step S006, the opening notification distributing means 4 sets the SIG name and
A list of pairs with candidates for participation in the SIG is stored. One set is extracted from the list (step S10).
2) Acquire the degree of matching of the participation candidate to the topic of the SIG and the transmission data from the participation candidate from the candidate selection means 3 (step S103). Alternatively, the candidate selection means 3 may cause the establishment notification distribution means 4 to store not only the participant candidates but also their matching degree and transmission data.

Next, the qualified sentence selecting unit 502 determines which qualified sentence corresponds to the acquired matching degree according to a preset selection criterion, and acquires one from the qualified sentence storage unit 503. (Step S104). The modifier sentence may be a complete sentence character string or a template to which a character string can be partially substituted.

For example, it is assumed that the degree of matching is a numerical value from 0 to 1, and a user having a degree of matching of 0.7 or more is a candidate for a SIG opening call. At this time, the modifier sentence selection unit 502 indicates that the matching degree is equal to or more than 0.7 and less than 0.8: the modifier sentence “According to the posting to the news so far, it is thought that you are interested in the discussion in this SIG. Please join us. "Match degree 0.8 or more and less than 0.9: Modification sentence" Would you like to deepen your interest with this SIG? We are waiting for participation. "Match degree 0.9 1.0 or less: Change the strength of the qualification sentence according to the range of the numerical value of the degree of matching, as in the qualification sentence "The following SIG will be opened this time, please join us if you are interested" It decides whether or not to quote the outgoing data that was the basis for the call for establishment.

If the qualifying sentence is a sentence template (step S105), the qualifying sentence completing unit 504 completes the sentence by substituting the character string for the template variable (step S1).
06). For example, "<potential participants> Hi,.
We will send you the SIG opening information. The modifier sentence completion unit 504 recognizes the variable <participant candidate> and substitutes the name of the participant candidate currently being processed for the modifier sentence template. If the modifier is a complete sentence string, do nothing, assuming that the modifier is already complete.

Finally, the completed qualification sentence is sent to the establishment notice distribution means 4 and added to the establishment notice document distributed to the candidate for participation (step S107). The completed opening notification document including the qualification sentence is distributed to the participation candidates via the network 1. As described above, the operations from step S102 to step S107 are applied to all the participation candidates collected in step S006 (step S108).

[0109]

As described above, according to the present invention, by providing the discussion group setting means, the candidate selection means and the establishment notice distribution means, the topic set by the SIG initiator and the network user can be transmitted. SIG initiators are automatically selected based on the degree of matching with the data, so that the SIG initiator does not hesitate to the distribution destination of the establishment notification and unnecessary notification to the user who is not interested. There is an effect that it is not distracted by distributing.

Since the SIG initiator sets the opening notification condition and automatically distributes the opening notification when the condition is met, the SIG initiator can be aware of the timing at which the SIG initiator distributes the opening notification, It is possible to reduce the trouble of checking the degree of gathering. Further, since the SIG that does not satisfy the above condition is detected and notified to the promoter, it is possible to efficiently determine whether to interrupt the SIG opening notification.

Furthermore, before the mailing list or the WWW page used for the discussion in the SIG is actually operated by the combination of the establishment notification reaction means and the discussion participant selection means,
Since the participants of the SIG can be determined, exclusive discussion can be performed from the beginning of the operation, compared with a normal mailing list. This is particularly effective for discussions in which participating members must be fixed in advance, such as a product development project.

Furthermore, the setting conditions are set by the SIG initiator, and when the conditions are met, the setting of the discussion means and the distribution of the access method are automatically performed, so that the SIG initiator is aware of the timing of setting the discussion means. And the trouble of checking the degree of gathering of the participants can be reduced. Further, since the SIG that does not satisfy the above condition is detected and notified to the promoter, it is possible to efficiently determine whether to interrupt the SIG opening.

Further, by providing the opening notification modifying means, the attitude of the invitation for participation can be adjusted stepwise according to the degree of matching between the interest of the participation candidate and the topic of the SIG. A strong call, and a call that is not imposed on candidates with great interest, can be configured as a strategic opening notice, and it is possible to improve the willingness to participate as a whole.

Further, by using a template as a qualifying sentence, the name of the candidate and the transmission data of the candidate who became the basis of the notice of establishment can be included in the qualifying sentence, so that it is more friendly or persuaded. It is possible to compose a powerful opening notice.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a discussion group creation support system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration example of an opening notification distribution unit in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a screen layout diagram showing a specific display example of an opening notification response unit in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration example of a discussion participant selection unit in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration example of a message management mechanism setting unit in the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the discussion group creation support system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a discussion group creation support system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the discussion group creation support system according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an optimum bulletin board automatic selection service system according to the related art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Network 2 Discussion group setting means 3 Candidate selection means 4 Establishment notification distribution means 5 Establishment notification reaction means 6 Discussion participant selection means 7 Message management mechanism setting means 8 SIG initiator 9 Input device 10 Output device 11 User 12 Input device 13 Output Device 101 Participant candidate storage unit 102 Open notification condition evaluation unit 103 Open notification document construction unit 104 Explanation document acquisition unit 201 Open notification screen 202 SIG initiator name 203 User name 204 SIG name 205 SIG description document 206 Button group 301 Reaction analysis Unit 302 Opening condition evaluation unit 303 User intention discrimination unit 304 User name storage unit 401 Address correspondence creation unit 402 Message database creation unit 403 Message search interface creation unit 404 Message distribution server 405 Message database 406 WWW server 407 WWW browser 501 establishing notifying modification means 502 modified sentence selection unit 503 modified sentence storage section 504 modified sentence completion section

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. In a computer network used by a plurality of users, a discussion group setting means for setting contents to be discussed by a user, and other users transmitting information matching the contents. A discussion group creation support system, comprising: candidate selection means for collecting candidates for participation in a discussion; and establishment notification distribution means for distributing a document inviting the collected users to participate in the discussion. 2. The establishment notice distributing means includes an establishment notice condition evaluation unit for evaluating a condition for distributing an invitation to participate in a discussion, and when the condition is satisfied, a document for inviting participation is transmitted to another user. 2. The system according to claim 1,
Discussion group creation support system described. 3. The establishment notice distributing means evaluates a condition for distributing a call for participation in discussion, and when the condition is not satisfied, determines whether to stop the call or continue to collect candidates for discussion. 3. The discussion group creation support system according to claim 2, wherein a user making a call is made to determine. 4. An open notice reacting means for presenting to a user an invitation to participate in a discussion distributed from another user in a computer network used by a plurality of users and responding as to whether or not to participate in the discussion. A discussion participant selection means for selecting a participant in the discussion based on a response of participation or non-participation from the user; and a participant in the discussion distributes, accumulates,
A discussion group creation support system, comprising: a message management mechanism setting means for setting a message management mechanism for searching, and notifying a participant in the discussion of access means to the message management mechanism. 5. The discussion participant selection means has an opening condition evaluation unit for evaluating a condition for starting a discussion, and when the condition is satisfied, notifies the setting of the message management mechanism and the notification of the access means. 5. The discussion group creation support system according to claim 4, wherein the discussion group creation is performed. 6. The discussion participant selection means evaluates a condition for starting a discussion, and when the condition is not satisfied, determines whether to stop the discussion or to wait for a response from a participant in the discussion. 6. The discussion group creation support system according to claim 5, wherein a user who hosts the discussion is made to make a decision. 7. In a computer network used by a plurality of users, a discussion group setting means for setting contents to be discussed by a user, and other users transmitting information matching the contents. Candidate selection means for collecting as candidates for discussion; opening notification distribution means for distributing a document inviting the collected users to participate in the discussion; and distribution of the notice to the candidates for participation in the discussion. An opening notification responding means for presenting an invitation to participate in the discussed discussion and responding as to whether or not to participate in the discussion, and a discussion participation for selecting participants in the discussion by responding to participation or non-participation from candidates for participation in the discussion. Means for selecting participants and distributing / accumulating /
A discussion group creation support system, comprising: a message management mechanism setting means for setting a message management mechanism for searching, and notifying a participant in the discussion of access means to the message management mechanism.