JPS6416147A - Electronic mail circulating system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To form a quick circulation and to reduce the number of system resources for mail storage to effectively use a computer source by setting a maximum stay period, a circulator, and the number of times of postponement to a circulation mail. CONSTITUTION:A circulation mail transmitter transmits information required for generation of a transmission mail management table such as the mail ID, the mail name, the mail classification, the transmission date, the circulating user ID, the maximum stay period, the presence/absence of postponement function, and the upper limit value of the number of times of postponement to a host computer 2 from an originating terminal system 1 together with a mail document. The host computer 2 registers the circulation mail in an idle area of a mail box 32 and generates a transmission mail management table 31. The maximum stay period is the mail stay allowable upper limit per one circulator. The number of times of postponement is the upper limit value of the number of times by which a circulator can be postponed to give the circulator an opportunity for reference to the mail again if the maximum stay period elapses with the mail unreferred. If the circulator does not refer to the mail though the number of times of postponement exceeds the upper limit value, circulation is aborted to report this circulator as the main unreferring circulator to the transmitter.