Video phone multimedia announcement message toolkit

Abstract

A toolkit for creating customized video announcement messages on video-enabled answering machine. The video-enabled answering machine may have many new features including customized video announcement messages, caller ID based video announcement messages, and time based video announcement messages.

We claim:  
     
         1 . In a video phone answering machine, a toolkit application for creating a video announcement message.  
     
     
         2 . The toolkit of  claim 1  wherein the the toolkit is capable of creating the announcement message such that the announcement message appears to a caller based on an identification of the caller.  
     
     
         3 . The toolkit of  claim 1  wherein the the toolkit is capable of creating the announcement message such that the announcement message automatically changes based on a comparison of pre-stored criteria with a current date.  
     
     
         4 . The toolkit of  claim 1  wherein an object may be created and manipulated in the announcement message.  
     
     
         5 . The toolkit of  claim 4  wherein the object is capable of being configured to appear in the announcement message to a caller based on a comparison of pre-stored criteria with a current date.  
     
     
         6 . The toolkit of  claim 4  wherein the object may be configured to appear in the announcement message to a caller based on a comparison of pre-stored criteria with an identification of the caller.  
     
     
         7 . The toolkit of  claim 4  wherein the object is a video window.  
     
     
         8 . The toolkit of  claim 4  wherein the object is a button.  
     
     
         9 . The toolkit of  claim 1  wherein the toolkit includes a toolbar, the toolbar having a plurality of tools for creating objects.  
     
     
         10 . A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing steps comprising: 
 allowing a user to create at least one of a plurality of objects, the objects defining a video announcement message, the announcement message appearing to a caller; and    allowing the user to manipulate at least one of the objects.    
     
     
         11 . The computer-readable medium of  claim 10 , wherein the instructions for allowing the user to create includes allowing the user to create a button.  
     
     
         12 . The computer-readable medium of  claim 10 , wherein the instructions for allowing the user to create includes allowing the user to create a video window.  
     
     
         13 . The computer-readable medium of  claim 10 , wherein the computer-readable medium is used to program a video phone answering machine.