Method of Managing E-Mail Messages

Abstract

In a data processing system ( 100 ) supporting an electronic mail messaging system, a method of managing e-mail messages comprising, under the control of a mail user agent of a message sender user (QRS): keeping a list ( 455,450 ) of messages sent by the message sender user; enabling the sender user selecting ( 500,505,510 ) a wrong message ( 513 ) from the list of sent messages; causing a correcting message ( 520 ) to be sent to at least one of the message recipient users (ABC,DEF,JKL) of the selected message, the correcting message including message qualifier (X-replace-mail) qualifying the correcting message as a message intended to correct the selected message. Under the control of a mail user agent of said at least one of the message recipient users, the correcting message is received; using the message qualifier included therein, the selected message is identified among the received messages ( 715,720,730 ), and a correcting action on the selected message is performed.

1 - 7 . (canceled)  
   
   
       8 . A computer program in a computer readable medium, for managing e-mail messages at a mail user agent of a message recipient users the computer program product comprising a computer readable program which, when executed by a computing device, causes the computing device to: 
 receive a correcting message from a message sending user, wherein the correcting message includes a message qualifier qualifying the correcting message as a message intended to correct a selected previously received message;    use the message qualifier included in the received correcting message, identifying the selected previously received message among the messages received by the message recipient user; and    perform a correcting action on the identified selected previously received message, in which said performing a correcting action on the identified selected message includes: 
 ascertaining whether the identified selected message has already been read by the at least one of the message recipient users, and  
 replacing the identified selected message with the received correcting message on condition that the identified selected message has not yet been read; and  
 sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user.  
   
   
   
       9 - 11 . (canceled)  
   
   
       12 . A mail user agent for an electronic mail messaging system, comprising: 
 means for ascertaining the inclusion in a received message of a message qualifier qualifying the received message as a correcting message intended to correct a message specified in the received message;    means for identifying, among the received messages, the specified message; and    means for performing a correcting action on the identified specified message, in which said performing a correcting action on the identified selected message includes: 
 ascertaining whether the identified selected message has already been read by the at least one of the message recipient users, and  
 replacing the identified selected message with the received correcting message on condition that the identified selected message has not yet been read; and  
 sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user.  
   
   
   
       13 . The mail user agent of  claim 12 , in which said means for identifying the specified message identify the specified message using a univocal message identifier of the specified message included in the received correcting message.  
   
   
       14 . The mail user agent of  claim 12 , comprising: 
 a first repository for storing the received messages;    a second repository for storing replaced messages, and in which said means for performing a correcting action on the identified specified message comprises means for moving the identified specified message from the first repository into the second repository.    
   
   
       15 . The mail user agent of  claim 12 , further comprising means for sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user.  
   
   
       16 . (canceled)  
   
   
       17 . The computer program product of  claim 8 , wherein each sent message has a univocal message identifier, wherein the correcting message includes the univocal message identifier of the selected message, wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to: 
 use the message identifier of the selected message included in the correcting message for identifying the selected message among the received messages.    
   
   
       18 . The computer program product of  claim 8 , wherein replacing the identified selected message includes: 
 providing a repository of received messages, in which received messages are stored;    providing a repository of replaced messages, the replaced message repository being distinct from the repository of received messages, and    moving the identified selected message from the repository of received messages into the repository of replaced messages.    
   
   
       19 . The computer program product of  claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to: 
 send a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user.    
   
   
       20 . The computer program product of  claim 19 , wherein sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user includes notifying the message sender user of a successful outcome of the correcting action in case the identified selected message is replaced by the correcting message, otherwise notifying the message sender user of an unsuccessful outcome of the correcting action.  
   
   
       21 . The mail user agent of  claim 12 , further comprising: 
 means for sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user.    
   
   
       22 . The mail user agent of  claim 21 , wherein sending a correcting action confirmation message back to the message sender user includes notifying the message sender user of a successful outcome of the correcting action in case the identified selected message is replaced by the correcting message, otherwise notifying the message sender user of an unsuccessful outcome of the correcting action.