Passively populating a participant list with known contacts

Abstract

Passively populating a list of participants of an electronic communications system includes maintaining a participant list of users of an electronic communications system to be used by a user of the electronic communications system. Existing users of the electronic communications system that are known to the user are identified, and communications strengths between the user and each of the identified existing users are determined. The identified existing users with the highest communications strengths are designated for addition to the participant list. An existing group or a newly created group within the participant list to which each of the designated users should be added may be identified.

1 - 47 . (canceled) 
     
     
         48 . A computer-implemented method of populating a list of participants of an electronic communications system, the method comprising the following operations performed by at least one processor:
 maintaining, on a computer memory storage system, a participant list of users of an electronic communications system to be used by a first user of the electronic communications system, wherein the first user is identified by multiple identities on the electronic communications system;   determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list;   as a consequence of determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list, identifying, as candidates for addition to the participant list, users who were determined to be known by the first user but who are not already included in the participant list;   determining a communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user on the electronic communications system and each of the identified candidates; combining the determined communications strengths for each of the multiple identities to obtain an overall communications strength between the first user and each of the identified candidates;   selecting, from the identified candidates, a set of candidates to be added to the participant list that have the highest overall communications strengths among the identified candidates; and   adding the selected set of candidates to the participant list.   
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communication strength includes determining degrees of separation between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates, and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that have the smallest degree of separation from the first user.   
     
     
         50 . The method of  claim 48 , further including identifying a group within the participant list to which one of the candidates is to be added. 
     
     
         51 . The method of  claim 50 , wherein the identifying of a group within the participant list to which the candidate is to be added includes identifying a group within the participant list that includes users of the electronic communications system that at least share a characteristic with the candidate or are associated with the candidate. 
     
     
         52 . The method of  claim 50 , wherein the participant list is a first participant list, and the identifying of a group within the first participant list to which the candidate is to be added includes:
 identifying a group within a second participant list that includes the candidate; and   identifying a group within the first participant list that corresponds to the group within the second participant list as the group to which the candidate is to be added.   
     
     
         53 . The method of  claim 48 , further including:
 determining a number representing the number of users to be added to the participant list; and   wherein the set of candidates selected in the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list is equal to the determined number.   
     
     
         54 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein the determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list includes identifying existing users of the electronic communications system that are included in a contact list maintained by the first user as being known by the first user. 
     
     
         55 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein the determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list includes identifying people known to the first user that are associated with an identifier used in the electronic communications system as being known to the first user. 
     
     
         56 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining whether the identified candidates include each of the multiple identities of the first user in contact lists that they maintain and whether the identified candidates are included in a contact list maintained by the first user; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that include the first user in the contact lists that they maintain and that are included in the contact list maintained by the first user, before selecting the candidates that do not include the first user in the contact lists that they maintain or that are not included in the contact list maintained by the first user.   
     
     
         57 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining a number of messages sent between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates with the highest numbers of messages exchanged with the first user.   
     
     
         58 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining a frequency with which messages between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates are exchanged; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that exchange messages with the first user with the highest frequencies.   
     
     
         59 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining whether each of the identified candidates is a direct or an indirect addressee of messages from each of the multiple identities of the first user; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that are direct addressees of the first user, before selecting the candidates that are indirect addressees of the first user.   
     
     
         60 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining whether each of the multiple identities of the first user subscribes to contact information for each of the identified candidates and whether each of the identified candidates subscribes to contact information of each of the multiple identities of the first user; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that are both subscribers to the first user's contact information and publishers of contact information that is subscribed to by the first user.   
     
     
         61 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining a frequency with which messages are exchanged in a chat room between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that exchange messages in the chat room with the first user with the highest frequencies.   
     
     
         62 . The method of  claim 48 , wherein:
 the determining of the communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates includes determining amounts of time for which each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates have exchanged messages; and   the selecting of the candidates to be added to the participant list includes selecting the candidates that have exchanged messages with the first user for the longest amounts of time.   
     
     
         63 . The method of  claim 48 , further including:
 prompting the first user for confirmation that the selected candidates are to be added to the participant list;   receiving confirmation from the first user that particular ones of the selected candidates are to be added to the participant list; and   adding only those candidates that were confirmed by the first user to the participant list.   
     
     
         64 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed, enable one or more processors to:
 maintain, on a computer memory storage system, a participant list of users of an electronic communications system to be used by a first user of the electronic communications system, wherein the first user is identified by multiple identities on the electronic communications system;   determine that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list;   as a consequence of determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list, identify, as candidates for addition to the participant list, users who were determined to be known by the first user but who are not already included in the participant list;   determine a communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user on the electronic communications system and each of the identified candidates;   combine the determined communications strengths for each of the multiple identities to obtain an overall communications strength between the first user and each of the identified candidates; and   select, from the identified candidates, a set of candidates to be added to the participant list that have the highest overall communications strengths among the identified candidates.   
     
     
         65 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 64 , wherein the one or more processors are further enabled by the instructions to:
 determine degrees of separation between each of the multiple identities of the first user and each of the identified candidates, and   select, as the set of candidates to be added to the participant list, the candidates that have the smallest degree of separation from the first user.   
     
     
         66 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 64 , wherein the one or more processors are further enabled by the instructions to:
 prompt the first user for confirmation that the selected candidates are to be added to the participant list;   receive confirmation from the first user that particular ones of the selected candidates are to be added to the participant list; and   add only those candidates that were confirmed by the first user to the participant list.   
     
     
         67 . A system for populating a list of participants of an electronic communications system, the system comprising:
 at least one processor; and   a tangible computer memory storage device storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the system to:
 maintain, on a computer memory storage system, a participant list of users of an electronic communications system to be used by a first user of the electronic communications system, wherein the first user is identified by multiple identities on the electronic communications system; 
 determine that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list; 
 as a consequence of determining that the first user knows multiple users who are not already included in the participant list, identify, as candidates for addition to the participant list, users who were determined to be known by the first user but who are not already included in the participant list; 
 determine a communications strength between each of the multiple identities of the first user on the electronic communications system and each of the identified candidates; 
 combine the determined communications strengths for each of the multiple identities to obtain an overall communications strength between the first user and each of the identified candidates; and 
 select, from the identified candidates, a set of candidates to be added to the participant list that have the highest overall communications strengths among the identified candidates.