Multi-user chat

Abstract

A method for providing a multi-user chat includes: receiving a request from a first participant to initiate a first live chat with a second participant; receiving a request from the first or second participants to invite a third participant to the first live chat; establishing the first live chat having multiple participants including at least the first, second, and third participants; receiving from one of the multiple participants a selection of one of the other participants in the first live chat from a participant indicator field after establishing the first live chat among the multiple participants; and displaying a live chat area separate from a displayed area for the first live chat that allows the participant who made the selection and the participant who was identified by the selection to chat between themselves in a second live chat that is not displayed to other participants of the first live chat.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for providing a multi-user chat, comprising:
 receiving, by a computing device, a request from a first participant to initiate a first live chat with a second participant;   receiving, by the computing device, a request from either the first participant or the second participant to invite a third participant to the first live chat;   establishing, by the computing device, the first live chat having multiple participants including at least the first, second, and third participants;   receiving, by the computing device, from one of the multiple participants a selection of one of the other participants in the first live chat from a participant indicator field after establishment of the first live chat among the multiple participants; and   displaying, by the computing device, a live chat area separate from a displayed area for the first live chat that allows the participant who made the selection and the participant who was identified by the selection to chat between themselves in a second live chat that is not displayed to other participants of the first live chat.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the live chat area comprises a separate window from the displayed area for the first live chat. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the computing device comprises a multi-user instant messaging server. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the participant indicator field includes a listing of participants included in the live chat. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein receiving the selection of one of the other participants from the participant indicator field comprises receiving an indication that one of the participants has clicked on a name displayed in the participant indicator field or has hovered over a name displayed in the participant indicator field. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the live chat area includes presence information corresponding to the participant who was identified by the selection and/or an avatar corresponding to the participant who was identified by the selection. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the live chat area includes an email link, and wherein the live chat area allows the participant who made the selection to open a draft email to the participant who was identified by the selection by selecting the email link. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sidebar window includes a call link, and wherein the live chat area allows the participant who made the selection to initiate a computer network-based telephone call to the participant who was identified by the selection by selecting the call link. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the computer network-based telephone call comprises a voice over IP (VoIP) telephone call. 
     
     
         10 . A system for providing a multi-user chat, comprising:
 a multi-user instant messaging (IM) server configured to:
 receive a request from a first participant to initiate a first live chat with a second participant, 
 receive a request from either the first participant or the second participant to invite a third participant to the first live chat, 
 establish the first live chat having multiple participants including at least the first, second, and third participants, 
 receive from one of the multiple participants a selection of one of the other participants in the first live chat from a participant indicator field after establishment of the first live chat among the multiple participants, and 
 displaying a live chat area separate from a displayed area for the first live chat that allows the participant who made the selection and the participant who was identified by the selection to chat between themselves in a second live chat that is not displayed to other participants of the first live chat. 
   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , further comprising a connection manager that maintains connection information associated with the participants included in the first and second live chats. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the participant indicator field includes a listing of participants included in the first live chat. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein receiving the selection of one of the other participants in the first live chat from the participant indicator field comprises receiving an indication that one of the participants has clicked on a name displayed in the participant indicator field. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein receiving the selection of one of the other participants in the first live chat from the participant indicator field comprises receiving an indication that one of the participants has hovered over a name displayed in the participant indicator field. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the live chat area includes presence information corresponding to the other participant that was selected, and/or wherein the live chat area includes an avatar corresponding to the other participant that was selected. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the live chat area includes an email link, and wherein the live chat area allows the participant who made the selection to open a draft email to the participant who was identified by the selection by selecting the email link. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the sidebar window includes a call link, and wherein the sidebar window allows the participant who made the selection to initiate a computer network-based telephone call to the participant who was identified by the selection by selecting the call link. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein the computer network-based telephone call comprises a voice over IP (VoIP) telephone call. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 10 , further comprising a state manager device configured to maintain:
 a number of participants included in the first and second live chats;   identities of the participants included in the first and second live chats; and   an order of messages input by the participants included in the first and second live chats.   
     
     
         20 . A system, comprising:
 a first display device configured to display a first chat area for displaying chat messages of a first live chat between multiple participants that includes at least first, second, and third participants, wherein the first participant initiated the first live chat with the second participant, and wherein either the first participant or the second participant invited the third participant to the first live chat;   a second display device configured to display the first chat area; and   a third display device configured to display the first chat area;   wherein one of the multiple participants selects of one of the other participants in the first live chat from a participant indicator field included in the first chat area, and   where a subset of the first, second, and third display devices is configured to display a second chat area separate from the first chat area that allows the participant who made the selection and the participant who was identified by the selection to chat between themselves in a second chat that is not displayed to other participants of the first live chat.