Electronic mail display device

An electronic mail display program product, including:

• a program storage device readable by a mail server;
• and a program of instructions tangibly embodied on the program storage device and executable by the mail server to perform method steps for displaying an electronic mail, the method steps comprising:
• receiving an electronic mail from a remote source, said electronic mail including a mail text and an attachment file separate from said mail text;
• acquiring attachment position information, said attachment position information being separate from said mail text and said attachment file, said attachment position information comprising an x and y coordinate with respect to a reference location, said attachment position information indicating an attachment position within said mail text of said electronic mail with which said attachment file of the received electronic mail is associated;
• extracting said attachment file from said electronic mail and storing said extracted attachment file in an attachment file storage device;
• embedding storage location information indicating a storage location of said attachment file;
• storing said electronic mail into which said storage location information of said attachment file is embedded in a corresponding mail box, based on the destination information;
• storing said attachment position information associated with said storage location information and an identifier of said electronic mail in an attachment file information storage device;
• and
• transmitting said electronic mail stored in said corresponding mail box together with said corresponding attachment position information to a client apparatus in response to a reception request for the electronic mail from said client apparatus for use by said client apparatus in displaying said mail text together with a graphic representing said attachment file, said graphic representing said attachment file being displayed at a location with said mail text corresponding to said attachment position information without opening said attachment file, said graphic being selectable by the user to open said attachment file.

A digital data processing device which displays electronic mail, comprising:

• a processor;
• a data storage;
• a communications interface for communicating with an external network and receiving electronic mail therefrom;
• a display for displaying information, including electronic mail, to a user;
• an electronic mail management function executable on said processor, said electronic mail management function for presenting items of electronic mail received via said communications interface on said display, at least some items of electronic mail comprising a respective mail text, a respective at least one attachment file separate from said mail text, and respective attachment position information corresponding to each said respective at least one attachment file, said attachment position information being separate from the respective mail text and the corresponding attachment file, each said attachment position information comprising a respective x and y coordinate with respect to a reference location, each said attachment position information indicating an attachment position within the respective mail text of the respective electronic mail with which the corresponding attachment file of the received electronic mail is associated;
• wherein, responsive to a user instruction to display a selected item of electronic mail containing mail text, at least one attachment file, and attachment position information corresponding to each attachment file, said electronic mail management function causes presentation on said display of a mail screen displaying the selected item of electronic mail, the mail screen including the mail text contained in the selected item of electronic mail together with a respective graphic representing each attachment file of the at least one attachment file contained in the selected item of electronic mail, each said graphic being displayed on said mail screen at a respective location within the mail text corresponding to the attachment position of the corresponding attachment file indicated by the corresponding attachment position information, each said graphic being displayed without opening the corresponding attachment file, each said graphic being selectable by the user to open the corresponding attachment file.