Abstract: A research application and service are provided. The research application can be a mobile application, a feature within a word processing software, or an extension of a web-browsing software, through which a user can indicate a subject of research or assignment and receive a list of research topics from which credible research sources can be searched. The application is used to browse research sources and select particular ones to a collection. The application sends the data regarding selected research sources to be stored and accessed later via the research service. When a user is subsequently in a productivity application/authoring canvas, the productivity application can access the data collected by the user. Feedback on what, if any, research sources are included in an authoring canvas is used by the research service to modify the research sources presented by the research application when the topic is next selected by that or other users.

Abstract: Techniques for managing data include receiving, at a data store, a persistent data object generated by a source application, the object configured to be compatible with a plurality of applications and document types. The object is associated with a unique identifier. In response to a request for the object, the object is accessed based on its unique identifier and sent to a computing device executing a destination application. The object is incorporated by and is compatible with a destination document being edited by the destination application. An update to the object is received that is generated by a user application editing a user document. In response to receiving an indication that the object has been inserted in the destination document, the update is sent by the data store to the destination computing device and is usable to update the object as incorporated in the destination document.

Abstract: Techniques for rendering shared data include receiving, from a data store by a computing device, data indicative of a persistent data object. The persistent data object is associated with a class indicative of a data type for information contained in the persistent data object. The persistent data object is operable to be inserted in a file generated by an application executing on the computing device. The visualization logic associated with the class may be received by the computing device. The information in the persistent data object is rendered using the selected method of visualization, and other information in the document is rendered using native rendering capabilities of the application.

Abstract: A system for determining qualified contributors of a document is provided. A system can analyze user activities associated with a document to provide meaningful insights indicating the key contributors of the document based on a contributor policy. The contributor policy defines contribution factors and criteria that is used to determine when a user is deemed as a qualified contributor. The contribution factors can be used in an analysis of one or more user activities to determine a contribution score for each user associated with a document. The contribution scores of the users can be compared with a threshold to identify qualified contributors. The identified users are listed as qualified contributors of the document and associated with the document in the metadata. The contributor information can be utilized to inform readers of the document, identity expertise of these contributors, or recommend relevant documents to the contributors.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for graph-driven authoring in productivity applications can include using context of a user of a productivity application, the existing content of the user's document or an expression input with a command for finding relevant documents, and a date/time to obtain a set of results of relevant documents. The relevant documents include documents associated with people known to the user that contain content relevant to the topic(s) and/or entities from the context and that are current.

Abstract: A method may include receiving a request, from a document authoring application, for a list of documents shared by a user, the request including a user identification; retrieving the list of documents based on the user identification; for each respective document in the list of documents; retrieving an aggregation of views of the respective document by other users within a period of time; retrieving a number of unique viewers of the respective document within the period of time; determining a set of suggested contacts to share the respective document with according to communication signals between the suggested contacts and the user; transmitting, to the document authoring application in response to the request, the list of documents and their respective total views, unique views, and set of suggested contacts for presentation to the user.

Abstract: By applying a set of simple geometric rules to the connections within a connected graph of ‘topics’ it is possible to uncover hidden relationships that are otherwise inaccessible to the lay person. Interesting, potentially non-obvious threads of content, termed indirect connection clusters (ICCs), can be found from an online encyclopedia or other graph of articles that are not directly connected to a starting topic, but instead are connected via an intermediate clique of articles. A system performing a search of an information graph can receive a request for identifying relevant content, identify (in a traversal of the information graph) one or more ICCs using a starting topic associated with the request, refine the one or more ICCs (eliminating certain ICCs) and generate a refined set of ICCs, and rank ICCs within the refined set. The ranked ICCs can be provided in response to the request for identifying relevant content.

Abstract: A document lens service identifies an end-user targeted to consume a productivity document being authored in a user interface to a productivity application. The service then also identifies a document profile specific to the end-user indicative of a model document for the end-user to consume. While the productivity document is being authored, suggestions may be surfaced in the user interface for aligning the productivity document with the model document.

Abstract: A document lens service identifies a document profile specific to an end-user that is indicative of a model document for the end-user. When a productivity document is opened to be consumed by the end-user in a user interface to a productivity application, the service modifies the productivity document based at least on the document profile to align the productivity document with the model document. The productivity document is then rendered as-modified in the user interface.

Abstract: The techniques disclosed herein enable a system to drive collaboration between users by analyzing user interactions with productivity applications. The system provides intelligence mechanisms that work in concert with telemetry mechanisms to create interactive experiences that encourage users to embrace technology, improve productivity, and increase collaboration. In some configurations, the system can drive collaboration between users by correlating signals that define user interactions with individual productivity applications with contextual data that indicates how time has been allocated. During, or upon completion of a group activity, the system can identify individuals of interest and enable a user to readily share relevant files with the identified individuals.

Abstract: An assisted content authoring productivity tool can provide a set of content related to at least one topic determined from a user's expression of intent. The content can include topics that are not obviously related to the user's topic, but identified from indirect cluster connections found in a graph model of information such as, but not limited to, an online encyclopedia like Wikipedia. A document can be populated with topic anchors so a user can return to or have generated a set of content related to a particular topic. The topic anchor can include a graphical user interface including a topic exploration object that, when selected, initiates a command to request information related to that topic.

Abstract: Documents can be deconstructed into component blocks for reuse in productivity applications using a document shredder. The document shredder can identify specific objects within a source document that are likely to be reused, replicate the objects, and store the objects, or component blocks, separate from the source document. The productivity application can access the objects and present these objects to a user of the productivity application for easy insertion into the user's document. The component blocks, or identified relevant objects can be from document sources of previously generated content from a same or different author than the user of a productivity application.

Abstract: A system for reuse of content within documents can include storage media on which a document graph is stored, and labeler software that, when executed by a processing system, directs the processing system to at least: aggregate, for a window of time, a plurality of actions carried out by a user on content associated with a document within a productivity application; normalize the plurality of actions into at least one predefined action class; determine a label of the user in relation to the document or a portion of the content associated with the document based on the at least one predefined action class; and store the label associated with the user and the document or the portion of the content in a document graph. A search of the document graph for reusable content can then be directed to related content associated with a user having a particular label.

Abstract: Captured data can be transformed and augmented for a particular presentation in a document, such as a note of a notebook application, based on an identified entity for the captured data. The particular presentation of captured data can be provided based on entity detection, extraction, and knowledge base resolution and retrieval. Methods, systems, and services are provided that identify a primary entity of an item input to a notebook application and create an entity object for the primary entity of the item at least from one or more structured representations for content associated with the item. A template for presenting the entity object can be determined according to the primary entity, where the template is selected from a set of templates corresponding to different primary entities such that an arrangement and presentation for one primary entity is different than that of another primary entity.

Abstract: An assisted content authoring productivity tool can provide a set of structured content related to at least one topic determined from a user's expression of intent. Additional information can be obtained about a selected result from the set of structured content through the assisted content authoring productivity tool by using the set of structured content as context for the further search. An item from the set of structured content can be inserted into a document in a content authoring surface of a content authoring application. The insertion may be carried out cross-device. Topics for the search of structured content can be determined using the user's expression of intent and, once available, the context can include the results of previous searches for the structured content related to at least one topic determined from the user's expression of intent. Each additional search results may provide further context in a recursive manner.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for identifying and managing trusted sources in online and networked content. URLs and other objects are vetted and identified as trusted sources based on the documents in which these objects are used or otherwise acted upon and not on the content of the URLs or other objects themselves. When a URL or other object is used in a document, the URL is given a score based on the use activity, attributes of the document itself, and, optionally, user history of the user. As users use that same URL with respect to their documents, the scores from those activities are accrued to that URL. A URL with an accrued score (value) above (or equal to) a threshold value can be added to a corpus of trusted sources that can be accessed when conducting research and/or by other applications and search engines.

Abstract: A communication application creates a team mailbox integrating messages from an email repository and documents from a content management store (CMS). The application enables an administrator to define and manage members of the team mailbox with varying privilege status for accessing the team mailbox. Content such as aggregated messages and associated documents are displayed through a unified view to standardize ease of access. The members are enabled to receive messages sent to the team mailbox by others. Policies inherited from email repository, CMS, and/or third party policy providers are enforced within the team mailbox.

Abstract: A communication application creates a team mailbox integrating messages from an email repository and documents from a content management store (CMS). The application enables an administrator to define and manage members of the team mailbox with varying privilege status for accessing the team mailbox. Content such as aggregated messages and associated documents are displayed through a unified view to standardize ease of access. The members are enabled to receive messages sent to the team mailbox by others. Policies inherited from email repository, CMS, and/or third party policy providers are enforced within the team mailbox.

Abstract: A research application and service are provided. The research application can be a mobile application, a feature within a word processing software, or an extension of a web-browsing software, through which a user can indicate a subject of research or assignment and receive a list of research topics from which credible research sources can be searched. The user can be assigned to a group identifier that identifies a group of users that can collaborate on a research project. Research sources selected and collected by the user can be stored associated with the group identifier such that members of the group can see and use those selected sources. In some cases, users can tag a selected source with another user's identifier so that the selected source can be saved in that other user's collection.

Abstract: A research application and service are provided. The research application can be a mobile application, a feature within a word processing software, or an extension of a web-browsing software, through which a user can indicate a subject of research or assignment and receive a list of research topics from which credible research sources can be searched. The application is used to browse research sources and select particular ones to a collection. The application sends the data regarding selected research sources to be stored and accessed later via the research service. When a user is subsequently in a productivity application/authoring canvas, the productivity application can access the data collected by the user. Feedback on what, if any, research sources are included in an authoring canvas is used by the research service to modify the research sources presented by the research application when the topic is next selected by that or other users.