Abstract: A system for scheduling time intervals for a plurality of users comprises a database associated with one or more server means for storing a profile for each potential invitee of the system. Each invitee profile comprises user profiles that have information regarding available and unavailable times for that user and the electronic mail address for the user and resource profiles having information about the available times for a particular resource such as a room or equipment. A request generator connected over a network to the one or more server generates a request for allocation of a time interval for one or more of the plurality of invitees. The system then provides a busy time determination device that gathers the profiles for the plurality of invitees that were requested by the request generating means and that are available in the databases and determines whether those invitees are available during the time interval requested by the request generating means.

Abstract: In a distributed computing system in which replicas of a document are separately stored and revised, the document containing data arranged in a number of fields, a method for replicating data contained in a revised document replica to the other of the replicas by replicating only the field or fields which have been revised since an earlier replication. The method includes the steps of dynamically maintaining a two byte document sequence number for each of the document replicas representing the number of revisions made to the replicas, and dynamically maintaining a one byte field sequence number for each of the fields in the replicas. The field sequence numbers for revised fields are set equal to the lower byte of the current document sequence number.

Abstract: In a distributed computing system in which replicas of a document are separately stored and revised, the document containing data arranged in a number of fields, a method for replicating data contained in a revised document replica to the other of the replicas by replicating only the field or fields which have been revised since an earlier replication. The method includes the steps of dynamically maintaining a two byte document sequence number for each of the document replicas representing the number of revisions made to the replicas, and dynamically maintaining a one byte field sequence number for each of the fields in the replicas. The field sequence numbers for revised fields are set equal to the lower byte of the current document sequence number.

Abstract: In order to establish a protected channel between a user and a software program running on a computer system, a graphic display unique to the user is displayed along with the normal information entry graphics. A foreign program which might duplicate the overall appearance of the entry graphics cannot display the unique visual display which would appear on the legitimate entry screen of a particular user. Thus, a user looking at his entry screen can tell by the visual display whether the entry screen has been generated by a legitimate program or by a foreign impostor program. Further, since it might be possible for an unauthorized person to surreptitiously observe the unique display pattern on the entry screen of an authorized user, to increase security, a program constructed according to the principles of the invention, changes the visual display as information is entered based on the partially entered information.