Message thread management using dynamic pointers

1. A messaging data processing system comprising:

a computer with at least one processor and memory;

a messaging client executing in the memory of the computer and comprising a message inbox of messages and message threads of messages; and,

a thread pointer management module coupled to the messaging client, the module comprising program code enabled to select a message thread in the message inbox, the message thread comprising a series of interrelated messages beginning with a root message and continuing with one or more additional messages, to compare characteristics of the message thread to a pre-established set of criteria, and to remove the selected message thread to remote storage coupled to messaging client over a computer communications network, to generate a message thread pointer to the selected message thread and to insert the message thread pointer into the message inbox in place of the selected message thread in response to the characteristics of the message thread satisfying the criteria.

2. A computer program product for message thread management using dynamic pointers, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising:

computer readable program code for selecting a message thread in a message inbox of a messaging client executing in memory by at least one processor of a computer, the message thread comprising a series of interrelated messages beginning with a root message and continuing with one or more additional messages;

computer readable program code for comparing characteristics of the message thread to a pre-established set of criteria; and,

computer readable program code for removing the selected message thread to remote storage, generating a message thread pointer to the selected message thread and inserting the message thread pointer into the message inbox in place of the selected message thread in response to the characteristics of the message thread satisfying the criteria.

3. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the message thread is an e-mail.

4. The computer program product of claim 2 , further comprising computer readable program code for including in the message thread pointer a single copy of all attachments to the series of interrelated messages of the message thread while removing duplicates of identical attachments of the series of interrelated messages from the inbox.

5. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the criteria comprises a size of the message thread.

6. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the criteria comprises a number of interrelated messages of the series of interrelated messages in the message thread.

7. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the criteria comprises a number of users contributing to the series of interrelated messages to the message thread.

8. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the criteria comprises a size of attachments to the series of interrelated messages in the message thread.

9. The computer program product of claim 2 , wherein the message thread pointer comprises metadata describing the message thread, and an activatable reference to the message thread in the remote storage for retrieving the message thread upon activation.

10. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the metadata comprises a message digest of the series of interrelated messages of the message thread, and a listing of contributors of the series of interrelated messages to the message thread.