16. WebMail (E-mail) E-mail is a mechanism for sending messages and information between computer users. Individuals are identified by their e-mail address, which is used in much the same way as a postal address. New messages arrive in a file known as the inbox. You can also access your e-mail on and off campus using WebMail or configure other e-mail programs such as Outlook or Outlook Express. E-mail Addresses An e-mail address is composed of two main parts: Identification of the individual and Identification of their location, e.g. f.bloggs@uea.ac.uk., the @ symbol is read as 'at' so a full e-mail address is always 'person at location'. Wherever possible UEA addresses take the form initial.surname@uea.ac.uk. There is no standard way to represent an individual, although their location (e.g. UEA) will have an agreed name that must be used. There is no equivalent of national or international telephone directories for e-mail addresses. NEVER guess an e-mail address. Your mail will nearly always go to the wrong person. WebMail UEA WebMail uses a system called SquirrelMail that allows you to access your E-mails both on and off campus and is accessed via the Internet. From your web browser you need to enter http://webmail.uea.ac.uk First of all you need to enter secure mode. Secure mode allows your e-mail session to be encrypted, which makes it more secure. Select either Student/Undergrad Secure. or Staff/Postgrad Secure You may then be asked if you wish to trust the sites security certificate, select Yes. If you are unable to select secure mode due to an incompatible web browser, select the Staff/Postgrad Insecure or Student/Undergrad Insecure option. 39
In the Username: box, type your UEA username (e.g. u0345678). In the Password: box, type your UEA password. Click the Login button. SquirrelMail is laid out into two main sections called frames: The left-hand frame lists currently subscribed folders including the inbox, drafts, sent and trash. Further information about the left-hand frame can be found via the Help menu. The right-hand frame is the main window and after logging in the message dialog box will be displayed showing current messages in your inbox. There is a context sensitive Help menu within the program. Clicking Help will take you to the relevant help section (e.g. when looking at Folders, clicking Help will display the Folders section of the online help). Composing and Sending a Message Click the Compose link at the top of the screen. Compos In the To: box type the full e-mail address e.g. f.bloggs@uea.ac.uk Press the [Tab] key on the keyboard to move to the other boxes. In the Subject: box type a short title for the message, and then press the [Tab] key to move to the message body. Type your message. Click the Send button at the bottom of the screen Reading a Message Click the relevant link under Subject. The message will then be displayed. To return to your inbox either Click the Message List link above the message or click INBOX in the left-hand frame. Message Highlighting You can change the background colour of selected messages in your inbox, for example those from a certain person. The text will remain the same colour. Click the Options link and select Message Highlighting. Click New and select a colour. Click the drop-down arrow to select your criteria (e.g. From, To, CC, To or CC, or subject). 40
Type the required text next to Matches. Click Submit. Click Done. Any messages currently in your inbox matching the criteria will be highlighted. Deleting a Message Click in the square box next to From. The message will then be selected. Click the Delete button. You can select all of your messages by clicking the Replying to a Message Open the message you want to reply to. Click Reply. If the message is from more than one recipient and you want to reply to all of them, click Reply All. Click in the message box, type a response and click Send. Forwarding a Copy of a Message Open the message and click Forward. link. Next to To: type the recipient s full e-mail address. Click Send. Reading a Message with an Attachment Open the message containing the attachment. (You can tell if a message has an attachment if there is a (+ sign) in the Subject field. When message opened, the attachment will be displayed at the bottom of the message. Click the filename. A file download box will be displayed. Click Save. Select a location to save the file. Make sure the file has a valid filename and extension in the File name: box. (e.g. meeting.doc). If the attachment only has a filename, you will need to add the appropriate file extension. If you do not know what type of attachment, it is, presume it is a Word file, and add.doc after the filename. Click Save and Close. You will need to retrieve the file from its saved location. Remember to check the attachment for viruses before opening. If anti-virus software is installed you should be able to click the attachment with the right mouse button and then select Scan for Viruses. Sending a Message with an Attachment Ensure that the file is closed before you try to attach it. The maximum file attachment size is 2 Mbs. If you try to add a larger file, an error message will be displayed stating File not attached. Compose the e-mail message. Underneath the message text, next to Attach: click Browse Locate the file. Double click the file so it is displayed next to Attach: Click Add and the filename will then appear underneath. 41
Creating New E-mail Folders Click the Folders link. Underneath Create Folder, enter the name of the new folder. Click Create. If the folder has been created, a link will appear above Create Folder stating Created folder successfully. Click the refresh folder list link in order for the folder to appear in the left-hand frame. Moving Messages into Other Folders From the inbox screen, select the message by clicking the box next to From. To select all of your message, click the link. Located above the From field, select a folder to move the message(s) to by clicking the drop-down arrow and click Move. Accessing Messages Contained in Other Folders Select the folder name from the left-hand frame. If the required folder is not displayed, click the Folders link, underneath Unsubscribe/Subscribe select the folder name, and click Subscribe. Address Book You can create and delete entries in the address book. You are unable to access existing address book entries in other e-mail clients such as Outlook Express. ADDRESS BOOK ENTRIES CREATED IN WEBMAIL WILL NOT BE ACCESSIBLE IN OTHER E-MAIL CLIENTS. Creating an Address Book Entry Click the Addresses link. Enter text next to Nickname: E-mail address: First name: Last name: and Additional info: You do not have to complete all of the fields but you must enter an e-mail address and a name. If you do not enter a nickname, the e-mail address will appear in this field. Click Add address and the address will now appear in the Personal Address Book. 42
Deleting an Address Book Entry WebMail (E-Mail) Click the Addresses link. Select the entry you wish to delete by clicking the box to the left of nickname. Click Delete selected. Logging off from WebMail It is important that you logout correctly. Prior to logging off from WebMail, make sure all e-mail messages are closed. Click the Sign Out button. Junk Mail (Spam) Junk Mail is also referred to as spam. It can be very annoying and is increasing in volume. To minimise your chances of receiving junk mail do not join any mailing lists or advertise your e-mail address on a web page. It is not always effective to change your e-mail address as your new address can easily be obtained. Our mail server already blocks many addresses but we have to ensure that genuine e-mails are not also blocked. In addition, you can also filter junk mail. Suspect messages are prefixed by {Spam} in the subject header. Two options are provided; to either delete e-mails that the UEA spam filtering service has marked as spam and/or move the e-mails that might be spam into a spam subfolder. These options need to be set using the e-mail forwarding/junk mail options via the UEA Information Services (IS) webpage http://www.uea.ac.uk/is. Occasionally people e-mailing you from outside of UEA may receive mail failures and be unable to contact you. Their Internet Service Provider (ISP) may be on a spamming list that UEA subscribe to which is preventing their delivery. The mail failure will refer the user to a web page. UEA cannot unsubscribe ISP s from spamming lists. 43
Unsolicited, Offensive and Abusive E-mail Messages If a message is unsolicited (not requested) please delete it without replying. Do not try to remove your name from a list as this only confirms that your account is live. If these messages continue to arrive frequently, contact the Student IT Helpdesk who will advise you who to contact to complain, and will check possibilities for further action. If a message is offensive or abusive, contact the IT Student Helpdesk. 'False' E-mail Messages Not all e-mail originates from the person it appears to be from. It is not difficult to forge the sender's name and return address in an e-mail message. If you have any suspicions about a message you have received, contact the sender by another method to confirm that they did actually send the message. Virus and Scam Messages NEVER OPEN UNEXPECTED E-MAIL ATTACHMENTS. DELETE THE E-MAIL. You should delete and never reply to any e-mail messages, which resemble the following: An e-mail from abroad asking for financial help (often referred to as Nigerian e-mail scams). For further information on these scams see the Nigerian Fraud Email Gallery at http://potifos.com/fraud/. An e-mail requesting you to click a web page link, e.g. to check your credit information. This type of scam e-mail is on the increase. An e-mail suggesting you have sent someone else a virus. UEA have up-todate anti-virus software on all IDS managed IT area PCs therefore it is unlikely you will have sent someone else a virus. For further information on virus hoaxes see the McAfee hoax page at http://vil.nai.com/vil/hoaxes.asp. E-mail Forwarding Facilities exist to manage you incoming email when you are away from UEA. Full details of these facilities and how to use them are available via the webpages at www.uea.ac.uk/is. Outlook Express Outlook Express is the easy way to send e-mail and participate in Internet newsgroups. Even if you have never sent e-mail before, Outlook Express makes it simple by including a setup wizard to help you get started. If you are switching from another e-mail program, the import function lets you transfer your address book and messages quickly and easily. Outlook Express features: allows several e-mail or newsgroup accounts each identity has unique e-mail folders and an individual address book uses Internet message access protocol (IMAP) address book supports Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) digitally sign and encrypt messages by using digital IDs search for newsgroups that matches your interest 44