Using the New Mirapoint Web Mail

Lettie Weinmann, Technology Mentor
Henry M. Gunn Sr. High School

After playing around with the new e-mail system, we have discovered a few things. Here are a few hints and tips.

Logging In

Go to the Gunn Web Page; click on the "Staff E-mail" link. Now choose "New Mirapoint E-mail from….." At the next screen type your user name and password.

Reading Messages

You will see your inbox with a listing of your messages. Each message is numbered so you can see how many you have. If you have more messages than will fit on the page, you are shown the last page.

You can scroll back or forward through your messages using the double arrows at top, or you can type the number of a message in the box and click "Go" to get to it.

To read a message you need to click on the blue underlined Subject. Clicking on the Date, From or Size fields won't get you there.

If you are one of the lucky ones who have messages that migrated over with no headers, just a "--" in the subject line, click on this blue line to view the message.

Deleting Messages

Deleting only works if it is done from a computer on campus. It may look like you've deleted your messages from home but when you log in the next morning they will all be there to greet you. It's a firewall issue.

Deleting is a three-step process.

First, place a check in the box of all of the messages that you want to delete by clicking in the box.

Next, click the "Mark" button with the word next to it reading "Deleted". The messages you checked will get little red circles next to them.

Step 3 is to click the word "Compact" on the left side of the screen. Your marked messages should disappear.

You can also "mark" a message to be deleted by clicking the word delete at the top of the screen when you are reading the message.

You can only undelete messages that are marked with the red circle. (Compacted messages cannot be undeleted.) Change the word next to the "Mark" button to read "Undelete," click the box in front of the message and then click the word "Mark." The red circle should disappear.

Composing Messages

Click the word "Compose" on the left-hand side of the screen. You will get another screen. You can type the e-mail address in the "To:" field. If you are sending your message to another person with a pausd address, you need only enter their username. Miarapoint knows the rest of the address. If you are sending it to multiple people, separate the addresses with a comma.

Cc means carbon copy; it sends an exact copy to whom ever you enter in this field. Bcc means blind carbon copy. It sends a copy to who ever you enter in this field but does not let the To and Cc recipients know that this person is getting a copy.

Saving Sent Mail

This is not automatic. If you would like to keep a copy of any message that you send, you need to scroll down to the bottom of the Compose window and click the box that says "Save a copy of sent message." This will place a copy of this message in your sent mail folder. If you do not have a sent mail folder, it will create one for you. Go to folders to view it.

Address book & Staff Directory

Don't bother to click on the directory button in the compose window. It's not yet working. The plan is to link this to the PAUSD staff directory. It has not yet happened.

As for your address book, it works great, as long as you hand enter each address. The address book that you have in Netscape Messenger does not link with the webmail address book.

To enter someone in your address book, click the words "Address Book" at the left of the screen. Enter the e-mail address and any other information you care about. Scroll down to the bottom and click "Done"

If you want to compose a message to someone in your address book it is almost easier to enter the address by hand. Their address does not automatically come up in the "To:" window when you start to type it. Nicknames should work if they were entered in the card but it will not auto-fill the name.

What you have to do is, click on the words, "Address Book" at the left side of your screen. Click the box under, "To," "Cc" or "Bcc." Next to the person you want to send the message to. Now click the button that says "E-mail."

You will get another window. Here you click the word "Compose." Finally you will see the Compose window with the address in the right place. See? It is easier to type it in by hand.

Managing your E-mail with Folders

Folders are a great option for those of you who want to save messages but like a tidy inbox.

Click on the word "Folders" at the left of the screen. If you have any folders, a list of them will appear. If you do not have folders, now is the time to create them.

Click in the white box next to the "Add Folder" button. Type the name of the new folder. Click the "Add Folder" button.

To move things from your inbox into your new folder, you need to go to your inbox. Place a check in front of the message or messages you want to move by clicking in the box in front of them.

Now go to the box next to the word "Move." You can use the arrows to select the folder you want things to move to. Then click the "Move" button

Your message will be marked as deleted in your inbox. It will also be in the folder you designated. To make it go away from your inbox, click the word "Compact" at left.

Other Features

There is a search feature that will allow you to find a message if you know the author or the subject. You can access this by clicking on the word "Search" at the left and just filling in the field(s) you are interested in.

You can change your password, have your mail forwarded or set up a vacation reply by going to the e-mail management page. To do this, go to the Gunn Page and click on "Staff E-mail." Scroll down to the bottom and click on "E-mail Management Page." You can only make changes in your e-mail management from on campus.

Epilog

For those of you who find this all cumbersome or long for an easier way to read your e-mail, there is another solution. You can use a mail reading program to read and manage your e-mail. Many of you may have used (or may be using) Netscape Messenger as your mail reader. Using Netscape Messenger has it's own tricks and tips. Look for another workshop soon on how to set up, use and manage your e-mail using Netscape Messenger.