Acquisition and Installation
Outlook Express (OE) should not be confused with another MS product called Outlook. Note: If you use Outlook for your mail client you will still need to install a News Client Like Outlook Express because Outlook was never programmed to perform Newsreader functions internally. (<View>, <Go To>, <News> will launch the default Newsreader from Outlook)
OE is distributed with Internet Explorer and the versions should be coordinated. The setup options included in this guide are based on IE 5.01 and OE 5.0. If you are using Outlook or other mail programs for processing your e-mail then you can still use OE for processing the Newsgroups.( set OE as the default for News when prompted but leave the default for mail set to your current mail client)
Set up Options (General)
[ ] means not checked [x] means
checked
The general program options can be found ... <tools>, <options>
... The following are settings that have proven to be good starting point
.
General Tab...
=========
[x] Notify me if there are any new Newsgroups
Default Messaging Programs...
This application is the default News Handler ... click button
Read Tab
=======
[x] Get ____ Headers at a time (Suggest 100 to start with)
Make sure...
[ ] Mark all messages as read when exiting group
(is unchecked)
Click Fonts Button
Font settings: Western
Proportional font: Courier New (This
provides the
Fixed font: Courier
New fixed
fonts for composing and
Font size:
Smaller
reading when no one specifies)
Encoding: Western
Click button ... Set as Default
Hit OK to go back to options
Send Tab
=======
[ ] Save copy of sent messages in the "Sent Items" Folder
[x] Send Messages immediately
[ ] Automatically put people I reply to ...
[x] Automatically complete email addresses when composing
[ ] Include Message in Reply... please note the discussion on style for
replying and decide if you
want to check this option or copy and paste
from messages.
[x] Reply to messages in the format in which they were sent
News sending format...
[x] Plain Text
Press Plain Text Settings Button...
MIME or UUENCODE works well with Outlook Express but in order to assure
compatibility with other clients and Internet Browsers it is recommended that
UUENCODE be selected.
If you choose...
[ ] MIME then choose None in the Encode text using field
[ ] Allow 8bit characters in headers
[x] UUENCODE (above options are not available)
Wrap text at 76
[x] Indent the original text with (select > from list) when replying or
forwarding.
Compose Tab
===========
News: Press Font Settings... Choose Font: Courier New
Font Style: Regular Size: 9 pt.
Color: Black
Stationery
[ ] News
Business Cards
[ ] News
Signatures Tab...
============
Suggest that first line be "-- " dash dash blank because some
newsreaders will automatically trim all that follows after this when replying.
It is recommended that you personalize your message with a signature in closing all message as opposed to letting the header identify the author. Using these fields saves some time in copying and pasting signature text into each message. Set the options that you choose to use.
Maintenance Tab
=============
[ ] Empty deleted messages from the deleted items folder on exit
[ ] Purge deleted messages when leaving IMAP folders
[x] Compact messages in the background
[ ] Delete read message bodies in
newsgroups
[ ] Delete news messages ___ days after being
downloaded
Compact messages when there is (choose 20 )
percent wasted space
Troubleshooting
[ ] Mail [ ] News [ ] IMAP [
] HTTP
Connections Tab
=============
[x] Ask before switching dial-up connections
[ ] Hang up after sending and receiving
Security Tab
=========
[x] Restricted Site Zones ( more secure)
The use of encryption is not recommended in this newsgroup.
Spelling Tab
==========
[x] Always check spelling before sending
[x] Suggest replacements for misspelled words
When checking spelling always ignore
[ ] Words in UPPERCASE
[ ] Words with numbers
[x] The original text in a reply or forward
[x] Internet Addresses
Main Tool Bar
==========
<View> , Current View
Choose ... Show All Messages
Group Messages by Conversation
<View>, <Sort BY>... Check the options that suite your needs, suggest ... Sent and Sort Descending
It should be noted that the settings indicated are recommended and you should review your operation periodically and modify settings according to your needs.
The setup to this point has configured Outlook Express to process messages from any account you may establish. So the next step is to establish a connection with a news server. In our case the r3-collab.eng.uab.edu server.
Account Setup
To establish an account with a News server ... <tools>, <accounts>...
News Tab...
General....<Add> <News> follow Internet
Connection Wizard to install an account...
Enter Your Name ... a
meaningful name that members of the discussion will recognize.
Enter your e-mail address ...
suggest that you use your IEEE alias
Enter the News (NNTP)
server...r3-collab.eng.uab.edu...
leave
the box for my server requires me to log on unchecked (for the present)
You are now ready to subscribe to particular NewsGroups located on the
r3-collab.eng.uab.edu server...select the r3-collab.eng.uab.edu account in the
folders list and push the <newsgroup> button...
Select the Newsgroup you wish to subscribe to and
push the <Subscribe >button
You are now ready to receive postings to the subscribed NewsGroups.
Since Outlook Express is a fully featured news client there are many options that you should explore in order to determine which of them fits your particular "modus operandi" . The following are a few settings that you might find useful...
Select the New server <r3-collab.eng.uab.edu> ... <Settings>...
<New Messages Only>...
then select each subscribed NewGroup and check the box <New
messages only>.
Each time you want to check your NewsGroups for activity ... Select the server
and then push the
<Synchronize the Account> button.
If you think of additional tips in the operation of Outlook Express that you believe would be helpful to others the please feed them to the e-Conferencing Committee r3-e-conf@ieee.org .
Last Edited 04/04/2000 10:19:15 AM