Sending messages in WebMail
- Click on "Compose" in the menu bar just under the WebMail header. This will open a new window.
As in other screens in the WebMail system, the Composition window may not be large enough to display everything, so re-size the window to suit or use the vertical and horizontal scrollbars as required
- The "Compose a message" screen contains boxes for the message header and a larger box for the message text. It also contains the following buttons: Send Message, Save Draft and Cancel Message
Composing a message
- Put the recipient's address in the "To" box: local addresses do not need "@st-andrews.ac.uk" - just the username will do. Addresses outwith St Andrews need to be given in full. You may enter multiple addresses, separated by a comma.
- Put the subject of the message in the "Subject" box.
- You can leave the other parts of the header blank - to find out what "Cc" and "Bcc" mean click the large questionmark to the right of the relevant box.
- Click in the large box and type your message text. Note the following points:
- What you type will wrap round as you reach the end of the line.
- To make it easier for your recipient to read your message you will probably want to insert paragraph breaks by pressing Return twice.
- The message text box has a vertical scrollbar which you can use if your message is too large to fit in the box.
- If you can't see this scrollbar at all, you need to move the horizontal scrollbar on the outer window to the right .
- If you can't see the bottom of the scrollbar on the message text box, it means you need to scroll downwards with the vertical scrollbar on the outer window.
- You can use copy and paste while composing the message
- Use the mouse to select the text you want to copy (or cut)
- Press Control+C for copy or Control+X for cut (on the Mac use the Command key rather than the Control key)
- Click the mouse at the point where you want the text to be placed
- Press Control+V (on a Mac use Command+V) to paste the text
- You can also use the Copy and Paste commands in the "Edit" menu. On the Mac the "Edit" menu is shown on the menu bar. On the PC you can call up the "Edit" menu by pointing anywhere within the Message box on the screen and pressing the right mouse button
Options in the Composition window
There are a number of 'Options' available in the Compositions window:
Address book - clicking on this link brings up a 'Contacts list' window. The left hand box lists the entries in your addressbook, and the right hand box lists the entries in the 'To', 'Cc' and 'Bcc' fields of your message.
Click here to read more about the WebMail addressbook.
- To add an email address from your addressbook to the 'To' field of your message:
- Highlight the entry in the left hand box.
- Click the 'To>>' button between the two boxes.
- The screen will refresh to show the appropriate entry in the right hand box.
- You can add email addresses to the 'Cc' and 'Bcc' fields in a similar fashion.
- When you have finished with this window, click 'OK' to return to the composition window.
Expand Names - Normally, a message will be sent to all email addresses listed under one 'nickname' in your addressbook. Sometimes, you may only wish to send the message to some of the addresses in the list. This feature allows you to do that.
- Click on 'Expand Names' to expand any nicknames you have used in your message. (Nickname refers to 'Name' in your addressbook.)
- The name will then be listed followed by the email address(es) listed under it in your addressbook.
- If the addressbook entry contains more than one email address for one name, they will all be listed separated by commas. You can then remove the addresses you want to from the message by placing the cursor at the desired point and using the backspace key. (This does not affect the addressbook entry.)
Spell check - you can check the spelling of your message by clicking on this link. If there are possible corrections to be made, the window will look similar to this one (below).
- For each change you wish to make:
- Select the appropriate word from the pulldown list. Alternatively, type in your own change in the text-box to the right of the pulldown list.
- Choose from 'Change', 'Change All', 'Ignore', or 'Ignore All'.
- Once you have finished making changes, click the 'Next' button. This will display the changes to the message text.
- In this second screen, click 'Done' to return to your message.
If the spell checker does not seem to be working, click 'Cancel'. Select the browser window containing your Inbox and click on 'Options' from the main menu bar. Under 'Your information', select 'language' and ensure that it is set to 'English' for checking english text. If you have had to make any changes, click 'Save options' before returning to your message and trying the spell checker again.
Special characters - allows you to select additional characters to paste into the body of your message.
Attachments - clicking this link takes you to the section of the window where you can attach documents to your message.
Sending your message
Once you have finished composing your message, click the "Send message" button. You may have to use the vertical scrollbar in order to find this button.
- If all goes well, after a short delay you should be returned to the window you were using when you clicked the "Compose" button. This means your message has been sent successfully. Your message may still encounter problems if it was sent to a recipient outside St Andrews.
- If you sent the message to a non-existent local address, or if you used an invalidly formed external address, there will be a longer delay, at the end of which you will be told that your message has been returned by the local mail delivery subsystem. This information will come as a message from the delivery subsystem which will appear in your INBOX.
