Outlook Express Guide

A guide for Jaws users, written by Chorlton Workshop for hsbp. More guides are available on the Jaws Guides page of the VIP Software Guides website.

Introduction

This is a guide to the email client, Outlook Express version 6, running under Windows XP.

There are a large number of configuration options for Outlook Express. In the Configuration section at the end of this document, there is a recommended set of options. In this guide, it's assumed that your copy of Outlook Express has this configuration.

Main Window

Components of the window

The window is divided into two columns. In the left hand column, there are are two lists: the Folders tree followed by the Address Book list. The right hand column is taken up with the Messages list. As with all programs, along the top of the window there's a title bar, followed by a menu bar. Along the bottom of the window, there's a status bar. Some of these components are described in the following sections.

Title bar

The title bar contains the name of the folder selected in the Folders tree, followed by the name of the program — Outlook Express. To read the title bar, press INSERT + T.

Folders tree

One folder in the tree is always selected, and the messages in this folder are displayed in the Messages list. The top level folder is Outlook Express, and this has a child folder, Local Folders. The latter folder has the following children:

• Inbox. For incoming messages.
• Outbox. A waiting area for outgoing messages.
• Sent Items. After you send a message, a copy is placed in this folder.
• Deleted Items. When you delete a message from a folder ( except this folder ), a copy is saved here, just in case you change your mind.
• Drafts. This contains messages either that you were working on when the computer crashed, or that you save from a new message window to send later.

Messages list

This contains the messages in the folder which is selected in the Folders tree.

• When a message is selected, Jaws says if it is unread, and if it contains any attachments.
• The messages are normally sorted by the date on which they were received, with the most recent messages at the top. However, they can be sorted by other fields, and in either ascending or descending order by using the Sort By sub-menu on the View menu.

Address book list

This is a list of the contacts in the Address Book. It's often easier to use this list, rather than the address book proper.

Status bar

This contains both the total number, and the number of unread messages in the Messages list. To read the Status bar, press INSERT + PAGE DOWN.

Moving around the main window

• As for any window, to move to the menu bar press ALT, and to leave it, press ESC.
• You can move between the Folders tree, Messages list, Contacts list etc. by pressing TAB. You can move in the opposite direction between these lists by pressing SHIFT + TAB.
• You can change the selection in any of the lists by using UP and DOWN ARROW, HOME, END, and the first letter of an item.

Reading Email

Receiving messages

• When you start Outlook Express, it downloads any new messages from your Internet Service Provider ( If you have a dial-up connection, you will be prompted to connect to the internet ).
• If you want to check for new messages at any other time, press CTRL + M.
• If you have a broadband connection, the program will automatically check for new messages every 5 minutes ( this time is set on the General page of the Options dialog — see the Configuration section of this guide ).

Opening a message

1. Select a folder in the Folders tree ( this will often be the Inbox ).
2. Select a message in the Messages list, and press ENTER. A message window opens.

Viewing message window

The window includes the following components:

• Title bar, which contains the subject of the message.
• A pane which gives the values of the following fields: From, Date, To, Cc, Bcc, Subject, and Attach.
• A pane which contains the message. When the window opens, Jaws starts reading this message.

Tasks:

• Press ALT + 1, or ALT + 2, ... or ALT + 6, to read the fields: From, Date, To, Cc, Bcc, and Subject.
• To print the message, press CTRL + P.
• To open or save an attachment, see the following sections, Opening an attachment, and Saving an attachment.
• To delete the message, choose Delete Message from the File menu.
• To read another message, you don't have to go back to the main window. To read the next message in the Messages list, press ALT + RIGHT ARROW. To read the previous message, press ALT + LEFT ARROW.
• To close the message window, press ESC.

Opening an attachment

In the message window:

1. Move to the attachment list either by pressing INSERT + A, or by TABBING to it. If there are an number of attachments in the list, select the attachment you want to open. Press ENTER.
2. A Mail attachment window opens. In this window, press SHIFT + TAB to move to the open button, and press ENTER. If you get fed up with this window appearing, there's a check box in this window with the label “Always ask before opening this type of file”, which you can uncheck.

Saving an attachment

In the message window:

1. Move to the attachment list either by pressing INSERT + A, or by TABBING to it. If there are an number of attachments in the list, select the attachment you want to open. Press the APPLICATION KEY, and choose Save As from the shortcut menu.
2. A Save Attachment As dialog opens to let you select a folder and filename.

Sending Email

Opening a new message window

Choose one of the following:

• From a contact. Select the contact in the Contacts list, and press ENTER. A New Message window opens with the the contact's email address already in the To: field.
• Replying to an email.
  • In the main window. Select a message in the Messages list, and either choose Reply to Sender from the Message menu, or press CTRL + R.
  • In a message reading window. Either choose Reply to Sender from the Message menu, or press CTRL + R.
• New message from scratch. Either choose Mail Message from the New sub-menu on the File menu, or press CTRL + N.

New Message window

The window includes the following components:

• A Title bar which contains the words “New Message” if there is no entry in the Subject field, and the subject when it has been entered.
• The fields To, Cc, and Subject. In addition, there is an Attach field if you attach any files. If more than one email address is entered into one of the address fields, then the email addresses should be separated by a comma, or semicolon.
• The message pane, where you enter the message.

Tasks:

• You can move between the To:, Cc:, Subject: fields, and the message pane using TAB. To move between these fields in the opposite direction, use SHIFT + TAB. Note that if you are in the message pane and press TAB, then the TAB will be entered into the message, it won't move you to the To field — use SHIFT + TAB if you want to go to the preceding fields.
• Adding attachments. See the following section, Adding attachments.
• To check the spelling, press F7, which opens the Spelling dialog box.
• To send the message, choose Send Message on the File menu, or press ALT + S. If you have a dial-up connection, you will be prompted to connect to the internet.
• To save the message in the Drafts folder, so you can send it later, choose Save on the File menu, or press CTRL + S.

Adding attachments

You can add one or more attachments to a message. In the New Message window:

• Choose File attachment from the Insert menu.
• The Insert Attachment dialog opens. This is similar to the Open dialog in Word, and the default button is Attach. You can select more than one file to attach.

Address book list

Add sender to address book

Select an message in the messages list, press the APPLICATION KEY to open a shortcut menu, and choose Add Sender to Address Book.

Add new contact

• From the File menu, move to the New sub-menu, and choose Contact.
• The Properties window for the contact opens. Fill in the first and last names, and the email address ( and optionally the other fields ).
• After you've filled in the email address press ENTER which presses the Add button, which adds the address to a list of addresses for that contact.
• Press ENTER to OK the dialog box.

Edit a contact

• Select a contact in the Address book list, and press ALT + ENTER.
• The properties window opens. Press CTRL + TAB to move to the Name page.
• The First and Last Names are the first and third controls respectively, and can be edited in the usual manner.
• To edit the email address, TAB to the Edit button, press it, type in the new address, and then press ENTER.
• Press ENTER to OK the dialog box.

Housekeeping

Deleting messages

• To delete a message in the main window, select the message in the Messages list, and press DELETE.
• To delete a message in the viewing message window, choose Delete Message from the File menu.

Configuration

This is the recommended configuration for Outlook Express. The rest of this guide assumes that your copy of Outlook Express has this configuration.

Main window layout

With one of the local folders selected in the Folder tree, for example the Inbox, open the Layout dialog, which is on the View menu of the main window:

• In the Basic section, all the components should be checked, apart from the Outlook Bar and the Views Bar.
• In the Preview Pane section, the Show preview pane check box should be unchecked.

Options dialog

The Options dialog on the Tools menu is a multi-page dialog. Each of the following sections deals with a single page.

General page

• The check box in the general section: “When starting, go directly to my Inbox folder” — set to checked.
• The check box in the Send/Receive Messages section: “Send and receive messages at startup” — set to checked.
• The check box in the Send/Receive Messages section: “Check for new messages every” — If you have a broadband connection set to checked, and set the spin box which is the next control to 5. For a dial-up connection set to unchecked.

Send page

• The check box in the Sending section: “Save copy of sent messages in the Sent Items folder” — set to checked.
• The check box in the Sending section: “Send messages immediately” — set to checked.
• The check box in the Sending section: “Automatically put people I reply to in my Address Book” — probably best to set to unchecked, to stop your address book from containing lots of unwanted addresses.

Security page

The check box in the Virus Protection section: “Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus” — set to unchecked. Leave this to your anti-virus program.

Connection page

The check box in the Dial-up section: “Hang up after sending and receiving” — set to checked. This only applies if you have a dial-up connection.

Maintenance page

The check box in the Cleaning UP Messages section: “Empty messages from the Deleted items folder on exit” — set to unchecked.