Computing @ USM

E-mail Tips to Reduce Modem Connect Time

Many off-campus e-mail users at USM, who connect via modem to the Portland modem pool, remain connected while reading, creating or replying to their e-mail. If you use Eudora or Pegasus Mail to access your electronic mail, then this may help you. Remaining connected to read/create/reply unnecessarily adds to your modem connect time. You only need to be connected to retrieve new e-mail and/or to "send" e-mail created while offline (i.e., not connected). You must configure your dial-up and e-mail software to handle this mode of operation. Configuration instructions for Macintosh (Eudora), Windows 3.1 and Windows 95 (Pegasus) users may be found below.

After making the above software configuration changes, your typical e-mail session likely will be different from your current procedure. In general, you will create new e-mail and/or reply to previously received messages while offline. When you "send" this e-mail while offline (i.e., click on a "Send" button or icon), the e-mail is sent to a queue (a file) on your hard drive — it is not immediately delivered to the addressee(s). It remains in this queue until you issue an e-mail command to send the e-mail message(s) in the queue. This command will force a modem connection, send the queued message(s), and delete the sent message(s) from the queue. Macintosh Eudora users should then disconnect using normal procedures. Windows 3.1 Trumpet Winsock (TCPMAN) with Pegasus users will be automatically disconnected. Windows 95 users who have not downloaded the software mentioned in the instructions below should disconnect using normal manual procedures.

Configuration Instructions

• Macintosh
• Windows 3.1
• Windows 95