Webmail Help

Login

To check your e-mail online with Webmail, go to http://mail.rockriver.net. To see what this page should look like, click the appropriate link below. Enter your Rock River Internet username and password in the specified boxes, then click the "Login" button.

| Before log in: | After log in: |

Read Mail

Once logged in, click the word "INBOX" to get into that folder.
The INBOX is where new messages are received. You will know you are in your INBOX from the title at the top of the page. To read any piece of mail, click either the date the message was sent, who the message is from, or the subject of the message. New messages are indicated by bold type and the letter N next to its checkbox.

| A typical letter: |

Print Mail

To print a message, click on the "Print" link on the menu at the top of the page. This will open a new window with a clean copy of your message. Now just print the web page as you normally would from the browser.

| A message ready to be printed: |

Create/Reply/Forward Mail

There are three main ways to compose a message: from anywhere you can click on "Create Message" located on the left-hand menu, or from a message you're currently reading, you can click either "Reply" or "Forward". Creating a message from the left-hand menu will create a blank form from which you can write your letter. Replying to a letter you're currently reading will create a page where the To: field is already filled in and the Message: box contains a copy of the letter. Forwarding a letter will also fill in the Message: box, but will leave the To: field blank for you to decide who to send the letter to.

Fill in any extra fields you need, especially the To: field, then either click "Preview" at the bottom of the page to see how the message will look when sent, or skip that step and click "Send" only once. Finally you'll be taken to a different page. That's it! Your e-mail message has been sent.

| Creating a new message: |

Delete Mail

There are a few ways to delete your mail. The easiest way is to click "Delete" from the menu at the top of the message you're reading. Another way is to go into a folder (like your INBOX) and click the check boxes next to the messages you wish to delete, then click the button labeled "Delete". The page will appear to refresh, but the messages you just selected will be disabled. Doing either of these don't exactly delete your messages for good, but instead move them to your "Trash" folder. Your Trash folder is your last chance to save any messages before they're gone for good. To officially remove the messages in the Trash folder from the server, select the messages again from the left to remove, and click "Purge".

The third way to remove your mail from the server is to check your mail with another e-mail program. This method, however will only remove the messages from your INBOX and leave messages in the other folders untouched.

| Recently deleted messages: | Trash folder: |

Attachments

When someone sends you an attachment, a gray box with the filename of the attachment will be displayed at the bottom of the message. You can choose to display the contents of the attachment in the browser or download the file to your computer. If you try to download a page that is cannot be viewed in a browser, you'll be asked where to save a file. Rather than saving that file, click cancel and try to download the file instead. There are some cases where your browser will add some letters to the end of the filename, like ".exec". Just erase the added letters to match the correct filename and save the file to your computer.

WARNING: Downloading attachments to your computer has a high risk of contracting a computer virus. make sure you're virus scanner program is up to date and is set to scan downloaded files.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE PERSON WHO SENT YOU THE FILE, DO NOT OPEN IT!!!

If you want to send someone an attachment, from the page you're composing a message, click the button at the bottom labeled "0 attachments". From the new page displayed, click "Browse" to find the file you wish to send. When you've selected your file and it's displayed in the box next to the send button, click "Upload". To have the contents of the file displayed in the body of the e-mail, click the box for "Display attachment inline" before uploading. The browser will take a few seconds to attach the file, then show it in the list. If you made a mistake and attached the wrong file, select its checkbox and click the delete button. To continue writing your message, click the "Preview" button, otherwise click "Send".

| A message with an attachment: | The attachments page: |

Address Book

Your address book uses Nicknames to store your email addresses so they are easier to remember. There are a couple ways approach using the address book. You can either use one address per nickname, which is most common, or you can use nicknames to hold groups of addresses. You can make the nicknames as descriptive as you like to help you recognize the person or group, but no spaces or punctuation marks may be used.

The quickest way to make an entry is to add the address from a message you're currently reading. To do this, click on an address the top of the message. On the next page, some of the fields will already be filled in. Double check to make sure it's correct, then enter a Nickname to refer to them by. If you would like to add them to an already existing nickname, select the nickname from the dropdown box. Finally, click Go to add the name to your address book.

Another method to add an entry is by clicking "Address Book" on the left menu. From there, either select an existing Nickname, or create a new one to use, then click "Edit" or "Create" respectively. Fill in the Name and email address, then click "Add". You can add more names to this Nickname if you'd like by entering another name and address and clicking "Add" again.

| Quick Add: | Nickname Entries: |

Folders

Folders are helpful when you would like to separate your emails to make them easier to browse through.

To create a folder, go to the main folders page. Below the current list of folders is a blue box. Type in the name of the folder you would like to create in the first box. If it is a subfolder of one that already exists, enter that parent folder in the second box. Click "Create" to create your (sub)folder.

Another way to use folders is to neglect creating a parent directory and skip right to the sub directory. Take John for example, a fictitious person with a wife and a brother with some family of his own. Since he's in contact with them on a frequent basis, but talks to his parents on the phone, he creates "Family.Wife" and "Family. Brother's Family". Since nothing will be above it, John doesn't need a main "Family" directory. Now his main Folders page is easier to read and more organized.

| Creating a Folder: | John's Family Subfolder: |

Questions or Problems

What is my username/password?
Your username and password were given to you when you first signed up with an account. It is the same that you use to dial in to us. If, for example, you know your email address is "cyberjane@rockriver.net", then your username would be "cyberjane".

My username/password doesn't work.
Make sure your username and password are both using lower-case letters. There should be no spaces or punctuation marks. If you've forgotten your password, give us a call at 968-9888.

Is Webmail secure?
Though there are some security measures in place, in reality it's only as secure as you make it. Never give your password to anyone! Under no circumstances will we ever ask for your password.
Also, make sure you log out of Webmail when you're done and close the browser completely. This way no one can go back and get any of your information.

Can I still get viruses?
Since Webmail works differently than Outlook Express or most other programs you run on your computer, there is less risk of contracting a virus, assuming you follow some basic anti-virus techniques. The files are not downloaded to your computer until you choose to open them, so if you see one that looks suspicious, send it to your trash, then purge the message from there. Remember, WHEN YOU OPEN ANY ATTACHMENT YOU RUN THE RISK OF GETTING A VIRUS, so please make sure you have a working and up-to-date virus scanner running properly on your system.

This e-mail is supposed formatted to look nicer or have pictures. Did I break something?
To prevent malicious code that can come from some viruses and emails, Webmail strips most of the code for viewing purposes. It does not, however, strip them from the message altogether. If you choose to get your mail with your regular email program, your messages will remain intact.

Can I check my AOL/Hotmail/Yahoo/other mail?
Webmail may look like what some of these other services have to offer, but it is not possible to check their mail from our end. Please use their web sites to check other mail.

If I use Webmail, can I still check my mail with Outlook (or some other e-mail program)?
What about the other way around?
Absolutely. Both ways work.

I checked my e-mail with Outlook (or some other e-mail program) and now my messages are gone.
Where did they go?
When you normally check your mail with your email program, your computer downloads the messages from our server, then deletes them. In order to read your mail both using Webmail and your normal program, you'll need to set your mail program to leave the messages on the server. To do this in Outlook or Outlook Express follow these steps.

1. Start Outlook or Outlook Express as you normally would.
2. Select Tools from the menu at the top, and click Accounts.
3. Click the "Mail" tab, then select your mail account (usually "mail.rockriver.net") and click the "Properties" button.
4. Select "Advanced" from the tabs at the top of the new window, then put a checkmark in the box next to "Leave a copy of messages on server".
   To help avoid duplicate emails, check "Remove from server when deleted from 'Deleted Items'" as well.
5. Click the "Ok" button to apply the changes to the first window, then click "Close" on the second window

I just wrote a really long letter to a friend, but when i clicked send, I was asked to log in again. What happened?
In order to keep Webmail as secure as possible Webmail will log you off if it doesn't have any activity for about 20 minutes. This way in case you forget to log out, someone else can't come along and use your account.

How do I view this attachment?
Please refer to the section above entitled Attachments.

How do I attach a file to a message I want to send?
Please refer to the section above entitled Attachments.

Why is the text so big/small?
If you find your mail difficult to read, try changing the size of the text displayed in the browser. This can be done in Internet Explorer by clicking View from the menu at the top of Internet Explorer, then Text Size, and selecting the text size that feels right for you.

I still have other questions
If you still have other questions or concerns, please email us at support@rockriver.net or give us a call at 968-9888.