Document revision date: 10 November 2000

Sending a Message to a Distribution List

If you need to send one message to many users, you can create a file, called a distribution list, that contains a list of users. You then specify an at sign (@) and the file name in the To entry box when you send the message (for example, @PROJECT).

Distribution lists are not created within Mail. Use an editor, such as EVE, to create your distribution lists. When creating distribution lists, enter one user name per line. Exclamation points (!) delimit comments; Mail ignores everything to the right of the exclamation point. You can also include the names of other distribution lists by specifying an at sign (@) followed by the name of the distribution list. For example, a distribution list file could contain the following:

MIASMA::FORD ! Craig, project leader YONKIN TUTTLE ! Mona, product manager DARCY::MORRIS @PROJECT

When naming distribution list files, use a DIS file extension because that is what Mail looks for by default.

To send mail to the users on a distribution list:

1. Move to either the To or CC entry box in the envelope area of the Create--Send window and press MB3.
   A pop-up menu is displayed.
2. Choose Distribution List... from the pop-up menu.
   Mail displays a file selection dialog box.
   The dialog box prompts you for the name of the distribution list file you want to use. The file list box lists the names of any distribution list files (files that have the extension DIS) in your default directory.
3. Double click on the file name of the distribution list you want to use.
   The distribution list file name is displayed in the To or CC entry box in the Create--Send window's envelope area.

If you want to use a distribution list file that is not listed, enter the name of that file in the Selection entry box and click on the OK button.

Searching for Text in Messages

You can search an ASCII text message that you are creating or reading for the text you specify.

To start the search from the beginning of the message area, click MB1 on the beginning of the message.

To search for text:

1. Choose Find... from the Create--Send or Read window's Search menu.
   Mail displays a dialog box.

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2. In the Search entry box, type the word or text for which you want to search.
3. If you want to search for only exact matches of text, including uppercase and lowercase letters, click on Case Sensitive Searches. For example, if you enter "gOod" and choose Case Sensitive Searches, Mail finds occurrences only of "gOod" and disregards "good", "GOOD", or any other combination that does not match exactly.
   You can customize your User options to enable or disable Case Sensitive Searches as the default. For more information on customizing your User options, see Modifying Your User Options.
4. Click on Next to search forward through the message from the current cursor position. Click on Previous to search backward from the current cursor position.
   When Mail finds the first occurrence of specified text, it highlights the text.
5. To continue searching, click on Next or Previous.
   If Mail finds no more occurrences of the specified text in the direction you are searching, it issues an audible beep.
6. To end the search and dismiss the dialog box, click on Cancel.

You can also use Find Next Selected and Find Previous Selected on the Search menu to find the next or previous occurrence of the specified text. You can customize your User options to enable or disable Case Sensitive Searches as the default. For more information on customizing your User options, see Modifying Your User Options.

Searching for text with the Search menu's Find Incremental menu item is similar to using Find. With Find Incremental, the search is performed as each character is typed in. This method is useful if you need to find a name that can be spelled several ways (for example, Sloan, Sloane, or Slone).

Replacing Text in Messages

You can replace text in a message that you are creating with different text.

To replace text:

1. Choose Replace from the Create--Send window's Search menu.
   Mail displays a dialog box.

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2. In the Old entry box, type the existing word or text you want to search for; this is the text that will be replaced.
3. In the New entry box, type the new word or text that should replace the existing text.
4. If you want to find only exact matches of text, including uppercase and lowercase letters, click on Case Sensitive Searches.
   You can customize your User options to enable or disable Case Sensitive Searches as the default. For more information on customizing your User options, see Modifying Your User Options.
5. Choose Replace Once, Replace Within Selected Area, or Replace All by clicking on the appropriate button.
   Replace Once replaces one occurrence of the old text at a time.
   If you choose Replace Once and click on Find, Mail searches forward in the message from where the cursor is currently positioned to find the first occurrence of old text. To move to the next occurrence of old text without making any changes, click on Find again. To replace the old text with the new text, click on Replace; the cursor automatically moves to the next occurrence of the old text. If there is no match, Mail issues an audible beep.
   Replace Within Selected Area replaces all occurrences of the old text in a selected area of text. When all substitutions have been made, the Replace dialog box is automatically dismissed.
   Replace All replaces all occurrences of the old text in the entire message. When all substitutions have been made, the Replace dialog box is automatically dismissed.
6. Click on Replace to replace the old text.
   If you chose Replace Once, you can first click on Find to verify that the text found is the text you want to replace.

The Find function is not available with Replace Within Selected Area or Replace All.

Changing Editors

Mail uses the DECwindows editing commands, described in Using DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS, as the default editor you can use to create messages. If more than one editor is available on your system, you can choose a different default editor to create a message. To change your default editor, see Modifying Your Send Options.

You can also change the editor for a specific message by doing the following:

1. Choose the desired editor from the Create--Send window's Change Editor menu.
   A new window opens, containing any text you already entered in the message.
2. Click on the new window to give it input focus.
3. Enter the text of the message using editing commands that are appropriate for your chosen editor.
4. Exit the editor.
   You cannot edit the message after you exit the editor. You cannot extract the message to a file or create a draft of the message. You can edit the message envelope by clicking on a field in the Create--Send window.
5. To send the message, click on the Send button in the Create--Send window.
   To send another message, click on the Reset button. The DECwindows Text Editor is once again the default, and all Create--Send options become available.

Sending PostScript Files

When you send POSTSCRIPT files, do not use an editor. Instead, choose File (no editor)... from the Main window's Create--Send menu. Using the File (no editor)... option ensures that the files contain only POSTSCRIPT language and are formatted correctly.

Selecting Messages

Before you work with an object (message, drawer, or folder), you first have to select that object.

To select a message, folder, or drawer, point to the object in the main window and click MB1.

To select multiple objects, press and hold the Ctrl key while clicking MB1 on each desired object.

To select a range of drawers, folders, or messages, click MB1 on the first object to be selected, then press the Shift key while clicking MB1 on the last object to be selected.

To select all messages in an open folder, choose Select All from the main window's Edit menu. If more than one folder is open, all messages in those folders are selected.

To cancel the selection of one object, select another object by clicking MB1, or point to the selected object and press and hold the Ctrl key and click MB1.

Reading Messages

You can use Mail to read an old or a new mail message. New messages are added to the INBOX folder; old messages (messages that have been read) are held in the INBOX folder until you move them elsewhere. (This default can be changed in your mail profile. See Customizing Your Mail Environment for more information about your mail profile.)

Reading a New Message

When you receive new mail, a message is displayed in your Session Manager window. The number of new messages is displayed in the Mail icon.

To read a new message, start the Mail application if it is not already running. The messages in the INBOX folder are listed; unread messages are identified by an icon resembling an addressed envelope. Double click MB1 on the message to be read. Mail displays the message in a Read window.

A message that you have read remains in the INBOX folder until you move it to another folder or delete it. You can specify that messages be placed automatically in another folder once they are read. See Customizing Your Mail Environment for more information.

Read New Mail Button

If Mail is running on your system when you receive new mail, the Mail icon in your icon box changes and the Read New Mail and Receive Mail buttons in the main window become active. To read a new message, click on the Read New Mail button. This adds new messages to the INBOX folder, opens the INBOX folder, and displays the first unread message in the INBOX folder.

You cannot use the Read New Mail button if you are reading a message from the INBOX folder in a Read window other than the default Read window, or if you are replying to a message in the INBOX folder. (For a description of default Read windows, see Multiple Read Windows.)

The Read Window

A Read window is divided into an envelope pane and a message pane.

The envelope pane displays the name of the person who sent the message and other address information. Use the scroll bar to display additional information about the message, such as text indicating that the message is marked or has been replied to, the message size, message ID, and whether the message is in a foreign format.

The message pane displays the mail message. Use the scroll bar to display any text that does not fit in the pane.

Adjusting Pane Size

You can adjust the relative size of the panes by using MB1 to drag the border between the panes. Press MB1 on the pane knob (box) on the far right of the dividing line, drag the line to the desired location, and release MB1. Making one pane smaller makes the other pane larger. This allows you to view more text in either pane without resizing the window.

The Message Button

You can click on the Message button at the bottom of the Read window to display the next page of a message, or the next message if you are at the end of the current message. If there are no more messages, Mail issues an audible beep.

Clicking on the left arrow of the Message button displays the beginning of the previous message in the current folder. Clicking on the right arrow of the Message button displays the beginning of the next message in the current folder.

Reading Nontext Messages

If you receive a message whose contents are not text or are not in POSTSCRIPT, DDIF, or DTIF format, you cannot view the file in Mail. Mail displays a message informing you of the problem. You can print, forward, extract, or reply to the message. See the appropriate sections of this chapter for information about printing, forwarding, extracting, and replying to messages.

Close Button

To close a Read window, click on the Close button.

Displaying a List of New Messages

You can add new messages to your INBOX folder and update the list of new messages without reading a message. To update the INBOX folder, click on the Receive Mail button in the main window.

If you click on the Receive Mail button while you are reading a message in the INBOX folder, Mail closes the Read window before delivering your mail. If you are reading a message in the INBOX folder in a Read window other than the default Read window, you cannot receive your messages, and Mail displays a message informing you of the problem. See Multiple Read Windows for a description of default Read windows.

You cannot receive new mail if you are replying to a message in the INBOX folder.

Reading an Old Message

To read an old message (one that you have already read), open the drawer and folder containing the message and double click on the appropriate message. The message is displayed in a Read window.

To read a series of old messages that are in different folders or are not consecutive:

1. Select the messages to be read.
2. Point to one of the selected messages, press MB3, and choose Read or Read in New Window from the pop-up menu.
3. In the Read window, click on the right or left arrow of the Message button to display the next or previous selected message.

Multiple Read Windows

You can open more than one Read window at one time. This allows you to read multiple messages at once or to read new mail without disrupting the message you are currently reading.

The first Read window you open is your default Read window. It is identified by the symbol [D] in the window's title bar. Additional Read windows are identified by the number in their title bar, for example, Read 2, Read 3, and so on.

Mail displays your mail messages in the default Read window unless you specify another window. For example, clicking on the Read New Mail button or double clicking on a message in the main window displays the message in your default Read window.

To read new mail in another Read window, display the main window's Read menu and choose New Mail in New Window. A new Read window is opened, and the first message received since the INBOX folder was last opened is displayed. This is possible only if the default Read window is displaying a message from a folder other than the INBOX folder.

To read an old message in another Read window, select the message, display the main window's Read menu, and choose In New Window.

Replying to Messages

You can reply to a message that is selected in the Main window or to the message currently displayed in a Read window.

To reply to the currently displayed message, click on the Reply button in the Read window.

To reply to the first selected message, choose Reply from the main window's Create--Send menu. If you want to use the text of the message in your reply, choose Reply Using Selected Message instead.

To include a file or the text of another message in your reply, pull down the File menu in the Create--Send window. Choose the appropriate menu item from the list displayed:

• Include File... or Include File (no editor)...
  Include File... and Include File (no editor)... allow you to send an OpenVMS file that resides in your account. For more information, see Including a File in a Message.
• Include Draft File...
  Include Draft File... allows you to send a draft file that you have created. For more information, see Saving a Draft of a Message.
• Include Original
  Include Original allows you to reply using a copy of the original message.
• Include Last Sent or Include Last Sent (no editor)
  Include Last Sent and Include Last Sent (no editor) allow you to include in your reply a copy of the last message you sent during this Mail session.

Replying to a message opens a Create--Send window. In the To entry box, Mail inserts the name of the sender of the original message. In the Subject entry box, Mail inserts RE: followed by the subject of the original message. If you chose to reply using a message or file, the text of the message or file appears in the message area.

Unless you chose Include File (no editor)... or Include Last Sent (no editor), enter text and make any desired edits.

To send the reply, click on the Send button. To close the Create--Send window, click on the Close button.

Forwarding Messages

You can forward either a message selected in the Main window or the message currently displayed in a Read window to another user.

To forward the selected or currently displayed message:

1. Pull down the Create--Send menu in the main or Read window and display the Forward submenu.
2. Choose With Header, With Header (no editor), Without Header, or Without Header (no editor).
   In most cases, the header (address information) is included in the forwarded message. Headers are not included in messages that are created with editors that do not produce ASCII files, such as files created with the Paint application.

Forwarding a message opens a Create--Send window. In the Subject entry box, Mail inserts FWD: followed by the subject of the forwarded message. In the message area, Mail inserts the forwarded message with its header unless you chose Without Header. If you chose With Header (no editor) or Without Header (no editor), Mail displays a message in the message area showing the name of the file it is sending.

Enter the address information and make any desired changes to the text. If you change the original message and want to include the unedited version in your forwarded message, choose Include Original from the Create--Send window's File menu.

Click on the Send button to send the message. Click on the Close button to close the window.

Printing Messages

You can print either selected messages or the message currently displayed in a Read window. You can print messages using your default print settings, or you can modify the print settings for the messages being printed.

To print the selected or currently displayed message using your default print settings, click on the Print button in the main window, or choose Print from the Read window's File menu.

To print the selected or currently displayed message using altered print settings:

1. Choose Print... on the File menu in the main or Read window.
   Mail displays a dialog box.

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   The Include Message Header and Contents radio button is set to indicate that the header (sender's name, date, subject, and so on) and the contents of the message are to be printed. To exclude the header information, click on the Include Message Contents Only radio button.
   If you are printing a nontext message, such as a message created with the Paint application or a message containing special formatting commands (such as a POSTSCRIPT file), you must click on the Include Message Contents Only radio button.
2. To change additional print settings, click on the Options... button.
   You must also click on the Options... button to specify an appropriate print format and printer if you are printing a nontext message or a message containing special formatting commands, such as a POSTSCRIPT file.
   Mail displays a dialog box.

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   See Using DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS for more information about the Print Options dialog box.
3. Click on the OK button to print the messages.

Extracting a Mail Message to a File

You can create an OpenVMS file from a mail message. You can select an existing message to be copied to a file, or you can create a file from a message you are reading or creating.

To create a file from the selected or currently displayed message:

1. Choose Extract... from the File menu in the main, Create--Send or Read window. Mail displays a dialog box.

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   The Include Header Information button is set to indicate that the message's header will be included in the file you are creating if it is an ASCII file. You can disable this feature by clicking on the check button.
   If you want to append the extracted message to an existing file, enable the Append to Existing File option by clicking on the check button. By default, this option is disabled.
2. Enter the name of the file to be created. If you want to append the message to an existing file, enter the name of that file.
   The default file extensions are:

   TXT for text and untagged files
   DDIF for DDIF files
   DTIF for DTIF files
   DDIF or DTIF for DOTS files, depending on whether the primary file's extension is DDIF or DTIF

   
   You can enter a different file extension.
3. To select a different format for the file being created, move to the Output Format entry box, press MB1, and choose one of the listed file formats.
   The input format is determined by the editor used to create the message. By default, the output format is the same as the input format.
   If you choose a different format for the file to be created, data converters are invoked. You should select a different output format only in cases where you understand the actual data format of the message you want to extract and the format in which you want the extracted file. The header information of the message is not converted to the new data format; only the body of the message is converted. You might want to disable the Include Header Information and Append to Existing File options.
4. To use a conversion options file, enter the name of the file. Conversion options files contain special processing commands. These files are not created within Mail. Refer to Chapter 5 for more information about conversion options files.
5. Click on the OK button to create the file.

If more than one message is selected and the messages have different data types, non-ASCII messages are converted to ASCII if possible. If they cannot be converted to ASCII, the messages are not extracted.

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