Communicator Help: Using AOL<sup><font size=-2>®</font></sup> Communicator Mail

Contents | Index | Tutorial Movies

Using AOL Communicator Mail

Managing Your Mail Accounts

Setting Up a New Account
Importing Local Mail from Outlook or Outlook Express
Importing Local Mail from Netscape 7.0
Changing Plain Text Settings
Changing Settings for Existing Accounts
Deleting an Account
Adding or Changing an Outgoing Server
Changing Inbound Server Settings

Related topic:

Mail Account Settings

Setting Up a New Account

Tutorial movies:

Set Up POP3/SMTP Mail Accounts
Set Up IMAP/SMTP Mail Accounts
Add Accounts for Other AOL Screen Names

To set up a new mail account:

1. Open the Edit menu in AOL® Communicator Mail.
2. Choose New Account.
   The first screen of the Account Setup Wizard appears.
3. Click Next as you complete the information requested on each screen.
   For more detailed information as you fill in each screen, click the Help button.

Related topics:

Step-by-step instructions:
Setting Up an AOL Account
Setting Up an ISP E-mail Account

If your new account doesn't work correctly, check your settings: Changing Settings for Existing Accounts

If you can't figure out what setting is wrong, delete the account and start over: Deleting an Account

Background information on setting up a new account: Setting Up Mail Accounts

<< back to top

Importing Local Mail from Outlook® or Outlook Express Software

If you have been using Outlook® or Outlook Express software as your primary mail client, you can import locally stored mail from that software into AOL Communicator.

Before importing mail messages from Outlook:

Make sure Outlook is set as the default mail client for your system:

1. Click the Start menu, then Control Panel.
2. Double-click Internet Options.
3. Click the Programs tab.
4. Click the drop-down list beside E-mail and select Microsoft Outlook (if it is not already selected).
5. Click OK.

The above steps are required for importing from Outlook only, not from Outlook Express.

Before importing mail messages from Outlook Express:

- You must be using Outlook Express 5 or later. If you are using an earlier version, upgrade it before attempting to import your data.

Only locally stored messages from POP accounts associated with the default identity in Outlook Express will be imported. If you want to import data from another identity, first make it the default identity.
To change the default identity in Outlook Express, open the File menu and choose Identities, then Manage Identities. The default identity is the one labeled Use this identity when a program can't ask you to choose an identity.
IMAP messages can't be imported. They are stored on a server, not your computer, and you can retrieve them simply by setting up the account in AOL Communicator.

- Make sure Outlook Express is installed and working correctly on your computer, and that the mail messages you want to import are showing up in the default identity.

To import stored local POP mail messages from Outlook or Outlook Express to AOL Communicator Mail:

1. From the main Mail window, choose File, then Import Mail Messages.

The Import Wizard opens.

2. Click the name of the mail application from which you want to import your local mail folders, then click Import.

If the application isn't present in the list, it's not yet supported.
The application you select must be installed on your computer before you can import messages from it.

3. When all messages have been imported, you'll see a list of imported folders. Click Return to Mail to return to the main Mail window.

You can view the imported messages in the left pane under Local Mail. For example, if you've just imported local mail messages from Outlook, an Outlook folder under Local Mail contains the imported folders.

Related topics:

To reset AOL Communicator Mail as your default e-mail application, see General Mail Preferences.

Only mail messages stored locally by the application you select are imported. To import contact information from Outlook and other applications, see Importing Contact Information.

To import local mail messages from Netscape®® software, see Importing Local Mail from Netscape 7.0.

<< back to top

Importing Local Mail from Netscape® 7.0

If you have been using Netscape 7.0 as your mail client, follow these steps to import any stored local mail from your Netscape 7.0 profile to AOL Communicator Mail:

1. Close all AOL Communicator windows.
2. Exit Netscape 7.0.
3. Open the My Computer icon on your desktop and navigate to the Application Data directory for your system user profile:

- Windows® 2000/XP:
  C:\Documents and Settings\
  Windows_Profile_Name\Application Data\
- Windows® 98, single user:
  C:\Windows\Application Data\
- Windows® 98, multiple users:
  C:\Windows\Profiles\
  Windows_Profile_Name\Application Data\

Note: If you cannot see the Application Data directory inside your profile directory, open the Tools menu, choose Folder Options, click the View tab, and select the option labeled Show hidden files and folders.

4. Inside the Application Data directory, open the directory Mozilla\Profiles\
   name_of_Netscape_profile\*.slt,
   which contains your Netscape user profile information.
5. Inside the *.slt directory, open the `Mail` directory.
6. Hold down the Ctrl key and click all the folders in the Mail directory. While continuing to hold down the Ctrl key, drag and copy the folders to a convenient location on your desktop.
7. Close the Mail window.
8. Open each of the Netscape profile folders you copied to the desktop and delete all the files ending with .msf
9. Open the My Computer icon on your desktop again and navigate to the Application Data directory for your system user profile, as in Step 3 above.
10. Inside the Application Data directory, open the directory AOL Communicator\local
11. Open each of the Netscape profile folders you copied to the desktop and drag their contents into the AOL Communicator\local directory.

Warning: Files that already exist in the `local` directory, such as Drafts, Inbox, or Sent, will be replaced by copied Netscape files that have the same names. To avoid this, rename the files in the `local` directory before you begin dragging in the Netscape files.

12. Launch AOL Communicator.
13. If Local Mail in the left pane of the Mail window is not already open, click its arrow to expand the folder.
14. Open the File menu and choose Refresh Folder List.

Your local Netscape mail folders should now be visible under Local Mail.

Related topic:

Importing Contacts from Netscape and Other Programs

<< back to top

Changing Plain Text Settings

By default, AOL Communicator Mail sends messages in HTML format. Messages sent in this format allow you to use different fonts and font sizes; underline, boldface, or italicize text; easily create bulleted or numbered lists and links to web sites; and attach files.

Not all mail programs support HTML, and not all users prefer to receive HTML-formatted messages. Some programs display messages in HTML format as if they were in plain text, including HTML tags and other format coding that can make the original message difficult to read.

If you are sending a message to someone who can't read HTML-formatted messages (also called "rich text"), you can switch to plain text. You can also specify plain text only for messages sent to a specific address or domain.

Messages sent in plain text lose all formatting and attachments. Replies to (and forwarded) plain text messages are also sent in plain text.

To change the plain text setting while you are composing a message:

1. Click in the message area of the Write Mail window.
2. Change the plain text setting:

- Click the T icon just below the Subject label to toggle the message between plain text and rich text formatting; or
- Open the Format menu and choose Rich Text or Plain Text.

When the T icon is red, the message uses rich text. When the T icon is black, the message uses plain text.

When you change the plain text setting from a Write Mail window, the setting "sticks" for all subsequent messages you write. For example, if you switch from rich text to plain text for one message and then open a new Write Mail window, that window will also be set to use plain text.

To change the plain text setting for all messages you send to an address or domain:

1. Open the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
2. Click Advanced Options.
3. Click Add.
4. Type the e-mail address or domain for which you want all messages to be sent in plain text.
   If you specify a domain (such as example.net), you'll have an opportunity to switch to plain text whenever you address a message to an e-mail address that includes that domain.
5. Click OK.

<< back to top

Changing Settings for Existing Accounts

To edit or view the settings for one of your accounts, hold down the Ctrl key, click the name of the account in the AOL Communicator Mail window, and choose "Properties for account-name".

To edit or view the settings for one of your accounts, right-click the name of the account in the AOL Communicator Mail window and choose "Properties for account-name".

Alternatively, follow these steps:

1. Open the Edit menu in AOL Communicator Mail.
2. Choose Account Settings.
3. Double-click the account whose settings you want to view.

Related topic:

Mail Account Settings

<< back to top

Deleting an Account

To delete a mail account:

1. Open the Edit menu in AOL Communicator Mail.
2. Choose Account Settings.
3. Select the account you want to delete.
4. Click Delete.
5. If you want to set up a new account, click New. Otherwise, click OK.

Related topic:

Setting Up a New Account

<< back to top

Adding or Changing an Outgoing Server

An outgoing SMTP server sends outgoing messages to their destinations.

You can change settings for outgoing servers used with POP or IMAP accounts, and you can switch between servers you have already configured.

You cannot change server settings for an AOL® account.

To add or change outgoing server settings for a POP or IMAP account:

1. Right-click the name of the account in the AOL Communicator Mail window and choose "Properties for account-name".
2. To edit settings for an existing server, select the one you want from the drop-down list and click Edit Server.
   To add a server to the list, click Add Server.
3. Fill in or modify the server settings.
   If you're not sure what settings to use, check with your service provider.
   Example: imap-server.example.net
   To specify a nonstandard port number (required by some ISPs), type a colon after the server name, followed by the number:
   Example: imap-server.example.net:123

Related topic:

Outgoing Server Settings (IMAP & POP Accounts)

<< back to top

Changing Inbound Server Settings

An inbound server receives all the mail for an account and lets you download it to your computer when you want it.

You can edit settings for inbound servers used with POP or IMAP accounts. You cannot change server settings for an AOL account.

To view or change outgoing server settings for a POP or IMAP account:

1. Right-click the name of the account in the AOL Communicator Mail window and choose "Properties for account-name".
2. Click the Receiving Mail tab.
3. Change host name, user name, password, or other settings as appropriate.
   If you're not sure what settings to use, check with your service provider.
   Example: imap-server.example.net
   To specify a nonstandard port number (required by some ISPs), type a colon after the server name, followed by the number:
   Example: imap-server.example.net:123

Related topics:

Receiving Mail Tab (IMAP Account)
Receiving Mail Tab (POP Account)

<< back to top

© 2002-2003 America Online, Inc. All rights reserved. Trademark Information

Last Updated September 16, 2003