Configuring an email client

Many people are content to use Williams Webmail because it’s simple and relatively easy. However, if you check your email frequently and don’t want to log in every time, you might be ready to move to an email client like Microsoft Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird. These programs, and many others will allow you to leave your mailbox open on your computer so you can check messages as you receive them as well as organize your contacts and make mail deletion and management a lot more convenient. A note to all those in the class of 2006, your incoming and outgoing servers are both mail.williams.edu.

Microsoft Outlook

1. Load Outlook and click on the Tools menu.
2. Select “Email Accounts”
3. Select “Add a New Email Account”
4. Select “IMAP”
5. Fill out your information. The way you write your name is the way it will appear in the heading of your emails to other people. For email address use either your unix (08xyz) or full name (Franklin.Bluth@williams.edu).
6. For Incoming server use “studentmail.williams.edu”
7. For Outgoing server use “mail.williams.edu”

Optional: You can set Outlook to download your e-mail from the IMAP server onto your personal computer if you are so inclined. The advantage is that you can get to all your e-mail just by opening Outlook, without connecting to the server (or the Internet at all, for that matter). The downside is that sometimes Outlook loses contact with the IMAP server and might shut down the rule you set up.

1. Create a folder to be your inbox (if necessary)
2. Go to Tools > Rules Wizard...
3. Under "Apply changes to this folder" select "Inbox [mail.williams.edu]"
4. Click "New"
5. Select the "Start from a blank rule" radio button
6. Select "Check messages when they arrive," then click "Next"
7. Under "Which condition(s) do you want to check?" check the "through the specified account" box. Then, under "Rule Description," click the word "specified" and select mail.williams.edu. Click OK, then click Next.
8. Under "What do you want to do with the message?" check "move it to the specified folder." Then, under "Rule description," click the word "specified" and select the folder you created in step 1 (or any other folder in Outlook--check under the "Personal Folders" heading). Click OK, then click Finish.
9. Make sure the rule is checked in the Rules Wizard. Click OK.
10. If this ever breaks, go to the Rules Wizard and make sure the rule you made is preceded by a checkmark.

Mozilla Thunderbird

1. Load Thunderbird and click on the tools menu:
2. Select “Account Settings”
3. Select “Add Account”
4. Select “Email Account”
5. Input your Name and Email Address (either form of the latter is ok...it's a reply-to address)
6. Select “IMAP”
7. Input incoming server as “studentmail.williams.edu”
8. Input your personal information (username is same as UNIX name)
9. Now, back at the original box entitled “Account settings,” Look at the list on the left and select “Outgoing Server”
10. Click “Edit”
11. For Outgoing Server use “mail.williams.edu” Make sure the port number is 25.
12. Check the “Use Name and Password” under the Security Authentication box

A more comprehensive list of setting up older versions of Microsoft Outlook or other programs here.