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WebCT Faculty Tip Sheets

Send and Read Mail Messages

Tips for sending and reading mail messages:

  • To view both read and unread messages, click All.
  • To view messages by thread, click Threaded. Threaded messages are a series of replies to the same subject. The header row of each message thread displays the following information:
    • Status: displays the number of unread messages in the thread over the total number of messages in the thread
    • Subject: displays the subject of the first message in the thread and the View thread icon.
  • To expand a thread, click the green arrow in the Status column. To collapse the thread, click the green arrow again.
  • To view the message thread, click the View thread icon next to the thread .
  • To view messages in chronological order, click Unthreaded.
  • To display any mess ages that were just received in your Inbox, click Update Listing.
  • To move to the Actions menu at the bottom of the screen, click Message options.

To read messages:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the messages that you want to read, or to view all messages, click All. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. In the header row, click Unread, and then expand all of the threads by clicking Unthreaded. All unread messages appear. A paper clip icon appears if the message has attachments.
  4. Click the message that you want to read. The Subject screen appears in a new browser window.
    • If the message includes a file attachment, click See Attached next to the paper clip icon. The Attachments screen appears. Note: It is recommended that you install updated anti-virus software before viewing or downloading attachments.
      • To view the file attachment, click the file name. The file opens in the view frame.
      • To download the file attachment :
        1. Select the file, and click Download. Your browser's file download dialog box appears.
        2. Follow the on-screen instructions.
        3. From the Attachments screen, click Close. The Subject screen appears and you are returned to the message.
  5. When you have finished reading the message, you can:
    • close the message. Click Close. The Mail Messages screen appears.
    • read the previous or next message in the thread. Click the icon.
    • reply to a message
    • forward a message
    • quote a message
    • download a message

To send messages:

You can send messages to other users in the course.

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. Click Compose message. The Compose Mail Message screen appears in a new browser window.
  3. Complete the Send to text box by doing one of the following:
    • Enter the name of each recipient, separated by commas.
    • To see a list of possible recipients:
      1. Click Browse. The Select Recipients screen appears.
      2. To select a recipient, click their name. To select multiple recipients, hold down the CTRL key (Windows) or the Apple key (Macintosh) and click each name.
      3. Click Select. The Compose Mail Message screen appears and the selected recipients appear in the Send to text box.
    • To paste a list of recipients from the clipboard, click Paste Records.
  4. In the Subject text box, enter a subject for your message.
  5. Compose your message by doing one of the following:
    • In the Message text box, enter your message. The following message options are available:
      • To change the number of viewable lines in the Message text box, from the Height of edit area drop-down list, select a number and click Resize.
      • To allow text to continue horizontally beyond each visible line, select Don't wrap text.
    • To enter and format the text using an editor, click HTML editor.
  6. To create or import an equation, use the WebEQ Equation Editor for Windows or for Macintosh.
  7. To attach a file:
    1. Next to the Attachments text box, click Browse. Your computer's file browser appears. Select the file you want to upload. The path and filename you selected is displayed in the Attachments text box.
    2. Click Attach file. The file is attached to your message.
  8. To preview your message before sending:
    1. Click Preview. A preview of your message appears in a new browser window.
    2. Click Close. The Compose Mail Message screen appears.
  9. Click Send. The message is sent and a copy is placed in the Outbox folder.

To reply to messages:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the message to which you want to reply. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. Click the message that you want to reply to. The message appears in a new browser window.
  4. Choose the format for your reply:
    • If you want to reply to the author, click Reply. The original message is not included in your reply.
    • If you want to forward the message, click Forward.
    • If you want to include the original message in your reply to the author, click Quote. The Reply to Message screen appears. The original message appears at the bottom of the screen.
  5. In the Subject text box, enter or edit the subject for your message.
  6. Compose your message by doing one of the following:
    • In the Message text box, enter your message. The following message options are available:
      • To change the number of viewable lines in the Message text box, from the Height of edit area drop-down list, select a number, and click Resize.
      • To allow text to continue horizontally beyond each visible line, select Don't wrap text.
    • To enter and format the text using an editor, click HTML editor.
  7. To attach a file:
    1. Next to the Attachments text box, click Browse. Your computer's file browser appears. Select the file you want to upload. The path and filename you selected is displayed in the Attachments text box.
    2. Click Attach file . The file is attached to your message.
  8. To preview your message before sending:
    1. Click Preview. A preview of your message appears in a new browser window.
    2. Click Close. The Reply to Message screen appears.
  9. Click Send. The message is sent and a copy is placed in the Outbox folder.

To forward messages to another user within the course

You can forward messages to another user in the course. To forward your WebCT messages to an external email account, see the Manage Mail Message Settings tip sheet.

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the messages that you want to forward. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. Click the message that you want to forward. The message appears in a new browser window.
  4. Click Forward. The Compose Mail Message screen appears.
  5. Complete the Send to text box by doing one of the following:
    • Enter the name(s) of the recipient(s), separated by commas.
    • To see a list of possible recipients, click Browse.
    • To paste a list of recipients from the clipboard, click Paste records.
  6. In the Subject text box, enter or edit the subject for your message.
  7. Compose your message by doing one of the following:
    • In the Message text box, enter your message. The following message options are available:
      • To change the number of viewable lines in the Message text box, from the Height of edit area drop-down list, select a number and click Resize.
      • To allow text to continue horizontally beyond each visible line, select Don't wrap text.
    • To enter and format the text using an editor, click HTML editor.
  8. To create, import, edit, or export an equation, use the WebEQ Equation Editor for Windows or for Macintosh.
  9. To attach a file:
    1. Next to the Attachments text box, click Browse. Your computer's file browser appears. Select the file you want to upload. The path and filename you selected is displayed in the Attachments text box.
    2. Click Attach file. The file is attached to your message.
  10. To preview your message before sending:
    1. Click Preview. A preview of your message appears in a new browser window.
    2. Click Close. The Compose Mail Message screen appears.
  11. Click Send. The message is sent and a copy is placed in the Outbox folder.

To mark all messages as read:

Note: Threaded messages, whether collapsed or expanded, will be marked as read.

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the messages that you want to mark as read. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. Display the messages that you want to mark. By default, only unread messages are listed. To view all messages, click All.
  4. Click Mark All As Read. A confirmation message appears.
  5. Click OK. All messages are marked as read.

To mark selected messages as read:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the messages that you want to mark as read. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. Display the messages that you want to mark. By default, only unread messages are listed. To view all messages, click All.
  4. Select the messages that you want to mark as read. To mark all messages in a thread as read, select the thread.
  5. Under Apply to message(s) selected above, click Mark as read. A warning message appears.
  6. Click OK. The selected messages are marked as read.

To mark selected messages as unread:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the folder that contains the messages that you want to mark. The Mail Messages screen appears.
  3. Display the messages that you want to mark. By default, only unread messages are listed. To view all messages, click All.
  4. Select the messages that you want to mark as unread. To mark all messages in a thread as unread, select the thread.
  5. Under Apply to message(s) selected above, click Mark as unread A warning message appears.
  6. Click OK. The selected messages are marked as unread.

To save a message as a draft:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. Click Compose message. The Compose Mail Message screen appears.
  3. Complete the Send to text box by doing one of the following:
    • Enter the name of each recipient, separated by commas.
    • To see a list of possible recipients:
      1. Click Browse. The Select Recipients screen appears.
      2. To select a recipient, click their name. To select multiple recipients, hold down the CTRL key (Windows) or the Apple key (Macintosh) and click each name.
      3. Click Select. The Compose Mail Message screen appears and the selected recipients appear in the Send to text box.
    • To paste a list of recipients from the clipboard, click Paste Records.
  4. In the Subject text box, enter the subject for your message.
  5. Compose your message by doing one of the following:
    • In the Message text box, enter your message. The following message options are available:
      • To change the number of viewable lines in the Message text box, from the Height of edit area drop-down list, select a number and click Resize.
      • To allow text to continue horizontally beyond each visible line, select Don't wrap text.
    • To enter and format the text using an editor, click HTML editor.
  6. To create, import, export or edit an equation, use the WebEQ Equation Editor for Windows or for Macintosh .
  7. To attach a file:
    1. Next to the Attachments text box, click Browse. Your computer's file browser appears. Select the file you want to upload. The path and filename you selected is displayed in the Attachments text box.
    2. Click Attach file. The file is attached to your message.
  8. Click Save Draft. The message is placed in the Draft folder.

To send a message that was saved as a draft:

  1. Click the Mail icon. The Mail screen appears.
  2. From the Folder table, click the Draft folder. The Mail Messages: Draft screen appears.
  3. Click the message that you want to send. The message appears in a new browser window.
  4. Click Edit. The Compose Mail Message screen appears.
  5. Edit your message and click Send. The message is sent and a copy is placed in the Outbox folder.
 
CRC Help Support for WebCT Designers is available through the Computing Resource Center. To contact a Help Desk representative, please call 702.895.0777 or email crchelp@ccmail.nevada.edu. Support is available Monday through Friday 8:00AM - 5:00PM PST. WebCT training and instructional design support are available through the Teaching and Learning Center.

Last Updated: December 6, 2004
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