KnowledgeBase Archive

An Archive of Early Microsoft KnowledgeBase Articles

View on GitHub

Q111537: PC Win: Frequently Asked Questions for Mail for Windows 3.2

Article: Q111537
Product(s): Microsoft Mail For PC Networks
Version(s): WINDOWS:3.0,3.0b,3.2
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): 
Last Modified: 08-JUL-2000

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Mail for Windows, versions 3.0, 3.0b, 3.2 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY
=======

Below is a list of common questions and answers about versions 3.0, 3.0b, and
3.2 of Microsoft Mail for Windows.

1. Q. Can I set the return receipt feature as the default for all messages?

  A. This is not possible. You must set return receipt on a message-by- message
  basis.

2. Q. How can I create Group folders in the Windows client?

  A. You cannot create or delete Group folders in the Windows client. You must
  create or delete them using the MS-DOS client. If you have Mail for Windows
  version 3.0b or later, you can access Group folders that were created using
  the MS-DOS client. However, the Group folder will show up under Shared
  folders for everyone to see, but only members of the group will be permitted
  to access the folder.

3. Q. What is MMF Recovery and how do I invoke it?

  A. MMF Recovery is a procedure you can use to repair minor corruption in the
  Mail message file (MMF). If you have Mail for Windows version 3.0b or later,
  the MMF Recovery routine is built in. You can invoke it by holding down the
  SHIFT key as Mail is being loaded into memory.

  NOTE: Do not invoke this process unless you have problems with your MMF. A
  side effect of this process is that it will create a backup file on each run.
  You will have to delete the backup manually. For more information about this
  backup file, please refer to article Q104362 in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.

4. Q. On Novell NetWare, do I need File Scan to run MMF Recovery?

  A. File Scan is not necessary as long as you have STORE.DLL version 3.2.0.4051
  or later, which is provided in version 3.2a of Microsoft Mail for PC
  Networks.

  For information on obtaining this update, query on the following word in the
  Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  " mailupd" (without the quotation marks)

5. Q. Why don't I see my private folders that I created in the MS-DOS client?

  A. Versions 3.0 and 3.2 of Microsoft Mail for Windows and Microsoft Mail for
  PC Networks, MS-DOS workstation, implement private folder storage in
  different ways. Mail for Windows stores private folders in the MMF and the
  MS-DOS client stores folders in the .FLD files within the postoffice database
  structure.

  There is a Convert utility (CONVERT.EXE) you can run to convert your private
  folders from the MS-DOS client. Once converted, the private folders are
  stored in the MMF. Private folders created in Mail for Windows cannot be
  accessed using the MS-DOS client.

6. Q. How can I force automatic compression of my MMF?

  A. This is not compression per se; it is in effect an excess space collection
  routine, and by default it is already enabled to run in the background. To
  automatically begin this excess space collection routine (run in the
  foreground), hold down the F5 key as Mail is being loaded into memory. For
  more information about MMF compression, please refer to article Q93134 in the
  Microsoft Knowledge Base.

7. Q. How can I change the print font in the Windows client?

  A. You cannot control the print font. It will always print in Helvetica if you
  are looking at the normal view. If you choose View, Change Font, it will
  change to a fixed pitch font and will also print out in a fixed pitch font
  from this view. You can, however, change the font size by inserting
  PrintFont=x in the [Microsoft Mail] section of the MSMAIL.INI file. For more
  information about the PrintFont parameter, please refer to either of the
  following sources:

   - Article Q86100 in the Microsoft Knowledge Base

  -or-

   - Pages 85-89 in Chapter 6 of the Microsoft Windows for Workgroups version
     3.1 Resource Kit.

8. Q. Can I prevent importing the original message in my reply?

  A. There is no way to disable the automatic import of the original message in
  your reply. If you want to delete the original message, press SHIFT+CTRL+END
  and then DELETE.

9. Q. Attachments disappear when I do a Reply. How can I preserve them?

  A. To preserve attachments, do a Forward rather than a Reply.

10. Q. When I run the Setup program to install Mail for Windows, the blue screen
  flashes and nothing happens. Why?

  A. If you run _MSSETUP.EXE instead of SETUP.EXE to install Mail for Windows,
  the file will delete itself and will not run the setup process. If you then
  run SETUP.EXE and _MSSETUP.EXE is not present in the same directory as
  SETUP.EXE, the blue setup screen will momentarily flash on the screen and
  quickly disappear because the Setup program is unable to find _MSSETUP.EXE.
  For more information about this Setup issue, please refer to article Q105107
  in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.

11. Q. How do I move my MMF to my local computer?

  A. Log in to Mail. From the Mail menu, choose Options and select the Server
  button. Select Local and specify a name for the Mail message file. Then
  select the OK button.

12. Q. When I try to export a folder to a local drive, I am prompted for a
  password. Why?

  A. To export your folders, you can do either of the following:

   - Load SHARE.EXE into memory.

   - Save the export file to the file server.

13. Q. How can I install version 3.2 of Mail for Windows to run from the
  network?

  A. The Microsoft Software Library file, SETUPD.EXE, outlines the procedure to
  install the Windows client on the Network. You can download SETUPD.EXE, a
  self-extracting file, on the following services:

   - Microsoft's World Wide Web Site on the Internet On the www.microsoft.com
     home page, click the Support icon. Click Knowledge Base, and select the
     product. Enter kbfile SETUPD.EXE, and click GO! Open the article, and
     click the button to download the file.

   - Internet (anonymous FTP) ftp ftp.microsoft.com Change to the
     Softlib/Mslfiles folder. Get SETUPD.EXE

   - The Microsoft Network On the Edit menu, click Go To, and then click Other
     Location. Type "mssupport" (without the quotation marks). Double-click the
     MS Software Library icon. Find the appropriate product area. Locate and
     Download SETUPD.EXE.


For additional information about downloading, please see the following article in
the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q119591 How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services


14. Q. Where is the Polling Interval setting picked up from?

  A. The first time you sign into mail, the setting in the Polling
  Interval=<entry> parameter in the MSMAIL.INI file comes into effect.
  Once you change the setting by choosing Options from the Mail menu, the
  value is stored in the MMF and is used from then on.

15. Q. When I use the Send option in Word, it sends the document as unformatted
  text in the body of the mail message.

  A. When you use Microsoft Word version 2.0 or 2.0a for Windows in conjunction
  with version 3.0 or 3.2 of Microsoft Mail for Windows, the Word Send option
  (from the File menu) sends the document as an attachment in icon form. If
  you use Word 2.0b or 2.0c for Windows, the Send option sends the document as
  unformatted text in the body of the mail message.

  Word versions 2.0 and 2.0a use a macro to send documents as an attachment in
  icon form. Word versions 2.0b and later are MAPI aware applications and, for
  purposes of sending attachments, make calls to the Mail Messaging
  Application Programming Interface (MAPI). The Word document is not sent as
  an icon; it is converted to ASCII text and is sent as unformatted text in
  the body of the mail message. This is the default setting for Word 2.0b and
  later.

  To change the default setting and enable you to send documents as an
  attachment in icon form, do the following:

  1. In Microsoft Word, choose Options from the Tools menu and select General.

  2. Under Settings, select the Send Mail As Attachment check box. Making this
     selection will force Word to send the document to Mail as an attachment in
     icon form, thus retaining the document's original formatting.

16. Q. Where can I find details about the entries in the MSMAIL.INI file?

  A. For more information about the entries in the MSMAIL.INI file, please
  refer to the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Article ID Contains information about entries in the

  Q86094 [Address Book] section

  Q86095 [Custom Commands] section

  Q86096 [Custom Messages] section

  Q86097 [MAC File Types] section

  Q86098 [MS Proofing Tools] section

  Q86099 [Custom Menus] section

  Q86100 [Microsoft Mail] section

  Q86101 [MMF] section

  Q86102 [Providers] section

  The Help file in the Windows Mail client is also a good source of
  information.

17. Q. What are the means of notification available in the Windows client?

  A. Version 3.0 of Microsoft Mail for Windows notifies you of new mail in
  three ways:

   - The mouse arrow turns into an envelope. For example, if you are in a
     Windows application and new mail arrives, you'll see the arrow momentarily
     change to an envelope, then back to an arrow. In other words, the envelope
     flashes.

   - When you have Mail minimized and new mail arrives, you will notice a
     letter sticking out of the slot of the Mail icon. If the slot is empty, no
     new mail has arrived.

   - You can have your computer sound a wave file when new mail arrives. To do
     this, choose Options from the Mail menu and select Sound Chime. If you
     have a sound board, you should then choose the Sound icon from the Windows
     Control Panel. You will see an option for New Mail Notification, where you
     can assign a .WAV sound file. Then your computer will play the .WAV file
     when new mail arrives.

18. Q. How can I get new messages on login?

  A. Include "NewMsgsAtStartup=1" in the [Microsoft Mail] section of the
  MSMAIL.INI. If this entry is 1 Mail will download new messages on startup.
  The default is 0.

19. Q. Why does the offline symbol(network disconnect icon) appear in the status
  bar?

  A. An ownerless MMF on the postoffice of a Novell NetWare server may cause
  this symbol to appear. To assign ownership, the supervisor must run Filer
  (select the root of the postoffice when all users are off Mail) and change
  the entire directory tree to supervisor ownership.

  Network problems that prevent Mail for Windows from writing to the MMF can
  bring up the network disconnect icon as well.

20. Q. What is inbox shadowing?

  A. Version 3.0 or later of Microsoft Mail for Windows has a feature named
  Inbox Shadowing. This feature is enabled in Mail for Windows when you
  selection Options from the Mail menu and choose the Server button. Then
  select the "Copy Inbox on Postoffice for Dialin Access" option and choose
  the OK button. The Copy Inbox option instructs Mail for Windows to
  synchronize its inbox with the inbox on the postoffice.

  When you send a mail message, Microsoft Mail adds a header to the recipient's
  .MBG file that includes a pointer to the corresponding .MAI file. The .MBG
  file is the inbox for MS-DOS and Macintosh clients. Inbox Shadowing is
  necessary because Mail for Windows moves all messages in an individual's
  .MBG file into the user's MMF file. If Inbox Shadowing is not active when
  Mail for Windows moves a message into the MMF file, it flags the headers in
  the .MBG file as if the message was deleted and it deletes the corresponding
  .MAI files. In this case, the Inboxes for the MS-DOS and Macintosh clients
  are empty.

21. Q. Is DDE supported?

  A. Versions 3.0, 3.0b, and 3.2 of Microsoft Mail for Windows do not support
  Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) calls. Mail for Windows is not designed to
  support DDE calls, as indicated in the Windows registration database.

22. Q. How can I read a Word 6.0 attachment if I have Word 2.0?

  A. Knowledge Base Article Q105773 contains information about converting from
  Microsoft Word for Windows, version 2.0, to Microsoft Word for Windows,
  version 6.0.


Word 2.0 will read your Word 6.0 documents, but you must first install the Word
6.0 converter, supplied with your Word 6.0 package, using the following
instructions. (If you do not have the Word 6.0 package, see below for
instructions on how to get the converter).

a. If you did not install all the text converters when you installed Word 6.0,
  run Setup again and install them.

b. Copy the MSWORD6.CNV file from the <WINDOWS>\MSAPPS\TEXTCONV
  subdirectory (where <WINDOWS> is the name of your Windows program
  directory) to your Word 2.0 program directory.

c. Start Word 2.0.

d. Open your Word 6.0 document. Word 2.0 automatically searches for and installs
  the Word 6.0 converter and converts your document. If the following error
  message appears, choose OK to continue:

  The document template is not valid.

If you do not have the Word 6.0 package, you can obtain the Word 6.0 converter
through any of the following options:

- Phone the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. If you are
  outside the United States, contact the Microsoft subsidiary for your area. To
  locate your subsidiary, call Microsoft International Customer Service at
  (206) 936-8661.

Important Points

- This converter is intended for users of Word 2.0 for Windows who do not have
  access to Word 6.0. The converter has its own Setup program; setup
  instructions are included in the cover letter.

- This converter will not run under Windows version 3.0.

- The formatting features added in Word 6.0 that do not exist in Word 2.0 will
  not be retained during the conversion. A complete list of these features is
  included in the WRD6CONV.DOC file, which is installed with the converter.

- This converter allows Word 2.0 to read documents created by Word 6.0.

Additional query words: 3.00 3.00b 3.20 most frequently asked top ten

======================================================================
Keywords          :  
Technology        : kbMailSearch kbZNotKeyword3 kbMail300 kbMail320 kbMail300b
Version           : WINDOWS:3.0,3.0b,3.2

=============================================================================

THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THE MICROSOFT KNOWLEDGE BASE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. MICROSOFT DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES SO THE FOREGOING LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY.

Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1986-2002.