NvMail Help Index

Welcome to NvMail - an electronic mail (E-Mail) facility for Windows and Windows NT. NvMail was designed to make your daily office communications more efficient, more manageable and definitely more fun. NvMail provides a rich set of sophisticated electronic mail capabilities including a convenient mechanism for managing telephone messages and built-in voice messaging.

NvMail Features

Sending Messages

Reading Messages

Configuring NvMail

Archive Folders

Group Lists and Other Features

Security Features (Passwords)

Technical Support

Update Information, New Features

Suggestions, Add-ons

About Image Machines Corp.

Copyright Notice

Disclaimer

Acknowledgments


voice messaging
NvMail's voice-messaging capability allows you to create mail messages that contain your spoken voice (you can sing if you like). The only requirements for using this feature are that you use Windows 3.1 (or 3.0 with the Multimedia Extensions) and have a Windows compatible multimedia sound product capable of recording and playing wave (WAV) files (and, if singing, be able to carry a note).


CompuServe
CompuServe is an on-line information service owned by the H&R Block Company. You can reach them at 1-800-848-8990 in the U.S., 0800 289 458 (freephone) in the U.K., and 0130-86-46-43 (freephone) in Germany. Image Machines is a frequent visitor to the WINADV and NOVC forums. You can send tech support questions and suggestions to the NvMail product group on CompuServe at 71165,2641.


BCC (Blind Carbon Copy)
Blind carbon copy is the term associated with a message sent secretly to one or more people.


OLE
Object-Linking and Embedding. OLE is a Microsoft developed protocol for inter-application communications and data sharing.


Wave Audio
Wave audio files describe multimedia sound data. Wave audio files often have the extension .WAV and can be played using NvMail, Windows Sound Recorder and Media Player.


NvMail Features

NvMail is an electronic mail program designed expressly for Microsoft Windows and Windows NT. It can help in streamlining the operation of your office - regardless of its size. This is achieved by providing a feature-rich electronic mail and messaging facility.

Sending mail and telephone messages will improve the flow of important information throughout your office. Some of NvMail's features include:

an intuitive icon-based user interface (shown above)
drag & drop under Windows 3.1
sound recording and playing
public and private address lists
group send features
carbon copy messages (CC)
blind carbon copy messages ( BCC)
return receipts
configurable notification of incoming messages
configurable event sounds
reply message options
mail/audit log
file attachments and OLEsupport
message prioritizing
message recall
multi-level password protection

Among NvMail's special features are: voice messages, Ez-Notes, Telephone messages, an internal PC speaker driver for playing wave audio and message recall.


Acknowledgments

Everyone at Image Machines Corporation, including Chuck Rieger, Craig Denbrook, Cecil Hornbaker, Charles Cohen and Jenny Chi contributed by using the product for several months and by making valuable suggestions. Cathia Geller is the voice behind NvMail's sound library. NvMail was designed and developed by David Geller using Microsoft C/C++ version 7.00 and later Microsoft Visual C++.

Phil Allen designed QDHELP which was used to generate this on-line help facility for use with WINHELP. You can reach Phil via CompuServe at 72047,2134. John Ridges developed NvMail's internal speaker driver. He also authored a public-domain driver for using the Disney Sound Source with Windows 3.1. John can be reached via CompuServe at 72000,2057.

Credit is also due to the many users of NvMail who called and wrote with valuable suggestions for improving the product.


Sending Messages
Sending Mail

NvMail offers four types of messages: mail, telephone, voice and free-form. You might be wondering why there are so many choices. The answer is that NvMail was designed to accommodate the way you work - not for you to learn new ways of doing things. For instance, if you use telephone message pads to track telephone messages you'll know, almost instantly, how to use NvMail's telephone messages. They look and behave just like their paper counterparts.

Mail Messages

Telephone Messages

Voice Messages

EzNote Messages


Mail Messages

Mail messages offer an easy way in which to compose and send detailed textual messages to one or more recipients. Feature buttons in the send message dialog are clearly marked and indicate function.

Starting a mail message

Addressing a mail message

Specifying a subject

Specifying a priority

Composing the text

Attachments

Sending a mail message

Mail message options


Starting a mail message

You start composing a mail message by pressing the Compose button on NvMail's toolbar. Alternatively, you can use your mouse or keyboard to select the Message item from the Send menu.


Addressing a message

If this is your first time using NvMail the address dialog will pop up as soon as the send message dialog appears. This pop up feature can be disabled but you will likely find it easier to select your recipients right away, before composing your message.

The address dialog box has two list boxes. When you first see this dialog box the list on the left, designated as showing everyone selected to receive your message, is empty. The list on the right shows everyone in your NvMail system capable of receiving messages.

To select a recipient, find their name in the right-hand listbox and select it (highlighting it using your mouse or the arrow keys on your keyboard). Next, press the To button. You will see their name copied to the list box on the left. The letters "To:" will have been added to your name. You can also double-click on a name in the right hand listbox to automatically insert it into the left hand listbox.

When finished, press or select the Done button. The address dialog box will disappear leaving the send mail dialog box. Notice, though, that your selected names will appear in the address list in the upper left hand corner. If, at any time, you wish to reexamine your recipients, add or delete entries you can press the small button labeled Addr or press Alt+D.


Specifying a subject

Your cursor should now be in the subject field of the mail message. If it is not, use your mouse or keyboard to position your cursor in the subject edit control area. Enter the subject that will describe your first test message. Try to always use a subject that describes your message clearly and succinctly.


Specifying a priority

NvMail offers three types of message priorities: Urgent, Normal and Reminder. NvMail priorities have less to do with the speed in which a message is delivered than how they are acted upon by the recipient. In fact, all messages in NvMail are delivered immediately to recipient mailboxes. The speed at which they are retrieved depends entirely upon how often individual recipients check for new mail.

If you are positioned on the priority list box you can speed select your priority by pressing the 'U', 'N' or 'R' keys for Urgent, Normal or Reminder. You can also use your mouse or keyboard to open the listbox and manually select one of the three priorities.

Urgent mail messages will be highlighted in the recipient's inbox list using the color red (except when viewed using monochrome screens). Messages sent using the priorities of Normal and Reminder will appear the same.


Composing the text

Position your cursor in the message area with your mouse or by pressing the TAB key. If you TAB too far and position yourself over another field or a button you can use the Shift key with TAB to go backward (Shift+TAB).

If you are in the message field, which is a multi-line edit control, you can begin entering your message. When your cursor gets to the end of a line it will automatically wraparound to the beginning of the next line. Words that won't fit on a line when the cursor is at or near the right margin are automatically moved to the next line.

The message edit control works just like Windows Notepad and other Windows editing programs. You can select text using keys and mouse movements and even cut and paste text to and from other Windows applications using the clipboard.

Your message may contain as many as 32,000 characters.


Attachments

NvMail offers two types of attachments: embedded attachments and linked attachments. Embedded attachments are used when you want to send a file that's stored on your local hard disk to another NvMail user.

If you want to attach and send a file that is on your network drive and you know the intended recipient will have access to that file, you can create an attachment link.

Embedded attachments

Linked attachments

Which attachment type is best?

Adding attachments

Attachment details

Viewing attachments


Embedded attachments

When you instruct NvMail to embed an attachment what you are really asking the program to do is to make a copy of that file and insert it into your message.

Normally, NvMail messages are quite small and depend entirely upon the number of characters you enter for the message body. When you embed files into an NvMail message you actually increase the size of the message.

However, despite an increased message size, embedded attachments are very important. Embedding an attachment ensures that the attached object (data) will be accessible by the message recipient.

When someone wants to read an embedded attachment, NvMail extracts the embedded data into a temporary file.


Linked attachments

Linked attachments are not copied into mail messages. Rather, a special pointer to the object or file being attached is made and inserted into the message. Linked attachments don't increase the size of your message by any substantial amount and are, therefore, slightly faster to send.


Which attachment type is best?

Determining which format to use for an attachment is fairly straightforward. The following rules can be applied:

If the file you want to attach to your message can be accessed by your intended recipients (i.e. the file is on your network drive) then link the attachment to your message.

If the file is on your local disk drive then be sure to embed the file to your message.

If the file is on your network but your recipients might not have access or permission to open the file, embed the attachment into your message.

Whenever you are not sure which format is most appropriate embed the attachment.


Adding attachments

Adding attachments begins when you press the Attach button in the compose new mail message dialog. After do this the following dialog will appear (some sample attachments are shown):

To add an embedded attachment press the Embed button. A standard file open dialog will appear. Select the file you wish to embed and press the Ok button.

To add a linked attachment start by pressing the Link button. The remaining steps are the same as for embedded attachments.

Dropping files from File Manager
 NvMail accepts files that have been dragged from the File Manager. You can drop them over the Add Attachment dialog box. They will automatically be added to your list of attachments.

Use the radio buttons in the dialog box marked Embedded and Linked to specify the type of attachments to create for dropped files.

After selecting a file, NvMail attempts to display an icon for the application associated with the file. Associations are based upon information in the [Extensions] section of your WIN.INI file. If NvMail can't find an appropriate icon the area reserved for this image in the attachment listbox will remain blank.

If NvMail can't determine the appropriate application associated with your attachment you can specify it directly using the attachment details dialog. Press the Details button to access this dialog box.


Attachment Details

The details dialog box allows you to specify an application name and, if necessary, an exact full-path for the application associated with the specified file.

If, for example, you attached a file named MUSIC.DAT that was actually a wave audio file, NvMail would have no way of knowing this and couldn't form an association with the programs SOUNDREC or MPLAYER. Normally, wave audio files have the extension WAV. To correct this all you would have to do is enter in the program name SOUNDREC.EXE in the field marked File.

If, after pressing the Done button you still don't see a familiar icon displayed, enter into the details control again and enter the full path of the SOUNDREC program in the full path field.


Viewing attachments

When you receive a mail message containing one or more attachments, the Attachments button in the Read Mail Message dialog box will be active.

This view attachments dialog box is very similar to the one used for creating attachments. To view an attachment first select it and then press the View button. You can also double-click on an entry.

If the attachment was embedded a slight delay will occur while the data is extracted from your mail message into a temporary file. If, for any reason, your attachment can't be displayed, a warning message will be displayed.

If you need to use an application different than the one specified by the person who sent the message (either because you want to or the specified application is unavailable on your system) press the Details button and modify the program and and/or full path to meet your requirements.

Extracting an attachment to a file
 If you would like to extract (or copy in the case of a link) an attachment and save it to a file press the Copy to file button that is found in the details dialog box.


Sending Mail
Sending a mail message

When your message has been properly addressed and written all you have to do to send it is press the Send button with your mouse or the equivalent keystrokes (Alt+S).

If you press the Send button without first selecting one or more recipients a warning message will be displayed alerting you to your ommission. Mail messages can't be sent without specifying one or more recipients.


Mail message options

Receipts
 If you want to be sure that one of your recipients received and opened your mail message select the checkbox labeled Receipt. As soon as your recipient opens your message a special receipt notification message will be mailed back to you. Note: Requesting receipts for messages you send to yourself have no effect.

Copies
 When you select the checkbox labeled "Copy to folder" in the send mail message dialog box, your message will be copied and stored into the archive folder of your choice. If the folder you select does not exist you will be allowed to create it "on the fly."


Telephone Messages

Creating a telephone message
 To start the process of sending a telephone message press the Phone button on NvMail's toolbar or select the Phone Message item from the Send menu. After doing this the telephone message form will appear.

Selecting the recipient
 Everyone with an NvMail account will have their name in the recipient list box which is at the top of the telephone dialog box. You can use your mouse or the equivalent keystrokes to open and select a name from this list box.

Identifying the caller
 Once you have selected a recipient (who the telephone message is for) press the TAB key to position your cursor on the field labeled Called. Enter the name of the person calling.

Specifying a company name
 Press TAB or use your mouse to position the cursor to the field labeled Firm and enter the name of the caller's company or organization. If an entry in this field is not required, move to the next field.

Entering a telephone number
 Move to the field labeled Phone and enter the area code and number of the person calling. If the caller provides an extension you can enter that as well. Telephone extensions are usually designated by a small letter 'x' before the digits as in: 555-1212 x53 which means extension 53 for the main number 555-1212.

Steps to improve efficiency and speed


Steps to improve efficiency and speed

Microsoft Windows was designed so that certain controls can be used very quickly. These features are also incorporated in NvMail and can assist you in gathering important telephone information quickly and reliably.

The first trick involves specifying the recipient. Very often the caller will ask for a particular person in your office. Right after selecting the telephone message button or menu equivalent the list box of NvMail users will be selected.

This list is always arranged alphabetically with user's last names presented first. If, for example, the message you were taking was for someone named Susan Dexter, you could select her name simply by pressing the 'D' key for Dexter. This is called speed selecting.

If there were several people in your office whose last names began with the letter 'D' you would continue to press the 'D' key until their name appeared. This trick can often save you time and is sometimes faster than using your mouse.

Another trick you can use when taking phone messages involves using the TAB key. The TAB key is an important component of almost all dialog boxes in Microsoft Windows. In the case of telephone messages, the TAB key will move you quickly between fields. Shift+TAB will move you between fields in reverse order.

These fields have been designed to allow you plenty of room to enter complete names and phone numbers - even extension numbers, if necessary. A warning bell or sound will be played if you reach any of the field limits.

The ordering of fields was designed for efficiency. For example, if you press the TAB key after entering a telephone number your cursor will jump to the message field. This way you can begin entering important information the caller may wish to provide. The checkboxes provide extra information and are in front of the message field so that NvMail's phone message form looks like traditional telephone message forms.


Voice Messages

System requirements

Controls

Creating a voice message

Addressing a voice message

Sending a voice message


System requirements

In order to compose voice messages your system will have to have the following software and hardware (all of which is optional and acquired independently of your purchase of NvMail):

Windows 3.1 or Windows 3.0 with multimedia extensions.

A multimedia-compatible sound board capable of wave audio recording or a computer with these features built-in (such as the Compaq line of Business Audio PCs).

A microphone.

Speakers or headphones.

After pressing the recording voice message icon from the toolbar the following dialog box appears.


Controls

The control buttons in the record voice dialog box behave just like their real world counterparts found on tape recorders and VCR's. For your review here is an overview of the record control buttons:


Creating a voice message

Creating and sending a voice message is almost as easy as making a recording with a tape recorder. You start by pressing the Record button or by selecting the Voice Message item from the Send menu using your mouse or keyboard.

The record message screen will appear. Addressing voice messages is the same as for mail messages. However, the default setting for displaying the address dialog box is for it to only appear after you press the Addr button. Of course, you can change this and make the address dialog box appear automatically right after you open the record message dialog box.

VCR and tape recorder-like controls appear in the record message dialog box as well as one with a picture of a microphone and the words "record." Press the button to start recording.

As soon as recording starts a timer, which increments every quarter of a second, will start. Also, the word "recording" will flash every one half second so you know that the system is "live" and recording.

Note: If your microphone has an on/off switch remember to turn it on before beginning.

You stop recording by pressing the stop button. You can review your message by pressing the play or review button.

If your system stops recording prematurely it's possible you've run up against NvMail's built-in time limit for voice messages. This limit is set by your NvMail system administrator and was designed to protect your NvMail environment from using too much disk space. Voice messages consume a great deal of disk space. If you want to see how much time is allowed for recording individual voice messages press the Info button on NvMail's toolbar. The theoretical recording limit is entirely dependent upon your sound board, it's drivers and your PC.


Addressing a voice message

To select one or more recipients for your voice message press or select the Addr button. The address dialog for voice messages behaves exactly like the address dialog for mail messages with one notable exception. Voice messages can take up a tremendous amount of disk space. That's why, by default, NvMail only shows you the list of people that can listen to your message. There's no sense wasting valuable disk space on your server by sending voice messages to people that can't listen to them.

However, there is a way to override this built-in limitation and send a voice message to someone regardless of their configuration and capabilities. If you check the checkbox marked "All" your list of recipients will include everyone in your NvMail system - regardless of their computers ability to play wave audio files.


Sending a voice message

After selecting one or more recipients for your voice messages press or select the "Send" button. If you would like a copy of your message saved to your default archive folder area be sure to mark the checkbox labeled "Save copy" before pressing the "Send" button. If you want to receive a receipt indicating that your recipients opened and listened to your message mark the checkbox labeled "Receipt" before sending the voice message.


Ez-Note Messages

Ez-Notes provide you with a means to create free-form messages containing text and graphics. A floating toolbar provides provides a quick and easy way to select the different types of objects that can be drawn.

Ez-Note Drawing Tools
Sizing your Ez-Note
Sending your Ez-Note

The use a tool select it with your mouse. The title bar at the top of your Ez-Note will change to reflect the type of action you are about to perform. For example, if you press the Text tool the title bar will read "Write text." You remain in this mode until you select another tool or the select tool.


Ez-Note Tools
Ez-Note Drawing Tools

The floating toolbar allows you to select tools for creating ellipses, rectangles, lines, paragraphs of text and embedded bitmap pictures.

Selection tool
Line drawing tool
Ellipse tools
Rectangle tools
Picture tool
Text tools
Specify pen size
Specifying color


Ez-Note Selection Tool
Selection tool

If you want to resize, move or delete and object you must first select it using the selection tool. The title bar for the Ez-Note will change to indicate you have entered into selection mode. To select an object in this mode simply move your mouse until it is somewhere over the object and press your left button once.

If the object is identified you will see grab handles displayed. At this point you can (1) move the object by pressing and holding your button while moving your mouse, (2) deleting the object by pressing the DEL key, Control-D or the equivalent menu selection or (3) resizing it by moving one of the grab handles.


Drawing lines

Select the line drawing tool to enter into line mode. The title bar for the Ez-Note will change to reflect your selection. To draw a line move your mouse over the Ez-Note drawing area and press and hold the left button. A temporary line will be drawn and will continue to be displayed as you move your mouse and create your line segment. When you feel that your line is complete release the mouse button. A line will be drawn with the currently selected color and pen size.


Ez-Note Ellipse
Ellipse tools

After selecting either the filled or empty ellipse tool, start drawing on your Ez-Note by position your mouse and holding down the left mouse button. After you have created your ellipse you can resize it by selecting one of the four corner "grab" handles and moving it to form a new constraining rectangle. After you have moved one of the grab handles the ellipse will be redrawn.


Ez-Note Rectangle
Rectangle tools

To include a rectangle in your Ez-Note first select either the filler or empty rectangle tool and use your mouse to select a rectangular region on your Ez-Note drawing surface. To do this first depress your left mouse button and begin dragging your mouse. When you have selected the appropriate size release the left mouse button. A rectangle with the current color and line size (thickness) will be drawn.


Using Bitmap Pictures

Including bitmap pictures begins by selecting the "camera" icon from the Ez-Note floating toolbar or by selecting the picture item from the Ez-Note tools menu.

To include a bitmap picture in your Ez-Note use your mouse to select a rectangular region on your Ez-Note drawing surface. To select a region first depress your left mouse button and begin dragging your mouse. When you have selected the appropriate size for your image release the left mouse button. An open file dialog will automatically pop up and request that you select a BMP (bitmap) file. After selecting a file it will automatically be scaled to fit into the specified rectangular region. Resize the picture rectangle to change the image size and/or aspect ratio.


Ez-Note Text

To enter a line or paragraph of text select the text tool from the floating toolbar. Text is drawn using the currently selected color, so make sure you've made your color choice first.

After selecting the text tool move your mouse anywhere over your Ez-Note drawing surface and press and release your mouse button. A text edit dialog box will appear allowing you to enter one or more lines of text. You can also paste text into this control from another Windows application.

If you want to select a type face and size press the "Font" button. A Windows common dialog will appear with all of the font names and available sizes. Since you are creating a message for other people on other computers, be sure to select a font that is likely to be on their system. When your Ez-Note is redrawn on their system, your text will be drawn with a font that matches your selection or comes very close.


Specifying Pen Size

To change the thickness of lines used for drawing line segments, ellipses and rectangles select the tool shown with several horizontal lines (lower right hand side of the floating toolbar). A dialog box will appear (shown below) that allows you to select a line thickness. Your selection remains in effect until you change it.


Specifying Color

Color is selected using the Windows common dialog box for color. Select a color by choosing one of the rectangles from the dialog box and pressing the OK button. The dialog is shown below.


Ez-Note Sizing
Sizing your Ez-Note

You can size your Ez-Note anyway you like. The size will be recorded and made to appear the same way when received by the message recipient.


Ez-Note Sending
Sending your Ez-Note

When you are ready to send your Ez-Note select the send item from the file menu or press Control-S. A dialog box very similar to the mail and voice message send dialog will appear. Fill in a subject, address your message and press "Send."


Reading Messages
Reading Mail

Selecting messages
Reading mail messages
Reading telephone messages
Listening to voice messages
Reading Ez-Note messages


Selecting messages

New messages, when they arrive, are placed at the top of the list in NvMail's primary message listbox. The date and time that the messages were sent as well as the name of their sender (except for telephone messages) are displayed. Urgent mail messages are shown in red to grab your attention.

It's easy to differentiate the type of message sent by examining the individual list box entries. Symbols are used to designate message types. There are several ways to select and open messages.

Double-clicking on a message
 You can double click over a message to open it for reading or listening (if it is a voice message).

Clicking the read button
 Another way of opening a message is to press the Read button from NvMail's toolbar after selecting a message. This is equivalent to selecting the item Read from the Message(s) menu.

Using your keyboard
 You can use your keyboard to navigate through the message listbox. Your up and down arrow keys will move you between messages. Press the Enter or Return key on a selected message to open it for reading or listening.

Using your right mouse button
 If your mouse has a right button you can use it to access a special expert mode designed for NvMail. To try this feature, position your cursor over a message and depress your right mouse button. A floating menu will appear next to your cursor. Select the menu item "Read Message" to open and display the message. The other menu items allow you to print the message (voice messages can't be printed), archive the message and delete the message.


Reading mail messages

After selecting and opening a mail message, a dialog box containing the message and several control buttons are displayed. Beside reading the message, you can:

Reply to the message
Examine the distribution list for the message,
Print the message,
Forward the message and
Delete the message

If the message you received was marked "private" you will be asked to enter in your personal password. If your entry doesn't match the password you last set you will not be able to open and read the private message. If you have forgotten your password consult your NvMail system administrator for assistance.


Replying to a mail message

If you wish to reply only to the sender (author) of the message, press or select the button labeled Reply Sender. Even if the message was sent to a number of different people, your reply will be sent only to the original author.

If there were multiple recipients and you wished to reply to one or more of them press or select the Reply All button. If you were the only recipient of a message this button would not be active. Pressing or selecting either button causes the send message dialog box to appear. You have, at this point, the opportunity to change your address list or alter the automatically generated subject description.

Replying to a message with a copy of the text
 If you want to copy the message you are reading into your reply message check the box labeled Copy message body before pressing either of the reply buttons. Your reply will receive a copy of the current message. You can then edit the text if changes are required.


Examining the distribution list

If the message you are reading was sent to other recipients beside yourself the field directly to the right of the "To" button in the upper left hand corner will display the word "Distribution." To see a list of the other message recipients press the "To" button.

The distribution list for a message will only display direct recipients and those people receiving carbon copies (CC) of the message. If the message was sent as a blind carbon copy ( BCC) to one or more individuals their names will not appear.


Printing the mail message

If you want to print the message to the default printer press the Print button. The font used for your output can be selected through NvMail's configuration facility.


Forwarding the mail message

You can send the message you are reading to one or more additional recipients by pressing the Forward button. An exact copy of the message and subject description will be made. You will then have the opportunity to select your intended recipients.


Deleting a mail message
Title

Press or select the "Delete" button to remove the current message from the message list.


Reading telephone messages

You select and open a telephone messages just as you would a mail message. You may use your keyboard, mouse or a combination of both. An opened telephone message looks similar to the dialog box used to compose a phone message.

All of the fields, except for the telephone number field, are read-only (you can't alter their contents). You can change the telephone number in case you find it necessary to add a prefix or area code before autodialing. However, any changes made to this field will not be saved.

Printing telephone messages

Autodialing telephone numbers

Forwarding telephone messages


Printing telephone messages

If you would like a hard copy printout of the telephone message, press or select the "Print" button. Output will be sent to the default Windows printer. The font used for output can be changed through NvMail's configuration facility.


Autodialing telephone numbers

NvMail can automatically dial the telephone number shown in the "Phone" field. This features requires one of three things to operate:

a modem connected to one of your COM ports,
a multimedia sound board and speakers or
the NvMail internal speaker driver

If you have an internal modem, NvMail will use it to dial the telephone number. Most modems, internal and external, have a built-in jack for connecting a telephone. Immediately after NvMail dials, pick up the handset so you are ready to talk when the number is answered.

NvMail is provided with recordings of the DTMF tones used for telephone dialing. DTMF stands for digital tone, multi-frequency but is best known as touch tones.

With a good pair of speakers and a sound board you can dial the telephone number by placing your telephone handset near one of your speakers. If you are using the internal speaker driver you may also be able to dial by placing the handset near your PC's speaker - although the sound quality of this device may not make this possible.

If the person who sent you the phone message did not remember to add "1-" before the area code or some other sequence of numbers needed to activate your phone system, you can add them manually to the phone field. This is the only field which allows temporary editing. Any changes made to this field for the purpose of dialing will not be saved. So, if you make a mistake simply press the "Done" button and re-open the message to restore its original contents.


Forwarding telephone messages

If you would like to forward your telephone message you can type Ctrl-F (that's control-F) or press the "Forward" button. A copy of the phone message you are reading will be made and the "Send Phone Message" dialog will appear. You can then select a recipient for the message, modify the contents of that message, and send it by pressing the "Send" button.


Listening to voice messages

If your PC has a multimedia sound board, or you have installed the NvMail Internal Speaker Driver, you will be able to listen to recorded NvMail voice messages.

Opening voice messages
Replying to a voice message
Notes


Opening voice messages

Voice messages are opened the same way mail and telephone messages are opened. If you have enabled autoplay after open through NvMail's configuration facility, voice messages will begin to play as soon as you open them. Otherwise, press the play button to begin.

The name of the message sender as well as the length of the message (in seconds) is provided. If you want to review the names of everyone else that received the same message, press the "To" button.

The controls for listening to voice messages are very similar to those provided in the recording dialog. The only notable exception is the lack of a record button.


Replying to a voice message

You can reply to the person who recorded the voice message or everyone that received it by pressing the "Reply Sender" or "Reply All" buttons. If your PC has recording capabilities you will first be given a choice as to whether your reply should be recorded or written.


Voice message notes

NvMail is compatible with hardware devices that are Windows 3.1 multimedia compatible. Follow the instructions provided with these devices for proper installation and use.

The speaker driver provided with NvMail allows your computer's internal speaker to play wave audio sounds. The quality of the sound will vary between personal computers. Only experimentation will reveal the effectiveness this device has with your system.

NvMail has been tested and is fully compatible with the new line of Compaq computers provided with built-in audio hardware and software.


Reading Ez-Note messages

When you open an Ez-Note message a new window will be displayed in the size and position specified by the person who originally sent the message. You can both move and reposition this window. A reply capability is not directly supported through the Ez-Note facility. You can, however, save your Ez-Note to a file which can later be retrieved and sent to users in your NvMail system.


Configuring NvMail

Configuring NvMail begins with the configuration dialog box. You activate it by pressing the "Config" button from NvMail's toolbar or by selecting the "Preferences..." item under the "Configure" menu. The following dialog box appears.

Primary Configuration Parameters
Notification control
Event sounds and startup message
Configurable title information
Font control
Path settings and audit trail
Autodial configuration
Default archive folders

Parameters are saved to the NvMail configuration file only when the Done button is pressed.


Primary Configuration Parameters

These parameters, controlled by checkboxes, occupy most of the area in the NvMail configuration dialog box. They allow you to control many elements of NvMail.

Always request receipts
 This provides a convenient default setting for when you compose/record new mail and voice messages. When someone receives a mail message that you have marked as requesting a receipt, their system will automatically generate and send back to you confirmation that they opened, and presumably read, your message.

Autocheck for new mail
 Enabling this checkbox instructs NvMail to check for new mail on a regular and specified interval. The interval is set in the edit box to the right of the checkbox. You can instruct NvMail to check for new mail between 1 and 32,768 seconds (approximately 9 hours). The default interval is 30 seconds.

Note: If you wish to set the interval in minutes be sure to multiply your desired time by 60. For example, to instruct NvMail to check for new mail every 5 minutes, enter the value 300. This value is always specified in seconds.

Sound alarm when new mail arrives
 Enabling this checkbox will instruct NvMail to sound the system bell when new mail arrives. Event sounds take precedence over the system bell for indicating the arrival of new mail.

Confirm message deletions
 With this checkbox marked, NvMail will seek confirmation before any message is deleted.

Confirm print requests
 With this option selected, NvMail will seek confirmation before printing any messages. Eliminating accidental prints saves paper and time.

Always keep NvMail's window on top
 For Windows 3.1 users this feature enables NvMail to remain on top of the desktop and visible at all times - regardless of which program has the focus. If you use NvMail to display the current date and time (configured using the Title dialog) then keeping NvMail always on top (even when minimized) will mean you never have to search for the NvMail window to tell the time. You can use this feature and NvMail in place of running the Windows Clock program.

Auto open address list for new messages
 When you are set to compose a new message you can have the address list pop-up automatically if this checkbox is selected.

Auto open address list for voice messages
 When you are set to record a new voice message you can have the address list pop-up automatically if this checkbox is selected, just like for composing new mail messages.

Autoplay voice messages
 With this option selected, NvMail will begin playing voice messages as soon as you open them for listening. Otherwise, you will have to use your mouse to press the play button.

Show sender's name in listbox
 With this checkbox marked (default case), NvMail will display the name of the person who sent the mail message. If the author's name isn't important to you and you would like to see more of the subject description, leave this unchecked. This option does not pertain to telephone messages.

Sculpted 3D dialog boxes
 Check this box if you want NvMail's dialog boxes to appear scuplted and 3D (as shown in all of the images in this on-line help). Users with monochrome screens (B&W, gas plasma, etc.) should keep this option unselected.


Notication control

The five checkboxes in the group labeled Open when new messages arrive allow you to specify which types of messages should cause NvMail to open up and display its message list when they arrive.

Normally, NvMail runs quietly in the background while you go about performing other tasks under Windows. If NvMail is instructed to open when new mail arrives it will do so and, in turn, gain the input focus. If it is iconized (minimized) it will return to its normal state. If it is already on-screen, it will move in front of other applications alerting you to the arrival of your new mail. If the Windows 3.1 screen saver is running, NvMail will interrupt it before opening.

Urgent Messages
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail opens up whenever an urgent mail message arrives. It's a good idea to leave this option checked. That way you will be assured of learning about important events and information.

Normal messages
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail will open when a normal mail message arrives.

Reminders
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail opens when a mail message marked as a reminder arrives.

Telephone messages
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail opens when a telephone message arrives.

Voice messages
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail opens up when a voice message arrives.

Ez-Notes
 When this checkbox is selected NvMail will open up when an Ez-Note message arrives.


Event sounds and startup message

Event sounds are a special feature of NvMail. With them you can associate wave audio (WAV) files with mail events. Events or actions that you can configure in NvMail are:

closing mail
deleting mail
Arrival of new mail, phone, voice and Ez-Note messages
Opening a mail message
Opening a phone message
New reminder message
New urgent mail

Associating a wave audio file with a mail event begins with the double listbox in the Sounds dialog show below. To associate a wave audio file with an event, perform the following steps:

1. Select a mail event from the left hand listbox.

2. Use your mouse to select a wave audio file from the right hand listbox. If the file you want to use is on another disk drive or in a directory different than the one shown, select and double click the directory ([..]) and drive entries ([-a-]) in the listbox to locate yourself to the desired area.

3. As soon as focus is removed from the right hand listbox the wave audio file is associated with the previously selected event.

To remove a wave file from an associated event select a different wave file or the entry "<none>" which is always displayed at the top of the right hand listbox.

Startup message
 NvMail is provided with a sound library enabling it to announce itself at program startup. You can disable this feature by removing the check in the checkbox labeled NvMail welcome message. When NvMail starts up it also announces a count of new (unopened) and existing mail messages. The radio buttons in the group labeled Speak message count control this feature.


Configurable title information

Many people run the Clock program provided with Windows so that they can have easy access to the current time and date. NvMail can also be used to provide the system time and goes further than Clock by also providing: the date and day of the week, the user Id of the person running NvMail and the count of messages in the user's mailbox.

If you normally run the Windows Clock program you can configure NvMail to provide the same information. This is done in the Title dialog box. The Custom checkbox is used to display a message of your choice in NvMail's title bar. You can select as many of the options as you like. They will be displayed in the order presented in the dialog box (i.e. if you decide to have NvMail show both the date and the time, the date will always be displayed first in the title bar).


Font control

NvMail allows you to change the default font selections used for printing mail and telephone messages. The two large buttons displayed in the Font Control dialog are used to display both the current font settings and to make changes to these settings. When you press either one of the two large buttons, the common dialog box for selecting fonts appears.

When selecting fonts be sure not to select a font that is too large. Font sizes are specified in units called points. There are 72 points to an inch. A good setting for both mail and telephone messages is a font set at 12 points.

Normally, when you request a print you would like it to be sent to your default Windows printer (specified through Windows' Control Panel). If, however, you wish to select a different printer, be sure the checkbox labeled "always print to default printer" is not marked.


Path settings and audit trail

If you ever need to re-configure your system or the shared directory or, perhaps, NvMail is moved to a new location, you can inform NvMail of these changes using the Paths dialog box.

NvMail (msg area)
 This entry points to the shared directory all NvMail users must have access to. Check with your mail system administrator for the correct setting for this entry.

Outgoing directory
 If you sometimes need to use your PC (or notebook PC) away from your office and LAN (local area network), specify a directory that NvMail can use for storing outgoing messages. When you return to your office and NvMail sees your network, it will automatically send batched messages saved in this area.

Log/audit file
 NvMail can keep an audit trail of mail transactions. This feature can be important for cost accounting and security purposes. The entry in this field points to the file that will be used to store audit trail information. If you want NvMail to erase the contents of this file every time it starts, mark the checkbox labeled Overwrite existing log. Note: An audit trail file will only be written if the checkbox labeled Enable audit trail is marked.


Autodial configuration

This dialog box is activated when you press or select the Autodial button and controls how NvMail autodials from the telephone message dialog box.

If you have a modem select either TONE or PULSE dialing based upon the service available in your area. Most telephone systems throughout the United States support touch tone dialing. If you don't have a modem available for dialing you might still be able to autodial numbers using NvMail's audio feature. With multimedia sound services and the appropriate hardware and/or software (such as NvMail's internal PC speaker driver), you can generate DTMF (touch tones) from your PC. Select this option and then create a test telephone message and send it to yourself. When you open the test message press or select the Dial button to try this feature. Remember to enter a telephone number when you create the message. Note: The internal speaker driver may not be able to reproduce the recorded DTMF sounds well enough to dial your telephone when the handset is placed nearby. However, higher quality speakers attached to a sound board will usually be able to break dial tone and properly dial the number. Only experimentation will reveal how effective this feature is with your particular configuration.

COM port
 The COM port designation is used only if you have a modem connected to your computer and the TONE or PULSE option is selected. You can configure NvMail to dial through communications ports 1, 2, 3 or 4 (also known as COM1, COM2, COM3 and COM4).

Baud rate
 The baud rate, like the COM port, is used only if a modem is being used for dialing. The baud rate list box offers the options: 1200, 2400, 4800 and 9600 baud. Your modem, more than likely, operates at one of these speeds. Refer to the documentation provided with your modem or serial communications card if you have questions concerning proper setup.

Use prefix
 Some offices and telephone systems require a special prefix for an outside line to be used. If you need to use a dialing prefix, enter it into the edit control next to the Use prefix checkbox and then mark the checkbox.


Archive Folders

Sending and receiving messages is only one part of NvMail's powerful environment. Archive folders provide the means to save and catalog important messages you receive and send and offers a powerful extension to the popular "outbox." NvMail's archive folder facility offers you a file cabinet (folder) approach to storing important messages. Once messages have been copied into your archive area, you can copy and move them between folders you have created.

When you send mail, phone, and voice messages you can mark a checkbox labeled "copy to folder" which tells NvMail you wish to have a copy of your message saved to your archive. This feature provides a "carbon copy" capability for outgoing messages. You specify default folders for this function in the default archive folder dialog.

Creating a new folder
Editing a folder
Deleting a folder
Archiving messages
Deleting messages after archiving
Recalling messages
Copying and moving messages
Default archive folders


Creating a new folder

To create a new folder, press or select the New Folder button. A dialog box will appear allowing you to enter a folder name and description. If the name you enter is in use by another folder, you will be alerted and given the opportunity to enter a new name. Folder names are limited to 32 characters. They may contain spaces. It is a good idea to name folders according to their purpose. Folder descriptions may contain as many as 64 characters and should be used to describe, in slightly more detail, the intended contents or purpose of a folder.


Editing a folder

To edit the name and/or description of a folder, select its name from the list of folders and press the "Edit" button. If you rename the folder to a name already being used a warning will be given.

Folder names are limited to 32 characters. They may contain spaces. It is a good idea to name folders according to their purpose. Folder descriptions may contain as many as 64 characters and should be used to describe, in slightly more detail, the intended contents or purpose of a folder.


Deleting a folder

If you have a folder you no longer want or need, you can use the Delete Folder button to delete it and all of its messages. Before deleting a folder, NvMail will prompt you for confirmation.


Archiving messages

The task of archiving messages that you receive from other NvMail users begins by selecting those messages. Selected messages appear with a yellow highlight if you are using a color monitor or a black or shaded background if you have a monochrome monitor.

Once you have selected the messages you wish to archive, use your mouse to press the Archive button from the toolbar or choose the Archive item from the Message(s) menu.

When the archive dialog appears the Insert button in the lower right hand corner will indicate the number of messages selected. Select a folder from the far left hand list to use and press the Insert button. Your messages will be copied into the selected folder.


Deleting messages after archiving

Normally, when you insert selected mail messages into an archive folder they remain in your primary NvMail message list. This list is sometime referred to as an inbox. Before inserting your messages into an archive folder, select the checkbox labeled Delete messages after inserting and make sure it has a check mark. Immediately after archiving, the selected messages will be removed from the mail list, leaving only the archived copies. Note: If you have the confirm message deletions option enabled, a prompt will be displayed before your original message or messages are deleted.


Recalling messages

The ability to recall a message that has already been sent is a powerful feature of NvMail. It can be used to recall mail, voice and Ez-Note messages. Telephone messages can't be recalled.

Note: Recalling messages is a special feature and one that might not be appropriate for your environment. Therefore, your NvMail system administrator controls whether this feature is enabled (on a system wide basis). To determine if your system allows NvMail to recall messages, select system information by pressing the Info button from NvMail's toolbar.

If configured, NvMail allows you to recall both unopened (and unread) and opened messages.

Messages can only be recalled if (1) your system allows them to be and (2) the message was copied to an archive folder when you originally sent it. Without a copy there is now way to reference the message and recall it.

To recall a message select it from the archive message list box and press the "Recall" button. A new dialog box will appear and will contain a list of names representing everyone that received that particular message. Select one or more names from this list and then select, by marking the appropriate checkboxes, the type of message recall you wish to perform. Next, press the "Withdraw" button to recall the message.


Copying and moving messages

Messages stored in archive folders can be copied and moved to other folders. Select one or more messages from within a folder and then press or select the Copy or Move buttons. NvMail will prompt you for the name of a folder. You may select from an existing folder or create a new folder "on the fly." If a message you want to copy or move already exists in the selected destination folder it won't be recopied or moved.


Default archive folders

NvMail allows you to assign default folders for saving mail, telephone, voice and EzNote messages. These default values are used when you have the checkboxes labeled "copy message to folder" marked in the various send dialog boxes. These checkboxes can be automatically marked in if you mark their corresponding checkboxes in the archive control dialog box shown below.


Groups Lists and Other Features
Group Lists and Other Features

NvMail offers group feature that's convenient and easy to use. It allows you to create private group lists you can use when sending any of NvMail's four message types. NvMail also has several special features not normally found in electronic mail packages including a user location database.

Groups lists
Message count information
User information
Updating your location


Groups Lists
Group Lists

NvMail's group list feature allows you to define and maintain private groups of users. These groups can be used when addressing mail, voice and Ez-Note messages.

To create a new group press the button labeled "New Group." A dialog box will appear and allow you to enter a group name containing eight or fewer letters. Once you have defined a group you can select one or more NvMail users from the listbox on the far right of the dialogbox and


Message Count Information

This dialog provides a breakdown of the different messages you have in your mailbox as well as the age of the oldest message. You can access the user location database by pressing the "Users" button or have NvMail speak the message count through your speaker or sound board (if these resources are available).


User Information

The user information dialog provides location information for all local NvMail users. By selecting a name from the list box you can learn where a user is located, their telephone number or extension and what department they belong to. This feature is useful only if its use is regimented company wide. Pressing the "Update my location" button allows you to alter your personal user database record to indicate a new location.


Update Location

If you want to update the NvMail location database press the "Update my location" button from the User Information dialog, select the Update location menu item or press Control-L. The following screen will appear and allow you to select one of predefined locations or enter you own description.


Security Features
Setting your Password

NvMail offers several security related features designed to protect the privacy of your mail. Mail messages are encrypted to prevent casual file snooping within the shared mail directory on your file server (attachments are not encrypted).

NvMail also offers password protection at program startup and the ability to support "private" message delivery. Messages that are marked private request your password before they can be viewed or printed. Like other NvMail features, these security mechanisms are highly flexible. The degree to which your E-mail environment is considered "secure" depends entirely upon the level of security you impose.

Setting your password

Entering your password

Password options

Clearing your password


Setting your Password

Versions 1.06b and later of NvMail support a private, personal password for the purposes of providing additional security for your Nvmail environment. To set your NvMail password pull down the "Configure" menu and then select the cascading menu marked "Password." Next, select the second-level menu marked "Set/Change." A new dialog box will appear.

Enter in your password (containing as many as 8 characters) into the edit control field labeled "New password." Next, retype your password in the field marked "Confirm." If the two entries match when you press the OK button your password will be saved. Your entries in this dialog box are not "hidden."

If you forget your password see your NvMail system administrator for additional help. Never write your password down in an area that others have access to or can see. Also, don't give out your password to other people in your workplace.


Entering your Password

Type in your password in the edit control labeled "Password" and press OK. If your entry matches the password last set, you will be allowed to continue with your selected operation. If you enter an incorrect password a warning message will appear. If you can't remember your password press CANCEL and ask your NvMail administrator for assistance.


Password options

NvMail offers three options for password protection. Options are set through the "Password Options" dialog available through the Password item under the "Configure" menu.

Check at program start
Clear private flag after opening
Check before printing
Check before accessing archive


Clearing your password

If you wish to remove (clear) your password enter the "Set/Change" password dialog and press OK without entering any characters in either of the two edit controls. NvMail will prompt you for confirmation that you wish to clear your password.


Check at program start
If this checkbox is marked NvMail will always request a password (if one has been set) before starting.


Clear private flag
When you receive a message marked "private" NvMail asks for your password. If you mark this checkbox NvMail will, as a courtesy, clear the private flag after you have opened and read your message the first time. This saves you from having to enter your password every time the message is opened.


Check before printing
If this checkbox is marked NvMail will ask for your password if it discovers one of the files requested for printing is marked "private."


Check before accessing archive
If this checkbox is marked NvMail will ask for your password before allowing you to access your archive folder area.


Technical Support

NvMail was designed to be easy-to-learn and use. However, if a problem develops with your system involving NvMail that you can't solve, there are several resources available.

The first person to contact for assistance is your computer dealer, salesperson or consultant who installed and/or configured your NvMail system. If you purchased your software from Image Machines then contact us directly.

You can reach the NvMail support staff at Image Machines by mail, telephone, fax, BBS and CompuServe.Please have your NvMail serial number ready. Your serial number is printed on a label attached to your NvMail product box. You can also display your serial number through NvMail and NvAdmin's About dialog box.

Mailing Address
 Image Machines Corporation
NvMail Products Group
590 Herndon Parkway
Herndon, VA 22070

Telephone: (703) 709-7475
Fax: (703) 709-8966

BBS
 Set your modem to 2400 baud, 8-bits, No parity, 1 stop-bit. The telephone number is (703) 709-7559. This number is subject to change in the future. If you can't reach our BBS contact us by telephone for a new number.

CompuServe
 Image Machines can be reached on CompuServe at 71165,2641.


Update Information, New Features

Update information can be found in the file README.TXT distributed with your NvMail product or update diskettes.


Suggestions, Add-Ons

Using NvMail's Extract Feature
 Have you ever needed to transfer files with your coworkers? With a network it's pretty easy, but sometime still confusing. Did you know that you could use NvMail to transfer files around your office?

To send one or more files to other people in your office running NvMail simply create a mail message and attach (embed) one or more files to your message. Use the "details" dialog to enter a brief description for each file you embed. Then, send your message to one or more people. When they receive your message they can check their attachments and copy the attached files to files on their own disks. The "copy to file" button is found in the "details" dialog.

If you have any questions about this procedure please give us a call at Image Machines. We'd be happy to talk you through an example.

Using Recorder to automate NvMail
 Did you ever wish there was an easy way to "jump" to NvMail from another application? Does your job require that you enter lots of NvMail phone messages? There's good news and much of the credit should go to Microsoft.

One of the programs distributed with Windows, RECORDER.EXE, can be used to automate tasks by assigning complex mouse and keyboard actions to keys. To create your own RECORDER macro to automate the creation of a mail and phone message follow these steps:

1. Start RECORDER but make sure the last selected application is NvMail.

2. Select the Record... item from under the Macro menu.

3. Enter in a descriptive example (i.e. Create mail message) and select a key to assign the macro to (i.e. F10).

4. Make sure that playback is selected for the "same application."

5. Press OK to start recording. Focus should be switched automatically to NvMail and the Recorder program minimized.

6. To insure that NvMail is automatically maximized press the following keys (don't worry if these options are grayed out when you do this): ALT+SPACE and then R

7. Next, press the following keys to tell NvMail to start a mail message: ALT+S

8. Press Ctrl + Alt + Break to end the Macro recording and be sure to SAVE the macro.

9. To create a macro for starting a phone message select a different name and key assignment in step 3 and press ALT+S and T in step 7.

10. Under the File menu, save the macro(s) to a file such as NVMAIL.REC.

Add a new item to your startup group (or LOAD line in WIN.INI if you are running Windows 3.0) to automatically start RECORDER and specify the file name you saved as its first argument. Be sure not to assign macros to F1 or keys used by any of your other Windows applications. Also - if NvMail isn't running when you activate a macro for it your system will freeze for a few second and then you will get an error message. Don't reboot if this happens - just wait patiently for the error message.


About Image Machines Corp.

Image Machines Corporation is a world-wide leader in large format imaging hardware and software products. We develop CCITT Group 4 Tiled compression and expansion products designed specifically for the large-format market. Our products are used in engineering drawing management environments, manufacturing sites, drawing archiving sites, mapping agencies and image scanning service bureaus. We support a number of different scanners, plotters and aperture card scanners from companies such as: Xerox Versatec, Vidar, CalComp, Atlantek, Photomatrix, Houston Instruments, Mekel, TDC and more.

To learn more about our company and our other products please don't hesitate to contact our Imaging Sales Director at:

Image Machines Corporation
590 Herndon Parkway
Herndon, VA 22070

Telephone: (703) 709-7475
Fax: (703) 709-8966
CompuServe: 71165, 2641


Copyright

NvMail is Copyright (C) 1992, 1993 by Image Machines Corporation and is protected by the copyright laws of the United States of America. All rights are reserved. All other product and brand names are copyright and trademarked by their respective owners.


Disclaimer

Information used to created this electronic help file is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Image Machines Corporation. The software described in this help file is furnished under agreement and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of your NvMail license agreement found in the written documentation that accompanies the product.