Copyright: (C) Copyright 1997 Nevis Systems


Specifies the Internet address of the POP3 mail server on which you have your mail account. You can enter the server's address in name (e.g. "mail.your.com") or IP (e.g. "192.168.1.2") form.


Specifies your mail account username.  This is usually the same as the part of your e-mail address to the left of the `at' sign (@).


Provides a space for your mail account password.


Specifies the Internet e-mail client you want to use with CheckPOP.


Click this to indicate that you use your LAN to connect to your mail server.


Click this to indicate that you use Dial-Up Networking to connect to your mail server. CheckPOP can establish a connection itself to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) or can use an existing DUN connection to check for new mail.  When the check is complete CheckPOP can, if appropriate, disconnect the connection.


Specifies the Dial-Up Networking (DUN) entry used to connect to your Internet Service Provider (ISP).


Check this to only allow mail checks to proceed if there is an existing DUN connection in progress. CheckPOP will not attempt to establish a connection to your ISP but will only use an already established connection.


Check this to disconnect from your Internet Service Provider once checking is complete.  Note: CheckPOP will only disconnect connections that it established.


Check this to stop CheckPOP from disconnecting from your Internet Service Provider if you are reading new mail that has arrived in your mail account.


Check this to allow CheckPOP to establish Dial-Up Networking connections itself.  Uncheck this to use a Dial-Up Networking autodialer that you may have installed on your system (e.g. AutoDial).


Low frequency - period between checks.  Used with Dial-Up Networking when a connection to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) has to be established in order to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  A typical value is 60 minutes, allowing CheckPOP to check mail hourly.


High frequency - period between checks.  Used with a connection that already exists, as is the case with an existing DUN connection, or when you use your LAN to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  This value is typically of the order of 5-15 minutes.


Specifies if you wish CheckPOP to automatically enter checking mode when run.

On entering checking mode the first check will occur within 1-minute. However, whenever checking mode is entered CheckPOP looks at the time of the last successful check and schedules this first check to occur relative to this time and with reference to the period you have specified to elapse between checks.


Specifies if you wish CheckPOP to be run when your system starts.


Specifies if you wish an alarm sound to be continuously played until acknowledged.  Click on the tray icon to acknowledge the arrival of new mail.


Specifies if you wish a sound file (".wav") to be played whenever new mail arrives.


If checked, display a dialog box listing the authors of the newly arrived mail. From this dialog box you may launch your mail client unless automatically launched.


Specifies if your mail client should be automatically launched on the arrival of new mail.


Specifies the location of the sound file (".wav") to be played on the arrival of new mail.


Click this to have CheckPOP attempt to automatically find the correct entries for "Server" and "Username" from your selected Internet e-mail client.  Ensure that you have selected the e-mail client that is currently used with your POP3 account.


Specifies the location of the sound file (".wav") to be played continuously on the arrival of new mail.


Specifies the Internet mail client that will be launched on the arrival of new mail


Welcome to CheckPOP
CheckPOP (32-bit) v1.0 Beta 2

For Windows 95 and NT 4.0

(Pre-release version)

Welcome to CheckPOP!

Thank you for downloading  the CheckPOP e-mail notification software for Windows 95 and NT 4.0.

This version will completely expire 28-days after installation. However, 14-days after installation a registration code will be required from Nevis Systems to allow you to continue to evaluate the software up to the 28th day (see Registration section).  The final release will be available for download from CheckPOP's homepage on 30 July 1997.  Please check by the homepage for the latest information and updates.

ENSURE that you read the "Getting Started" and accompanying sections of this help file BEFORE continuing.

Mark Hay

Nevis Systems

16 July 1997


About "CheckPOP"

Briefly…

CheckPOP is an e-mail utility that maintains a watch over a POP3 mail account for the arrival of new e-mail.  When new mail arrives you can be informed of its arrival by audio or visual notifications and your mail client can be automatically or manually launched from CheckPOP for you to read the new mail items.  CheckPOP supports Dial-Up Networking in order to establish a connection to your Internet Service Provider, if required, to in turn allow you to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  Autoconfiguration of POP3 mail account details can be performed from the following mail clients: Microsoft Internet Mail, Microsoft Outlook Express, Eudora and Netscape Messenger.


License

Use of the CheckPOP software (the "Software") is at your sole risk.  The Software and its documentation are provided "AS IS" and without warranty of any kind and MARK HAY AND NEVIS SYSTEMS EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND AGAINST INFRINGEMENT.  MARK HAY AND NEVIS SYSTEMS DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE FUNCTIONS CONTAINED IN THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DOCUMENTATION WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, OR THAT THE OPERATIONS OF THE SOFTWARE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT DEFECTS IN THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DOCUMENTATION WILL BE CORRECTED.  FURTHERMORE, MARK HAY AND NEVIS SYSTEMS DO NOT WARRANT OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DOCUMENTATION IN TERMS OF THEIR CORRECTNESS, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN INFORMATION OR ADVICE GIVEN BY MARK HAY OR NEVIS SYSTEMS SHALL CREATE A WARRANTY OR IN ANY WAY INCREASE THE SCOPE OF THIS WARRANTY.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE, SHALL MARK HAY OR NEVIS SYSTEMS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION AND THE LIKE) ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE OR ITS DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF MARK HAY OR QUALCOMM HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.  SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY.


Release Notes

CheckPOP (32-bit) v1.0 Beta 2

This version is the second beta before the release of the final version. If you have any problems with this pre-release version of CheckPOP or any suggestions for incorporation in the final release then please do not hesitate to contact us.  Contact details can be found in the "Contact" section of this help file on the next page.

Changes since Beta 1 are as follows:

Help file updated and problem with "Find" tab corrected.

Now works with systems that do not have Dial-Up Networking installed (LAN-based).

Fixed problem that stopped certain mail clients from being launched.

Improved autoconfiguration.

Setup.exe for easy installation.


Contact

All enquires regarding CheckPOP should be directed to:

m.hay@bigfoot.com.

or

m.hay@virgin.net

Ensure that you visit the CheckPOP web site for updates, support and further information:

http://checkpop.home.ml.org

or

http://business.virgin.net/m.hay/checkpop.htm


Post Office Protocol Version 3 (POP3)

[Not in prerelease version.]


How CheckPOP works

[Not in prerelease version.]


Getting Started

Once you have installed CheckPOP using "setup.exe" you are now ready to configure CheckPOP.

IF YOU ARE RUNNING CHECKPOP FOR THE FIRST TIME the configuration dialog will appear after installation allowing you to modify settings for "Account", "Connection", "Checking" and "Notifications". ENSURE that you fill-in the details of your POP3 account (try the "Autoconfig" button), and ALSO select your DIAL-UP NETWORKING entry if applicable.

Ensure that you have read "The CheckPOP tray icon" and "Configuring CheckPOP" in the next sections to get going.


The CheckPOP tray icon

The CheckPOP icon is located in the task tray situated at the bottom right-hand corner of your screen.  Normally all you will see of CheckPOP is an envelope icon being displayed.  If you place the mouse pointer over the icon a tool tip will display saying "CheckPOP" just to remind you of what it is!

From this icon you can:

Check for mail

Enter checking mode

Leave checking mode

Configure CheckPOP

Run your mail client

Close CheckPOP

And also:

List mail in your POP3 mail account

Bring up this help file

Mail the author of this software

Display CheckPOP's homepage on the Internet

A single right-click on the envelope icon in the tray will display the CheckPOP menu.  This is CheckPOP's tray menu.  Below is a brief description of each menu item:

Open

Display the mail list window.  This lists all mail in your POP3 mail account on the mail server.  The principal mail headers are displayed (date received, date sent, author, subject, recipient, and size of mail item) in list view format and can be sorted in ascending or descending order by clicking on the column header.  This window can also be displayed by double-clicking on the envelope icon.

Check now

CheckPOP to attempt an immediate check for mail.

Start checking

Enter checking mode.  CheckPOP will check for mail at intervals specified in the "Checking" options dialog.

Stop checking

Leave checking mode.  The icon in the tray will fade out and a red circle with a white interior will appear on the icon.

Options

Displays the options dialog where you can configure CheckPOP.

Read mail

This choice will launch the mail client you have selected for your mail account (from "Account" options).  Supported Internet mail clients include Eudora, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Internet Mail, Pegasus Mail and others.

About

Displays CheckPOP's "About" box that shows your installation serial number and version.

THE MEANING OF THE DIFFERENT CHECKPOP ICONS

Normal icon indicating that CheckPOP is in checking mode.

CheckPOP not in checking mode and is stopped following user request to do so.

Check for mail in progress.  Establishing Dial-Up Networking, if necessary, logging-in to POP3 server and retrieving mail information.

New mail has arrived (flashing).  This is the minimum notification that CheckPOP will provide indicating the arrival of new mail.

An error has occurred during checking for mail.  This could be due to an authorisation failure when checking mail account or a failure relating to Dial-Up Networking.


Options - Account

CONFIGURING OPTIONS

ACCOUNT

The account section of the options dialog allows you to provide CheckPOP with details of your POP3 e-mail account and the mail client which you wish to use with the account.

Mail Client

Optionally required by CheckPOP is the choice of mail client that you use, or wish to use, for reading received mail.  The selection provided is a list of mail clients installed on your system.  The mail client that you select can be automatically launched when new mail arrives, or launched on demand from the tray menu.  CheckPOP can also use the mail client that you select to determine the mail Server and Username (below) for your mail account.  However, this autoconfiguration is only possible for a number of mail clients. Supported Internet mail clients include Eudora, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Internet Mail, Pegasus Mail and others.

Server - Username - Password

This is where your POP3 mail account details are entered in order to tell CheckPOP where to check for mail.  These details should be readily available to you either from your mail client's own configuration or obtainable from your IT department.

Autoconfig

If you have previously used a particular mail client on your system to retrieve your mail, CheckPOP may be able to retrieve the Server and Username settings from the mail client's configuration.  For security reasons you are required to supply the password that is used with this POP3 account.  Currently supported mail clients for autoconfiguration are Microsoft Internet Mail, Microsoft Outlook Express, Eudora and Netscape Mail.


Options - Connection

CONFIGURING OPTIONS

CONNECTION

Use this dialog to tell CheckPOP about how you wish to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  Some computers, especially in commercial or educational environments, are directly connected to their POP3 mail server via a Local Area Network (LAN) connection attached to the computer.  Others may have to dial their ISP (Internet Service Provider) using a modem or ISDN TA connected to the computer in order to gain access to the POP3 mail server.  The latter method typically requires Dial-Up Networking (DUN).

If you are connected to your mail server via a LAN then you don't need Dial-Up Networking (DUN).  In this case you should select "I do not use Dial-Up Networking".  Otherwise, select "I use Dial-Up Networking" to indicate that you have to dial into your ISP to reach your mail server.

Use the following Dial-Up Networking connection

Select the phonebook entry that connects to your ISP.

Use only an existing connection

When CheckPOP is in checking mode and using DUN, in order to connect to the POP3 server to check for new mail an existing connection may not be available and it may be necessary to dial into the ISP.  CheckPOP can be set to only check when there is an existing connection.

CheckPOP establishes DUN connection

When it is necessary to check for new mail, CheckPOP can either dial your ISP or allow an autodialer to dial.

Disconnect after check

Once a check is complete, a DUN connection that CheckPOP established can be dropped.  CheckPOP will only drop a connection that it established.  A connection that was in-progress when CheckPOP started a check will be used and will mean that no connection has to be established; and that CheckPOP will not drop the connection when its check is complete.

Do not disconnect if reading new mail

If you have set CheckPOP to disconnect after a check, no disconnection will be performed if you choose to launch your mail client from the "New Mail" dialog in order to read the new mail.


Options - Checking

CONFIGURING OPTIONS

CHECKING

Offline

Used with Dial-Up Networking when a connection to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) has to be established in order to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  A typical value is 60 minutes, allowing CheckPOP to check mail hourly.

Online

Used with a connection that already exists, as is the case with an existing DUN connection, or when you use your LAN to communicate with your POP3 mail server.  This value is typically of the order of 5-15 minutes.

Run CheckPOP on Windows start-up

If you set this option, CheckPOP will automatically be loaded when Windows starts or when you log-in to Windows.

Enter checking mode as soon as CheckPOP loaded

If you set this option, CheckPOP will enter checking mode as soon as it is loaded.

* NOTE *

Whenever CheckPOP enters into checking mode it calculates how long it has been since it last performed a check on your mail account.  It will then set its timer(s) to schedule a check to occur in line with the interval(s) between checks that you have specified.  For example, if entering checking mode and the last check was at 2.00pm, the interval between checks is 60 minutes and the time is now 2.45, then a check will be scheduled for 15 minutes time at 3.00pm.

If the time elapsed since the last check is greater than the interval that you have specified, a check will automatically be scheduled to begin within a minute of entering checking mode.  For example, if entering checking mode and the last check was at 6.00pm and the time is now 8.00am the following day, then a check will be schedule for within the next minute - the earliest a check can be scheduled for.


Options - Notifications

CONFIGURING OPTIONS

NOTIFICATIONS

Alarm

When new mail arrives CheckPOP will play an alarm sound of your choice (default is a file called "alarm.wav" which comes with CheckPOP).  This alarm will play until you acknowledge the arrival of new mail by a single click on the CheckPOP tray icon.  Click on "Test" will allow you to listen to the alarm sound.  The test will play the alarm at a faster rate than normal.

Play wave file

As soon as new mail arrives a wave file of your choice can be played once to announce that new mail has just arrived.  CheckPOP comes with a wave file that will announce "you've got mail".  Clicking on "Test" will allow you to listen to the wave file.

Display dialog box

A dialog box will be displayed when new mail arrives listing who the mail is from and giving you the option to launch you mail client to read the mail.  If you don't want to read the mail you can just click on "Later" to read the mail later.

Run mail client

The arrival of new mail will trigger the automatic launch of your mail client.


Registration

CheckPOP (32-bit) v1.0 will require to be registered after an evaluation period that can last up to 28-days.  Initially, you have a period of 14-days to use the software after which time you are required to register or to seek a trial period extension if you wish to continue to use the software.  An extension to the trial period can be obtained by sending an e-mail message to the author with your installation serial number in the body of the message.  For further details on extending the trial period please see the foot of this page.

This version (v1.0 beta 2) of CheckPOP is FREE.  It will initially expire after 14-days and will totally expire after 28-days.

Pricing for the final release of CheckPOP (32-bit) v1.0 is as follows (all prices are in US Dollars):

Single registration

1 copy - $15

Multiple registrations

First copy - $15

Each additional copy - $10

If you require a site license, multi-site licenses or company-wide licenses then please contact Nevis Systems for details of volume discounts.

Why Register?

Registering will allow you to use CheckPOP after the 14/28-day evaluation period, receive minor version updates, support for CheckPOP and technical advice on related e-mail issues.  Registered users can request additional enhancements, features and customisation of the CheckPOP product.

Extension to trial period

To extend the 14-day trial period to 28-days, e-mail "m.hay@bigfoot.com" (preferably before the software expires) with the subject line "CHECKPOP EXTENSION" and your installation serial number in the body of the message. You should receive an e-mail containing your extended evaluation code within 24-hours.  Enter this code into CheckPOP either by selecting "Register" from the "About" box or by entering the code if you see a dialog box popping up when you start CheckPOP.  Once this code is entered you can use CheckPOP until the 28th day after you originally installed CheckPOP.

We recommend that you e-mail us at least 2 days before your 14-day evaluation period expires to avoid any inconvenience.  To find your installation serial number or to check how far you are through your evaluation period click on "About…" from the CheckPOP menu.

No matter what, this software will no longer operate 28-days after you originally installed it.  After all, this is a pre-release version!  The final version will be available soon.  Please check back at the CheckPOP homepage for updates.