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4:22:00 PM PDT
How do I do ____ now with the new Web Suite?
Updated: Tues, 12/18, 3:40pm
The new look and feel of the Web Suite may be a bit confusing at first for some people, but rest assured that we’ve streamlined some of the functions so that things will get easier once you know how it’s done now, or where a feature has been moved to. To discover some of the new features and see the new Mail Tour, click here. Or an alternate tour is here.
We’ll keep adding to this list of FAQs so, check back here regularly to learn a tip or two. Here’s a list of some of the main items that should help with the transition to the new look and feel:
**NEW** How do I delete pictures from the AOL Shoebox?
Go to http://pictures.aol.com and then click on link under My Albums that says Shoebox Album. Select the pictures in the Shoebox Album by clicking on them and then click the Delete button on the toolbar. It's that easy.
Can I change the sort order of the Contacts List (Addresses)?
Yes, you'll once again be able to change the sort order of the Contacts List to your liking. Some people prefer it by Last name and some prefer it by First name -- the choice is once again up to you. You can set your preference under Settings | General.
What’s the best way
to delete or move emails?
There are multiple ways to do this, but one of the easiest
is to drag-and-drop an email from one folder to another. In case you’re not familiar with how that’s
done, it means you can click-and-hold on an email, drag it on top of the destination folder,
then release it. If you want to move
multiple emails at once, put check marks next to all the emails, then either
drag-and-drop them onto a folder or select the destination folder from the
Action menu.
The "flags column" in the Inbox has been moved from the left side in the old version to the right side in the new Web Suite. Can you change it back?
Actually, we made it user-selectable! Not only can you move the "flag column" back to the left side if that's where you prefer it, but you can also re-arrange any of the columns. Simply drag and drop the column headers to where you prefer them. Incidentally, clicking a column header sorts the list by that column. Each additional click of it reverses the sort in the same column.
For now, the column positions revert back to default when you sign back in, which may be inconvenient (sorry). But in an upcoming version, column positions, size, and visibility will be retained, even when you log out and back in.
In the past, my printed emails showed me the names and sizes of any attachments. Where did that info go?
It's coming back in an updated version that's due in mid/late June.
How do I view the Addresses from the Contact Panel?
When you hover your mouse (place your mouse over something and stay there without clicking anything) over a contact in the Contacts Panel on the right side of the screen, a little box will open showing you the information, including the email address. From that box you can also initiate a new email or an IM session, as well as edit or delete that contact.
Is there a way to see just a certain group of emails, such as the Unread or flagged ones only in my Inbox?
Yes, you can "filter" the emails you see by selecting one of the pre-set filters that are available from the drop-down menu near the top-right corner of the message list. In case you haven't noticed yet, anything with a subtle little triangle is a drop-down menu in the new Web Suite.
Is there a way to have the Today curtain remain closed each time I log in?
No, the Today curtain is displayed each time you log in (sorry, but something has to pay for the free service). Clicking on anything behind the curtain will close it. Then click again on a message if you want to read it.
Why am I not seeing the images in my emails?
For security purposes, images from unknown senders are automatically hidden now (only the text will be visible). This has become standard practice amongst all the major email services. If you prefer to have the images shown, you can set that under Settings | General. Put a check mark next to: Hide images in mail from unknown senders.
Where did all my
Saved on AOL folders go?
They’re still there.
Simply click on the little blue triangle (that’s a small drop-down
indicator) next to My Folders in the left side of the screen, and all your
folders will show up below it.
How do I close the
panel on the right side of my screen? And keep it closed?
There is a small, unobtrusive little tab with a tiny arrow
pointing to the right, near the top-left of the panel. Yes, it’s too small. I’ll try to put a screen shot here when I get
a chance. Click that tab to close the
Panel. Click it again to open it back
up. It acts like a “drawer” that opens
and closes, similar to the Today curtain. In the next release, the panel will remain closed, if that's your preference, even after you log out and back in.
How do I sort my
Contacts list?
A user option has
been made available so that the Contacts list can be sorted by the
First name or Last name. The setting is under Settings | General.
What's the fastest way to check emails in my other AOL/AIM accounts?
Of course you can always sign out, then back in using the other account, but there's an easier way using the Linked Screen Name feature. Near the top-left corner of the Web Suite is the screen name you're logged in under. Next to it is a tiny little gray triangle. [Obvious, I know. :-)] Click on the gray triangle to show the drop-down menu and select Manage Screen Names. Link one of your other accounts (ifyou have others) to the current one you're logged in with. Then you can simply select the alternate account from the drop-down menu to easily switch back-and-forth between your mail accounts. No more logging out of one account and re-logging in with another, then switching back. How's that for easy?
Can I have the sort order of my Inbox remain the way I like it, each time I log in? Currently it reverts back to a default way.
Yes, that feature will be available soon, possibly in the next released version. Stay tuned.
Why don't I hear the "You've Got Mail" sound any longer? I heard it before and I use FireFox with QuickTime installed.
The sound has been turned off for now while a long-term solution is found for a known issue between a combination of the Web Suite, FireFox, and QuickTime 7. This only affects FireFox users who have QuickTime7 installed.
Drag-and-drop them to any of your personal folders that you have created under My Folders (see above if you can’t find your folders).
How do I create new
folders with the new Web Suite?
The way to create, edit, empty, and delete folders has been made
easier in the new Web Suite. Place your mouse over the My Folders name
in the Folders List, which is on the left side of the screen. Just
"hover" your mouse over it without clicking and you'll see the word Add
show up to the right of it (widen the Folder List using the steps below
if you're not seeing it). Click Add and a new folder will get
created, prompting you to enter in the new folder name. Then click the
green plus sign to create the new folder. See screen shots in the Tour.
Can I make the Folder List wider?
Yes, this is especially important for those of you with screen resolutions less than 1024x768 and we'll try to make it more obvious how this is done in the
future. You can grab the vertical line that separates the Folder List
from the Message List and drag than vertical line to the right to make the Folder List
wider (the line is just to the left of the column of check
boxes). See how "obvious" that was? Sorry, we need to improve on that.
How do I empty one of
my folders?
When you "hover" your mouse over any user-created folder, the word
Edit will appear to the right of the folder name. You may need to
widen theFolder List (steps above) if you're screen resolution is low
or you're not seeing it. Click Edit and you can rename, empty, and
delete it from the dialog box that appears.
How do I stop emails
from opening up in new windows? I want
to read them in the same window.
Under Settings | General (click on the Settings link near the
top-left corner of the screen), you can choose whether to read or write
your emails in a new window (also known as reading or writing emails in
separate pop-up windows). Or you can read or write your emails in the
same window (also known as in-line read/write). Default for NEW
accounts is to pop-up windows, but again, that can be changed to your
liking.
This is a known issue and we're working on it. When it gets fixed, I'll edit the text here, so check back here please and sorry for the inconvenience.
How do I copy/paste
text into an email I’m writing?
Using the keyboard shortcuts for copy/cut/paste works fine with the Web
Suite, even though you may not see a menu in the compose screen. As a
refresher, copy, cut, and paste are ctrl-c, ctrl-x, and ctrl-v
respectively. If you're not familiar with this combo yet, give it a
try. You may prefer this faster method.
How do I UNSEND an
email I regret sending? [btw: this is only possible on AOL/AIM; none of the other email services have this capability and probably won't since it needs to be created from day one]
After you've vented, I mean, replied to someone and you regret hitting that Send button, you can Unsend that email as long as they haven't read it yet. This works only with emails sent to other AOL/AIM addresses since once the email leaves our system, it's literally out of our hands. Go to your Sent folder and place a check mark next to the email you want to retract. Then click the Unsend button. You can also usethe QuickAction menu (blue triangle) that appears when you hover over an email, and select Unsend.
How do I see whether
my contacts are online for an IM chat?
The "presence icon" will be coming back soon. We wanted to make it even better.
How do I log out when
I’m done with the Web Suite?
Click the Sign Out link that's now located near the top left corner
of the screen. Suggestion: unless you're using a public computer, I
don't recommend clearing your cache each time you log out. See info
about that below.
Should I clear my
cache daily?
No
because the Web Suite uses the cache files tostore programming code
that's necessary for it to work on your computer. By clearing it
daily, you're forcing your computer to download the same program files
each time,which will make the Web Suite slower than it really is.
Forcing this each time you log in, will make everything slower than it
has to be, even on a broadband connection. No confidential info is
kept in cache files--just programming code that makes the email program
run.
How can I have copies of every incoming email saved onto my hard drive?
This can bedone by:
1) Setting up an email program, such as Outlook Express, to access your AOL/AIM Mail account. AOL does not charge for this access as some others do.
2) Create a folder that's local on your hard drive (ie: My AOL emails).
3) Create a rule in your email program that automatically places a COPY of each incoming email into your local folder. That way, you'll have two copies of each incoming email (one in your AOL/AIM Mail account and a backup copy in your local hard disk folder). For all emails that are already in your account (in Inbox or other folders), manually copy all those emails onto your local folder--exact steps differ from email program to another. Note: this may take some time to complete, depending on your internet connection speed, how many emails you do at a time, and what time of the day you do this. I recommend doing a couple of hundred emails at a time, late at night, for best results.
What is an easy way to block email from particular senders?
You can block emails from certain people by adjusting your settings under Settings | Spam Controls | Spam Filters by Address. There are various ways to block emails from a particular person, a particular domain name (use wild card characters), or allow email from only the people you know.
How can I optimize the Web Suite for faster performance?
1)
As I said, don't clear your browser's cache daily--it's unnecessary and
doesn't give you that much more security. No personally identifiable
data is kept in the Web Suite's cache files.
2) Use a faster browser, such as IE7 or Firefox. I can see from
internet data reports that IE7 is about to over take IE6 in terms of user base.
I’ll be working on the following answers and adding more FAQs here, so check back soon. If you have other FAQ topics you’d like me to add here, please leave me a comment below. Please keep these comments specific to new FAQs (comments re: technical issues or feedback should be left in the next topic below this one--sorry, non-FAQ topics left here will be deleted to keep it organized).
‘Til next time,
Tae
Other FAQs I'll be working on…
How can I _________ (you fill in the blank by leaving me a comment here) :-)
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My incoming email addresses are so small I can't read them. They changed a while back from a larger font to this tiny font making it impossible for me to read. Help!
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Are the AOL webmail users going to get the built in AIM back? because I really liked it and it was convenient, and I know aim users get it. And since AOL took the built in AIM away from aol webmail, I had to download the independent aim program. so right now I have to use gmail if I want to have the built in aim.
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How do I make a group chat?
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How do I compose an e-mail in Plain Text rather than HTML? I recently had an e-mail returned because it was in HTML. I really don't know the difference.
4/7/08 11:58 PM
I no longer can unsend or check if email has been read
here is email noele68@aim.com
Please help me get that back.
Thanks. Noele