Microsoft Outlook FAQs

What do I do if I am experiencing problems with E-mail?

Call the ITS help desk, at extension 5-4346

Is training available for Microsoft Outlook?

Yes! Click here for more information.

Does Eastern provide antivirus scanning for E-mail?

Yes. There are two levels of antivirus tools in effect. There is a Network Associates (McAfee) product that scans for known viruses, and there is a rules set in effect that blocks certain types of attachments known to commonly carry viruses.

I received an E-mail with alert.txt as an attachment. What should I do?

Alert.txt files are messages from the mail server denoting that something was amiss in a message you received. Click here for a more detailed explanation

What do I do if I receive strange or inappropriate E-mail?

The message might have originated from a virus or from someone intent on perpetuating a scam. The safe choice is usually to delete anything that comes from someone you do not recognize or that seems offensive, but it is up to the user to decide. Click Here for more information.

I received an E-mail warning me about a virus file that might be on my computer! How can I verify this isn’t some kind of a hoax?

Unless you know the person that sent you the message, and can verify that they sent it to you, it is a usually either a hoax or a scam to get you to infect your computer with a virus. The safe thing to do is to delete the message.

If you aren’t sure, call the ITS Help Desk at extension 5-4346

How can faculty keep in contact with their students via E-mail?

The easiest way is to create a distribution list for each class. At this time the way to do this is via the Outlook Address Book. Click here for instructions. In the near future it will be possible to use the Banner system to create a list for you via a simple report generator. Additionally, faculty members integrating WebCT into their courses can use WebCT’s internal E-mail facility which allows communication between them and the students in the course.

Can students change the forwarding of their E-mail to a preferred E-mail address, or back to the Eastern account that has been created for them?

Yes! Just click here for instructions.

How can I reduce the amount of unwanted or offensive E-mail that is sent to me?

Unsolicited E-mail, called SPAM, is a major problem everywhere. There are two things that can be done. The first is to be careful where your E-mail address is being used. Spammers harvest E-mail addresses from unscrupulous vendors, discussion groups, web servers, and other places; so if your E-mail address doesn’t appear in public you reduce your exposure to SPAM. However it is not possible to completely prevent it.

The second solution is to engage in filtering. Microsoft Outlook has some reasonable filters pre-defined that will block many sales pitches and obscene materials. For more information, click Here.

How do I reach my E-mail from off-campus?

Faculty and staff should browse to the URL http://mail2.easternct.edu and students browse to http://stuweb.easternct.edu

Note: Faculty and staff must use their fully qualified domain name of username@easternct.edu

Are there any guidelines or etiquette regarding the use of E-mail?

Yes. In general:

• Keep messages brief and to the point.
• Send to the smallest group of people possible to convey the message.
• Proofread all messages before sending them out to a group.
• Try to combine messages when sending to a group rather than send many short or disjointed messages.
• If you need to send a large document, send just a short announcement containing a link to the document on a web server instead.
• Assume all messages are public documents that will be read by everyone.
• Assume all messages are permanent documents.

What is the difference between REPLY and REPLY ALL?

REPLY sends the message to the sender. REPLY ALL sends your reply to everyone that has read the original message. Be Careful not to select REPLY ALL, when it might be more appropriate to reply to just the sender.

What do I do if I need more room for E-mail?

There are two things that can be done to keep your mailbox from over filling. First, manage your mailbox efficiently. Click here to learn how. If you have cleaned out messages that you don’t need, but still need more room, save it in an archive. Click here to learn how.

How do select the list of names Outlook displays in the “To:” box when I send a message?

It’s easy, just click here.