Using Eudora Help

Eudora has a built in "help" function that makes it easy to learn about most features. To use it, just press "help" on the keyboard, and move the mouse over whatever feature (button, column, etc.) you want to learn about. A small window will appear describing that feature. There is also a help menu in the application header that provides more in-depth descriptions of many features.

Creating mailboxes

Mailboxes are virtual bins that help you organize your mail. To create one, just select "Mailbox : New" and type in the name that you want to call it.

To transfer a message into a mailbox, just highlight it, then select the name of the mailbox from the "Transfer" menu.

You can also drag & drop messages between mailboxes manually.

Setting up Filters

To set up a filter,

1) Select "Special : Filters." In the window that opens up, select "new" in the lower left-hand corner.

2) Indicate how you want your filter to operate by clicking the appropriate box (incoming, outgoing, or manual).

Creating Criteria

3) Click on the arrow next to the "Header" field, and select the category of information that you want to filter ("To:", "From:", "Subject:", etc.).

4) Select how the filter will pick out information ("contains", "is", "is not", "starts with", etc.).

5) Type in the search criteria.

Telling your filter what to do

6) Tell your filter what to do with the filtered messages by selecting an action from the pop-up menu in the "Actions" field. Depending on your choice, you may be prompted to enter other information.

7) Close the window and select "Save."

Setting up an automatic reply

You can have Eudora automatically reply to certain messages. To set up this feature...

Create a stationery file that will hold the contents of the automatic reply. To do this...

1) Create a new message, leaving the "To:" field blank.

2) Select "File : Save As." In the window that appears, give your message a name, and check the box marked "Stationery" at the bottom. Click the button on the bottom that says "Go to Stationery folder."

3) Set up a new filter that uses whatever criteria you wish.

4) In the "Actions" field of the filter window, select "Reply with," then select the stationery that you created above.

Creating nicknames and distribution lists

1) Select "Special : Address Book." In the window that opens up, select "new" in the lower left-hand corner.

2) You will be prompted by a dialog box asking "What do you wish to call it?" Type in the nickname that you want to use.

[Note: Nicknames must be a single word -- no spaces.]

You may also wish to put this nickname on the recipients list, which will allow you to select it from several drop-down menus.

3) Type in the address(es) of the recipient(s) in the "Address(es)" field.

4) Close the window and select "Save."

Creating signatures

You can create one or more "signatures" or blocks of text that are automatically appended to every message that you send out. Here's how you create a signature:

1) Select "Special : Signatures: Standard" (or "Special : Signatures: New" if you already have a standard signature).

2) Type in the information that you would like to include in your signature.

3) Close the window and select "Save."

Make sure that the standard signature is selected in "Special : Settings : Sending Mail." If you create several signatures, you can select which signature appears by default in this settings panel as well.

Sending Attachments

To send a file as an attachment, just drag it into the message window.

Using colors and styled text

To create stylized text...

1) Click the "New Message" button, and click into the message area (not the header area -- no styled text is allowed here.)

2) Select "Edit : Text : Formatting Toolbar."

Now your message window should contain a formatting toolbar from which you can modify the color, size, style, font, and layout of the text. The recipient must use Eudora (or another high-end mail program) to see your formatting.

Finding messages

There are several methods of finding messages.

Sorting: You can sort your mail by any criterion just by clicking on the appropriate column header. For instance, to sort your mail by sender, just click on the "Who" column header. To sort your mail in reverse (alphabetical, chronological) order, hold down the "option" key while you select the column header.

You can also find all messages from a single person, date, etc. by holding down "option," and clicking on the word that you want to match. For instance, if I wanted to find all messages from Anita Watson, I would find one message with Anita Watson's name in the "Who" column, and "option click" her name. This will group together all messages from her into a single block.

Searching: You can also search for a specific word contained in the body of one or more messages. To do this...

1) select "Special : Find : Find," then type in the word that you wish to search for;

2) To select a specific mailbox to search, click on "choose," then select the mailbox from the "Mailbox" menu.

3) You can also narrow your search by selecting a message date from which your search will proceed. Use the arrow keys to select the message from which to begin your search.