Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edition

Checking Your Mail

You get new mail and send mail you've already written using the Get Mail command. You can trigger it in any of several ways:

• Click Get Mail on the toolbar.

• Choose Mailbox→Get All New Mail (or press Shift-c-N).

  Note

  If you have multiple email accounts, you can also use the Mailbox→Get New Mail submenu to pick just one account to check for new mail.

• Control-click (or right-click) Mail's Dock icon, and choose Get New Mail from the shortcut menu. (You can use this method from any program, as long as Mail is already open.)

• Wait. Mail comes set to check your email automatically every few minutes. To adjust its timing or turn this feature off completely, choose Mail→Preferences, click General, and choose a time interval from the "Check for new mail" pop-up menu.

Now Mail contacts the mail servers listed in the Accounts pane of Mail's preferences,

retrieving new messages and downloading any files attached to those messages. It also sends any outgoing messages that couldn't be sent when you wrote them.

Tip

The Activity window gives you a Stop button, progress bars, and other useful information. Summon it by choosing Window→Activity Viewer, or by pressing c-0.

Also, if you're having trouble connecting to some (or all) of your email accounts, choose Window→Connection Doctor. There, you can see detailed information about which of your accounts aren't responding. If your computer's Internet connection is at fault, you can click Assist Me to try to get back online.

The Mailboxes Column ...