Using Pegasus: an exercise in getting to know e-mail

Module NA13hPeg

Contents

Audience and Objectives

• What this exercise is about
• Research tasks
• Creating a "Signature" file
• Keeping copies of your outgoing mail
• Sending the results to the instructor

About this document...

Audience:

This exercise is intended for people who:

• can use DOS-based computers
• have access to a local area or wide area network connection
• have a basic understanding of the principles of electronicmail (as provided by Module NA10c in this series)
• want to learn how to use the Pegasus electronic mail programfor DOS.

Objectives

When you successfully complete this exercise, you will be ableto...

• Make appropriate main-menu choices for reading new and oldmail, composing messages, and setting preferences
• Use the context-sensitive help system
• Respond appropriately to the standard confirmation dialogs
• Compose and send a message, including creating and using anaddress book, using group names, sending copies, using optionsnot found on the initial screen, attaching files to e-mail, andunderstanding how disk storage space is used when sending a message.
• Read , reply to, forward, and store incoming messages
• Understand where to find new messages and those that havealready been read
• Use the Pegasus facility for sorting messages into logicalgroups
• Set Pegasus options for saving copies, editing, printing,and other details
• Create a signature file.

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What this exercise is about...

This exercise has these parts:

1. Use the Pegasus on-line help system to find out about a particularaspect of Pegasus
2. Based on the on-line help, write a summary which would beuseful for you and your classmates as a "how-to" referencewhen using Pegasus
3. Find out what a "signature file" is and create one.
4. Set Pegasus to keep copies of your outgoing mail
5. Send an e-mail message to your instructor containing the researchinformation and your "signature file".

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Research tasks

Each person in the class will be teamed with other people, andeach team will be assigned one of these topics. Together, youshould write a brief (approximately 2-3 sentence) explanationof what the topic or task is about, followed by a "how-to"in outline form, explaining each step in the process. (Each memberof the team should send in a copy of the explanation as an e-mailmessage to the instructor, as described below.)

Your primary information source is the on-line "Help"feature of Pegasus, which you can access by pressing the <F1>function key at the top of the keyboard. This is a context-sensitivesystem, so you will have to explore the Pegasus system and reachthe area of the software you need to research, then press <F1>. For example, if you are asked to research how to use theaddress book, you will need to explore the main menu (using Helpif necessary) until you find a reference to the address book.When you begin to create the address book, you can press <F1>at several points when you need help.

Hint: one team member keep notes while the other(s) navigatethe computer...

Specific topics:

1. The main menu: what each top-level item is for
2. How to use the context-sensitive help system
3. How to compose and send a simple message
4. How to create an address book
5. How to use an address book when sending a message
6. How to send mail to groups of users using Novel "group"names
7. How to use options not found on the initial create-a-messagescreen
8. How to attach files to e-mail
9. How to set Pegasus options for saving copies of your outgoingmail. (Everyone will need to find out how to do this, but onlyone group will have to write about it!)
10. How to set Pegasus editing options
11. How to set Pegasus printing options
12. How to create a signature file. (Everyone will need to findout how to do this, but only one group will have to write aboutit!)
13. Dealing with incoming mail:
    1. Reading
    2. Replying to
    3. Forwarding
    4. Storing, including creating folders and sorting messages tothese

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Creating a "Signature" file

A signature file is something that is automatically put at theend of each outgoing message you send. It is useful for givinginformation on how to contact you, who you are, and (optionally)an inspirational or amusing saying.

Pegasus gives you the option of creating three separate signaturefiles, one for local mail, one for organizational mail, and onefor Internet mail. You should create an Internet signaturefile and you may create ones for the local and organizationallevels if you wish.

Part of your task will be to use the Pegasus on-line help to findout how to do this!

When you send the results of your research project to the instructor,it should have your "signature" file at the end. Youwill not be able to see this unless you keep a copy of your outgoingmail...

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Keeping a copy of your outgoing messages

You will need to keep copies of your outgoing mail in case theyare lost of not delivered to your instructor (or anyone else!)This is an optional setting which you will need to research andcarry out. Although the instructor will not normally know whetheryou succeeded in doing this, you'll be glad you did!

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Sending the results to the instructor

When you have completed the tasks above, and your team has agreedon a written form of the research report, each individual shouldsend a copy to the instructor. Your copy should have your ownsignature.

Larry Krieg's e-mail address:

krieg@wccnet.edu

(Hint - put this in a personal address book, since you'll besending several messages to your instructor!)

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About this document...

Module NA13hPeg: Using Pegasus: an exercise in getting toknow e-mail

Author:

LaurenceJ. Krieg

Institution:

Departmentof Computer Information Systems,Washtenaw Community College

Revision Date:

26 January 1996

Sponsored in part by CoNDUIT

CoNDUIT is a registeredservice mark of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.CoNDUITis funded by the U.S. Department of Energyunder Cooperative Agreement No.DE-FC05-94OR22341, as part of theAdvanced Research Projects Agency'sTechnology Reinvestment Project.Statements contained on these pages do not necessarily reflectthe views of the Department of Energy, ARPA, or the U.S. Government.

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