SMITH MAIL BASICS
In GroupWise, mail and calendar management are combined in a single application. In Google Apps, mail and calendar functions are handled by separate Mail and Calendar applications accessed from the top menu bar.
The information below provides an introduction to Smith Mail, Smith's version of Google Mail.
GroupWise-to-Smith-Mail terminology
Where do I start?
Quickstart guides and videos from Google
Frequently-asked questions
GroupWise-to-Smith-Mail Terminology
Different applications often use different names for the same function. The table below matches GroupWise terminology to Smith Mail terminology.
| In GroupWise | In Smith Mail |
| folder | label |
| rule | filter |
| grant proxy access | delegate |
| work-in-progress | draft (created automatically as you work) |
| archive, meaning a separate location outside your regular GroupWise mailbox, used to store older messages not in active use | No equivalent. In Smith Mail, all your messages are stored in one very large (25 gigabyte) fully-searchable All Mail container. If you select a message and click the Archive button, it simply removes the message from your Inbox. It is already in your All Mail container. |
| inbox + all folders + trash | All Mail |
| thread | conversation |
Where do I start?
To get started, open Chrome (or any other browser) and go to http://mail.smith.edu to sign in to your Smith Mail account.
After you log in,
your starting view will always be your Inbox. Just as in GroupWise, your folder/label list is on the left and your message list is on the right, with any unread messages in bold at the top.
Back to top>
| Quickstart Guides from Google | Quickstart Videos from Google |
Sending, replying, and other basics |
Gmail overview (1:45 min) |
Note that each of the pages above opens in a separate window.
Frequently-Asked Questions About Smith Mail
What's the difference between a folder and a label?
Labels do all the work that folders do, but with an added bonus - you can assign multiple labels to any message if it fits more than one of your labels.
When you click on any label in the list on the right of your Mail window, every message with that label will be displayed. To learn more about labels, click here.
What happens when I use the Move function?
When you select one or more messages and click on the Move icon, you will see a list of all your existing labels, and you can create a new label or select an existing one. When you click Done, the Move function attaches the label to your selected message and moves it out of the Inbox and into the archive.
To view a message after you've moved it, you can either search for your message by any key word, click on any label to see all the messages with that label, or click on the All Mail link. But what if All Mail isn't visible?
How can I display All Mail or Trash or Spam?
By default, these "system labels" are hidden when your account is first created. You can access them anytime by clicking the More button at the bottom of your label list, but if you prefer to keep them visible at the top of your list, here's how:
- Click the Options button (gear icon) beside your username and select Mail settings from the menu, as shown below. (You can also get to Settings from the other gear icon on the screen.)
Note that you can also use this menu to access Mail help.
- In the Settings window, click on the Label tab.
- In the System label area, click on the show link for the labels you'd like to see.
Note that you can also choose to hide or show any of the labels you created yourself.
In Smith Mail, granting proxy access is called delegation. You can grant delegation rights to up to 25 other users.
Note that you cannot assign different types of rights to different users as you could in GroupWise. Instead, every delegate will have full access to your email and contacts list and can send, reply to, and delete messages from your account.
Any messages sent by someone else from your account will list your name in addition to the other person's name in the From field. For example: Mary Smith (sent by John Jones).
For more information, click here.
Note: Delegating an email account does not delegate your calendar. For more information, see the Calendar Basics page.
How do I create a vacation response?
- Click the cogwheel icon
to access your Mail settings.
- On the General tab, select Vacation responder on in the Vacation responder: section.
- Enter the subject and body of your message in the Subject and Message fields.
Note: If you've enabled a personalized signature in your settings, Smith Mail will automatically append it to the bottom of your vacation response.
- if you don't want everyone who emails you to know that you're away from your mail, check the box next to Only send a response to people in my Contacts.
- Click Save Changes.
More about vacation responses
Whenever the vacation responder is enabled, you'll see a banner across the top of any Mail page displaying the subject of your vacation response.
- To stop Smith Mail from automatically sending the response, click End now within the banner.
- To edit your vacation response, click Vacation settings within the banner.
Note that every time your edit the subject or body of your vacation response while it remains enabled, Smith Mail will treat it as a new vacation response. This means that even if someone already received your initial vacation response, if they send you another message after you edit the response, they will receive the edited version as well.
- Note that messages classified as spam and messages addressed to a mailing list you subscribe to will not receive a vacation response.
- For more information, click here.
Can I change the default font for my Smith Mail messages?
In Google Chrome, go to Settings/Options/Under the Hood/Web Content, then select either a larger or a custom font.
How does Google assign priorities to messages?
Google places a small yellow arrow on some of your incoming messages. For more information about Googles importance-ranking scheme, click here.
More Getting Started Guides for Smith Mail
The documents below were written by Google and explain how to perform typical mail operations using Smith Mail (Google Mail).
Top 34 FAQs for Google Mail
http://learn.googleapps.com/top-faqs-1Introduction to Google Mail
This page mentions business users, but the instructions apply to all users.
http://learn.googleapps.com/gmail
Google Mail & Calendar for Power Users
http://learn.googleapps.com/executive-assistants
