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The internet connection must be configured first. Record all your set up details carefully and keep them safe.

DIAL-UP ACCOUNTS: These are free of monthly charges and you pay only for the time you are on-line. The charges appear on your usual phone bill. If you wish, you also can pay a monthly charge for an enhanced dial-up account.

There are three ways of setting up a dial-up internet account:-

(1) You already have an account with an ISP but you wish to set it up again. You need the details that were sent to you in a confirmation email by your ISP.
If it is a dial-up account these are:-
(a)  the ISP's dial up number (these begin with 0844 or 0845).
(b) Your logon address (username), sometimes this is your email address or part of it.
(c) Your password.
Armed with this information click Start-->Control Panel . Then double click Network Connections . On the blue panel at the top left click Create a new connection . A connection wizard will appear. Click Next . Select Connect to the Internet . Click Next . Select Set up my connection manually and click Next.   Select Connect using a dial up modem and click Next. Type in an identifying name for your ISP, anything will do as long as it relates to your ISP (for example type BT or Tiscali or Pipex etc), click Next . In the next panel type the ISP's telephone number, this usually begins with 0845 or 0844. Click Next. On the next panel enter your username and password. Click Finish .

(2) If you need to set up an account different from the one you use at the moment. Go on line using your current ISP. Access the new ISP's website. Sign up for a new dial-up account. The details will be entered into your computer automatically as you fill in the sign-up forms.

(3) If you have never had an internet account and wish to set one up. You have 3 choices:-
(a) You can create a dial-up account by using a CD supplied by an ISP.
(b) A new computer usually comes with a selection of ISPs, you could choose one of them (I would avoid AOL, unless you enjoy scrambling through an obstacle course every time you wish to get to a website or to your emails).
(c) If you don't fancy the ones delivered with the computer, then you need to somehow connect to the internet  before you can sign up for an account. The easiest way is to get a friend to temporarily set up his/her internet account on your computer. Then using the friend's temporary connection, access the website of the ISP of your choice and sign up for an account. When your account is set up, be sure to delete your friend's account.

BROADBAND INTERNET ACCOUNTS
Use the CD you received from the ISP. Read the instructions very carefully. Most broadband set ups will go wrong if you plug the broadband modem into the computer before you install the software. The password and username will be in the welcome letter/email from your ISP. You will be asked to enter these details during the setup. After the setup, you will have an icon on the Desk top for accessing your broadband connection. When you double click the icon you will see a panel with your password as a series of asterisks. You will also see the broadband telephone number. The telephone number will be either 0,38 or a zero, or it will be missing altogether. These weird telephone numbers are normal for broadband.

Do you see how important it is to keep safe the details sent to you by your ISP? If the details were sent by email, print out the email and keep it where you will find it in an emergency. If you have lost the details, you will need to contact your ISP's help line.

Now you need to configure Internet Explorer to suit your personal preferences.

Double click the Internet Explorer icon on the Desktop.

Your ISP (Internet Service Provider) provides a very comprehensive home page which includes (i) a search engine (ii) all the latest news, (iii) the weather (iv) the ability to peep into your email Inbox which is located at the ISP's headquarters.
Type its home page name (eg. www.eclipse.co.uk or www.tiscali.co.uk/news orwww.orange.co.uk/news  or http://home.bt.yahoo.com) Address field (NOT in the search window) and click Go or press Enter . When the Home page appears click Tools-->Internet Options . In the next window click the Use Current button. Then click Apply and click OK .
www.bbc.co.uk is by far the best and most useful home page.

On the grey menu bar in Internet Explorer, click Tools and click Internet Options . Click the Connections tab. Click the default internet connection (eg. btinternet (default) or whatever your ISP is. Click Settings (be very careful not to click the Remove button instead). Ensure that the Username and password are present. Click the Properties tab. Check that the ISP's dial-up number is correct. If you are on broadband the number will be 0,38 or 0 or there will be no number.
Tick the box next to Show icon in notification area when connected. Click OK.

Click OK until you are back in the main Internet Explorer window and then close it down.

Now you can set up your email account.

Set up an email account in Broadband or dial-up: You can only do this provided you have set up an internet account and found that you can access the internet successfully.

First you must determine whether the Outlook Express icon is on your desktop. If you can't see this icon on your desktop click Start and see if it is listed on the Start list. If it is listed, Right click it and holding down the Right mouse button drag it out to the Desktop and release the mouse button. Click Create shortcut or Copy here . If it is not listed you will need to dig deeper. Click Start-->All programs . If you can see Outlook Express (NOT Outlook) on the list of programs, then right click it and drag and drop a shortcut onto the desktop. If you cannot see Outlook Express on the program list, then double click My Computer-->Local Disk (C:) or whatever your main hard drive is called) -->Program Files-->Outlook Express. Look for the file called msimn.exe , right click it, then select Send to-->Desktop (create shortcut).

Now that the icon is on your Desktop , double click it. Outlook Express will pop up. If you don't already have an email account on your computer an Internet Connection Wizard will appear. (If you already have an account it won't appear, so you need to click Tools on the grey menu bar to make it pop up then click the Add button and select Mail ). Type in your real name using the format 'Fred Bloggs'. Click Next . On the next panel type in your email address. Click Next . The Email Server Names panel appears. In the top field leave the POP3 as it is and in the second field (Incoming...) enter the information given by your ISP. Fill in the Outgoing field and click Next .
The detail required in these fields varies wildly from ISP to ISP. Here are some of the most common ones:-
BT:      Incoming: mail.btinternet.com
            Outgoing: mail.btinternet.com
Tiscali: Incoming: pop.tiscali.co.uk
             Outgoing: smtp.tiscali.co.uk
Orange: Incoming: orangehome.co.uk
               Outgoing: orangehome.co.uk
Eclipse: Incoming: pop3.eclipse.co.uk
              Outgoing: smtp.eclipse.co.uk
Demon: Incoming: pop3.demon.co.uk
              Outgoing: post.demon.co.uk
TalkTalk: Incoming: mail.talktalk.net
                  Outgoing: smtp.talktalk.net
Post Office: Incoming: pop3.mypostoffice.co.uk
                     Outgoing: smtp.mypostoffice.co.uk
Vodafone: Incoming: pop3.vodafoneathome.co.uk
                  Outgoing: smtp.vodafoneathome.co.uk

Orange may have other settings because it has several times changed ownership and name.

After completing this panel click Next .
Now type in the Account name i.e. username. In most case this will be the full email address. In a few cases such as Orange this will be only part of the email address. Orange requires you to type in only the part after the @ symbol.
Type in your password and confirm it by typing the password again in the second password field. Tick the Remember Password box. Below that, leave the Log on using Secure Password Authentication box un-ticked unless your ISP asks you to tick it.
Most broadband ISPs require you to tick the box next to My Server Requires Authentication . Click Finish .

IMPORTANT SECURITY: To avoid opening emails automatically you must remove the Preview pane . If you don't do this, just resting the cursor on a dodgy email can open it and release a virus or reveal unpleasant spam. To avoid this danger, in Outlook Express , click View then Layout . Click the box labelled Show preview pane to remove the tick from it.
Click OK .

You will now have to double click an email to open it. You can safely single-click spam in order to delete it without seeing its content and without opening it.

Configuring Outlook Express to suit your personal preferences.
Note: Click the Apply button after each change.

In Outlook Express , click View then Layout . All boxes should be ticked except the ones labelled Outlook Bar and Show Preview pane .

In Outlook Express , click Tools-->Options.

Under the General tab, un-tick all the boxes except the ones labelled When started go directly to... , and Automatically display folders with unread...

Under the Read tab, un-tick everything except Mark Message read after.. .  and Automatically download...

Under the Receipts tab, select only the item Notify me for each read receipt request...

Under the Send tab the only ticked boxes should be:-
    Save copy of Sent messages... ,
    Automatically put people I reply to... ,
    Automatically complete email addresses... ,
    Reply to messages using the format...
For the Mail sending format select HTML
For News sending format select Plain text.
If you prefer to send messages immediately tick the appropriate box. I like to leave this un-ticked so that emails go to the Outbox, I can then alter the message later if I have second thoughts.

Under the Compose tab, change the font to 11pt next to Compose font .

Under the Spelling tab, tick the boxes labelled Always check spelling before sending, and Suggest replacements... Under Language, click the little down-arrow and select English (United Kingdom). Spell checking will only work if you have Microsoft Word installed.

Under the Security tab tick the items labelled Restricted sites zone..., Warn me when other applications... , and Do not allow attachments to be saved...

Under the Connections tab, tick the item labelled Ask before switching dial-up connections . Whether you tick the box labelled Hang up after sending and receiving is up to you. I prefer to stay on line and if necessary turn off the internet connection by clicking the two little monitors in the notification area.

Under the Maintenance tab, un-tick all the boxes.

When you have completed the configuration , close Outlook Express because the changes take effect after you re-open Outlook Express.

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