Downloading Email at Work and Home
There's no other major item most of us own that is as confusing, unpredictable and unreliable as our personal computers. Everybody has questions about them, and we aim to help.
Here are a few questions about computers I've received recently from people like you, and my answers. I have edited and restated the questions a bit, for readability. This week my mailbox contained questions about downloading email to both home and work computers, the differences in Treo models and transferring files between Windows systems.
If you have a question, send it to me at
mossberg@wsj.com, and I may select it to be answered here in Mossberg's Mailbox.
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Q: I want to download all my daily emails to both my home and office computers, which are both Dells. I am told that, in order to achieve this, I have to instruct my email program to keep my email on the server. How do I do that?
A: With most corporate email systems, and with a type of consumer email called "IMAP," email is synchronized among your computers. But many home users have a type of email called "POP," which isn't synchronized.
To get the same email messages on multiple machines, POP users have to instruct the email software on each computer not to delete messages from the remote server when they're downloaded to one of the PCs. That way, they remain available for downloading onto your other PCs. This is generally accomplished by turning on an option in the settings for your email account, which can be a convoluted process.
In Microsoft Outlook 2003, go to the Tools menu, select Email Accounts, then pick "View or Change Existing E-mail Accounts." Select the account you want, click Change, then, in the next window, click More Settings. In the next window, select the Advanced tab and click in the checkbox called "Leave a copy of messages on the server." Then click OK, then Next, and Finish, in the windows that follow. Whew.
In Outlook Express 6, it's a little easier, but not much. On the Tools menu, select Accounts, then Mail, then the account name you want. Click on Properties, then select the Advanced tab. Check the box next to "Leave a copy of messages on server." Then click OK, OK and Close.
Both programs allow you to set a number of days for the messages to stay on the server. I recommend setting that to 1 or 2, which is long enough so they'll be downloaded to all your PCs, but short enough so your mailbox on the server won't exceed its limits. I also suggest clicking an option that does delete from the server any messages you actually delete on any of your PCs. You're not likely to want to see those everywhere.
Q: Since the Treo 600 is much cheaper than the newer Treo 650, I am considering getting a 600 instead of a 650. What will I be missing if I do so?
A: The two models are very similar in their look and feel and their core functionality. The key differences are that the 650 has a much better screen, a removable battery, a slightly better keyboard and a better (but still not great) built-in camera. It also has Bluetooth wireless networking, and it is built much better, because Palm is using a different contractor to assemble the 650 than the one it used for the 600, which was plagued by quality complaints.
Q: I am about to buy a new computer running XP Pro. I want to selectively transfer some, but not all, files from my old Windows 98SE computer over a cable. What is the best program for the job?
A: I generally recommend IntelliMover by Detto, at
www.detto.com. Note, however, that IntelliMover won't move application programs -- only files, like Microsoft Office documents, pictures, songs, etc. If you want to move programs, try Alohabob PC Relocator, at
www.alohabob.com.* * *
Because of the volume of e-mail I receive, I can't routinely answer individual questions by e-mail, or consult on individual problems or purchasing decisions. I read all questions I receive and select three each week to answer in the column.
把邮件下载到多台电脑上
在我们大多数人拥有的大件电器中，再没有什么比个人电脑更令人费解、更变幻莫测的了。每个人或许都有些关于电脑的问题，而《莫博士信箱》将为您提供帮助。
本周我将回答读者如何将电子邮件下载到多台电脑上以及在不同操作系统的电脑间传输文件等问题。
问：我想把每天的工作邮件下载到家里和办公室的电脑（均为戴尔电脑(Dell)）中。我被告知要想这样做，就必须对邮件系统进行设置，把邮件储存在伺服器上。我怎样才能做到这一点呢？
答：在大多数公司电子邮件系统和一种名为“IMAP”的消费者电子邮件系统中，你所有电脑的电子邮件是同步更新的。但是，许多家庭用户配备的电子邮件系统叫做“POP”，是不会进行同步更新的。
为了把同样的电子邮件下载到多台电脑上，POP的用户必须对每台电脑的电子邮件软件进行设置，以便你在将某封邮件下载到其中一台机器上时，远程伺服器上的这封邮件不会被删除。这样一来，它们就可以供你下载到其他电脑上了。要实现这一点，通常你需要开启电子邮件帐户设置中的一个选项，这可能是个繁复的过程。
以Microsoft Outlook 2003为例，找到“工具”菜单，选择“电子邮件帐户”，然后选择“浏览或修改现有电子邮件帐户”。选择你想要的帐户，点击“修改”，然后在下一个窗口点击“更多设置”。再在下一个窗口选择“高级”栏，在名为“将讯息副本保留在伺服器”选项旁划勾。然后在随后出现的窗口点击“确定”、“下一步” 和“完成”。哎呀，可算完了。
在Outlook Express 6系统下，操作稍微简单一点，但也简单不到哪里去。在“工具”菜单中选择“帐户”、“邮件”、然后是你想要的帐户名称。点击“属性”，然后选择“高级”栏。在“将讯息副本保留在伺服器”的检验栏前面划勾。然后点击“确定”、“确定”和“完成”。
这两个系统都允许你设置将讯息保留在伺服器上的时间。我建议你设置为一天或两天，这足以让你把电子邮件下载到你所有的个人电脑上，但也能确保伺服器上的邮件数量不会超过容量限制。我还建议你选中能够将任何你实际上已经在个人电脑上删除的讯息从伺服器上永久删除的选项。你可能不会希望在哪儿都看到它们。
问：既然Treo 600比新款的Treo 650要便宜得多，我正在考虑买一台600而不是650。这样我会失去哪些功能呢？
答：这两款Treo在外形、手感和核心功能方面非常相似。主要的不同在于，650的屏幕好得多，电池是可拆卸的，键盘也要稍好一些，内置相机则更好（但还不是非常好）。 它还具有蓝牙无线网络功能，而且制造工艺要好得多，因为Palm用一个更好的合同商取代600的合同商来组装650，而600一直受到质量投诉的困扰。
问：我打算买一台运行XP Pro的新电脑。我想通过一根电线从我原来的Windows 98SE电脑中有选择地传输一些、但不是全部的文件。能完成这项任务的最佳程序是哪一种？
答：我一般会推荐Detto开发的IntelliMover，在
www.detto.com上有售。不过要注意，IntelliMover不会传输应用程序－－只传输文件，像Microsoft Office文件、图片、歌曲等等。如果你想传输程序，那就试试 Alohabob PC Relocator，在
www.alohabob.com有售。
