# Mailing a Message

If using SMTP mail , creating a electronic mail message is nearly identical to creating a news article. If using MAPI, then instead of opening a composition window, WinVN opens the available MAPI interface (i.e. Microsoft Mail).

You can use WinVN to send an electronic mail message either as a personal reply to the author of an article, or as an independent message.

A message contains headers followed by the text of the message. A message is directed to one or more recipients by filling in the "To:" header field. Multiple recipient addresses are separated with commas. To use the mail address manager, click on the Browse button next to the "To:" field (See Mail Address Manager.)

If using SMTP mail and you are running Windows 3.x, WinVN needs to know your time zone so it can generate valid dates. See Setting the TZ Environment Variable.

Reply Messages

A reply message has the same "Subject:" line as the article which inspired it. (The notation "Re:" is added.) Also, a reply message typically selectively quotes the article which inspired it, to give some context to the recipient.

To compose a reply message, select the Compose Mail option from the Respond menu or toolbar of an article window. If using SMTP, WinVN creates a composition window. If using MAPI, WinVN opens the MAPI interface (i.e. Microsoft Mail). Initial header fields are filled in with information taken from your Personal Info configuration and from the header of the referenced article. The full text of the referenced article is also included in this window, with each line preceded by a ">" to indicate that an article is being quoted. You should delete irrelevant quoted lines. Some news servers will reject postings which contain more quoted text than new text.

New Messages

To compose a "brand new" message (one that does not reference an article), select the Compose Mail option from the Options menu or toolbar in the main window or from the Articles menu or toolbar in any Group Article-list window. If using SMTP, WinVN creates a composition window for your new article. If using MAPI, WinVN opens the MAPI interface (i.e. Microsoft Mail) editor (you may be prompted to log in before proceeding). Initial header fields are filled in based on your your Personal Info configuration.

You must fill in an appropriate subject for the new article on the "Subject:" field, and a recipient on the "To:" field.

Forwarding an Article

To forward an article via mail, select the Forward Article option from the Respond menu or toolbar in an article window. See Respond Menu Commands. If using SMTP, WinVN creates a composition window. If using MAPI, WinVN opens the MAPI interface (i.e. Microsoft Mail). Initial header fields are filled in with information taken from your WinVN configuration (see Configure Personal Info) and from the header of the referenced article. The full text of the forwarded article is also included in this window, preceded by a line which says "--Forwarded--". You may include any introductory text by editing the article before sending it.

You must fill in a recipient on the "To:" field.

Sending the Message

When you have completed composing your message, you can send it to the network or cancel it. (If using SMTP, see Composition Menu Commands.) If the message is sent successfully, the composition or MAPI edit window is closed.