Outgoing Mail On WiFi

[JustaNoob]

How do I set up the email to send out if I'm in a hotspot where I don't know what the service provider is? Is there someway of adding a generic outbound SMTP?

[sralmas]

set up a free account with SoftHome

www.softhome.net

That should do it

[JustaNoob]

Doesn't that require that you sign up for a new email address? I don't want a new address, I want to POP my old account....

[sralmas]

ClieMail will let you use multiple accounts. So you can still receive POP from your old account, but send outgoing through the softhome account. I use my SoftHome account when on my work WiFi LAN, my ISP (RoadRunner) when on my home Wifi and Verizon's Airbridge.net when connecting through BT on my Timeport 270c

All works beautifully.

[david.silva]

Check your email provider's settings. My speakeasy DSL provides me an email acct with an smtp server that I can log in to when I'm out at another network..

[snfettig]

Originally posted by sralmas
ClieMail will let you use multiple accounts. So you can still receive POP from your old account, but send outgoing through the softhome account. I use my SoftHome account when on my work WiFi LAN, my ISP (RoadRunner) when on my home Wifi and Verizon's Airbridge.net when connecting through BT on my Timeport 270c

All works beautifully.

A bit OT, but sralmas, do you have to authenticate to use SMTP or do you simply log into a pop account and then are able to use SMTP? If you can simply use their SMTP server even when not on one of their "networks", then they are effectively running an open SMTP server (which is pretty dumb)...

Just curious.

On Topic: If you have a paid Yahoo! account (as an example), you can use their SMTP server (last time I used it, it required POP-before-SMTP, but they may have changed that). I think there are other services out there (especially if you have a webhosting account with a company like pair.com (http://www.pair.com)) that allow you to use their SMTP server if you don't have access to one or don't want to always change those preferences.

[mvgossman]

I have used my smtp and pop3 addresses successfully on my laptop at hotspots all over the place. I wonder why the Clie would have trouble???

[sralmas]

Originally posted by mvgossman
I have used my smtp and pop3 addresses successfully on my laptop at hotspots all over the place. I wonder why the Clie would have trouble???

It's not a UX issue. You happen to have a service provider that doesn't seem to care about being connected to another network while accessing their SMTP server, I suppose. Consider yourself fortunate. :-)

What ISP are you using?

[sralmas]

Originally posted by snfettig


A bit OT, but sralmas, do you have to authenticate to use SMTP or do you simply log into a pop account and then are able to use SMTP? If you can simply use their SMTP server even when not on one of their "networks", then they are effectively running an open SMTP server (which is pretty dumb)...


I have mine set up to their POP server and SMTP and I check POP first (no other authentication to smtp server is required). I don't give the Softhome addy to anyone so I don't get any email from that POP server anyway. My incoming comes from my RoadRunner POP server. I think you also have to configure ClieMail to have the softhome email addy as the email addy associated with the account. I think that there is some language on the Softhome setup pages about the smtp server being open and a sort of honor system abuse policy, but I don't recall.

[mvgossman]

Originally posted by sralmas


It's not a UX issue. You happen to have a service provider that doesn't seem to care about being connected to another network while accessing their SMTP server, I suppose. Consider yourself fortunate. :-)

What ISP are you using?

It's a provider called "Astound", www.astound.net, available only in a few areas around the country, including St. Cloud, Minnesota. It's a fiberoptic-based combined internet/phone/cable.

Maybe I'm in for a rude awakening as far as liberal SMTP/POP3 with that device. I hope not, hate to have to get another POP3 address.

[snfettig]

Originally posted by sralmas


I have mine set up to their POP server and SMTP and I check POP first (no other authentication to smtp server is required). I don't give the Softhome addy to anyone so I don't get any email from that POP server anyway. My incoming comes from my RoadRunner POP server. I think you also have to configure ClieMail to have the softhome email addy as the email addy associated with the account. I think that there is some language on the Softhome setup pages about the smtp server being open and a sort of honor system abuse policy, but I don't recall.

I doubt, given what you have written, that they have an open SMTP server, then. It is likely that through your POP authentication, you are set for what is called selective relaying that is activated when you first check email at that account. Whether or not mail is in the account or not is irrelevant anyway - it is the authentication method that opens the relay for your use. (And a timer closes that open hole after a given amount of time.)
Regardless, it is a nice feature to have when you are roaming about different networks ;)

[sralmas]

This is from SoftHome's FAQ:

SMTP AUTH and POP First
There are two ways you can authenticate to send email through SoftHome: SMTP AUTH and POP First.

You should use SMTP AUTH if your email program supports it. These days, most of them do. POP First is a kludge from our early days, before SMTP AUTH was available.

SMTP AUTH authenticates you directly with our SMTP server. This is transparent to you as a user. If you use POP First, you have to check for new mail before you send a message, which you will find is less convenient.

We will eventually phase out POP First, so please start using SMTP AUTH now.

What is SMTP AUTH?
SMTP is the protocol (the language) your email program uses to send email through our email server. AUTH is the part of that protocol that is used to verify that you are one of our users.

How do I turn on SMTP AUTH?
It varies...

In Netscape Messenger 4, simply type your SoftHome username below the SMTP server name.

In Outlook Express, click the button marked "My Server Requires Authentication".

Why can't I send email?
You need to authenticate before you can send email, much like you need to authenticate before you download your email. You can use either SMTP AUTH or POP First to authenticate for sending.

Alternatively, have you violated your Service Agreement or used your SoftHome account in an abusive fashion? If so, perhaps we canceled your account.

How do I use POP First?
Briefly, check for new email before you send your message.

POP is the protocol (language) your email program uses to download your email from our email server. Our email server briefly remembers that you checked for new mail, and allows you to send email during that period.

I use Outlook / Outlook Express.
You should use an email program that is more resistant to virii and worms. But if you insist:

Use SMTP AUTH. Click the button marked "Server Requires Authentication". It's below the SMTP server name. There's a similar button right next to it, so make sure you hit the right one. The other button should not be checked.


Great. Neither works with my email program. Now what?
Too bad. Tell the author of you email program. Better yet, use a modern email program.