How to logon via Telnet & use Pine to send email

 

I.  Above all else, Don't Panic!

II.  If you don't have a u.arizona.edu account and would like to make one (or if the username & password that you remember so clearly don't seem to be working.... ;-)   ):
  1. Go to any of the open p.c. computer labs listed in the CCIT publication provided in class or use your own computer if it's connected to the internet.  (procedures for mac computers are similar but some steps won't apply).
  2. Launch the telnet program as you learned to do in lab.  Remember to look for & left click on the telnet icon on the desktop.  Or you can locate & execute telnet by clicking on the Start button in the lower left corner of your desktop and then, while covering the Find option, click on the Files or Folders button.  Type 'telnet.exe' (with no single quotation marks, of course) in the named: field and hit enter.  Double click on the icon for telnet.exe.
  3. Remember that computers take you very literally.  Don't put in extra spaces between the parts of email or internet addresses.  Always assume that cApitaLIZatiON and speelling matter.  If something doesn't work, check your spelling, etc.
  4. Telnet to the UA's automated account management program by clicking on the Connect drop down menu and then select Remote System... by clicking on it.
  5. Clear the field called Host Name by deleting any characters in it and then type in 'account.arizona.edu' and hit enter.
  6. Follow the instructions carefully.  If you have questions, look in the first few pages of the CCIT publication.  On a later screen, you will be able to choose whether you want to create a new account, change your password, etc.  If you already have an account & don't know your password, select 'change your password'.  You will be assigned a new one.  Perhaps you might write it down in a secure place.   It will take something like an hour or more for any new accounts or password changes to register.
  7. Note:  you can also access UA's account manager by pointing your web browser (e.g., Netscape or Internet Explorer) to 'www.account.arizona.edu' (by now you all know not include the single quotation marks).
  8. If you are having trouble, ask a room monitor (the Helpful Person, not the display device) or someone sitting next to you for help.  Of course, you can always call 621-HELP or 621-CCIT or any of the other helpful sources listed in the CCIT publication.
III.  To logon to your u.arizona.edu account:
  1. Launch telnet as described above, but ...
  2. Connect to the u.arizona.edu host.  You do this by clicking on Connect and then selecting Remote System and typing 'u.arizona.edu' in the Host Name field & hitting enter.
  3. At the login: prompt, enter your username and hit enter.  Your username is the part of your email address before the @ sign.  For example, if my u.arizona.edu email address were paulb@u.arizona.edu (and it is), my username would be paulb.
  4. At the Password: prompt, enter your password and hit enter.  Note that you will not see your password as you type.  Don't Panic!  This is a normal security precaution.  Just type carefully, hit return and see what happens.
  5. If you get the message Login incorrect, repeat steps III, 4 (above) making sure that your usename and password are entered with extraordinary precision.  If you still get the Login incorrect and are sure that you remember ;-) & have correctly entered your username and password, repeat steps III, 1-4 making sure that you telnet to the host u.arizona.edu.  If you still have problems, you can either get a new password via steps I, 1-7  (above), or skip directly to I, 8 and call for help.
IV.  Once you are logged into your u.arizona.edu account, run the Pine email program:
  1. If you see a menu with options like Select "P" to run Pine now, etc., great!  Type 'p' and hit enter, then skip to step 3 (below).
  2. If you just see a prompt like '>' and no menu, type 'pine' and hit enter.
  3. You will see the Pine Main Menu.  Note that when using telnet, you will not be able to use your mouse to "point and click" on the menu options.  You can use the up arrow and down arrow keys to highlight the desired option and then hit enter.  Or you can type the letter to the left of the desired command (e.g., 'c' to compose message).
  4. Select compose message by either hitting 'c' or by using the arrows and hitting enter.
  5. To join the class listserv, use the arrow keys to position the cursor in the  To :   field, and then type 'listserv@listserv.arizona.edu' and hit enter.  If you have already joined the class listserv, you can send email to anyone else by entering their email address here.  Remember the spelling and capitalization are important.  If you get an error, a typo is the first thing to suspect.  Don't put spaces in email addresses!
  6. Scroll down to the Message Text area using the arrow keys (or the tab key).
  7. Type the message 'subscribe ListservName YourFirstName YourLastName' where ListservName is the name of the listserv you wish to join (i.e., for my Engl 100 sections use englstuds) and YourFirstName and YourLastName are ... well you know better than I.  For example, when I joined the englstuds listserv I sent the message 'subscribe englstuds Paul Burkhardt'.
  8. After you have typed in the above message, send the message by typing '^x'.  The '^' represents the 'Ctrl' or control key.  You must find the control key (its probably near the lower left hand corner of your keyboard) and hold the control key down while you press the 'x' key.
  9. Type 'y' when asked "Send the message?".  Congratulations!  You will receive a confirmation notice with instructions on how to use the listserv.
  10. Note:  A list of other useful control key commands is displayed at the bottom of your screen.
  11. If you have trouble or questions you can exit the compose message screen by typing '^c' (i.e., control c) to cancel the message and then typing '?' to get the help screen.  Please note that typing '?' requires holding down the shift key and then hitting the '?' (on most keyboards anyway).  I recommend checking out the help features on any new application that you are trying to use.
  12. If you are having trouble, look at the bottom of the screen for ideas on what key does what on each screen.  Play around -- you won't break anything as long as you don't hit the keys too hard.  If you get frustrated, ask a neighbor, ask the computer lab monitor, or call 621-HELP.
IV.  To check your mail:
  1. Make sure that you are on the Pine Main Menu screen.  If you aren't, you might try pressing 'm'.  If that doesn't work look at the key options at the bottom of the screen & experiment.
  2. Select the Folder List option by either pressing 'L' or by using the arrows & hitting enter.
  3. Select the Mail folder and hit enter.
  4. Select the Inbox and hit enter.
  5. Use the arrows to highlight the message you want to read and hit enter.
  6. Simple, right?  Read the instructions on using the listserv & try it out.  Or send me an email.  Or a friend.
  7. Remember, to send email to the class listserv, compose a message to englstud@listserv.arizona.edu, and then hit '^x' (control x) to send it.
  8. Note the variety of key commands available at the bottom of the screen.  For example, you can hit 'f' to forward the message to another email address; you can hit 'r' to reply to the sender's address; you can hit 'd' to delete the message; you can hit 'q' to quit the pine program.  With these commands, there is no '^' so you do not have to use the control key.
V.  Have fun!


Soon, we'll learn how to use graphical browsers and other email applications to communicate and collaborate more gracefully.