When we first got a Bulletin Board System up and running, everyone had accounts as members. Then we got a breakthrough: we were able to attach messages to the Internet using our domain name, and every four hours, we were able to transfer our messages in and out to the outside world. However, because of the cost to the group and the decline in use of the BBS, we closed down the system and there went the e-mail system we had in place. Ever since then, the only thing we use our domain name for is our Web site.

I liked the idea of everyone having an e-mail account, and it was fairly easy to remember addresses because it was your first and last name followed by our domain name. So my address was milt.hull@sacpcug.org. So for several years, I was trying to put in place an Exchange Server allowing us to reestablish our e-mail system, so everyone could start getting messages from the group again.

This system would allow several features. First and foremost, everyone would have an e-mail account with his or her first and last name like before. Then everyone could check his or her e-mail in several different ways. They could check it online using a Web-based system. They could pop it off using a pop client. Or they could simply have it automatically forwarded to their own account that they already have. Any way the user wanted to use it, it would be completely customizable.

So after I got elected, Ken Hopkins and I went to visit Robert DuGaue from CalWeb and discussed our proposal. He had been playing around with another system that would allow just what we were asking for. It is in the development stages at this time, but Ken and I have accounts to play with and it looks pretty good. The first thing we do is to point our browser to a specific Web Page. After downloading the page, we are asked to sign in using our login name and password. After logging in, we see our Control Center. The control center allows us to do several things. First and foremost is the e-mail system itself. We simply click on our mailbox and we are taken to our folders. We then can check our Inbox, check our follow-up folder, or check our unsent drafts folder. We can also check our address box as well as find a message within our folders. We can view our history by subject, date, contact person, or attachment. We can also see our trash bin. We can set up our own folders and choose the options we want our mail to abide by.

One of the cool features is the out-of-office reply option. We can simply state that we are going to be out of the office for a couple of days- or for that matter, weeks-and the person who is sending you mail will automatically get a reply from you stating whatever you want him or her to receive. You can even put your own signature at the end of every message. The pop setup will allow you to keep the mail on the server or delete it after it is popped off.

So far, Ken and I like it for the group. We just have to work out the details for right now. I suspect that it won't be long; we will get this system up and running very soon! I would also like to thank Robert for his efforts in helping our group achieve our goals. Without him, it would have taken more effort to accomplish them.