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Using the Pine mail program
on Temple's central Unix systems

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Full Document

I. Introduction

Pine is a full-featured mail package available on Temple's central Unix systems (Astro and Nimbus). To access pine, log in to your account and type 1 to select pine from the Unix menu or type pine at the Unix system prompt and press Enter. You will then see the pine Main Menu. To learn how to use pine, follow the instructions below. If you are using pine for the first time, you can learn how the program works by sending e-mail to yourself.

II. Sending mail messages

To send a message, press c from the Main Menu. You will then see the Compose Message screen. In the To: row, type the e-mail address of the message recipient in the following format: loginID@system-name (for example, jdoe@aol.com). If the recipient uses the same system that you are logged into, you don't need to specify a system name, but only the loginID. To send a message to more than one recipient, type a comma after each e-mail address.

Note: If you defined a nickname for an individual or group of individuals, you can enter the nickname instead of the e-mail address. To select from the list of available nicknames, press ^T and, with the highlight bar over .addressbook, press Enter. Then move the highlight bar over the nickname and press Enter. (For more information on nicknames, see Section V, Creating an address book.)

If you would like to send a "carbon copy" of the message to another user, tab to the Cc: row and type the loginID (if the recipient is on the same system), or the loginID@system-name, or the nickname. (Attachments are covered later in this section.) Next, tab to the Subject: row, type a subject for the message, and press the Tab key again. You will then be in the Message Text portion of the screen where you can type your message. A list of commands is displayed at the bottom of the screen. The ^ symbol means hold down the Control or Ctrl key while you press the corresponding letter. Although the letters are displayed in uppercase, type them as lowercase.

When you are ready to send the message, hold down the Control key and press the letter x (^X). When the system prompts you to verify that you want to send the message, press y. You will then be returned to the Main Menu.

A copy of each of your outgoing messages is saved in your account in a folder called sent-mail. (For information on using pine folders, see Section IV, Filing your messages.)

A. Bringing a file into a message

To copy a file from your home directory into a mail message, press ^R in the Message Text portion of the screen. If you know the name of the file, type the filename and press Enter. Otherwise, press ^T to see the files and directories in your home directory.

If the file is in the currently displayed directory, move the highlight bar over the filename and press Enter. If the file is in a subdirectory, move the highlight bar to the subdirectory and press Enter. Then move the highlight bar over the file and press Enter. The file will be brought into your mail message and the cursor will be placed at the end. To move up a directory, move the highlight bar over .. (parent dir) and press Enter.

B. Checking your spelling

To check the spelling of your message, press ^T in the Message Text portion of the screen. The spell checker will stop at each word it doesn't recognize. Press Enter to leave the word as-is or type the correct spelling and press Enter.

C. Searching for a phrase

To search for a phrase in your message, press ^W in the Message Text portion of the screen. Then type the phrase and press Enter. The prompt will appear at the first occurrence of that phrase.

D. Justifying a paragraph

If the file you bring into your mail message contains paragraphs that are too wide, move the cursor over each of those paragraphs and press ^J. For each paragraph the cursor is on, the system will reformat the text so it wraps correctly. This command will also combine a group of lines into a single paragraph. To unjustify the paragraph, press ^U.

E. Postponing a message

To postpone a message you are currently writing, press ^O to return to the Main Menu. The next time you choose c to compose a message, the system will prompt you as follows: Continue postponed composition (answering "No" won't erase it)? Press y to continue with the message or n to start a new message. You will see this prompt each time you compose a message until you continue with the message you postponed.

F. Attaching a file

Pine follows the MIME protocol, which is an Internet standard for sending and receiving binary file attachments. Most current mail packages are now MIME-compliant. As long as the recipient uses a MIME-compliant mailer, he or she should be able to access your file attachment without problems. If, however, the recipient does not use a MIME-compliant mail package, he or she may not be able access your file. In this case, save the file as text and bring it into the mail message as described above in Section A, Bringing a file into a message.

Files that you attach to your messages must already be stored in your account. This means that if you created a file on a Macintosh or PC, you must first upload it. Instructions for uploading and downloading files are provided on the Computer Services web page under Documentation. Quick reference guides are also available at the Help Desk and Computer Services Departments.

To attach a file to a message, tab to the Attchmnt row in the message header and press ^J. If the file is in your home directory and you know its name, type the filename and press Enter. Otherwise, press ^T to display the files and directories in your home directory. If the file is in the currently displayed directory, move the highlight bar over the filename and press Enter. If the file is in a subdirectory, move the highlight bar to the subdirectory and press Enter. Then move the bar over the file and press Enter. To move up a directory, move the highlight bar over .. (parent dir) and press Enter.

The system will prompt you to enter an optional comment for the attachment. When you press Enter, the file will be attached to your mail message. (For information on viewing and saving attachments, see Section III, Viewing attachments.)

G. Creating a signature file

To automatically display a personalized message at the bottom of each of your outgoing mail messages:

1. From the Main Menu, press s twice.

2. Type the message that you want to appear.

3. Press ^X to exit and then y for yes.

III. Reviewing your messages

Mail that is sent to you is stored in a folder called INBOX. To read the messages in your INBOX, press i at the Main Menu screen. An index containing a list of messages will appear. Each entry will be identified by date, sender, and subject. Messages that you haven't yet read will be preceded with the letter N.

Messages in your INBOX are stored in the mail spool, which is in a directory shared by all users on the system. It is important that your mail does not take up more than 2MB of disk space because if the shared space runs out, nobody on the system will receive their e-mail.

If your account is on Nimbus or Thunder, you can see how much of the mail spool you are presently using by typing whatquota -mail at the Unix system prompt. If you are using more than 2MB of disk space, delete some messages or move them to a folder other than the INBOX. For information on how to delete messages, see Deleting a message, in this section. For information on how to to move messages to a folder, see Section IV, Filing your messages.

A. Reading incoming mail

To read a message, use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the message and press Enter. To return to the index screen at any time, press i.

B. Replying to a message

To reply to a message, select the message on the Folder Index screen or open the message. Then press r. You will be prompted to include the original message in the reply. If the message was sent to more than one recipient, you will also be prompted to choose whether to reply to the sender only or to the sender as well as all the recipients. Press n to reply only to the sender or press y to reply to all the original recipients of the message.

You will then be placed in the Message Text area of the Compose Message Reply screen. If you included the original message, the message will appear further down on the screen preceded by greater-than symbols (>). You can add your own text if you like, or edit the original message. To delete parts of the original message one line at a time, move the cursor to the line and press ^K. When you finish your reply, press ^X and then y for yes to send it. When you return to the Folder Index screen you will see the letter A next to the message indicating you answered it.

C. Forwarding a message

To forward a message to another person, first select the message on the Folder Index screen or open the message. Then press f. In the To: row, type the loginID@system-name or nickname of the intended recipient and press Enter. Then type ^X. When you are prompted to send the message, press y.

D. Deleting a message

To delete a message, first select the message on the Folder Index screen or open the message. Then press d. The letter D will appear next to the message, indicating it is marked for deletion. To unmark a message for deletion, return to the message and press u. When you exit from pine, you will be prompted to expunge (permanently delete) the message.

E. Saving a message as a file

To save a message as a file in your home directory, first select the message on the Folder Index screen or open the message. Then press e.Type a filename for the message and press Enter. If the filename exists, you will be prompted to press o to overwrite it or a to append the message to the existing file.

F. Printing a message

To print a message, first save it as a file as described in the paragraph above. Then perform the following:

1. Press q from the Main Menu to exit pine.

2. Then, type one of the following commands at the Unix system prompt:

  • lpr -Pground filename to print to the Student Computing Center
    (Wachman Hall, Ground floor).
  • lpr -Ppaley filename to print to the Paley Scholars Information Center
    (Paley Library, 1st floor).
  • lpr -Pambler filename to print to the Ambler SIC
    (Library Building, Room 29).
  • lpr -Phsc filename to print to HSC Computer Services
    (General Services Building, Room 327).
  • lpr -Ptucc filename to print to the Center City Campus
    (1616 Walnut Street, Room 401).

G. Viewing attachments

If a file is attached to a message, the header will contain the line, Parts/attachments and the attachments will be listed underneath. If a comment was included with the attachment, it also will be displayed. To view an attachment, open the message and press v. Then move the arrow to the number associated with the attachment and press Enter. Disregard the first number as this refers to the body of the message, which you already can see. To save an attachment, press s, type a filename or accept the default name, and press Enter. The file will be placed in your home directory. To return to the Message Text screen, press e twice.

IV. Filing your messages

Folders enable you to organize your messages. For example, if you subscribe to a Listserv discussion group, you can create a folder just for that discussion group and store your messages there. Similarly, you can create a folder to store your messages from a particular person. If you don't move a message to a folder you created, it will remain in the INBOX folder. Also, as mentioned earlier, each of your out-going messages is saved in a folder called sent-mail.

A. Opening a folder

To open a folder, press l from the Main Menu to display the Folder List screen. Then use the arrow keys or Tab key to move the highlight bar over the folder and press Enter.

B. Creating a folder

To create a folder, press l from the Main Menu to display the Folder List screen. Then press a, type the folder name, and press Enter. For example, you could name your folder, Tom. The folder name will then appear on the screen. To return to the INBOX, move the highlight bar over INBOX and press Enter.

C. Saving a message in a folder

To save a message in a folder, press i to view the Folder Index screen. Make sure you are in the INBOX folder, which will be indicated on the top right portion of the screen. If you are not in the INBOX folder, open the INBOX as described above in Section A, Opening a folder.

Select the message on the Folder Index screen or open the message and press s. You will be prompted to save the message in a folder called saved-messages. To save the message in this folder, press Enter. To save the message in another folder, type the name of the folder. If instead you wish to select from a list of folders, press ^T. Then move the highlight bar to the folder and press Enter twice. When the message is moved, it will be marked for deletion from the INBOX.

D. Renaming and deleting folders

To rename a folder, press l. Move the highlight bar over the folder and press r. Then type the new name and press Enter. To delete a folder, move the highlight bar over the folder and press d. When prompted to verify your action, press y for yes.

V. Creating an address book

Pine enables you to assign nicknames to people with whom you frequently correspond and store the nicknames in an electronic "address book." Instead of having to type the e-mail address, you can type only the nickname. For example, you can assign the nickname john to the loginID jdoe@vm.temple.edu and then only enter the nickname when sending mail. If you forget the nickname, you can select it from a list.

In addition to assigning a nickname to one person, you can also assign a nickname to a distribution list. Then, when you specify that nickname, the message will be sent to each person on the list.

A. Creating a nickname

To create a nickname for an individual person or a distribution list:

1. Press a from the Main Menu. The Address Book List screen will appear.

2. With the highlight bar over .addressbook, press Enter. The Address Book screen will appear.

3. Press the @ key (Shift+2).

4. Type a nickname for the person or distribution list and press Enter.

5. Type the full name of the person or distribution list and press Enter.

6. Tab to the Addresses column and type the e-mail address (loginID@system-name) of each person you want to associate with this nickname, making sure to separate each e-mail address with a comma. If the account is on the same system, you need only enter the loginID. Then press ^X and then y for yes. The entry will appear in the address book, which you can now use to send mail. You can now use the nickname to send mail to everyone included in the list.

B. Editing or deleting an address book entry

To edit an entry in the address book, press a from the Main Menu. With the highlight bar over .addressbook, press Enter. Move the highlight bar over the entry, and press Enter. Then make your changes and press ^X and then y for yes.

VI. Accessing the Cherry & White Pages

Temple has an online directory called the Cherry & White Pages. Information in this directory is voluntary. Any Temple student, faculty, or staff member who wants to be listed can go to this site and fill in information, such as name and e-mail address and optional data such as department, phone number, web page URL, and mailing address.

If you frequently correspond with Temple colleagues, you can directly access the Cherry & White Pages. Pine comes with a feature called Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) that allows you to do this.

A. Using the Cherry & White Pages to address a message

To send a message to someone at Temple, press the letter c to compose a message and then type the person's first or last name on the To line, and press Enter. If information matching your entry is listed in the Cherry & White Pages, the person's full name will appear followed by an e-mail address. If more than one selection appears, highlight the one you want and press Enter. If a full name does not appear and the system simply attaches its own name (e.g., astro.temple.edu) to your entry, the person is not listed in the Cherry & White Pages and the address is not valid.

B. Accessing the Cherry & White Pages

You can also directly access the Cherry & White Pages by following the steps below.

1. At the Pine Main Menu, press the letter a for Address Book.

2. Using the arrow keys, highlight Temple University Cherry & White Pages and then press Enter.

3. At the search prompt, enter a person's last name, first name, or e-mail address.

4. If the person has entered data into the directory, the information will be displayed. If more than one person matches your search string, use the arrow keys to move to the person to whom you wish to send e-mail, and press Enter. You will then see another screen containing some additional information about that person, such as name, e-mail, web page, phone number, and department.

5. To send e-mail to the person, press the letter c. To save this entry in your personal address book, press the letter s and then s again. To exit the entry screen, type the lesser than (<) key.

VII. Exiting from Pine

To exit from pine, press q from the Main Menu.

© 1999. Temple University. All rights reserved.
Version 2.3, A14