This document provides instructions on setting up a free email account and the basics of emailing. It recommends choosing from major email providers like Gmail, Yahoo, or Hotmail and explains how to set a username and password. The key parts of an email like the to, subject, and body are defined. It outlines how to send, receive, reply to, forward, and delete emails and how to be safe online by avoiding virus attachments or sharing private information. Netiquette tips are also provided along with reminding the reader to sign out when finished.

1. Huntington Beach Public Library

2. What is email?
 Short for electronic mail - Email
 Send & receive messages over the internet
 Must have an email account on-line.

3. What you need
 a computer with internet access
 an email account with a service provider such as
Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, etc
 NOTE: Microsoft Outlook and Apple Mail, are
NOT email providers (which is why you can’t
email from library computers without an account)

4. Choosing an email provider
 Most common are Hotmail (Microsoft), Gmail
(Google), Yahoo Mail (Yahoo!)
 For this class, we’ll be using Yahoo

5. Setting up your account
 Parts of an email address:
 Username and domain
 Example
 snoopy@yahoo.com
 user name : snoopy- you create your own - each
must be unique
 @ symbol : unique to email addresses (Shift key
+ 2) Separates user name from domain
 email provider’s name: yahoo
 domain : .com - others could be .net or .org

6. Password
 Something easy to remember, but difficult to guess
 Do NOT use sensitive information, such as SSN,
bank PIN, etc.
 Usually a combination of letters and numbers is
best
 Verification questions in case you forget your
password may be required on accounts.

7. Let’s set up our accounts!

8. Yahoo.com

9. Yahoo.com
 Click on “Create new account”
 Be sure to have user name and password ready
 Fill in as many blanks as required
 When finished – “Create new Account”
http://yahoo.com

10. Let’s compose an email!
 Click on NEW
 Have email address ready for the person to receive
your email

11. Parts of an email
 To : Enter the exact email address of your recipient
 Remember: name@provider.domain
 For multiple recipients, separate each address
with a comma (semi colon)
 CC : carbon copy
 BCC : BLIND carbon copy – is anonymous
 Subject : the topic of your email – very important –
keep it brief and to the point.

12. Parts of an email
 Body : the message of your email
 Attachments : Use the ATTACH button for files or
photos or other emails

13. Sending an email
 Communication can be tough with written
correspondence. No body language or facial cues
to help set the tone properly. Can be easily
misunderstood
 Err on the side of too formal
 Punctuation & spelling
 Greeting & closing signature
 ATTACH a file from a flash drive
 ALWAYS - Spell-check & proofread!

14. Sending an email
 Click on SEND to mail your letter
 Message will now appear in your SENT folder
 Once an email is sent, you cannot stop it or take it
back
 Check your SENT box now
 Check your inbox for your BCC

15. Draft Emails
 Drafts:
 When creating an e-mail the computer will
automatically save your work periodically. If for
any reason you should be interrupted (i.e. lapse
in internet connection) you can retrieve your
latest work in the DRAFT BOX.

16. Receiving email
 If you have any messages you should see them
listed in your Inbox
 At the top of each message is a header with
information about the sender, date, and routing of
each message.

17. Receiving email
 From: snoopy@yahoo.com
To: you@yahoo.com
CC:
Subject: Email Basics class
Date:Tues, 1 March 2011 10:31 PST

18. Replying to an email
 Reply vs Reply All
 When you click on Reply, your message will
automatically be sent to the person who sent
you the email (FROM field in header.)
 When you click on Reply All, your message will
automatically be sent to the person who sent
you the email AND everyone in the CC fields in
the header.

19. Forwarding an email
 When you click on FORWARD, you may share the
email you’ve received by sending it to others.
 You may add your own message before sending.
 Enter the TO’s and CC’s if using
 Click on SEND

20. Opening attachments
 Usually photos or documents are attached
 If you don’t know the sender, do NOT open the
attachment(s)
 SAVE vs OPEN the attachment FILE dialog box

21. Deleting email
 Once you’ve read an email, you should decide if
you want to save/file it or delete it.
 Click on delete to send the email to the TRASH
CAN(delete folder)
 The message disappears from your list of
messages but is not truly deleted, so if you make a
mistake you can get the message back – look in
the trash folder.

22. Deleting email
 Once you exit the program, the messages are
usually deleted for good.

23. Netiquette
 Common abbreviations – BTW, LOL
 Emoticons aka smilies

24. Privacy, viruses, & spam
 Privacy: CC vs BCC
 Viruses: Never open attachments from unknown
senders.
 Safety: Never send personal financial information
via email, even if it looks like a legitimate request
from your bank or financial institution.
 Spam: unsolicited commercial email
Delete - Click on Report Spam
SPAM BOX on Yahoo

25. Chatting
 Chatting
This is real-time communication with no delay.
Usually done with those you know online. Be
selective who you chat with. As with spam and
phishing, scams can occur with chatting as well

26. Important – Sign Out!

27. Signing off
 Be sure to log off the account before shutting down

28. Next Steps
 Visit the Computer Coaches
 Most hours that the library is open
Hours are subject to change. Please call ahead
to confirm: 714-842-4481 ext. 6
 Don’t forget that we’re here to help!
 Good luck!

29. Questions