Using Message Editor

The built-in Message Editor supports all e-mail standards, and thus, you can, for example, use it to write Text or HTML type of messages, attach unlimited number of files, and so on.

When you want to add special emphasis or structure to message text such as bold text, color, or bulleted lists, you can use Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), the standard for formatting text for the Internet. HTML messages are different from text messages since they can contain formatted text, tables, pictures, and dynamic elements like animations, flashes, etc. HTML messages are basically web pages; therefore, everything that can be said about web pages applies to HTML messages as well.

The HTML editor is simply "What You See is What You Get". Basically, you set up the page and see how it looks with different elements such as text, images, forms, tables, etc. And it automatically makes the HTML coding for you. This can be nice, however, much of the HTML code is usually junk and you have no control over it. For serious web developers or designers, using the HTML editor just isn't a good idea because many like to have a very specific say in how their HTML code ends up. Applying HTML editing not only improves an author's control of format and appearance, but can also help authors work effectively without knowing HTML. By using HTML editing, users can simply click buttons to alter paragraph formats, font sizes, typefaces, font weights, colors, and so on.

HTML Editing provides the following functionality to the user:

• Importing from a local or online web page.
• Importing from an .eml file.
• Standard editing functionality such as caret positioning, keyboard navigation, drag and drop, and content selection.
• Copy, cut, delete, and paste operations.
• Unlimited undo and redo.
• The ability to toggle selected text between bold, italic, and/or underlined.
• The ability to alter typeface, font size, fore color, and back color.
• The ability to remove formatting.
• The ability to increase or decrease indentation.
• The ability to justify text (left, center, right).
• The ability to create ordered and unordered lists.
• The ability to create a hyperlink or bookmark.
• The ability to insert inline personalization scripts.
• The ability to insert a horizontal line.
• The ability to insert an image.
• The ability to insert a flash.
• The ability to insert a table.
• The ability to insert a variety of intrinsic controls. These include buttons, text boxes, radio buttons, check boxes, submit controls, and drop-down and list boxes.

Users can exploit the HTML editing as a means to generate proper and consistent HTML and XML code. The HTML editor generates standard HTML, allowing third-party applications to quickly adapt the latest Microsoft browser features.

To compose your message by Message Editor, click Message in the project view header.

From
Selects the From account for the message. If no account is listed, you may need to create an account.

Reply To
Selects the Reply To account for the message. If no account is listed, you may need to create an account.

To
Selects the email field of the recipients list.

Subject
The subject for the message.

Messages
The WYSIWYG message editor view, you may click Text Message, HTML Design, HTML Source or Preview to switch between the editor views.

Text Message
Switches to plain text editor for plain text message.

HTML Design
Switches to WYSIWYG rich message editor for HTML message.

HTML Source
For advanced users, switches to view or edit the source code of HTML message.

Preview
Switches to the preview of the HTML message page.

Attachments
The attachments view as icons.

Add
Adds an attachment file to the message.

Remove
Removes the selected attachment from the message.

Advanced, Tracking Settings
Specify the message format (HTML format, Plain text format or both), priority, character set or enable the tracking of the project.

Note
When you use formatted HTML and the recipient's e-mail or news program cannot read HTML, the message appears as plain text with an HTML file attached. Most e-mail programs that support Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) can read HTML formatting.