The network logon dialog.
OWA For PDA User Manual
Introduction:
This document describes the use of the OWA For PDA application produced by www.leederbyshire.com . OWA For PDA provides Outlook Web Access functionality to mobile devices that have an HTML browser, but would not normally be suitable for use with the normal OWA installation.
Please be aware that the images depicted in this document are for illustration only, and what you will see on your own device will vary according to its capabilities and features.
Contents
Logging on to OWA For PDA
Reading Messages
Sending Messages
Quick Message
The Calendar
Contacts
Address Lists
Tasks
Notes
Empty Deleted Items
Item Listings
Accessing Folders
Options
Time Zone
Public Folders
Log Off
Logging on to OWA For PDA
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Your OWA For PDA installation is accessed using your device browser, just like normal OWA on the desktop. To open OWA-PDA, activate the browser, and navigate to the URL given to you by your Exchange administrator. This will normally be of the form: http://servername/owa-pda , although your administrator may have configured it to use https:// (Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL) if your device supports it.
The first thing you will see is a network logon dialog similar to that shown below. Type in your network credentials to gain access to the application. Note that it is usually considered a security risk to select the 'Save Password' option if your browser offers it.
The network logon dialog.
The next screen that you see will be either the Mailbox Name screen, the main Mailbox screen, or the Inbox display. Which one you see will depend upon which version of Exchange your organization is using, and how your administrator has configured the application. If you see the Mailbox Name screen, then you will need to type in the name of your Exchange mailbox before proceeding.
The Mailbox Name screen, and the main Mailbox screen.
Reading Messages
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To check your Inbox messages, click on the 'Inbox' link on the mailbox screen. You will see a list of your messages displayed.
Individual messages are opened by selecting a message subject hyperlink. When you have finished reading a message, you can select one of the hyperlinks to return to the Inbox folder or the Mailbox screen. You can also move quickly to the previous, or next, message (if there is one) by using the <P or N> hyperlinks. If you have enabled the Mark As Read option, then the message is marked as Read in your mailbox, and a Read Receipt is returned to the sender if one was requested when the message was sent (there is an option to disable Read Receipts if you use Exchange 2000, 2003 or 2007).
By selecting the Actions link you can mark the message as unread; mark it for Follow-up; move it to another folder; or see the message recipients and headers.
There are several options that you can configure to change the appearance of the message listing. These are described in the Options section.
Messages in the Inbox.
Sending Messages
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There are two ways to send a message: the 'normal' way, with Address Lists and Message Options available, and the 'quick' way.
To send a message in the normal way, click on the Send Message link on the main mailbox page. You will see a page showing a summary of the new message properties. From here you can click on the To link (or Cc or Bcc) to add message recipients; the Message link to compose the actual message; and the Options link to set message options such as delivery receipts, and the message importance. Click on the Send link when you are ready to send the message.
If you click on Cancel on the main New Message page, the message will be deleted; if you click on Save, it will be saved in your Drafts folder or Outbox. If you click on Cancel on any other page, you will be returned to the main New Message page.
The New Message Properties.
Quick Message
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If you would rather dispense with the Address Lists and Options, you may prefer to use the Quick Message link. From here you can just type in an address, and the message subject and text.
The Quick Message interface.
The Calendar
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To open your Calendar, click on the Calendar link on the main mailbox page. Appointments for the selected day and subsequent days are listed. From here you can open individual Appointment items, create new Appointments, or use the 'Go To' link to change the selected date.
Selecting an individual Appointment item will display its details. From here you can edit, or delete, the Appointment; or return to the item's Calendar folder, or the Mailbox.
The Calendar.
Contacts
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To view your Contacts, click on the Contacts link on the main mailbox page. You can filter your Contacts list using the Name, Address, Phone, Company or Department fields. From here you can open individual Contact items, and create new ones.
Selecting an individual Contact item will display its details.
The Contacts list.
Address Lists
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To view the server's Address Lists, click on the Address Lists link on the main mailbox page. From here you can view individual address entries, or select a different Address List to view. You can refine your search by filtering the results using the Name, Address, Phone, Company or Department fields. Selecting an address will create a new message to that address.
The Address Lists.
Tasks
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To view your Tasks, click on the Tasks link on the main mailbox page. You can choose to view all Tasks, or just 'Open' ones. From here you can open individual Task items, and create new ones.
Click on an individual Task to view it's details. From this page, you can edit or delete the Task, or return to the Task's folder, or the Mailbox.
Tasks.
Notes
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To view your Notes, click on the Notes link on the main mailbox page. From here you can open individual Note items, and create new ones.
Click on an individual Note to view it's details. From this page, you can edit or delete the Note, or return to the Note's folder, or the Mailbox.
Notes.
Item Listings
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Depending on the kind of folder you are in, there will be a selection of hyperlinks to perform various actions, such as moving back and forth through the list, creating new items, etc. There will also be an Actions link. The Actions link will allow you to perform such tasks as applying a filter to the listed items; going to a particular item number; etc.
The Shift-Deleted Items link (Exchange 2000/2003/2007 only) needs a little explanation. In Microsoft Outlook, when you delete a message, it is normally moved to the Deleted Items folder. But if you press the SHIFT key when you delete (on a non-English keyboard, the shift key is the key with a large up arrow that changes lower case keypresses into UPPER case) it bypasses Deleted Items and is then known as 'Shift-Deleted'. It is to all appearances permanently removed. However, if your server has a Deleted Items Retention (DIR) period configured, it is possible to recover these items during that period. The Shift-Deleted Items link give you a chance to recover these items, provided that they are still in DIR.
Accessing Folders
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You can browser your folder heirarchy by clicking on the All Folders link on the mail mainbox page, or the To Folders link when looking at a folder's contents. When looking at a folders list of subfolders, you can create a new subfolder by clicking on the New Folder link.
Empty Deleted Items
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To permanently delete all the items that are in your Deleted Items folder, click on the Empty Deleted Items link on the main mailbox page. The application will ask you to confirm your selection before actually purging the items.
Options
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There are a number of options that you can configure to change the appearance and operation of the application, either to suit your preferences, or the characteristics of the device that you are using. The options are grouped into separate pages as follows:
Out-Of-Office
The Out-Of-Office option is used in a similar way to the feature found in MS Outlook.
You can tell the server that you are currently away from work,
and compose a message that will be sent to anyone trying to contact you by email
(please note however that the sending of automated messages
is often disabled by administrators for technical reasons).
The link caption indicates the current Out-Of-Office status of the mailbox.
Themes
You can use the Themes option to change the application's display colours.
This may help to make the item listings more readable.
Note that if your administrator has enforced a particular set of colours at the server,
then this option will not be available.
Display
General
Items Per Page
You can use this option to tell the application how many items to display when you open a folder listing, such as the Inbox. You can set separate values for Addresses, Appointments, Messages, Notes and Tasks. Simply select a value that suits your own personal preference.
Signature
If you enter some text in the Signature page, and save it, then it will be appended to every message that you send using the application. Please note that this signature is not used by any other application, such as MS Outlook, nor can the application access any signature that has been defined in Outlook.
Shortcuts (Exchange 2000/2003/2007 only)
You can use this feature to create a list of shortcuts
to your favourite folders on the main Mailbox page.
Type in the names of any folders that you wish to create a shortcut to,
and you will see hyperlinks to them added to the bottom of the Mailbox page.
The folder names are entered in this format
(entries are not case-sensitive):
foldername/subfoldername
Shortcuts to Public Folders are prefixed with [P] .
For folder names containing / use // .
You can separate multiple entries with a comma, like this:
Inbox/Sales orders,Archive/Jan//Feb,[P]Shared calendar
External Calendars (Exchange 2000/2003/2007 only)
If another user has given you permission to view their Outlook Calendar,
then you can use this feature to see their Appointments.
Type in the mailbox names and calendar folder names
of any calendars that you wish to view,
and you will see hyperlinks to them added to the bottom of the All Folders page.
The mailbox and calendar names are entered in this format
(entries are not case-sensitive):
username/calendarname
or
http(s)://server/exchange/username/calendarname
Remember that Outlook Calendars are not always called 'Calendar'
- the actual name is language-dependant,
and may also have been changed manually.
If you want to enter several calendar folders,
then you can separate multiple entries with a comma, like this:
user1/calendar,user2/calendar
Please note that navigation within the external calendar is limited.
To return to your own mailbox,
click on the Folders or Mailbox hyperlink.
Please ask your Exchange administrator
if you are unsure of what username and calendar folder name you need to use.
You cannot open an external calendar
if you have not been given the required permissions by the calendar's owner.
Reset Option Values
Use this link to reset all OWA-PDA options (such as Theme, Display, etc.) to their default settings. This does not clear the Out-Of-Office settings, because they are shared with Outlook and normal OWA.
About
This page simply displays the application name, author, and version.
Time Zone
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From this page, you can set the Time Zone that the application will use for its operation. This is the same Time Zone that your normal Outlook Web Access installation uses, and if you change it here, then it will also change in normal OWA. Note that this is not the same as the Outlook Time Zone, from which it is independent.
Public Folders
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From this hyperlink, you can access your organization's Exchange Public Folders. Note that access to your Public Folders may be disabled by your administrator.
Log Off
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You can use this link to allow a different user to log into the application so that several users can share a device. Please note that it should only be used for the specific purpose of allowing someone else to log in. It is not possible to make a browser 'forget' a set of previously accepted credentials, so if you cancel the resulting login box, you are still, in effect, logged into the browser, and your mailbox can still be accessed from it.
