Logging onto the FirstClass server can be done in two ways: 

1. web login: 

- launch a web browser and visit http://www-firstclass.uic.edu/login 
- your user ID is your net ID and your password is your university net password. You can change your password once you have successfully logged in. 

2. download the FirstClass client and read the online download and setup instructions 

          *if you are in a public lab and, using the FirstClass client, cannot connect, do the following: 

- launch FirstClass Client 

- choose "connect" from the service pull-down menu 

- Firstclass will ask you to open a settings file... 

+ look for something called "UIC.fc", select it and click "OK" 

- If you can't find UIC.fc choose "TCPIP.fc" 

+ the login window will appear 

+ click the "Setup" button 

+ make sure the following are true: 

"Connect via:" is set to TCP-IP.FCP 

"Server:" is set to firstclass.cc.uic.edu 

**if it doesn't have the firstclass address in the server field you can just type it in. 

+ Click SAVE 

• Now try logging in.

Running from home: Also...I have America Online at home and would like to use First Class through that. Do you know how I have to set up my First Class so it will work? Chris said that the program works with any PPP or SLIP connection and I believe thats what AOL is because I can minimize it and run Netscape the same way I do when I use my other local internet provider. 

Answer: Yes, that is correct. If you have the basic AOL service (20$/month or something?) you should have a PPP connection. Then all you have to do is get the First Class client from our download page: 

http://www.uic.edu/depts/adn/firstclass/download.html 

(please read the download and setup instructions first) 

Connecting to servers 

To connect to a server: 

1. Start FirstClass. 

2. Choose the settings file for the server to which you want to connect at "File". 

If the server's settings file is not listed here, click Browse and browse until you find it. If there is no settings file for the server, you must configure your connection to the server before you can log into it. 

3. Type your password, and user ID if required, at the Login screen. 

If you log in as a guest rather than a registered user, you do not need to supply this information. You will be logged in using a special account that is reserved for guests. This means that you will only have access to the Mailbox and conferences available to the guest account. 

4. Click Login. 

Your Desktop opens. 

To make this server your default connection 

If you will usually connect to this server, you can make its settings file the default. To do this, choose Edit > Preferences, then click the Home tab. Choose this settings file at "Settings file", then click OK. 

Changing your password 

To change your password: 

1. Choose Connection > Change Password. 

2. Fill in the following fields: 

Old password 

Type your current password. 

New password 

Type your new password (maximum 12 characters). Try to make it hard for someone to guess your password. Mix numbers and letters. Don't use your own name, user ID, or any other easily guessed value, such as your birth date or the name of a family member or pet. 

Retype password 

Retype your new password to verify it. 

3. Click OK. 

Browsing conferences 

If a conference contains unread mail, a red flag appears beside the conference icon. To browse this mail, double-click the icon. To read an individual item, double-click it. 

The conference window is similar to your Mailbox window. Items you have not read are marked with red flags, and those with attachments are marked with attachment icons. 

You can make the system open unread items in the same way as you do for unread messages in your Mailbox. 

Replying to messages in conferences 

You can reply to a message in a conference in two ways. You can send your reply to the conference, so that all users with access to that conference can read your reply, or you can send your reply to the original sender only. 

To send a reply that all can see, choose Message > Reply Special > Reply Conference. If your reply preference is Automatic, you can simply choose Message > Reply. 

To send a reply to just the original sender of the message, choose Message > Reply Special > Reply Sender. If your reply preference is Reply Sender, you can simply choose Message > Reply. 

Complete the envelope and body text as you would for any other message, then send the message. 

Sending messages to conferences 

To send a message to a conference: 

1. Open the conference. 

2. Choose Message > New Message. 

Your name appears in the "From" field, and the name of the conference appears in the "To" field. 

3. Type a subject for the message at "Subject". 

4. Type the body of the message. 

5. Choose Message > Send. 

You can also use other message forms, just as you would when sending messages to individuals. 

Creating personal conferences 

{this would be very useful for a class project or a discussion group constructed within a class} 

You can create your own conference and grant permission for others to use this conference, much as your administrator creates public conferences 

To create a personal conference 

1. Choose File > New > New Conference. 

A conference called New Conference is added to your Desktop. 

2. Choose File > Properties (Windows) or Get Info (Mac OS) with the conference selected. 

3. Name the conference (maximum 23 characters), and if desired, add a short description at "Subject". 

4. Close the Info window and save your changes. 

To specify general conference properties and grant others permission to use the conference 

5. Choose Conferencing > Permissions with the conference still selected. 

6. Fill in these fields on the Permissions form: 

Messages require approval 

Turn this on if you want all messages sent to your conference to require approval. Unapproved messages appear in italics, and users cannot open them until they are approved. Messages can only be approved by a user with at least Approver access. To approve a message, highlight it, then choose Conferencing > Approve. 

Attachments require approval 

Turn this on if you want all messages containing attachments, and all files sent directly to your conference, to require approval. 

Limit messages above 

The maximum size for messages (text plus attachments) posted to your conference. If you do not want to impose a size limit, type zero. 

Handling 

How to handle messages that are larger than the limit you specified at "Limit messages above". Reject with NDN rejects the message and returns a nondelivery notification to the sender. Requires Approval accepts the message, but makes it unapproved. Reject Quietly rejects the message and takes no further action. 

Expire old messages when number of items reaches 

The maximum number of items allowed in your conference. After this maximum is exceeded, FirstClass begins to delete the items with the oldest expiry dates. 

Messages expire after 

The number of days an item can stay in your conference before expiring. To use the default expiry period for your server, type zero. 

Form to use 

The default form to open when users choose Message > New Message within your conference. 

Reply preference 

The default method for addressing replies to your conference. Automatic replies to the conference. Reply All replies to all recipients. Reply Sender replies to the sender only. Default uses the reply preference set for the group, if this conference is a member of a conference group. If there is no reply preference set for the group, Automatic is used. 

Conference is a member of these groups 

Enter the names of any conference groups to which you want to add this conference. 

Who 

Enter the names of the users and groups for whom you want to define access permissions for your conference, just as you would address a standard message. 

Access 

Specify the access permissions for each user and group entered at "Who": 

Disallowed - denies access to your conference 

Summary - can look at the list of items in your conference, but cannot open these items 

Browser - can open messages in your conference 

Reader - has Browser access, and can download attachments, view the histories of items, and search 

Contributor - has Reader access, and can send messages to the conference, delete items he or she sent, and view this Permissions form 

Approver - has Contributor access, and can read and approve unapproved items 

Moderator - has Approver access, and can delete any items, move items to subfolders, post messages that exceed the size limit, edit documents and stationery, create and move subfolders, and move subconferences 

Creator - has Moderator access, and can move and resize the conference window, change the conference view and sort order of items, and create subconferences 

Controller - has Creator access, and can edit this Permissions form, and edit messages sent by other users 

Custom - lets you customize the permissions for this user or group by clicking the appropriate icons in the Permissions column. 

List of subscribers 

Enter the names of the users to whom you want to give access to your conference, just as you would address a standard message. When you give users access, copies of the conference icon appear on their Desktops. 

7. Close the Permissions form. 

Your changes are saved automatically. 

Other things you can do in the Permissions form 

To see the Directory entry for this conference, click Directory. 

To send a message addressed from the conference to other users, click ListServer Message. 

Reading messages 

If your MailBox icon shows a red flag beside it, your Mailbox contains unread items. To read these items: 

1. Double-click the MailBox icon. 

The top pane of the MailBox window contains any folders you have created to help organize your Mailbox. The lower pane contains a list of messages sent to you, and any messages you have composed. 

For each message, the list displays the name of the sender or recipient, size, subject, and date that the message was composed or received. Unread messages have red flags beside them. 

2. Double-click the message you want to read. 

The message opens in a new window. 

To see messages in any folder in your Mailbox, double-click the folder. The folder contents are listed in a new window. 

To open items in the list sequentially, choose Conferencing > Navigation > Next Item or Previous Item. 

To see header information for messages received over the Internet, choose Message > Show Internet Header. To remove header information, choose this menu command again. 

Viewing related messages 

As users reply to your messages, or discuss a topic in a conference, they create a thread of related messages. An original message and its replies comprise a message thread. Every time users reply to a message, they are adding new messages to the thread. 

If you open or select a message that is part of a thread, you can view the next message in the thread by choosing Conferencing > Navigation > Next in Thread. 

To view the previous message in the thread, choose Conferencing > Navigation > Previous in Thread. 

To print multiple messages, select them, then choose File > Print. 

Saving related messages 

You can view the combined contents of selected messages. To select all messages from the same person, about the same subject, or with the same date, Control-Shift-click (Windows) or Command-Shift-click (Mac OS) one occurrence of the name, subject, or date. After selecting the messages, choose Conferencing > Summarize Selected Messages. The message contents are displayed one after the other in a temporary document. 

To print the temporary document, choose File > Print. 

To save the temporary document as a plain text file, choose File > Save As. 

Saving messages 

Normally, messages expire after a certain number of days. You can save a message by changing its expiry date or saving it as a text file on your computer. 

To change a message's expiry date, select the message, then choose File > Properties (Windows) or Get Info (Mac OS). Choose the expiry date at "Expire in". If you choose Other, type the number of days beside this field. 

To save a message as a plain text file, open the message, then choose File > Save As. You must open the message rather than just highlighting it, or your Mailbox listing will be saved instead. 

Sending standard messages 

To create and send a new message: 

1. Choose Message > New Message. 

2. Complete the message envelope: 

At Subject, type a brief description of the subject, then press Tab. 

To specify a recipient of this message, you can: 

- Type the recipient's name, then press Tab to go to the next field, or Enter (Windows) or Return (Mac OS) to add more recipients. If you type a partial name, and this part of the name is unique in the Directory, the rest of the name is completed for you. If the partial name is not unique, the Directory opens. 

- Copy an address from an external file into the "To" field. Highlight the address, then drag it (Mac OS) or Control-drag it (Windows). 

- Choose Conferencing > Directory. To narrow down the Directory list, type the first few letters of the recipient's name at "Pattern". 

Shortcut: To create a new message that is automatically addressed, click an e-mail address in a FirstClass message or document, or open the appropriate stationery. 

If you are using the Directory 

Select a recipient from the Directory list, then click the appropriate button to put the recipient in the "To", "Cc", or "Bcc" field. When you are finished selecting names, close the Directory window. 

To type the name of someone outside your local system 

Type the recipient's name, followed by a comma and the gateway name used by the recipient's system (for example, Amanda Ho,SoftArc). If you are sending the message through the Internet, you only need to type the recipient's e-mail address (for example, Amanda Ho@softarc.com). FCIS recognizes any address containing @ as an Internet address. 

3. Click in the bottom pane of the message window and type the message text. 

You can use standard editing functions such as copy, cut, and paste. You can also change font properties and spell check your message text. 

You can insert your signature text, if it is not added automatically, by choosing Edit > Insert > Insert Signature. 

4. Change message sensitivity, if desired. 

By default, the message sensitivity is Normal. You can change the sensitivity to Personal, Private, or Company; however, currently this setting has no effect on the way the message is handled in your system. It is provided as information for the recipient, and could be used by third-party gateways. 

To change the sensitivity, choose Message > Sensitivity, then choose the appropriate level. 

5. Change message priority and receipt notification options, if required. 

6. Choose Message > Send (to leave the message open) or Send and Close (to close the message) when you are finished preparing your message. 

If you do not want to send the message yet, just close the message window. The unsent message stays in your Mailbox with a hollow flag beside it. 

If you are preparing a message, and decide that you do not want to send it at all, press Control-D (Windows) or Command-D (Mac OS) while the message window is still open, then click Delete. 

Defaults that affect messages 

There are several settings that are used as defaults when you create a message. You can change these defaults by choosing Edit > Preferences. Update defaults as required, then click OK. To restore every preference to the shipped default, click Default. 

Default text style (Document Editing tab) 

These settings specify the default font attributes that are used when you create a message or document. 

Maximum number of undos (Document Editing tab) 

The number of edits that FirstClass remembers. You can choose Edit > Undo this many times to undo your edits. 

Text magnification (Document Viewing tab) 

Magnifies text by the percent specified. A value less than 100 shrinks text. This setting does not affect the actual text size of messages and documents, just how they are displayed. 

Quoted text (Document Viewing tab) 

Specifies the appearance of text that you are quoting from a previous message. 

Link text (Document Viewing tab) 

Specifies the appearance of hypertext links. 

Automatically add signature to new messages (Signature tab) 

Turn this on to add your signature text to all your new messages automatically. 

Signature text (Signature tab) 

The text that you want to add to your messages as your signature. 

Forwarding messages 

To forward a message: 

1. Select or open the message. 

2. Choose Message > Forward. 

A copy of the original message is created, including attachments. The "Subject" field contains "Fwd:" and the subject of the original message. Your name, and the name of the original sender, appear at "From". The text of the original message appears in the lower pane. 

3. Address the message. 

4. Type any additional comments above or below the forwarded message text. 

5. Send the message. 

Replying to all recipients 

If a message in your Mailbox was sent to several other users at the same time, you can reply to all recipients of the message. To do this: 

1. Select or open the message. 

2. Choose Message > Reply Special > Reply All. 

If your reply preference is Reply All, you can simply choose Message > Reply. 

A reply window opens. The "Subject" field contains "Re:" and the subject of the original message. The name of the sender appears in the "To" field. The names of the other recipients, including recipients of carbon copies, appear in the "Cc" field. 

3. Update the names in the reply if required. 

You can add names to, or delete them from, the "To", "Cc" and "Bcc" fields. To delete a name, select it, then press Delete. 

4. Type the body of the reply, then send it. 

Replying to the sender only 

If a message in your Mailbox was sent to several other users at the same time, you can reply to just the sender of the message. If the message was forwarded to you, you can reply to either the person who forwarded the message or the originator of the message. 

To reply to the message: 

1. Select or open the message. 

2. Choose Message > Reply Special > Reply Sender. 

If your reply preference is Reply Sender, you can simply choose Message > Reply. 

To reply to the originator of a forwarded message, choose Message > Reply Special > Reply Original Author. 

A reply window opens. The "Subject" field contains "Re:" and the subject of the original message. The name of the sender appears in the "To" field. 

3. Update the names in the reply if required. 

You can add names to, or delete them from, the "To", "Cc", and "Bcc" fields. To delete a name, select it, then press Delete. 

4. Type the body of the reply, then send it. 

Attaching files to messages 

To attach a file to a message so that you can send the file to a conference or another user: 

1. Create a new message as usual. 

2. Choose File > Attach File. 

3. Choose the file you want to attach to your message. 

If you or recipients of the message use a modem, consider compressing a large file before attaching it. Compressed files often transfer faster, reducing the length of phone calls, and take up less space on the server. 

4. Click Open. 

The file transfer to the server begins. When the file transfer is complete, the file appears in the Attachments section of the message envelope. 

Before the file transfer is complete, you can interrupt it by clicking Cancel in the Upload dialog box. The file transfer can be resumed at any time until you send the message. 

Shortcut: Drag a file to the message envelope to attach it. You can attach multiple files simultaneously using this shortcut. 

To remove an attachment from the message before sending it, select the attachment, then press Delete. 

Saving files attached to messages 

You can preview pictures, sounds, or text files attached to messages before saving them to your computer. To do this, double-click the attachment. 

To save an attachment: 

1. Select the attachment. 

If you can't see the Attachments field in the message envelope, drag the split bar down. 

2. Choose File > Save Attachment. 

3. Choose the folder in which you want to save the file. 

4. Click Save. 

FirstClass begins transferring the file to your computer. Before file transfer is complete, you can interrupt it by clicking Cancel in the Download dialog box. File transfer can be resumed later.