computer question

[low_delta]

My mom says her e-mail program (Outlook) has locked up. She thinks it's because she has too many messages stored. Does anyone know how she can delete messages without getting into Outlook?

Comments

[marswalker.livejournal.com]

First - something to try, then two options...
first - if she has DSL or Cable-modem, have her turn the DSL or Cable modem off, and UNPLUG it from power for 5 minutes. Then plug it back in, turn it back on. This will force the modem to reset itself, and renegotiate a connection. Sometimes this is necesary for a variety of reasons.

Two options...

1) call the ISP, explain what's up, and hope they have an idea from their end. Most ISPs will only bank-up so many messages before auto-deleting them. I've seen outlook work with our servers when there was more than 1 GB of email. Some very-long messages will cause outlook to choke, but we're talking huge - the work server will allow up to 5MB email attachments. In any case the ISP should be able to look at her email box and tell her exactly how many emails she has.

2) Install Mozilla or Thunderbird (or any other email program). Set up the POP3 or IMAP settings to get email from the ISP. See if it locks-up when loading the email.

I use Mozilla at work instead of Outlook. It seems faster, more robust, and less of a conduit for viruses, worms, and trojans. It also has a variety of plug-ins to handle attachments.

[low-delta.livejournal.com]

She's got dialup. She was going to try #1. If that doesn't work out, I'll try #2.

Thanks!