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Getting Started
Your own email account will no longer be used to send and receive
messages, instead it will only be used to alert you when you have
received a new message in the HomeLink Message System. You
then need to log into the Message System to read and reply to
your new message.
Receiving and Replying to Messages
- When you receive a new message, an email notification will
be sent to your registerd email address similar to the example
below.
John
& Mary Doe / US12345
You have 1 unread message in your message inbox at HomeLink
International
Subjects:
#1 – Home exchange in Canada
Please log on at http://www.member.usa.homelink.org/index.jsp
to read and reply to your messages
Don't reply this email. It has been automatically created by
the HomeLink International message system.
- Click the link and login using your username
and password as normal
- Click on the 'Messaging' button under 'Member Options' on
the left hand side, which will take you to your HomeLink ‘Inbox’
- Click on the sender name (below ‘From’) to open
and read message
- Click on ‘Reply’ to send a message to the member
and then ‘Send’
- If you wish to be brief and are not interested in the request
Click on ‘Send quick reply’ (above the message).
In this case the message is written for you and all you have
to do is click ‘Send’
Composing a New Message
- Login using your username and password as normal
- Click on the 'Messaging' button under 'Member Options' on
the left hand side, which will take you to your HomeLink ‘Inbox’
- Click on 'New message'
- Click on 'Choose a member ..>>' to select who you want
to send a message to
- Type your message into the box below
- Click on 'Send' at the top of the screen.
Detailed Instructions and New Features
Index
- Inbox
- Folder list
- New messages
- Notification settings
- Manage folders
- Put in folder
- Templates
- Message types
- Receiving and managing messages
- Creating & using templates
- Pasting from a word document
- Troubleshooting
- Glossary
1. Inbox
The Inbox will be the screen that you
see when you enter the Message System. It will show all
messages in your Inbox. To manage the messages in your inbox
select the check box next to a message and then click on 'Put
in Folder’ ‘Mark as unread’ or ‘Delete’.
2. Folder list
The 'Folder' list’ on the left determines
what you see on the right. The first four folders
(Inbox, Templates, Sent, Trash). You can create additional
folders to store and organise your home exchange messages e.g
'Australia', 'France' 'Germany' using‘Manage Folders’.
3. New Message
- Click on 'New message'
- Click on 'Choose a member ..>>' to select who you want
to send a message to
- Type your message into the box below
- Click on 'Send' at the top of the screen.
4. Notification settings
Make sure that you set this as it will
govern how often you receive email notifications of messages waiting
for you. If you do not set this then you will be notified by default
every 24 hours. If you wish to visit the messaging centre more
often then of course you are free to do this.
5. Manage folders
Here you will be able to create new folders
of your choice. Click on the 'Manage folders' button at the bottom
of the Folder list, enter a name in the 'Folder name' box', save
it by clicking on the floppy disk icon and it will then appear
in your folder list.
6. Put in folder
Select the check box next to the email
you want to file, click on the‘Drop list ‘at the top
of the screen and your folder list will appear. Select which folder
you want to use and your message will be moved - you will see
the number of messages in brackets next to each folder in the
Folder list.
7. Templates
Templates allow you
to send the same message to several members without re-writing
the text each time.
Creating a template with a ‘Home
Exchange request’ will save you a lot of time. It is also
useful to have a ‘Sorry I am unable to Exchange’ Template
to politely decline a request.
To create a template, click on 'New
message' and write the text you wish to save. At the top
you will see a button called 'Save as new template' . Click
on this and it will be stored in your 'Templates' folder shown
on the left hand menu.
To use a template, go to 'Templates'
on the left hand side and click on 'Use this template' on the
right. A new pre-filled message will appear. Just
find the member you wish to send it to (and preferably personalise
the message) and click 'Send'.
8. Message types
So that you can see at a glance what type
of message has been received, each message will have a symbol
next to it:
| Symbol |
Message Type |
 |
Regular message |
 |
Information message |
 |
No thanks to exchange request |
 |
Positive reply to exchange request |
 |
Exchange request |
You can select which symbol you wish to add to your new message
by clicking on the drop down 'Type' list at the top of a new message.
If you are unsure of the Type of message just let your cursor
hover over the symbol.
9. Receiving and managing
messages
When your Inbox opens you
can see at a glance who the message is from, what the subject
is and what date and time it was sent.
Click on the senders name to open your
message.
You have now have several options:
- View the enquirers HomeLink listing by clicking on their location
- Click ‘Reply’ to open a new message form for you
to write a personal response
- Use the Quick reply optionsat the top by simply clicking on
‘send a quick reply’.
10. Creating &
Using Templates
You may want to create a Template for
a standard ‘Sorry I can’t exchange’ message
or perhaps a longer one to describe your home and surroundings.
To create your first Template:
- Click on Template.
- Click on ‘New Message’ in the Template windows
tool bar and compose your message in the body of the message.
- Choose the ‘Type’ of message in the drop list
- Give your message a ‘Subject’
- When you are finished click ‘Save as new Template'.
When you want to contact several members
with the same message using a template:
- Open the Templates folder
- Locate the template you wish to use and click on 'Use this
template' on the right hand side
- This will pre-fill a message with your previously saved text
- Click on 'Choose a member' to locate the member you wish to
contact
- Personalise the message
- Click Send
11. Pasting from a Word Document
If you want to paste from a word document
into your message you will get a ‘Pop up’ asking “Do
you want to allow this Web Page access to your clipboard. Click
‘Allow Access’ twice and your message will be pasted.
12. Troubleshooting
If you have any problems with the new
system that are not covered here, please contact me at us@homelink-usa.org
.
13. Glossary
Cancel
This will cancel what you are doing and return to the previous
screen
Choose a member
When you are sending a new message, you will see ‘Choose
a member’ in the ‘To’ box of the message. Click
on this (or Click’To’) Type the name or membership
number of the member in the pop up and click ‘Search’
Your members name will appear. Click and it will go to the ‘To’
line as an address. If you have forgotten the full name you can
still find the member.
Date
Date the message was sent
Delete selection
This will delete the message you have selected and put it in ‘Trash’.
The trash can is automatically emptied every 24 hours.
Formatting
The formatting section has all the usual functions plus some you
may not be familiar with
- Paste from Word
- Smilies
- Special characters
- Universal Keyboard
Inbox
This is where your new messages are stored
Manage Folders
Here you can create a new folder or delete one you no longer need.
Give it a name, remember to save it and it will appear in your
folder list.
Mark as unread
If for some reason you want to delay reading a message you can
click ‘Mark as unread’ so you can clearly see the
unticked message next time you visit
New Message
Click for a new message form
Notification settings
Click to set the frequency with which you wish to receive email
notification of new messages. Please note: if no notification
is set then the system will automatically notify you every 24
hours
Put in Folder
Select your message. Click ‘Put in folder’
to organise your messages.
Read
When you have read a message a tick will appear below this.
Search
Click ‘Search’ when you have put a member number or
name in the ‘Search’ box
Select
Click the check box below ‘Select' in order to ‘Put
in folder’ ‘Mark as unread’ or ‘Delete
selection’
Send a copy to my Organiser
You will see this check box on new and return messages. Please
think about this and only use when it is very important
for your Organiser to see it .
Sent
Click the ‘Sent’ folder in the Folders list to view
the messages you have sent. You can also file these using the
'Put in folder' button at the top.
Subject
This is to inform recipients of the content of your message
Symbols
You will see a Symbol below ‘Type’ on each message.
Let your cursor hover over it to see what it indicates. Symbols
used are as follows:
- Exchange request
- Information
- No thanks to an exchange request
Template
Create and save standard messages here for re-using later.
To
Click ‘Choose a member’ to add a member to this box
Trash
You need to ‘Select’ a message in order to put it
in the ‘Trash’ when it is no longer needed.
It is automatically emptied every 24 hours.
Type
Type of message. See the different ‘Types’ used under
‘Symbols’
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