How to Use an Email Program to Check Your Mail Every 10-15 Minutes

All email clients can be configured to check your messages automatically.

One of the greatest benefits of using a standalone email program rather than a webmail account is that the email program can be configured to check your email automatically. When you configure your email program to do this, you are automatically alerted when you have a new incoming message, eliminating the need to continually check your messages manually. Configure your email client to check your messages automatically to eliminate the work involved with receiving messages.

Instructions

Microsoft Outlook

1. Click the "Tools" menu at the top of the screen, then click "Options."

2. Click the "Mail Setup" tab, then click the "Send/Receive" button.

3. Place a check in the box labeled "Schedule an automatic send/receive every," then use the box next to it to enter the number of minutes that you would like Outlook to wait between checking your messages.

4. Click "OK" in each open window to save the change.

Microsoft Outlook Express, Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail

1. Click the "Tools" menu at the top of the screen, then click "Options."

2. Click the "General" tab.

3. Place a check in the box labeled "Check for new messages every," then enter the number of minutes that you would like your email program to wait between checking your messages.

4. Click "OK" to save the change.

Mozilla Thunderbird

1. Click the "Tools" menu at the top of the screen, then click "Account Settings."

2. Click the "Server Settings" entry on the left side of the screen under the email account that you would like to change the settings for.

3. Place a check in the box labeled "Check for new messages every," then enter the number of minutes that you would like your email program to wait between checking your messages.

4. Click "OK" to save the change. Note that if you have multiple email accounts configured in Thunderbird, you must manually configure each account to check for new messages automatically.

References

• Microsoft Office Online: schedule when a send/receive command runs
• University of Minnesota Help Desk: Outlook Express configuration guide