Why did you change my email address? Our previous provider for email services was in the process of outsourcing these services to another company. We were not familiar with nor impressed with this company's list of offerings and customer service. This prodded Home to take a look at other options for email service for our customers. Along with this, customers have been asking for a very long time for us to shorten our email address domains. With the changes that were going to have to be made anyway, this was the most opportune time to do this for us and for you.
Why did you partner with Google©? I could get gMail for free! Many options were considered before a partnership with Google© was decided upon. We considered purchasing and maintaining our own email servers. This option proved to be an expensive one, filled with many uncertainties and possible issues that would arise. Naturally, the expenses incurred to do this would have to have been passed on to our Internet customers and doing so was not in keeping with our pledge to provide you quality service at affordable rates.
We also considered outsourcing to several email providers. The decision was made to go with Google© because of their fabulous system, innovative features, and incomparable network. Google© is also moving into the Lowcountry, so we are essentially partnered with a local provider and this is also in keeping with our pledge to you.
Yes, you could get gMail from Google© at no charge. What we have done is to partner with them for a paid solution that does not include the ads that you would normally see posted in a free gMail account. Our paid partnership also allows us to use their technical support to assist with any issues that may arise.
What happened to my Postini Email Filter? The Postini filtering we offered to customers was one that we had to pay for from a third party. Google© offers the same great filtering built in to your new email account. Granted, there are some differences in the way that this filtering appears in your new email account.
One thing that has happened with our new email provider is that Spam is not separated from your email account as it was with Postini. The new email service simply puts it in your Spam or Junk folders. In some ways this change is frustrating, but in others a good thing. The frustrating thing is that now your Spam is more visible to you than it was before. The good thing is that now you don't have to go to another website and log in to look for a missed email. For example, if I were expecting an email from someone that I didn't receive, in the past I would have to log into my Postini account to look for it. With the new email service, I simply click on my Spam folder and perform a search for either the address from which I was expecting the email, or the subject line.
What are my new Email settings for using Outlook, Outlook Express, etc.? These settings can be found by going to http://www.homesc.com and clicking on the "Internet Tools" link. From there, select "Email Setup Instructions". There are a few things to remember when using these instructions:
You must log in to the web-based email and enable POP or IMAP before setting up the email account in Outlook, Outlook Express, etc.
You must use your email address (username@homesc.com) as your username in these setup instructions. The references to "gmail" in the POP and IMAP settings are correct, however.
What are the benefits of using the web-based email? There are many benefits to using the web-based email instead of using Outlook, Outlook Express, etc. Granted, the web-interface takes a bit of getting used to, but once you learn your way around, there are many features that are well worth learning a new way to do things! Here are just a few of these features. For more information, click on the "Help" link at the top of the window when you're logged into your email account.
New View of your Inbox: Each message you send is grouped with all the responses you receive. Grouping related messages creates meaningful 'conversations.' When you open a message in a conversation, all of your messages will be stacked neatly on top of each other, like a deck of cards. We call this 'Conversation View.' As new replies arrive, your stack of cards grows. Grouping messages this way allows you to quickly retrieve related messages and view all your messages in context.
More Flexible Filing System: Instead of folders, Gmail uses labels to give you the functionality of folders, but with more flexibility. In Gmail, a single conversation can have several labels, so you're not forced to choose one particular folder for each message you receive. That way, if a conversation covers more than one topic, you can retrieve it with any of the labels that you've applied to it. And, of course, you can always search for it.
Don't waste time deleting messages: With more than 6 megabytes of storage, the typical user can go for years without deleting a single message. You never know when you might need a message again, but with traditional webmail services, you delete it and it's gone forever. With Gmail, you can easily archive your messages instead, so they'll still be accessible when you need them. If you decide you no longer want a message in your Inbox, just hit the 'Archive' button and the message will still be available in 'All Mail' or through a search.