Internet setup FAQ

[Will]

How to configure Windows and Outlook Express to use your English computer in France

A definitive "how to" for configuring Windows and Outlook Express to work with both a French and non-French ISP (internet service provider) and email provider, originally posted by Mazan (April 2003).

We start from the premise that you already have a non-French ISP that you use regularly with an email address that you want to keep and that internet use in France is for holidays etc. If you have made a final and permanent move to France then these instructions won't necessarily apply to you though you can use them to set up your computer to work with a French ISP.

With the exception of AOL you should not use ISPs CD-Roms. They will never configure your settings correctly to allow for use in two countries. It is strongly recommended to do it manually, as described here.

Some earlier versions of Windows may require slightly different settings from those described here. The principle is always the same though.

First go online from the UK and visit one of the many French ISP websites. You could use this site http://www.lesproviders.com/ to help you make your choice. Not all French ISPs offer equally simple online sign-up procedures. Free http://www.free.fr is good if you can wait for the codes to be posted to your French address. Don't request the CD-Rom as the posted letter has everything that you need to know on it. Tiscali http://www.tiscali.fr is good if you want the settings delivered online for an instant setup.

All of the big names offer a pay-as-you-go service, where you pay for the amount of telephone line time. Most also offer a much cheaper "forfait" service, giving a set number of hours for a monthly subscription that you can switch to if you need more time online, without having to reconfigure your email details. Only Tiscali and 9-online offer unlimited use packages.

Sign up to your chosen French ISP online. Make a careful note of the following:

Login (identifiant)
Password (mot de passe)
Dial-up number (numero d'appel)
SMTP server
POP server

Some providers will use different logins or passwords for connection and email. Some require a special prefix to be used in front of the login (Orange for example requires "fti/"). Pay full attention to these details as the slightest error will cause the connections to fail.

Open Internet Explorer. Click on Tools/Internet Options and select the "connections" tab. Click on "add".

Follow the prompts and use the information that you have noted above to create the new account. The only information that you need for this is the login, password and dial-up number. Call the account "France".

In the Internet Options/Connections box there should now be two entries: your previous UK one and a new French one. Select the French one and click on "set as default" at the right of the window. Click on "OK" to exit. You should always change the default setting to suit the country that you are in. Close Internet Explorer.

From now on whenever you want to connect to the internet the connection dialog that comes up will have a drop-down box with two ISP options. Just be sure to use the one that corresponds to the country that you are in.

Open Outlook Express (OE) and click on Tools/Accounts/Add/Mail
Follow the prompts and use the password, login and SMTP and POP server information as mentioned above to fill in the blanks. For the "email address" line use the address of your main ISP, not the new French one. Once the wizard has finished you will see that you now have two entries in the "accounts" window where before you had only one. One will relate to your UK ISP. Highligh it and select "properties" at the right of the window.  In the dialog box that comes up, change the name to "UK".  Select the "connection" tab and uncheck the box that says "always connect using".  Then click on O.K to close the box.

Highlight the new account and select "properties"as above.  change the name to "France".  Find the line just below this where it gives the email address.  This should give your main (U.K?) email address, not the new French one.  If it doesn't then change it.  Click on "O.K" to close the box.

Highlight the entry for the country that you are in and click on the "set as default" button at the right of the window. You should always change the default setting to suit the country that you are in.

From now on whenever you create an outgoing message you will find that the top line where it says "From" has a drop-down box attached to it at the far right of the line. You MUST ensure that all outgoing messages are selected to show the country that you are in on this line. Any other setting will cause the message not to be sent.

Remember this and you should have no trouble at all and both your mailboxes will be checked whenever you click on "Send and Receive All".

If you have an existing e-mail address but want the new one to become your main one, then carry out the procedure described above, but insert your new French e-mail address in the properties page of both accounts, and set the French account as the default. Always check that “France” is listed in the drop-down “From” box of all outgoing mail when you are in France. When in the UK check that “UK” is listed in that box.

If this is to be your only e-mail address, then just add the new account as above, and delete any old ones that may be listed.

There are also many free Internet based e-mail facilities available if you prefer. Yahoo, Hotmail and Google’s contribution, Gmail are all popular and obviously don’t need you to make configuration changes depending on your geographical location. Nowadays they are very generous with storage space which means you can be pretty slack on emptying out your inbox !

 

(Updated by Cat, September 2007)