Not receiving email to complete reporting

[Bob]

I have been successfully using the reporting service for more than 18 months. I have always copied the message source with full headers into an email sent to my submission address. I then received an email with a link to complete the reporting and to send the reports.

Two days ago I stopped receiving the completion email & link. Today, I went to the website where I was asked and did register with my selected password. I also then noticed that spam was now requested to be submitted as an attachment (if done by email rather than through the site).

I have now followed that new routine for the reporting of several spam messages but have still not received the completion email. In checking the site, I see that some of the messages submitted under the new routine today are listed as reported and some are not. None of the messages submitted during the prior 2 days are listed as reported, so I assume they were not received.

My questions:

1. Am I correct that messages should now be reported with full headers as an attachment, rather than being copied into the body of the email?

2. Should I still be expecting an email with the link to complete reporting or has that been changed?

3. If it has been changed, will I have to go to the website to determine if the message was received and reporting was completed?

I would appreciate any insight you can provide. I am using Windows 98 SE with Netscape 7.0. Thanks.

Bob

[Wazoo]

(DavidT)

Reporting Forum .. problems with the parsing, use of the paste-it-in-form, parser output and/or results

E-mail Forum .. e-mail reporting, e-mail accounts ...

This Topic deals with the problems of submitting spam using the e-mail submittal process ... and I'm pretty sure that the "missing confirmation e-mails" stuff is in the FAQ under the SpamCop E-Mail section ....

(Bob)

Interesting situation ... first of all, a bit of a complaint .. You don't specify where you saw the "new" information about the "required forwarding as an attachment" (though noting that Courtney [ironPort staff) and I have been having some conversation about a certain FAQ entry, and that FAQ entry has been changed a couple of times over the last couple of days)

The problem is that that FAQ was once worded as "must use an e-mail app that has the capability of" and "must submit as attachment" ... the problem is that this isn't actually the case .. it depends on how the e-mail app "wraps" the "forwarded" spam ... some apps "forward" just fine, others need the "as attachment" selected, and others can be "manipulated" into providing the submittal in a form the the parser will accept. It sounds like you had a method that worked, then you changed it.

I'm a bit confused over your "did register with my selected password" .. that "change" was done quite a while ago.

For starting the answer sequence, I'm going to point you to the FAQ here ... a couple of items, the "No Confirmation e-mails?" and "How I use SpamCop" should get you started ... there was an issue with Netsacpe and some temp files, but right now I'm not sure if that was only with 4.x or if it continues with 7 .. but I believe you'll find that under a line I just changed yesterday "Parsing & Reporting spam - decisions, problems" (and this points back to a www.spamcop.net FAQ page - and I see that it does specifically reference 4.7) .. but, the FAQ page itself may offer some other help ..

[Stickems]

This whole web site is so clumsy and difficult to navigate. I am looking for help and have no idea as to whether or not I am wasting my time here. Anyhow, my problem is that my submissions of spam lately have been ignored. I used to have replies which enabled me to report the spam, they have been missing for some time now. I went to the SpamCop web site and was told that I needed a new password. One was emailed to me, but when I tried to log on it was not accepted. How do I proceed?

[DavidT]

Reporting Forum .. problems with the parsing, use of the paste-it-in-form, parser output and/or results

E-mail Forum .. e-mail reporting, e-mail accounts ...

That's certainly not what I understand when reading the official forum descriptions:

SpamCop Help

A forum to help users with the SpamCop Reporting System. Questions about SpamCop Email should be directed to the appropriate forum, not this one.

SpamCop Email

A forum for questions and discussion about the SpamCop Email System and spamcop.net email accounts. Questions about spam reporting should generally be directed to the appropriate forum, not this one.

The way I read that, all methods of reporting are on topic in the "Help" forum, including submissions via email. In this topic that we're in, for example, it turns out that "Bob" is not a "SpamCop Email" user, but simply uses SpamCop as a reporting tool. His post most certainly belongs in the "Help" forum, if those official descriptions are correct. This SC Email forum is only for issues relating to actual SpamCop Email accounts. I think that's a logical way to divide things.

And now because of the growing confusion about what's posted where, "Stickems" has posted the same kind of topic here....although it too belongs in the "Help" forum.

C'mon, Wazoo....move this thread....pretty please?

DT

[Bob]

David T:

Regarding your "complaint", I read the instructions to register, obtain a password and to submit messages as attachments in the FAQ's: SpamCop Parsing and Reporting Service, "How do I submit spam via email". I simply haven't visited the website for a long time and those instructions were new to me as of today. I assumed the process had been changed and that was why I ceased receiving the emails to complete reporting. I changed my "method" for that reason only.

I am unable to find the FAQ's you referred to but I don't believe Netscape is an issue here. I have used 7.0 since starting to report to SpamCop and there have been no changes to the configuration. As it appears Stickems also experienced, the completion emails simply stopped coming -- several days ago in my case, apparently quite a while ago in his case.

My questions are these:

1. Should the message with full headers be reported as an attachment, copied into the body of the message (as I had always done), or is either method satiosfactory?

2. Is the completion email and link still provided and required to complete reporting? If not, how do you know the reporting has been completed without having to repeatedly log into the website to find out?

3. Having reported messages today under both my former method (copying into the message) and my new method (attachment), and having received no completion emails under either approach, what do we do from here?

Please advise. Thanks.

Bob

[turetzsr]

This whole web site is so clumsy and difficult to navigate.

17661[/snapback]

...You are certainly entitled to your opinion. It would be more helpful, though, if you would provide more details as to what you find difficult and, better yet, suggestions to fix it. Please be aware that the Forum is a third-party application, not easily controlled by SpamCop folk (except that the person principally responsible for SpamCop reporting and e-mail service support, "JeffT," has selected it and could presumably ditch it for a different one). Should you have such feedback, please use the SpamCop Lounge forum.

<snip>

Anyhow, my problem is that my submissions of spam lately have been ignored. I used to have replies which enabled me to report the spam, they have been missing for some time now. I went to the SpamCop web site and was told that I needed a new password. One was emailed to me, but when I tried to log on it was not accepted. How do I proceed?

17661[/snapback]

...Going to SpamCop FAQ: SpamCop Parsing and Reporting Service and following the link labeled "Member and account management questions" and then the resulting page link labeled "I forgot my password. How do I reset it?" a final link labeled " Reset your password here." included the following:

If you still cannot access your account, email service[at]admin.spamcop.net for assistance.

This is assuming you are a Reporting-only user, not a SpamCop e-mail account holder.

...Good luck!

[turetzsr]

Hi, Bob!

...Might anything in FAQ Entry: Emailed spam Submissions Disappearing? be of any relevance to you?

[StevenUnderwood]

1. Should the message with full headers be reported as an attachment, copied into the body of the message (as I had always done), or is either method satiosfactory?

You have YET to tell us what email application. There are further directions on how to submit via email in the "How do I get my email program to reveal the full, unmodified email?" FAQ entry. The basic answer is whatever works for you. As DavidT mentioned, it all depends on your email application. I use Eudora at home and can not reliably submit every spam message that gets through the parser via email. At work, I have Lotus Notes and need to export the message to a text file then attach the file to the message. I also use VMS (though not for external email) and found a simple forward/noheader will do the trick there (except only one at a time). Give us more information and we can provide a specific answer. If you are using Netscape Communicator for your email, then you should read this link.

2. Is the completion email and link still provided and required to complete reporting?

It is still provided as long as your email has not bounced back to spamcop. It has never been required as you can always log into the web site and hit the Report spam link.

If not, how do you know the reporting has been completed without having to repeatedly log into the website to find out?

The email is not telling you reporting is complete....it is telling you the message has been received by spamcop and is ready for you to send the reports.

3. Having reported messages today under both my former method (copying into the message) and my new method (attachment), and having received no completion emails under either approach, what do we do from here?

There is a FAQ entry on this very topic here in the forums labeled "Emailed spam Submissions Disappearing?, No Confirmation e-mails?" which points to this forum discussion.

[Wazoo]

This whole web site is so clumsy and difficult to navigate.

As compared to what?

I am looking for help and have no idea as to whether or not I am wasting my time here. Anyhow, my problem is that my submissions of spam lately have been ignored. I used to have replies which enabled me to report the spam, they have been missing for some time now.

In the post directly above yours (showing that it was present like 40 minutes prior to your post showing up) there was a reference to check out the FAQ item dealing with "missing confirmation e-mails" ... and of course, I'd be a bit remiss in not pointing out the FAQ entry as a Pinned item does include the words "Read before Posting" ... have you tried this search path yet?

I went to the SpamCop web site and was told that I needed a new password. One was emailed to me, but when I tried to log on it was not accepted. How do I proceed?

Due to these two posts talking about (only now) needing to "register with a password" .. I've kicked out a note to both Don and Deputies to ask if there's something odd going on ... I see no corresponding traffic over in the newsgroups of others have to "register" ...

The "used to work" but "doesn't work now" usually seems to be associated with the problem of the registered e-mail address bouncing, at which time the SpamCop e-mail server quits trying to send anything to that address. It used to be that when logging onto "your" www.spamcop.net web page, you'd have a bit of a checkbox thing to "clear" the problem, basically confirming that the e-mail address was actually valid. Perhaps this is where the "register with password" is now coming into play????

[turetzsr]

<snip>

C'mon, Wazoo....move this thread....pretty please?

DT

17663[/snapback]

...FWIW, I concur with DT. <g>

[Bob]

Everybody:

Look, I sympathize with Stickems but I'd like to get back to the issues and questions I raised in starting this topic.

turetzsr::

"Might anything in FAQ Entry: Emailed spam Submissions Disappearing? be of any relevance to you?"

Thanks but this doesn't seem to be pertinent.

StevenUnderwood:

If you look at the end of my initial post, I said I was using Netscape for my email application. I never said the completion email was "required", I simply asked why it was no longer being received to issue the reports as it had been for the prior 18 months. Since nothing has changed on this end, I assumed something had changed on SpamCop's end -- either planned or unplanned -- and thought the questions should be raised.

Wazoo:

I think I explained that I hadn't visited the website for some time and was not aware of the request to register and get a password until today. That's not a complaint (although better notification would have been nice), it was just a statement of fact to help understand the situation.

If my email address was bouncing, I assume I wouldn't be receiving notification of posts to this forum either (as I am), correct? I'm just asking for help in answering a few straightforward questions, not mounting an argument here with anyone. Suddenly, the process I had used for 18 months is not functioning in the same manner. I simply want to be sure that the effort of reporting, that I fully support, is in fact still yielding results. Again my questions are these:

1. Should the message with full headers be reported as an attachment, copied into the body of the message (as I had always done), or is either method satiosfactory?

2. Is the completion email and link still provided and required to complete reporting? If not, how do you know the reporting has been completed without having to log into the website to find out?

3. Having reported messages today under both my former method (copying into the message) and my new method (attachment), and having received no completion emails under either approach, what do we do from here?

I'd appreciate any constructive feedback or insight that anyone has to offer. Thanks.

Bob

[Wazoo]

OK, here we / I go. I just "moved" the Topic at http://forum.spamcop.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=2702 over to the Help Forum. This Topic I'm leaving here in E-mail.

The Topic I moved dealt with an e-mail submittal, it's true. However, look at the subject matter of the query .. an error generated by the Reporting side of the system.

The subject matter in this Topic (kind of side-stepping that Stickems included multiple issues in that post, and that I've tried to follow that one separately anyway) is the problem of submitting a spam via e-mail and getting a response back from the e-mail server ... (No, I am not trying to marry up Julian/IronPort's servers with JT's servers) <---- but maybe this also helps a bit in explaining my position .... There is the "e-mail account" which is now (to the best of my knowledge) completely residing on JT's resources. This is the "e-mail account" referenced in the Forum description.

On the other coast is a system dedicated to handling the parsing of spam submittals. Submittal mode "A" is the "paste-your-spam-in-here" web-form. Way back when, Julian set up another box to allow for non-real-time processing of spam - submittal Mode "B" .. and this is the "e-mail system" mentioned in the Forum description. Best example of usage was that one would pop into the office in the morning, submit the spam via e-mail, handle the rest of the incoming .. then later on in the day, when one was caught up with the office stuff, one could then pop into the report pages and actually do the reporting .. this in contrast to waiting for the paste-it-in box to chug through the parsing, throw up a result page, check it and hit Send, then paste-in-the-next-spam and do it again ...

What I am saying (and the way these Forums got started) is that the e-mail submittal process is separate and distinct from the parsing action. And in my eyes, these two recent "problem situations" demonstrate the difference ... again, one issue being the parse engine choking on the submittal .. the other with a breakdown of the flow of the e-mail traffic itself.

[StevenUnderwood]

Did you even READ my complete post and the links I posted? ALL of your questions are answered there.

[Wazoo]

turetzsr:: 

"Might anything in FAQ Entry: Emailed spam Submissions Disappearing? be of any relevance to you?"

Thanks but this doesn't seem to be pertinent.

Confusing, as I would have sworn you started with something about confirmation e-mails not arriving.

StevenUnderwood:

If you look at the end of my initial post, I said I was using Netscape for my email application.

Just a nit point, Netscape is a browser ... you could easily be using something else for e-mail ..

I never said the completion email was "required", I simply asked why it was no longer being received to issue the reports as it had been for the prior 18 months.  Since nothing has changed on this end, I assumed something had changed on SpamCop's end -- either planned or unplanned -- and thought the questions should be raised.

And again, the usual issue has been the bounce situation at the registered e-mail address. The FAQ does include addresses for contact to check for other issues.

If my email address was bouncing, I assume I wouldn't be receiving notification of posts to this forum either (as I am), correct?

These Forums have no connection to your reporting account. You are actually dealing with hardware on different coasts, owned and maintained by different folks.

I'm just asking for help in answering a few straightforward questions, not mounting an argument here with anyone.  Suddenly, the process I had used for 18 months is not functioning in the same manner.  I simply want to be sure that the effort of reporting, that I fully support, is in fact still yielding results.  Again my questions are these:

And again, I had answered this .. you once had a method that worked, then you changed it.

1. Should the message with full headers be reported as an attachment, copied into the body of the message (as I had always done), or is either method satiosfactory?

Obviously both methods are not satisfactory, as you are stating that one method does not work. Back to my bit about the FAQ ... the end result depends on how the e-mail application "wraps" the e-mailed submittal and / or how one "constructs" the e-mailed submittal.

2. Is the completion email and link still provided and required to complete reporting? If not, how do you know the reporting has been completed without having to log into the website to find out?

I thought this had been answered at least once already ... no, actually the confirmation e-mail is not "required" .. it's just an indicator that the e-mail had been received. However, the only other way to handle the actual reporting is to log onto the page and do the reporting via the "Report Now" link.

3. Having reported messages today under both my former method (copying into the message) and my new method (attachment), and having received no completion emails under either approach, what do we do from here?

Per the FAQ, if nothing is resolved yet, then use one of the actual contact addresses, assumedly Don at service <at> admin.spamcop.net as it's already been much discussed that you don't have a SpamCop Filtered E-Mail account.

One thing that has not yet been discussed is your ISP. For example, it's known that Cox is filtering both incoming and outgoing e-mail and silently deleting anything that looks like spam .. including spam complaint submittals to SpamCop

[turetzsr]

<snip>

StevenUnderwood:

If you look at the end of my initial post, I said I was using Netscape for my email application.

17687[/snapback]

Just a nit point, Netscape is a browser ... you could easily be using something else for e-mail ..

17691[/snapback]

...Since we're dealing in nits <g>: Netscape is a company; Navigator is the browser that is one of the products of Netscape.

[SpamCopAdmin]

1. Should the message with full headers be reported as an attachment, copied into the body of the message (as I had always done), or is either method satiosfactory?

The "Forward as Attachement" routine is always the preferred method, *if* your mail client provides that feature, which Netscape Communicator does.

2. Is the completion email and link still provided and required to complete reporting?

The completion email is still provided, and it's not required if you want to log into the web site to finish reporting instead.

3. Having reported messages today under both my former method (copying into the message) and my new method (attachment), and having received no completion emails under either approach, what do we do from here?

The most common reason the responses stop getting to you is because our mail to you bounced for some reason and the account was suspended. If that's the case, when you log into your account, you will be notified of the fact and given an opportunity to tell the system your email address is now working properly.

If that doesn't do it, send your login email address to me at service <at> admin.spamcop.net and I'll look into it.

- Don -

[SpamCopAdmin]

This whole web site is so clumsy and difficult to navigate. I am looking for help and have no idea as to whether or not I am wasting my time here. Anyhow, my problem is that my submissions of spam lately have been ignored. I used to have replies which enabled me to report the spam, they have been missing for some time now. I went to the SpamCop web site and was told that I needed a new password. One was emailed to me, but when I tried to log on it was not accepted. How do I proceed?

17661[/snapback]

The most common reason the responses stop getting to you is because our mail to you bounced for some reason and the account was suspended. If that's the case, when you log into your account, you will be notified of the fact and given an opportunity to tell the system your email address is now working properly.

If that doesn't do it, send your login email address to me at service <at> admin.spamcop.net and I'll look into it.

Here's all the login information. Maybe it will help.

Your username is your whole email address.

Passwords are cAse sENsiTive and may contain lookalike digits such as, "one" and "ell" or "Oh" and "zero." Our system will allow you to paste in your password if your browser will. After you log in, you can use the "Preferences" link at the top of the page to change your password.

Log in with the preferred Cookie method at: http://www.spamcop.net/

Log in with HTTP at: http://members.spamcop.net/

If you can't remember your password, just use the "Forgot your password? (click here)" link when login fails, and SpamCop will send you a new one.

Or use this link to get a new password:

http://www.spamcop.net/denied.shtml

- Don -

[Bob]

Everybody:

This issue has been resolved and I want to thank all of you who offered help and advice, even those who got a little "testy" along the way. I'm one of those people for whom (as Wazoo described) Julian Haight created the email submission option for reporting. I wanted to do something to help in cornering and eliminating spammers rather than simply deleting messages on my machine(s). I think SpamCop is the best option to help with that goal, but I simply don't have the time to wade through submission and reporting through the website. The email option lets me contribute when I have the time to do so.

Last night, I went back through all of the comments offerred and re-read the FAQ's that were highlighted. I decided to go to the website and re-enter my address and password. As you may know, doing that prompts an email to the designated address with a link to confirm receipt and verify the address, thereby activating the entered address and password. I successfully received the prompted email and verifyied it through the link. That told me that I wasn't having a problem receiving at my address -- i.e., the SpamCop emails were probably not bouncing as the cause of the problem.

After re-verifying settings, I contacted my ISP, Earthlink (and by the way Steven, I use Netscape Mail through Navigator as my email application -- sorry for the consfusion). To make a long story short, Earthlink had implemented an upgrade to their own mail service that required re-designation of the Outgoing Servers in use from <smtp.earthlink.net> to <smtpauth.earthlink.net> in order to provide server authentication for Earhlink WebMail purposes. It appears that although most browsers and/or mail services provide the ability to designate the option of using only an authenicated server, Navigator 7.0 and Nescape Mail do not. The change in server name caused it to be unrecognized by Navigator. To compund the problem, Navigator proccessed the email and placed a copy in the sent folder, but it was not "delivered". Once this issue was isolated, we confirmed that the email dialog box would in fact show "Sending Mail" and then disappear, but did not move from "Sending mail" to "Delivering Mail" as it always had and should. The browser recognized the mail as "sent" but it was never "delivered" and there was no way to know that short of verifying a send/receipt transaction on both ends -- something I would never have done if the SpamCop emails hadn't stopped arriving. Understanding the issue also allowed me to re-send key mail from the past 2 days that had not been delivered and avoid problems with assuming it had been processed normally and correctly.

So, the problem was with Earthlink's upgrade and it's previously unknown impact on Navigator users. I hope that may be helpful to sopme others using the reporting service and/or Navigator. I appologize for throwing th issue in here where it didn't belong, but I learned quite a nit about SpamCop along the way. Thanks again for the feedback and advice each of you offered, and putting me on the road to overcoming this issue.

Bob

[Wazoo]

Wow! I'd even queried another user about an Earthlink issue, but of course, he uses OE and hadn't heard of anything thathad occurred in the last couple of days that should have caused this ... kicking off a note to him to advise that he needs to see your work results. Sorry it took so much work to get it resolved, but glad to hear that you tracked it down. No way that could have been guessed at here, now wondering if the Navigator inaction you describe is considered a bug and where else it might show up as an issue ... and most definitely, thanks for the feedback.

[Bob]

Wazoo:

I am going to point out the Navigator issue to the folks at Windows BBS and Silly Dog. They will get it passed on to the right people at Netscape for review.

Bob

[Wazoo]

Well, this just back from a Mike Easter ... well respected guy over in the newsgroups .... if you want to hit him a bit more directly, fire up your newsreader and subscribe to news://news.spamcop.net/spamcop ... Subject line is - Netscape 7 & Earthlink ... not sure if it helps though <g>

WazoO wrote:

> "Bob" came up with a wild scenario ... Mike E. - is

> this a known issue? (yet <g>) Here's a bit of a clip;

>

> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

> To make a long story short, Earthlink had implemented an upgrade to

> their own mail service that required re-designation of the Outgoing

> Servers in use from <smtp.earthlink.net> to <smtpauth.earthlink.net>

> in order to provide server authentication for Earhlink WebMail

> purposes.

I would say that differently. EL has 'advertised' /only/ the smtpauth

servers for well over a year, and that has nothing to do with webmail, it

has to do with what 'everyone' who points their mailuser agent at an smtp

server is supposed to do, use smtpauth. However, many of those who are

using smtp report that the smtp servers 'still' work. A very few people,

certainly not universal, report that they have received email from EL

'reminding' them that they are supposed to be using smtpauth. These

email reminders seem to have nothing to do with whether or not they are

using smtp or smtpauth or what their domainname is [EL subscribers may

have many different kinds of domainnames, mindspring, EL, planetebay,

whatever] - so I have no clue about who/how EL decided to send a few

people such reminders; it is a mystery. I didn't get one, I don't use

smtp but smtpauth, and I'm a mindspring.

Also, of the people who have trouble smtp/ing. As a general rule, if a

person tries to use an smtp server from a non-proper IP address, such as

a motel/hotel - they will fail; whereas if a person tries to use an

smtpauth server from a non-proper IP address, they will succeed. Also,

the abuses of EL servers tend to take place with improper sources using

smtpauth servers; that is, somehow the abuser is probably using some

hacked EL subscribers username + pw to abuse the smtpauth server.

> It appears that although most browsers and/or mail services

> provide the ability to designate the option of using only an

> authenicated server, Navigator 7.0 and Nescape Mail do not.

I don't know what to say about that -- I severely doubt it. Let me go

look in the EL support for Netscape stuff. OK, here's the EL support

page with screenshots showing a Netscape7 person how to configure for

smtpauth

http://support.earthlink.net/mu/1/psc/img/...0/7655.psc.html

> change in server name caused it to be unrecognized by Navigator. To

> compund the problem, Navigator proccessed the email and placed a copy

> in the sent folder, but it was not "delivered". Once this issue was

> isolated, we confirmed that the email dialog box would in fact show

> "Sending Mail" and then disappear, but did not move from "Sending

> mail" to "Delivering Mail" as it always had and should. The browser

> recognized the mail as "sent" but it was never "delivered" and there

> was no way to know that short of verifying a send/receipt transaction

> on both ends -- something I would never have done if the SpamCop

> emails hadn't stopped arriving.

-=-=-=-=-=-

I have no idea what he is talking about there.

--

Mike Easter

kibitzer, not SC admin

[turetzsr]

Everybody:

This issue has been resolved

<snip>

17764[/snapback]

Hi, Bob!

...Whew, glad of that!

...THANK YOU for taking the time to come back here and letting us know with such detail! <big g>

[Wazoo]

Again, from the newsgroups ... Blammo says;

> purposes. It appears that although most browsers and/or mail services

> provide the ability to designate the option of using only an

> authenicated server, Navigator 7.0 and Nescape Mail do not.

Netscape 6 and 7 have always supported SMTP Auth, even Netscape

Communicator supports SMTP Auth (but it won't remember the password) so I

don't know what they are talking about, maybe they don't either.

> browser recognized the mail as "sent" but it was never "delivered" and

> there was no way to know that short of verifying a send/receipt

> transaction on both ends

There was a bug in Netscape 6 (Mozilla 1.2?) Mail where changing the

outgoing mail server would cause problems, and you would have to create a

new profile, in effect setting up a new account, in order to reset

everything. This seemed to be an even bigger problem when upgrading from

Netscape Communicator to Netscape 6, and I'd often have to completely

remove Netscape 6 and Communicator before I could get Mail working

properly. And yes, I've seen that sent message bug as well, but this all

should be fixed in Netscape 7.2. Actually this has nothing to do with the

browser at all.

[Bob]

Regarding Mike Easter's comments:

A very few people,certainly not universal, report that they have received email from EL 'reminding' them that they are supposed to be using smtpauth.

All I can say is that I received the email and had never previously received a request or notification to change the outgoing server designation to smtpauth.

I don't know what to say about that -- I severely doubt it. Let me go look in the EL support for Netscape stuff. OK, here's the EL support page with screenshots showing a Netscape7 person how to configure for smtpauthhttp://support.earthlink.net/mu/1/psc/img/...0/7655.psc.html

The EL instructions did not require a new account process to be followed. Only to change the server designation under Mail & Account Group Settings. There is no provision there for entry of your password. When sending the initial or subsequent emails after the change, no prompt appeared to enter my password -- it appears that may only occur if the process of setting-up a "new" account is followed.

To compound the problem, Navigator processed the email and placed a copy in the sent folder, but it was not "delivered".  Once this issue was isolated, we confirmed that the email dialog box would in fact show "Sending Mail" and then disappear, but did not move from "Sending mail" to "Delivering Mail" as it always had and should. The browser recognized the mail as "sent" but it was never "delivered" and there was no way to know that short of verifying a send/receipt transaction on both ends -- something I would never have done if the SpamCop emails hadn't stopped arriving.

-=-=-=-=-=-

I have no idea what he is talking about there.

I was trying to explain exactly the situation Blammo later described. The mail was "sent" but not "delivered". Copies were placed in the sent folder and there was no indication that the mail had not been fully processed, i.e., both "sent" and "delivered".

Regarding Blammo's comments:

Netscape 6 and 7 have always supported SMTP Auth, even Netscape

Communicator supports SMTP Auth (but it won't remember the password) so I

don't know what they are talking about, maybe they don't either.

7 does not provide association of smptauth and password under Mail & Newsgroup Account Settings, and that apparently caused the problem. If the new account process is followed (as Mike Easter's information suggests), perhaps the problem would not occur. As I mentioned above, however, the EL instructions did not include following that process.

And yes, I've seen that sent message bug as well, but this all should be fixed in Netscape 7.2. Actually this has nothing to do with the browser at all.

I can't speak to anything later than 7.0 but the bug exists in 7.0.

Thanks Wazoo, Mike Easter & Blammo for your thoughts.

Bob

[Wazoo]

trying to convert this back into plain text is just looking like a bit too much work .. I will drop a note over in the newsgroup and pass on your thanks (and an invite for the both of them to take a look at your response) ... but definitely, thanks for the follow-up.