Home > Email

Email

SiteKiosk allows your users to write and send emails.

SiteKiosk's email client is based entirely on HTML/JavaScript as well as the proprietary JavaScript extension SiteKiosk Object Model. It is, therefore, completely customizable because you can change the HTML pages, images, and scripts included in the source directory.

For example, you can find the SiteKiosk email client of Metro IE skin under:
SiteKiosk installation folder\skins\public\ieskin\center.html

1. Allow integrated email functions
Check this box to make the email server information stored in the SiteKiosk configuration file available to the SiteKiosk browser. You must enable this setting if you want to send emails using a SiteKiosk email client or use the SiteKiosk Object Model to send emails.

Please pay attention to the example further down on this page.


1.1 Outgoing mail server (SMTP)
Specify the SMTP server settings your email provider gave you. The SMTP is the server your provider uses for outgoing mail (usually mail.name-of-your-provider.de). You will also need your SMTP server settings to set up your email client, e.g. Outlook Express.
1.2 Sender's email address
Every email user account needs an email address because many mail servers will only accept sender's addresses submitted from a domain matching the SMTP server (to prevent spamming). However, SiteKiosk will specify the reply address as the email address entered by the sender.
1.3 Display sender's text
An email client (e.g. Outlook Express) will usually display the sender's name in the "FROM" field, which hides the actual email address. Use this section to enter this NAME. This name will be displayed to every recipient receiving email messages from your terminal.

The default value is "SiteKiosk terminal." The name is independent of the sender's email address, i.e. when the recipient clicks on "Reply", SiteKiosk automatically enters the sender's address the user entered at your terminal as the recipient's address. You can also use this function to differentiate between different terminals. Example: 1 terminal is located in Munich, the other one in Frankfurt. When you receive email from your users, you will be able tell from which terminal the messages were sent (e.g. if you call terminal 1 "Terminal Munich" and the other one "Terminal Frankfurt").
1.4 Text encoding (character set)
Use this section to specify the character encoding to be used for outgoing email. If you, for instance, composed an email message using Cyrillic encoding even though you set Western European in this section, the person receiving your message will not be able to read it. Your email will then only contain a great number of ????.

For this reason, select the encoding that is most commonly used by the users of your terminal. If your terminals are set up in Western Europe or the United States, you should select the default "Western European."

If you decide to allow the use of different language encodings in SiteKiosk (e.g. English and Russian), you can also select the UTF-8 character set as an alternative. If you select UTF-8, your email message will always be encoded in UTF-8 and can be read with any email client capable of decoding UTF-8 messages. Unfortunately, you cannot always be sure that the recipient of your messages uses an UTF-8 capable email client (e.g. Outlook Express).


1.5 SMTP server requires authentication
Many public email servers, such as hotmail.com will always verify authorized use to prevent, for example, spamming. In this case, enable this option. You will also have to enter the access information by pressing the Settings button.
  1. Authentication method
    Select the authentication method that is used by your mail server (if applicable).
  2. POP3 server
    Specify the POP3 server settings your email provider gave you. The POP3 server is the server your provider uses for incoming mail (usually pop.name-of-your-provider.de). You will also need your POP3 server settings to set up your email client, e.g. Outlook Express.
  3. User name
    Basically, you are providing your users with an (your) email account so that they can send email messages. Every email account comes with a user name which you will need to enter here.
  4. Password
    Every email account comes with an access password that you need to enter here. You do not have to worry as this password will not be displayed to anyone and can also not be used to receive email. It is only used for authentication purposes.
  5. Use SSL
    Turn on this option if your mail server employs SSL encryption
  6. Verify mail server
    Press this button to verify that the settings you defined will work.

1.6 mailto: Support links (opens integrated email transmission form)
This option lets you specify whether SiteKiosk's email client is supposed to open when a user clicks an email link (mailto://) on a website.


1.7 Example: Setting up an AOL account
At www.aol.com you can sign up for a free email account. You can use this account in combination with the SiteKiosk email client to send email messages.

Log on to aol.com and sign up for an email account. Complete the requested forms. You will then receive the information you need to complete the configuration process.
  1. Outgoing mail server (SMTP):
    smtp.aol.com
  2. Sender's email address
    Youraccountname@aol.com, e.g. mike@aol.com
  3. Turn on the option "SMTP server requires authentication"
  4. Authentication method
    SMTP authentication
  5. User name
    Your AOL account name (your AOL email address minus the "@aol.com")
  6. Password:
    Your AOL password
  7. Please test your settings by clicking on the Test button.

2. Show button and assign the following functions
When activating the option to dispaly an email button users will see an email button in SiteKiosk. If you are using the Payment Module, the button is not active until payment has been received.
2.1 Open the specified website
If enabled, this option allows you to surf to the website specified here by clicking on the email button in SiteKiosk.
2.2 Open integrated email transmission form with a default recipient
The email button in SiteKiosk links to the SiteKiosk email client associated with the selected skin. When a user launches the client, SiteKiosk will enter the specified address in the recipient field.



3. Email signature for automatic transmission
The following standard signature is automatically attached to every email message sent with SiteKiosk:

NOTE:
This email was sent from a public SiteKiosk Internet terminal. The administrator did not create this email and is, therefore, not responsible for the content of this message..
http://www.provisio.com/

You can alter the text to your requirements. To do so, you can proceed in one of two ways.

You can either define your own signature in the configuration dialog box. This signature will then be attached to every email message independent of the language selected in SiteKiosk. HTML tags are permitted. Example:

My <b>signature</b> text
<img src = 'file://c:/program files/sitekiosk/html/myimage.jpg'

Or, you can specify a signature that is language-dependent and edit the existing standard signature. To do so, go to the subfolder Language/Browser skins/default-ieskin located in the SiteKiosk installation folder and open the XML file of the languages you want to edit. Find the following sections in these files:

<!-- E-Mail Signature -->
      <!-- HTML -->
      <string id = '400'>
 
      <!-- Plaintext -->
      <string id = '401'>
 

Leave all special characters such as "<" (stands for <) and "&#62" (stands for>) as they are. You can compose the entire signature in HTML.

If you want to insert an image into the signature, simply add an image tag to the signature. MAKE SURE to specify the absolute path to your image and NOT the relative path. Example:

<img src = 'file://c:\img\companylogo.gif'
width=128 height=109 border=0>
 
or
 
<img src = 'http://www.sitekiosk.de/img/companylogo.gif'
width=128 height=109 border=0>


4. Tips and recommendations
  1. If you are unable to send email messages, you probably did not configure the email client properly. Please pay attention to our Example.
  2. Some services have problems handling email addresses containing a "." Use an email address that does not contain a "." (NameFirstName@email.com rather than Name.FirstName@email.com).
  3. The settings you define here apply to all email options in SiteKiosk, e.g. also to sending the information stored in the Payment Module administration dialog box.
  4. You can set up a different rate for sending email messages. To do so, you must create a new zone under Payment Module that contains the page that is assigned to the email client. For instance, you will find the IE skin in SiteKiosk's installation folder under skins\public\ieskin\center.html.

See also

Welcome
New Features
Scope of Supply/Installation
Support
System Requirements
Demo Version Restrictions
Registering SiteKiosk
PROVISIO Contact Information
Remote Monitoring (SiteRemote)
Guide for First-Time Users
Password
Start Page & Browser
Surfing Area
Screensaver
Logout
Applications
Print
Files & Downloads
Input Devices
Maintenance
Access/Security
Logfiles
On-Screen Keyboard
Content Filter
Telephony (SIP)
Payment Devices
Customization (Skins)
System Security Manager
OpenSource Components
About


Back to top