The Folder View

When you first enter IMP, the contents of your INBOX will be displayed. (You will see this same "folder view" of IMP for every email folder you open.) If a folder has more than one page of email messages, it will open to the first page that contains a message you haven't read yet. You can use the navigation arrows at the top-center of the list to move from page to page.

Sorting Messages in the Folder

You can sort your messages by date, who they are from, size, subject, and thread. Click the heading (for example, "Date" or "Subject") by which you wish to sort; the heading will change color to indicate the current sort order. You can reverse the sorting direction using the triangle icons ( and ) next to the heading (for example, to show newest messages first instead of oldest, when sorting by date).

Sometimes you may get several messages which are replies to a previous message. A string of successive replies to the same original message forms what is called a thread. It is often useful to view messages via such a threaded view, so that you can read (or skip) all the messages of each subject in sequence. This is especially useful if you want to reply to a message, as threading lets you easily check if someone else has already replied with the same information.

You can also change some default sorting options using the IMP Options menu.

Messages Flags

Message flags at the left side of the screen provide information about each message. In addition, messages are color coded to indicate their status. The colors may be changed via different themes which are available, but don't worry as there is a color legend at the bottom of the message list to help you identify the meaning of colors. The table below explains the most common message flags, and shows the default color scheme for messages.

Message Flag	Message Color Bar	What It Means
	blue	Unseen (new) message: one that you have not yet opened and read.
(no flag)	white	Seen message: one that you have opened at least once.
	green	Answered message: one that you have replied to.
	pink	Important message: one that you have flagged as important.
	dark gray	Deleted message: one that you have marked for deletion.
		Personal: the message was addressed to you as an individual rather than to you as a member of an mail group.
		Draft message: one that you have saved to work on and send later.

How to set message flags

Select a message by clicking the checkbox to its left.
Select the message flag you want to use from the Mark as pop-up menu.

Checking for New Mail

There are multiple ways to check for new (incoming) mail. Some of these are listed below.

Click the Refresh icon (two green arrows going in a circle) located at the upper left of the message display.
Click your browser's Reload or Refresh button.
Configure the applications options to automatically check for new mail on a regular basis.

Opening a Message

To open (display) a message, click the subject or sender name for the message you want to view. A new window will open containing the details of the message and a text menu of common actions.