DLS Instant Messaging

Communicator (PC)	Web DLS IM	Messenger (Mac)

The Division Of Life Sciences Computing Services has recently deployed an upgraded IM communication system.  This IM system includes the ability to transfer text messages and files in real time over the network securely via Instant Messaging and also supports peer-to-peer audio, video, application-sharing, and data collaboration, as well as enhanced presence awareness.

The DLS IM system is supported on PC and Apple Computers, though currently PC client users will enjoy a few more features than Apple users, until the updated Apple program is released later in 2008.  Additionally there is a full featured web based DLS IM Communicator which can be used from any computer either from home or here in the department.

New Features:

DLS IM Web support:  

The DLS IM system is now available from any PC or Apple computer through a web browser whether you are in the office, at home or on vacation.  You can logon from the same page you check your Outlook Webmail from.

Automatically save conversations in your Outlook Email:   

You can now choose to have all IM conversations saved automatically in the "Conversation History" folder of your DLS Outlook Email account.

Recent IM Contacts:

You can now see the status of the last several people you have conversed with in DLS IM.

Tabs for DLS Helpdesk support:

The DLS IM program on your PC has a new easy way for you to contact the DLS Helpdesk.  Just click on the tab buttons at the bottom of your Office Communicator 2007 program.

Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 for PC

     Signing in for the first time

     Setting my availability

     Sending an instant message

     Adding a contact

     Saving a conversation

Signing in for the first time

     The client will be installed automatically and replace any previous versions on DLS departmental computers.  Click Start, then look through the installed programs for Microsoft Office Communicator 2007.  If this program is not listed on your computer or if you receive any errors after clicking on it, please contact the DLS Helpdesk for assistance.

     The DLS Communicator may open minimized in the lower right system tray, as seen below.  To open the main window, just double click on this icon.

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Setting my availability

     Your availability and online status is displayed to other users and can indicate if you are available, away from your computer or in a meeting.  Online is the default status, indicating to others you are free to communicate. 

     Normally Communicator will mark your availability as Away if you leave your computer unattended for 5 minutes and then back to Online when you return.  Additionally Communicator will attempt to "guess" your availability based on your Outlook calendar; for example if you are scheduled from a meeting at 2pm-3pm, your status will be automatically set to busy at that time unless you change your status manually.

   You can set your own availability manually by clicking on your name at the top of the Communicator screen. 

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Sending an instant message

     Once you are online you can send a message to other users.  First type the first few letters of the recipient's first or last name into find, then double click the selected recipient from the list which appears in the upper window.  This will open a conversation window between you and the intended recipient.  To send, simply type your message into the lower window pane and click Send.  The conversation from both parties will then appear in the upper middle window pane. 

Note: You cannot send a message to someone whose is marked as Offline. The message will not be received by the user.

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Adding a contact

Please Note: Instant Messaging contacts are separate and not the same as your Outlook email contacts.

    IM Contacts are an easy way of keeping track of people that you may message frequently.  Adding someone as a contact allows you to keep their name in your Communicator window and always see their online status.  If you add someone as a contact, they will also be asked whether or not they wish to allow themselves to be added.

   To add someone as a contact type the first few letters of the recipient's first or last name into find, then right click the selected recipient and Select Add to Contact List from the following menu.

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Saving conversations

     In the new DLS IM Communicator, it is possible to automatically save a copy of all IM conversations to your Outlook Email account under a new folder called "Conversation History".  However, this feature is not turned on by default.  If you wish to automatically save your conversations, click on the following button shown below.

     Under the following options, ensure that the checkbox second to the bottom is checked, labeled "Save my instant message conversations in the Outlook Conversation History folder".  Then click Ok.  From now on conversations should be saved and accessible via your Outlook email account.

Additionally, you can save individual conversations whether or not you have enabled this option by clicking on the following in a conversation window.  This will save only the current message in your Outlook mailbox.

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DLS IM Apple Microsoft Messenger

     Signing in for the first time

     Setting my availability

     Sending an instant message

     Adding a contact

     Saving a conversation

Signing in for the first time

     The client should be installed on most DLS departmental Apple computers with Microsoft Office 2004.  Open Macintosh HD then Applications and Microsoft Office 2004.  Microsoft Office Communicator 2005.  If this program is not listed on your computer or if you have only MSN Messenger, please contact the DLS Helpdesk for assistance.

     Open Microsoft Messenger and click Next to continue.

     At page 4 check Corporate account and click Next to proceed.

     Enter the following information.  You must enter your username followed by @dls.rutgers.edu, which is a valid email address for all DLS users and then enter your password.  For convenience you should check Remember my password.

*Note: You must enter your username@dls.rutgers.edu for E-Mail address and User ID.

          Click Finish to proceed.

     You will receive an error message stating that the Sign in failed.  Click Cancel then click the Messenger menu at the top left of your screen and select Preferences.

     In the preferences panel, select the Accounts tab, and check the box labeled Manually configure settings.  Then ensure that dlsim is entered as the Server Name.  Click OK to continue, then click Sign In from the Messenger window.

    You should see something like the following screen, indicating you have successfully connected.

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Setting my availability

     Your availability and online status is displayed to other users and can indicate if you are away from your computer, in a meeting or various other states.  Online is the default status, indicating to others you are free to communicate. 

     Normally Communicator will mark your availability as Away if you leave your computer unattended for 5 minutes and then back to Online when you return.  Additionally Communicator will attempt to "guess" your availability based on your Entourage calendar; for example if you are scheduled from a meeting at 2pm-3pm, your status will be automatically set to Busy at that time unless you change your calendar or set your status manually.

   You can set your own availability manually by clicking on your name at the top of the Messenger screen. 

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Sending an instant message

     Once you are online you can send a message to other users.  First click the Send button at the top of the Messenger window, then type the recipient's email into the following window.  You will need to enter their username@dls.rutgers.edu, such as Nadya Mejia, our Helpdesk call coordinator.  Her name will be Mejia@dls.rutgers.edu.

Note: You must enter the username@dls.rutgers.edu for sending any messages!

     This will open a conversation window between you and the intended recipient.  To send, simply type your message into the lower window pane and click Send.  The conversation from both parties will then appear in the upper middle window pane. 

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Adding a contact

     Instant Messaging contacts are independent and not connected to your email contacts!

    Contacts are not necessary to send a message, but are an easy way of keeping track of people that you may message frequently.  Adding someone as a contact allows you to keep their name in your Communicator window and always see their online status.  If you add someone as a contact, they will be asked whether or not they wish to allow themselves to be added.  Their online status may change to Offline until they have had a chance to allow your contact addition.

   To add someone as a contact click the Add button at the top left of the Messenger Window then, then type the recipient's email into the following window and click Finish.  You will need to enter their username@dls.rutgers.edu, such as Nadya Mejia, our Helpdesk call coordinator.  Her name will be Mejia@dls.rutgers.edu.  Do not use the bottom fields unless you wish to add the contact to your Office Entourage email program as well. 

     After adding the user you will see their name and status in the Messenger window.

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Saving a conversation

     IM is typically intended to be a quick way to send short, simple messages, therefore the conversations are NOT Automatically Saved!   If you choose to save a copy of a conversation, you must enable this option before sending a message.  There is no way to retrieve the message if the conversation window has been closed previously.

     To save IM conversations, click the Messenger menu and select Preferences from the upper left of the screen.  Click on the History tab and check Save conversations.  Click OK to continue.

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 If you are having any difficulty with this tutorial, please feel free to contact helpdesk@dls.rutgers.edu for further assistance.

updated: 11/28/07