On Thu, Oct 19, 2006 at 10:51:16PM +0000, Tyler wrote: > Hi, > > I really want to try Mutt. However, I'm more than a little overwhelmed > by the documentation. I understand that Mutt requires a properly > configured MTA, and that Exim4 is the recommended, default MTA for > Debian. However, Exim4 seems like a very big hammer for a very small > nail -- I just want to send and receive mail via my pop-mail account on > my laptop. Two questions: I'm not being trite here: google is your friend. There is a ton of stuff including all sorts of folks .muttrc's etc online. see below > > Should I wade into the Exim4 docs and try and figure that out, or is > there a simpler option for someone with minimal experience with such > matters? the Exim4 docs are daunting to be sure. The first thing I would try is using the debain configuration tools: dpkg-reconfigure exim4 (it might be one of the other exim4 packages, poke around in apt-cache search exim4.). You can configure for a smarthost through that. Also, I personally find it much easier to use one big conf file instead of lots of little ones -- this is an option in the reconfigure. For further customization, google on "exim4 smarthost" there are some decent tutorials out there. I'm not at my desk to send my bookmarks, but if I get to it I will. You should read the docs, at least skim them, to get a basic understanding of exim terms like "routers" "transports" and so forth. Also, I recommend you keep the exim4 specification open in a browser while you're doing it because it helps a lot to be able to look stuff up quick. > > If Exim4 is indeed the best option, is there a recommended point of > entry? The Debian Reference is very terse, and assumes a fair bit of > knowledge that I don't have (I need a little more hand-holding than > "configure these files to make it work"). The Exim4 Specification is > very detailed, but aimed at people who already know something. Do I > really need to sit down and work through a full-length book before I > even start with Mutt? > > Currently I'm using Thunderbird, but I'm finding all the you might keep using Tbird while you are testing, just point it to localhost instead of your isp's smarthosts. Tbird will talk to exim and try to send mail through it. Work on sending first. once you get sending done right, getting your mail for mutt is easy -- fetchmail. the mutt website has some good stuff on it including sample .muttrc's. > point-and-clickies are more distracting than enabling. Thanks for any > suggestions! welcome to the light! ;-P A
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