sending exception reports "Email client" mode

[piotr.rezmer@ens.net.pl]

Hello,

My customers use application with send mode: "Email Client". When I receive such a message, its body is empty, it contains only "winmail.dat" attachment. Is there any way to send a message in standard way so it could be normally read?

[Alex]

Hi,

winmail.dat is attacment format used by Outlook. See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport_Neutral_Encapsulation_Format

You need to use e-mail client, which supports TNEF. Or you can use external unpacker. Like this: http://www.kopf.com.br/winmail/ or this: http://www.winmaildat.com/

[piotr.rezmer@ens.net.pl]

Is there any way to force Microsoft Outlook send the message in plain text format?
The messages are sent to bug tracking system and converted to issues. Currently, if there are no email decoding problems, new issue is created with winmail.dat attachment. Then, someone has to get the attachment from issue, convert it to normal attachment and then attach it back the the issue.

Another solution is manual work by application user. When outlook is opened, it is necessary to add email recipient to personal address book, and NOT to check "Rich Text Format" for this recipient. Then email with exception reports are sent properly.
It would be good if procedure above was not necessary. Maybe Mail API you're using, allows for setting plain text format?

[Alex]

Hi,

Yes, you can disable creation of winmail.dat in Outlook, but it's not your call. It's e-mail client on the customer's side.

The messages are sent to bug tracking system and converted to issues

You can ask bug tracker developers to add support for Outlook.

Maybe Mail API you're using, allows for setting plain text format?

Which bug tracker do you use? If EurekaLog supports it - you can send issues directly to bug-tracker, skippind e-mail phase.

Other method is to use SMTP sending method. You will send e-mail, but this time e-mail will be formed by you, not the e-mail client installed on the customer's machine.

[piotr.rezmer@ens.net.pl]

Hi,

Yes, you can disable creation of winmail.dat in Outlook, but it's not your call. It's e-mail client on the customer's side.

How can this be disabled? I've heard only about "plain text mode"



Which bug tracker do you use? If EurekaLog supports it - you can send issues directly to bug-tracker, skippind e-mail phase.

It's track+ (www.trackplus.com). Currently there are some cases when corruption happens during reading "winmail.dat". So it's even hard to think about reading contents of that file


Other method is to use SMTP sending method. You will send e-mail, but this time e-mail will be formed by you, not the e-mail client installed on the customer's machine.
Unfortunately (it's probably most often case) those computers do not have direct access to the Internet, email traffic is handled by Microsoft Exchange Server and http traffic via proxy :(

[Alex]

Hi,

Unfortunately (it's probably most often case) those computers do not have direct access to the Internet, email traffic is handled by Microsoft Exchange Server and http traffic via proxy

Either your application sends e-mail or client sends e-mail. If your application sends e-mail - you control how to send. If client sends e-mail - he control how to send.

You can't have both.

How can this be disabled? I've heard only about "plain text mode"

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=138053

[piotr.rezmer@ens.net.pl]

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=138053

Thanks, I'll try to use it.