news [3]

RComp [4] are pleased to announce that the first release of Messenger Pro Server Edition will be at the SouthWest Show this Saturday.

Messenger Pro Server Edition is a top-of-the-line part of the Messenger Pro email software family for RISC OS [5]. The software allows RISC OS users to share email across a network to all manner of computer platforms (RISC OS, Winodws, Linux etc.).

Why do you need Messenger Pro Server?

There are many times that you need to have email flowing through a central machine on a network, especially if you want to be able to...

view that mail on several machines. Even in the home, it is common for one internet account to be shared by several people. If each of those people are on their own machines, they can now view their mail from their own computer.

For example, a child could be sitting playing games on a Windows PC, and be viewing mail without changing machines, whilst their parents were on the RiscPC working away. By using Messenger Pro Server Edition as the central server, you are building on Messenger's well known ease of use and reliability. Enabling the Server can be done in just a couple of mouse clicks!

What's more, the server appears just like standard Messenger Pro 2 in use, making the move from existing versions simple and straightforward.

Additionally, messages can be sent easily between different users on the server (without the need to go online) for effective internal messaging.

If you travel a lot, and carry a laptop, you can download mail from your home machine onto it from MPro server, allowing you to view your mail on the road.

System Requirements

Running any kind of server requires a reasonable system specification, although technically any machine capable of running Messenger Pro and fitted with a network card should be able to do the job. A fast hard disc is recommended!

Remember, you will need a network to run Messenger Pro Server Edition!

Technical Details

Messenger Pro Server Edition provides an IMAP 4 rev 1 mail server, NNTP news server, and SMTP mail sending facilities. This allows it to operate with a broad range of 3rd party email clients on different operating systems. Clearly Messenger Pro Online is recommended under RISC OS [6], and the Server Edition has been tested with various Outlook versions under Windows, as well as a number of Linux and Web-based email clients.

Pricing

The RISC OS market has not been overwhelmed with server products in the past, so pricing has proven tricky. Traditionally, servers are priced per number-of-connections.

To make things a little easier, the Server Edition comes with a home-licence (4 client machines) which is also suitable for most small businesses. Messenger Pro Online is included in the box for use on RISC OS machines, so that there are no "hidden extra" costs.

The RRP of Server Edition is £100 inc VAT and delivery.

Existing users of Messenger Pro 2 can upgrade as follows:

• From Messenger Pro 2.50 standard version - £70 inclusive
  
• From Messenger Pro Online 2.50 - £60 inclusive
  

If you require a licence for a larger network, simply add the normal Messenger Pro site licence cost (£100), although bear in mind that current RISC OS machines are perhaps not the best choice for large networks due to limitations with hard disc and network speeds.