Sometimes people call in needing help and then don't listen to a word you say. This is part of a call I had last Friday.

Cust: Yes I can send email but can't receive any.

Me: Well I'm sorry to hear that sir lets check your settings and see if we can fix this. What program to you use to receive email.

Cust: I'm not receiving any. I can send just fine but nothing is coming in.

Me: Yes sir I realize what the problem is, I was just asking what program you use for email. Is it Outlook Express?

Cust: You want me to use what? Email. I'm having a problem with email.

Me: I know sir, Outlook Express is a common email program and I am asking if you use that program to send and receive your email.

Cust: Outlook Express yeah. Its open right now, you want me to do what?

Me: Click on the Tools menu and then click Accounts.

Cust: Ok

Me: Now click on the Mail tab, do you just have one account in there?

Cust: It just says default. Mail.

Me: Ok click on the Properties button and then click on the Servers tab.

Cust: Ok

Me: There are 4 boxes on this page, incoming mail, outgoing mail, account name, and password. Tell me whats typed in the incoming mail box.

Cust: It says my email address.

Me: For Incoming mail?

Cust: No, for account name.

Me: Ok thats fine, but whats in the Incoming Mail box.

Cust: email.xxxxxxx.net

Me: Ok, we are going to change that go ahead and erase that so the box is empty.

Cust: Yep.

Me: Is it erased?

Cust: What? I just told you it says email.xxxxxx.net. Its in there for both of them.

Me: I realize that sir, you need to erase email.xxxxxx.net so the incoming mail is blank.

Silence............

Me: Ok do you have that done now sir?

Cust: What am I supposed to do?

Me: (third time now, extra slow) Erase email.xxxxxx.net from the incoming mail box so its empty.

Cust: Oh ok.

After this it went fairly smooth. He had to retype the incoming server a couple times because of typos but now he is receiving mail again. Now he can sort through all of that fantastic porn spam he's been missing.