MacBook email question

[youneek28]

Ok, I have had my macbook for a couple of months with no problems with getting and sending email. I travel a lot and I use all kinds of different wireless networks in airports and hotels. However, when I come visit my parents I can receive emails but can't send any. They have a linksys wireless router which is the same as mine at home. Here are the messages I get when I try to send email

Cannot send message using the server smtp.aol.com: my user name.

The connection to the server “smtp.aol.com” on port 25 timed out.

Select a different outgoing mail server from the list below or click Try Later to leave the message in your Outbox until it can be delivered.

Sending from: My name <My email address>

and underneath that I see that both of my email servers are offline.

I have no Idea how to get this to work.

Thanks

 

[chscag]

Which ISP is your parents using? Certain ISPs have been known to block Port 25 and instead use one they designate.

I would suggest not using AOL (especially when you're traveling so much) but switch to a compatible web provider for email such as Google Mail. Mac Mail integrates very well with GMail.

Regards.

 

[youneek28]

Ok, I know aol is not that great but its one of the two that I use. I also use gmail and it is doing the same thing for this one particular wireless network. When I try to send one from the gmail account I get the same message but with the user name of that account is of course different. The gmail account is on port 25 as well. Again, this is the only place I have never encountered this so I thinking it might be the setup of this network.

 

[Haw-Ky]

Can you surf the net from their place, if not, they have the mac filtering turned on, and your mac is not on the list.

http://linksys.custhelp.com/cgi-bin...WFyY2hfdGV4dD1zZWN1cml0eQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1

 

[youneek28]

I am able to get on the internet with no problem, its just the email and I can even receive them just not send any. Weird!!

 

[oleimann]

SMTP limitations on most providers

In case you're still interested (it has been months, after all)...

It's a security issue to allow sending mail through smtp to addresses outside of the domain, because you could use the server to relay e-mail, making tracing the message a lot harder.
Most providers even block access to the sending-SMTP server's port from outside, if it's seperate from where e-mail comes in.

So, you would have to use your parent's internet provider's SMTP server to send e-mail, not the one from aol.

However, if it's just e-mail you want to send from anywhere, use the webmail from your AOL account instead. That should always work

 

[Dysfunction]

Most of the providers that do block port 25 don't block other ports (like 587). Try using the SSL connection options of your mail client. If people would do smtp-auth or pop before smtp or even SSL.. heck if the majority of people out there would enforce rDNS and spf none of this would even be an issue /rant